Munitions Empire-Chapter 1002 - : 924 Days of Transformation

Chapter 1002: 924 Days of Transformation

An overlooked point by the higher-ups of the Dahua Empire is that Zhao Yu, with the support of the Great Tang Empire, has his own connections in many regions.

Normally, these people might not dare to make any moves, but once they have the opportunity, they might make some decisions on their own.

Previously, when Shanping was still under the control of the Dahua Empire, the Guiguang military naturally had to assess the situation before making their own decisions. But now that Shanping has been lost, many people’s thoughts have begun to stir.

It’s better to send charcoal in snowy weather rather than adding flowers to the brocade; isn’t it true that heating a cold stove matters most at critical moments? In a sense, Zhao Zheng set an example, so many commanders suddenly understood a lot of things.

The Battle of Guiguang is a collective expression of this thought: Certain wavering commanders saw Shanping’s rebellion as a signal. They were already leaning towards Zhao Yu, now they’ve just changed their allegiance as the wind shifted.

After learning that Shanping was occupied by the Fengjiang military, several divisions of Guiguang’s troops raided Guiguang that very night and the local garrison was thrown into disarray by the sudden attack, not knowing what had happened — the garrison could only passively take hits.

Their commander Zhao Jie was still on the way, completely unaware of the situation. Amidst the chaos, some commanders misjudged the situation, believing the Dahua Empire was doomed.

Consequently, more and more armies rebelled, and even some of the rebellious troops started fighting each other. Everyone claimed to be the virtuous side, holding the banner of righteousness, and the battle lasted until dawn, persisting even as the Fengjiang troops approached.

Then things took a surreal turn: Guiguang’s peripheral garrison immediately surrendered to the Fengjiang troops, and soon after, the city troops also handed over their weapons.

The remaining true Dahua troops had no choice but to start retreating because they basically lost the conditions to hold Guiguang.

Unknown troops burned the food warehouses, and most of the ammunition depots were lost. The peripheral artillery had already surrendered; if they didn’t leave, they might be surrounded by the rebel forces and Fengjiang army.

With no options, over 200,000 Dahua troops retreated from Guiguang, taking two separate routes away. Approximately 150,000 troops retreated west towards Shanchong, and more than 50,000 people fled haphazardly towards Sword Pavilion.

By now, the Guiguang-Shanping Battle had pushed the Dahua Empire beyond salvation. The seemingly hopeless situation for the Fengjiang military surprisingly cleared up within a few days.

With Fengjiang controlling Guiguang, they could threaten Dahua’s crucial food source, Wanliang City, to the north, the critical central city of Shanchong to the west, and Sword Pavilion and Southern Storehouse to the south had already become easy pickings…

Suddenly, the situation for the entire Fengjiang military was extremely favorable, even the streets of frontline Fengjiang subtly took on a more festive air.

Zhao Kai overlooked a vital factor: human sentiment! Many of the Dahua Empire bureaucrats supported Zhao Yu, and the only thing preventing them from switching sides was the current situation.

While the Dahua Empire surrounded Fengjiang for battle, naturally everyone was optimistic about the Dahua Empire, and it was not the time for anyone to make reckless choices.

But once Fengjiang seized crucial cities and took a strong position, these people immediately began to consider if they needed a fallback plan.

Thinking thus, the situation naturally diversified. While Zhao Kai was still urging Zhao Jie to quickly seize Guiguang and salvage the situation, Sword Pavilion and Southern Storehouse also announced their surrenders.

The reasoning was that Guiguang’s defeated garrison fled to Sword Pavilion, suddenly turning it into the frontline, which was already adjacent to the Great Tang Empire; hundreds of thousands of troops stationed at the border all needed supplies.

With the loss of Guiguang, their supplies were completely cut off, leaving these border-stationed troops without food, and their ammunition could not withstand consumption.

Previously stored ammunition intended for use against the rebels was transported to Guiguang, but now all was lost, leaving the hundreds of thousands of troops near Sword Pavilion without the means to fight.

Consequently, these troops also chose the most suitable method: they surrendered to the Fengjiang army, wasn’t that a way to have food and drink?

After all, if the Dahua army came back, they could simply surrender again, who could blame these border troops that inherently lacked mobility?

Previously, to limit the border army, the Dahua Empire issued very little food and few vehicles for transport, so these border-stationed troops were generally unsuited for field battles and were cumbersome to mobilize.

Now with real problems arising, they were not only unable to engage in field battles to salvage the situation, but they also became a burden themselves.

Thus, the outcome has become what we see today: 250,000 troops near Sword Pavilion entirely surrendered, including the 50,000 who fled here, totaling 300,000!

With so many troops surrendering, Southern Storehouse, which barely had any troops stationed, naturally followed suit in surrender.

Interestingly, Southern Storehouse put on a facade of loyalty, only changing their flags when Fengjiang’s envoy arrived.

Originally a solitary city, Fengjiang, within a mere 15 days, transformed into a five-city alliance—namely Fengjiang, Shanping, Guiguang, Sword Pavilion, and South Storehouse.

It was not just about having four additional cities, but Fengjiang’s rebel forces gained over 400,000 troops who surrendered from Guiguang, Shanping, and Sword Pavilion!

Of course, if you count Guiguang’s food supplies, the tanks and heavy weapons from both areas, ammunition, and strategic depth… Fengjiang gained far too much at once.

Even strategically, Fengjiang not only acquired substantial resources but also gained an elusive advantage: the foundation of many areas in the Dahua Empire has started to wobble, with a looming trend of needing military suppression.

Although unwilling to admit it, Zhao Kai still knew he had overplayed his hand—he intended to use Shanping as bait to trap Fengjiang’s military forces but overlooked the “momentum” and its impact on the entire Dahua Empire.

Now that a major mistake had been made, if he didn’t remedy it promptly, the situation could become even more unmanageable.

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Thus, Zhao Kai moved troops and dispatched generals, on one hand, reallocating force from various places to strengthen the defenses at Hezhe and Shanchong, and on the other hand, he ordered Zhao Chen to hold the line, needing to seize Fengjiang quickly!

Because if Zhao Chen could now take Fengjiang, everything would be confined within Dahua Empire, blocking the Great Tang Empire’s supply routes, holding a possibility of victory in the civil strife of Fengjiang.

Yet, if his orders were effective, Zhao Chen wouldn’t be struggling so hard on the front line. In reality, with the reinforcement of hundreds of thousands of troops, Zhao Yu’s strength had unprecedentedly increased.

Now stationed in Guiguang were over 200,000 Fengjiang troops, overall with viable combat power. Their commander was Luo Xiao in person, so there were no issues.

Qian Jinhang, bringing supplies from Great Tang Empire to the south, was currently reorganizing the Dahua border army in the direction of Sword Pavilion; these troops couldn’t participate in the battle now, but their future was promising.

The only disadvantaged ones were indeed from Fengjiang, but the forces stationed there had been replaced with foreign legions including Dwarf Elves and Goblins, whose combat efficacy greatly troubled the Dahua defending forces.

Overall, Fengjiang’s forces were quite stable, so Zhao Chen and Zhao Jie had little opportunity to act.

…

On the border of Great Tang Empire, in the direction of Hidden Sword Gorge, a farmer tilling his field raised his head to observe the truck transporting special parts.

These trucks were genuinely massive, carrying large parts that piqued curiosity—the steel components, each the size of a room, looked quite impressive.

“Village chief, what are these things used for?” Having seen several vehicles pass by that morning, each carrying such unusual parts, the old farmer couldn’t help but ask the village chief passing by his field.

The village chief, hands behind his back, happy about the good weather this year and the promising growth of crops in his village, was in the mood to answer when asked, “The governor came by this morning, said they’re parts for a bridge.”

“A bridge? Where are they building a bridge?” The old farmer looked puzzled and continued to ask.

The village chief pointed toward the distant mountains: “They plan to build a bridge in Hidden Sword Gorge, spanning from east to west. From now on, our place will have direct access to Sword Pavilion.”

“Ah? Is that possible? Hidden Sword Gorge, isn’t that Dahua’s territory?” The old farmer was completely baffled, looking at the distant mountains, unable to believe his ears.

“It was in the newspapers. From now on, we and Dahua Empire are to be everlasting friends. That prince, Zhao Yu, agreed to let us build the bridge. From now on, this place might become a key transportation route, with good days ahead,” the village chief envisioned the future, walking further away.

In the eyes of the village chief, as long as the bridge was truly connected, roads, both railway and highway, would soon be built here, turning this place into a vital thoroughfare.

This was something unbelievable even in dreams before—to connect east to Tengyun City and Wangchun City, south to South Wind Pass, and directly west to Sword Pavilion… truly a location blessed by feng shui.

If a railway station could be built in the village and trade opened with the neighboring country, then this side could quickly become a city, just like Fengjiang!

Thinking of this, the village chief considered the possibility of his own promotion, maybe even becoming a City Lord in the future…

With these thoughts in mind, the village chief looked at the passing trucks with much more affection.

And those trucks, carrying a large number of bridge components, were converging towards Hidden Sword Gorge, originally under the control of Dahua Empire.

With no obstructions, this bridge would soon be constructed, and with it, Sword Pavilion and South Storehouse would no longer be an isolated hollow.