It's better to conquer them than to command the steel torrent

Chapter 159 | A knock-off version of "Besieged on All Sides"
In the struggle for control of the breach, the two sides engaged in fierce battle after battle.

The enemy surged in wave after wave, and Shang Ke could only send out reserves to block the breaches.

Nearly a hundred corpses lay scattered outside the Mamara Hotel and near the large hole, their blood pooling into puddles.

"The enemy is charging! Everyone prepare for battle!" a hoarse voice shouted.

Thick smoke billowed outside; it was a smoke wall made up of more than a dozen white phosphorus smoke grenades and smoke-generating hand grenades.

The windows of the Mamara Hotel were riddled with bullet holes, and whenever the Hungarian gun emplacements opened fire, the Imperial Russian tanks at the distant crossroads would immediately aim at the muzzle flash and fire back.

Under the cover of smoke, two more reinforced Russian infantry platoons charged forward one after the other.

Mosin-Nagant rifle grenades flew through several windows and the large hole, and several muffled thuds echoed through the hotel lobby.

Immediately afterwards, dozens of Imperial Russian infantrymen wearing gas masks dispersed and rushed forward in multiple directions.

"on!"

Shank crouched behind a load-bearing pillar and sandbag bunker. At his command, more than a dozen fully armed royal guards filed out of the basement and rushed into the hall to intercept the invading enemy.

First, they threw out a few grenades, then opened fire with their guns. The gray-white phosphorus smoke and the dust from the explosions mixed together, and the screams of the Imperial Russian soldiers sounded muffled because they were wearing gas masks.

Neither side could deploy more troops, so they could only engage in fierce firefights in this narrow and close space until one side was decimated, and then they would refuel...

The sunset this evening was as red as blood; Shang Ke felt he had never seen such a crimson sunset before.

Then he realized that the blood was on the lens of his gas mask, and that his left palm had been cut by flying cement debris.

Another round of artillery fire came, and several shells hit the breach, with one even managing to enter the building through a window and explode.

Two royal guards were knocked down by flying shrapnel, and a fearless medic rushed over and dragged them back.

"Next team, prepare for battle, move out!"

Shank waved his hand again, ordering the next reserve team group to take over the defense.

"Understood." It was a familiar female voice.

Shank frowned and turned his head to look. He saw Emilia, whose head and arms were wrapped in bandages, walking towards him carrying a Bergman submachine gun. Behind her were more than twenty lightly wounded soldiers.

It turned out that after a brutal afternoon of fighting, the reserve force of more than two hundred people had almost all of them left who were able to move.

The repeated struggles and tug-of-war left the lobby of the Mamara Hotel littered with bloody pieces of limbs, and the pungent smell of blood carried on the evening breeze was nauseating.

Is it almost time?
Shang Ke calmly calculated the troop losses in his mind and weighed whether he should make the worst-case scenario plan. If the enemy launched another attack, then he would have to use survival measures.

He released the safety from the semi-automatic shotgun, pulled a few rounds from his pocket, and placed them within easy reach of the sandbag bunker.

Fortunately, there was no further activity after the brief shelling ended, and the enemy's attack ceased.

Realizing this, Shang Ke muttered to himself, "Damn it, keep going! Why did you all give up? In the end, you were the ones who couldn't hold on any longer..."

As he spoke, an overwhelming fatigue washed over him, and he collapsed onto his back, losing consciousness.

"Colonel! Someone come quick!" Leila, who was behind him, was terrified.

Colonel Belyaev's troops were in dire straits; both the Ivanos and Romanian armies were exhausted, or rather, their morale had been shattered by the brutal fighting.

“We should dismantle these die-hard enemies on a psychological level,” a captain said weakly. At that moment, an idea suddenly popped into Colonel Belyaev’s mind.

He pondered for a moment and said, "I thought of an Eastern story—the land surrounded by the folk songs of the Chu Kingdom. It might be useful. We can try to persuade them to surrender."

"A story?" the lieutenant colonel beside him asked curiously. "I've never heard of it, Colonel. Is it a story of the Khitans?"

“Yes, two thousand years ago, a general’s army was surrounded by his enemies. To break their morale, the enemy played folk songs from the general’s hometown.” Colonel Belyaev regained a sliver of confidence and said coldly, “My patience has run out. I don’t want to shed any more of my brothers’ blood. If they don’t surrender tomorrow, then…”

Colonel Belyaev considered himself an upright man and had previously scoffed at the idea of ​​using poison gas.

Therefore, when the remnants of the 36th Army were retreating in a sorry state while shouting about releasing poison gas, he only thought that the friendly forces were too weak and that the 41st Army did not need to use such despicable methods.

As a result, the fierce resistance of the Hunnic army infuriated him, and the heavy casualties made him feel extremely ashamed.

If releasing poison gas can save more of my men, then let's use it.

Late at night.

The north wind howled, and the night sky was covered by thick black clouds, with snowflakes falling from the sky.

The aroma of bread wafted from behind the lines of Ivanros's attacking forces, as cooks brought in large tubs of borscht and baskets of freshly baked white bread.

After a bloody battle, being able to eat such a meal made the soldiers feel as if their souls had been soothed.

Three teams of soldiers were ordered to search for people in the occupied area who knew how to sing and quickly captured several civilians.

Faced with the threat of bayonets, one of them had no choice but to play the traditional 'tuda' bagpipes...

When Shank opened his eyes, he saw officers bustling about around him. Captain Zeno, seeing that he was awake, said with delight, "Colonel, you're awake! We're preparing for the breakout according to your plan."

He then added, "There's good news, it's snowing."

After figuring out the whole story, Shang Ke couldn't help but nod and exclaim, "Heaven is on my side!"

Hearing the clear, melodious sound of a flute drifting from the hazy night in the distance, he asked in confusion, "What is that sound? It sounds like a flute or some other instrument?"

“Yes, the Hunnic ‘Duda’ bagpipes, that sounds like a folk song from Feyel,” Reka said thoughtfully, her tone uncertain.

"Isn't that ridiculous? Using this tactic to demoralize people is just too laughable."

Shang Ke felt nothing but disdain for the enemy's clumsy "besieged on all sides" strategy.

He let out a long sigh of relief, stood up, looked around, and loudly instructed:

"Gentlemen, it's absurd that the enemy would resort to such a clumsy method to undermine us. Where does their confidence come from? In the future, I hope I can lead you to storm St. Peter's Castle and Bucharest, and avenge the blood debt owed to the people of Budapest and Hungary!"

Perhaps their hearts were broken by the life-and-death separations of the past few days; the soldiers present were expressionless, their eyes cold and indifferent, completely disregarding life and death.

Suddenly, Emilia's voice broke the silence. She asked softly, "Sir, are you sure that day will really come?"

"I guarantee it with my reputation." Shang Ke smiled slightly, gazing at the falling snowflakes outside the window, and said quietly, "It's not that retribution won't come, it's just that the time hasn't arrived yet."

A moment later, Captain Zeno reported, "The debris next to the tank bunker has been cleared. Colonel, when shall we start the engine?"

Shang Ke took a deep breath of the cold, snowy night air, raised his left hand to glance at his watch, and said calmly, "Now."

(End of this chapter)