Munitions Empire

"The loss of the woods on the flank means that there's no practical point in holding out in Li Family Village anymore. Just one small mistake, and the troops stationed there would be in great danger," Tagg, staring at the map, said to the surrounding generals. His gaze followed the highway behind Li Family Village eastward, finally settling on the city of Xicong, "Have them pull back. The objective of holding Li Family Village has been achieved. Let Xicong handle the next step." "General, we can continue to hold out for more than two more days," the commander responsible for the defenses in Li Family Village said earnestly. "I believe in your resolve, but there's no need to waste troops in Li Family Village anymore. If we don't stick to the plan and allow Dahua's troops to come in, it won't be easy for Redman to make his move," Tagg shook his head; he knew that his troops could have held their position if they had gritted their teeth and held firm. However, if they fought too resolutely, they would fix the enemy in place, and then their strategic intent of targeting the oil fields behind these Dahua troops would not be easily realized. Sometimes, it isn't about not being able to hold on that necessitates a retreat, but rather drawing the enemy in to close the door and beat the dog. As for Xicong, it was nothing but bait, a location that had been decided to be surrendered long ago. "Carry out the orders," Tagg stood up straight and looked at his subordinates, "Rest assured, in Xicong, we won't retreat a single step!" "Yes, sir!" All the generals stood at attention and saluted. The reason the Tang Army's frontline had few cannons and did not use rocket launchers was that most of the heavy weaponry that was difficult to move was being gathered in Xicong, not sent to the front. Those towed heavy cannons had already been deployed in Xicong. They had complete artillery positions, abundant ammunition, and a well-supplied artillery line. As for the secret weapon rocket launchers, Tagg had not revealed them prematurely. He was preparing to hit Dahua Empire hard in Xicong, to let the commanders of Dahua know what real firepower coverage meant. In Xicong, the Tang Army had amassed 300 rocket launchers and more than 1500 cannons. The density of their fire was now no less than that of the Dahua Empire. On the Dahua Empire side, the higher-ups were celebrating. They had stopped the Tang Army's advance in the Northern Region and held their defensive positions. For the entire anti-Tang coalition, this was exhilarating news. It showed that the natural disasters had drained the strength of the Great Tang Kingdom, and the Tang Army no longer had the power to launch a substantial attack. Therefore, the Dahua Empire officials were very excited; they believed this to be a hard-won great victory, a strong counterattack following the severe blow to the coalition's navy. Shireck was also excited. After all, this was the first time any country had thwarted the Tang Army's advance, fully worthy of publicity and celebration. As a result, the Dahua Empire held a banquet, and the Emperor of the Dahua Empire, Zhao Kai, even personally attended, raising the status of the celebration. However, in reality, the military side of the Dahua Empire was anxious. The commanders of the Dahua military found that the Tang Army was extremely fierce in combat and terrifyingly mobile. They had not yet been able to annihilate any Tang Army units at the brigade level since the beginning of the war, and even battalion-level units were rarely entirely wiped out. If the Tang Army wanted to retreat, they simply could not catch up. The enemy had mules, trucks, and even armored vehicles to help them move quickly. They could rapidly break contact with the Dahua military, even in muddy conditions. Although limited in number, the artillery units of the Great Tang Kingdom were almost all equipped with self-propelled guns, allowing for astonishingly fast deployment and withdrawal of the Tang Army artillery. Typically, these artillery units could retreat along with the troops, unlike the Dahua Army's artillery, which was always a beat slower than the infantry, whether advancing or retreating. The war had been going on for over a week now, and the actual advance speed of the Dahua military was far lower than expected. They hadn't even taken Li Family Village, let alone Xicong, their earlier strategic target. According to the pre-war plan, they were supposed to have taken Xicong within a week and started pressing towards the central cities of Tang Country such as Sishui. Taking Sishui would allow them to comfortably deploy defenses along the convergence of four rivers nearby, putting the Dahua Empire in a sturdy stance of being ready to advance or retreat as needed. Moreover, by capturing Sishui, an advance to the southeast could threaten Tang Country's heavy industry base in Tongcheng, and advancing to the northeast could threaten Tang Country's political center, Chang'an. But now, they hadn't even taken Xicong! Although the Tang Army overall still seemed at a disadvantage and the Dahua military did indeed achieve some minor victories on the battlefield, the Dahua military had wasted precious time! Seven days had passed, and the Dahua Empire's greatest reliance on weather conditions was clearly changing. The rain was gradually becoming less dense. Heavy rains were almost no longer occurring, and the frequency of moderate rains had also decreased. Now, more often than not, the battlefield was only misted with a persistent drizzle. That is to say, the flood disaster that has been dragging Tang Country down is passing, and the disadvantageous factors for Tang Country are disappearing, while the advantages of the Dahua Empire are slowly fading away. For the frontline troops of the Dahua Empire, this was not good news: once the Tang Army recovered, the problem would become very serious. On the one hand, if the domestic flood disaster ceased or diminished, the Tang troops that had been mobilized to help locally would quickly return to the front. By that time, the numerical advantage of the Dahua military would gradually be offset, and the quality advantage of the Tang Army would be infinitely magnified. On the other hand, the Air Force of the Tang Army would return to the battlefield, and once those advanced planes appeared, ground operations would become much more difficult. Despite being somewhat prepared and having built a sizable Air Force, the commanders of the Dahua Empire's Air Force still lacked confidence when facing the Air Force of Tang Country. Qian Jinhang, the general in charge of commanding the Dahua troops on the southern front, was filled with concern. He gathered with his superiors, Shen Chuan and General Feng Kezhi, around a map to discuss subsequent strategies. "If my troops can't take Li Family Village by tomorrow, then we'll have to consider whether to pull the troops back and strengthen our defenses," said Qian Jinhang, a veteran general with outstanding capability and abundant experience. He had already noticed the difference between the two sides, which is why he favored caution—if the strategic objective could not be achieved, then a prompt and secure defense should be adopted to negate the enemy's advantage. Shen Chuan, the Minister of War, had to consider not just the situation on the battlefield but also the political climate, so he shook his head decisively and said, "Your Majesty would never allow you to stop the attack. If you stop, then this offensive would amount to a failure." "That's right, we must figure out a way to take Sishui! This is our only chance! We must strike at the vital points of Tang Country before the disaster ends, or we will fall into an overall disadvantage!" General Feng Kezhi also agreed with Shen Chuan's viewpoint. He wasn't worried about the Emperor's face; purely from a military perspective, if this offensive failed to take Sishui, then the army could potentially face comprehensive defeat. Shen Chuan was anxious; as the Minister of War, he saw issues that frontline commanders might not. In the 7 days since the battle began, the frontline troops had suffered over 20,000 casualties, and this was while Dahua's military was on the offensive. What did this imply? It practically meant that the Dahua Empire had wiped out the equivalent of two divisions in just a short week! Considering the ammunition expenditure, tank losses, and overall materials consumed by the offense, the figures were astronomical. The Emperor wouldn't care about these things, but he, as the Minister of War, had to take them into account. The allocation of funds from the Ministry of Revenue was already being delayed, and Wang Yucái, the Minister of Revenue, had privately met with him twice, during which they exchanged their views. Wang Yucái had explained the financial pressure on the Ministry of Revenue, yet even so, Shen Chuan knew that the military must maintain its offensive stance, beyond any doubt! If the troops stopped, the situation would spiral out of control, and the Ministry of Revenue would face even greater pressures. "My troops are desperately attacking. In fact, some units have not rested for two days, yet Li Family Village, besieged on three sides, is still in the hands of the Tang Army. I've already lost over five thousand men there!" Qian Jinhang emphasized heavily. As he spoke, an officer entered the meeting room, excitedly reporting, "Report! Good news from the frontline!" "What good news?" Qian Jinhang's eyes lit up, and he immediately asked. "Just received word, our forces have occupied the flank of Li Family Village, and there is a breach in the Tang Army's defense line there," the officer reported. "Hmm?" Qian Jinhang immediately moved to the map, focusing on the woods north of Li Family Village, then became excited. As a military man, he naturally understood the importance of this location. With this area under his control, the Tang Army within Li Family Village would inevitably be at a disadvantage. "Good! That's excellent!" Shen Chuan was also thrilled when he heard the news; he had just been worrying, but now the frontline situation had changed. To take Li Family Village meant there would be no strongholds to impede the Dahua Army's advance to Xicong—it was as if Xicong lay just ahead of the Dahua Army! "Very good! Very good!" General Feng Kezhi also recognized the significance of the small woods to the defense of Li Family Village. He knew that if the Tang Army did not want to be forced into passive defense, they would inevitably give up Li Family Village and retreat. So, in his view, Li Family Village was already in the bag. Indeed, the next day, his troops marched into Li Family Village. The Tang Army had withdrawn, leaving behind nothing but ruins and seven or eight damaged vehicles. They left in such haste that they didn't even plant booby traps or destroy the roads.