Chapter 110
Although the Crown Prince turned and left, Wang Zhong and Lyudmila still followed him to the eastern gate of the estate's main building.
On one hand, escorting royalty to the door was basic etiquette; on the other, Wang Zhong needed to leave too, and the east wing had no second exit**he couldn't possibly jump out the window, right?
At the door, the Crown Prince turned back and looked at Wang Zhong: "I have a question*after this war ends, will we still be able to drink like before?"
Wang Zhong: "Of course. Once we win this war, we'll drink day and night."
The Crown Prince nodded. At that moment, a jeep had arrived to pick him up, so he walked down the stairs at the door, got in the car, and turned back to smile at Wang Zhong.
The car started up and gradually drove away.
Then Grigori drove up in a jeep and stopped in front of the door.
Wang Zhong said goodbye to Lyudmila, opened the door, and got into the car.
Lyudmila hesitated for a moment, then said, "Deputy Knight Yatsemenko said we could take the day off today. Can I come along?"
Wang Zhong thought about it. It didn't seem like a big issue, and he would soon visit the families of fallen soldiers*it would be convenient to have a girl with him to comfort the women.
So he nodded. Lyudmila immediately beamed with joy and jogged over to get in the car.
Wang Zhong reminded her: "Don't grab my arm later. I'm wearing my uniform! I need to maintain a general's dignity!"
Lyudmila gave a salute: "Yes, General!"
Wang Zhong finally nodded and said to Grigori: "Let's go. First to the logistics headquarters building at Agsukov."
****
The logistics headquarters building was actually bigger than the fertilizer plant building they had used as the frontline command post in Loktov. It looked like it could be held for quite a while.
In the yard where the building stood, there was an anti-aircraft gun position. But Wang Zhong seriously doubted the point of placing AA guns here*if enemy planes wanted to bomb the logistics headquarters, they would've done it already. These guns wouldn't help at all.
Grigori drove around the AA gun emplacement and stopped in front of the headquarters building.
A guard immediately stepped forward and saluted Wang Zhong: "Please present your ID!"
As he pulled out his ID, Wang Zhong said, "They already checked at the entrance*why check again here?"
The guard replied expressionlessly: "It's required by Lieutenant General Chekhov, the supply depot commander."
Wang Zhong didn't say much more. In times like this, it was a mixed crowd, and there was no telling if saboteurs or spies might slip in. Being cautious wasn't a bad thing.
After showing his ID, Wang Zhong got out of the car and walked into the headquarters. After two steps, he saw a huge blackboard in the first-floor lobby listing the main functions of each floor.
Wang Zhong looked but couldn't find Lieutenant General Chekhov's office, so he asked the guard who had checked his ID: "Where's Lieutenant General Chekhov?"
"The Lieutenant General is usually in the Distribution Department. His office is with the accountants."
Wang Zhong checked the blackboard for the Distribution Department's location and strode toward the stairs.
He quickly reached the Distribution Department. Wang Zhong knocked on the door, and a bespectacled man wearing clerks' epaulets opened it: "General, who are you here for?"
Wang Zhong: "I'm looking for Lieutenant General Chekhov. The guard said his office is with the Distribution Department."
Just as the clerk was about to answer, a loud bellow came from inside the room: "Send him to the first floor to get the forms! Fill them out, stamp them, and submit to the application office on the first floor. Seriously, they all run to my office*I even moved out and they still keep coming!"
Wang Zhong: "Is it okay to use the Crown Prince's personal seal on the application forms?"
The voice inside abruptly stopped.
Five seconds later, a tall man with a grim face pushed the clerk aside and flung the door open: "Food for the banquet isn't applied for here*go to the granary!"
Judging by the rank, this was clearly Lieutenant General Chekhov.
Wang Zhong: "I need weapons and ammunition, and also uniforms. I was just assigned several thousand rookies today*all of them are without weapons and uniforms! Are they supposed to go into battle in their own clothes?"
Lieutenant General Chekhov looked utterly incredulous: "The Crown Prince is going to the front lines personally? What unit are you? Royal Guards? I haven't heard of any losses from your side."
Wang Zhong: "I'm Major General Alexei Konstantinovich Rokosov, commander of the 151st Temporary Infantry Division. My 31st Guards Infantry Regiment and the Fifth Beshensk Regiment both suffered heavy losses. We've just replenished with thousands of troops. Am I being clear enough?"
General Chekhov furrowed his brows and reexamined Wang Zhong: "You're that prodigal son turned war hero Rokosov? Hmm, you do look like you've seen combat*not fake. But you still need to fill out the application forms; otherwise, how would I know what you need? Ivan! Go get the forms! Form No. 34!"
Wang Zhong: "Can't we handle this as a special case? I have the Crown Prince's seal."
Chekhov: "This already is a special case. Once you fill out the forms, our allocators will find where the supplies are and issue release and transport orders. Usually, you'll get the supplies by tomorrow or the day after."
"I mean, if we have them here."
Wang Zhong: "Tomorrow or the day after?"
"What, are you facing the enemy tomorrow?" Lieutenant General Chekhov countered.
Wang Zhong: "Ah, no, I was just lamenting how slow it is. Can't you assign a clerk to help me fill out the forms?"
"Look around*do you see any clerk with free time?"
Wang Zhong glanced into the room and found it had the vibe of a mobile game company pulling an all-nighter before a big update.
Lyudmila said, "I'll write*you just dictate."
Just then, the clerk who had opened the door returned with a stack of application forms.
Chekhov snapped: "And the supply catalog! What, you expect a major general to just call out items from thin air?"
Two minutes later, a thick stack of forms was in Lyudmila's hands, and a catalog as heavy as an encyclopedia was shoved into Wang Zhong's.
Thankfully, the catalog had a bunch of tabs on the side, letting him quickly flip to the pages based on the first letter of the item needed.
Chekhov pointed at a table next to his desk: "That table is the 'Special Case Table.' Fill them out there!"
Good grief, looks like special cases weren't so rare after all!
Lyudmila immediately pulled out the chair at the table, picked up a pen, scribbled on a note pad to test it, then looked at Wang Zhong, signaling with her eyes that she was ready.
Wang Zhong flipped to the anti-tank gun page and read out: "ZIS-3 anti-tank gun..."
Chekhov: "Hold on*does your division have an anti-tank gun regiment?"
Wang Zhong: "No. But this isn't..."
"Then you should go to the Army Group Headquarters and request a gun regiment. It's way easier than trying to cobble one together from me. Do you know how many guns, ammo trucks, and mules a 2,000-man gun regiment needs? If you apply for all of it here, you'll probably fill out half that stack of forms."
Wang Zhong thought about it*it did kind of make sense.
Lieutenant General Chekhov: "My suggestion*first apply for weapons, machine guns, mortars, uniforms, boots, and all the other odds and ends. Fully equip those two infantry regiments."
"Then go to headquarters for artillery*anti-tank gun battalions or regiments, howitzer regiments. Once they give them to you, you'll be fully kitted out."
Wang Zhong rested his chin on his hand: "So instead of just snatching gear, we should snatch people too*is that what you mean?"
Lieutenant General Chekhov: "More or less. Honestly, it's the optimal solution. You have the Crown Prince's seal, right? As long as you don't touch units already assigned to a division, just target the ones that haven't been placed yet*you should be fine!"
"There are a bunch of unassigned technical units in Agsukov right now, all waiting to be assigned to newly formed divisions."
Wang Zhong: "So you're saying*I came to the wrong place?"
"We still need uniforms and rifles," Lyudmila interjected. "Alright, I've finished the rifle form*do I just hand it to the clerk over there?"
Clerk: "Also fill out one for ammunition. Rifles alone won't cut it. I also suggest filling one for gun-cleaning kits."
Wang Zhong: "Right. Also fill out one for trucks..."
Lieutenant General Chekhov: "You should go to headquarters and request an unassigned motor vehicle regiment. One regiment's worth of trucks is about enough for a division. I mean, if they keep running non-stop!"
Lyudmila: "I finished the ammo form*does this amount look okay?"
Lieutenant General Chekhov glanced at it and said, "Double it. Trust me, double it is the bare minimum."
Lyudmila quickly made the correction, handed it to the clerk, and began filling out the uniform form.
Just then, the clerk brought the first form over to Wang Zhong: "We've stamped it on our end*now it needs the Crown Prince's seal. The ink pad is here."
Wang Zhong took out the ring, pressed the front of it into the ink pad, rolled it back and forth, then firmly stamped it onto the form.
Lieutenant General Chekhov glanced at the uniform form Lyudmila was filling out and said, "Later, fill out one for cloth bags too. Soldiers need cloth bags to carry personal items*before heading to the front, they can leave them at the rest base."
Wang Zhong: "You... You're really experienced, huh."
Lieutenant General Chekhov: "I've been in logistics since the Civil War*I know all this stuff. I'm not like those generals who don't handle real military affairs and just brag."
Wang Zhong nodded, then shoved the thick supply catalog into Lieutenant General Chekhov's hands: "Then I'll leave it to the experienced Lieutenant General to tell us what we need to collect."
The Lieutenant General gave Wang Zhong a look like "Does your old man know how shameless you are?" but still took the catalog and began marking supplies based on his own experience.
Wang Zhong just stood there holding the Crown Prince's ring, ready to stamp.
**
When the clock on the wall struck noon, Chekhov closed the catalog: "That's about it. Once we finish releasing the supplies, we'll arrange transportation to your base. They should start arriving tomorrow or the day after."
Wang Zhong: "Alright, we'll go to Army Group Headquarters and get troops!"
Lieutenant General Chekhov hesitated for a moment and said, "Did you offend General Skorobo last night?"
Wang Zhong: "Yes... but it was the Grand Patriarch who asked me to give an opinion."
"Then at Army Group Headquarters, you'd better avoid General Skorobo. Go straight to the Chief of Staff*he's more reasonable. If he has the units you need, he'll give them to you."
Wang Zhong: "Understood. Thank you."
As he spoke, Wang Zhong saluted Chekhov.
Chekhov returned the salute: "Oh right*at Army Group Headquarters, don't mention I gave you special treatment! General Skorobo can be pretty petty."
Wang Zhong: "You're not afraid he'll hear that you said this about him? There are a lot of people here."
Lieutenant General Chekhov laughed: "I've never gotten along with him. We enlisted the same year, but now I'm just a logistics commander, and he's an Army Group General. I heard before the war, His Majesty the Tsar was considering promoting him to Marshal."
Wang Zhong thought to himself: not likely anymore.
If Little Gu heads south, the entire Southwestern Front is finished.
Lieutenant General Chekhov escorted Wang Zhong and Lyudmila to the door and reminded them once again: "Go find the Chief of Staff*don't let General Skorobo see you!"
"Thanks, got it." Wang Zhong waved his hand.
Alliance Leader kono Xingyu gives a bonus release. See you tonight.
(End of Chapter)