Chapter 80: Teach Me How to Fight

It took Li Jingsong nearly 20 minutes to compose himself. He wiped his tear-streaked face with his sleeve, looked up at Hu Hao, and said, “Motherfucker, you really aren’t a true brother!”

“Huh?” Hu Hao stared at him, completely thrown off by the sudden accusation. The other veterans sitting nearby also exchanged confused glances, having no idea what the Division Commander was talking about.

“I wanted to talk to you last night!” Li Jingsong complained. “At first, I couldn’t figure out exactly what I wanted to say, so I just sat there thinking. But when I finally figured it out and came looking for you, what did I find?! You were sitting under a tree with a woman in your arms!

I was burning with frustration and had absolutely no one to talk to! I didn’t sleep a wink last night because of you, motherfucker!”

“Oh, come on! How is that my fault?!” Hu Hao protested, exasperated. “She’s an old classmate of mine! Do you honestly expect a civilian girl to see a slaughterhouse like that and just brush it off?! She came to me terrified; what was I supposed to do, push her away?!”

“Mmh. Fine. Anyway, I have something serious to discuss with you,” Li Jingsong nodded, his expression turning solemn.

“I’m listening,” Hu Hao said, giving him his full attention.

“Teach me how to fight. Let me follow you, and you teach me how to command,” Li Jingsong stated, looking Hu Hao dead in the eye. “I want revenge. I want to be worthy of the uniform I’m wearing.”

Hu Hao stared at him suspiciously.

“I’m completely serious, Hu Hao. You really have to teach me this time. Before yesterday… honestly, my only plan was to just survive. I figured once we fell back and regrouped, I’d use my family’s connections to secure a cushy staff position far away from the front lines.

I’d go work in Zone Command, or have my old man pull some strings so I could sit in an office at the General Staff in the Capital. I knew I couldn’t command troops in battle, so I figured I’d just resign my active command so I wouldn’t get any more men killed.

But last night… I finally understood. Even if I step down as Division Commander, I have to stay on the front line! I have to get revenge! I’m not doing it for glory or honor; I’m doing it for the children who died under the coalition’s guns!” Li Jingsong declared with absolute conviction.

Hu Hao listened quietly, then slowly nodded his head.

“So you agree?!” Li Jingsong’s face lit up instantly.

“Hell no. I just meant that your realization is correct, and your change of heart is commendable,” Hu Hao shot back, immediately bursting his bubble.

“If it’s commendable, then you have to support me! That means you agree!” Li Jingsong insisted stubbornly.

“Stop spouting nonsense. ‘Teach you how to fight’? You’re a Major General! You’re supposed to be commanding a Division! I’m just a Lieutenant Colonel; at best, I can command a Regiment. I am your subordinate! How exactly am I supposed to teach you how to fight while I’m busy leading my own men?” Hu Hao waved him off dismissively.

“You become the Regimental Commander, and I’ll act as your Regimental Chief of Staff! I will voluntarily demote myself to serve under you. Will that work?” Li Jingsong offered, completely unfazed.

“Wait… you really aren’t joking?” Hu Hao asked, genuinely surprised by the offer.

“Do I look like I’m in the mood to joke? I said I want to learn how to fight! Once I actually possess the tactical capability to lead a Division in combat, I’ll reclaim my position as Division Commander! But until I have that skill, I refuse to lead any more brothers to their deaths!” Li Jingsong stated firmly.

“Well said, General!”

Xiao Quan and the other Regimental Colonels had walked over during the conversation. Hearing Li Jingsong’s sincere admission, they immediately gave him a unified thumbs-up.

“I’m completely serious,” Li Jingsong glanced at his Colonels before turning back to Hu Hao.

“Hao-ge, we want to learn from you too! If you’re the Regimental Commander, we’ll step down and act as your Battalion Commanders! Hell, we’ll be Company Commanders if we have to! We just want to follow you into battle!” Xiao Quan laughed, stepping forward with the others.

“Piss off! What are you guys doing?! I’m trying to have a serious conversation with Hao-ge!” Li Jingsong cursed at them, annoyed by the interruption.

“Bullshit! We aren’t joking either!” Xiao Quan shot back defensively.

“Alright, alright, all of you! What is going on?! Do you all have too much free time on your hands?!” Hu Hao groaned, holding up his hands. “Even if you all learn how to fight, and even if I become a Regimental Commander… what difference does it make? Can a single regiment alter the outcome of a massive campaign?!

Sigh… motherfucker. I don’t know what High Command is thinking. Our civilians were just subjected to a mass genocide. Logically, the top brass should be frantically strategizing on how to obliterate the Allied coalition! But instead, what are they doing? They’re calculating how to divide the political spoils and consolidate power! Ha!”

“Don’t talk to me about politics; everyone already knows exactly what they’re doing up there. But what can we change by complaining about it? I stand by my offer: you be the Regimental Commander, and I’ll be your Chief of Staff, or even your Deputy Commander! Just let me follow you!” Li Jingsong pressed persistently.

“You’re delusional. Do you really think the Zone Commander would agree to that? Put everything else aside and look at the reality: how many Division Commanders with actual combat experience does this Combat Zone have left? The Commander would sooner promote you to Corps Commander than let you demote yourself to a Regimental Chief of Staff!” Hu Hao pointed out the obvious flaw in the plan.

The Southwest Combat Zone had suffered catastrophic casualties, particularly among its General officer corps. An officer like Li Jingsong, who had survived the crucible of Langcheng and the subsequent retreat, was incredibly valuable. Even if he wasn’t promoted, High Command would never allow him to step down to a field-grade position!

“So what? You’re just going to watch me continue leading soldiers to their deaths?!” Li Jingsong challenged him.

“I won’t just watch! I’ll curse you out every day! I curse out incompetent ‘Straw Bag’ Generals all the time. If you insist on being my superior officer, you better be prepared for the verbal abuse!” Hu Hao laughed.

“Piss off! We’ve bled together! Would it kill you to just lend me a hand?!” Li Jingsong cursed, frustrated by Hu Hao’s deflections.

“Division Commander! Division Commander! Zone Command just ordered you to report for an emergency meeting!” one of Li Jingsong’s radiomen shouted, running over.

“A meeting?! What the hell is a meeting going to solve?!” Li Jingsong grumbled loudly, but he stood up anyway. He couldn’t ignore a direct summons from Jiang Kai.

“We’ll finish this when I get back. And remember: you’re going to agree to my proposal whether you want to or not!” Li Jingsong warned Hu Hao, pointing a finger at him.

“Oh, really? Is that an order, General?!” Hu Hao laughed.

“I’m not talking to you anymore. I’m going to the meeting!” Li Jingsong waved him off and started walking away.

“Hao-ge! Zone Command just called! The Commander ordered you to attend the meeting as well!” Hu Hao’s own radioman jogged over and reported.

“Me?! Again?! I literally just got back from the command bunker!” Hu Hao stared at the radioman in disbelief.

“That’s the order from Zone Command, sir!” the radioman replied apologetically.

“Are they doing this just to mess with me?! I literally just walked back from there! What’s the point of making me run back and forth?!” Hu Hao complained loudly, slowly getting to his feet.

“Heh heh. Come on, we’ll walk together. We can talk on the way!” Li Jingsong laughed, throwing an arm around Hu Hao’s shoulder.

“Piss off! Get away from me! Seriously, why are you clinging to me?! Can you just let me live in peace?! I’m sick of being screwed over by you people! You do realize I have a temper, right?! The Zone Commander screws me over every day, and now you want to screw me over too?!” Hu Hao yelled, trying to shove Li Jingsong off.

“Hey, I haven’t screwed you over recently! Be reasonable!” Li Jingsong defended himself.

“It’s only a matter of time!” Hu Hao grumbled, storming ahead.

A short time later, Hu Hao and Li Jingsong arrived at the underground parking garage that served as the Zone Command headquarters. As soon as they entered, Hu Hao noticed that the bunker was packed entirely with Generals. He was the only field-grade officer in the room.

However, none of the Generals seemed surprised by his presence. Every single one of them knew that Hu Hao was currently Jiang Kai’s most favored subordinate. They also knew that the order to launch the proactive counter-offensive had originated from a phone call Hu Hao had made directly to the Commander.

Furthermore, rumors had spread that the brilliant tactical airstrikes against the Allied logistical bridges and ammo dumps were entirely Hu Hao’s idea. Without his strategic input, they would likely still be cowering in trenches, waiting to be slaughtered. Now, thanks to his plans, they had secured a massive victory, and everyone in the room shared in the resulting glory.

“Is everyone here? Has Hu Hao arrived?” Chief of Staff Sun Qinxue asked, walking out of a side office.

“Report! Chief of Staff, I am here!” Hu Hao announced his presence.

“Mmh. Good. Let’s move to the conference room; the Commander is already waiting. We need to discuss troop deployments and the upcoming reorganization,” Sun Qinxue nodded. He looked around the room, his expression turning somber.

“Gentlemen… this is what remains of our Combat Zone’s leadership. Three Lieutenant Generals, eight Major Generals, and thirteen Brigadier Generals. Ha… before this war began, we had seven Lieutenant Generals, twenty-nine Major Generals, and forty-two Brigadier Generals. Now, you are all that is left. Sigh,” Sun Qinxue lamented, causing the assembled Generals to lower their heads in grim silence.

“Let’s go. We have a meeting,” Sun Qinxue said softly, leading the way.

They moved to a different section of the air-raid shelter where several large tables had been pushed together to form a makeshift conference table, lined with folding chairs and bottles of water.

“Commander!”

As the Generals filed in, they immediately snapped to attention and saluted Jiang Kai, who was seated at the head of the table, reviewing a stack of documents.

“Sit down. Dispense with the formalities today; there’s no need for them,” Jiang Kai replied without looking up from his papers.

The officers quickly found their seats. Naturally, Hu Hao sat next to Li Tianyuan, Li Jingsong, and the other surviving commanders of the 27th Corps.

“Is everyone present?” Jiang Kai asked, finally setting the documents down and looking at Sun Qinxue.

“Everyone is present,” Sun Qinxue confirmed.

“Good. I just received a direct call from His Majesty and the High Command. His Majesty highly commended our successful counter-offensive. Furthermore, he has issued a commendation to the entire military broadcasting our victory!

To reward our success, His Majesty has personally granted me the noble title of Viscount, and he has granted the Chief of Staff the title of Baron!” Jiang Kai announced.

“Whoa…!”

The room erupted in gasps of genuine shock, followed immediately by thunderous applause.

Hu Hao joined in the applause, well aware of the immense significance of this reward. Earning a noble title in the Empire was monumentally difficult. Even the Grand Marshal himself only held the title of Viscount! Furthermore, Imperial peerages were subject to the rule of diminishing inheritance.

Outside of the Imperial Family, there were fewer than five aristocratic families in the entire Empire that actually possessed formal noble titles. Even within the Imperial Family, only the Emperor’s direct children were granted peerages.

For example, if the Emperor’s brother was granted the title of Prince (Wangye), his heir would inherit the title of Count (Bojue). The third generation would inherit the title of Viscount (Zijue), the fourth generation would be Barons (Nanjue), and the fifth generation would revert entirely to commoner status. This strict system ensured the peerage didn’t bloat uncontrollably, protecting the Imperial Treasury from excessive financial strain.

The financial benefits were staggering. A Baron received an annual stipend of two million credits directly from the Imperial Treasury. With each ascending rank, the stipend doubled. Furthermore, noble families received massive tax exemptions on their businesses: Barons received a 20% exemption, Viscounts 40%, Counts 60%, Marquises 80%, and Dukes enjoyed a 100% tax exemption.

Princes were also entirely tax-exempt. However, in the current Imperial hierarchy, the rank immediately below Prince was Count. The titles of Marquis and Duke had not been awarded to anyone in the Empire for nearly two centuries.