Sword of Light: Humanoid Self-Propelled Artillery

Chapter 206 Siege of Nianzhuang
However, regardless of what Lao Zi was thinking, an even bigger battle, the Huaihai Campaign, was about to begin.

Compared to the Liaoshen Campaign that just ended, the Huaihai Campaign was much larger in scale and eliminated a greater number of troops from Lao Jing's forces.

Furthermore, this battle was one in which a smaller force defeated a larger one, with 600,000 troops eliminating 800,000 of Lao Jing's troops. This is different from the Liaoshen Campaign, where 700,000 troops eliminated 550,000 of Lao Jing's troops.

Not to mention the Pingjin Campaign, where a million troops fought against half a million.

Of course, the Huaihai Campaign was also the battle with the highest casualties, with casualties reaching 139,000, far exceeding those of the Liaoshen Campaign and the Pingjin Campaign.

Of course, this battle also broke the last backbone of the old medaka, making it impossible for him to turn the tide.

…………

"Si Ling, should we go into Nianzhuang and take down Huang Baitao's army's command post?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Gensheng immediately gave Duan Peng an annoyed look and said:

"Do you want to lose all of our elite soldiers? Don't you even know if this time it will be like the Liao army we fought last time?"

It's important to know that the Nianzhuang that Huang Baitao's army was defending this time was different from the one defended by Liao's army.

Liao Bingtuan had no defensive fortifications that time, and the soldiers from both sides were already mixed up in the fighting. Therefore, Wang Gensheng was able to take over Liao Bingtuan's command post so easily by taking advantage of the plot and radio positioning.

However, this time Huang Baitao's army entered Nianzhuang in an orderly manner to defend it, and Nianzhuang also had complete defensive fortifications and positions.

Therefore, it was impossible for them to easily enter the core and kill Huang Baitao's corps command. They might even be surrounded and wiped out halfway through the attack. After all, although the armor could protect against ordinary bullets, it could not protect against artillery shells!

Therefore, Wang Gensheng dared not agree to Duan Peng's idea of ​​eliminating Huang Baitao's army corps command. He had no choice; he was not so reckless as to seek death.

A decapitation operation requires a series of favorable conditions, such as timing, location, and personnel, to be carried out; it cannot be done by recklessly rushing in and throwing oneself to one's death.

In fact, regarding the Huaihai Campaign, Wang Gensheng, combining the intelligence he had about the development of the campaign before his time travel, really didn't know from what angle to approach it.

After all, Wang Gensheng only had a small number of men, and there was no naval battle or naval support this time, so there was no way to take any shortcuts.

Therefore, Wang Gensheng could only watch helplessly as the battle unfolded according to historical trends.

Of course, it was only a matter of time before Huang Baitao's army was surrounded and annihilated in Nianzhuang. You have to understand that fighting is not just about morale, but also about logistics. After Huang Baitao's army was surrounded...

Putting aside everything else, the logistical support alone would be a huge problem for them. Although Lao Jing has planes that can airdrop supplies, how many planes does Lao Jing have? It's far from enough to support the consumption of a corps of 100,000 men.

Therefore, a siege of Huang Baitao's army for ten to fifteen days would be enough to cause Huang Baitao's army to collapse.

Of course, Lao Zi knew this, so he immediately sent Du Yuming to Xuzhou to take over and command the rescue of Huang Baitao's army.

Upon arriving at Si Lingbu's war room in Xuzhou, Du Yuming said:
"The best solution to relieve Huang Baitao's army from its siege is not to let Qiu Li's army advance eastward, but to relieve the siege of Wei by attacking Zhao."

After saying this, Du Yuming turned around and pointed to the map hanging on the wall behind him, continuing: "Gentlemen, please look, the Second Field Army of the Central Plains only has six columns, yet they frequently threaten our Longhai Railway front. My suggestion is that we concentrate our main force in Xuzhou and gather in the southwest direction to join forces with Huang Wei's army group advancing eastward. This would likely result in a decisive victory, or even an annihilation. This would not only eliminate future troubles but also attract the Third Field Army to send troops to our aid. At that time, we can then launch a full-scale attack and coordinate with Huang Baitao's army group from within and without, and this siege will surely be lifted!"

However, when Du Yuming announced his battle plan, only Qiu Qingquan stood up and applauded in support.

However, Liu Zhi, the head of Xuzhou's tax collection department, said:
"Guangting! This is a brilliant move, but also a risky one. Have you considered how long Huang Baitao can hold out?"

Faced with this question, Du Yuming pondered for a moment before speaking:
"It will only take seven to ten days!"

However, Liu Zhi scoffed at this answer:

"Those guys at Sanye are sharpening their knives every day, so can you guarantee Huang Baitao can hold out for that long?"

Du Yuming wasn't entirely confident about this question either, after all, he wasn't Huang Baitao. Before Du Yuming could answer, Qiu Qingquan interjected:
"Isn't the Prime Minister being a bit too cautious? Deputy Director Du means that turning the tables and taking the initiative is much better than being led by the nose by the Liberation Army."

Liu Zhi was not angry about this, and continued to speak with a smile:

"This is war, not a war to indulge in momentary pleasure!"

After saying that, he turned to Du Yuming and said:

"Guangting, the plan to rescue Huang Baitao's army has been approved by Lao Jing. I think it's better to be cautious. Your plan is good, but the battlefield is unpredictable. What if something goes wrong? How will you explain it to Lao Jing? And who will take responsibility if Lao Jing holds you accountable?"

Upon hearing Liu Zhi's words, Du Yuming immediately fell silent. Indeed, when it came to taking responsibility, Du Yuming became deflated. Although he proposed a new battle plan, he was unwilling to take responsibility for the failure of this new plan.

Therefore, all I could say was:

"What does Yi Siling mean?"

Seeing that Du Yuming had been silenced by his two sentences, Liu Zhi sighed and said:
"Follow orders! Let's hope for no merit and no demerit! Qiu Qingquan, Li Mi, advance eastward as soon as possible to rescue Huang Baitao!"

Indeed, Liu Zhi followed Lao Zi's battle plan and sent Qiu Qingquan's army and Li Mi's army to Nianzhuang to rescue Huang Baitao's army.

After all, this was Lao Jing's battle plan, so if something went wrong, it would be Lao Jing's plan that failed, and it wouldn't be Liu Zhi's fault, nor would Liu Zhi be held responsible.

After hearing Liu Zhi's order, Du Yuming sighed and said nothing more. After all, he, like Liu Zhi, was unwilling to bear the responsibility for the defeat in the war.

In order to enable Huang Baitao to hold out until Qiu Qingquan and Li Mi came to rescue him, Lao Jing had a plane drop a letter written by Lao Jing himself to boost Huang Baitao's morale.

However, despite Lao Zi's personal letter to boost morale, the morale of Huang Baitao's army was actually low. Without food and clothing, how could anyone fight well?

Huang Baitao responded to this by saying:
"Gentlemen, I have some good news to share. First, Du Yuming has arrived in Xuzhou to take charge of military affairs. He is a hundred times better than that idiot from before. Second, Qiu Li's army will soon advance eastward to relieve the siege. Third, Huang Wei's army is already on its way to Beizhou. They are a mighty army of steel! With so much good news, as long as we persevere to the end, victory will surely be ours!"

Huang Baitao's words were quite useful, at least they boosted the morale of his men.

(End of this chapter)