Wasteland Commander-Chapter 389 - 80: The Eve of War!

Seeing Ye Fan enter the conference room, all the Dawn Army generals stood up and saluted.

This time, the meeting was attended by commanders above the regiment level, and there were quite a few of them, numbering about sixty to seventy people.

Ye Fan gestured for everyone to sit down and then began speaking first.

"As everyone knows, the day before yesterday, Zheng Jinnan gave a televised speech, demanding that I respond within 48 hours. Now, there are only a little over two hours left until the deadline. I wonder what everyone’s opinions are on this matter?"

Wang Hu from the First Brigade immediately spoke up: "Commander, there’s no need to waste words with that old man. We’re not afraid of war. If he has what it takes, let him bring it on."

"That’s right. If he wants to die, let him come. Our troops are ready for battle at any time, just waiting for your command."

"Commander, during this time, our troops have performed remarkably well against the zombies. Currently, all combat units of the Dawn Army have been upgraded to Three-Star. They think they can win just because they have more troops. That’s nothing but wishful thinking!"

The officers were indignant and all readying themselves for battle.

No one even mentioned Su Qiao; their only superior was Ye Fan.

After listening to everyone’s speeches, Ye Fan felt satisfied, as at least the morale was usable.

"What you all said is right, but war cannot be fought with just fervor. Are there any specific combat plans?"

Chief of Staff Zhongjing coughed and began to speak.

"Commander, according to intelligence from the Military Intelligence Bureau, no matter how we respond, civil war is already inevitable. For this, we have made some battle deployments."

"Let’s hear it."

"Yes, Commander, this time, the so-called Imperial Cabinet has assembled about 1.5 million troops. The main force is concentrated in Jiangzhou, where Zheng Jinnan has prepared to send out 300,000 troops, along with 200,000 troops from Bashu and Lingnan bases, totaling 700,000 troops. Once they have finished gathering, they are estimated to advance down the Celestial River by both land and water, which is our greatest threat."

Ye Fan nodded. The deployment of troops in these Imperial bases was almost unanimous, with each base having 500,000 troops.

This time, Zheng Jinnan sent out 300,000, while the other bases each sent 200,000 troops.

Among them, Jiangzhou posed the greatest threat. Once the 700,000 troops head eastward, the Dawn Army must go all out.

Zhongjing continued: "Additionally, the Huaihai Base has mobilized 200,000 troops to move north and join forces with the Mountain River Base to advance into Qi Lu Province, capture Golden City, and cut off our northern passage. This is also a problem."

"There’s also the Fengtian Base, which is in the northeast. Their target is Dawn City. Taking advantage of the fact that our main forces are concentrated in the east, they plan to attack our homeland, which is also a very serious issue. Once Dawn City falls, our strategic depth will be gone, and the plan to merge north and south will be impossible to realize."

"Finally, there’s Jiangnan Base. This base has long been hostile to us. At that time, we chose to attack Loose Province, allowing them to survive. This time, they’re causing trouble again. We’ve already received intelligence that they are gathering ships, and once the battle breaks out, they are likely to come along the coast to cooperate with Jiangzhou troops to attack Dawn Island."

"Currently, it seems the civil war will have three fronts: the southern line, central line, and northern line. The southern line includes Jiangzhou, Bashu, Lingnan, and Jiangnan base cities."

"The central line includes Mountain River and Huaihai base cities, and the northern line is Fengtian base city."

The atmosphere in the conference room was somewhat heavy; no one had expected these fellows to be so well-prepared.

Once the opponent’s attack fully unfolds, the Dawn Army could indeed be in danger.

Ye Fan thought for a moment, "What about Empress Su Qiao? What’s her stance?"

"Empress Su Qiao has promised support, but currently, the troops from Yuanjing are attacking Celestial Food Country, so she cannot mobilize too many forces. However, she has gathered 200,000 troops, who can attack the Mountain River Base to relieve our central line pressure when necessary."

Upon hearing this, Ye Fan understood that Su Qiao had done her best.

The resistance from Celestial Food Country was quite fierce to avoid being destroyed, and the Yuanjing troops suffered heavy losses. The war was currently very intense.

For Su Qiao to dispatch 200,000 troops to aid him under such circumstances was her greatest effort.

The upcoming battle would largely depend on the Dawn Army itself.

Ye Fan, having understood the situation, turned his attention to the Engineers.

"What progress have the Engineers made?"

Engineer Huang Jie was beaming with joy and immediately stood up when he heard Ye Fan’s inquiry.

"Commander, there is progress. Our spies, who have followed many foreigners to their countries, have already achieved some results."

"First, in the Shanshen Country, we acquired chip technology, and spies entered their shipyard. From now on, our warships will automatically be One-Star upon launch."

"Second, we acquired stealth fighter technology from White Eagle Country!"

"Third, our satellite network has been set up, and our missile laboratory will be completed soon, just in time to be put to use in this scenario."

Hearing about these technologies, Ye Fan’s eyes lit up.

Chip technology has a wide range of applications; it can be used for both military and civilian purposes.

Currently, its effects are not evident, but its future uses are immense.

Warships automatically gaining One-Star is also beneficial, as it significantly enhances combat effectiveness.

As for stealth aircraft technology, that’s exceedingly useful.

The White Eagle Country’s stealth aircraft technology is indeed impressive and has long been at the forefront of the world.

And after the apocalypse, no one had yet developed stealth aircraft. Unexpectedly, the White Eagle Country is leading again.

Of course, the White Eagle Country is too far to pose an immediate threat, and for now, domestically, Ye Fan’s technology is the best.

The most delightful surprise for Ye Fan is the emergence of the missile laboratory.

With this, missiles can be mass-produced.

Even though there might not be the advanced goods like intercontinental ballistic missiles for a while, the advent of regular air-to-air, air-to-ground, or anti-ship missiles can greatly enhance the combat power of the Dawn Army.

Otherwise, many warplanes and such would just sit idle after exhausting a few missiles, greatly influencing the direction of war.

With the missile laboratory, it’s just a matter of spending money; as long as there’s enough money, Ye Fan is invincible.

Hearing the engineer’s report, Ye Fan was overjoyed.

"Our spies have infiltrated the enemy’s shipyard, so have we acquired the capability to build new warships?"

"We have, indeed. Shanshen Country’s shipbuilding technology is still world-leading, especially their destroyer technology. We’ve currently acquired it, and once the missile laboratory develops, sir, you will see the new destroyer that combines our Qin Han, Shanshen Country, and Red Alert System."

"We’ve also obtained the stealth aircraft technology, so can we produce fifth-generation fighters now?"

"Sir, not yet. You can only access fifth-generation fighters after you upgrade to General, but we can retrofit current aircraft with stealth technology, making them almost comparable to fourth-and-a-half-generation fighters."

Ye Fan nodded; fourth-and-a-half generation is also acceptable and already at a leading level.

"Alright, you have three days to upgrade and retrofit all our current aircraft to have stealth capability."

"Yes, sir, three days are sufficient as long as they enter the repair factory; it’ll only take a bit of money."

After hearing the engineer’s report, Ye Fan felt increasingly confident.

With missile destroyers and new stealth aircraft, the combat power of Dawn Army’s air force and navy is practically doubled.

So what if the enemy has numbers? When faced with the dimensional reduction hit of high technology, numbers become less useful.

Unless it’s a land war, a war of attrition, numbers only play a limited role.

Even in attrition warfare, the Dawn Army’s drones are not to be underestimated.

He took the battle plan from the staff department, glanced at it, and quickly made a decision.

"Although we are currently facing many enemies, the enemy’s shortcomings are significant. Their mobility is far inferior to ours. We can completely take the initiative while they are unprepared."

"Now convey my order: first notify His Majesty Su Qiao to have the Yuanjing troops immediately attack Mountain River Base, creating difficulties on both ends for the central line of the enemy."

"Order the fourth and fifth combat brigades of the Dawn Army and an armored and artillery unit to gather in the northern region of Loose Province, ready to march into Qi Lu Province. We need to wipe out the enemy on the central line before they can react."

"Keep the first and second combat brigades stationed at Dawn Island, and establish defenses along the western line by the river. By the way, have our naval mines been included in the production sequence?"

"They have, sir, and they’re on your defense page."

Ye Fan nodded: "Deploy naval mines along the river, not giving the enemy an easy chance to break through. I estimate that it’s unlikely Jiangzhou can rapidly field troops, but we must also prepare defenses. We aim to conclude the central line battle before the 700,000 troops from Jiangzhou arrive."

Zhongjing was recording while asking, "Sir, what about Jiangnan Base City and Fengtian Base City?"

Ye Fan thought for a moment: "I will dispatch Xiaoba’s octopus group to Jiangnan to launch a surprise attack on their harbor ships, at least destroying all sea routes, preventing them from coming via the coast. In that way, with Celestial River as a barrier, they’ll be like tigers with their teeth pulled, unable to come over."

"As for Fengtian side...,"

Ye Fan considered briefly: "Send two carrier battle groups north. I will personally return to Dawn to command the fight there. Dawn City is our foundation and must not be lost."

"Fengtian there are just two major base cities: Fengtian City and Lianhai City. The leader of Fengtian Base is called Zhu Wenming, right? This despicable guy dared to covet my homeland. This time, I’ll make him disappear entirely!"