Chapter 633: Dormancy

The entire training base is filled with nonstop gunfire and lingering smoke every day, with all personnel engaged in round‑the‑clock immersive combat drills.

All soldiers have uniformly switched to American main battle weapons—M1 Garand rifles and Tommy guns have replaced the old Hanyang rifles and Zhongzheng models, resulting in a cliff‑like boost in rate of fire, firepower density, and tolerance for error.

It lets Nationalist Army soldiers, accustomed to scant firepower, experience for the first time the suppressive power of modern automatic firearms.

During a break, a rookie holding an M1 Garand rifle runs his fingers over the finely crafted bolt and says to the veteran beside him, "This gun automatically ejects shells, has an eight‑round magazine for sustained fire, doesn't require loading round by round, and saves far more effort than the old rifles—its close‑quarters suppression is truly a weapon of choice."

The veteran steadies his weapon, aims at the target, and replies calmly, "New guns are great, but you still have to train a steady feel. The Nanyang veterans said fast guns require even steadier fire; a one‑second mistake in street fighting can be a matter of life and death."

During street‑clearing drills, a squad wielding Tommy guns pushes forward rapidly, delivering short bursts that clear the simulated cover.

A squad leader, reloading, reminds his comrades, "The Tommy's rate of fire is high and its suppression strong; it's unbeatable in close‑quarters street fighting, but it burns ammo fast. Everyone must use burst fire to control ammo and avoid mindlessly spraying and wasting rounds."

A teammate follows closely, charging into position, and replies in a low voice, "Got it! Before we lacked ammo and had to rely on bayonets; now we have firepower backup, so we'll adopt new tactics—using firepower to save lives!"

The Nanko instructor team led by Yao Quanyi conducts the training with relentless rigor, never being perfunctory.

They personally demonstrate the street‑fighting tactics distilled from the Battle of Yichang: alternating cover while advancing, segment‑by‑segment clearing of blocks, throwing explosives over walls, corner‑position reconnaissance, and fire‑suppressed pushing—each move forged from countless bloody battles as a survival method.

Unlike the Nationalist Army's previously rigid drill formations and formalized exercises.

This special‑training unit uses actual combat as the standard throughout.

Simulated artillery coverage, flank raids, hidden‑fort ambushes, street sniping and other sudden scenarios force soldiers to quickly adapt to new weapons, new tactics, and a new battlefield tempo.

By day, everyone practices weapons handling, tactical simulations, and block assaults; by night, they review Nanyang battle cases and dissect Japanese Army defensive weaknesses, enabling soldiers from both major war zones to shed outdated infantry mindsets and truly develop a modern combined‑operations consciousness.

The Nationalist Army units, originally uneven in combat power, become increasingly disciplined, tactically mature, and cohesively coordinated under Nanko's elite polishing, achieving a complete transformation of overall combat capability.

Yet while the entire army trains feverishly and readies for the counteroffensive, the National Government's top brass quietly adopts an external narrative that deliberately downplays Jiang Anguo's and Nanko's existence.

Although core factions such as Jiang, Kong, Song, Chen and frontline commanders know the truth, in external propaganda, international reports, and army‑wide announcements—

The National Government's unified statement: all American weapons equipment, artillery, and military supplies were procured by the National Government from the United States government, constituting official U. S. aid to China, and it never mentions Nanko or Jiang Anguo's gratuitous support and resource exchanges.

The motive is purely pragmatic: first, to deliberately weaken Jiang Anguo's influence in the domestic military‑political sphere, preventing civilians and troops from over‑admiring Nanko and diluting the National Government's legitimate authority.

Second, to sidestep international opinion, avoiding U. S. suspicion and British displeasure, and preventing great powers from being alarmed by Nanko's rise, which could spark unnecessary diplomatic turbulence.

Third, to maintain domestic military‑political balance, preventing regional factions from believing the National Government relies on Nanyang forces and thus undermining central authority.

This external narrative can deceive ordinary soldiers, junior officers, and civilians, but it cannot fool senior military leadership.

War‑zone commanders such as Li Zongren and Xue Yue participated throughout the receipt of arms, unit reorganization, and special‑training coordination, personally witnessing from start to finish the massive flow of American Equipment descending from the sky and continuously shipped from Nanko.

Having seen Nanko instructors travel north to train and hand‑craft the troops, they already grasped the full truth.

Everyone knows that the official U. S. aid supplies are few, outdated, and strictly approved, making it impossible to provide in one go top‑tier gear for four armies, twelve infantry divisions, and a heavy artillery division.

A full set of American equipment of this scale, quality, and battlefield fit can only come from Nanko, which has deep resources and control over American arms channels.

Everyone also knows that Jiang Anguo's gratuitous arms donations and troop assistance, seemingly a lifeline for the nation, actually conceal a far‑reaching scheme.

Weapons can be given away, tactics taught, elite units supported, but all accompanying ammunition, shells, parts, and maintenance supplies are firmly held by Nanko.

The offensive blades of the two Central China war zones, seemingly in the National Government's grasp, actually have their lifelines entirely tied to Nanyang; every move, every battle, is constrained by Nanko.

One year of dormant training, one year of covert scheming.

From the outside, it appears the National Government is strengthening the army, receiving U. S. aid, and building strength for a counteroffensive.

In reality, Jiang Anguo is silently solidifying Huaxia's anti‑war foundation, controlling the fate of Central China's battle situation, and laying crucial groundwork for later territorial recovery and stabilizing the Nanyang configuration.

Since the dormant training and preparation for the Wuhan Counteroffensive in the two Central China war zones, the Changde front has not only amassed 200,000 elite ground troops equipped with American gear.

It also garrisons an aerial blade that will decide the battle's outcome—the flight squadron under Nick.

Since the Battle of Yichang, Nick's flight squadron has been stationed along the Dangyang‑Changde front line, serving as the frontline air base protecting Chongqing.

However, before the fighting began, Jiang Anguo had already dispatched bombers that bombed most of Little Japan's airports across Huaxia.

Therefore Nick's Jianghan area is very quiet; no Little Devil fighter or bomber is seen, and after the Battle of Yichang, not a single Little Devil aircraft dared to fly toward Chongqing.

This air unit remains stationed long‑term at the Changde front‑line airfield, on constant standby.

It is specifically building up for this large‑scale Wuhan Counteroffensive, serving as the core air force for the allied troops to break through the Japanese anti‑air system, suppress ground fortifications, and cover the army's advance.

To fully seize air superiority and, together with ground forces, smash through Wuhan's Japanese fortified city defenses in one strike.

Jiang Anguo specifically, for this counteroffensive mission, massively reinforced and expanded Nick's flight squadron, comprehensively boosting its air‑to‑air combat, ground‑strike bombing, and battlefield interdiction capabilities.

Previously, Nick's mission, after William left, was to serve as commander of Nanko's aviation regiment in the Jianghan area, safeguarding the region's security.

But this time is different; the National Government is preparing a massive counteroffensive, and the number of fighters and bombers under Nick's command is clearly insufficient.

Both ground and air units need reinforcement.

In modern warfare, aircraft remain paramount, especially bombers, which can destroy the enemy's ground positions in the first wave before an attack.

That is why Jiang Anguo urgently transferred aircraft from Lashu to Jianghan.