Counterfeit Hero

Chapter 1519: Chapter 32: Blitzkrieg (15)

”Pipi, find Beize Xian’s hideout for me!” Fatty raised his eyebrows, filled with murderous intent.

”Come on, Fatty!”

”Superficial, Lord Fart has no time.”

In the communicator, Margaret and Pipi scolded one after the other, like a basin of icy water, instantly extinguishing the fervent flame of a hero determined to find Beize Xian and give him a good thrashing.

Fatty gave up the fight and sat down in frustration in front of the command computer.

Pereira and the other officers, unclear about the situation, stared blankly at Fatty. Meanwhile, Bonnie, Rashid, Stewart, and the others were secretly laughing to themselves.

Fatty was naturally someone who couldn’t bear losses. He was delighted when scheming against others, but when he saw others scheming against him, he instantly became furious.

Looking for Beize Xian’s hideout wasn’t because he naively thought that getting rid of Beize Xian would leave the 25th Army Group leaderless. Instead, it was because he had the temper to only allow the officials to set fires while not permitting the common folks to light lamps. He was unreasonable and wouldn’t let go once he bit into someone.

His resolve for revenge for the slightest grievance was unmatched.

”Fatty, what do you think?” Bonnie quietly pinched Fatty and changed the subject.

”They just want to stall me, don’t they?” Fatty sneered, rolling up his sleeves, his face trembling with rage. ”I’ll play along with this old bastard and whip out a cycle of retribution!”

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On a small hill twenty kilometers north of Eagle Mountain, the newly arrived Jiepeng 2523 Armored Division’s regiment was hastily digging trenches and building temporary blocking positions.

Tall and sporting a long yellow-brown beard, the regiment commander, Owens, stood on the hilltop, holding a portable long-range viewer and cautiously observing the surrounding terrain.

This was a narrow hill, more than four hundred meters high. To the south of the ridge was a steep cliff like a cleaved blade, while the northern slope on the other side was relatively gentle, a fifty-meter drop stretching nearly six hundred meters, full of primal woods and weeds.

At the slope’s end, the terrain rose again onto another large mountain’s ridge. Although unseen, Owens knew that on a hill behind the big mountain, the 2523 Armored Division’s second regiment was also constructing its positions with urgency.

Owens was fairly satisfied with this hilltop position specified in the battle plan.

The western side was the front of the position, elevated and commanding, providing a wide view and overseeing several kilometers afar, nearly capturing all the paths the bandit army must pass.

By seizing this place in advance, it was like driving a nail into the east bank of the Tulun River. Even if they did nothing but drink tea and chat, they would still give the bandit army a chill down their spine.

As the long-range viewer panned, dense woods and distant sloped valleys came into view.

Besides his regiment, there were a dozen similar positions from Eagle Mountain to Feisha Valley. Each was a strategic key point overlooking the passage on the Tulun River East Bank.

Larger hills stationed regimental-level troops, smaller hills stationed battalion- or company-level troops. The positions communicated and shielded each other, allowing for both offensive and defensive operations. The bandit army dreaming of passing smoothly through here was just that - a dream.

Setting down the long-range viewer, Owens couldn’t help but admire Admiral Beize’s deep planning.

At forty years old, he had rich combat experience. As soon as he received news that the 2521 Division encountered an attack and enemies advanced north along the Tulun River, he knew that the southern front had already changed.

So far, the 25th Army Group hadn’t figured out the size of this suddenly appearing force. But it was clear that it was a massive force. If they pierced through the defense line and flanked to Sunset Mountain, the entire situation would change dramatically.

Fortunately, the commander of the 25th Army Group was Admiral Beize.

While officers below were arguing over the enemy’s intentions, shocked by the 2521 Division’s rapid collapse, and holding varied opinions on potential changes in the southern battlefield, Beize’s series of orders not only clarified everyone’s confusion but also pointed out the direction of the fight.

It was long heard that Admiral Beize had deep command prowess and was a master of the Simulation Technique. This time, Owens witnessed it firsthand.

From receiving the news to presenting the combat plan, Admiral Beize took less than twenty minutes.

He not only accurately judged the enemy’s intentions, route, and numbers but also decisively chose the right strategic policy, defining the first phase of the campaign in four words: entangle and delay.

If the correct strategic policy is the basis for deciding a campaign’s outcome, then drafting specific combat plans and using tactics are its building blocks.

With a combat plan issued every minute, Admiral Beize laid out the campaign with distinct clarity.

When and where to build positions. Which units to guard each other on all sides. How to gather for an attack, who commands, which enemy section to strike. What kind of standard positions to establish for defense, how to cover allies, which route to retreat, how to counterattack with allied coordination, who holds the line, who withdraws, who flanks, who leads the attack, who outflanks, and so on, all in extreme detail.

These combat plans, like invisible ropes, connected the hilltop positions and the units hidden in the jungle or approaching this direction into a large and strong net.

If the bandit army doesn’t come, so be it. But if they dare to come, they will be tightly trapped!

Even if the bandit army has formidable combat power, even if they swept the three major zones north of Frenso Town, and defeated the 2521 Division within half an hour, Owens believed that Admiral Beize would let the bandit commander understand that individual combat strength alone could not decide the outcome of a war.