Chapter 135: Chief Of Staff Selection
“Regiment Commander… you’re back?”
After Su Yaoyang returned to the camp area, the people he encountered along the way all saluted and greeted him one after another, and he also smiled and nodded in return.
Before he could even enter the main tent, he saw Li Gaoyuan hurrying over. “Regiment Commander… have you made progress on the matter I asked you to handle last time?”
“What matter?” Su Yaoyang didn’t react for a moment and asked somewhat blankly.
“It’s the matter where you asked me to keep an eye out for a suitable chief of staff.” Li Gaoyuan said urgently, “You haven’t forgotten, have you?”
“What… you’ve found one?” Su Yaoyang was overjoyed upon hearing this.
These days, although Su Yaoyang had created the Nanjing Security Regiment using the material converter, only he himself knew how much it had cost him to maintain this group.
Over the past six months, he had suffered all sorts of hardships for the development of the Security Regiment. Whether it was logistics, supplies, combat, or training, he had to handle almost everything personally. For someone like him, a complete amateur, it was truly too difficult.
Take the tank company as an example: the M24 Chaffee tanks equipped by the tank company looked imposing, but their daily maintenance, upkeep, marching, and so on could absolutely drive an outsider insane.
For instance, how much fuel does a Chaffee tank consume per highway travel, how much when going uphill, how often do the fuel trucks need to refuel the tanks, and how are the daily parts wear and component calculations figured?
Suppose the hourly fuel consumption on the highway is 150 liters per 100 kilometers at a speed of 40 kilometers per hour; in that case, it would need refueling about every 7 hours.
And for example, how many kilometers do the tank tracks need to travel before a major overhaul or replacement, and so on.
But the actual battlefield conditions are a completely different picture.
In fact, battlefield conditions are even more complex. In combat situations, whether parts or ammunition consumption, it all multiplies compared to peacetime. All these matters fall on logistics and even on him as the regiment commander; the tedious work could drive a normal person insane.
In fact, Su Yaoyang hadn’t had a good night’s sleep for two consecutive months; as soon as he opened his eyes, his mind was full of trivial matters.
Plus the troops’ daily training, ammunition consumption, soldiers’ morale, and formulating combat plans, and so on—if there isn’t an excellent chief of staff and a group of qualified staff officers to coordinate and plan these things, chaos is inevitable when the time comes.
This is also why Su Yaoyang urgently needs an excellent chief of staff to help out. Now hearing that there’s a suitable candidate, how could he not be happy?
Seeing Su Yaoyang’s joyful gaze, Li Gaoyuan nodded: “
His name is Pi Jingchuan, a Sichuan native, thirty-three years old this year, graduated from the Virginia Military Institute in the United States. His personal military abilities are outstanding. Six years ago after returning to China, he served as chief of staff in the 1st Regiment of the Cadre Training Command. During a live-fire exercise, he was wounded in the leg by a bullet and had no choice but to retire and stay idle at home.
Yesterday I happened to hear that his whole family had moved to Xuzhou. I immediately went to visit him at home. After I revealed the recruitment intent, he expressed willingness to join. Now it just depends on your decision.”
“What more is there to say? Go find him right now.” Su Yaoyang said without hesitation.
As the Security Regiment’s scale grew larger and larger, he felt increasingly overwhelmed and urgently needed a good assistant. Now that he had finally found a good staff officer, why would he push him away?
Besides, in these times, Chinese people who went abroad to study and returned with degrees were mostly elites with real talent and learning, completely different from the watered-down 4+4 types in later generations.
“Let’s go… we’ll find him.” Su Yaoyang waved his hand and was about to step out.
“Wait…” Li Gaoyuan grabbed him. “Go find him right now?”
“Of course. Our regiment is withdrawing tomorrow. If we don’t go now, are we waiting until New Year?”
“How about I go find him and have him come see you? After all, you are the Regiment Commander.” Li Gaoyuan hesitated for a moment before asking.
“Nonsense… Back then Liu Bei had to visit Zhuge Liang’s thatched cottage three times to invite him. What am I, a tiny regiment commander?” Su Yaoyang didn’t care at all.
Li Gaoyuan had no choice but to follow him out and get in the car.
The jeep sped out of the military camp toward Xuzhou city.
The car soon entered the XZ downtown area. Under Li Gaoyuan’s guidance from the passenger seat, the car twisted and turned into a remote alley.
The wheels crushed through the stagnant sewage at the alley entrance, splashing mud spots everywhere.
The brick walls on both sides of the alley were mottled and yellowed. Rotten leaves and garbage piled up at the base of the walls, and a sour stench seeped in through the car window cracks. The people in the back seat instinctively covered their mouths and noses with their sleeves.
In the rearview mirror, a few wild cats darted out from behind the trash cans, their greenish eyes flashing by.
Seeing this environment, Su Yaoyang thought to himself: “It seems that after leaving the Cadre Training Command, his living conditions have been very poor.”
When the car finally stopped in front of that peeling gate, the engine’s humming startled the sparrows under the eaves.
Perhaps the roar of the car alerted the owner of the house. Soon the gate was pushed open, and a man in a worn gray shirt and blue trousers appeared before the two.
The man was in his thirties, with a thin and stern appearance, especially his eyes that always seemed to squint at people. Su Yaoyang even noticed that his foot seemed a bit lame.
Seeing the visitor, Li Gaoyuan jumped out of the car, walked up to the man, and laughed heartily: “Old Pi, I told you we’d meet again soon. Now do you believe it?”
After speaking, Li Gaoyuan turned to Su Yaoyang and said: “Regiment Commander, this is the Old Pi I told you about, Pi Ruoyu. He graduated from the Virginia Military Institute and served with me in the Cadre Training Command. Whether as a person or in military ability, he’s top-notch.
Old Pi… this is the Regiment Commander I told you about. He’s generous and forthright. Just a few days ago, he led us to a great victory at Taierzhuang.”
While Li Gaoyuan was introducing, Su Yaoyang also got out of the car, walked up to Pi Ruoyu, and smilingly extended his right hand.
“Nice to meet you, Su Yaoyang… Nanjing… um, now it should be the Shanxi Militia General Regiment Commander.
Dropping by uninvited today—I heard from Old Li that he has an excellent former colleague who had no choice but to leave the Cadre Training Command due to certain reasons, so I dragged him over to see if we could pick up a bargain. I wonder if Brother Pi would deign to join our militia regiment as chief of staff?”
“A down-and-out man like me has no right to refuse.”
Pi Ruoyu spoke, his voice hoarse with a gravelly friction sound.
“These days, I am utterly destitute and can’t even support my family. Grateful for the Regiment Commander’s favor, I am willing to offer my humble services.”
“Good… I think I’m starting to appreciate you more and more.”
Su Yaoyang laughed heartily. Pi Ruoyu’s straightforward agreement was both expected and somewhat exciting.
As long as he could build a complete staff system, his work would be much easier from then on.
