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

Chapter 269 | Signs of Surrender
At 21 p.m. that evening, near the High Rock area on Staten Island.

The autumn rain drizzled down, and night enveloped the once quiet residential area. The lights emanating from a few houses were among the few sources of light in the darkness.

The Costa family was getting ready to go to bed.

Staten Island has a significant Italian population, and the Costa family is one of them, having immigrated there at the beginning of the century.

These days, there aren't many nighttime entertainment options, and Staten Island is considered a rural area with a more mundane lifestyle, so people tend to go to bed very early.

Mrs. Costa had calmed her youngest daughter down and was about to turn off the light when she heard a knock at the door.

Hmm? Who could it be so late at night?

She called to her husband, "Someone is knocking on the door."

Mr. Costa, looking surprised, came out and hesitated, "Who would come? It's so late."

"Could it be those Ivan Rus's?"

"Who knows, Melissa, open the door."

The door opened.

The Costa couple couldn't believe their eyes.

Outside the door, Warrant Officer Garcia was soaking wet, barely able to stand by leaning against the wall with her left hand.

Rainwater slid down her cheeks, gathered at her chin, and dripped down, her military uniform stained with mud and blood.

On a rainy autumn night, the temperature was already a bit chilly. Her face was stiff, revealing no emotion, and she struggled to utter a few broken words that formed a sentence.

“I am… Marine Corps Warrant Officer Garcia… I need your help…”

The Costa couple were shocked and looked at each other in dismay. After a moment, they made a tacit decision through their eyes.

The wife quickly helped Garcia into the living room, while the husband peeked out and looked around before closing the door.

As soon as she entered the house, a puddle of rainwater accumulated beneath her, making it almost impossible for her to stand.

What are you doing here? Do you want some food?

"Melissa, go get some hot water and make something to eat."

The weather wasn't cold enough to warrant lighting a stove, but seeing the uninvited guest's state, Mr. Costa still brought out some coal and lit the fireplace.

The couple busied themselves with getting blankets and pouring water, finally settling Gahia in.

“…We were the ones who fought that night, and I got separated from my companions.” She wrapped the blanket tighter around herself and asked, “Have the Ivanros searched this place?”

Mr. Costa nodded and said, "They came to search the place yesterday morning and warned against any form of contact with the American military."

Garcia didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble for those who were helping her, especially since that trouble could be fatal.

She said softly, "I will leave as soon as possible."

"What? Where are you going?" Mrs. Costa brought over the freshly cooked macaroni and said in surprise, "You're injured, child, you need to rest."

"I want to try to leave the occupied area."

“You can’t just leave like this. You need to rest for at least a week. Maybe the Ivan Rossians won’t come back to search.”

At the couple's insistence, Garcia agreed to stay and recover. Starving, she devoured the entire plate of pasta, took a bath, and changed into dry clothes. Seeing how ravenous she was, Mrs. Costa fried her two eggs.

"It is said that the number of invading Ivanros is not large. I don't think they will have the energy to search repeatedly. Maybe you can stay until the end of the war. It's too dangerous outside."

"No, sir. Victory requires everyone's efforts, and the army needs me."

Garcia declined the couple's offer and insisted on resting for a few days before leaving. She thought of what Shang had said during their casual conversation on the way here in the submarine.

Victory can only be achieved by making good use of all the nation's resources in the fight! All invaders will eventually flee the American continent in disarray!

The next day.

Phoenix.

This state capital, located in central America, was often referred to as 'Phoenix City' in the original plane of history. However, since no one has translated the phoenix as 'phoenix' yet, it doesn't have that nickname.

Two weeks have passed since the United States federal government temporarily moved its capital here, and various measures are being carried out in an orderly manner, with busy people and troops everywhere.

To be honest, Shang Ke felt that taking the train was much more comfortable than taking a plane, as it not only had spacious sleeper berths but was also quieter.

Shank first went to the embassy to submit the report he had written on the way, and after completing his work, he went straight to the headquarters to meet George Marshall.

There is another person in the Army Chief of Staff's office, the historically unlucky Leslie McNair, who has made many contributions to the development of the U.S. ground forces. He has only recently been promoted to major general and has already put forward an ambitious reform plan.

Marshall stood up and said sincerely, "Shang, thank you for your tireless efforts. On behalf of the families of those soldiers, I pay you the highest respect."

"It was nothing," Shang Ke said casually.

"The strategic situation has not yet reversed. With the fall of New York and New Jersey, our air strikes on Cannadal have become much less effective, and the British are shipping more troops by sea."

"The number of bombs dropped has decreased significantly?"

"It has decreased by 60 percent compared to last month."

Because large swathes of land near Canada fell to the enemy, the Army Air Corps' departure base was moved south, to a greater distance.

从弗吉尼亚州出发，B-18中型轰炸机就只能挂载4颗500磅航空炸弹了，B-17C重型轰炸机的载弹量也下降到大约4000磅。

With a significant decrease in bombing raids, unloading at the ports of Montreal and Halifax was no longer as severely hampered as before, and the efficiency of the Royal Navy's North Atlantic shipping routes improved considerably.

Intelligence agencies predict that five or six fully equipped divisions will arrive in the Americas every month, with a minimum of four.

Furthermore, all intelligence, whether from aerial reconnaissance or radio interception, indicated that the British and Ivan Ross forces were preparing to attack the Great Lakes industrial region, thereby undermining the United States' war potential at its root.

Marshall criticized some politicians for wavering, lacking confidence, and having considered peace talks.

Wavering? Peace talks?
Shank keenly noticed this.

"There was already an entire army group in the Great Lakes industrial area, and now there are several newly formed infantry divisions. If we remain calm and fight back, holding Detroit and Chicago should not be a problem."

After saying that, Shank pointed to the map and commented, "Since we are going to concentrate our forces to attack the Great Lakes, then the east coast will be much easier. Richmond can hold out. You still have a lot of strategic depth. If we trade space for time and hold firm, there will be a way."

In any case, Richmond's city defense system was personally overseen by him, so it must be reliable.

Upon discovering that a surrender faction had emerged within the upper echelons of America, Shank immediately became vigilant and planned to report this development to Xijing as soon as possible.

(End of this chapter)