Munitions Empire

In the afternoon, within the chaotic Qin Army positions, the young soldiers of the Qin Army Infantry Regiment, who had finally escaped from Xiajian, clung to their weapons and savored the hard-won food.

They had relatively good luck along the way; being light infantry, they managed to evade the slaughter by the Datang Empire Air Force, escaped the encirclement of the Tang Army, and reached near Dongqing.

Of course, this escape was not without cost. Out of a regiment of approximately over 1,500 troops, only about 900 made it to Dongqing.

This doesn't necessarily mean the missing 600 soldiers were all dead; they might have fallen behind and been captured by the Tang Army, got separated, or indeed perished...

Besides the loss of personnel, they also abandoned all their infantry cannons and discarded all heavy machine guns while on the run.

Eventually, they even threw away the surplus ammunition, some regimental documents, and all sorts of miscellaneous items.

Everything was for running faster, everything was for making it easier to traverse mountains without taking the main roads.

Fortunately, many were poor folk in the Qin Country Troops, used to hard times, so they could still manage mountain paths and endure hunger at this time...

The Datang Empire's Air Force forced an infantry regiment to train into a mountain infantry regiment; one has to admit, it was a miracle.

The remaining infantry in the regiment were exhausted, unable to move further, and just as they reached a desperate point, they encountered a supply unit.

To be more precise, they encountered the wreckage of vehicles from a supply unit that had been routed by the Tang Nation Air Force.

Many of these vehicles weren't actually seriously damaged, with canned goods and foodstuffs inside almost untouched!

Thus, the regiment enjoyed a rare moment of happiness here, the exhaustion and misery of the fleeing seemed to be wiped clean here.

Each of them replenished their consumed rations, and they used the extra supplies to prepare a lavish dinner.

For some unknown reason, no other Qin Army troops retreated along their path, which is why these supplies were left for them.

Using bayonets, they opened a can of luncheon meat, the starch-laden greasy smell inside excited the Qin Country soldiers who had run hungry the entire day.

They smiled, licking their dried lips, dug out a chunk with their bayonets, and stuffed it into their mouths, chewing in big bites.

The taste was extremely salty, like a large chunk of salt stuck in their mouths. Yet, the Qin Country soldiers couldn't bear to spit it out, and even stuffed solid, brick-like biscuits into their mouths, hoping to neutralize the hard-to-swallow taste.

Some of the more fastidious officers were using steel helmets or other items to boil water, and throwing in luncheon meat and other things, the aroma spreading, causing those around to swallow audibly.

Some people, after eating a few bites, lay down and fell asleep, having stayed awake for a day and night, seizing the moment to rest a bit to recover some strength.

No one bothered with sentries anymore, and no one arranged any guards. Some leaned against wheels and fell asleep, while others started snoring while eating.

They were too exhausted, with the Tang Army tailing them like a bone-deep ulcer. Every time they thought they could rest, they would hear gunfire not far off and the roar of Tang Army airplane engines.

The Qin Army commander took a lunchbox from his adjutant, inside was a clear broth with floating oil, chunks of starchy luncheon meat rolling due to the motion.

The steamy meat soup restored some of the commander's strength. After blowing on it, he swallowed a mouthful of soup and looked at the 1st Battalion Commander sitting beside him who had already eaten most of his meal: "Can you calculate how many we lost?"

According to the stringent laws of the Great Qin, officers retreating on the battlefield and, without reason, losing half their men were to be executed on the spot. He was almost at the point of this crime and thus was eager to know the outcome.

The 1st Battalion Commander shook his head and said, "The gunners with poor physical strength and our truckers can't be found. The trucks are all missing, only two radio sets left, and I'm not sure how many soldiers of my battalion went missing... not to mention the company commander of the 3rd Company is gone."

"Sigh..." Hearing this non-report report, the commander sighed. In truth, he wasn't particularly afraid of being beheaded and displayed because he genuinely knew he likely wouldn't have to die.

After all, he still managed to bring troops back, and officers who abandoned their units at the front lines were now as numerous as cattle.

Officers who managed to return would probably be sentenced to labor in order to atone for their crimes, as there wouldn't be any qualified officers left to lead troops if more were executed.

However, when he thought about facing the formidable Datang Empire again, the Qin Army commander's mood couldn't improve.

While consuming the hot soup, the commander discussed the retreat route with a few trusted aides. They had their insights on fleeing, knowing that cutting through mountain valleys and taking small paths was the most proper choice.

Even if it meant being slow temporarily, in the end, they'd be the fastest. Since the start of the retreat, they hadn't received a single order from the Northern Group Command. No matter what, they couldn't be blamed for desertion.

Laughably thinking about it, the command center able to command their regiment was still within the Xiajian encirclement, about two to three hundred kilometers from Dongqing, without any radio interference, they had no means of communication anyway.

So essentially, it was almost as though they had no higher authority, and they could run however they wished.

While they were discussing how to flee, the distant sound of weapon fire could be heard.

Everyone jumped up at once, the commander looked in the direction of the machine-gun fire with terror, without understanding the situation, he heard soldiers fleeing, frantically shouting, "The Tang Army is attacking! The Tang Army is attacking!"

Most of the Qin Army, startled from their sleep, didn't bother with their weapons and just started running after others, some even trampling each other, stepping companions still dreaming straight into the muck.

The commander knew that it was impossible to stop the chaos now, so he ran along, desperately heading into the wilderness without looking back.

When everyone finally stopped to catch their breath and began to account for losses, the regiment had only over 400 left, with merely more than 70 rifles remaining.

To this commander's consolation, amid such chaos and disarray, the present 400-plus men managed to bring out over 500 backpacks, filled with food...