Previously, when Wang Zhong led his troops from Bogdanovka to Loktov, they took a direct train and, since the unit was small, they arrived without any hitches.
Therefore, he had no actual understanding of the various difficulties encountered during a march that Pavlov had spoken of; his knowledge was purely theoretical.
But two hours after departing from Argesukov, he gained a clear understanding of the “troubles on the road.”
The accidents that occurred when the troops passed through the urban area of Argesukov alone amounted to two, consuming at least five clerks from the headquarters staff to deal with the aftermath, and probably cost the division some Rubles in compensation.
After leaving the city, there were bunches of soldiers who fainted from heatstroke or fell behind due to lack of stamina; the medics and the horse-drawn ambulance carts were never idle.
During a rest after walking for three hours, a soldier went to defecate and stepped into a hole dug by a field mouse, breaking his foot.
What stretched Wang Zhong’s patience to the limit was the accidental discharge of a rifle that occurred in the afternoon.
During a march, it’s customary to keep the ammunition separate from the firearms to prevent accidental discharge if the safety mechanism fails due to jostling. However, one recruit played with his gun and loaded a cartridge while resting, even chambering a round, and forgot to remove it when they assembled.
When the gun fired, the veterans reacted swiftly and immediately hit the ground, while the recruits looked around bewildered and at a loss.
Wang Zhong, not far from the discharge, distinctly heard the scream of the person hit by the bullet—this turned out to be the division’s first firearm injury case since its establishment.
That was just an accident within Wang Zhong’s line of sight; within a marching column of twenty thousand men, the number of such incidents was beyond imagination.
Fortunately, Pavlov was very professional and had organized a small team of staff officers, clerks, and doctors to ride along the column and deal with emergencies.
The long march reminded Wang Zhong of something he read before his time travel, a critique of the “grand battle”: if Baldy’s troops could really march like in the movies, he wouldn’t have been defeated so miserably.
Damn, he had thought that comment was somewhat tongue-in-cheek, but it turned out to be true!
That’s how they continued until 4 p.m., when the troop encountered a horse-drawn cart driven by a local farmer.
But Wang Zhong said, “We will be victorious, grandpa. It’ll just take a little longer than expected.”
Grandpa: “No worries, it’s all right if it ends before the spring plowing next year. This year, the wheat harvest is already troublesome enough!”
Wang Zhong silently bid farewell to the old man and rode off on Bucephalus in a cloud of dust.
————
That evening, the camp was set up in a village called Relyinsky, much smaller than Bilokotov but larger than Karlinovka, which Wang Zhong had visited before.
In fact, Pavlov had selected four such villages along the route for billeting, with the entire division’s units camping in order according to their position in the column.
The village where Wang Zhong stayed was at the very front of the marching column, sharing the space with the Fifth Bieshensk Regiment.
The reason for placing the Fifth Bieshensk Regiment at the forefront was because it had the most new recruits and the fewest experienced non-commissioned officers, which could lead to many falling behind during the march.
This way, the nearby Guards 31st Regiment could pick up those who straggled.
The technical servicemen, dispersed amongst the infantry units, meant that if anything happened, there were plenty of hands available to push carts and cannons.
Ludmila and the Divine Arrow Company were in the middle of the column, so Wang Zhong should be spending the night alone with just his guards for company—for the first time in a while.
That’s what he thought, but when his staff officer led him to where he was staying that evening, he saw a maid.
Wang Zhong immediately asked the guide: “Why is there a maid?”
Staff Officer: “Isn’t she your orderly?”
Wang Zhong: “I don’t have an orderly, do I?”