Chapter 66: Chapter 66: Elite Troops
Ye Fan had previously been mistaken for a military unit, and later he simply stopped explaining, letting people misunderstand if they wanted to.
But when it came time to actually name the team, Ye Fan felt this was inappropriate.
Pretending to be a regular military unit was not feasible. Although he hadn’t encountered any regular troops yet, who could say what might happen in the future? His team had a strong combat capacity but ultimately were not real soldiers of Qin Han.
Instead of using the name of a regular army, it was better to choose a relatively inspiring name.
"Let’s call it the Dawn Corps, a unit that brings hope."
"Confirming the name Dawn Corps, commander, please provide a corps insignia."
"There’s an insignia too?"
"Yes, it distinguishes us from other camouflaged units."
Ye Fan recalled that camo had become the most popular clothing, durable and practical, and they all generally looked similar.
Nana conjured up several insignias in the Red Alert interface, and Ye Fan favored one that captured the moment the dark clouds parted to reveal the radiant dawn.
"Let’s go with this one; it seems to carry significant meaning."
"Insignia confirmed and completed, all Red Alert units have received the insignia."
Ye Fan immediately checked from the window and noticed the patrolling soldiers now bore two embroidered patches on their chests and arms: the scene of dark clouds blocking the sun and dawn emerging anew.
The vehicles also featured this design, painted on the doors, not out of place at all.
Even the fabric draped over the military dogs bore the same embroidery.
Although called the Dawn Corps, Ye Fan’s team was still far from actually being a fully-fledged corps.
Currently, with only a bit more than a company’s worth of people, expansion was necessary.
Ye Fan planned to use the 12,000 plus gold to establish a platoon.
This would be his personal guard platoon, or it could be called the direct unit of the battalion headquarters.
Forming a company required too much money; making a platoon was more feasible. Once formed, this platoon was to directly handle Ye Fan’s security matters, leaving the main combat companies to continue fighting zombies.
This escort platoon was the unit he would take to the trade meeting.
After going over tonight, Ye Fan would set out for the trade meeting first thing in the morning.
The day after tomorrow was the meeting start date, and with a journey of nearly three hundred kilometers ahead to Sishui County on the highway, setting out early was necessary.
Initially, Ye Fan planned to have all units in the platoon consist of Army Soldiers; he already had eight, and he produced sixteen more, expanding to three squads.
Then, he replaced the Three-Star Soldiers in the other units; this escort platoon needed absolutely elite forces.
Twenty-four Three-star Army Soldiers formed the main combat strength of the escort platoon.
Then came the military dogs; with Xiaotian being the only one, Ye Fan produced another four military dogs and replaced them with Four Three-Star Military Dogs.
Each squad carried one dog, while Xiaotian and another Three-Star female dog stayed by his side.
The Scout class had its numbers increased; Ye Fan produced two new Scouts to replace Shen Ruihui and Qiao Sanyou.
Xu Haoran had extensive combat experience, but a leader was needed here, so he was left behind.
Shen Ruihui and Qiao Sanyou were to be personal bodyguards, following him closely.
Ye Fan produced another two Snipers, replacing Lin Qing and Zhao Ming and following alongside him to become part of his escort.
These units cost 6700 gold; Ye Fan did not continue producing new recruits.
Then the Flamethrower Warrior Wang Aiyu and the Rocket Launcher Warrior Su Mo were temporarily called over by Ye Fan, joining the escort platoon.
Finally, Ye Fan decided to bring two medical soldiers, just in case anyone got injured during battle.
He immediately had Nana notify the medical soldiers to prepare two individuals to accompany him to Sishui County the next day.
With this, Ye Fan’s numbers reached 32 people, counting as a full-strength platoon, not including the five military dogs.
With 5000 gold left, Ye Fan produced an Engineer.
This Engineer replaced Luo Jiaxin, as Ye Fan found Luo Jiaxin’s clever personality suited for tasks like repairs.
Heading to the trade meeting, he drove his Iron Armor with the Fierce Dragon Off-road Vehicle, joined by the unit’s Assault Armor Vehicle, leaving home defenses slightly weakened.
With the remaining 4000 gold, Ye Fan produced an Assault Armor Vehicle to stay home and guard.
An entire battalion-level unit could only have four Assault Armor Vehicles, the first of which followed him, directly under the battalion headquarters’ jurisdiction.
By this point, Ye Fan’s reinforced direct platoon was essentially taking shape.
Three-star Army Soldiers, two Three-star Scouts, two Three-Star Snipers.
One Three-Star Rocket Launcher Warrior, one Three-star Flame-Thrower Warrior.
Two Three-Star Medical Soldiers, five Three-Star Military Dogs, plus one Engineer.
Additionally, the drivers: Han Haoyu for the armored vehicle and the Heavy Machine Gunner Zhang Xiaoyu were also under this direct platoon, making a total of 40 Red Alert units.
This was the main force Ye Fan took to the trade meeting.
Apart from these, Ye Fan also assigned Wang Hu and Li Biao among five Conscripts to drive five large trucks, all for transporting goods.
Most of the goods collected over the past two days were loaded onto the trucks, leaving just enough supplies at home to last for a month or so and taking the rest to trade for money.
While these goods were being loaded, some survivors showed signs of dissatisfaction, feeling Ye Fan was depriving them of their hard-earned collections, gathered through their efforts.
However, with Ye Fan’s team consisting of over a hundred people, none of these survivors dared to voice complaints.
Ye Fan paid no attention to their thoughts, only urging them to speed up the process.
Loading was finished by dusk, rested after dinner.
A silent night passed, and Ye Fan rose in the morning, ready to set off.
He left a walkie-talkie with Xu Haoran and another with his sister Ye Luo.
This way, he could stay informed of any developments at any time.
After checking with Gao Dongliang’s situation, Gao reported no changes, only that he had spread the name of Dawn Corps as Ye Fan instructed, though many survivors scoffed at it, stating they were just living by the day, with no concept of "Dawn."
As for the origin of Dawn Corps, Gao Dongliang didn’t question it, satisfying Ye Fan, as only the sensible ones kept quiet.
Gao Dongliang was brought along since he knew the details about trading best, indispensable for the mission.
Many survivors had already set off for Si River; it was time for Ye Fan to leave too.
Stepping out of the police station’s door, the fully armed escort platoon soldiers were assembled in full.
Among them were the military-clad medical soldiers, Xiao Jing and He Xiaoting, who immediately stood at attention and saluted upon seeing Ye Fan.
"What’s this? Why are it you two?" Ye Fan inquired.
"Commander, I’m the best medical soldier in the Three-Star Medical Unit, He Xiaoting is also a female soldier, we have patience and meticulousness men lack, making us the best fit for your care," Xiao Jing responded confidently.
The petite He Xiaoting beside her nodded repeatedly, endorsing Xiao Jing’s leadership.
"Alright, join me then, just don’t hold us back."
Ye Fan spoke with full confidence; previously, his combat power was lowest, but ever since his left eye was enhanced, becoming a Sharpshooter, he felt transformed.
Xiao Jing gave a mild smile, "Rest assured, commander, a Three-star Medical Soldier’s combat ability isn’t poor, if we engaged in unarmed combat, you might...."
Ye Fan squinted his right eye and opened his left, snorted, "Do I need unarmed combat with you?"
Xiao Jing shook her head instantly, "Commander, when you open one eye and close the other, it’s when you’re at your scariest."
Ye Fan nodded satisfied, still managing to intimidate the young girl.
The convoy had been prepped; at the spearhead was the Fierce Dragon Vehicle.
Driver Qiao Sanyou led with a Flamethrower Warrior, a Sniper, along with a squad of Army Soldiers clearing the way ahead.
Ye Fan’s Iron Armor followed, with Shen Ruihui driving, Gao Dongliang in the passenger seat, Xiao Jing, and He Xiaoting beside Ye Fan, though he found this somehow appointed seating somewhat displeasing publicly.
The Engineer Luo Jiaxin crammed with the Sniper, Rocket Launcher Warrior, and military dogs in the back.
Following were five heavy-duty trucks in a row, driven by five Three-star Conscripts.
Lastly, an Assault Armor Vehicle had two squads inside, serving as rear-guard strength.
With Ye Fan’s order, the first Fierce Dragon Vehicle started, Iron Armor closely followed, and for the first time, Dawn’s forces stepped out of Chengguan Town.