Munitions Empire

"Hello?" The intelligence officer grabbed the phone in front of him and heard yet another piece of news, "Okay, I got it. I'll report this immediately!" He hung up the phone and walked over to the officer in charge of compiling information, "Our covert observation outpost on the border has confirmed it. Dahua's military is mobilizing." Everyone in the intelligence room was busy. Intelligence from various regions piled up like mountains, with some even detailing the enemy's military unit numbers and corresponding ammunition reserves. "There was news yesterday that the 11th Division of the Dahua Empire was moving southward; it seems to be true." The officer compiling intelligence raised his head and marked an arrow on the map, "Such frequent movements are very suspicious." Ocassionally an NCO would push a trolley in, bringing in various changes detected from the Dahua Empire by different departments. Updates such as which general was reassigned where or which official appeared on the border. Secret news from inside the Dahua Empire's court, as well as some secret orders from the Emperor of Dahua. Despite targeted infiltration towards the Dahua Empire, it would be too fanciful to think that Dahua could be infiltrated as easily as a sieve. Corrupt nations often have relatively powerful intelligence agencies because this is the only reliable way for rulers to control the country and understand public grievances. Therefore, the intelligence department of the Dahua Empire still has some capabilities, and the infiltration by Tang Country is not completely successful. After several confrontations, Tang Country controlled some channels of information sources and could obtain some orders related to Emperor Zhao Kai of Dahua, but that was about it. Considering military matters are tightly kept secrets, it's nearly impossible to directly obtain the combat orders issued by Zhao Kai. However, corresponding intelligence still promptly reached the hands of the Great Tang Kingdom's intelligence department. For instance, the increase of train services and the allocation and transport of grain. "The enemy's telegraph communications have tripled in intensity, and our Signal Detection Department has basically confirmed it, the activity of Dahua's military is well above normal levels," another officer passed over a stack of documents, fretfully saying, "This is not a good sign." "They're planning an attack while we are organizing disaster relief? That really complicates things." The leading officer scratched his head, looking at the mountain of documents in front of him, "Everything seems to be against us." "We've intercepted even more enemy telegrams at the Navy... so many that they can't handle it, let alone decode it. Various incoming and outgoing telegraph messages— even the ones sent in clear text are too numerous to read," complained a liaison officer from the Navy. He slapped the telegrams in his hand and sighed, "Actually, there's no need to translate them anymore. With so massive a volume of telegrams going back and forth, a fool could tell what they're doing." This was not a small-scale war, nor was it a sudden, senseless attack by some fool. Since the time Chu Country had just suffered a disaster, several empires had already been considering instigating this large-scale war against Tang Country. Telegrams were being exchanged incessantly, envoy Shireck was bustling about, military troops deployed at the border were constantly moving, and reserves of ammunition were being concentrated towards the front line. It wasn't just that the intelligence department of the Great Tang Kingdom was terrifyingly efficient. In fact, even a blind person could see that war seemed inevitable now. Some countries had even started rationing food, and the elite troops in the heartland of the Dahua Empire were already secretly setting out. "On Qin Country's side, our intelligence agents have sent back confirmation that some of their elite troops have entered the Dahua Empire... It's very clear now, the Dahua Empire will definitely declare war on us within a few days!" another officer who had just received the intelligence yelled as soon as he put down the phone. If it weren't for the impending war, the Dahua Empire would definitely not allow another country's troops to enter its territory. Clearly, this time, the Dahua Empire had made up its mind to go to war! Clearly, the Dahua Empire planned to use the weather to offset the air superiority of the Tang Army. If they dawdle and miss the opportunity to strike, once the weather clears, the air force of the Dahua Empire wouldn't be a match for that of the Tang Kingdom. So it's highly likely that within the next couple of days, the Dahua Empire may initiate warfare in the border areas. But the Tang Army was not sitting idly by. Although the situation was highly unfavorable, the Tang Army had accelerated their war preparations as soon as the intelligence department received the first piece of information suggesting that the enemy might go to war. Despite the severe disaster, the Tang Army was still using the remaining transportation capacity to transport reserves of ammunition and war materials to the combat zone. Villages and towns near the border were also prepared, with civilians beginning an orderly evacuation. Those who didn't wish to leave were stockpiling food in case of emergency. Chang'an, within the yet-unfinished palace where Tang Mo was, rain crashed against the windows, making a pitter-patter sound. The room was very quiet, with only Tang Mo speaking. "The situation is very unfavorable for us," the King of Tang Country said, looking at the map and speaking to Roger and Luff among others. "Things have deviated a bit from what we anticipated." "Our previous plan was to attack the southern part of Dahua Empire, seize the southern oil fields, and annihilate 400,000 to 500,000 troops of the Dahua Empire, forcing them to seek peace," he said, pointing to the map and explaining the previous battle plan. Then, he sighed and continued, "In preparation for such a plan, we constructed defensive lines on the border of Chu Country, hoping to hold back the Chu army. However, we were not well-prepared for defense against the Dahua Empire." "Now, the floods have destroyed our defensive lines in the southern region, essentially canceling out our elite forces with the least combat-effective Chu forces. Currently, we have no choice but to face the main forces of Dahua Empire on the western front, which is one of our disadvantages," Tang Mo said, then turned to look at Luff and Ibrahim, "In addition, the severe weather has negated our aerial superiority." "Planes can't take off, nor can they support the frontline combat; the battle zone is muddy, making it difficult for tanks and armored corps to deploy," Tang Mo sighed—nearly all the advantages of his mechanized forces were gone. What remained was only the disadvantage in troop strength. He had prepared about 20 divisions, roughly 400,000 men, on the western front. Now, to support the disaster area, about 150,000 had been redeployed, leaving only 250,000 troops to face an army of over 1 million from the Dahua Empire. Not only were the troops insufficient in number, but these forces also lacked proper defensive fortifications to rely on because the Tang Army originally intended to attack in this direction and had not considered defense at all. According to Tang Mo's plan, before the offensive began, he was to redeploy about 100,000 troops from the southern region to join the attack. Coupled with the advantages of the Air Force and armored corps, the Tang Army had a chance of victory. But now, without the Air Force able to participate in the war and the Army facing an enemy force four or five times its size, the entire western front seemed very tense. And this was just one aspect, because the various pieces of intelligence sent by the information department suggested that this was practically "the First World War against Tang"! The four aircraft carriers planned to be commissioned next year obviously could not be rushed to join the battle now, but half of the battleships from the navies of various countries had been launched into service. Tang Country currently had a total of seven battleships, while the combined number of battleships from various countries worldwide exceeded twenty, seemingly giving Shireck an absolute advantage. The only hope was on radar and submarines, two types of new weaponry, which were what the Tang Navy would rely on to turn defeat into victory within the next year. "The coming 20 days to 1 month could be critical in determining the outcome of this war," Tang Mo said solemnly to his generals. "We will face the main forces of Dahua Empire with inferior troop strength... If we can hold our ground, then once the weather improves and the Air Force can engage, our pressure will drastically reduce." "Conversely, if we are defeated by the enemy in this bad weather, then it will be too late for the Air Force to join the fight... By then, we will be in a comprehensive disadvantage." "Even after holding our position for a month, we would still be at a disadvantage due to the floods severely affecting national transportation and causing major infrastructure damage, requiring time to recover," Tang Mo walked back to the table, his hands resting on the edge. "It is expected that we will be forced into a defensive stance for half a year." "However, we are not without the hope of winning. As long as we persevere, the goddess of victory will smile upon us!" He looked around at everyone, then concluded the meeting, "So! Go prepare." Due to the weather, forcefully launching planes was risky and could lead to accidents, so Redman and Tagg could only travel by train to the western front. They had to depart in advance to reach their respective headquarters before the outbreak of war. The recent meeting had altered the previously drafted offensive battle plan, modifying the entire operational plan into two parts. The now redefined western front attack plan was divided into two directions: southwest and northwest. The overall commander for the southwest direction was General Tagg, and for the northwest direction was General Redman. The troops in the southwest would undertake defensive tasks, and at all costs, withstand the assault from Dahua Empire's army for three months. Once the weather improved, the troops in the northwest would attempt a counterattack under the cover of the Air Force, exerting pressure on the flanks of Dahua Empire's offensive troops. Of course, unlike the previous plan, this offensive, due to the lesser number of troops involved, would merely be a feint; it would not be possible to advance swiftly and take over the significant southern regions of Dahua Empire and control the oil fields there. With the war imminent and disaster relief extremely urgent, Tang Mo had been very busy these few days; he had not even left his office except for meetings. After the meeting, Tang Mo sent a telegram to Sofia in Flame Castle from afar. The content was very simple, just one sentence: "This time, simply offering a scapegoat won't do!"