Chapter 069: Rushing to Reinforce Northern Myanmar and Ren'an Qiang

  Dong Li Mao returned to Lian's department and fell asleep as soon as he lay down, perhaps because he had consumed too much physical strength by the small river in the bamboo forest. This sleep was very sound, and he did not hear Bai Ru Shuang speaking and singing to him in his dreams.

  Little did she know, Bai Ruxue was kept awake all night by Dong Limao's restlessness and incoherent speech on the hospital bed. She had to change his urine-soaked sheets five times, each time catching a glimpse of his erection. This left her astonished - how could someone who had been unconscious for days with severe injuries still get erections so frequently? Moreover, there was not only urine on the sheets, but also other white substances that made Bai Ruxue feel embarrassed. After changing the sheets, she also had to wipe Dong Limao's body clean, and by dawn, she could no longer hold on and fell asleep next to him on the hospital bed.

  Hu San stood guard at the door of Dong Li Mao's bedroom, not letting anyone disturb him. In the afternoon, after 2 pm, Zhu Yongsheng came three times, but Hu San refused to let him in no matter what. On the fourth time, Zhu Yongsheng rushed into the courtyard and shouted loudly:

  "Comrade Company Commander, the Military Department has called several times to urge us, asking why our company hasn't set out yet! It's already past three in the afternoon, if we don't leave now, you'll be taken to a military tribunal!"

  Dong Li Mao heard Zhu Yong Sheng's roar outside the house and immediately got out of bed to ask: "Little Beard, what happened?"

  Hu San then pushed open the door and reported that it was Deputy Platoon Leader Zhu calling.

  Zhu Yongsheng burst in the door and said: "Lian Chang, you can really sleep! The fire is burning your butt, yet you're still sleeping soundly in broad daylight!"

  "Tell me slowly, what exactly happened?" Dong Li Mao asked calmly while putting on his shoes.

  "The battle to rescue the British army has begun! The military department ordered our special operations team to set out before 5 pm and rush to the northern Myanmar battlefield overnight, and must arrive at Ren'anqiang before dawn. The mission is to rescue General Scott, the commander of the First Division of the British Army, from the encirclement of the Japanese army!" Zhu Yongsheng informed Dong Limao of the military department's combat order.

  "What's the time now?" Dong Li Mao asked, straightening his waist after putting on his shoes.

  "Three thirty." Zhu Yongsheng replied.

  "Assemble all the brothers immediately, except for carrying personal weapons and ammunition, as well as one day and night's worth of rations and water, nothing else is allowed!" Dong Li Mao gave orders to Zhu Yong Sheng.

  "The team has assembled, brothers are all waiting for Captain!" Zhu Yongsheng was still in a huff, speaking loudly to boost morale.

  Dong Li Mao put on his upper armor, picked up the bayonet placed at the head of the bed, took down the steel helmet hanging on the wall and buckled it on his head, inserted the military knife into the scabbard in his right boot: "Let's go!" He strode out of the doorway.

  Outside the courtyard, all the soldiers of the special operations team were waiting on four trucks. Dong Li Mao directly got into the jeep, Hu San sat in the co-pilot's seat, Pan Guang Zu held a clay pot with both hands and sat in the back seat with a mysterious smile looking at Dong Li Mao, Zhu Yong Sheng sat down beside him with a thud.

  Dong Li Mao saw Pan Guang Zu holding a clay pot in his arms and thought it was strange. After starting the car, he asked: "East Gourd, why are you holding a clay pot in your arms?"

  "Hehe... This is the Dragon and Tiger Soup I cooked for Lian Zhang." Pan Guangzu said, lifting the lid of the clay pot, a strong meaty aroma wafted straight into Dong Limao's nostrils.

  "Haha... it smells so good, what's this Dragon and Tiger Soup?" Dong Li Mao's stomach growled with hunger as the aroma of the soup wafted up, asking with a chuckle.

  Pan Guangzu said: "Don't tell you first, see if you can taste anything?" He handed the earthen pot to Hu San: "You feed Lian Chang."

  There was a spoon in the clay pot, made of bamboo. Hu San scooped up a spoonful from the pot, with meat and soup on top. He swallowed his saliva and extended the spoon to Dong Li Mao's mouth.

  Dong Li Mao held the steering wheel with his left hand and took over the spoon with his right, spilling soup on his pants. He first took a sip of the soup, which was still scalding hot, but indeed tasted great. Then he picked up a piece of meat from the spoon and sucked it into his mouth. The meat was cooked to perfection, tender and flavorful. Dong Li Mao exclaimed, "I've never had this kind of meat before! What kind of dragon and tiger soup did you make?"

  "Hehe... it's a stew made with python and wild cat meat, I'll name this stew 'Dragon Tiger Stew'." Pan Guangzu replied.

  "The flavor is good, and the name is also great, Dragon Tiger Soup! I like it!" Dong Limao finished eating the meat in his spoon and handed the spoon to Hu San, saying: "Little Huzi, you and Old Zhu also try the Dragon Tiger Soup cooked by Dongguan military officer."

  "I'm telling you, Military Supply Officer, this is a great tonic!" Zhu Yongsheng said, taking a piece of wild cat meat from the spoon that Hu San had scooped up and putting it in his mouth.

  "Haha...... I think Lianzhang has been too tired these days, needs to nourish his body, so I invited Gouhao, last night in the suburbs' bamboo forest and small riverbank, we ambushed for half a night, and finally caught both 'Dragon' and 'Tiger'. Lianzhang, drink more soup, this is personally cooked by me, just right to nourish your body. Haha......" Pan Guangzu's smile had some kind of implication.

  "Did you and Gou Hao go to the bamboo forest by the small river last night?" Dong Li Mao was taken aback, turning his head back to ask.

  "Haha...... Yeah, we both saw...... Haha......" Pan Guangzu didn't say anything more.

  Zhu Yongsheng asked strangely: "What did you two see?"

  Pan Guangzu glanced at Dong Limao and then whispered a few words into Zhu Yongsheng's ear.

  Zhu Yongsheng's mouth was agape, his eyes wide with excitement as he patted Dong Li Mao on the back and exclaimed: "Well done, Dong Jia Cheng! It seems you've really been bewitched by that vixen! Do you deserve your siblings and newborn child in Chengdu? Look at the great things you're doing! How can I even begin to describe you..."

  Dong Li Mao didn't respond, he knew clearly in his heart that what happened last night had nothing to do with Tai Gong Gong, it was obviously something he did himself.

  "Lao Zhu, our car can only travel more than 20 kilometers, and then we have to walk. Are the brothers mentally prepared?" Dong Li Mao shifted the topic to the task at hand, having recently studied many topographic maps, knowing how to navigate the road to Ren'anqiang area in northern Myanmar.

  "I had all the brothers tie their pant legs with backpack straps to prevent snakes and insects in the mountains." answered Zhu Yongsheng.

  "Is it the newly organized 38th Division, 113th Regiment, that clashed with the Japanese army surrounding the First Division and Tank Regiment?" Dong Li Mao recalled from his limited memory of historical materials that the Battle of Renanqiao was a battle launched by the British army after being surrounded by the Japanese army and running out of ammunition and food, and had to ask for reinforcements from the Expeditionary Force. The 66th Army's newly organized 38th Division was responsible for this relief operation.

  "Commander, how did you know?" Zhu Yongsheng asked with some surprise, as he recalled that he hadn't given a detailed report to Dong Li Mao.

  Dong Li Mao couldn't answer Zhu Yong Sheng's question: "How did I know, don't worry about it first, just talk about your idea. We can't break in openly, we can only sneak in under the cover of night and rescue that damned British division commander!"

  "After receiving the order from the military department, I looked at the map of Yan'an, Renhe County, and there are two plans. One is to pass through the virgin forest, although it will be faster, but we may get lost, which will make it difficult for us to complete our task; The second plan is to go upstream along the banks of the Renhe River, the road will be more difficult to walk, and we may encounter Japanese troops, the speed of advance will be very slow, and it's unlikely that we can enter the encirclement before dawn." Zhu Yongsheng spoke out his thoughts.

  Dong Li Mao listened to Zhu Yong Sheng's words, and the topography of Ren An Qiang area appeared in his mind. After a while, he opened his mouth and said:

  "My idea is that we split into two routes, one through the primeval forest and the other along the Ren'an River upstream, marching at night. What we must avoid is having a large troop acting together in unison, dispersing our forces will be beneficial for infiltration, making it harder to expose our target, and also speeding up our advance. You lead half of the brothers through the primeval forest, I'll lead the other half along the riverbank. Whoever arrives first must rescue that foreigner named Scott. Remember, the military department's order is to rescue Scott, we don't need to care about anyone else, let's not get too entangled with the Japanese army." said Dong Li Mao.

  "Let's go along the riverbank instead," said Zhu Yongsheng, knowing that walking along the riverbank was far more perilous than trekking through the primeval forest.

  "This is an order, you don't have to argue anymore. Also, bring Liu Xingyu and Gou Hao with you." Dong Limao arranged this because Liu Xingyu could speak Japanese and English, and Gou Hao had experience in night battles through the primitive forest.