Chapter 397: Vast Realm of Southeast Asia

On the first day they arrived at Lashu, and on the second day Zhang Ping had already received the teaching materials and began instruction.

Zhang Ping even felt a bit envious of the other soldiers who came with him; some were assigned to farms, others to power plants—overall good posts, and the key point was that they could now support themselves.

As for the promised farmland when they arrived, it seemed not much related to him, because Zhang Ping doesn't know how to farm; after all, his family had previously been intellectuals.

Only that his parents at home were brutally killed by Japanese Devils, so he enlisted.

Chen Da, a native of Shaxi, an honest, simple farmer who has been a farmer all his life, sixty years old, his face full of wrinkles, had never imagined in his life that he would be so far from home.

He had just arrived here, that is, Myanmar, and felt uneasy inside.

But when Chen Da picked up the hoe and swung the first scoop, his mind steadied considerably.

The meals here are really good; one can eat three meals a day and be full, though the climate differs from his hometown. Although it rains in June, the rain isn't as heavy as here, nor as frequent.

Chen Da is still getting familiar with Myanmar's climate.

And not long after arriving in Myanmar, Chen Da also became a teacher—a agriculture teacher—teaching these laypeople how to farm. This is Chen Da's specialty; in the era without pesticides or fertilizers, the yield per mu on his fields often exceeds others by about twenty percent.

Many women were also assigned to various logistics departments.

As for the children, they were placed into different schools according to age.

Of course, if an adult never attended school, that's fine; there are night schools, which are compulsory—if you don't attend, you won't be given food.

As expected, at first there was no one, but later it became packed with people.

The main goal is still to eliminate illiteracy, giving everyone more future development opportunities.

These are the Huaxia civilians who entered Myanmar with the first batch under Jiang Anguo; Jiang Anguo also doesn't want them to be farmers forever, living in cramped conditions in Myanmar for their whole lives.

Each day, about fifty flights from Dangyang to Lashu take off—not many, but there's no alternative, and civilians are gradually gathering near Dangyang.

And Jiang Anguo built a temporary camp at Dangyang Airport, just tents for wind and rain protection; civilians transported from across the country rest here before flying to Lashu.

Of course, space in Lashu is limited, and land is also limited.

Some people transship at Lashu, then board transport vehicles to Dongzhi, which is Jiang Anguo's front‑line base.

It's not only the front line; the rear is the same. Jiang Anguo has a force that has never been deployed, stationed in Chanda, with roughly three companies of soldiers. When they first moved south into Myanmar, they were left in Chanda, hoping to be useful in a critical moment, since Jiang Anguo's troop numbers count as points in the WarSystem.

And later Li Yi's guerrilla unit also retreated into Chanda for rest.

Civilians on the Yunnan border are building the Dian-Mian Highway, which also demands manpower and effort, even costing lives.

Therefore, Jiang Anguo tries as hard as possible to have people persuade the local residents; fortunately, the nearby civilians are not hostile to northern Myanmar, as many speak the same language.

The first target is the impoverished.

These people are easier to convince.

There is no deep attachment to the homeland; when you can't get enough food and war rages continuously.

When you can't even get enough to eat, and suddenly someone draws a big cake for you—crucially, actually hands you a big cake—what else would you consider at that moment?

Southeast Asia's vast realm holds great possibilities!

Jiang Anguo looked at the telegram in his hand, his face showing no expression.

"I'm a Major General now!" Jiang Anguo said to himself.

He never imagined he could become a Major General one day; now he is a general.

From Captain to General in just a few months—what could be a lifetime for others.

But for this Major General Jiang Anguo, the entire Military Commission finds no reason to refuse, because his combat record is evident to all.

Among the current Major Generals and Lieutenant Generals, none can surpass Jiang Anguo.

Even Xue Yue of Changsha cannot surpass him; Jiang Anguo's record includes the total annihilation of two Japanese Army divisions.

And the Military Commission gave him a division's structure, the 201st Division, still under the Expeditionary Force.

Moreover, the Military Commission specifically transferred forces from two infantry regiments at rear training centers to reinforce his 201st Division, prompting Jiang Anguo to glance toward Chongqing.

Each training center's infantry regiment is at least 1,500 men; two regiments amount to about 3,000 troops.

His uncle is still very generous toward him.

Nevertheless, the gifts Jiang Anguo sent were generous: annihilating the Japanese 13th Division and the 39th Division, and even capturing two division commanders—a unique feat on the Huaxia Battlefield.

Jiang Anguo looked at the system panel's personnel numbers, and after the Yichang contingent, they were upgraded again.

The system once again rewarded Jiang Anguo with a 5,000‑person structure, meaning his independent regiment—no, from now on, it should be the 201st Division—with the personnel count reached people.

One of his divisions has a structure exceeding thirty thousand personnel.

Division Commander!

Army Commander!

Chief.

To know, in Myanmar he has five infantry regiments each exceeding three thousand five hundred personnel.

This does not include the soldiers he sent out, the thousands who reinforced the 200th Division.

"Young Master, have you tallied how many people are in our independent regiment—no, our division?" Xiao Si, who follows Jiang Anguo and has learned a lot, also has some education.

This figure, no matter how you look at it, exceeds ten thousand people!

Jiang Anguo gave a mysterious smile, "Of course I know."

Jiang Anguo would never tell outsiders that his division has over thirty thousand men, few light weapons, and that the aircraft overhead and the ground tanks and howitzers are not equipment a standard infantry division should have.

If not for geographic constraints, Jiang Anguo could at this point equip a navy.

"By the way, Xiao Si, is Director Dai still in Chongqing?" Jiang Anguo asked.

He hasn't received a telegram from Dai Anlan's side for several days.

Xiao Si immediately replied, "Young Master, Director Dai has already returned to Lashu."

Dai Anlan indeed isn't suited for staying long in Chongqing; currently his 200th Division is the unit closest to the Japanese 15th Army. Corner Mei is only 120 km from Mandalay, and the front‑line Naoqiu is only 90 km from Mandalay.

"Xiao Si, we should also prepare and return to Lashu," Jiang Anguo said finally.

The arrival of the rainy season flood period means mechanized operations are no longer possible on the Jianghan Plain; fortunately, whether it's the 9th War Zone, the 5th War Zone, or the 18th Army of the 6th War Zone, troops have been dispatched to defend and retake lost ground.

The Chinese and Japanese armies faced off on both banks of the Han River.