At this time, Wang Zhong was pacing back and forth in his own headquarters.
He had walked to the point of sweating, so he directly unbuttoned the discipline button on his military uniform and grabbed a writing pad to use as a fan to cool himself.
Popov said, “You’re walking around here like a racewalker, of course it’s hot. Sit down, take a rest, and it won’t be hot.”
Pavlov said, “He, having been accustomed to charging on the front lines, is experiencing withdrawal. You know what withdrawal is, right? Right after the civil war, most of the White Army soldiers were opium smokers. The Secular faction made them quit, and then they went through withdrawal, acting as if they were dying.”
Wang Zhong stopped and looked at Pavlov, “I am far from having withdrawal symptoms, okay! At least my mind is still normal.”
Pavlov nodded: “Really?”
Popov said, “Of course it’s true, if he went crazy it would be a problem.”
Wang Zhong shook his head and walked toward the telephone.
Pavlov stood up and held down the handset of the telephone. “Don’t do that. Yegorov is in the middle of relocating, and it will take a while before the phone lines are reconnected.”
Wang Zhong pursed his lips and looked toward the radio.
Pavlov said, “The radio’s not going to work either. Sit tight and wait for the front line to report back. If you’re really bored, let’s play chess, I’ll have a game with you.”
Wang Zhong scratched the back of his head and said, “Do I look like I’m in the state to play chess right now?”
Pavlov shrugged his shoulders, “Then you can’t be making calls and interfering with the front-line commanders. Trust your commanders a bit more, they can handle it.”
Wang Zhong had no choice but to approach the map and stare at it.
Truthfully, he never thought it would be so difficult for him to adapt from a junior to a mid-senior level commander, and of course, his reliance on cheat devices also played a role, as he was too eager to make full use of the advantage they provided.
Just then, the telephone rang. Pavlov picked up the phone: “Army Group Headquarters. Alright, I got it. I’ll inform Rocossov immediately.”
He hung up the phone, looked up to meet Wang Zhong’s expectant gaze, and said, “The armored troops of the 225th Division have made contact.”
Wang Zhong: “Made contact?”
“Yes, they report annihilating the enemy’s division headquarters, though they did not find the enemy division commander and senior officers but seized some documents and a divisional communications vehicle. The documents are being sent back by special vehicle, and it’s estimated that they will arrive in an hour.”
Wang Zhong clenched his fist firmly: “Good! Destroying the headquarters isn’t enough; we need to attack the Prussian armored troops from behind. Issue the order quickly!”
Pavlov: “General Eugene has already issued the order, but the front line is all smoke, and the firing range and visibility are poor.”
Wang Zhong clicked his tongue, then, inspiration striking, he said to Popov, “How about we ask the folklorists to summon a strong wind? The wind could disperse the smoke, so our assault vehicles could be effective.”
Popov stood up and headed towards the telephone, saying as he walked, “I’ll ask. Don’t get your hopes up though; you saw the fog this morning as well, nobody knows whether it’s a naturally occurring fog or not.”
He picked up the phone: “Connect me to the church.”
A few seconds later, the call evidently went through, and he said, “The general has asked me to inquire if it’s possible to summon a strong wind. It’s not? Why? Is the situation grave? Okay, understood.”
Popov put down the phone and looked at Wang Zhong: “Several folklorists have already gone to sleep; this morning’s fog has practically exhausted their spiritual power.”
Wang Zhong: “Did they really expend their spiritual power?”
Popov spread his hands: “Why don’t you go and see for yourself, verify it with your own eyes?”
For a moment Wang Zhong truly wanted to seek out the truth of the matter, but to leave the headquarters for such a reason was not good. Not that he didn’t trust Pavlov’s experience and capability, but because Wang Zhong wanted to be the first to know the news from the battlefield.
So Wang Zhong shook his head: “No, let it be.”
He continued to stare at the map as though if he kept on staring, the map would suddenly become a magic map, displaying real-time battlefield statuses.
However, that didn’t happen; the map was still reflecting the last state updated by the staff an hour ago.
The Ante’s way of mapping is different from that of Prosen, with the main forces of various units represented by variously sized blotches on the map.
Whereas the Prussian map would have lots of lines, lines of Ante Army defense, lines of the Prussian Army’s attacks, and so on. Only encircled units would be depicted as a blotch.
Wang Zhong had seen the map of the Federation, and the Federation’s map emphasizes zones, marking out the battle areas of different units very precisely, with dividing lines for the army, and each division having its own dividing lines within.
Within these lines, identifiers represent the battalion and company level units.
Beyond the dividing lines, there were lines for launching attacks, lines where the attack stopped for the day, maybe for the second day, and so on.
The differences in the maps of the three countries were apparent: Ante’s map was the easiest to understand, even soldiers with no military mapping training could make out parts of it as long as they could read.
The Federation’s map, on the other hand, was only comprehensible to specially trained staffers. The Federation’s non-commissioned officers and junior officers often used Ante-style blotch maps, with enemies encircled one place and allies another.
But for those trained in cartography, the Federation’s map was transparent and stratified, and command hierarchies on the map were clear.
The characteristic of the Prussian map was its ability to clearly show the marching routes of various units, which was particularly advantageous for planning offensives.
As Wang Zhong was daydreaming in front of his map, the telephone rang again.
He immediately looked at Pavlov, eagerly watching the Chief of Staff pick up the handset.
Pavlov: “Corps Command, what? Okay, I’ll ask.”
He set the handset aside and covered it with his hand, looking at Wang Zhong: “The Air Force says the weather is clear enough to provide support; where do you need an airstrike?”
Wang Zhong waved his hand grandly, “The front line battle is already settled, tell them to scout and disrupt the enemy’s other troops. Especially find out where the enemy’s other armored units are.”
Indeed, the Prussian armored units were elite; even after being ambushed in the fog and then shelled, they were still able to pose a threat to the Ante Army.
No wonder in 1944, when the Earthlings were counter-attacking, they still directly ordered their assault troops to bypass Sturmtigers if they encountered them. Don’t engage them head-on.
Pavlov nodded, brought the receiver to his ear again, and said, “Rocossov asks you to scout the movements of the enemy’s other armored units. We have already dealt with the ones in front. Yes, don’t bother with the front anymore. Yeisk is currently filled with our own troops. Don’t bomb it!”
After finishing, he put the receiver down and looked towards Wang Zhong.
Wang Zhong, in turn, looked back at the map.
At that moment, the phone rang again.
Pavlov picked up the receiver: “First Mobile Army Headquarters. Hello, I’ll get the general for you right away.”
Wang Zhong turned around, “Who is it?”
With his mouth, Pavlov shaped the words: “Your Majesty.”
Wang Zhong reluctantly walked over and took the receiver, “This is Rocossov.”
Olga’s voice immediately came through the receiver, “Alyosha!”
Wang Zhong, “When working…”
Olga, “Major General Rocossov, I heard you were launching an attack in the fog this morning. How did it go?”
Wang Zhong, “Currently we have crushed the enemy’s armored units coming out of the city, but the situation inside is unclear, the battle is still ongoing.”
“Can I do anything to help?” asked Olga.
Wang Zhong,”Don’t call my headquarters. This phone line is crucial right now as countless messages need to be reported through it.”
Olga let out a cute whine: “I… understand, but you have to call me tonight to tell me the outcome, okay? I mean, when the line isn’t busy!”
“Understood, so goodbye, Your Majesty.” Wang Zhong hung up the phone.
Vasily,”Our line isn’t busy, right?”
Wang Zhong,”That’s because all officers below us are competent and responsible, able to make their own decisions. Precisely because of this, any situation they report is sure to be urgent, so this line must remain clear. Understand?”
Vasily nodded repeatedly, “Got it, got it.”
Pavlov,”Even though you’re engaged, there’s no need to be this avoidant, right?”
Wang Zhong,”Is this a matter of avoidance? No, it’s military urgency!”
At that moment, the phone rang, and Wang Zhong immediately said, “See! Urgent military business is coming. If I had tried to extend the conversation, this call wouldn’t have come through!”
With that, he grabbed the receiver first, “This is Rocossov, what happened?”
“Why are you answering the phone personally?” Yegorov’s voice came from the other side,”Our vortex and infantry have wiped out the last four new enemy tanks, the enemy’s attack has been smashed!”
Wang Zhong with a stern face,”Didn’t you encounter any problems?”
“No, the enemy’s new tanks were fast, but not fast enough. Our infantry hiding in the grass took out two with Molotov cocktails, and then the vortex took care of the last two. It’s over.”
Wang Zhong frowned tightly,”That’s not right. At times like this, shouldn’t there be a crisis that demands my solution?”
Like the last Tiger tank suddenly transforming and then standing up.
After a second of silence, Yegorov burst out laughing,”General, you’re still so humorous!”
Wang Zhong looked at the others in the headquarters and scolded,”Don’t make jokes on the battlefield. You did well. Now, I’m giving you a new mission. Figure out the situation in the city and provide as much support as possible to the troops there.”
Yegorov,”We’re getting ready to send in the M3 Grant tanks from the accompanying armor battalion together with the infantry. I estimate now it’s just a few sturdy buildings that haven’t been dealt with. M3’s main guns should be enough.”
Wang Zhong,”I approve your plan. That’s it.”
After hanging up the receiver, he told the others,”See! Had I not hung up on Her Majesty’s call, we wouldn’t have been able to approve Yegorov’s use of M3s in urban combat in time!”
The others in the headquarters nodded repeatedly,”Right, right!”
“Truly an important directive!”
Wang Zhong cursed under his breath and continued to turn to the map.
Having nothing else to do, he called out, “Nelly!”
Nelly opened the door, “What’s up?”
Wang Zhong,”Do you have any snacks that are a bit troublesome, like something with shells to peel?”
Like sunflower seeds.
Nelly,”Would boiled peanuts do?”
“That’ll do! Anyway, I need to find something to do, or I’ll go stir-crazy. I shouldn’t have such capable officers as subordinates. I can’t micromanage anymore!”