Upon receiving Bai Ye’s call reporting that the Allied forces had set out from Luotang City, Hu Hao immediately gave his instructions. “Good that they’ve moved! Remember: when commanding the tank units, you just focus on charging! That single corps definitely doesn’t have as many tanks as we do!
“Ten minutes before you attack, call Air Cavalry Commander Zheng Longjiang! Have them launch immediately and head your way! Coordinate your strikes with the Air Cavalry and wipe out their marching columns with maximum speed!
“Oh, right. Once you’ve annihilated their forces, your orders have changed! Previously, I told you and Bo Gang to garrison Luotang City and Xiwan City respectively. Now, have Bo Gang split his tank division in two to garrison both locations! I’ll be sending massive tank reinforcements to him over the next two days! As for you, once the battle is over, bring your troops back immediately! A staff officer will relay the formal orders to you shortly!”
“Ah? Yes, sir!” Bai Ye replied instantly.
“This time, you’re wiping out the Allied forces coming from the west, but we also have Allied forces pushing in from the east! Although it’s unlikely they’ll all converge on us, Late City is simply too important to them. Therefore, the upcoming battles will be the true test for your tank units and the Air Cavalry!” Hu Hao explained.
“Understood! Don’t worry, Hao-ge! I’ll hit whatever you point at!” Bai Ye declared confidently.
“Good! That’s all. Remember: use massed charges! Charge back and forth through their formations! During the initial charge, the infantry must follow closely behind the tanks!” Hu Hao added.
“Understood!” Bai Ye affirmed. Hu Hao then hung up the phone.
Hu Hao ordered a staff officer to transmit the new orders to Bo Gang and Bai Ye: Bai Ye’s forces were to return after the battle, while Bo Gang’s forces would split to garrison the two cities.
“Have we found enough Air Cavalry pilots?” Hu Hao asked another staff officer.
“Report! So far, across the three infantry divisions, we’ve only found just over 200 pilots. However, we’ve found quite a few Air Cavalry heavy machine gunners!” the staff officer replied.
“Good! That’s not bad. Order them to get those helicopters airborne immediately! Whatever they’re missing, tell Huan Xingtao to find it! Once the helicopters are up, have them fly directly to Bopa City! Our troops need them for combat operations there!” Hu Hao instructed.
“Yes, Hao-ge! We’ve found plenty of tank drivers—over a thousand of them! And a good number of tank gunners and commanders as well! However… we’ve been searching for fighter pilots, but we’ve only found ten so far. And they’re all in their forties, having retired from the Air Force early last year! We’re still looking. Those ten veterans said they can still fly, but they need some time to recover their physical conditioning,” the staff officer reported.
“You found fighter pilots?!” Hu Hao was incredibly pleasantly surprised.
“Mm. We’ve circulated the orders everywhere. We actually found quite a few bomber pilots too—over twenty of them!” the staff officer added.
“Good! Good! Excellent!” Hu Hao was thrilled. Even finding just one would have made him happy!
“Here’s what you do: tell those Air Force pilots… no, wait. You will be personally responsible for liaising with the Air Force personnel! I only have one requirement: give them the absolute best! The best food, the best supplies, the best protection!
“Also, keep searching for more pilots! As long as they’re willing to join us, take them in! Do you hear me? Give them the absolute best!” Hu Hao commanded the staff officer.
“Yes, sir! I understand! Give them the best!” The staff officer snapped to attention.
“Oh, right. Make a note for me. Once I’m done with my current tasks, bring those pilots to me. I want to have a chat with them. We have so many planes but no pilots to fly them. We absolutely must find a way to solve this problem, no matter how long it takes!” Hu Hao instructed.
“Yes, sir!” The staff officer immediately jotted it down in his notebook, preparing to bring the pilots over once Hu Hao had some free time.
“Alright, get to work!” Hu Hao dismissed him.
Meanwhile, over in Late City, darkness had completely fallen. Not a single light could be seen. Only the occasional headlights of passing vehicles broke the gloom, belonging to the last stragglers of the fleeing refugees. The entire city was pitch black.
Most of the original residents had already fled. The refugees who had remained were either huddled in air-raid shelters or had relocated to Daman City. Some were from nearby towns currently under Hu Hao’s control, so they simply returned home. Others simply refused to run any further; having nowhere left to go, they decided to stay and take their chances with Hu Hao’s forces.
“Chief of Staff, we’ve spotted the Allied vanguard! They’re heading straight for us! They’re in a standard marching formation; they probably have no idea we have troops stationed here!” In Muqiao City, a staff officer reported to Li Jingsong.
“Mm. Are our troops ready?” Li Jingsong asked, feeling a surge of nervousness.
This was his first time independently commanding troops since joining Hu Hao. During their previous forest ambush, he had merely been executing orders. But here in Muqiao City, his infantry division was tasked with engaging two Allied regiments, and Hu Hao hadn’t given him any specific tactical instructions!
Therefore, Li Jingsong was understandably anxious. However, he also had a solid foundation of confidence. Having followed Hu Hao for a while, he had constantly peppered him with questions about command and tactics, and Hu Hao had always provided insightful answers. Although he hadn’t commanded independently yet, Li Jingsong had a clear plan in mind for how to fight this battle.
“Ready! Our armor-piercing shells, armored vehicles, and infantry are all in position!” the staff officer replied.
“Then let them come!” Li Jingsong gritted his teeth.
Within the pitch-black Muqiao City, the infantry guns and rear artillery positions were locked and loaded. Armored vehicles sat idling, and massive numbers of soldiers armed with rocket launchers hid behind hastily constructed sandbag barricades.
Muqiao City hadn’t yet been ravaged by the war, so its buildings remained largely intact. Naturally, the soldiers hadn’t blown up any structures to create artificial rubble for cover.
“Here they come! Two regiments… that’s less than 2,000 men. I have over 10,000 men here! If I can’t beat you, I’ll chop my own head off!” Li Jingsong muttered to himself as he peered through his binoculars.
On the opposing side, the Allied Tank Regiment Commander sat atop the turret of his lead tank. He didn’t believe there were any Eastern Spirit forces left in the area. Throughout their entire march, they hadn’t seen a single enemy soldier, nor even many civilians. The civilians had all fled. This was largely due to the relative wealth of the Eastern Spirit populace; almost every family owned a car, allowing them to evacuate rapidly.
“Report! Muqiao City is just ahead!” a staff officer standing below the turret called up to the Commander.
“Pass through rapidly! Our main force is right behind us! We must reach Late City before dawn!” the Commander ordered without a second thought.
“Yes, sir! Continue advancing!” the staff officer repeated the order, then ducked back inside to broadcast it over the regimental channel. The tanks maintained their rapid marching speed, barrelling straight toward Muqiao City.
“Order the infantry guns to prepare! Keep their sights locked on those tanks! The moment they reach the 400-meter mark, open fire! Hao-ge said we absolutely cannot let tanks get too close! If they get too close without any forward obstacles to stop them, it’s incredibly dangerous!” Li Jingsong instructed the staff officer beside him.
“Understood!” The staff officer immediately had his subordinates contact the frontline Regimental Commanders via radio.
None of the Allied tank drivers ever imagined that the seemingly abandoned Muqiao City was actually bristling with troops waiting to ambush them!
“Fire!”
“Fire!”
“Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!”
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
The moment the frontline Regimental Commanders roared the order, signal flares shot into the sky. Instantly, the infantry guns unleashed a devastating barrage upon the approaching tanks.
“Boom!”
“Boom!”
“Boom!”
Numerous armor-piercing shells slammed into the lead Allied tanks!
“Enemy attack! Deploy formations! Hurry! Eastern Spirit forces ahead!” The moment he saw the muzzle flashes, the Tank Regiment Commander dove into his tank, grabbed the radio, and roared.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!” The explosions continued. A dozen tanks in the vanguard were struck, grinding to a halt and bursting into flames. The tanks behind them immediately began fanning out to the sides!
“Boom! Boom! Boom!” The infantry guns relentlessly continued their barrage of armor-piercing shells. Although their accuracy wasn’t perfect, there were simply too many of them! Several shells inevitably found their marks on the Allied tanks.
“Hurry! Infantry! Infantry, advance quickly! Cover our tanks!” the Tank Regiment Commander bellowed!
“Rat-a-tat-tat!” Soon, the heavy machine gunners atop the tanks began returning fire toward the muzzle flashes in the distance. In response, Li Jingsong’s infantry also opened fire.
This massive volley instantly revealed the true scale of Li Jingsong’s forces.
“Motherfucker! We’ve run into an entire Eastern Spirit infantry division! Hurry! Send a telegram to the main force behind us! Tell them we’ve encountered an Eastern Spirit infantry division at Muqiao City! Their firepower is incredibly fierce! Half our tanks are already destroyed! Request immediate reinforcements!” the Commander roared at a nearby staff officer.
“Understood!” The staff officer immediately contacted the main force to request backup.
“Tank units, cover the armored vehicles! Infantry, dismount and cover the tanks! Form attack clusters and charge them!” The Commander grabbed his radio, beginning to direct his two regiments in combat.
(End of Chapter)