Chapter 261: 261, Ren Xiaosu's promotion

They returned to the Special Reconnaissance Division to report, and on the way back, they heard others say that there had been problems on the front lines. The troops from Shen Ji Camp who had retreated were all killed by a sniper on the slopes of Fengyi Mountain.

On their way back, they also saw the bodies of Shen Ji Camp officers being transported back to the 108 Stronghold, though this had little to do with them. They were only responsible for locating the private unit, and that would be considered completing their mission.

The command tent had been migrating northward, and the generals had been stationed in the rear, which was not unusual.

Now, the command center was located thirty kilometers behind Tan Tou Mountain, not far from the position of Ren Xiaoxu's private unit, which was only about eighty kilometers away.

When they arrived at the command center to find Hu Shuo, they first submitted the roster of the private unit, then reported on its current status, and expressed doubts about the five Shen Ji Camp officers who had died at the hands of plants...

Hu Shuo sat inside the tent, flipping through the roster casually. Before he had turned a few pages, he saw a familiar name, and in that moment, he understood many things.

There was no need for reasoning or thinking; the name stood out like an answer.

Hu Shuo sighed. It turned out that Shen Ji Camp and the private unit where this fellow was stationed had swapped uniforms and vehicles. That was why Shen Ji Camp had been so unlucky. No matter which private unit they had swapped with, such a troublesome incident would not have occurred.

At this time, the officer from the Special Reconnaissance Division noticed Hu Shuo frowning and asked, "What's wrong, boss? Is there something wrong with the roster?"

Hu Shuo came to his senses and smiled, "No, I was thinking about something else."

"Oh," the Special Reconnaissance Division officer breathed a sigh of relief, thinking he had missed some detail. "Then, do you want to investigate this private unit further? After all, it seems to have some issues."

Hu Shuo said seriously, "A private unit that has been embezzling almost all their military pay and has no means of external communication—its problems shouldn't be too serious. Not many people know the secrets of Shen Ji Camp. We should investigate from the top."

"Yes," the Special Reconnaissance Division officer responded, "Then we will focus our efforts on thoroughly investigating the spies within the high command."

"Hmm," Hu Shuo nodded. "But don't touch Li's people."

This was the tone set, and they would investigate all high-ranking officers except Li's.

Thinking of this, Hu Shuo couldn't help but feel melancholy. Who knew what kind of trouble Ren Xiaoxu would cause next?

At this moment, another officer from the Special Reconnaissance Division entered and whispered to Hu Shuo, "Boss, there's an anomaly."

"What kind of anomaly?" Hu Shuo was taken aback.

"A military officer from the Supply Department suddenly helped someone move, apparently trying to promote a private unit soldier above the usual level," the officer said.

Hu Shuo paused. "What's the name of the soldier being promoted?"

"Ren Xiaoxu," the officer replied. "Should we investigate them?"

Hu Shuo waved his hand with a melancholic expression. "No need. We in the Special Reconnaissance Division are investigating the Shen Ji Camp case now. Don't get bogged down in such trivial matters. It must be a bribery issue within the private unit. Don't waste your energy on this."

The Special Reconnaissance Division officer bowed his head. "Yes..."

After these officers left, Hu Shuo was almost ready to flip the table—this was too brazen! Ren Xiaoxu was taking advantage of the fact that he couldn't touch him, making a scene here!

...

Ren Xiaoxu's private unit remained stationed in place, many of them nearly starved to death, but the threat of thorny vines outside kept them from moving.

In the evening, a group from the Personnel Department arrived at the camp, cursing along the way: "A bunch of private unit soldiers hiding in this deep mountain and old forest—we have to trek through mountains and rivers just to appoint an officer. Have the private unit officers sold their souls? They even dared to sell their radio for money!"

Upon arriving at the camp, the private unit soldiers lifted their tent flaps to look at them. "Who are you?"

"I'm Tang Wan Yi from the Personnel Department. Everyone, assemble," said Tang Wan Yi.

All the private unit soldiers came to Tang Wan Yi with confused faces, forming a line. Tang Wan Yi said, "Who is Ren Xiaoxu?"

Ren Xiaoxu stepped out of the queue. "Reporting to the officer, I am Ren Xiaoxu."

"Hmm," Tang Wan Yi glanced at him sideways. "Congratulations. Due to the injury and unconsciousness of Liu Taiyu, the captain of Iron Two Camp, I hereby specially appoint Ren Xiaoxu as the acting captain of Iron Two Camp to lead the unit in completing combat orders."

Ren Xiaoxu's face lit up with excitement. "Really, officer?"

"Could there be a lie? Come and receive your appointment document," Tang Wan Yi said arrogantly.

Ren Xiaoxu hurried to sign the papers and was about to return to the camp when Tang Wan Yi suddenly stopped him. "Don't you want to celebrate with us?"

"Celebrate?" Ren Xiaoxu was stunned. "How do we celebrate? Should I perform a split for you, officer..."

Tang Wan Yi was stunned. Why would you perform a split?

Actually, it was a military rule that promoted officers had to give some benefits to the Personnel Department, as a way to share in the joy. Tang Wan Yi knew that someone had spent over a hundred thousand to promote Ren Xiaoxu, which showed that Ren Xiaoxu was a fat sheep!

Otherwise, why would Tang Wan Yi willingly come all this way? His legs were almost broken!

If a promoted officer didn't understand the rules and didn't show proper respect, they wouldn't get another chance at promotion.

Of course, Ren Xiaoxu knew this, but he had no intention of giving this fellow a penny. Who knew if he would find a chance to run away someday? How could he waste money on such a thing!

Tang Wan Yi said coldly, "You should think carefully about this."

Ren Xiaoxu pretended to be confused. "What are you talking about?"

If it weren't for the many people around, Ren Xiaoxu would have revealed his Special Reconnaissance Division identity and arrested Tang Wan Yi as a spy. But thinking carefully, he couldn't keep causing trouble for Hu Shuo. What if Hu Shuo got angry?

Tang Wan Yi left with a dark face, and the Li family's Personnel Department had never encountered such a stubborn person. He instructed his subordinates, "Put Ren Xiaoxu on the blacklist. He will never be promoted again. When the war ends, have him removed!"

Ren Xiaoxu asked Chen Wudi in a low voice, "Wudi, what were they muttering about?"

Chen Wudi lowered his voice. "Master, they said they would remove your position after the war."

Ren Xiaoxu laughed at that moment. As the saying went, a donkey was a horse once it was brought out to run. Li's mysterious confidence in launching the war had resulted in a bunch of incompetent people, who were no match for their opponents.

Moreover, Yang's troops were eyeing the border, and Li's internal scheming was causing trouble. It was hard to say what Li's fate would be after the war.

Besides, Ren Xiaoxu had no intention of staying in Li's faction for long. What did he care about post-war matters?