artillery arc

Chapter 586 Homeland
On January 1, the Abawakhan Front Command moved forward according to the established plan.

At about 1330:, Wang Zhong suddenly saw a road sign in front of him from a bird's-eye view.

So he shouted to Vasily who was driving: "Stop at the sign ahead!"

Vasily responded and drove the jeep straight to the road sign ahead. On the way, he kept talking: "General, how did you see it? I thought it was a withered sapling."

Wang Zhong: “I feel it is there.”

It's a pity that Emilia flew away on a plane and did not go with the headquarters column, otherwise she would definitely provide cover for Wang Zhong.

Lyudmila was sitting next to Wang Zhong. She just glanced at Wang Zhong and didn't say much.

Although Vasily didn't understand what was going on, he still drove the car to the road sign.

The troops that had passed by earlier had already cleared the snow off the road signs, and the snow on the ground had also been shoveled away to ensure the road was passable.

Wang Zhong took out the map he carried with him and confirmed the place names on the road signs.

"Going this way leads to Borsk, and going the other way leads to Kulinka... That's right!" He put away the map and looked at Lyudmila with sore eyes, "We are standing on the land of Khazaria!"

Lyudmila covered her mouth, and from the corner of her mouth she seemed to be smiling, but the tears rolled directly out of her eyes and were quickly frozen.

Wang Zhong hugged his wife, then took out the iron box he had been carrying with him in the car, intending to return the soil of his hometown to his hometown - but the moment he opened the lid, he discovered that the black soil in the box was a little different from the brown soil under his feet.

Could it be that the ground beneath my feet was just covered in snow and had just seen the sun again? It couldn't be that the difference was so big because of this, right?
"Why isn't it black soil?" he asked Gregory in surprise, "Isn't the color difference too big?"

It was Vasily who answered him: "Well, the area we are in now did not originally belong to Khazaria. It was incorporated into the Kingdom of Khazaria less than a hundred years ago as a reward for meritorious service in the war."

Wang Zhong: “There is such a connection.”

He looked at the black soil in the box again, sighed, closed the box, tied it up with a rope, and put it back in the car.

Gregory: "Once we capture Borsk and advance northwest, we will enter the real territory of Khazaria. Then we will gallop on the black soil."

Wang Zhong nodded: "Well, that day won't be too far away, and it may even come before the muddy period."

The muddy period is at the end of February and the beginning of March. As the temperature rises, the snow on the ground melts, and the snow water and fertile soil mix together to form a quagmire. At that time, almost all large-scale military operations will have to stop, and the battlefield will temporarily calm down.

In other words, where the actual control line of the two sides is at that time, there will be no major changes in the next three months.

The next large-scale action by both sides will probably have to wait until May, and some large-scale offensive campaigns may even have to wait until June - only after the mud ends can supplies be stockpiled for large-scale military operations.

He was just about to get back in the car when Pavlov's jeep stopped at the road sign.

Chief of Staff Bear looked at the road sign and asked: "What's wrong with this road sign? Is it written wrong? Or did the enemy spies make a fake road sign?"

"No, that's right. I stopped the car because this is the beginning of the Khazaria territory."

Pavlov paused for a moment, then smiled and said, "We fought back. When did we leave Khasalia?"

Wang Zhong immediately reported the date: "On August 8, at the nameless station, I packed a lunch box of black soil. It's been almost a year and a half, much shorter than expected."

Lyudmila: "It was Nellie who chose the lunch box, and I remember it was on the same day..."

Wang Zhong looked to the northwest, and Agsukov was in that direction.

He gazed at the horizon and whispered, "My father and my good brother died in Agsukov. I will always remember it, Lyuda, forever."

Pavlov also looked in the same direction: "Yegorov has taken the troops back to rest, and he himself also needs to recuperate. If he were there, he would have drunk so much that the bishop's blood vessels would burst." Ever since the death of his wife and children, Yegorov had shown some signs of alcoholism, and he would only control himself a little when he was with the female doctor.

Popov happened to be driving by, and upon hearing this, he immediately said, "If there is a suitable reason, I will turn a blind eye to alcoholism. So is there a reason?"

Wang Zhong pointed at the road sign and said, "We are now in Khazaria."

Popov was stunned for a moment, then laughed: "I have no objection to you drinking more. But someone has to make the decision tonight, so as not to give the enemy an opportunity. That means at least one of you has to stay sober."

Wang Zhong: "Don't worry, I plan to drink this cup when I return to the black soil of my hometown. We still have an entire army group to deal with! Once we eat up Army Group A, Proson's heavy troops on the southern line will disappear, and our space for movement will increase all of a sudden!"

"Yes." Pavlov agreed. "We will have many options at that time. We can go north to attack Shepetovka, or we can go west. But the enemy's navy will be more annoying if we go west. We can't walk within a dozen kilometers near the shore because we will be covered by naval guns."

At this time, a staff officer rode over, dismounted in front of Wang Zhong and others, and handed the paper in his hand forward: "General, an urgent report from the front line."

Pavlov took the report and looked at it, his brows twisted into knots: "This is bad."

Wang Zhong: "What's wrong?"

Pavlov: "The enemy is trying to escape. The reconnaissance troops and cavalry have discovered the convoy retreating towards Khazaria itself."

Wang Zhong was shocked: "How did Emperor Proson make the decision so quickly this time? Why didn't he throw the marshal's baton to the commander of Army Group A and let him hold on to the death?"

Popov: "He has suffered a loss from you once, so he has learned his lesson."

Wang Zhong frowned and asked Pavlov: "Is it possible for us to destroy the enemy's 11th Army in a short period of time?"

Pavlov shook his head. "It's difficult. To fight a war of annihilation on the plains, we can only divide and encircle. Our current troop quality may not be able to play this game."

Wang Zhong: "Since we can't annihilate them, let's find a way to repel them. We should go in from the front of Borsk and fight our way through the city. It just so happens that we have new tanks and assault guns that can accomplish this task."

----

At the same time, in the Eagle's Nest in the Proson Empire.

The emperor looked at the newly-made sea rescue plan and asked: "According to your plan, how many troops can be withdrawn in one day? Have you calculated it?"

The planner, Navy Captain Richard, said: "If everything goes well, we can pick up 30,000 people a day."

The emperor's expression was brightening up, and he was about to be happy, but he faltered halfway: "Why are there only 30,000 people?"

Colonel Richard: "If the coastal fortress is not lost and we have a port, we may be able to pick up 50,000 people a day."

The emperor shook his head repeatedly: "No, no, we need to pick up at least 50,000 people every day. Think of a way, such as requisitioning more ships!"

Captain Richard nodded repeatedly.

Marshal Celtic saw that the matter had come to an end, so he said: "In fact, we should be able to withdraw some troops by land. If the 11th Army can resist a little longer, then..."

The emperor shook his head and said, "I know Shiplin. As long as he can resist, he will resist and fight the enemy. Let the navy send as much ammunition and supplies as possible to Shiplin before the retreat begins. By the way, collect the soldiers' letters home and send them back home."

The Admiral stood at attention and saluted: "I will complete the mission, Your Majesty."

The emperor stood up and clapped his hands vigorously: "Take action and save Army Group A from Rokossov's clutches, everyone! Otherwise the losses will be too great, and the empire cannot afford such losses!"

At least not before the general mobilization.

(End of this chapter)