After Hu Hao and Zhang Debiao reunited, they tightly embraced each other, sobbing with intense emotion. Zhang Debiao scolded Hu Hao for not coming sooner, complaining about how badly he had been bullied.
“What?! Brother, who bullied you? Tell me, I’ll kill them!” Hu Hao released Zhang Debiao and roared.
“You little brat, you have the nerve to ask?! Damn it! You guys ran away without firing a single shot! I had no idea what was going on before the Allied forces arrived! Do you know how lucky I was to survive?! I grabbed our parents and ran for our lives!” Zhang Debiao scolded Hu Hao.
“But isn’t everything fine now?” Hu Hao asked, looking at Zhang Debiao.
“What do you mean ‘fine’?! What do you mean ‘fine’?!” The moment he heard this, Zhang Debiao started swinging. Hu Hao hurriedly dodged!
“Hey, hey, hey! Brother, stop! Isn’t everything fine?!” Hu Hao shouted, hopping away.
“Fine, my ass! I just built a new house! I didn’t even get to live in it for a single day! It was all renovated and ready for me to get married, and the Allied forces blew it up in an instant! Is that fine?! Ah?! Is that fine?!” Zhang Debiao continued to barrage Hu Hao with fists and kicks.
Hu Hao either blocked with his arms or jumped out of the way!
The surrounding staff officers and Wu Kexiao watched in stunned silence. Hu Hao was actually getting beaten up, and it looked like he didn’t dare fight back!
“Brother, I’ll build you a new one! I’ll build you a new one!” Hu Hao yelled loudly.
“Build, my ass! You wasteful brat! Does building a house cost nothing?! We’re at war now; one artillery shell and it’ll be gone again!” Zhang Debiao continued cursing.
“Right, right! You’re right to consider that, brother! Stop, stop, stop! This is our first day reuniting, and you’re beating me up before even five minutes have passed!” Hu Hao yelled as he dodged.
“So what if I beat you?! Ah?! So what if I beat you?! Damn it! I thought I was all alone here! You little brat! You’re here, but you didn’t even try to find me?! And you call yourself a Commander?! You little brat!” Zhang Debiao shouted, smacking Hu Hao’s hat with his hand.
“I just found out myself!” Hu Hao immediately yelled back.
“I’m furious! You ran away without firing a single shot! What the hell is the National Defense Force even good for?! Ah?! What kind of soldier are you?! Ah?!” Zhang Debiao cursed at Hu Hao.
“Brother, I’ve only been a soldier for a few days!” Hu Hao shouted back loudly!
“Hmph. I’m so mad! My house is gone!” Zhang Debiao stopped. He stood there, hands on his hips, glaring at Hu Hao. Hu Hao also came to a halt!
“Haha! Hahaha!” Hu Hao and Zhang Debiao locked eyes, and the two brothers burst into laughter before embracing each other tightly once more.
“You brat! Now that you’re here, your brother can finally rest easy!” Zhang Debiao hugged Hu Hao, smiling through his tears.
“Me too, brother!” Hu Hao nodded.
“You brat!” Zhang Debiao chuckled, patting Hu Hao’s back before they separated.
“Hao-ge, let’s head inside. It’s still raining!” Wu Kexiao suggested, standing nearby.
“Mhm. Let’s go, brother!” Hu Hao said to Zhang Debiao. Zhang Debiao nodded and walked inside.
Hu Hao followed closely behind him. Seeing Hu Hao trailing behind, the staff officers and Wu Kexiao quickly followed suit!
“Brother, this is the command center. It’s yours from now on!” Hu Hao said to Zhang Debiao with a smile. Hearing this, the people behind them were even more astounded.
“Hmm, not bad! If the command center is mine, what are you planning to do?” Zhang Debiao stopped and looked at Hu Hao.
“Me? Hehe, hehehe~” Hu Hao chuckled upon hearing the question.
“You brat! If you dare try sneaking off to the Allied forces’ side alone, I’ll kill you myself!” Zhang Debiao pointed at Hu Hao, his eyes wide with warning.
“I won’t! I won’t, brother! I’ll just sleep! You command from here!” Hu Hao immediately shook his head.
“Mhm. If you dare go, I’ll break your legs!” Seeing Hu Hao’s reaction, Zhang Debiao continued his threats.
Hu Hao immediately nodded. Meanwhile, everyone else watched the exchange, utterly dumbfounded.
Zhang Debiao stepped right up to the map and began studying it, with Hu Hao standing right beside him.
“You directed this?” Zhang Debiao pointed at the map and asked Hu Hao.
“Mhm!” Hu Hao nodded.
Smack! Zhang Debiao slapped the top of Hu Hao’s head, and Hu Hao immediately clutched it.
“And you fought like this?! Are you stupid?! Ah?! A long strip of territory! Are you just waiting to be cut in half?! Were you in that much of a rush?! You couldn’t push north or south from Xingqiao City?! Why the hell did you attack Tonglong City?! Stirring up trouble?! Playing around and making enemies for yourself?! Is there something wrong with your head?!” Zhang Debiao scolded Hu Hao, pointing at him.
From Tianyu City to Tonglong City was a long, narrow strip of land that the Allied forces could sever at any moment!
“I have the men! I’m not afraid of them! The Allied forces can’t beat me; I still have troops!” Hu Hao argued!
“By attacking Tonglong City, you definitely severed the Allied forces’ transport and supply lines, didn’t you?! The troops on the central front relied entirely on Tonglong City for transit! Now that you’ve cut their supply lines, you think they won’t come looking for revenge?!” Zhang Debiao glared at Hu Hao.
“Let them come! If they come, I’ll fight them!” Hu Hao replied nonchalantly.
“Fight! Fight! Fight!” Hearing this, Zhang Debiao snatched a pointer from nearby and raised it to strike Hu Hao. Hu Hao immediately bolted!
“Fight what?! If they send a few corps straight from the central front to Gunan City, you’re dead! You little brat, you’re still just as reckless in battle!” Zhang Debiao pointed the stick at Hu Hao and scolded.
“No, no! It’s fine! They don’t have ammunition!” Hu Hao quickly explained.
“Bullshit! They have hundreds of thousands of troops on the central front! You think it’s hard for them to scrape together enough ammo for a few corps?!” Zhang Debiao cursed, pointing at Hu Hao.
“Right, right!” Hu Hao nodded.
Zhang Debiao shot Hu Hao a sideways glare before turning his attention back to the map. Hu Hao carefully edged closer, while the other officers didn’t dare utter a single word.
“And the west as well. If I remember correctly, there are arsenals in Late City, right? Are the arsenals still operational?” Zhang Debiao asked Hu Hao.
“Yes, they’re still producing! We’re producing our own!” Hu Hao nodded.
“If they’re producing, why aren’t you expanding further west?! Ah?! Your troops are still stationed less than 300 kilometers from Late City! Once the rainy season ends, are you just going to wait for the Allied bombers to come and bomb them?!” Zhang Debiao demanded.
“The generals under me don’t know how to fight! The highest rank they held before was division commander. Now that they’re corps commanders, they have no idea how to fight!” Hu Hao complained to Zhang Debiao.
“Can’t you command them remotely from the center?! Ah?! You have satellite phones now! You can constantly call them and teach them how to fight through actual combat! You don’t even know this much?! How are you even getting by?!” Zhang Debiao continued scolding Hu Hao.
“Right, right. Wasn’t I busy?” Hu Hao nodded.
“Busy, my ass! You, busy?! When it’s time to slack off, you’re better at it than anyone else!” Zhang Debiao cursed upon hearing Hu Hao’s excuse.
“Hehe! Mo Qin!” Hu Hao called out.
“Here!” Mo Qin immediately stepped forward.
“Bring out all the Army Group Commander’s belongings!” Hu Hao ordered Mo Qin. Mo Qin immediately retrieved them and handed them to Hu Hao. Hu Hao promptly passed them all to Zhang Debiao.
“Brother, it’s all yours!” Hu Hao handed the bag to Zhang Debiao with a smile.
“What do I need this for? You want me to be the Commander?!” Zhang Debiao asked, looking at Hu Hao.
“Yes!” Hu Hao nodded.
“Are you crazy?! I just got here, and you want me to be Commander?! Who would submit to me?!” Zhang Debiao said, looking at Hu Hao.
“Why does that matter? Who dares not to submit?!” Hu Hao replied, looking right back at Zhang Debiao.
“Can you use your brain a little?! Ah?!” Zhang Debiao pointed the stick at Hu Hao.
“Then what do you suggest we do?” Hu Hao asked innocently.
“You stay the Commander, and I’ll be your Chief of Staff! What are you afraid of?! I’m right here!” Zhang Debiao said to Hu Hao.
“Then you have to handle this too! I don’t want to manage it! Brother, you don’t know this, but I was originally planning to desert! They forced me to lead them in battle! Brother, I’m giving this to you. Whoever you want to appoint, promote, or dismiss, you have the final say!” Hu Hao continued.
“You… you… you!” Zhang Debiao was so angry he pointed the stick at Hu Hao, completely at a loss for words. He wanted to smack him, but Hu Hao was standing on the other side of the table, out of reach!
“Brother, just help me manage things for now. Manage them for now! I’ll convene a video conference with the corps commanders shortly to announce your presence. Whoever dares disobey you, I’ll kill them!” Hu Hao declared to Zhang Debiao.
“They are all your subordinates! If you kill them all, do you still want to command battles or not?!” Zhang Debiao gritted his teeth in anger.
“I don’t care! Whoever disobeys you, I’ll kill them!” Hu Hao stated with utter disregard for the consequences.
“Just you wait! Don’t let me find an opportunity! The moment I do, I’ll beat you to death!” Zhang Debiao pointed at Hu Hao.
The surrounding staff officers didn’t dare say a word. They simply watched the two brothers converse. Seeing how terrified Hu Hao was of Zhang Debiao, they couldn’t help but feel terrified of Zhang Debiao as well.
“Hehe!” Hearing the threat, Hu Hao tossed the bag onto the table and ordered the communications officer, “Notify the other corps commanders to get online! I’m holding a video conference! Quickly!”
Zhang Debiao rolled his eyes at him and patted his pockets.
Seeing this, Hu Hao immediately pulled out a pack of cigarettes, ran over, pulled one out, handed it to Zhang Debiao, and then lit it for him with his lighter.
Zhang Debiao glanced at the pack in Hu Hao’s hand and snatched it away. “Smoking such good cigarettes! This used to be my entire day’s wage!” he grumbled, pocketing the pack before turning back to the map.
“Brother, I have plenty of good cigarettes like this! I’ll get them for you! They don’t cost me any money, really!” Hu Hao immediately offered. Zhang Debiao ignored him, continuing to study the map.
Hu Hao immediately ran to his resting quarters, brought out several cartons of premium cigarettes, and placed them on the table!
“Er Lengzi, the situation is very dangerous!” Zhang Debiao said, frowning at the map.
“What are you afraid of?! Brother, just tell us where to strike!” Hu Hao asked immediately. Now, he truly feared nothing.