Chapter 12
While inwardly complaining, Wang Zhong put on a stern face: "Everyone has their first time on the battlefield. We'll see about that, Major Pavlov."
"Now, report the situation. Have we encountered any enemy resistance?"
In truth, Wang Zhong reckoned that switching to an overhead perspective for observation might be more effective than a direct report from Lieutenant Colonel Yegorov.
But formalities still had to be observed, just like those gamers who cheated before crossing over, at least putting on a bit of a show.
Besides, listening to reports might yield some intel that he couldn't glean from the overhead perspective.
Yegorov: "We haven't encountered any organized resistance. The enemy is dazed by our assault. Many enemy units are confused and just retreating along with the routed troops."
As he spoke, Yegorov rubbed his nose: "I'd say these Prossenians aren't as tough as the Manaheimers during the Winter War! They managed to crush the Carolingians before probably because the other side was even worse!"
Wang Zhong: "Always assume the enemy is stronger. Did you just say you found a map?"
"Yes, this is the enemy's divisional headquarters! We've completely seized their maps and documents!" Yegorov pointed at the building behind him, "Come take a look!"
With that, he turned and walked straight inside.
Seeing this, Chief of Staff Pavlov immediately said: "Yegorov comes from a peasant background; he's a bit rough around the edges."
"I don't mind," Wang Zhong said bluntly. Coming from a working-class family himself, with many rural kids in his high school class, he genuinely didn't care about such things.
Or rather, Wang Zhong, the transmigrator, didn't have the snobbish quirks of the nobles of this world.
Upon entering the room, Wang Zhong's eyes immediately landed on the large map on the wall. This was exactly what he needed right now! His overhead perspective had too limited a range; he had no idea of the overall situation.
Moreover, the map had country names on it. Only at this moment did Wang Zhong finally realize that the khaki uniform he was wearing belonged to the Ante Empire.
Wang Zhong didn't know where this Ante Empire was located on the planet, as the map on the wall was only of a specific region.
Judging by the place names on the map, this seemed to be a province of the Ante Empire, with the western edge of the map marking the border region of the Prossen Empire, also the launching point of the Prossenian army's offensive.
Also based on the place names, Wang Zhong learned that the city they were currently defending was called Ronezh. To the south of the city was the sea, and the enemy's naval artillery fire was coming from there.
Before passing away, the Duke had also mentioned something like "the navy failed to stop the enemy."
It was unclear whether the sea to the south was a large "lake" like the Black Sea or a true ocean.
He still needed to get hold of a world map as soon as possible.
However, being in the military and a commander at that, he should have relatively easy access to maps. This probably wasn't something to worry about-hopefully.
Yegorov had already started explaining: "This is the enemy's deployment map. Their military symbols are quite similar to ours, since nobles interacted a lot during peacetime. Look here, doesn't this symbol look awfully similar to our headquarters symbol?"
Pavlov said irritably: "That's because it IS a headquarters symbol. Our country uses 'HQ' as an abbreviation for headquarters, and so do they. Also, this single-headed eagle symbol in front represents an Army Group Headquarters."
Yegorov: "That's the gist of it."
He looked up at Wang Zhong.
Wang Zhong studied the map for a moment.
He often played military games, such as grand strategy titles like Hearts of Iron, which leaned toward large-scale operations, and more hardcore tactical command games like the SGS series.
When Wang Zhong was in elementary school, there was a reader interaction column in *Tank and Armored Vehicle* magazine for simulating historical campaigns. It often featured historical battles paired with simplified battlefield situation maps. Readers could cut out the maps, draw their plans on them, and write explanations for each step of their strategy.
After receiving reader submissions, the editorial team would select a few feasible combat plans and have professionals provide commentary.
Wang Zhong participated in this interactive column every time without fail, but his "combat plans" were never selected.
Still, through participating in this activity, he gained basic map-reading skills, and his experience with military games further honed this ability.
Wang Zhong quickly analyzed the deployment of the Prossenian forces on the map, murmuring: "The enemy, in their pursuit of offensive speed, has left many gaps."
Modern warfare doesn't have strict frontlines in the traditional sense. A term coined by a player while playing Hearts of Iron was "line-filler divisions." These divisions prioritize extreme cost-efficiency, with their sole purpose being to fill the frontline and prevent small enemy units from "slipping" through.
But even with "line-filler divisions," the battlefield is still full of "gaps," especially in the World War II era, when the area a single division needed to control expanded significantly, leaving plenty of openings for units to slip through.
The Soviet offensive strategy in the mid-to-late stages of World War II boiled down to flooding over German defenses like a deluge.
The Germans, with their high military proficiency, could often hold key strongpoints for a long time. The Soviets countered by deliberately bypassing these strongpoints, cutting behind them to sever their supply lines instead of engaging directly.
After a thorough analysis, Wang Zhong's confidence surged: he might actually be able to slip through the enemy's gaps and return to friendly territory.
He turned to Yegorov: "You mentioned there's a small path?"
Yegorov immediately pointed at the map: "Yes, right here. The Prossenian map doesn't mark it in detail, so I reckon there shouldn't be any enemies on that path. Plus, there's a forest nearby, which can shield us from enemy aerial reconnaissance."
Wang Zhong: "Good. Are you familiar with this path?"
"I'm from around here," Yegorov said. "Before I joined the army, I often drove an ox cart along this path to haul goods."
"Ox cart!" Pavlov snorted, "Slow and smelly."
Yegorov: "Not every farmer can afford a horse. We're not Cossacks, after all."
Wang Zhong: "Continue. Are you certain this path can lead us back to our lines?"
"Of course it can. Leave it to me. But there's a problem-right now, our entire front is probably in full retreat, isn't it?"
Wang Zhong was stumped; he didn't know either.
Seeing Wang Zhong remain silent, Yegorov sighed: "Then it's uncertain. I don't know how far we'll have to retreat before we encounter friendly forces. During the Civil War, I experienced a massive rout like this. We retreated hundreds of miles in one go, only stopping when the enemy's logistics couldn't keep up and they couldn't pursue further."
Wang Zhong really wanted to ask about the Civil War, but it seemed to be common knowledge in this world, so it wasn't easy to bring up.
At that moment, Captain Sergei burst into the room, saluted, and reported loudly: "The monks of the state church have caught up with us!"
Hearing this, Pavlov was overjoyed: "Great! Maybe there'll be hymn monks among them!"
Wang Zhong furrowed his brow.
Hymn monks?
What on earth are those?
(End of Chapter)