Cannon Fire Arc

After witnessing the entire process of receiving and decoding the telegram, Wang Zhong finally understood just how troublesome this telegraph thing could be.

First of all, the telegraph codes were very lengthy; it took several "dits" to make up just one letter, and a whole string of dots and dashes just for a single word.

If the content of the telegram was extensive, it was quite normal for the operator to be tapping away for half an hour.

After receiving it, they had to check for any omissions, listening from the beginning to proofread before they could move on to the decoding phase.

A longer telegram might take half a day from the reception of the first message to finally being delivered into Wang Zhong's hands.

Fortunately, the telegrams from the Cavalry Troops were very brief, and it only took an hour to handle.

The cryptographer handed the translated telegram to Wang Zhong: "Telegram from the 20th Cavalry Army!"

Wang Zhong nodded, glancing at the content: "Our forces have already inserted themselves at coordinates… position, airstrikes have provided us with a great deal of convenience, we have confirmed the crushing of a portion of the enemy's 240th Rear-Movement Brigade and a part of the 190th Infantry Division's Reconnaissance Battalion, destroying a significant number of enemy trucks…"

Wang Zhong quickly scanned through it; it was all about reporting the current battle achievements.

He passed the telegram to Popov: "It seems that the results are gratifying."

Popov glanced at it and nodded: "Yes, indeed."

Then he turned his head towards Pavlov, who was busy organizing the staff to devise an attack plan: "Chief of Staff! Frontline report!"

"Any signs of the enemy collapsing?" Pavlov asked.

Wang Zhong and Popov exchanged looks, then Popov answered: "No, not at least in the telegram."

Pavlov: "That means everything is normal. We are bound to eliminate some of the enemy's forces, burn some trucks and fuel ammunition, all within expected limits. I still have to formulate a new attack plan, so I won't look at the detailed reports now. You can hand it over to the clerk responsible for tallying."

Wang Zhong: "Understood, I'll hand it over to the Level Six clerk—I mean, Colonel Commissar Karataev."

While they spoke, a clerk ran over and took the telegram from Popov's hand.

At that moment, the telegraphist, who had just finished receiving a telegram, suddenly sat up straight, adjusted the radio's knob, and began to record the message he was hearing.

Wang Zhong: "Another telegram from different troops?"

"The 21st Cavalry Army's," reported the telegraphist, while his hands continued to swiftly record the series of dots and dashes.

As Wang Zhong watched the telegraphist at work, another cryptographer stood up with a decoded telegram and handed it to the Staff Captain.

Captain: "Telegram from Front Army Headquarters."

Wang Zhong took the telegram, looked at the content, and clicked his tongue in disbelief: "The Front Army Headquarters believes we should retreat to the east bank of the Suhaya Weili River again, using the river as a barrier against the enemy. What's with Front Army Command, always thinking about using rivers to stop the enemy? Doesn't giving up the west bank equal to abandoning Duke Meishikin?"

At that moment, another cryptographer stood up, handing a telegram to the Staff Captain.

Wang Zhong, not waiting for the Captain to look down, snatched the telegram and read aloud, "Our 60th Army Group has also received the order to retreat. Damn it, if the 60th Army Group gives up their defense, our flank will be exposed. What is High Command doing, why don't they replace the Front Army Commander?"

Popov: "Maybe High Command also thinks it's not that suitable to face Prosen's Armored Troops on the prairie?"

Wang Zhong: "If that's the case, they should order Duke Meishikin to begin a retreat as well. No, I need to call High Command to find out what's going on."

As he said this, a new telegram was delivered: "Urgent telegram from High Command."

Wang Zhong took the telegram, squinted at the first two lines, and cursed, "Damn it, turns out Duke Meishikin's efforts to break through have failed; the remaining troops of the Coastal Army Group are done for."

He walked over to the strategic map with the telegram in hand, picked up the map pointer, and pointed at a spot near the coast: "This bunch is gone, Meishikin's flank is exposed, and the enemy can attack Bolsk from the side at any time. Now Meishikin's only chance is to head south, retreating to the entrance of the Caucasus Mountains and forming a defense relying on the mountains."

The staff officer responsible for updating the map hurried over and erased the part representing the Coastal Troops.

Ignoring the staff, Wang Zhong continued to point at the Caucasus Mountains with the map pointer: "To retreat to this position, Meishikin's troops have to travel one hundred fifty, even two hundred kilometers, they must set out immediately."

Popov crossed his arms: "It's clearly a daunting task. Meishikin has to retreat, so the Front Army Commanding us to rush back to defend isn't necessarily a mistake, is it?"

Wang Zhong: "Bullshit, if we retreat, can Meishikin still escape? We can't let the enemy focus all their efforts on stopping Meishikin's withdrawal. We should maintain an offensive stance on the prairie, attracting as much of the enemy's forces as possible."

Popov looked complicated: "If the whole Ante Army had the same level of training and equipment as us, we could indeed try an offensive. Unfortunately, that's not the case. Think about the 401st Division; when they entered the fray, the enemy was already worn out, and yet they suffered such heavy casualties."

Wang Zhong, stroking his chin: "I think, our Army Group could perform a daring move and hurt the enemy's 10th Army Group, and then pretend to want to devour them completely."

"With the current setup of our Army Group, it's not possible, right?"

Wang Zhong shook his head: "Certainly not. But if the Front Army could give us the reserve forces—the 40th Tank Army, with the 300 tanks of the 40th, it shouldn't be a problem to adopt an offensive stance. We could even break off one of the enemy's Armored Divisions that lack fuel and ammunition.

"Together with the previously routed Sedd Division, the enemy would lose two Armored Divisions on this front—"

As Wang Zhong was gesturing, Popov interrupted him: "Then they will have to send more troops our way."

"That's right!" Wang Zhong forcefully tapped the map with his pointer on Yeisk, "The objective of covering Meishikin's retreat has been completed. We can even intentionally appear isolated, attracting the enemy to encircle us. We have plenty of trucks, and they're fast."

Popov laughed, "How about using your reputation to bluff the enemy? I think it might work!"

Wang Zhong, "Let's try it, whether it works or not, go ahead with the plan!"

Vasily watched the two Army Group leaders discussing without saying a word.

At that moment, the phone on the other end rang.

Pavlov rushed over in three steps and picked up the handset, "This is the First Mobile Army Headquarters."

Popov said, "I guess it's High Command."

Pavlov set the handset on the table and turned his head to Wang Zhong, "It's General Gorky of the Western Front Army."

Wang Zhong, "Got it, I'm coming."

After speaking, he lowered his voice to Popov, "I guess they've also just received the communique from High Command."

"Hmm, they're probably looking for your opinion," Popov said, "Even though you're two ranks lower, General Gorky puts a lot of stock in your viewpoint."

Wang Zhong, "Don't say such things carelessly, you're a bishop."

After that comment, Wang Zhong hurried to the table and picked up the handset, "I'm Rocossov, go ahead."

The voice of General Gorky came through the handset, "Have you finished decrypting?"

"Finished. The operation to extricate Meishikin failed."

"It's tough for him; with the quality of our troops, we indeed can't easily take on the Prussians," said General Golikov, who had suffered a defeat in May.

It sounded a bit like he was looking for someone to blame.

However, Wang Zhong himself had also not conducted a successful offensive with current ordinary Ante troops, so he did not point this out.

The low quality of the troops was a fact, indeed they couldn't break through.

General Gorky, "So what to do? I see your troops have already advanced and are directly confronting the enemy's Army Group. Knowing General Andrei, he is probably thinking about how to shrink the defense. He might even order you to retreat to the eastern bank of the river."

Spot on!

Wang Zhong, "He did indeed give that order, which amounts to selling out Meishikin. We definitely can't do that."

"So you're planning to attack?" General Gorky asked, "With the current quality of our soldiers? Once your elite troops are exhausted, the offensive will become a mess, just like what happened to me in May."

Wang Zhong, "I plan to concentrate our forces to knock out two of the enemy divisions, one of them being an Armored Division. Currently, our Cavalry Troops are making significant impacts with breakthrough battles. Cavalry can also roam the prairie for a week, and we plan to end the battle within that time."

General Gorky was very surprised, "Cavalry can be so effective?"

"It has to do with the grassland terrain of South Ante. After this battle, I will summarize the methods of utilizing cavalry troops in the new era."

"I see. Well, good luck to you. I'm also preparing some limited offensives on my side to test my ideas."

Wang Zhong, "Your ideas?"

"Yes, a full-scale offensive to probe the enemy's defensive weaknesses, and then pour a large number of troops into the breakthrough point. The essence is not to fight the Prussians directly, since our troops are not as good as yours, but to bypass your strong defensive positions and bully the weaker rear mobile brigades and supply units," General Gorky said, "I've mentioned it to you before!"

Wang Zhong recalled for a moment; it seemed that it had indeed been mentioned before, but he had not been paying attention, so he had forgotten.

He hurriedly said, "You did mention it, I hope you succeed."

"Whether it succeeds or not, a full-line offensive here will definitely draw the enemy's reserve forces over, relieving some pressure on you."

Wang Zhong, "The key is to reduce the retreat pressure on Duke Meishikin. If he can retreat to the Caucasus Mountains safely, he should be able to hold out for a long time."

If the enemy occupied the South Ante Prairie, indeed the connection between the mountain region and Ante's central area would be cut off, but Meishikin could rely on the Kuba oil fields and the Allied supply lines coming from the north of Bahara.

The supply quantity of this line was quite high, easily supporting several hundred thousand people of a Front Army like Meishikin's.

Meishikin could continue to hold the mountain line until the Ante's large counteroffensive regained control of the South Ante Prairie.

The critical part was to enable Meishikin to successfully retreat there.

Thus, the Suhayaveli Front Army must not shrink its defense, but instead make the enemy believe that the Front Army is about to launch a large-scale offensive.

Wang Zhong to General Gorky, "Anyway, I will find a way to tie up the enemy here to create an opportunity for Meishikin to retreat."

"With your word, I feel assured. I don't want to see news of hundreds of thousands of our men being captured again. Until next time."

"Goodbye," Wang Zhong hung up the phone.