Munitions Empire

When Qian Jinhang, who was fighting fiercely at Xicong, heard the news of Tengyun's loss, he nearly passed out. His adjutant, quick and alert, supported him just in time to prevent the Dahua general from making a fool of himself in front of everyone. Nevertheless, the situation deteriorated rapidly, an undeniable fact. The hundreds of thousands of Dahua Troops gathered near Xicong could almost be said to be hanging by a thread. Even though Qian Jinhang knew that about 200,000 troops were already retreating, drawing gradually closer to South Wind Pass, he still was extremely nervous. God knew whether the Tang Army would seize South Wind Pass first, or if his retreating troops would get there first to stabilize their position. These days, he had been waiting for news, for confirmation that the 200,000 army tasked with retreating had indeed reached South Wind Pass. If his troops arrived there first and secured the rear, the Dahua military could be said to still have a chance to turn defeat into victory. Yet, if the news came that the Tang Army had occupied South Wind Pass first, then his status as a Dahua general would almost be forfeited at Xicong. What pained him most was that despite waiting anxiously, he still hadn't received a new order from General Feng Kezhi to retreat with the others. That meant, in General Feng Kezhi's view, pulling back 200,000 men to strengthen the defense of South Wind Pass was already the best choice. As for abandoning Xicong, Feng Kezhi had never considered it from the beginning: it was very likely a certain tacit agreement between him and the Emperor of the Empire, Zhao Kai. Namely, Emperor Zhao Kai had tacitly consented to Feng Kezhi's retreat of 200,000 men to secure the rear of South Wind Pass, and Feng Kezhi had agreed to the Emperor's ongoing strategy to attack Xicong. Therefore, Qian Jinhang had been fiercely attacking Xicong these past few days, knowing it was something he had to do. The immense loss was unbearable for the Dahua Troops, and the tremendous pressure was exhausting Qian Jinhang both physically and mentally. Over these days, Qian Jinhang hadn't even had a proper meal once. Although his troops already controlled a good half of the city, he still felt as if he were halfway into a coffin. While Qian Jinhang was dazedly sitting in his room, blankly staring at the map of Xicong on the wall, there came a knock at the door. "Good news! General! Good news!" an officer burst through Qian Jinhang's room door, excitedly handing a telegram to the somewhat feeble Dahua general. Just like his adversary, Qian Jinhang had also been very tense these days, too tense to sleep well. Though he had moved his headquarters into Xicong and found a relatively intact house as a bedroom, it still couldn't guarantee him a good night's sleep. Indeed, in such a life-and-death situation, if anyone could still sleep soundly, that would be truly bizarre. With dark circles under his eyes, he accepted the telegram and, upon reading the message, heaved a sigh of relief—the Tang Army might have taken Tengyun, but South Wind Pass was secured. Although it wasn't the command to retreat that he had hoped for, the news of Ding Hong repelling a Tang Army attack at South Wind Pass was still very heartening. The rain outside the room had stopped at some unknown time, and the sky remained heavily clouded, the air still filled with the scent of dampness. But Qian Jinhang felt somewhat reassured, as it seemed the Tang Army's rampage in the southeast of the Dahua Empire was finally being contained. The weather with rain made camping outdoors somewhat miserable, so Qian Jinhang had moved into a house in the suburbs of Xicong. The several rooms here had fortunately not been destroyed in the combat and thus became Qian Jinhang's temporary headquarters. Although rudimentary, they at least provided shelter from the wind and rain. With these rooms, Qian Jinhang no longer had to endure the noise of rain pattering on his tent or sleep in a cramped camp bed every night. Though being too close to the front line meant it seemed somewhat unsafe, it was unlikely that the Tang Army could pinpoint Qian Jinhang's location, so artillery fire couldn't be so precise. Indeed, the Tang Army had never fired its cannons aimlessly. Such actions were often characteristic of the artillerymen of the Dahua Troops... "If our troops can return to South Wind Pass, this place will be considered basically secure," said the officer who came with the message, his face beaming as he sought to comfort his general. Qian Jinhang nodded slightly and then stood up, exhaling deeply, "Make me something to eat... I... seem to be a bit hungry." In the last two days, he hadn't eaten properly, and suddenly after hearing the good news, he felt hungry. Upon hearing his words, both the adjutant and the head of the guard visibly relaxed, as Qian Jinhang's condition had been rather poor these past few days. So everyone quickly got busy. The general's personal chef started working on the adjacent stove, cleaning the best ingredients that could be found. Even in harsh environments or while marching, a senior officer's meals still have a standard. But how long that standard can be maintained—nobody knows. Didn't Yuan Shu want to drink honey water, only to be rebuffed by his cook? At this moment, the Dahua military was far from being in dire straits, so when Qian Jinhang's meals were served, they were still very abundant. The main dish was pork, and there was also a fish. The fish, probably caught from the nearby river, was very fresh. After eating his fill with a great appetite, Qian Jinhang immediately felt comfortable all over. Then the general, who hadn't had a good night's sleep for several days, made some simple arrangements and went back to catch up on his sleep. ... On the other side, Redman, who suddenly couldn't sleep well again, felt the enormous pressure on his shoulders: if he couldn't take South Wind Pass, then the Dahua military might use it to turn the entire war situation around. Therefore, for him, he must take South Wind Pass in order to continue carrying out the mission given to him by Tang Mo. Frantically anxious, Redman wished he could go to the battlefield to oversee the battle himself, but soon enough, an even bolder plan came from Chang'an. Ding Hong, a general of the Dahua Empire, was deploying defenses at South Wind Pass. It was clearly unlikely that he could completely capture this important Dahua strategic material base anytime soon. In terms of military strength, after receiving orders to gather the Tengyun garrison forces and assembling another twenty thousand troops in the surrounding area, the number of troops stationed at South Wind Pass neared fifty thousand. They wouldn't be easy to swallow all at once. Even if Redman gathered all he could, the number of troops he could assemble to attack South Wind Pass in the short term would be just two or three ten thousand—obviously insufficient for urban combat. Moreover, according to earlier intelligence estimates, more than one hundred thousand Dahua military forces retreating from Xicong were moving to reinforce South Wind Pass. Once these troops entered the pass, continuing to vie for South Wind Pass would become even less likely. Time was clearly on the side of the Dahua Empire; if Ding Hong could hold out for a day or two, the situation would turn very unfavorable for the Great Tang Kingdom. However, this delicate situation was not too familiar to him, but Tang Mo was all too well-versed in it: the enemy trapped defending a city, with a sizable number of reinforcements outside… Wasn't this just the kind of situation that a certain rabbit excelled in, ambushing reinforcements? Upon hearing the news, Tang Mo immediately realized this could be an opportunity! So he immediately sent a telegram to Redman, ordering him to capitalize on the Dahua military's urgency to hold South Wind Pass and the advantage of having emptied their nearby forces. After resupplying, he was to lead the Armored Corps around South Wind Pass, boldly infiltrating and first dealing with Dahua reinforcements approaching the pass! This was a bold plan, yet it had considerable feasibility! While the Tang Kingdom's Armored Corps might not have much advantage in attacking a well-defended city, they were perfectly suited to attack enemy troops on the move in field battles. Compared to the rabbit's light infantry maneuvers and encirclement tactics, Tang Mo's use of the Armored Corps for frontal clashes was much more straightforward and clear-cut. "His Majesty is indeed His Majesty," Redman said, admiring Tang Mo's audacious plan, unable to find any other words. This general, known as a famous commander in his time, actually had a bit of pride, and truth be told, he never even considered Feng Kezhi within his view. However, every new thing he heard from Tang Mo filled him with shock and a sense of sudden enlightenment. He really didn't know how the king's mind worked, as after designing so many advanced weapons, his understanding of tactics was also of such a high level. Of course, Redman didn't know that Tang Mo's tactics were also copied from real tactical masters, so he was indeed nothing but shocked. If the Tang Army's Armored Corps could crush the Dahua forces returning to defend South Wind Pass, they could buy more time to attack the pass. For Redman's Armored Corps, this was indeed much simpler than a head-on assault on South Wind Pass. Once the Dahua forces retreating to defend were defeated, it would be easier to turn the guns back and handle South Wind Pass—by then, the following Tang infantry units would have mostly arrived, and the attack on South Wind Pass would be much easier. Moreover, Redman felt that the Dahua troops defending South Wind Pass, upon hearing that their reinforcements have been wiped out, might no longer have the courage to fight to the death. A feint to intimidate the mighty, a warning to the complacent. Hopefully, by then, the Dahua general Ding Hong stationed at South Wind Pass would stick to his vows and hold out to the last. "Urge the following supply convoys to hurry to the designated location! All Armored Corps, and mixed combat teams, after resupplying, carry as much fuel and ammunition as possible and bypass South Wind Pass!" clutching the telegram from Tang Mo, Redman issued a series of commands. An hour later, the Tang Army's vanguard chose a relatively secluded distance and began to bypass South Wind Pass. Since the nearby Dahua troops had all been transferred to South Wind Pass, and they were executing a scorched-earth policy, they had even taken away all the local civilians… so they almost didn't notice this significant movement by the Tang military. Interestingly, at this time, Ding Hong was resting, and Qian Jinhang was sleeping. The Dahua frontline commanders were all in their beautiful dreams…