Chapter 1425 - Army Reform

“Hey, wait! When do you plan to take this thing off of me.” Jessica pointed at the collar around her neck as she rushed to the entrance of the military base and shouted to Jiang Chen inside.

Jessica was stopped by the soldiers at the entrance before she even touched the gate.

When she saw the countless intimidating sights, as well as the raised muzzles, the momentum she had built up instantly faded.

She took a few steps back, gulped reflexively, then looked at Jiang Chen nervously.

“We, we agreed, when everything is over, you would let me go…”

“Oh, I almost forgot about this.” Jiang Chen smiled and pressed his watch.

…

Peng-

A soft noise made Jessica jump.

But it was not her head that fell on the ground, but the electronic collar that broke in two. She put her hands against her chest as she let out a few breaths of relief.

“This collar will be my gift to you, but don’t thank me.” Jiang Chen chuckled, “Also, be a changed person and don’t become a predator again. I’ll eventually get rid of all the predators on the West Coast.”

Regardless of whether she heard it or not, Jiang Chen finally bid farewell to Zhou Guoping and walked to the elevator.

Because he was among the last group to board the airship, as soon as the platform ascended to the airship, the huge vortex engine began to slowly charge.

In the colonists’ waves of goodbye, this steel airship sailed towards the distant sea horizon.

Although it was more time-efficient to return by the aerospace plane, Jiang Chen chose to board the airship and attend the victory celebration in the Sixth Street Square with the soldiers of the Expeditionary Force. On the one hand, he could enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way, and on the other hand, he could take advantage of this rare free time to think about the details of the army reform.

On the deck, the Guard Captain, Zheng Shanhe, walked next to Jiang Chen, touched the back of his head, then grinned at the West Coast that was slowly fading in the distance.

“I thought I would stay here.”

“What? Do you want to stay here?” Jiang Chen smiled, “Why didn’t you tell me earlier?”

“No, no!” Zheng Shanhe shook his head quickly, but immediately realized that his attitude was not right, and then changed his words, “I mean, I’ll not hesitate when the General asks me to go anywhere! But if I can choose, I still want to stay by your side.”

“It’s useless to stay by my side,” Jiang Chen laughed, “You are willing to bend your talents in this position, but I’m not willing to keep all the talents as my personal guards.”

“Not at all! General, you don’t know how many people want to get in but can’t get in.” Zheng Shanhe laughed along.

“Of course, I know. Let’s not talk about this,” Jiang Chen paused for a moment, and then in a casual conversational tone, said, “The situation in North America is different from Hongcheng and Wanghai, so our strategic focus is naturally different. The strategic focus remains in Pan-Asia, and there is no need to keep a large standing army in North America.”

In a colony of less than 40,000, the number of legal citizens of NAC was less than 3,000. With no plan to control the area, NAC did not need to deploy so many soldiers in North America.

“I see.” Zheng Shanhe’s expression showed a hint of realization.

After he heard Jiang Chen mention strategic focus, he thought about it and immediately understood.

“As for you, I have other arrangements for you.” After a pause, Jiang Chen smiled, “As for the specific arrangements, you will know when you get back.”

…

The voyage that spanned a week quickly came to an end. Time had quietly passed through October and entered the freezing November. The climate guidance function of the West Coast Meteorological Monitoring Center was still being adjusted, so the Pan-Asian winter this year was still as cold as previous years.

The feather-like snow erased the boundary between the sky and ground; and connected everything into a vast expanse of whiteness.

After the snow passed and the sky cleared, the white ground was as dazzling as a mirror.

But even if the temperature dropped, it did not impact the survivors in Wanghai.

The snowflakes fell in the air and slid down an invisible arc. The expanded Holy Shield blocked the heavy snow and the permeating cold away from Wanghai. Although it was not as warm as spring, at least it was much better compared to the frigidness of previous winters.

As AS Order approached, the Holy Shield slowly opened a circular passage to welcome the return of the heroes.

In the Sixth Street, the Expeditionary Force’s victorious return was warmly welcomed by the citizens of NAC. As in previous ceremonies, the high-spirited soldiers passed through the main road of the Sixth Street and stopped in the central square.

On the podium, Jiang Chen awarded the new Knights Emblem and personally put the medal on each soldier.

The Sixth Street was spent in a festive atmosphere all day long.

The second day after the celebration, with Jiang Chen’s return, the NAC military government ushered in the largest reform since its establishment.

The original four corps were upgraded to four army groups. The First Army Group was commanded by Cheng Weiguo and stationed in Wanghai. The Second Army Group, headed by Wang Zhaowu, was still deployed in Hongcheng and Wu City areas to guard against the Northern Alliance Area in the northwest. The commander of the Third Army Group was Zhao Gang, stationed in Hangzhou. The commander of the Fourth Army was still Lu Fan, stationed in Shangjing and guarded the PAC’s northern territory.

150,000 army soldiers were divided into ten divisions and each consisted of five brigades. There was no fixed number of combat units at the battalion level and above. Each battalion consisted of 360 infantries, and each company was made up of 120 combat units.

In peacetime, the organization of divisions would not change. In wartime, each army group would adjust the number of brigades under its division-level combat units as needed.

And the number of divisions under each army group, the number of troops, the number of armored units, and the amount of support available would be dispatched by the Wanghai General Mansion, known as NAC General Command.

On the surface, ranks were promoted, the division commanders were promoted to commanders, but in fact, the power of these commanders, who had long been overstaffed, had actually been reduced.

This reform had strengthened the control of the general command over the local army groups, and at the same time emphasized the role of military staff in the command system.

For example, if there was a war in Shangjing, and some Russian stragglers also fled from the Siberian wasteland into NAC territory, the military staff would decide the number of divisions sent to the Fourth Army Group and the number of tanks and fighters for reinforcements. As for how the battle had to be fought, each army group had the ability to make decisions. Unless they were in an absolute advantage, the general command would no longer take over the battlefield command at will.

The Hunter Corp responsible for cleaning the mutants outside the NAC was not within the scope of this reform. Special forces such as the Stalker Corps and the General Guards would not change. They would still retain their original structure and be under the direct control of the general command.

Among the four army commanders, three were Jiang Chen’s old subordinates, one was a confidant from his guards, and with Jiang Chen’s prestige in the army, the reform did not encounter any resistance; the transition was unexpectedly smooth.