Chapter 460: They're all a bunch of free-loaders

Hey, I heard that the deputy brigade commander is about to be transferred.

Where is he being transferred to?

To the Third Brigade, to serve as acting brigade commander.

Is the source reliable?

Of course it's reliable, absolutely certain.

Nowadays, most military funds go into surface fleet and submarine squadrons; does our Marine Corps have spare money to set up the Third Brigade?

There's a hammer, I heard it's just an empty shell—even the site is what the army left after rotating defenses; there's no funding, no weapons or equipment at all.

Hey, as acting brigade commander, his authority isn't even as big as before; it looks like a promotion, but in reality it's no different from a demotion.

So later, should we still consider that past relationship, or just pretend and give a little? Among these army units transferred over, there are plenty of experienced veterans and specialists.

What's there to consider? One emperor, one minister—he used to be our Second Brigade's deputy commander, now he's in the Third Brigade, what's it to us? If we can pick up leftovers, we certainly will; later we'll just toss them a few melons and dates.

Hehehe, I think the same—later don't fight me for them, I at least need to snag five hot items back... shh, footsteps, sounds like someone's coming!

The meeting room door was pushed open, and Zheng Chengfeng brought Lu Yang in from outside.

Just moments ago they were all chattering, but now, preparing from this 'low-price procurement,' all dozen or so grassroots commanders stood up.

They used to be Zheng Chengfeng's nominal subordinates, and some were from the First Brigade.

Deputy brigade commander, good!

I'm no longer your deputy brigade commander—please have a seat.

Zheng Chengfeng politely waved his hand, indicating everyone should sit down.

A battalion commander wearing a major's rank insignia spoke very humbly.

Deputy brigade commander, don't say that—you've given us a lot of help in the past; even if you're transferred, in our hearts you remain a good commander!

Yeah, deputy brigade commander, we don't want you to leave, we all don't want you to go!

Don't go, commander, don't go—this is the people's call!

Lu Yang sat to the side, holding a notebook, serving as the meeting recorder.

Looking at Zheng Chengfeng's fake smile and seeing the subordinates' insincere pleas, he actually felt like laughing a bit.

Although everyone present is a company- or battalion-level grassroots commander, don't underestimate their intelligence—each one is full of schemes.

They know what Zheng Chengfeng wants from them, and they know what they want from the Sea Training Base, but on the surface that deep affection still has to be acted out, otherwise people would say 'once you leave, the tea gets cold.'

Moreover, Zheng Chengfeng used to be just a deputy brigade commander in the Second Brigade, not a regular post; most of the time he worked behind the scenes, and his emotional connection with grassroots units was so-so, hardly anything to be reluctant about.

However, Lu Yang understood one thing: those willing to come here have already prepared to sacrifice some minor interests in exchange for the privilege of picking the best troops first.

Because the troops at the Sea Training Base are of a quality that no new recruit company can match; these are all elite army units transferred over, and many soldiers can operate independently.

If we could bring these elites back, that would be like striking gold—almost no different from picking up money on the street.

After a brief exchange of pleasantries, Zheng Chengfeng got straight to the point: 'Today I've gathered you all for one matter—troop allocation. The Sea Training Base's assessment is completely finished, and each unit's scores have come out.'

Considering these aren't new recruits but a group of army veterans with rich combat experience, leadership experience, and grassroots management experience, we definitely can't allocate them as we did with new recruit companies—averaging and randomly dividing.

Instead, we should allocate according to need, based on each unit's required personnel type and troop type, conducting a more reasonable and fine-grained distribution, which is the only way to specifically boost combat power at all levels.

And as the military officer in charge of the Sea Training Base, I will certainly prioritize taking care of our old unit's brothers, letting you pick first.

The grassroots commanders below all sat up straighter, their previously lax eyes turning attentive and earnest.

In the army, the three things commanders value most are: funding, weapons, and quality manpower.

But the first two are basically fixed; unless there's some outstanding major performance, they won't fluctuate.

But the last item is forever the commanders' top concern; because many companies truly gain more honor and attention thanks to just one or two exceptionally outstanding soldiers.

Iron Foot is the best example—once the perennial runner-up of the Special Third Regiment, after Lu Yang joined it once even overwhelmed the perennial champion Hard Bone Seventh Company.

Not only did it crush them in strength, but also in study education, military bearing, training atmosphere, and so on—almost across the board.

It even appeared multiple times in the military newspaper, receiving praise from regiment and division leaders, becoming a division-level exemplary company.

Allocating troops to companies from the new recruit company is like scratching a lottery ticket; whoever you draw gets the big prize.

But at the Sea Training Base, everyone is a veteran, with scores, specialties, and merits all written down on paper.

This is like spending twenty to buy a lottery ticket that wins two hundred; it's not even an investment—it's pure profit.

A captain couldn't hold back and spoke first: 'Commander, our company is forming an assault team; we lack a few qualified assault soldiers—could we prioritize two experienced machine gunners and an assault soldier?'

I know your Third Brigade is facing some obstacles in its formation; I'm willing to contribute what little I can, allocating five thousand from our company's funds.

Lu Yang had intended to take notes, but upon hearing the words 'five thousand,' his pen stopped unconsciously.

Heh, indeed it's paltry—do you really have the nerve to speak up first with ten thousand?

At least the commander once served as our brigade's deputy commander and gave us his patronage.

Our warehouse just received a batch of prime beef and mutton, plus Luo shrimp; we'd like to prioritize a few good gunners, preferably those of third term or higher.

Hahaha!

The speaker's words instantly provoked uproarious laughter; the person sitting next to him even mouthed a curse.

Lu Yang could clearly see that the person was saying the two words 'shithead'.

Taking beef, mutton, and Luo shrimp, they wanted to swap out a few excellent gunners, while also demanding those of third term or higher.

What does that mean? Those of third term or higher are basically mainstays like Cheng Jun, Zhou Kaidong, and Guo Yongwen, carefully cultivated by the company.

Each of them has rich leadership experience and solid military skills—absolutely the kind that would be snatched up anywhere; wanting to trade them for a bit of frozen meat is practically no different from freeloading.

Lu Yang could clearly see their freeloading faces, and Zheng Chengfeng naturally saw them too; beneath his friendly smile, he'd already devised a countermeasure.

I've felt everyone's enthusiasm, I've received your goodwill; in this special period, an extra bit of effort will speed up the Third Brigade's preparations by a notch.

But there are only so many good troops—you want good gunners and shooters, he wants them, they want them, everyone wants them—how do we allocate then?

Commander, that's easy—just go by past performance; whoever had better scores in their old unit gets to pick first.

Get out of here—those scores are fluid; you won last quarter, I won this quarter, how are we supposed to calculate?

The meeting room instantly turned chaotic; in order to secure priority access to the Sea Training Base's high-quality troops, everyone crowded around the table shouting, refusing to yield to one another.

Zheng Chengfeng also put on a troubled, headache expression, as if taking anyone's side would be wrong; he added that it was all for the army's construction, for balanced development, and urged everyone not to argue.

He secretly gave Lu Yang a look, and Lu Yang, who had been waiting a long time, finally got a chance to speak.

Chief, I have a proposal that is absolutely fair and reasonable?