With a click, the tenth 7x45mm round was pressed into the magazine. Xu Chengfeng lay prone on the ground, legs spread in a V-shape, forming a stable three-point support with his arms bracing the rifle.

At the firing positions of the range, Cheng Ruofan, Zhong Yifu, Hu Xiushan, and Zhou Yinshan, the Director of the Staff Department at the Northeast Army Academy, had all adopted the same prone unsupported firing position. The wind fluttered the flags set up at the shooting stations, making a flapping sound; otherwise, the range was silent.

The manually operated red flag near the targets began to wave, signaling that the target area was clear and firing could commence. Seeing the signal, Xu Chengfeng, who had already completed his aiming, pulled the trigger.

Gunshots rang out across the range, but soon ceased. several high-ranking officers stood up and, in accordance with range regulations, placed their empty weapons on the ground. Staff members beside the firing positions waved green flags, and only then did the personnel responsible for retrieving targets run forward.

These were lessons learned in blood. The regulations had been established from the start, but initially, some people still failed to follow them and were accidentally shot. Fortunately, no lives were lost, and the wounded only suffered minor injuries. The troops used this incident to conduct another round of strict disciplinary training, and now no one ran around randomly on the range.

Zhou Yinshan was most interested in the semi-automatic rifle. Upon returning to the waiting point, he picked up the empty gun on the table and began to examine it. After just a moment, the targets were retrieved. The shooters were all graduates of the Baoding Military Academy; their shot groups were very tight, with even the worst performance achieving an 8-ring score.

Xu Chengfeng recalled the feeling of firing. The Type 18 semi-automatic rifle used 7x45mm ammunition with a muzzle velocity of 700 meters per second, 60 meters per second faster than the Hanyang 88's 640 meters per second. Because the bullet diameter was 1 millimeter smaller, the recoil was less than that of the Hanyang 88, and the trajectory was much flatter.

Before Xu Chengfeng could speak, Cheng Ruofan offered his opinion. "I think this rifle is fine. It can be used to equip the Instructor Division."

Zhong Yifu didn't quite agree. "The gun is so much heavier. If only it could have the weight of the Hanyang 88."

Compared to the Hanyang 88, the Type 18 semi-automatic rifle was 0.7 kilograms heavier—less than a jin and a half. But Zhou Yinshan disagreed with Zhong Yifu's view. "With the addition of the semi-automatic feeding mechanism, I'm afraid the weight can't be reduced. This semi-automatic loading means you don't need to work the bolt between shots, more than doubling the rate of fire. I think this weight is acceptable. Besides, there are feedback forms..."

Speaking of which, Zhou Yinshan patted the stack of forms on the table. "If you have opinions, report them."

"Teacher is anxious to equip the troops," Xu Chengfeng laughed.

Zhou Yinshan made no attempt to hide his view. "That's right, I am indeed very anxious. The troops are fully staffed, but the equipment is not yet complete. What will we do if a war really starts?"

Once this was said, even Zhong Yifu, who had hoped for a superior weapon, fell silent. Cheng Ruofan's thoughts were exactly the same as Zhou Yinshan's; he picked up a feedback form and began to fill it out. The others silently did the same.

After finishing, Cheng Ruofan saw that Zhou Yinshan had also completed his form, so he asked, "Teacher Zhou, are there any Japanese officers who do not want to invade Manchuria and Mongolia?"

Like He Rui, Zhou Yinshan had stayed in Japan for several years and had studied Japanese just as seriously, so he understood the currents of thought within Japan quite well. Hearing Cheng Ruofan's question, Zhou Yinshan answered without hesitation, "Japanese officers fall into two categories: one believes that Manchuria and Mongolia must be taken at all costs, and the other believes the cost of taking Manchuria and Mongolia is too high, so they must find the right opportunity. There are no Japanese military men who oppose the invasion of Manchuria and Mongolia."

Not only Cheng Ruofan, but the other officers also changed their expressions upon hearing such a detailed and accurate description. Cheng Ruofan's handsome face was somewhat distorted by anger, and he said hatefully, "In the future, we must make the Japanese understand what we're made of!"

After speaking, he continued with his anger unabated, "I don't know why the Chairman wanted to entertain those Japanese officers so enthusiastically! I also heard that the Chairman took the Japanese officers to the countryside to let them fully study and understand our policies for governing the Northeast. Is the Chairman not afraid that the disciple will learn the trade and starve the master?"

Several senior officers nodded in agreement, but Zhou Yinshan was amused. "Hehe, Ruofan, your perspective is wrong."

Cheng Ruofan actually didn't believe that He Rui failed to understand these things; he just couldn't figure out why He Rui, knowing the situation, would still teach the methods of governing the Northeast to the Japanese officers who would invade China. Hearing Zhou Yinshan offer a different view, Cheng Ruofan was not unhappy but asked excitedly, "Teacher Zhou, quickly tell us what's going on."

"I don't understand what the Chairman is thinking either; we can ask him directly when we see him giving a report. However, I know a little about how Japanese soldiers think. Since everyone has participated in land reform, you should know how many people were dealt with in the process. Compared to the land policies outside the Pass, the land contradictions in Japan are ten times more intense. If those Japanese officers really want to implement our Northeast policies in Japan, they would first have to overthrow the ruling clique within Japan."

Cheng Ruofan was stunned, while Hu Xiushan frowned slightly. Hearing this, Xu Chengfeng and Zhong Yifu both sighed softly and exchanged a glance.

Zhong Yifu, in particular, felt a mix of emotions. If he hadn't followed He Rui, Zhong Yifu would never have imagined in his life that the path to making China rich and strong would start with land reform. As the son of a small landlord with a hundred or so mu of land, Zhong Yifu couldn't help but feel conflicted whenever he thought about how He Rui would inevitably unify China. He Rui would definitely not stop at land reform in the Northeast, and the land situation across the country was not like the situation outside the Pass where land was plentiful and people were scarce. The conflicts that would erupt then—just imagining them made Zhong Yifu feel a chill.

Cheng Ruofan's family had nothing to do with landlords, so he had already figured out what Zhou Yinshan meant and said happily, "Is the Chairman trying to instigate a rebellion among those Japanese officers?"

Before his voice had faded, Xu Chengfeng spoke up. "The Chairman has already begun setting up intelligence gathering work on Japan. The situation of land in Japan can be discussed after the reports come in."

Zhou Yinshan knew Cheng Ruofan's personality; this young man was flighty, or rather, his character was not steady. He was easily distracted by things. This was why Cheng Ruofan was a Grade C student, while Xu Chengfeng, who was about as intelligent as Cheng Ruofan, was a Grade A student.

At this moment, Xu Chengfeng knew not to waste energy on unnecessary aspects. So he followed Xu Chengfeng's lead and said, "Since we are to form the Instructor Division, everyone should imagine how to resolve the artillery and communications issues. It's a pity we can't go to the European battlefield to observe; otherwise, we could see how Europe is solving these problems. There is also a major matter: the aircraft issue raised by the Chairman. The application and planning of the air force require a large scale. But our current aircraft are still only on paper. This requires establishing a more effective staff system. Let's propose equipment requirements first."

Naturally, Cheng Ruofan's attention was drawn to the work of force construction. He himself did not realize that Xu Chengfeng and Zhou Yinshan were actually guiding the discussion.

Clearly, Cheng Ruofan's attention could also be highly concentrated on the content he cared about. Facing the aspect of 'proposing equipment requirements,' Cheng Ruofan quickly became a main force in the discussion. Especially when Cheng Ruofan took out the discussion points he had prepared long ago, everyone was attracted by this guy's various whimsical ideas. They had already thrown the matter of He Rui entertaining the Japanese officers to the back of their minds.

At this time, He Rui had already led the Japanese officers back from the countryside. Upon returning to their residence, the Japanese officers, without exception, began to tidy their uniforms. At this moment, the door opened, and a waiter brought in a cardboard box filled with shoe polish.

The Japanese officers knew at a glance that this was specially ordered by He Rui to be sent to them, and they all stood up to express their gratitude. In this era, the shine of officers' leather shoes was also an important part of military appearance. Especially since the shoe polish sent by He Rui was enough for each person to receive two tins, everyone felt He-kun's thoughtfulness and understood more deeply why He Rui had won the goodwill of so many people in the Japanese army.

How could people not like such a straightforward man who solved everyone's difficulties without making a sound?