Chapter 98: A Massive Haul (2)

Meanwhile, at the Imperial military base in Santong County, Hu Hao had just forced open the heavy blast doors of one of the massive armory warehouses.

He stared inside, absolutely paralyzed with shock. Beside him, Bo Gang and the other officers stood with their jaws hanging open.

Parked inside the cavernous warehouse were over a hundred of the Empire’s latest-generation attack helicopters.

Hu Hao quickly scrambled up the side of a nearby tank to get a better vantage point of the adjacent warehouses. He rapidly counted the silhouettes in the dark.

Over 200 pristine main battle tanks. Over 500 armored personnel carriers.

“Motherfucker… that is a terrifying amount of firepower,” Hu Hao muttered, his initial shock rapidly giving way to a cold sweat.

If the Allied forces had successfully secured and deployed this equipment, they could have instantly fielded an entire Air Cavalry Brigade, a massive Armored Division, and two Mechanized Infantry Divisions! The thought of facing that much firepower was deeply unsettling.

“Hao-ge… thank the heavens we launched this assault tonight! If we hadn’t, the Allied coalition would have used these exact weapons to slaughter us tomorrow!” Bo Gang said, wiping a cold sweat from his brow as he climbed up beside Hu Hao.

“Do we have anyone who knows how to fly a helicopter?” Hu Hao immediately asked, turning to Bo Gang.

“Uh… very few, Hao-ge. You’d have to find veterans who specifically served in the Air Cavalry before they were discharged,” Bo Gang scratched the back of his head.

“Radioman! Get my phone here now!” Hu Hao yelled down.

“Hao-ge!” The radioman instantly handed the satellite phone up to him. Hu Hao rapidly dialed the Division Headquarters in Bopa City.

“This is Division Commander Hu Hao. Who is the duty officer tonight? The Chief of Staff or the Deputy Commander?” Hu Hao barked the moment the call connected.

“Report! The Chief of Staff is currently on duty!” a junior officer replied.

“Put him on!” Hu Hao ordered.

A minute later, Li Jingsong picked up the receiver.

“Hao-ge! You’re calling at this hour?! What’s the situation on your end?!” Li Jingsong asked anxiously.

“I’ll brief you when I get back. Listen to me: did you successfully conscript the refugees today?” Hu Hao demanded, his mind entirely focused on securing the helicopters.

“We did! We conscripted over 20,000 men! Honestly, we had to actively turn people away; so many university students were begging to fight, but per your orders, we rejected them,” Li Jingsong reported proudly.

“Excellent. I need you to immediately sweep those 20,000 recruits. Find out exactly who has prior experience operating helicopters, main battle tanks, and APCs! Separate them immediately! Anyone who knows how to fly a helicopter must be transported to Santong County immediately!” Hu Hao ordered rapidly.

“Ah?! Fly helicopters?! Hao-ge… did you secure an Air Cavalry armory?!” Li Jingsong gasped in shock.

“Over a hundred fully armed attack helicopters! Motherfucker, we can establish our own private Air Cavalry Brigade!” Hu Hao laughed, the adrenaline surging through his veins.

“Holy shit! Okay, Hao-ge, I’m on it! I’ll find them right now! By the way, finding tank and APC drivers shouldn’t be an issue; how many do you need?!” Li Jingsong asked eagerly.

“I need at least 200 experienced tank crewmen! I need 500 APC drivers! Actually, scratch the APC drivers, we have enough infantry here who can figure out how to drive an APC. Just focus entirely on the tank crews and helicopter pilots!

The moment you find them, commandeer civilian vehicles and rush them to the military base in Santong! Do not use our military transports; they’re too slow! Hurry!” Hu Hao glanced at his watch. It was past 03:00 hours; they had less than two hours before dawn!

“Understood! I’ll mobilize them right now!” Li Jingsong hung up and immediately began screaming orders at his staff to wake the newly conscripted recruits.

Hu Hao vaulted down from the tank, a massive grin splitting his face. He quickly moved to inspect the smaller infantry ordnance warehouses. He found over 30,000 pristine assault rifles, entirely untouched, sitting alongside mountains of crated ammunition that he didn’t even have time to quantify.

“Wu Xunqi! Find every single heavy transport truck on this base! If you can’t find enough, commandeer them from the city! Start loading these weapons and munitions immediately! We need to haul this back to Bopa City! Move!” Hu Hao roared at the 2nd Battalion Commander.

“Yes, sir!” Wu Xunqi saluted and sprinted off to organize the logistics detail.

“Motherfucker… there are enough weapons here to fully equip three Infantry Divisions! And that’s not even counting the massive haul of Allied weapons we scavenged tonight!” Bo Gang marveled, staring at the endless crates.

“Hao-ge! Call from 1st Regiment Commander Ye Zifeng!” the radioman jogged over, handing Hu Hao the phone.

“It’s Hu Hao. Report,” Hu Hao answered.

“Hao-ge, we are currently escorting the civilian evacuation column. We’re using the commandeered tanks to clear the road ahead of them. Furthermore, we conscripted roughly 10,000 refugees from Daman City; they are currently marching with us. Do you have any further orders?” Ye Zifeng reported over the grinding roar of tank treads.

“No further orders regarding the march. But listen: immediately poll your 10,000 recruits! Find anyone with prior experience operating helicopters or main battle tanks! The moment you identify them, pull them out of the column, put them in fast vehicles, and rush them to the military base in Santong!” Hu Hao ordered, realizing Ye Zifeng’s column was much closer than Bopa City.

“Understood! I’ll sweep the recruits right now!” Ye Zifeng acknowledged and hung up.

“Radioman! Bring me the tactical maps! I want every single map we looted from the Allied command post earlier tonight spread out right here!” Hu Hao ordered, gesturing to the illuminated patch of concrete outside the warehouse.

“Yes, sir!” The radioman quickly retrieved the scavenged maps and spread them on the ground, using a flashlight to illuminate them.

Hu Hao crouched down and began analyzing the Allied operational charts. However, the maps were frustratingly limited. The intelligence only detailed the immediate operational zone of the single Allied Division he had just annihilated. He hadn’t managed to secure the Division Commander’s master strategic map during the assassination; it had likely been destroyed by the grenades. The Regimental-level tactical maps he possessed were virtually useless for determining the broader coalition strategy.

“Hao-ge, what’s wrong?” Bo Gang asked, crouching down beside him and noticing his deep frown.

“We just wiped out an entire Allied Division in this sector. Their Corps Commander will absolutely realize something catastrophic has occurred. The question is: where is the rest of their Corps located? How far away are they? When will they dispatch reinforcements to investigate? Will they arrive in hours, or days?

We need time, Bo Gang. We need time to haul this massive logistical windfall back to Bopa City!” Hu Hao sighed, lighting a cigarette and staring at the incomplete maps with deep anxiety.