Go back in time and be a chaebol

Chapter 2708 Be Both Timid and Cowardly (Third Update, Please Subscribe)
Although Beirut is officially defined as a war zone, to some extent, the smoke of war is not visible here.

This has left many soldiers feeling lost, after all, they train hard to prove themselves on the battlefield.

"Shouldn't war be about artillery bombardment, tank assaults, and us bravely fighting the enemy?"

Inside the base protected by blast walls, soldiers in combat uniforms complained because they had been trapped inside ever since they arrived at the "battlefield".

Training, patrolling... but no fighting.

"But what the hell are we doing?"

Zhang Dongjie complained:

"I'm just here to eat my fill and wait to starve. I joined the army to go to the battlefield... but look at me now!"

As he spoke, he weakly punched the air with his fist. Like many young soldiers, he had joined the army after the London terror attacks, hoping to serve his country in this way.

So, like all the soldiers, he trained hard, hoping to serve his country on the battlefield.

Even if it means sacrifice, it doesn't matter.

Soldiers are duty-bound to sacrifice!
I am brave and fearless!
I am resilient!
I am indestructible!
To achieve this goal, the soldiers harbor a deep-seated desire for combat, even viewing it as a rite of passage into adulthood.

However, Zhang Dongjie never expected that his coming-of-age ceremony would be like this.

Am I on a battlefield?

Do not!
Shaking his head, Zhang Dongjie answered his own question:
"I'm on vacation."

"Haha, yeah, it's just a vacation in the Middle East,"

A comrade standing nearby chimed in:

"You know, when we go back to China, some people will think we were on the battlefield and therefore heroes. How will you feel when they invite us for a drink?"

For a moment, everyone in the tent fell silent. What did that feel like?
I feel ashamed of myself!

For many soldiers who have been "stuck" in the rear and have not participated in the battle, what do they feel in the face of this situation of "no fighting on the western front"?

What they felt was a strange sense of humiliation, humiliation for not being able to do more.

"Actually, we can do more, as long as headquarters gives the order..."

Zhang Dongjie lay weakly on the bed and then said:
"We can immediately take over the entire northern Lebanon and bring peace to its people..."

"Dongjie, what are you saying? Have you forgotten what the battlefield looks like now?"

A comrade standing nearby said:

"It's all about drones detecting and attacking, while we just go over to clean up the mess at most."

This is war.

The nature of warfare has changed dramatically, to the point that these hard-trained soldiers feel they have no place to use their skills, and this strong sense of frustration even makes them feel a sense of humiliation.

The feeling of humiliation is inherently negative and has the greatest impact on morale.

Zhang Dongjie sat up abruptly, glanced outside the tent, then patted the rifle on the bedside table and muttered to himself:
Do you know what I'm most afraid of right now?

"They surrendered suddenly."

When he finished speaking, there was a strange sense of helplessness in his eyes.

“I, I didn’t even have time to fire a shot… I was afraid the next order would be to send us home.”

His words silenced his comrades in the tent as well. Although they longed to go home, they certainly didn't want to go like this.

We've been to the battlefield.

We will not fire a single shot.

Then we returned in triumph as heroes.

This will not make anyone feel honored, but only humiliated.

That's why they seemed a bit heavy-hearted when discussing this topic, because they were unable to fulfill their duties in the war.

But when Zhang Dongjie and his team were overwhelmed by this intense sense of powerlessness and even humiliation, what did the Syrians, as their opponents, feel?
That is, despair.

For the Syrian troops stationed in northern Lebanon, nothing but despair could express their feelings at this moment.

They were the first military in the world to personally experience a drone saturation attack. Under the attack of drone swarms, tanks, the kings of the land, were reduced to scrap metal, and advanced anti-aircraft missiles became mere decorations.

Even their barracks became targets, and countless of them died without even seeing the enemy's face before being hit by rockets or missiles launched by drones.

"We will never succumb to the threats of imperialists."

Despite the devastating losses, Damascus continues to rant and rave in the most arrogant terms; they have not yielded.

Of course, their lack of compromise does not mean they will not compromise.

Just before Margaret Thatcher concluded her visit to Chang'an and returned to Britain, she delivered a speech in front of her residence, in which she stated her commitment to promoting the restoration of peace in the Middle East. This statement deeply resonated with both Moscow and Damascus.

After all, they knew better than anyone that there was no need to continue this war.

The most fundamental reason is that it simply couldn't continue.

"If the coalition forces launch an attack on Damascus, we have absolutely no ability to protect them."

In the Kremlin, Marshal Ustinov looked at Brezhnev in front of him and spoke bluntly.

"It's not because this will lead to a major war. It's because we currently have no effective way to intercept their drones and stealth fighters."

Marshal Ustinov's words stunned Brezhnev. His fingers, holding the cigarette, trembled slightly before he said:
"Marshal Ustinov, do you know what you're saying?"

Despite the strong questioning tone in his voice, Marshal Ustinov answered directly in response:

"Yes, Comrade Brezhnev, I know exactly what I'm talking about. We are now facing a war that we are not familiar with."

Their drones… this is a completely new form of warfare, although our air defense missiles can shoot them down. However, from a cost perspective, it's very uneconomical; perfectly shooting down one of their drones would require two to three air defense missiles, which could then be used to manufacture at least a dozen drones.

Such attrition...will exhaust all our resources on the battlefield. Comrade Brezhnev, in addition, we must consider that their stealth fighters can penetrate our air defense systems without warning and drop nuclear bombs on Moscow, Minsk, Kiev... Their electronic jamming renders our radar and air defense command systems blind, deaf, and mute... This is the reality we face now.”

Meeting Brezhnev's gaze, Marshal Ustinov spoke directly:

“I don’t want to say all this, but… now is our weakest moment. We are at a critical juncture in the transformation of the war, and if we cannot cope, then destruction awaits us.”

After saying these words, Marshal Ustinov sighed helplessly, and then his expression became somewhat pained.

Brezhnev was much the same, after all, he had also experienced war and had witnessed the death and disasters it brought.

The most prosperous regions of the Soviet Union were reduced to ruins during the war, and tens of millions of men died on the battlefield. Countless women were left to spend their lives in loneliness and hardship for the following decades.

Why is that?

Because of the German tanks.

Yes, this is the change that tanks brought to warfare.

What about drones?

Will the changes it brings to war lead to a new great war?
Only God probably knows the answer, but the marshal's words were telling him that this thing was really powerful.

Silently smoking a cigarette, Brezhnev looked at Marshal Ustinov and asked:
"So, do we have any means to counter them?"

"We are currently researching this, and although their technology is very advanced, I believe we will be able to solve this problem in the near future."

Therefore, we need time.

After Marshal Ustinov finished speaking, Brezhnev remained silent, pacing back and forth in the room, seemingly deep in thought. After a long while, he finally turned to Marshal Ustinov and spoke.

"Damascus is very important to us. We cannot abandon our allies, otherwise the whole world will think we are weak and vulnerable. At that time, they will attack us like a pack of mad dogs. Comrade Marshal Ustinov, this is the reality of the world."

Listening to Brezhnev's concerns, Marshal Ustinov nodded in agreement:
"Yes, that's precisely why we choose to be tough. In this dog-eat-dog world, sometimes your virtues are seen as weakness. And weakness can very well bring disaster."

Nodding slightly, Brezhnev continued.

"My mediation on the Thang Long issue was ignored before. So will they make concessions on the Damascus issue now?"

Clearly, no one could answer Brezhnev's question.

Marshal Ustinov was only telling him from a military perspective that there was no need to continue the war, whether in Damascus or Thanglong.

Nevertheless, the Soviet Union's attitudes toward the two sides were drastically different.

"We need Damascus. We need to demonstrate our strength to the world by holding it, and we also need to maintain our presence in the Mediterranean. That's what Damascus means to us—"

After thinking for a moment, Brezhnev said:
"Perhaps this is an opportunity, an opportunity to bring Damascus closer to us. Haven't they repeatedly expressed their willingness for us to sign a deeper treaty in the past few months?"

In the past few months, facing increasingly serious external dangers, Damascus has repeatedly requested full assistance from Moscow in order to secure its rule. They have not only expressed their willingness to provide more military bases, but also their willingness to engage in deeper cooperation.

In essence, it was about seeking Soviet protection to avoid the demise of their rule.

Brezhnev looked up at Marshal Ustinov and then spoke.

"What if we include Syria in the Warsaw Pact? Expand the Warsaw Pact to the south! Just as Türkiye is a NATO member, Syria could also be a member of the Warsaw Pact!"

The sudden suggestion made Marshal Ustinov gasp – the Warsaw Pact was expanding southward!
Does he know what his suggestion means?

While inwardly surprised, he looked at the other person and said:

"Comrade Brezhnev, this could very well trigger a war."

"No, you don't understand him. I know Li very well. He would never take such a risk. Besides, this is the best way to break the deadlock. We can't keep giving in. We give in to ease tensions, but if we keep giving in, they'll see it as weakness!"

When Brezhnev mentioned "weakness," he emphasized it, and then he said:
"If the West sees our weakness, they are very likely to seize the opportunity to attack us. My Marshal, we must be both conciliatory and firm. Moreover, this is also a challenge to Washington. We must tell them—"

Then he took a deep drag on his cigarette and said:
"Since they can't stop Chang'an's expansion, then we'll solve some problems in our own way, don't you think?"

(End of this chapter)