Military career: Starting with a recruitment letter

Chapter 212 Encirclement and Reinforcements, All Main Forces Deployed

boom! boom! boom!
Over the 11th district, shells whistled sharply as they pelted the ground like hailstones.

The attack came too suddenly.

The soldiers of the 188th Division on the ground had no time to react. There was no warning of any attack, and the entire temporary position was wiped out in an instant.

The shelling roared, and the smoke of battle filled the air.

The smell of gunpowder, along with the dust on the ground, swept up waves of heat, leaving the surrounding soldiers bewildered.

The sensors on their bodies were triggered, and puffs of white smoke began to rise, indicating that people were being eliminated in large numbers.

The accuracy of rocket launchers and howitzers in that era was very poor, but even so, they could not withstand continuous, overwhelming bombardment.

Nearly a thousand soldiers in Zones 4 and 11 were completely wiped out by this bombing.

Twenty minutes later.

Chen Mo ordered a halt to the bombing, and the troops surrounding the Huanglongwangou camp immediately began to retreat and maneuver into the camp.

Their location has a natural advantage due to the terrain.

If troops in the combat zone wanted to enter the Huanglongwangou camp, they had to cross a rugged mountain road, and this was the only way for a large army to march.

That means if the main force of the 188th Division wanted to enter, Chen Mo only needed to stop two tanks on the way to block the road.

Therefore, the joint battalion was not afraid of the enemy's armored formation pressing in at all.

As long as they take good care of air defense and disperse their camps, the enemy will not be able to do anything to them for a while.

The problem is, Chen Mo got a good beating.

The battalion commander leading the 11th District team had bloodshot eyes and was so angry he was about to explode.

Damn it, I've never fought such a bizarre battle before.

Dozens of rockets fell from overhead without warning. Before the hundreds of men could even take action after hearing the order to start the exercise, their combat effectiveness had been reduced by more than half.

How can you even crack an egg?

With white smoke billowing from his head, the battalion commander hurried to the Dongfeng off-road command vehicle, and as he held the vehicle's phone, he felt dizzy.

"Commander, we're under attack! Requesting backup!!"

"Commander, requesting backup!"

"Hey, are you listening? Is your signal bad? Commander, the 2nd Mechanized Infantry Battalion is under attack, our coordinates have been exposed, requesting backup!!"

The voice of the frontline commander echoed throughout the base's conference room like a nightmare.

It's not that no one is answering the phone.

At that moment, Wang Songhe, who was in charge of commanding the 188th Division, was standing in the base's conference room.

Fu Hongyi, the commander-in-chief of the Kyoto Military Region, and a number of leaders from the Jincheng Military Region were watching closely.

The reports from the front lines were played aloud, and the entire conference room fell silent; no one uttered a sound.

This is the very beginning of the war.

The troops haven't been mobilized yet, the main forces haven't been integrated, the battle plan hasn't been rolled out, and even the reconnaissance planes from the command headquarters haven't entered the battlefield.

Two of the 188th Division's garrisons were bombarded.

Damn it, do they have eyeballs growing on the gun barrels of the combined battalion?
Wang Songhe's face was gloomy. He did not respond to the requests for help from Zones 4 and 11. It was not that he did not want to respond, but that the bombing was too hasty.

He had no idea how the other side had found out the assembly point of his soldiers.

Around midnight last night, the reconnaissance and sniper teams of the 188th Division entered the combat zone. It can be said that any large-scale troop movement within a radius of tens of kilometers cannot escape the sight of the reconnaissance and sniper teams.

How are the coordinates exposed?
Wang Songhe took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, but he couldn't calm down at all.

Before he could respond.

Another backup plan arranged by Chen Mo has been put into action.

In combat zone 2, hundreds of troop carriers, numbered 141 and 142, were parked scattered around, while nearby cranes and maintenance company soldiers were assembling tanks in groups.

The assembly of nearly a hundred main battle tanks was quite a scene; soldiers were busy everywhere on the grasslands covering several kilometers.

No one thought of it.

Such a large-scale, heavily armed cluster could actually be attacked.

No, it wasn't a sneak attack, but a perfectly legitimate attack.

Less than half an hour into the battle, nine Type 63 armored personnel carriers from the reconnaissance company charged at 100 km/h towards a heavily armed group that was many times larger than their own.

Nine troop carriers were lined up in a row.

Cheng Dong personally operated the Type 59 machine gun of the first platoon and first squad. He was wearing a steel helmet, and his face was flushed red.

"beat!"

No unnecessary nonsense.

At Cheng Dong's command, his orders were relayed to the entire company by the communications officer. In an instant, nine machine guns were aimed at the distant crowd and began to spit fire.

One by one, the veteran reconnaissance soldiers opened the top cover on the side of the infantry fighting vehicle, carried rocket launchers, and began to take turns bombing.

Boom boom boom.
Da da da.
The encounter is the decisive battle.

The two sides were now three or four hundred meters apart, and machine gun bullets and individual artillery shells began to rain down.

What we're fighting for is time.

Once the 188th Division's heavy tanks are assembled, even if Chen Mo's tactics are brilliant, he will be helpless. A cluster of nearly a hundred tanks is not a force that long-range rocket artillery can handle.

"Damn it, what's going on?"

Wang Kailiang, the commander of the 1st Armored Regiment of the 188th Division, was the commander in charge of leading this heavy equipment project. He was originally wandering around nearby, supervising the assembly progress.

Suddenly hearing the sounds of artillery and gunfire in the distance, Commander Wang was completely stunned.

The main problem is that the joint operations are moving too fast.

Before the news of the attacks on the garrisons in Districts 11 and 4 could reach them, they themselves were attacked.

While speed is crucial in warfare, this is just too fast!

The soldiers who were assembling nearby were also somewhat stunned by the sudden gunfire.

Wang Kailiang immediately climbed onto the top of a truck and peered through binoculars toward the source of the gunfire in the distance.

When he discovered that the enemy only had a mere nine armored vehicles, he was so angry that his liver ached.

When has a commander of an armored regiment ever been thrown off balance by a few battlefield taxis?

But when I looked back, my heart sank.

A tank that isn't assembled, a tank that can't move, is just a target, scrap metal, garbage!
Because of the strict control over manpower and firepower in this exercise, the entire regiment cannot bring all its main forces as usual; they simply don't have that many combat personnel on their side right now.

Most of them are in logistics.

How to fight this battle?
The sudden turn of events caused Wang Kailiang's thoughts to pause, and his brain began to race.

Although our forces are deployed in a large enough formation, very few of them are actually combat-ready. After all, the war has just begun, and we haven't yet fully utilized our hidden troop tactics.

Under the current circumstances, the only option is to deploy armored troops on-site to provide cover for infantry, quickly approach enemy vehicles, and disrupt the enemy's offensive speed.

Otherwise, if the enemy manages to infiltrate the assembly camp, dozens of people could dismount and engage in "street fighting" by using the tanks to block each other.

If the assembly progress is delayed, the entire division's heavy equipment will be rendered useless.

The situation was analyzed in 0.1 seconds.

Commander Wang made a decisive decision. He jumped off the front of the vehicle and pointed to the staff officer beside him, saying, "Order: the trucks on the outer perimeter will move first to block the enemy and accelerate the assault on them."

"Hold on, don't panic."

"Let the trucks provide cover for the infantry behind them, and try to surround them."

"Yes!"

Upon receiving the order, the staff officer immediately felt a chill, as their team consisted mostly of troop carriers and transport vehicles, with very few armored vehicles.

Even if they did, they would be confined to the assembly site and unable to be driven out in the short term.

Using trucks to assault armored vehicles is a very dangerous method.

But there was no time to think it over further.

The staff officer climbed into the command vehicle, holding a communicator: "Comrades, it's time to sacrifice yourselves. Use the outer trucks to intercept the enemy, block the bullets for the infantry, buy time for the enemy to engage, and then surround and kill them."

The moment the order is given.

A deathly silence fell over the communication channel.

How many trucks and how many people would it take to surround an infantry fighting vehicle?
Using the losses of the leading vehicles to buy time for the following vehicles—a brutal tactical deployment—is similar in meaning to the old practice of having soldiers line up to blow up bunkers.

However, this also thoroughly ignited the fighting spirit of the soldiers on the scene.

Pride, fear—all emotions vanished in that moment.

Only passion remains undiminished.

Sacrifice is always present.

In an instant, countless armored soldiers who should have been driving tanks jumped into truck driver's seats again.

"Stay close to me, I'll give you some space!"

"receive!!"

Squads of infantrymen boarded the 141 covered troop carriers, carrying rifles and individual rocket launchers, and began their deployment.

"The car behind me will make a series of reverse S-shaped maneuvers, first to the right and then to the left. Make sure you stay close."

"Understood!! Right first, then left."

Similar conversations continued to occur.

In an instant, the trucks that had been parked on the perimeter started moving, and dozens of them rushed toward the reconnaissance company's nine armored vehicles from different directions.

The scene was somewhat incongruous, yet also tragic.

Originally, the reconnaissance company was only three or four hundred meters away from the nearest tank assembly area.

Suddenly, dozens of trucks roared up clouds of dust from the left and right flanks and directly in front, charging toward the unknown enemy with overwhelming force.

In the rear, the massive logistics regiment of the 188th Division continued to accelerate the assembly of tanks.

This scene was captured clearly by the 206 drone high in the sky.

It was also captured in time by a reconnaissance aircraft dispatched by the base.

Within the base.

A group of leaders, seeing only a few armored personnel carriers, dared to besiege an enemy heavy regiment spread out over a radius of several kilometers.

Each of them frowned, sighing inwardly.

"Whose idea was this?"

Fu Hongyi, the commander-in-chief of the Kyoto Military Region, turned to look at Luo Yaowu.

"Commander, Chen Mo arranged all of this."

"Chen Mo." Fu Hongyi hesitated for a moment: "Is that the kid who strongly advocated for the establishment of the school?"

"it's him."

Luo Yaowu smiled awkwardly. The higher-ups required a system-wide confrontation, and he didn't know how to fight it, so he delegated command to a lieutenant.

This kind of thing sounds somewhat dishonorable.

Fortunately, Commander Fu remained silent. The base's reconnaissance planes had only just arrived in Zone 2 and had no idea what had happened before.

He plans to continue observing.

Let's see how confident this young man is that he dares to send a few armored vehicles to raid a heavy regiment.

Wang Songhe, who was in charge of the 188th Division, was getting restless. He knew his side's arrangements best.

Although this exercise was not formal and was at most a formality, it served to test the tactics of different systems.

But we can't just sit here and wait to die, can we?
Moreover, he had already vaguely sensed that the kid named Chen Mo was not so simple, as he was able to launch repeated attacks on his garrison right after the start of the war.

Can this kind of reconnaissance capability be called simple?
Unlike the base's conference room.

Inside the auditorium of the Huanglongwangou military camp, Chen Mo watched as dozens of trucks rushed toward the armored vehicle.

It can be clearly seen on the screen.

The reconnaissance company must have given the order to disperse, with the nine troop carriers continuously retreating and dispersing while attacking the trucks that were closing in.

No matter how fast an armored vehicle is, it can't outrun a truck.

Under machine gun fire and bombardment from individual rocket launchers, the trucks began to emit white smoke, but the transport vehicles carrying infantry behind them remained unscathed.

It has been steadily getting closer.

Once the distance closes, the individual rocket launchers become unstoppable, and the nine infantry fighting vehicles simply cannot withstand the infantry's encirclement and suppression.

"Um, Lieutenant Chen, should we send someone up to help?"

Inside the auditorium.

The officers watching from the joint battalion were sweating profusely with anxiety. Hu Xueyan, the former company commander of the rocket artillery company, was quite dismissive of this training exercise.

After actually blowing up half of his own battalion, Company Commander Hu gradually came to accept the information-based combat method.

At this moment, Company Commander Hu, who came from the 188th Division, was the first to make a suggestion, requesting that more firepower be sent to take down his own armored regiment.

"No rush, we won't lose out."

Chen Mo waved his hand confidently without saying anything more.

Instead, he continued to stare at the screen, completely ignoring the cadres behind him who were scratching their heads in frustration.

Chen Mo knew better than anyone how effective the reconnaissance company was, and how cunning his company commander was.

He knew exactly what was going on. The 188th Division's armored regiment had responded very quickly, which allowed them to stop the reconnaissance company's attack in time.

But Cheng Dong isn't a pushover either; how could he be stumped by dozens of trucks?

as predicted.

Just as the truck convoy was closing in and the convoys on both flanks were about to converge, almost forming an encirclement.

Cheng Dong, who was originally operating the machine gun, suddenly crawled into the armored vehicle. A short while later, he emerged from the machine gun port with several smoke grenades in his hand.

Throw smoke grenades as hard as you can in the direction the truck is coming from.

puff!puff!puff!
Cheng Dong's action was the signal for the entire company. As soon as he threw it, all the soldiers holding machine guns and individual rocket launchers switched to smoke grenades.

Throw it continuously in all directions.

boom!boom!
Caught off guard, several trucks collided, obstructing visibility and becoming the biggest obstacle for the convoy.

They watched as the enemy's counterattack was thwarted by dozens of smoke grenades.

Cheng Dong simply waved his hand.

The rear doors of the nine armored vehicles were pushed open instantly, and dozens of reconnaissance soldiers, carrying Type 85 submachine guns, poured out like a flood bursting its banks.

Charge toward the area of ​​dense fog, toward the cluster of tanks being assembled.

The reconnaissance soldiers in Kuchi, sitting in their vehicles, would at most fire individual rocket launchers or use submachine guns for strafing.

They were able to leave the chariot.

The free yet organized attack of dozens of people was like a pack of wolves unleashed; some rushed toward the assembly line, while others charged toward the outermost trucks.

I've practiced a lot of driving skills to capture enemies, and they all came in handy now.

In just a few minutes, a distance of several hundred meters, more than half of the reconnaissance soldiers had entered the assembly site.

Using the tank bodies and parts as temporary fortresses, the logistics soldiers assembled by the 188th Division launched a "street fighting" operation.

A small group of scouts even took advantage of the smoke to pull enemy infantrymen off their vehicles and drive the trucks themselves, taking the entire load of infantry several hundred meters away.

The reconnaissance company used machine guns from infantry fighting vehicles to block the rear hatch, forcibly eliminating them one by one.

In terms of individual combat capability, there are really few companies that can compare with the Kuchi Reconnaissance Company.

Seeing that the reconnaissance company had successfully broken through the assembly group, they began to wage guerrilla warfare.

Chen Mo breathed a sigh of relief.

The reason he didn't deploy more troops to deal with this heavy regiment was because he didn't intend to wipe out the enemy's tank corps in one fell swoop.

Because once it's eliminated...

The enemy will then shift their attention, decisively change tactics, abandon an entire regiment of heavy armor, and adopt other tactics to maneuver against you.

In that case, the situation could easily get out of control.

Sending a reconnaissance company is just right. While a company-level firepower may not be strong enough to wipe out an entire armored regiment, it is capable of disrupting the tanks of the entire heavy armored regiment, preventing them from continuing to assemble.

Would the commander of the 188th Division be willing to give up such a big piece of meat?
To achieve the goal of besieging the enemy and catching them off guard, one only needs to wait in Zone 2, and the enemy will naturally follow his lead.

At this point, some people might ask:

Why not just blow up all the mechanized infantry and armored vehicles of the 188th Division from the beginning?

There's no need to ask that question.

The question is that a surprise bombing attack can only be used once. If it is used too many times, it will be ineffective because the mechanized infantry will be scattered. They have legs, and when they see that the shells are coming to bombard them again, they will run away on their own.

If you're going to gather in a group after being bombed once, wouldn't that be stupid?
The other main force consists of dozens of armored vehicles, anti-aircraft guns, long-range artillery, and radar.

Bombing them would be a bad idea as they would receive advance warning.

The combined firepower of the battalion was no match for that of the 188th Division, so they could only be gradually eroded by the slow, insidious method of "boiling a frog in warm water."

It's almost impossible to swallow it whole.

Seeing that the reconnaissance company had successfully penetrated the tank formation, Chen Mo immediately mobilized all the drones to begin operating around the No. 2 combat zone.

Conduct continuous high-altitude reconnaissance within a radius of 30 kilometers.

He wanted to see it.

Will Commander Wang on the other side send troops to aid the armored regiment?

So many tanks, they're just not assembled yet, not being phased out, which commander would be willing to give them up?

Chen Mo wasn't sure if the enemy would follow his plan, after all, he didn't know Wang Songhe before, let alone his combat strategy.

However, leaving the heavy regiment hanging here instead of eliminating it is currently the best operational plan for the combined battalion.

at this time.

Wang Kailiang, commander of the armored regiment of the 188th Division, watched helplessly as his own attack was thwarted, and gunfire erupted in the perimeter area, indicating that enemy troops had clearly infiltrated the vicinity.

Commander Wang was extremely frustrated. He had never fought such a humiliating battle before.

And so, in just a few seconds.

In the conference room of Taishan Base, Wang Kailiang's voice rang out again on the communication channel.

"Commander, requesting backup!"

"A small group of enemy troops has broken into our formation, and our regiment has lost its ability to attack!"

Even through the screen and the communicator, all the leaders in the conference room could hear just how frustrated Commander Wang was.

No one thought of it.

It was just an exercise, but the 188th Division, which was tasked with a strategic strike, suffered repeated setbacks within half an hour of the start of the battle, and various units were issuing warnings repeatedly.

Even Fu Hongyi hadn't expected that a mere joint battalion could possess such power.

He shook his head and smiled, then turned his gaze to Wang Songhe: "Commander Wang, please outline your battle plan."

"Let's see what this brat named Chen Mo is really up to."

"Yes!"

Wang Songhe, who had remained silent and uninvolved in the battle, immediately got up and walked to the communications station to the side.

But when he was about to give the order...

Commander Wang also paused, and having been immersed in combat for many years, he naturally sensed that something was wrong.

And something is seriously wrong.

The combined battalion's tactical coordination was so smooth, it was as if they had been prepared from the very beginning.

According to normal development.

The mechanized infantrymen hidden in the No. 4 combat zone were originally stuck on the only way from Huanglongwangou to the main combat zone.

There were also reconnaissance and sniper units that had arrived the night before. As long as the combined battalion was deployed, a mechanized infantry battalion would hold them off while the heavy regiment would launch a surprise attack from the flank.

A force that can be wiped out without any stalemate or even a backup plan.

However, at the very beginning of the battle, they directly blew up the ambush troops in Zone 4.

Let them fry it.

A division-level firepower is enough to offset the losses of a battalion-level force; this is nothing.

However, shortly afterward, another mechanized infantry battalion in the area was also destroyed, and his hidden heavy armor was also sabotaged halfway, delaying the progress and preventing the heavy armor cluster from participating in the battle.

The joint battalion, which was clearly capable of wiping out the entire heavy armored group, remained inactive and only sent small groups to cause trouble.

Their intention to besiege the enemy's stronghold and then strike at their reinforcements was practically written all over their faces.

It's as if the enemy deliberately cleared the battlefield, specifically targeting the heavy armor regiment, rather than the other main force.

So far, he has only seen one infantry company deployed from the entire combined battalion.

Are the others also hiding troops? If so, where are they hiding them?
Wang Songhe was somewhat puzzled.

Little did he know that his overthinking was nothing but needless worry.

Chen Mo didn't hide any troops at all; all of his main forces were currently holed up in the camp and hadn't come out at all.

The reason is not hard to guess.

That's because Wang Songhe knew the organization of the joint battalion, but Chen Mo didn't know how many people from the 188th Division had come.

What was discovered during nighttime reconnaissance was merely what was seen.

For example, if that army aviation brigade were to participate in the war, and Chen Mo were to send out his main force, it would very likely be wiped out in a single air raid.

Only as a last resort should they resort to besieging the enemy stronghold and attacking reinforcements.

Use the fewest men to surround the heavy regiment, expand the reconnaissance range, attack the subsequent reinforcements, and find out exactly how many men the 188th Division has sent.

Chen Mo was waiting for the 188th Division's next move.

Wang Songhe was skilled at hiding his troops, so he was naturally considering whether the joint battalion was also hiding its troops.

The two were separated by tens of kilometers and remained locked in a stalemate for half a day.

Commander Wang, who had been on edge, suddenly grinned after a moment of contemplation.

He secretly mocked himself, realizing that he had really been made paranoid by this so-called information technology.

So what if we besiege the point and attack reinforcements? So what if we hide our troops?
Although the 188th Division appeared to have been bombed twice, its main force was still intact.

There are still dozens of infantry fighting vehicles, and several companies of artillery, howitzers, and anti-aircraft guns.

There are still more than a thousand people in the division. Even if we fight head-on, the enemy, with just one battalion, has no chance of winning.

Think of this.

Wang Songhe immediately ordered the abandonment of all defensive lines and the mobilization of all forces to rescue the armored regiment in Zone 2.

In fact, he had no other choice but to issue this order.

Information is not equal.

He had no idea where the main force of the joint battalion was; he only guessed that the enemy was still holed up in the Huanglongwangou camp and hadn't come out yet.

However, this conjecture is not valid in terms of its underlying principle.

Your main force is all idle, why don't you go and wipe out the heavy armor group? Is it fun to just cower around?
Sending a few infantrymen to fight in urban warfare, who are they trying to annoy?
Therefore, only one path remained for Wang Songhe.

That means gathering all our main forces to rescue the heavy infantry regiment and wipe out those disgusting infantrymen.

This is also the only exposed firepower of the joint battalion.

With the issuance of the order by the 188th Division.

Sector 4, Sector 11, and all tanks began to assemble, their target being Sector 2.

3pm.

Within Zone 2, the reconnaissance company's street fighting lasted for more than two hours. It was clear that the logistics soldiers responsible for assembling tanks could not withstand the battle-hardened reconnaissance soldiers, and the front line was being pushed forward step by step.

Originally occupying a territory spanning several kilometers, after a fierce battle, it was almost squeezed into a corner and was on the verge of being eliminated.

The main force of the 188th Division has finally appeared.

Chen Mo sat in the auditorium, staring with his bloodshot eyes, which had been burning from staying up for two days and one night.

It was discovered, through drone reconnaissance, that the enemy's main force had launched a massive offensive.

Chen Mo immediately rubbed his eyes and stood up.

"Go, notify the entire reconnaissance company to retreat."

"Company Commander Hu."

"To!"

"Once the reconnaissance company has withdrawn, immediately launch an attack on all unassembled tanks in Sector Two."

"Without tactical arrangements, the reconnaissance company was instructed to mark and guide the bombing from the spot."

"clear."

Hu Xueyan, the company commander of the long-range rocket artillery company, swallowed hard, gave a weak reply, and then turned and strode away.

Chen Mo paced back and forth in the auditorium with his hands behind his back.

Other staff officers were assigned to monitor the routes of the enemy's main force.

The strategy of besieging the enemy's stronghold and attacking their reinforcements seems to have worked; the enemy has truly taken the bait.

A smile appeared on Chen Mo's lips as he forced himself to stay alert and began to consider the next steps.

He didn't know exactly how much firepower the 188th Division had, but as long as the armored regiment was destroyed, the enemy's main force would be able to regroup.

Once the heavy armor is removed, even if the opponent is very patient, they will have to expose all their firepower, right?

That will be the decisive battle.

With the battle at this stage, Chen Mo was monitoring how the 188th Division would hide its troops, maneuver, and regroup its main force.

The enemy is no different from someone with a naked bottom.

If it weren't for the fear of Wang Songhe, they might have even concealed their air strike firepower.

In fact, the other side went to great lengths to separate the core equipment from the main force.

Chen Mo could then devour them, bite by bite.

Why all this trouble now?

We must also find ways to get the enemy to gather all their troops for rescue.

Save them!

Once they come to rescue, none of them will be able to leave.

(End of this chapter)