Cannon Fire Arc

Chapter 81: The 40th Army Begins its Assault



Time went back a little, to the morning of the 21st at eleven o'clock, at the 10th Army Group Command of Prosen.

General Boke lifted the rainproof tarpaulin curtain and yawned as he entered the headquarters. He greeted the staff, "Good morning gentlemen. Has the enemy started shelling yet?"

"No, General," the Chief of Staff replied.

General Boke snapped his fingers, "Good! Then they probably won't attack today. Air Force reconnaissance saw tanks rushing to Yeisk, I thought Rocossov was going to attack!"

The Chief of Staff said, "Rocossov likes to use tanks for covering fire while defending, so those tanks might be meant to reinforce the front lines."

General Boke was still doubtful, "So many tanks just to reinforce a city's front line? That doesn't make sense. No, he must be planning to attack. The photographs taken by the planes yesterday showed that at least two hundred tanks are gathering at his Army Group, a force meant for offense."

General Boke stared at the map for a while, then said, "But he might not be ready yet, it's eleven o'clock already, and if the shelling hasn't started by now, it probably won't."

The Chief of Staff chuckled, "Rocossov has no idea that we're going to strike first tomorrow and give him a taste of his own medicine."

General Boke also smiled, "Great, these past few days we've been constantly harassed by Rocossov's cavalry, affecting both our supplies and morale significantly. Now we can finally get some payback."

Seeing the general laugh, the rest of the command laughed along, and for the first time in days, there was a relaxed atmosphere in the headquarters.

After the laughter, General Boke asked, "How is the supply situation for the armored units?"

The Chief of Staff immediately reported, "We've completed 60 percent so far, and will definitely be finished before tomorrow. The enemy cavalry's harassment has significantly lessened, although we still don't dare to send recovery units to drag the abandoned tanks and armored vehicles on the steppe back for repairs.

"When we initiate the attack tomorrow, we can deploy two hundred tanks and three hundred half-track personnel carriers."

"Very good," General Boke nodded repeatedly.

At that moment, the communications officer came in with a telegram, "Urgent telegram from High Command."
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General Boke appeared resigned, "It must be another push for us to attack."

He gestured for the Chief of Staff to take the message.

The Chief of Staff went forward, took the telegram, glanced at it, and said, "Indeed, it's a demand that we attack, worded even more sternly than the last one. They're still pushing us, day after day, even though we've already informed them of our plans to attack."

General Boke shook his head, "High Command wouldn't be so unreasonable; the Emperor must be pressuring them. Send a reply, tell the Emperor—tell High Command, I will attack tomorrow. Definitely tomorrow."

After the staff officer saluted and left, General Boke asked the Chief of Staff, "How is the plan for tomorrow's attack coming along?"

"It has already been distributed to all the units."

The Chief of Staff snapped his fingers, and immediately a staff officer unfolded a map with the attack plan marked on it.

"First, the armored and mechanized infantry units will break through the infantry divisions' defensive areas and deploy in front of the enemy. After two hours of artillery preparation, they will launch their assault.

"The objective for the first phase of the attack is to push most of the enemy troops on the steppe into Yeisk, achieving a semi-encirclement of the city.

"In the second phase, we will encircle Yeisk and trap Rocossov's main forces within the city.

"Rocossov is adept at defense, so we will carry out three days of artillery preparation, completely levelling the city before we commit to the attack."

General Boke concentrated intently on the map detailed with combat plans, as if to imprint it in his mind.

The Chief of Staff began to explain the responsibilities of each division in detail.

After listening intently, General Boke nodded and said, "No problem, it's a good plan. If I were still teaching at the military academy and you presented this plan on an exam, I'd give it a full score."

The general had once taught at the military academy for a time before being called back to command combat troops during the Melania campaign.

"To celebrate your excellent battle plan, let's have lunch," he said.

As he spoke, the general clapped his hands, and his orderly lifted the curtain and came in to ask, "What can I do for you, sir?"

"Prepare lunch for everyone at Corps Command."

No sooner had the general finished speaking than the communications staff officer entered, parting the curtain. This time, he wasn't holding a telegram. He reported loudly, "General, the front-line infantry units have reported through radio that they are being shelled!"

"What?" General Boke quickly looked at his watch. "At this hour! If the attack reaches halfway and night falls, it will turn into chaos!"

The Chief of Staff said, "Maybe it's just a Rocossov-style sudden artillery barrage? He likes to waste shells as if his supply lines will never run dry."

The general shook his head. "No, Rocossov just got a large number of tank units. We only have infantry divisions on the front, and the ground conditions make it impossible to dig sturdy fortifications. His artillery bombardment will destroy them all in one go.

"He's launching an attack; he's going to attack."

The general paced around the tent twice, then made up his mind. "I need to speak with the commander of the infantry division! Can we still call him?"

"We'll try our best," the communications officer replied.

————

At the headquarters of the 151st Infantry Division of Prosen, Major General Franz clutched the radio handset and shouted, "Hello! Hello! Can you hear me? This is Wolverine, this is Wolverine, we're under heavy enemy fire! Repeat, heavy fire!"

Static filled the radio.

The hissing noise contrasted sharply with the booming sound of artillery outside the division's shelter.

Franz hunched his neck as if this action could save his head when the ill-fated shell hit! Meanwhile, others in the division headquarters were already flat on the ground.

The Chief of Staff still remembered to maintain an artillery defensive posture, while a few unseasoned staff lay flat on the ground.

The shells didn't need to hit the rudimentary shelter directly; the shockwave from nearby impacts was enough to give these staff a sufficient lesson.

Franz's call was finally answered. A rugged voice floated out of the headset, "Wolverine, how are you holding up?"

"The enemy is shelling us, and shells are falling like raindrops on our positions. We're about to run out of artillery!"

"Stay calm, Wolverine, aren't you still alive? I need you to stand up now, take a look through the binoculars in the direction of the Ante People, can you see the enemy's armored units?"

Trembling, Major General Franz stood up and took a look through the binoculars—

T34 tanks were lined up in rows, looking like a fleet of battleships arranged in battle formation before a decisive naval battle from Franz's perspective.

He even forgot to duck back down, standing still as he yelled into the handset, "Battleships, battleships! No, I mean, tank squadron! A squadron of tanks is charging at me!"


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