Cannon Fire Arc

Chapter 342: Chapter 27 Playing Good Cop, Bad Cop

Wang Zhong finished speaking and turned his head to the Judges who had arrived on the same plane, shouting, "Disarm him, arrest him!"

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The Judge promptly stepped forward to remove Tukhachev's sidearm, then looked at Wang Zhong with an inquiring gaze, "Should I tear off his rank?"

Wang Zhong glared at Tukhachev fiercely, "His Majesty the Tsar expressly instructed me to ensure his return to Ye Fort to stand military trial. Therefore, until the trial, he remains a general. He will take the plane back to Ye Fort with us."

Only then did the Judge withdraw his hand that had been ready to tear off the military rank, and took a step back, maintaining a defensive stance.

Tukhachev stood up, looking at Wang Zhong, "You have no idea the difficulties we will face next year!"

Wang Zhong, "Coward, the others who are proponents of a quick victory have some excuse, as they simply crave victory too much. You, however, pursue a quick win merely because you are afraid to confront the arduous war ahead!"

Tukhachev raised his voice, "Win and then what? Do you know the sacrifices we'll have to make?"

"I know!" Wang Zhong replied with a resonant voice. "Unlike certain people who sit comfortably at their desks reading documents, I have personally buried countless soldiers under my command, and I still remember their names!"

Wang Zhong paused, staring at Tukhachev's face, "I—more than anyone, more than you—wish that they were still alive! That is why I revise training materials and reform your unreasonable troop formations! But all this is based on the premise of resistance to the end!"

Tukhachev and Wang Zhong locked eyes for a few seconds, until finally, Tukhachev lowered his proud head.

He left the command headquarters with a heavy heart, his steps unsteady.

The Judges immediately followed, escorting him on either side.

Wang Zhong turned to look at General Gorky, taking a step back, signaling that it was Gorky's turn to take the "tough stance."

General Gorky immediately ordered, "Command all frontline units to repel the enemy's offensive at all costs. Use the units that were originally planned for the assault as a reserve force, reinforcing wherever the enemy breakthrough is the strongest."

Having said that, he looked around the entire headquarters and gestured grandly, "Bring back all the maps that haven't been burned yet and restore the operations of the Front Army headquarters as soon as possible."

At that moment, the former Chief of Staff of the Western Front Army stepped forward, "Your Excellency, the frontline troops are also wavering, and some of the units have already retreated."

General Gorky, "Execute those leading the retreat, and reassign the remaining men to penal battalions. Stabilize the front lines as quickly as possible. If the enemy has not discovered it yet, there is still time."

Wang Zhong, "Regarding that, I have a plan. All we need is a high-powered radio set."

General Gorky, "Are you planning to address the entire front line using the radio?"

Wang Zhong smiled slightly, "Not just to our soldiers, but also to the enemy."

General Gorky, raising an eyebrow, "Very much in the style of the 'little tricks' from that booklet of yours. No harm in trying. Communications chief, bring the highest power radio set here!"

Before long, a radio set, along with its generator, was brought in and the antenna erected.

Wang Zhong said to the communications staff, "Cover the radio frequencies of the battlefield as much as possible."

The communications staff asked, "Including the frequencies used by the pilots?"

The pilots relied on radio communication to cover each other's blind spots in vision; missing a single sentence could mean getting shot down by the enemy.

Wang Zhong considered for a moment, then asked, "Can we cover only the enemy?"

"We can, but the effect won't be very good. In fact, we cannot guarantee that the front line will all be able to hear it. It may depend on the weather as well as the state of the receiving antennas."

Wang Zhong, "Don't worry, our first target is to ensure our own people hear it. Disturbing the enemy's decision-making is a secondary goal."

The communications staff nodded, and after completing the final adjustments, handed the microphone to Wang Zhong, "Please speak, sir."

Wang Zhong, "Soldiers of the Western Front Army, I am General Rokossovsky. I am at the headquarters of the Western Front Army, speaking to you on behalf of His Majesty the Tsar! New reinforcements will join the battle. You are to resist on the spot, you are to resist on the spot!"

While speaking, he glanced at General Gorky and continued into the microphone," The frightened Tukhachev has been dismissed, General Gorky is the new Commander of the Western Front Army! He will lead you to stop the enemy, just as at Saint Andrew Fort! Of course, I will also be with you!"

————

Tank Battalion Commander Mikhail suddenly heard a powerful voice coming through the radio, "Soldiers of the Western Front Army, I am General Rokossovsky. I am at the headquarters of the Western Front Army, speaking to you on behalf of His Majesty the Tsar!"

Mikhail immediately exclaimed with joy to the other crew members, "General Rokossovsky has arrived at the Front Army headquarters! He was sent by His Majesty the Tsar himself!"

At that time, Mikhail's battalion had not yet engaged in battle. They were supposed to set off at eight in the morning to launch an offensive against the enemy, but now with dense gunfire coming from the front, no order to attack had been issued, and it was as if their tank battalion had been forgotten.

He immediately popped the hatch and climbed out of the tank — the tanks in this battalion were standard version T34s with a two-man turret, and the hatch was one piece, meaning when the hatch was opened, the tank was essentially half open-topped.

This huge hatch is said to provide good cover for the tank commander using the periscope, but in reality, it provides not only cover but also blocks the line of sight.

Moreover, opening the hatch makes it too easy for Prosen infantry to throw grenades, so T34 commanders always lock the hatch during battle, without any intention of using the periscope.

Mikhail opened this huge hatch and shouted, "General Rokossovsky has arrived at the headquarters of the Western Front Army!"

Everyone else in the camp was quite nervous—they didn't know what was happening, and the sound of gunfire to the west was so dense that it was unnerving for anyone.

The news that "Imperial Iron Wall," "Star of Victory" General Rokossovsky had arrived at the Front Army headquarters was like a shot in the arm, suddenly giving everyone much more confidence.

Mikhail continued to listen with his hand over the headset and relayed the latest news to everyone, "And General Gorky Konstantinovich from the Saint Andrew Front Army has also arrived! He has taken over as the commander of the Front Army!"

Suddenly, the accompanying infantry of the tank battalion grumbled in disappointment, "Why isn't General Rokossovsky commanding us?"

Mikhail cursed, "General Rokossovsky has to write textbooks at the military academy; now he is here at the frontline as a special envoy of His Majesty the Tsar! Stop being unsatisfied!"

Another tank operator asked, "Does the general have any orders for us?"

Mikhail's smile froze, "No, he just told us to hold our positions."

The soldiers looked at each other bewildered, "The enemy? We haven't seen any enemies at all?"

"Aren't we supposed to be attacking?"

————

At the headquarters of the First Army of the Prosen Asgard Knight Order, the communication officer stumbled into the command post, "Your Excellency! Lord Giles! General White Horse has arrived at the Western Front Army headquarters!"

Giles frowned; the map in front of him was filled with markers indicating successful offensives, with retaken positions prominently marked.

Just by looking at the map, Prosen seemed to be in a state of "all-round victory," but Giles had a tight furrow in his brow, "Rokossovsky is here? Wasn't he stripped of his military power after failing in a political struggle?"

The communication officer replied, "He just broadcasted himself over the radio; I've recorded it!"

With that, the officer gestured, and the sergeant who came in with him placed a tape recorder on the table.

The officer pressed the switch, and the recorder started spinning its reels, a steady voice emanating from the speaker: "Soldiers of the Western Front Army, this is Major General Rokossovsky. I am at the headquarters of the Western Front Army, speaking to you on behalf of His Majesty the Tsar!"

Giles's frown deepened, "It is indeed Rokossovsky, the White Horse General. Why would he come to the front? And we just launched an attack, and he arrived immediately..."

Suddenly, Giles stopped, his mouth agape, "Could it be that the Western Front Army misjudged our intentions and is panicking, preparing to retreat? Is Rokossovsky sent to stabilize the situation?"

At that moment, the recording announced that General Golikov had become the Commander of the Western Front Army.

Giles slapped his thigh hard, "Ah! We missed the chance! The enemy was scared out of their wits by us! No, no, that's wrong. Rokossovsky arrived so quickly; the enemy won't collapse, I overthought it."

He shook his head, "I overthought it. The gap was too short. Feliz, get the..."

Suddenly, Giles stopped because he remembered that Feliz was no longer alive; he had been killed by a cunning mine set by Rokossovsky.

Giles's expression became somewhat desolate for a moment, but he immediately perked up, "Order the troops to be careful of cunning mines, Rokossovsky has come to the front, and he likes to lay mines. Also, move the command post into sturdy shelters; Rokossovsky likes to play dirty.

"All commanders should try to avoid leaving their shelters during meals and sleep! Notify them immediately."

The communication officer immediately signaled the radio operators to carry out the instructions.

Then he pointed at the tape recorder and asked, "What should we do with this recording?"

Giles said, "Send it to the intelligence department for further verification that it is the White Horse General. Our battle objectives remain the same: recapture the positions lost since December, straighten the front line, and withdraw as many troops as possible for rest and reorganization."

————

At the same time, General Walter Mendel's Ninth Army Group headquarters was also playing General Rokossovsky's speech.

Mendel stroked his chin, "We didn't really hurt the enemy, so why did two high-ranking commanders with actual battle achievements suddenly show up? Could it be… we actually had the chance to crush the enemy in one fell swoop?"

He thought for a moment and shook his head, "No, it's not likely. Even if there was a chance, that window may have only been a few hours wide, and nobody could seize such a moment. Leave duels with the likes of Ante to the Asgard Knights. We just need to do our job."

Turning, Mendel asked his Ninth Army Group Chief of Staff, "Have the Christmas supplies been sent up?"

The Chief of Staff replied, "No. They're all busy delivering scarce supplies like ammunition and fuel, there's no room to send those."

Mendel clicked his tongue, "Then there's nothing we can do about it."