Arc of Gunfire

Afterwards, Wang Zhong and his party returned to the warehouse where the headquarters was located, but before entering the warehouse compound, they saw a big hole in the outer wall.

Wang Zhong hurriedly asked the guard at the door: "Were you bombarded? Is the loss heavy?"

The guard smiled and said, "Don't worry, General. Three shells fell, and only one hit the warehouse building. No one was killed. Two shells landed in the yard, and the explosion was quite violent, but our yard is empty, there is nothing except grain chaff." ”

In order to make it look more like a disguise, Wang Zhong gave the order before setting off for the investigation. The anti-aircraft artillery battalion was placed next to the city council, which had collapsed by one-third. Even the guards at the warehouse were hidden sentries, and the only visible guards were two groups of four. Guarding two gates respectively.

Now it seems that this decision was a mistake and reduced the casualties from shelling.

The convoy entered the warehouse compound and stopped at the door of the barn. The old herdsman who followed the car snorted: "The general is actually directing the battle in the barn. He is not as good as us herdsmen!"

Wang Zhong: "The barn is also very good. It is sturdy and durable, and the drainage is good when it rains! Come on, please!"

"Humph, my ears are very good. I can hear your Majesty's voice right away, but don't try to fool me!" As he said, the herdsman took the chair from the staff officer, spread his legs and sat down.

The old man's sitting posture, with his big horse and golden sword, showed that when he was young, he was a big man from the prairie who ate meat and drank wine - or in other words, a bandit.

Popov stood up: "What's going on? Do you want me to call the inquisitor?"

"Hmph!" The old herdsman curled his lips, "The judge is here, I won't say a word, you go and deal with the grassland!"

Wang Zhong picked up the phone: "Pick up Xia Gong."

The operator replied "Okay" and said nothing more. Soon, the voice of the manager of the Summer Palace came over the phone: "Who is this, Summer Palace?"

Before Wang Zhong could answer, he heard Olga's voice coming from the other side: "Is it Rokossov? Is it? Give it to me!"

Then there was a burst of noise, probably grabbing the receiver, and then Olga's voice hit Wang Zhong's eardrum: "Rokosov? Is it Rokosov?"

Wang Zhong: "If you don't do this, it will cause misunderstanding!"

"I didn't even call you Alyosha! Oh, yes, I missed Lieutenant General, cough." The girl cleared her throat and raised her voice, "Lieutenant General Rokossov, how is the war on the front line? "

Wang Zhong: "I have a favor for you. There is an old herdsman who is willing to help only if he hears the voice of His Majesty the Tsar."

"Then give him the phone!"

Wang Zhong glanced at the old man and handed the receiver over: "His Majesty the Tsar is on the line."

The old herdsman hurriedly knocked the half-filled pipe on the table to knock out all the tobacco. Then he put away the pipe, straightened the hat on his head, and took the receiver with respectful hands: "Hello?"

Wang Zhong couldn't hear what Olga said, but could only see the change in the old man's face.

The old man was still skeptical at first, and then became frightened - he probably recognized Olga's voice as he said. The old man kept saying with sincerity and fear: "It's a sin, it's a sin, I doubted His Highness the Prince."

Um?

Because people were answering Olga's call now, it was difficult for Wang Zhong to correct him, so he could only use his eyes to signal to the people around him, "I'm not that".

The next moment, the old man's expression turned into astonishment: "Isn't it? That was my misunderstanding! Sin, oh sin!"

Wang Zhong became more and more curious about what Olga was talking about.

With the palace steward and General Turgenev watching on the other side, they shouldn't say anything outrageous, right?

Finally, the old man nodded again like a chicken pecking at rice: "Okay, okay, I will fully cooperate. Your Majesty, don't worry! Then...how do you say that word? No need to say it? Okay!"

The old herdsman said "Okay" repeatedly and handed the receiver to Wang Zhong respectfully: "Your Majesty said he wanted to talk to you."

Wang Zhong took the receiver and said, "What did you tell him?"

"Ah, let's just say that my brother entrusted me to your care when he was dying. Now you are equivalent to my brother, and you want him to fully cooperate with you."

Wang Zhong raised his eyebrows: "Why do I feel that you said more than that?"

"That's all. If you don't believe me, just ask him!"

Wang Zhong glanced at the old man and shook his head: "I believe it, I believe it. Then we still have something to do here. I'll call you after we finish talking!"

"We must fight!" Olga warned.

"Don't worry." Wang Zhong put down the receiver and looked at the old man.

The old man had been praying, and the prayer seemed to be asking God to bless His Majesty the Tsar or something.

At this time, Wang Zhong finally realized why the church still retained the tsar.

The secular church has been winning the civil war for so long that almost all young people have become seculars. As a result, they still encounter such devout Tsarist believers.

If the tsar is not retained, the civil war will probably last for five more years.

In a world where supernatural powers and miracles really exist, it is so difficult to carry out secular reforms.

Wang Zhong waited for the old man to finish praying before asking: "Old man..."

"No! His Majesty said that you are her godbrother and His Highness the Prince. Please use me as you please!"

Wang Zhong didn't want to "order" people. After all, he was a laborer before time travel, and he was quite resistant to such words that connoted slavery.

Now he didn't care about so much, so he waved: "Come, come to the map."

The old man came over quickly, completely different from his unruly look just now.

Wang Zhong: "Can you understand the map?"

"Of course, I was once part of His Majesty the Tsar's Fifth Guards Cavalry Brigade. The cavalry had to deliver messages. How could I do that if I couldn't read a map!" said the old man.

Wang Zhong: "When I personally investigated before, I found that there was a large meadow at this location. Where does this meadow extend to?"

The old man picked up a pencil and began to draw lines. His hands trembled slightly when he drew.

After drawing, the old man said: "Sorry, I'm old and can't draw straight lines. Just look at it. It's hard for horses to walk on this meadow. It has been abandoned for a long time! Cossacks once wanted to open up this land for farmland, but failed."

Wang Zhong: "It's such a large area."

"Don't be fooled by the grassland. It's all grassland. In fact, there are everything! This area here," the old man continued to draw on the map, "is actually a swamp. The meltwater from the accumulated snow in winter has nowhere to go, so it's all stored here."

Wang Zhong: "Is there any terrain on the grassland that is difficult to pass? I mean wheeled vehicles can't go."

"There are a lot. For example, here, even a tractor - I mean a tank, can't move an inch here!"

"What's there?" Wang Zhong asked.

"Voles." The old man answered seriously, "Voles have dug a lot of holes here. Horses may sprain their feet if they walk on them, and tanks will definitely collapse if they drive on them."

Wang Zhong was shocked: "Is the rat infestation so serious? Our telephone lines are dug up every few days."

"Telephone lines must be set up on the grassland. This is what the secular army did during the civil war."

Wang Zhong looked at the colorfully drawn map and touched his chin: "I originally thought that the grassland was a plain like the desert, and I also thought of a high tide tactic."

In fact, it copied the idea of ​​Desert Fox on Earth. The general content is that the desert can actually be regarded as the sea, and supply lines can be connected everywhere, so desert warfare does not need to be so restricted to roads and settlements.

It is completely possible to use armored forces like a fleet, let tanks cruise on the sand sea, break through the enemy's weak points, and then all troops rush in from the only breakthrough point, just like a high tide.

Now it seems that the grassland is far from the desert Gobi.

The grassland can't play the high tide tactic at all, and it still has to be comfortable on the supply line.

Wang Zhong muttered to himself: "Does the enemy know this?"

Pavlov: "We don't know, and the enemy certainly doesn't know. Their scouts don't have time to explore the grassland all over."

Wang Zhong: "So we can be sure that the enemy's armored forces will definitely be out of touch with motorized forces such as trucks, and their supplies will be stuck by the complex terrain hidden under the grassland.

"If we can launch a raid on the enemy's supply, we can gain a huge advantage-although we can't carry out an annihilation war when we are short of troops, we can defeat the enemy!"

Popov asked: "Then what troops should we use to launch a raid? Even tanks can't pass through the Vole Hills and Swamps."

Wang Zhong also fell into deep thought.

At this time, the old herdsman said: "Why don't you try riding a horse? What about Xia Boyang's cavalry army?"

Wang Zhong looked at Pavlov: "Yes, cavalry! How can you gallop on the grassland without cavalry?"

Pavlov: "I want to remind you that we don't have any cavalry at all."

Wang Zhong: "I want to remind you that I can ask for any troops I want. ”

He picked up the phone: "Connect to Yebao, Summer Palace."

Pavlov frowned beside him: "Wouldn't this be a bad idea? His Majesty the Tsar has repeatedly interfered with military mobilizations, even the previous emperor did not do this."

Wang Zhong: "Why not? Forgot about Agsukov?"

At this time, the phone was connected, and it was Olga's voice: "Hello? Is this Lieutenant General Rokosov?"

Wang Zhong: "It's me."

"Tell me, what troops do you want?"

Wang Zhong: "I want cavalry, transfer Kirinenko's cavalry army!"

Pavlov: "The army commanded by Lieutenant General Kirinenko is in other directions. It's not good to just snatch troops from him, right?"

On the other end of the phone, it was obvious that Olga took the receiver away and exchanged opinions with the person next to her - probably General Turgenev.

A few seconds later, she said: "Lieutenant General Kirinenko's cavalry army cannot be transferred to you. But the reserve front still has a newly formed cavalry army, is that okay?"

Wang Zhong: "Yes, transfer the cavalry army to me. "

"What are you going to do?" Olga asked, her tone full of curiosity.

Wang Zhong: "Let them gallop across the vast grasslands and carry out a battle of siege."

"Huh?" Olga asked in confusion, "Isn't a battle of siege a term used by the navy?"

Wang Zhong: "Why? I'm still using the navy's guns, so what's wrong with using a navy term?"

"Okay... Anyway, you have the confidence to defeat the enemy, right?"

Wang Zhong: "No, I'm not sure yet, I'll see what to do. Anyway, you give me the cavalry first."

Olga: "Okay, I promise the cavalry - what? You want to speak? Okay... General Turgenev is going to speak."

Then Turgenev's voice came: "We tried to use cavalry to break the engagement last year, but the effect was not good."

Wang Zhong: "That's because you haven't tried it on the grasslands of Nanant. Believe me, the situation here is much more complicated than the black soil of Khasalia. There is a reason why this land has not become an agricultural reclamation area yet!"

"Is that so? Then try again. I will dispatch two cavalry corps. I estimate they will arrive on the 17th."

"Okay, I'll be waiting!" Wang Zhong replied.