Cannon Fire Arc-Chapter 696 - 34 Armored Minced Meat

Chapter 696: Chapter 34 Armored Minced Meat

July 2, 2330 hours, Kazarlia First Front Army Headquarters.

Pavlov tossed a document in front of Wang Zhong, “Today’s losses are in.”

Wang Zhong, “Judging by your expression, the losses aren’t small.”

Pavlov, “If we keep fighting like this for another two days, we’re going to lose all our tanks. We need to think of something.”

Wang Zhong stood up and came to the map, “We’re attacking, and the cumbersome artillery troops can’t keep up with the advancing armored spearhead. Even the more mobile rocket artillery can’t keep up; after all, car wheels maneuver less effectively on the plains than tracks.

“Apart from the Willys Jeep, no other wheeled vehicle can keep up with the armored troops.

“We did design a rocket launcher carried by the Willys Jeep, but so far it hasn’t been equipped on a large scale. And the actual effectiveness still needs to be verified in combat.”

Vasily, “So you’re saying, at this stage, we can only exchange armored troops with the enemy? What about the possibility of moving the Whirlwind troops to ambush the enemy?”

Pavlov, “We’ve already done that, and in fact the Whirlwind troops performed well today. The enemy didn’t deploy many Max tank destroyers capable of penetrating the Whirlwind during their attack, and the Maus tank destroyers that have been confirmed to exist weren’t deployed because they’re too cumbersome.

“The enemy’s tank troops suffered heavy losses in front of the Whirlwind; that’s the best news today. The second best news is that we’ve taken control of most of the combat area, preventing the Prosens from fixing those damaged tanks.”

The Antes’ repair capabilities are lacking; their main repair vehicles are still imports from the Federation, and there aren’t enough of them. Moreover, the quality of their repair personnel isn’t as high as that of the Prosens.

Controlling the battlefield is primarily to prevent the Prosens from repairing damaged tanks. If the Prosens controlled the battlefield, within a few days, half of the tanks that weren’t burned out could be repaired.

Of course, another way to prevent the Prosens from fixing tanks is, before vacating the battlefield, to hit all of the enemy’s crippled tanks as much as possible.

Tanks that have been on fire are very difficult to repair, and even if repaired, it would take a lot of time. According to the Prosens’ repair troop manuals and the confessions of prisoners, such tanks are generally written off for repair, and only the parts that haven’t been burned are salvaged for use in other vehicles.

Wang Zhong, “Another piece of good news, the Guards Eighth Tank Army still has not encountered the enemy’s armored troops. They have formed a salient spearhead, threatening the enemy’s entire rear area, in concert with our cavalry troops.”

Pavlov, “According to aerial reconnaissance, the Eighth Tank Army is likely to face an enemy armored counterattack tomorrow. Although the Eighth Army has the honor ‘Guards,’ it’s a title given to the original Tank Corps 51, and many of their tank operators aren’t veterans. Perhaps…”

Wang Zhong looked at the Chief of Staff, “You’re worried they’ll be treated as score boosts by enemy tank operators?”

“That’s basically what happens to our new tank crews out there,” Pavlov stated the cold truth, “Some of them have only sixty hours of tank driving experience; it’s rare to find anyone with two hundred.”

Vasily suddenly interjected, “As cannon fodder, they’re more suitable than those veterans who’ve gone through birth and death on the battlefield.”

Popov, “Don’t talk like that, you heartless scoundrel.”

Vasily shrugged, “I’m just stating the facts.”

Wang Zhong, “No, the veterans can at least trade three for one, but the recruits will just wholesale Iron Crosses to the Prosens.

“Is it possible for the Eighth Army to switch to defense tomorrow? Tell them to wait for the fuel to be delivered. Construct tank shelters on-site; that should at least reduce the enemy’s advantage somewhat.”

Pavlov nodded, “That really is the best option; the Guards Eighth Army has advanced far enough. Standing their ground for a bit won’t delay our overall offensive rhythm. I’ll issue the orders right away.”

————

The same time, Prosen Southern Army Group Headquarters.

Marshal Geron put down the report and sighed, “Even if the claimed victories from each division aren’t exaggerated, our losses are significant.”

Army Group Chief of Staff, “Some Armored Divisions are now down to only twenty tanks fit for combat, all others being either lost or under repair. Not controlling the battlefield after the fight has severe implications for us.”

Marshal Geron turned to look at the map, “How did they (referring to the Antes) come up with so many tanks? Were they supported by the Federation? Even though I know the claimed victories are surely inflated, could it be that the enemy has improved their repair capabilities?”

According to reports from the Prosen High Command, the Antes’ repair capabilities should only be one-tenth of the Prosens’. In the past two years, the Prosens had captured many Ante tanks that had only minor faults before being abandoned, leading to this conclusion.

Chief of Staff, “Last year and the year before, facing Ante troops that just kept popping up from the ground, we’ve had similar suspicions. I thought you were used to it by now. They just have the production capability to replenish their forces.”

Marshal Geron pursed his lips in thought for a while before saying, “I need to call His Majesty. If he wants us to defeat Rocossovsky, he needs to transfer the armored troops he took from us back here! Or send us new armored troops from the homeland.”

————

Minutes later, Eagle’s Nest.

“The armored troops withdrawn can’t possibly be returned to you!” the Emperor stood up, spitting at the phone, “Can’t you defeat Rocossov without these armored troops? The number of armored troops at your disposal has already surpassed that of the armored troops under General Ma Qi’s command two years ago!”

On the other side of the phone, Marshal Gollon replied, “But the enemy isn’t the same clay-footed giant as they were two years ago! Back then, their troops were a mere facade, a 200-tank armored division could even be annihilated by our infantry division!

“But now, if our infantry division gets attacked by two hundred tanks, the position will be precarious and could be breached with a single misstep!”

After a brief pause, Marshal Gollon added, “And what’s more, the enemy has those damn Rocossov Type heavy tanks!”

Hearing the syllables of “Rocossov,” the Emperor shuddered, demanding, “What Rocossov? What Type?”

“Rocossov Type, it’s the code for the enemy’s new heavy tank! They also call that heavy rocket artillery the Ulban mega cannon!”

The Emperor cursed, “This Rocossov, daring to name the tanks after himself! I’d be too ashamed to call the new tanks ‘Reinhard Type’! Utterly shameless!”

The senior generals silently exchanged glances as they listened.

Marshal Gollon: “He might do it to boost morale, for the Ante Soldiers, Rocossov means victory. If you don’t give us armored troops again, he’ll be victorious once more!”

“But every report you submit to me daily has shown astounding kill ratios! Are you telling me those ratios are lies?” the Emperor questioned.

“Of course not,” Marshal Gollon replied calmly, “The enemy’s losses might be exaggerated due to observation and our lack of control over the battlefield among many other factors, but not by such a significant amount. However, our losses are real! Some of my armored divisions have only 20 tanks combat-ready! Without reinforcements, we’ll have to temporarily stop our attacks and wait for the tanks undergoing short-term repairs!”

“We can’t stop the counterattacks! We mustn’t!” the Emperor raised his voice, “Stopping the counterattack plays right into Rocossov’s hands!”

“I know, so Your Excellency, I need reinforcements. Rocossov’s armored troops have already penetrated seventy kilometers deep into our territory, his cavalry is raiding our control area, and right now…”

Suddenly, gunshots came from the other end of the phone.

The Emperor, alarmed: “Why is there gunfire? Marshal Gollon, please respond!”

————

Marshal Gollon looked up sharply at the sound of gunfire, and then came the reassuring sound of MG42 gunfire.

Before long, the Army Group Command’s Anti-Air Group opened fire as well.

The Anti-Air Group of the Army Group Command was equipped with the latest anti-air tanks, so boxy in design that soldiers had nicknamed them “home cars.”

The receiver in Marshal Gollon’s hand continued to transmit the howling of the Emperor: “What’s happening? Where is that gunfire coming from?”

The Marshal, putting the Emperor aside for a moment, loudly demanded, “Why is there gunfire?”

The commander of the headquarters guard rushed in and saluted, “Report, Marshal! Cavalry Troops of the enemy have launched a surprise attack on us.”

Marshal Gollon: “They’ve reached here? The closest Ante vanguard should still be eighty kilometers away!”

“I’m not sure about that, but we have indeed killed several Ante Cavalry. Judging by the size, it appears that two platoons or more of cavalry took advantage of the night to charge into the village,” the guard commander reported truthfully.

As if to corroborate his words, the courtyard outside echoed with the sound of Papasha gunfire and shouts in Antenese.

Marshal Gollon: “What are they saying out there?”

A staff officer who understood Antenese immediately answered, “‘So many vehicles, seems like we’ve caught a big fish, hurry up and report via radio.’”

Marshal Gollon broke into a cold sweat: “What did they say? That last sentence!”

“Hurry up and report via radio.”

Marshal Gollon: “Damn it, Rocossov likes to bomb headquarters! Get ready to evacuate!”

Chief of Staff: “If we evacuate, the headquarters will temporarily lose the ability to command the troops, wouldn’t that be bad? After all, Rocossov’s artillery can’t reach us just yet.”

Marshal Gollon thought about it and felt it made sense, and then responded, “You’re right, strengthen the defenses.”

After speaking, he put the receiver back to his ear.

The Prosen Emperor was frantic: “Why is there gunfire? Has Rocossov already broken through to your headquarters? Hello?”

Marshal Gollon: “Rocossov’s Cavalry has broken through to my headquarters. Now, at least two hundred thousand of Rocossov’s Cavalry are roaming in our control area; the common people are assisting them, so they can raid all over the place, attacking our small units and logistics.”

This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.