Hu Hao stood before the strategic map, pointing a finger at Tianyu City, and declared his intention to wipe out the Allied garrison that very night.
"Hao-ge, just the Special Operations Regiment? What about my troops?" Wu Kexiao asked, slightly disappointed that his men were being sidelined for the initial assault.
"Your 106th Corps will launch simultaneous assaults on the other two cities tomorrow. Tonight, Tianyu City will serve as a live-fire proving ground for the Special Operations Regiment. I need to test their capabilities and forge them in actual combat!" Hu Hao explained his rationale.
"Mm. But... could we at least participate in the perimeter assault? I want to blood my men too!" Wu Kexiao requested eagerly.
"There's no rush. You'll have plenty of opportunities to train your troops. When the time comes, I'll have the Special Operations Regiment provide overwatch and assist your assault. We will command the operation together.
"Once we secure these three major cities, our offensive won't stop. However, as we expand, you must prioritize the recruitment and training of reserve forces!" Hu Hao instructed.
"Reserve forces? Hao-ge, wouldn't it be better to just recruit them directly into our active duty ranks?" Wu Kexiao argued. Like any commander, he wanted as many active troops under his direct command as possible to bolster his confidence in battle.
"We can't do that. I told you about the call I received from the Crown Prince a few days ago. We must avoid provoking His Majesty's paranoia right now!
"Think about it from his perspective: we control our own armories, and if we start unilaterally expanding our active duty forces by the hundreds of thousands... do you think he'll sleep soundly? He'll immediately brand us as treasonous warlords, and we'll be fighting the Empire as well as the Allied coalition!
"Therefore, we recruit reservists. We don't issue them official uniforms, and we don't train them full-time. We train them during their off-hours—perhaps three days a week. For the rest of the week, they return home to work the fields or manage the cities.
"When our frontline units suffer casualties and need replacements, we draft the most promising reservists into active duty. It's a political loophole, and we have to exploit it carefully!" Hu Hao explained the delicate balancing act.
He had no intention of needlessly provoking the Imperial Court. He needed the Emperor to trust him, or at least tolerate him, so he could continue building his strength and secure his own survival.
Furthermore, Hu Hao had no idea how long the Emperor's fragile coalition would hold. If the Allied High Command realized the Eastern Spirit Empire had successfully mobilized millions of new troops, they would undoubtedly launch a cataclysmic offensive the moment the dry season arrived.
The Eastern Spirit Empire was the first nation they had invaded; if they failed to conquer it swiftly, the other nations of the Central Region would be emboldened to resist fiercely. The Allied coalition could not afford that political disaster. Therefore, the Empire was destined to bear the brunt of their fury. Hu Hao needed a massive, capable army ready to weather that storm.
Hu Hao turned his attention back to the map, tracing lines with his finger.
Roughly 400 kilometers east of Nanli City lay one of the Eastern Spirit Empire's primary logistical arteries: a massive, 16-lane superhighway. Although sections had been bombed, the Allied forces were undoubtedly repairing it for their own use. Furthermore, three major rail lines intersected nearby, connecting the northwest, northeast, and southwest regions.
The Allied coalition was unquestionably utilizing this nexus to funnel supplies to their front lines. If Hu Hao could push his forces that far east, he would pose a lethal, direct threat to the Allied logistical lifeline. Naturally, the Allied High Command would deploy overwhelming force to crush him before he could reach it.
Hu Hao estimated that if he truly managed to advance 400 kilometers, his Group Army would control a territory spanning roughly four provinces. The Allied forces would never allow a hostile army to carve out an enclave of that size directly behind their lines.
"Hao-ge, once we secure these three cities... our recon units report that the Allied garrisons in the cities further east are relatively small, usually just one or two divisions. They are occupying forces, not frontline assault units.
"The vast majority of the Allied combat power is concentrated on the front lines and along the coast. If we move fast, we can overrun these lightly defended regions before they can mobilize massive reinforcements! The real challenge will be holding the territory afterward.
"The Allied High Command won't just sit back and watch us conquer a swath of territory this large. They've likely already realized we control several major cities; until recently, they probably thought we were entirely contained around Late City," Wu Kexiao analyzed, pointing at the map.
"Exactly," Hu Hao nodded in agreement.
"Therefore, my operational proposal is this: if we are going to strike the major cities, we must strike fast. I suggest launching simultaneous, overwhelming assaults on Tianjing City and Nanli City tomorrow night. We aim to secure them within three days.
"Following that, we immediately launch rapid, multi-pronged thrusts outward. Given that the subsequent cities are only garrisoned by one or two divisions, if we can capture three or four more major cities in each direction, we can halt and consolidate our positions.
"By that point, I estimate the Allied High Command will have massed a substantial relief force and begun marching on our sector," Wu Kexiao laid out his ambitious operational plan.
"Not bad! You're thinking several steps ahead!" Hu Hao smiled, genuinely pleased by Wu Kexiao's strategic growth.
"Hehe. I have to! I'm responsible for the lives of nearly 80,000 men now. If I don't anticipate the enemy's counter-moves, and they catch me off guard, we're all dead!" Wu Kexiao laughed, though the weight of command was evident in his eyes.
"Mm. Your assessment is sound. I approve the simultaneous assaults for tomorrow night," Hu Hao nodded.
"Excellent! I'll begin the deployment now. I plan to commit 30,000 men to each city assault, leaving roughly 10,000 men as a strategic reserve!" Wu Kexiao stated his troop allocation.
"Ten thousand? Who is going to garrison the smaller towns and county seats we already control?" Hu Hao asked, raising an eyebrow.
"We'll hold them! I'll station an armored battalion in the towns closest to the Allied lines to serve as a tripwire and monitor enemy movements. The rest of the corps will be committed to the main offensives!" Wu Kexiao explained.
"Let me ask you a hypothetical question. We launch our assaults on Tianjing and Nanli. What happens if the Allied garrisons in Jifeng City and Tianxi City each dispatch a division to attack the lightly defended towns in our rear? How do you respond?" Hu Hao challenged him.
"Impossible. Why would they dare leave their fortifications?" Wu Kexiao dismissed the idea.
"Whether they dare or not is irrelevant; it's a tactical possibility you must account for! When we attack Tianjing and Nanli, those garrisons will immediately scream for reinforcements! Where will those reinforcements come from? The neighboring cities!
"If those relief columns march out, how will your forces react? If your main combat elements are bogged down in brutal, grinding urban combat inside the cities, a rapidly maneuvering Allied relief force could easily encircle your besieging troops from the outside!
"Commander Wu, when planning a battle, you cannot solely focus on the offensive! You must anticipate friction, delays, and the enemy's inevitable counter-moves!
"The Allied commanders know the horrific cost of urban combat. Look at Yonghe City and Jinhe City! We practically ground three of their elite corps into dust in those streets! Do you think their commanders aren't terrified of fighting us in the cities? They can't afford to trade casualties with us like that!
"Therefore, tomorrow night, commit 20,000 men to each city assault. The Special Operations Regiment will spearhead the breaches and provide overwatch. You do not need to cram 30,000 men into the meat grinder immediately!
"Keep the remainder of your forces staged outside the cities as a mobile reserve! The moment Allied relief columns march out of the neighboring cities, we ambush and annihilate them in the open! I want them to send reinforcements! Destroying them in the field is infinitely easier and less costly than rooting them out of urban fortifications!
"And keep your tank divisions in reserve! We will use the armor to crush the relief columns!" Hu Hao delivered a masterclass on the classic 'besiege the city to annihilate the relief force' tactic. He vastly preferred fighting field battles over urban slogs.
Meanwhile, at the Allied Supreme Command Headquarters, Supreme Commander Vostok and Chief of Staff Vitali stood before a massive strategic map. A large swath of territory in the southwest was now shaded blue—the territory currently controlled by Hu Hao's 1st Group Army.
Allied military intelligence had finally managed to map the approximate boundaries of Hu Hao's expanding enclave.
"I truly never imagined it. Hu Hao started with a single corps... and now he controls seven or eight major cities and nearly an entire province. It's astonishing," Vostok muttered, taking a long drag from his cigar, his face lined with worry.
He was the one who had ultimately authorized the humiliating withdrawal of the Mara 1st and 14th Corps. He had realized that they had fundamentally underestimated Hu Hao's strength. Hu Hao's multi-pronged expansion had perfectly exploited the logistical nightmare the Allied forces faced in redeploying heavy units during the rainy season.
"Supreme Commander, the failure rests on our faulty initial assessments. Sigh," Vitali admitted regretfully.
"It's a tragedy about Ketonli. He was the first to realize Hu Hao possessed a massive army of recruits and was using us for live-fire training. But we dismissed his warnings!" Vostok lamented the loss of the brilliant Holy Ancient general.
"Supreme Commander, while Hu Hao has seized significant territory and numerous smaller towns, the major strategic cities in that sector remain under our control. Overall, the situation remains manageable," Vitali attempted to offer a reassuring perspective.
"Manageable? Hmph! Hu Hao could launch a massive offensive against those major cities at any moment! He is an incredibly cunning strategist. Look at his method— he first secures the surrounding small towns, effectively isolating our major garrisons and severing their immediate overland support routes!
"Now he has them surrounded. We rarely garrison more than two divisions in any single city. If Hu Hao launches concentrated assaults, we would need to mobilize forces from at least five neighboring cities just to form a single relief corps! Do you understand the sheer risk involved in that maneuver?!" Vostok demanded, glaring at Vitali.
"Ah?" Vitali blinked, not immediately grasping the tactical peril Vostok was highlighting.
(End of Chapter)