Realizing they were facing the firepower of an entire Eastern Spirit infantry division, the Allied Regimental Commander immediately ordered his armored units to deploy and push forward. They had to destroy the enemy force!
“Motherfucker! Do they really think they can just charge head-on into an entire division?!” Li Jingsong cursed as he watched the Allied forces form up for an attack.
He didn’t realize that his order to open fire simultaneously had completely exposed his true troop numbers!
“Destroy those tanks! Focus entirely on the tanks! Ignore the armored vehicles for now; we can deal with them later!” the frontline Regimental Commanders roared.
They knew the Allied tanks posed the greatest threat. As for the rest of the enemy force, they weren’t afraid.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!” The infantry guns continued to rain fire upon the Allied tanks. Fortunately, they had brought a massive number of infantry guns this time; otherwise, they truly wouldn’t have been able to stop the tank charge.
Meanwhile, the soldiers armed with rocket launchers focused their fire on the approaching armored vehicles. Those vehicles were equipped with heavy machine guns that were putting significant pressure on the Eastern Spirit infantry!
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
“Rat-a-tat-tat!”
The fierce battle raged on. The Allied tanks, supported by armored vehicles and infantry, charged relentlessly toward the Eastern Spirit lines. However, as they pushed forward, they realized their tank numbers were dwindling rapidly; many had already been destroyed!
“Damn it! They have too many infantry guns! Hurry! Request immediate reinforcements from the main force! We cannot hold this position!” Seeing so many of his tanks destroyed, the Commander roared.
“We have already notified the main force! They will arrive shortly!” a staff officer replied.
“Commander Eric, perhaps we shouldn’t push any further! Let’s fall back! They don’t have any tanks, so they definitely won’t dare pursue us! We’ll wait for the main force to arrive and wipe them out together! They have a massive number of infantry guns and rocket launchers right now. Continuing to charge will result in catastrophic casualties!” the other Regimental Commander called over the radio.
“Damn it! Order the vanguard units to fall back! Let them live a little longer! Once the main force arrives, we will annihilate them!” Commander Eric, the Tank Regiment Commander, reluctantly gave the order.
Receiving the retreat order, the frontline tank units immediately threw it in reverse and began backing away from the engagement zone.
Watching this unfold, Li Jingsong was somewhat perplexed.
“Motherfucker, why are they retreating?! I’m fully prepared for them! Why did they pull back?! What does this mean?!” Li Jingsong cursed as he watched the Allied forces withdraw.
“Division Commander, they probably realized they can’t defeat us! Should we pursue?” a staff officer suggested.
“Pursue them?! Are you sick in the head?! They still have tanks! We only have armored vehicles! If we pursue them, we’ll just become target practice!” Li Jingsong glared at the staff officer.
“Then what do we do? Just let them retreat like this?” the staff officer asked.
“I need to ask Hao-ge how we should proceed!” Li Jingsong grabbed his phone and called Hu Hao at the command center.
“Hao-ge, this is Li Jingsong! We just engaged the Allied vanguard, and we beat them back! They are currently retreating. Should we pursue them?!” Li Jingsong asked the moment Hu Hao picked up.
“What? The Allied forces are retreating? Didn’t you say it was only a tank regiment and an armored regiment?” Hu Hao asked, equally perplexed.
“Exactly! Just one tank regiment and one armored regiment! But they’re retreating! Should we pursue them?!” Li Jingsong pressed.
“Pursue my ass! They have tanks! You want to pursue them?! They’re a fully armored force! What, do you think your armored vehicles are faster than their tanks or something?!” Hu Hao cursed immediately.
“I was just saying we couldn’t pursue them! But what do we do now?!” Li Jingsong asked hastily.
“You’re truly a genius. You used an entire division to ambush two regiments, you had the element of surprise, and you still let them get away?! Let me guess: you didn’t prepare proper ambush positions, and you opened fire with everything you had while the Allied forces were still hundreds of meters away?” Hu Hao deduced over the phone.
“Well, yeah! If we let those tanks get close, how were we supposed to fight them?!” Li Jingsong defended himself.
“Are you an idiot?! The tanks would have to enter the city! Your troops were hiding in ambush inside the city! What good would charging in do them?! What, do you think your infantry guns are just for show?!
“And you opened fire with everything all at once! Couldn’t you have held some firepower back?! If you had given them a sliver of hope, they would have fully committed to the charge! Then, once they were close, you could have unleashed your full firepower and wiped out the vast majority of them in one fell swoop!
“When they tried to retreat then, you could have pursued and annihilated them entirely! Now that they know your exact troop strength, how the hell are you supposed to fight them?!” Hu Hao scolded Li Jingsong over the phone.
“Alright, I’ll remember that!” Li Jingsong replied sheepishly.
“Do not pursue them! Wait until our Air Cavalry deploys, and they’ll finish them off for you! Right now, your sole objective is defense! Solidify your defensive positions! Do not get ambushed yourself!” Hu Hao instructed.
“Understood! That’s impossible!” Li Jingsong immediately hung up, not wanting to get yelled at any further.
“Uh… notify the troops: keep a close watch on the Allied forces! Do not let them launch a sneak attack!” Li Jingsong ordered a staff officer behind him.
“Yes, sir!” The staff officer immediately relayed the orders.
Meanwhile, the Allied forces were retreating rapidly. Having suffered significant casualties from the sudden, intense ambush, they had lost the confidence to defeat the enemy force alone. They could only wait for their main force to arrive.
At the same time, the Allied main force was accelerating its march toward their position. Their orders were to capture and secure Late City before dawn tomorrow.
Therefore, they didn’t dare stop to rest for the entire night, pushing their troops toward Late City with maximum speed!
The Allied forces would soon reach Bai Ye’s ambush zone. Bai Ye and his men kept their eyes glued to the road ahead. The moment they saw headlights cutting through the darkness in the distance, they knew the Allied forces were approaching. The soldiers cut their engines and turned off their lights, waiting in the absolute stillness of the forest for the Allied column to drive right into their trap.
Meanwhile, on Hu Hao’s end, Jiang Kai called again, asking if Hu Hao had dispatched the unit to blow up the Late City arsenals. Hearing the question, Hu Hao rubbed his head, unsure of how to answer.
“Speak up! Have you blown them up yet?!” Jiang Kai demanded.
“Commander… we did blow them up, but… our troops are now blocked by Allied forces! They’re blocking the road ahead, and my troops can’t get through! We have no choice but to fall back toward Late City!” Hu Hao gritted his teeth and lied.
“What did you say?! The Allied forces have already cut off your retreat?! How did they get there so fast?!” Jiang Kai asked in shock.
“It’s true! When our troops marched toward Jinhe City, we discovered an entire Allied tank division stationed there! We originally intended to attack but as you know, our tank units were only recently formed! Furthermore, they had already deployed their defensive formations, and my troops simply didn’t expect to encounter such a massive Allied force there!
“We attempted an assault, but it failed. Meanwhile, more Allied forces were closing in from behind. We had no choice but to retreat toward Late City! Right now, we are desperately searching for another escape route!” Hu Hao continued weaving his web of lies, deceiving Jiang Kai completely.
“How did they arrive so quickly?! You must understand: behind you are the Allied forces that attacked the 27th Corps! They will definitely push toward Late City as well!
“And to your west, another Allied corps is marching toward Late City! Your troops are effectively surrounded! Damn it! How did this happen?!” Jiang Kai said, his voice laced with intense anxiety.
“Ah? Is it really that serious?” Hu Hao feigned ignorance.
“What do you think?! Listen to me, Hu Hao! Use the helicopters I gave you and evacuate immediately! Fly to the rear! Forget about your troops! Take your key officers and whoever else you can fit, and evacuate immediately!” Jiang Kai roared.
“What?! Abandon my troops and evacuate immediately?! I can’t do that! Commander, we have tens of thousands of men here! If I abandon them and run away alone, how could I ever live with myself?! How could I ever command troops again?!” Hu Hao was genuinely shocked.
He never expected Jiang Kai to issue such an order. This completely caught him off guard.
“Forget about your troops! I just need you alive! You must make it out alive! I will replenish your troops later! Board an Air Cavalry helicopter and evacuate right now! Immediately!” Jiang Kai bellowed over the phone.
Hearing this, Hu Hao felt deeply moved.
“Thank you, Commander. But I truly cannot abandon my troops and flee. I would rather die in battle than leave my men behind. I, Hu Hao, have never abandoned my troops in battle! Commander, please be at ease! I swear I will carve a bloody path out of here and bring them with me!” Hu Hao expressed his heartfelt gratitude to Jiang Kai.
“I told you to forget about the consequences! And put away that misplaced sense of righteousness! You must understand: to our Empire, you are a brilliant commander! Losing you would be a catastrophic loss for the Empire! And to me, Jiang Kai, it would be an equally massive loss! I can afford to lose those 60,000 troops, but I absolutely cannot afford to lose you!” Jiang Kai roared back.
“Thank you, Commander, for valuing me so highly! Commander, I swear on my life that I will break out! I don’t know how many troops I’ll be able to bring with me, but I will definitely lead my brothers out of this encirclement! Please trust me, Commander!” Hu Hao reiterated his resolve.
“You… Hu Hao, you’re a fool! An absolute fool!” Jiang Kai cursed in furious frustration.
(End of Chapter)