Hu Hao sat there in silence, feeling a deep sense of disillusionment. He had never imagined that the Grand Marshal, a high-ranking general of the Empire, would sacrifice this defensive line for his own personal gain.
To ignore the fate of over a hundred million civilians behind them—how was he any different from the historical traitor Wu Sangui?
“Hu Hao, Hu Hao, what’s wrong?” Sun Qinxue asked, confused by Hu Hao’s sudden change in mood.
“I’m fine. It’s just… I find it terrifying. If the Grand Marshal’s plan succeeds, what will happen to the people behind us? They will still curse us soldiers for being useless.
A few days ago, I went to the occupied territories. The civilians there saw our troops and did nothing but curse us. They cursed us for failing to protect them and for letting them suffer such a disaster.
Doesn’t the Grand Marshal fear being cursed? Doesn’t he fear that his own children might get shot in the back by their own men on the front lines?” Hu Hao sat there, looking at the Chief of Staff.
“Sigh, what does he have to fear? His eldest son is already a Full General at High Command. His second son is the Deputy Commander of the Central Combat Zone. His third son is that Tang Junjie from earlier, also stationed at High Command.
The other younger members of the clan aren’t his direct sons; they are nephews or distant relatives. He won’t lose sleep if they die!” Sun Qinxue replied.
“And no one in the capital has tried to put a bullet in them?” Hu Hao pressed. Sun Qinxue simply stared back at him.
“Fucking useless,” Hu Hao muttered, standing up.
“Where are you going?” Sun Qinxue asked immediately.
“To find a place to sleep. We can’t talk tonight anyway while those people are still in the command post,” Hu Hao said.
“No, that won’t work. The Commander said we must organize our troops tonight, otherwise it’ll be too late. The Allied forces will reach us in a week at most, maybe even sooner. If we don’t prepare now, we’re in trouble!” Sun Qinxue urged.
“Go see if the Commander has finished dealing with them yet,” Hu Hao told him.
“Fine, wait here for me. Don’t leave!” Sun Qinxue cautioned before hurrying out.
Hu Hao sat back down and lit a cigarette. He knew that right now, no one was reliable—not even Jiang Kai. If Jiang Kai failed to win his struggle against the Grand Marshal, he would be finished.
Furthermore, no one knew if His Majesty truly wanted Jiang Kai to become the Grand Marshal or if he was simply using him as a pawn to eliminate others. Hu Hao didn’t dare place the lives of the civilians or his brothers in the hands of others. These soldiers were heroes to the nation, fighting bravely to stop the invaders and protect the people, but they stood no chance if they were stabbed in the back by their own leadership.
He sat there smoking one cigarette after another. After waiting for nearly half an hour without Sun Qinxue’s return, he stood up to leave.
“Hao-ge, the Chief of Staff said you should wait here. He’ll be back shortly!” a guard at the door said, stopping him.
“What am I waiting for? It’s been ages. Go find out what’s happening, or come with me to check,” Hu Hao said.
“Hao-ge, let me tell you, they’re in the middle of a massive argument over there. You really shouldn’t go!” the guard whispered.
Hu Hao listened closely and realized the guard was right—there was the sound of someone slamming a table in the distance. He was curious how the soldier could hear such a faint sound.
“How do you know?” Hu Hao asked.
“A staff officer just came by and told me. He said if you got impatient, I had to stop you. They’re still shouting at each other!” the guard explained. Hu Hao thought about it and decided to stay out of the mess. If he went in now, he might not be able to stop himself from killing Tang Junjie.
…
“I’ve said it already: I will not discipline Hu Hao. Why should I punish a hero of the Empire? If His Majesty opens the promotion channels, I will definitely recommend him for the rank of Major General.
He only fired at you because he hasn’t slept in days and has a short fuse, yet you kept babbling at him. As his superior, I apologize for his behavior.
But right now, you two owe me an explanation. What is the meaning of this defensive layout? This was organized by the two of you, and I want an explanation right now!” Jiang Kai shouted at Tang Junjie and He Jingzhong.
“An explanation? What explanation do I owe you? Does that Hu Hao even understand our deployment? He’s just a Colonel! Commander Jiang, as a Combat Zone Commander, I truly doubt your competence if you rely on a Colonel’s words for your strategy!” He Jingzhong fired back.
“If you doubt my competence, tell His Majesty to remove me. I may lack ability, but Hu Hao’s competence is beyond question. So what if I listen to him?
Don’t change the subject. You two must explain this plan to me, or I will report this to His Majesty and High Command. The Tang family does not run High Command, and they certainly do not run this Empire!” Jiang Kai roared.
He Jingzhong had always been a protégé of the Grand Marshal and a loyalist to the Tang family.
“Commander Jiang, I am currently discussing Hu Hao’s conduct, not the deployment. There is nothing wrong with the deployment!” Tang Junjie insisted.
“Can the Tang family bear the responsibility if things go wrong? If you guarantee to me and His Majesty right now that this defense has no issues and can hold for two months—no, even one month would do—then I will follow your plan.
But you both know the truth of the matter. You must give me an explanation, and I will be sending this deployment plan to High Command and His Majesty for their review.
General He, I don’t know what your true intention is for inspecting us. Are you here to watch me, or are you actually inspecting? You should be out with the units, not loitering in my command post.
You’ve been here since last night pushing us to deploy according to your wishes. It’s highly suspicious. I will handle Hu Hao myself. He is my soldier, and you have no authority to touch him!” Jiang Kai stated firmly.
“Hmph, then report it to His Majesty or High Command. I don’t believe for a second that you’ll dare ignore an order if High Command strikes Hu Hao from the military rolls!” Tang Junjie sneered.
“Strike him? Removing a field officer requires the consent of the Grand Marshal and the three Generals of the Left, Middle, and Right, followed by His Majesty’s approval. Try and strike him if you can!” Jiang Kai stared at Tang Junjie with a cold laugh.
“Aiya, I think you’ve misunderstood, Commander Jiang. We only came to inspect because we were worried about this defensive line. We intended to visit the frontline units once the deployments were finalized.
However, you still haven’t finished the layout. If this delay causes a major disaster, can you take the blame?” He Jingzhong suddenly said in a much softer, conciliatory tone. He didn’t want to keep fighting with Jiang Kai; if the matter actually reached the Emperor, it would only cause him trouble.
“Fine. My deployment won’t be an issue, but I ask the two of you to excuse yourselves now! Tomorrow, you can go inspect the units. I’ll have my men take you to see my troops!” Jiang Kai declared.
“What do you mean by that?” He Jingzhong’s face darkened again. Barring them from seeing the defensive plans had deep implications. It meant Jiang Kai was guarding against them, and if the Emperor found out, it would bring them trouble. Most importantly, they wouldn’t be able to finish the task the Grand Marshal had given them.
“That is unacceptable!” Tang Junjie barked.
“Unacceptable? You’re telling me what’s unacceptable? Who do you think you are? This is the Southwest Combat Zone Command Post, and I am the Commander. You’re telling me ‘no’ in my own house?” Jiang Kai glared at Tang Junjie.
“You!” Tang Junjie was left speechless. This was Jiang Kai’s territory, not his.
“Fine. You do your deployment, and we won’t say a word. We’ll just watch, alright? High Command needs to know how a campaign of this scale is being organized. His Majesty has criticized us before for being ignorant of frontline affairs. We came down here specifically to understand how the war is being fought. Surely that isn’t an unreasonable request?” He Jingzhong quickly interjected.
“No!” Jiang Kai said with absolute finality.
“Jiang Kai! Don’t think you can ignore High Command just because you have His Majesty’s support!” He Jingzhong was furious. He had already backed down several steps, yet Jiang Kai refused to give an inch.
“Exactly. I have His Majesty’s support, so what of it? Why don’t you go and complain to him then?” Jiang Kai had made up his mind. He could not let them see the actual defensive blueprints, or God only knew what would happen next.
(End of Chapter)