Chapter 30: Zen Da Reorganization, a Company of 160 Men

The unit's temporary reorganization is complete.

"Lin Yi, record this: this is the first temporary reorganization our Independent Battalion has undertaken, temporarily setting a company at 160 men, each company with three platoons, each platoon 40 men, additionally establishing a mortar squad of 15 men, a machine‑gun squad of 15 men, and a company section of 10 men."

"The Seventh Company and the Eighth Company are provisionally assigned as Transport Company and Logistics Company; as for the unit I brought, treat it as the Ninth Company."

"Yes, Battalion Commander," Lin Yi immediately pulls out a small notebook and records it.

Lin Yi does not understand why a battalion has nine companies, but he gradually comes to accept this Battalion Commander, even though the battalion's organization is somewhat exaggerated.

Xiao Si actually knows some writing, but Jiang Anguo thinks it is better for Lin Yi to handle it; he wants to place Lin Yi in the Logistics Department.

"The organization below this is yours to convey, and also tell them not to be surprised; I will adjust personnel from time to time, and outstanding personnel will be assigned to every company," Jiang Anguo said.

"Yes, Battalion Commander."

Jiang Anguo still feels uneasy; if he selects the best among these soldiers to be Platoon Leader or Company Commander, the problem is that weapon tactics require time to master.

They are not even comparable to Basic Infantry; this all requires time to train.

Does Jiang Anguo have time? He has none. He must depart by the end of March at the latest; if it is later, he cannot guarantee that Lashu will not be taken by the Japanese, and that would be trouble.

The safest method is veterans leading new recruits, that is, inserting system‑provided infantry into each company, and Jiang Anguo also needs to exchange Company Platoon Officers; this way, within a short time, the unit can develop combat power.

Since each squad is on the side and the battalions are nearby, combining two battalions into a company proceeds quite quickly.

The formation was completed quickly.

Jiang Anguo is pleased, "Your speed this time was fast; I am satisfied. Also, yesterday I asked you to have everyone who can read stand out, don't all cram into one company; each company should have eight or nine people, line up quickly."

"Today's mission is over; your only remaining task is literacy. If you don't recognize the characters, you can't hope to be a general."

Sure enough, at the mention of study and literacy, these people wore expressions of pain; that is more distressing than killing them.

Mainly because it's truly too hard, the kind of difficulty a boss would face.

"If you want to be a Company Commander, you must learn eight hundred characters within a month; that is the mission."

Jiang Anguo no longer stays here watching everyone study; he goes to calculate tomorrow's points and the characters to exchange.

Because this is a very important matter, involving the unit's combat power and command structure.

March 1, 1942.

The march of war draws ever nearer.

The reward Jiang Anguo offered today remains a uniform; everyone, eager to get new clothes, fought fiercely like roosters, each giving it their all.

Injuries during training are common in the unit; minor wounds are ignored, but once bones or tendons are damaged, they go to Lei Ao and Li Qing for a look.

Unbeknownst to anyone, Jiang Anguo has already inserted the system‑exchanged soldiers into the various units.

He exchanged a total of twelve Platoon‑Leader‑rank soldiers and four Company‑Commander‑rank soldiers; each requires 50 points, and 50 points can exchange for one elite soldier.

A Company Commander requires 100 points, so the Company Commanders and Platoon Leaders together cost Jiang Anguo 1,000 points.

Yesterday plus today's points total 1,955, leaving 955 points; counting the 16 exchanged Company and Platoon Leaders, Jiang Anguo has 971 points left. He is not in a hurry to purchase more soldiers; he believes the Ninth Company's soldiers should be distributed.

Soon the morning's appetizer was over; Jiang Anguo, as usual, personally presented uniforms to the winning team as encouragement.

Next comes a 300‑meter sprint. "Everyone remember, this 300‑meter run is still a team event, organized by squad; the top three squads receive rewards."

While eating, Jiang Anguo assigned the Ninth Company's soldiers: one company has nearly four platoons, about sixteen squads, each squad receiving two Basic Infantry.

The soldier's main task is, in spare time, to present the weapon in hand, its usage, and its lethality.

For the soldiers, weapons are still more attractive; far more appealing than studying.

Each company was assigned 32 Basic soldiers; six companies thus need 192 Basic soldiers, and the Seventh and Eighth Companies each received one soldier to join.

The Ninth Company actually does not lack many personnel, because the infantry allocated from each unit are drawn, effectively meaning all those drawn soldiers entered the Ninth Company.

However, this makes the Ninth Company a rookie company without weapons; all its soldiers are supplements from the other companies.

Thus, at least the other eight companies have complete organization, and the overall unit's understanding of weapons is a great improvement.

The Ninth Company thus becomes a reserve unit.

Jiang Anguo has known everyone for only three days, and the same goes for the units; people are still not very familiar, so even now inserting personnel inside will not attract attention.

Even if Jiang Anguo directly appoints Company and Platoon Leaders, no one will object.

The Company Commanders and Platoon Leaders Jiang Anguo arranged have already successfully entered the ranks, and these sixteen soldiers all carry weapons; the Company and Platoon Leaders each carry an MP40 Submachine Gun, along with two submachine‑gun ammo pouches, each pouch holding three magazines of 32 rounds.

The firepower remains quite fierce, and ammunition is plentiful.

The submachine gun's drawbacks are obvious; it is unsuitable for trench warfare, but in breakthrough, jungle, street, or urban combat its firepower advantage is clear.

In trench warfare, the submachine gun's effective range is a hundred meters, and the distance that actually inflicts damage is only seventy or eighty meters; when the enemy is that close, why fight a trench battle? Just grab the weapon and charge in; close‑quarters becomes a hail of fire.

Jiang Anguo does not want them to die needlessly; lacking tactics, weak combat will, and poor physical condition, it is better to let the system's soldiers take over the unit.

That is also the best, allowing everyone to exert their maximum combat capability.

If you call this group new recruits, most soldiers have received basic training and have seen real battlefields; only Jiang Anguo remains a true rookie.

But if you speak of veterans, these soldiers have all retreated from front‑line battles.

Raising this group's morale in the short term remains very difficult.

"Everyone see the soldiers I assigned to each squad, right? Starting today, each of you has the right to use five rounds of ammunition per day; you must learn the rifle's operation, shooting range, rate of fire, and maintenance," Jiang Anguo temporarily provides only five rounds per day for shooting practice; more is unavailable.

Points are still insufficient: only 971 points, wait, an additional 79 points were added, now the total is 1,050.

Twenty‑nine people have not yet joined their units.

1,050 points looks like a lot, but if exchanged for mm Ammunition, it can only purchase a handful of rounds, not enough for a single battle.

Therefore Jiang Anguo must ensure enough points to exchange for ammunition and artillery shells; if all points are spent on combat personnel, the number of soldiers rises and firepower increases.

But after three seconds of holding out, without ammunition or logistics, trouble ensues.

Three hundred thousand rounds of ammunition—that's a matter of time.