Cannon Fire Arc

At 4 a.m. on the 22nd, the First Mobile Group Army was in ambush positions.

Yegorov and Eugene stood on a low hill that was almost negligible in height, observing the direction of the Prussians with binoculars.

The sun had not yet risen, but light already illuminated the prairie, and the soft glow came from behind them.

Yegorov was the first to put down his binoculars, "No dust from troop movements, could they have already assembled last night?"

Brigadier General Eugene shook his head, "Didn't we hear any engine sounds last night? Have the Prussians learned to assemble armored troops without making any engine noise?"

Yegorov didn't reply, but continued to look towards the west.

At that moment, a major rode up the hill on horseback, saluted while still mounted, and exclaimed loudly, "Report, the tank units have completed the construction of their shelters."

"Very well," Yegorov nodded and picked up the binoculars again, but this time to inspect their own deployment."

From this mound, parts of the hidden shelters and tank destroyers hidden in the bushes were visible.

The Anti-tank Artillery Battalion's guns were hidden so well that they couldn't be seen at all, their positions discernible only by the Stepanov trucks parked on the reverse slope of the position.

After ten minutes of meticulous observation, Yegorov said to Brigadier General Eugene, "I cannot see any areas that need improvement; we should be able to inflict heavy damage on the enemy if they really come at us."

Eugene continued to check the position with his binoculars and, after a while, put them down and said, "It's not very clear from here; I'll go check the deployment personally."

With that, he turned, called over, and immediately a Willis Jeep was driven up by a guardsman.

Eugene boarded the Jeep, waving his hand robustly, "Let's go!"

The Jeep set off, and the recently arrived messenger urged his horse into a trot, following behind Brigadier General Eugene.

Yegorov watched them go and then looked west again, "It would be good if we can get a shot at them."

At that moment, another Willis Jeep drove up, and a lieutenant general got out from the vehicle, saluting Yegorov, a major general, first, "General Yegorov, I am Kexikoff from the Armored Division 40."

Yegorov returned the salute, "Lieutenant General Davarish, you shouldn't salute me first."

"You are under General Rokossovsky, and even when I meet Lieutenant General Rokossovsky himself, I salute him first. Consider this a mark of respect for you brave and skilled fighters."

Yegorov nodded, "Then I gladly accept the compliment. How many tanks does your division have operational?"

Kexikoff, "Ninety-one, most of them were not completely destroyed, so the majority of the tank crews survived. But—damn, when we began the attack yesterday, I had nearly 300 tanks!"

Yesterday, when Armored Division 40 launched their attack, they had nearly 300 tanks, thanks to the First Mobile Group Army's strong repair capabilities.

Now, they had less than 100 left.

Yegorov lamented, "Rokossovsky was right, tanks require a lot of personnel to maintain; they cannot be used like cavalry."

Kexikoff, "I heard that for each tank platoon the Prussians have, they have two welders and an electrical engineer!"

"Oh?" Yegorov raised his eyebrows, "Did General Rokossovsky tell you that?"

"No, we captured some Prussian tank soldiers on the prairie yesterday, dying of thirst, dressed in black uniforms. When they saw our tanks broken with no one to fix them, that's what they said."

Yegorov shook his head, "Our welders and electrical engineers are in short supply even in the factories; our Army Group only has them because of General Rokossovsky's influence. Regular forces can forget it!"

Kexikoff hesitated for a moment but still asked, "So the general will become a prince...?"

"He will, but not through marriage to His Majesty the Tsar; he's now His Majesty the Tsar's foster brother," Yegorov, quite carefree, answered offhandedly.

Kexikoff's eyes widened, "Can you just say that?"

Yegorov, "It's better than your guys spreading rumors that the general is going to marry His Majesty the Tsar everywhere. The general loves his wife dearly; they're about to have a child."

"Oh, I see, I get it," Kexikoff nodded repeatedly.

Just then, the whooshing sound of artillery shells passing overhead reached them, and the two old hands immediately knew it was their own artillery firing on the enemy, so they remained unmoved.

Kexikoff's driver, clearly a rookie, leaped off the Willis Jeep and hit the ground.

"Enough, Mikhail!" shouted Kexikoff, "They're not targeting us! Get up!"

The soldier named Mikhail then got up, not even bothering to brush off the grass, and defended himself, "I... I thought we were being shelled. This is only my second time under artillery fire."

Kexikoff, pointing at Mikhail, said to Yegorov, "My driver, he was terrified by artillery the last time."

Yegorov chuckled, "You'll get used to it; I know a guy who was a complete mess his first time on the battlefield, but now he's become a general capable of commanding his own forces."

Mikhail, "Who?"

Kexikoff shot him a look, "Don't ask."

Yegorov: "You can ask. Even now, our troops have a custom where new soldiers who kill their first enemy on the battlefield will then pee on the enemy's trousers. The soldiers believe this will help them become someone like a general."

Mikhail's eyes widened: "Eh? Could it be..."

Yegorov looked at him: "That's right, your reasoning is pretty strong. That's exactly it. So you see, don't give up just because you got scared on your first time on the battlefield. The general always says that you should be ashamed first to be brave later. It seems to be an old saying from Ceres."

Mikhail nodded: "Then I'll go find a Prussian corpse to pee on..."

"No, no," intervened Yegorov's guard, "it only counts if you kill them yourself. It's a technical job because the general hates the mistreatment of prisoners. If you think about waiting until the enemy's situation is dire to find an unlucky soul, and then they surrender before you can shoot, then tough luck! The difficult part is, during intense combat, to take out an enemy precisely and remember where they fell."

Mikhail's eyes widened: "You guys think about this stuff on the battlefield?"

Suddenly, Mikhail noticed the medals on the guard's chest. Though they were not of Venus, they still signified the old soldier's status.

The guard: "If you think about this, you won't have time to be scared. The fastest to die on the battlefield are those who are afraid. Look at our general, how he really risks his life when he plays with it. Isn't he still fine?"

Yegorov nodded: "Right. When he was still a lieutenant colonel, he liked to rush forward alone, like seeking death, but he always came back."

"Is that so..."

At that moment, the whooshing of artillery shells that had been constant over their heads suddenly ceased. It seemed that the barrage on the enemy had come to an end, probably because the reconnaissance troops had reported that the targets had been destroyed.

But then, something new appeared above them.

Countless white lines flew parallel towards the Prussian army direction.

Mikhail asked: "What's that?"

"The Air Force. The general requested a reduction in the numbers of IL-2s, forfeited attacking the enemy's front-line troops, and instead, intensified bombing of the enemy's supply hubs and cities in the rear." Yegorov looked up at the contrails in the blue sky, "So the Air Force now has enough long-range bombers to organize these kinds of air raids. The general is always right."

————

"Achoo!" Wang Zhong sneezed mightily, spraying his nose onto the surface of the map table.

Nelly hurried over, handing him a handkerchief before taking out a cloth to wipe the table.

While blowing his nose, Wang Zhong asked Pavlov, "Why aren't the enemy attacking? They withdrew completely on the 20th and should have resupplied by now."

The calendar on the wall showed the 22nd, two days since the enemy's armored forces and mechanized infantry had withdrawn.

Pavlov shrugged his shoulders.

At that moment, a group of cavalry entered the warehouse. The general at the forefront strode across the space to Wang Zhong and saluted with a snap.

It was Rodionovich, the commander of the 20th Cavalry Army.

"General, the 20th Army has returned successfully after completing its mission!"

Wang Zhong, hurriedly throwing the handkerchief on the table, extended his hand to Rodionovich: "You've worked hard."

"It's our duty," Rodionovich took Wang Zhong's hand firmly and shook it, "We're ready for the next mission! I heard the 40th Tank Army doesn't have enough accompanying forces. We can accompany them."

Wang Zhong withdrew his hand, saying, "I've sent the Army Group's reconnaissance cavalry brigade to accompany them. Rest for a while, fatten up the horses, and wait for further orders."

Pavlov approached Rodionovich: "Did your army suffer many losses?"

"Significant. Apart from those lost in combat with the Prussians, many got lost and separated in the steppes, others contracted malaria and fought while sick. Go outside and see for yourself, many of the soldiers' saddles are covered in their own filth."

Wang Zhong scolded: "Then why did you just say you could continue to fight? Commanders need to be realistic; if you need to rest, just say you need to rest."

Popov: "The Army Group hospital has quinine newly provided by the Federation, which is supposed to be effective against malaria. Give it a try. Additionally, the local church will help settle the soldiers; get some hot food, take a bath, change the dirty clothes, and get a good night's sleep."

Rodionovich appeared deeply moved: "I've never met commanders who care so much for their soldiers."

Wang Zhong: "That's for now. But when the time comes that we need you to fill the line, I will plaster you onto the defenses like mud."

"Yes, sir!" Rodionovich saluted, though it was unclear to what he was assenting.

After the cavalry general left, Wang Zhong turned to discuss with Pavlov and Popov: "The Cavalry Army has also suffered heavy losses, and the 40th Tank Army is down to less than 100 tanks. If we continue to attack now and take another bite out of the Prussian infantry according to the original plan, it will be bad if we encounter the enemy's fully-equipped Armored Division."

Pavlov: "So we wait here? Won't the enemy see the ambush if we stay put? The steppe is so vast, if the enemy just goes around us a little bit, won't they completely avoid our ambush?"

Wang Zhong: "We must still attack to lure the enemy into a counterattack. Then draw the enemy's tanks into our ambush area."

"Maybe after the artillery barrage, we could try a purely mechanized infantry assault on the enemy position."

Then, an idea flashed through Wang Zhong's mind, and he looked at Popov: "Hold on, the old ladies from the Institute of Folklore have been resting for so long, can they summon a thick fog again?"
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Popov raised an eyebrow: "I'm not the Priest responsible for those matters, but I can ask. Just a phone call."