In the morning at the command post, Hu Hao finished organizing the grassroots officers and figuring out how to command the newly expanded troops. He then handed things over to Li Jingsong and the others.
At the same time, Hu Hao gave Li Jingsong the list of precautions he had written up last night. Tonight, Li Jingsong’s troops would be crossing the river to lay an ambush on the opposite bank.
In the afternoon, Hu Hao took a car to High Command. It was nearly 200 kilometers away. The forces of the 27th Corps were scattered across various locations, and now he needed to attend a meeting at the rear headquarters.
Meanwhile, over in Santong County , Ren Kefu arrived with his guard unit and two regiments. He saw the white cloth hanging from a building at the intersection, which read: “This is the fate of those who massacre the people of the Eastern Spirit Empire!”
“Send someone up to tear that down!” Ren Kefu ordered a staff officer beside him.
“Yes, sir!” The staff officer immediately took a few soldiers and went up. Ren Kefu continued further inside. Less than half a mile into the city, he saw that the road was completely blown to pieces. Corpses of soldiers were everywhere, flies buzzed in the air, and massive amounts of viscera were scattered across the ground.
The soldiers who had followed Ren Kefu covered their mouths with masks and began loading the corpses onto trucks.
“Damn it!” Ren Kefu cursed upon seeing a deep trench stretching far into the distance. He knew these soldiers had been killed by the shockwave. With so much explosive rigged in the sewers, how could they not be?
“Commander, I don’t think you should go any further. Drone footage shows a massive number of our soldiers’ bodies inside. There’s not a single living soul left in the entire city, and it’s uninhabitable now!” a Colonel advised Ren Kefu. Ren Kefu nodded in agreement.
“Report! A call from the Chief of Staff!” a signalman approached with a phone and said to Ren Kefu.
“Commander, we’ve investigated the enemy forces on the opposite bank. It’s the 27th Corps from the Eastern Spirit Empire’s Southwest Combat Zone. They were previously stationed in Tianyu Province but have reorganized since arriving here. Across the river is the 87th Division , commanded by Li Jingsong , the son of the 27th Corps Commander , Li Tianyuan.” The Chief of Staff reported over the phone.
“Li Tianyuan’s son, Li Jingsong? How is that possible? He’s a pampered young master of a general. Could he really command a battle like this?” Ren Kefu said.
“It’s him. The 27th Corps is Li Tianyuan’s unit, and the 87th Division is their main force, deployed over by Bopa City!” the Chief of Staff confirmed.
“Are you sure? I highly doubt it!” Ren Kefu refused to believe Li Jingsong was the one commanding.
“Commander, the Eastern Spirit Empire still hasn’t opened up their promotion channels. That means the officers serving as division commanders must be scions of noble families.
So, even if it isn’t Li Jingsong , it has to be one of Li Tianyuan’s other nephews or his youngest son.
However, according to our intelligence, Li Tianyuan’s youngest son is only 30 years old this year. It’s impossible for him to be a Major General division commander, right?” the Chief of Staff argued.
“True. Who would have thought the Eastern Spirit Empire had any noble scions who actually knew how to fight?” Ren Kefu nodded in realization.
“It’s possible for one to pop up occasionally! Jiang Kai’s counterattack also caught us off guard. So, they do have capable generals, just not many of them!” the Chief of Staff replied.
“Alright, got it!” Ren Kefu nodded and handed the phone back to the signalman, preparing to continue forward.
“Commander, don’t go any further. The stench ahead is too strong; our soldiers are having to wear gas masks now!” The Colonel immediately stopped Ren Kefu upon seeing him trying to advance.
“Fine, I won’t go. Damn it. Li Jingsong —remember that name. If we find an opportunity, kill him!” Ren Kefu cursed through gritted teeth.
“Yes, sir!” the men nodded in unison.
“How far is it to the riverbank from here?” Ren Kefu asked.
“Commander, you cannot go there. We’ve already sent scouts over, and we’ll have news soon. Commander, you should head back to Daman City. Leave this place to us!” the Colonel insisted.
Ren Kefu nodded, knowing that a frontline reconnaissance was out of the question right now. His main forces hadn’t arrived yet, making it unsafe. If the enemy across the river found out and pursued him, he’d be in serious trouble.
Meanwhile, Hu Hao , who was heading to Li Tianyuan’s command post, was fast asleep in the car. He hadn’t slept well the night before last, and pulled an all-nighter yesterday. Unable to hold on any longer, he crashed right there in the vehicle.
After driving for over three hours, they arrived at Corps High Command, and the soldiers woke Hu Hao up.
That afternoon, Hu Hao analyzed the overall defense strategy with Li Tianyuan and Chief of Staff Li Daowen. Hu Hao also pulled out the blueprints he had drawn yesterday, instructing Li Tianyuan to arrange the artillery positions in that specific manner. This would ensure the artillery could survive for a long time without being destroyed by the Allied forces. Li Tianyuan immediately complied.
After finishing a meal at the Corps command post, Hu Hao had the soldiers drive him to Combat Zone High Command. Upon arriving, Hu Hao spotted a Full General , accompanied by Jiang Kai.
“Hu Hao is here! Come, come, come! Let me introduce you. This is General He Jingzhong, a Vanguard General from High Command. General He, this is the Hu Hao I told you about. Our successful counterattack last time was entirely thanks to him!” Jiang Kai said, quite pleased to see Hu Hao.
“Greetings, General He! Greetings, Commander!” Hu Hao stood there and saluted them.
“Good, excellent. A young talent of the Empire!” He Jingzhong said happily. The Empire’s High Command was comprised of one Grand Marshal , three generals of the Left , Middle , and Right, and six Vanguard Generals. The man before him was one of those Vanguard Generals, presumably in charge of the army!
“Thank you for the praise, General!” Hu Hao replied.
“Come, sit down. General He came here this time to see how we’ve set up our defensive line.
Right now, our defenses are roughly in place. However, Hu Hao, you know as well as I do that we lack sufficient troops.
Although the Empire has conscripted quite a few men, they are still in training. According to the wishes of His Majesty and the Grand Marshal , we must hold this position for at least two months!” Jiang Kai explained to Hu Hao.
“Two months?” Hu Hao asked, looking at Jiang Kai.
“Yes, two months. It won’t be easy!” Jiang Kai nodded.
“Commander, the Allied forces already have eight corps here. We don’t know if more troops are coming, but it’s safe to say there definitely will be.
If we had enough reinforcements, I don’t think it would be a big problem. But without enough backup, I believe the difficulty is immense.
Our Southwest Combat Zone only has 330,000 troops, and our air force is small. High Command will at least send air support, right?” Hu Hao said.
“Yes, four fighter divisions and two bomber divisions!” Jiang Kai replied.
“Can we swap the bomber divisions for fighter divisions? Our bombers probably won’t be of much use here. The Allied forces won’t let us control the airspace!” Hu Hao asked after a moment of thought.
“How could you possibly change an order from High Command ?” A Lieutenant General standing behind He Jingzhong suddenly interjected.
“Oh, I forgot. Come, Hu Hao , this is Tang Junjie, a senior staff officer from High Command’s Strategy Office!” Jiang Kai quickly introduced him.
“Greetings, General Tang!” Hu Hao frowned slightly. As far as he knew, the Grand Marshal was also surnamed Tang. This young man in front of him, looking to be in his early thirties, was already a Lieutenant General. It seemed he was related to the Grand Marshal’s family.
“Hello. High Command requires you to defend for two months and has mobilized the air force for you.
At the same time, there are 200,000 troops training in the rear, prepared as reserves for you.
You must hold the line for two months. This is the will of the Grand Marshal , as well as His Majesty’s!” Tang Junjie stated, looking at Hu Hao from a distance.
“Hah!” Hu Hao chuckled upon hearing this.
“What? Do you have a different opinion?” Tang Junjie asked, glaring at Hu Hao.
“No, no, I wouldn’t dare,” Hu Hao smiled and waved his hand dismissively.
“Come, come, come, sit down and talk! You’re both young men, you should have a lot in common. Staff Officer Tang is a brilliant talent among the Empire’s younger generation, and Hu Hao is quite capable himself. You two should exchange ideas!” Jiang Kai said with a smile, while He Jingzhong remained silent, simply smiling from the side.
Tang Junjie sat down, and Hu Hao followed suit. He then pulled out a cigarette and prepared to light it.
“Ahem!” Jiang Kai coughed twice.
“What’s wrong? Sore throat? Go take some medicine!” Hu Hao said as he flicked his lighter and lit his cigarette.
He Jingzhong frowned, while Tang Junjie stood up, pointed at Hu Hao, and shouted angrily, “Don’t you know this is a command post? Smoking so brazenly in here—do you have any respect for your colleagues?”
“Huh?” Hu Hao looked at him, feeling somewhat baffled.
“Don’t you know smoking isn’t allowed here?” Tang Junjie demanded.
“Holy shit, did you all quit smoking?” Hu Hao glanced at Jiang Kai and then at the other staff officers, who immediately turned their backs to him.
“Are you sick? If you can smoke, why wouldn’t you?” Hu Hao cursed upon seeing their reactions. He obviously knew what was going on, but played dumb anyway.
“Just put it out, okay?” Jiang Kai said to Hu Hao in exasperation.
“Wait, Lao Jiang? What do you mean, you’re even managing this now?” Hu Hao took a drag, exhaled the smoke, and asked Jiang Kai.
(End of Chapter)