Black Iron’s Glory

Chapter 443 Salary Drawing at the Bottom of the Cauldron

The collapse of two major field regiments that had infiltrated the battlefield to clear the battlefield was a great shock to the Hicks. More than 10,000 troops, only more than 1,000 of them having fled, together with the accounts of those deserters, led the Hicks commander-in-chief to conclude that it was likely that a division of the Legion of Thunder, famous for its offensive operations, had detoured to its rear, posing a great threat to its logistical supply corridors.

Now that the war zone is under direct control, the Hicks are bound to respond. First, they retracted their forces, abandoned irrelevant mountainous areas and stopped sending reconnaissance teams out on patrols to die. Then the protection of the logistics supply corridor was strengthened, using defensive positions abandoned after the collapse of the Nikancha camp, which constituted an important node in the logistics supply corridor, while also increasing the guard capacity of the logistics convoy.

So Claude found himself facing a copper-walled, iron-fenced supply line, and if his men were really a division's strength, he might be able to use the force advantage to directly attack those logistics convoys and temporarily paralyze the Hicks' logistics supply corridor. Of course, those important defensive positions can also be attacked, but they are only destructive points, and the Hicks will soon be able to regain their defensive positions.

But the only thing he commands now is a Thunderbolt 1 3 1 battalion, and as for Diavid's Thunderbolt 1 303 regiment remaining on General Bitchcline's 2nd defensive front, he needs them to suppress Hicks Iron Pumpkin throwing attacks on defensive positions before the Rock Regiment's new replacement rifle regiment returns...

And even with the arrival of Diavid's Thunder 1303 regiment, Claude would not have taken the initiative to attack those dangerous defensive positions on the ground. In his view, that was an act of indemnity, even if the heavy losses had taken up those defensive positions, which could not be defended but had to be abandoned. So the Hicks could occupy these defensive positions again, and then attack them themselves? I'm not sick. Why would I want to die with these defensive positions?

A night attack and an ambush battle have consumed almost 100 rifle rounds each of the officers and soldiers of the 131th Battalion, and most of the soldiers have only three magazines full of bullets left to supply. In the meantime, General Albert's subsequent army should also be on the front line. Claude decided to go back and discuss with the two generals the change in strategic plan and how to deal with this colonial war waged by the Hicks...

“... the Hicks used defensive positions following the collapse of the Niça camp to form the defensive node of this hundred mile long mountain logistics supply corridor, as well as the hills and heights along the way, as well as their guard posts and defensive installations. In addition, their logistics convoys are guarded by a regiment that quickly gathers behind the vehicle to resist and await rescue...

In the case of the plains, with the lightweight assault capability of the Thunder Corps, we will soon defeat them and destroy this convoy. But this is mountainous, rugged terrain, and we can't devote so much troops to annihilating them all at once. If the defensive positions on this logistics supply corridor are to be stricken and faced with the same difficulty of not being able to invest heavily, going up the mountain is such a trail that the ability to launch a battalion of troops to attack is already at its limit.

And even if we captured those defensive positions, we couldn't have manned them, because when the Hicks arrived, around the mountain, there was no need to attack them, and the troops that stayed in the mountain defensive positions had to wait to die. Today's situation is completely different from what Bick had planned for the Nikanca camp, when the entire frontier mountainous area was our territory and the Hicks had to take down a hill defensive position before they could move on.

But now that the entire frontier mountain area is under the control of the Hicks, we still have to give up evacuation even if we seize these hill defensive positions. So the Hicks can send troops again, and the next time we want to attack this logistical supply corridor, we have to settle this defensive position again. That would make us and the Hicks intertwined in these mountain defensive positions, and the Hicks would be happy to consume troops like us...

I suspect that the Hicks should have invested in a standing army force to prepare for this logistical supply corridor, otherwise they would never have been so well guarded that we would not have had the opportunity. Bick, did the Hicks' offensive against our defensive front get stronger or weaker during this time? ”Claude dropped the slender wooden stick in his hand and asked General Beechlin.

General Bitchicklin touched the beard on his chin and thought: “I really feel that the current Hicks attack and impact on the defensive front has diminished considerably, becoming more and more like a common probationary attack than the first wave of attack.

I thought it was your subsequent reinforcements that suppressed the Hicks' offensive, not even the enemy. Turns out the Hicks are now in a difficult position to ride a tiger and can no longer sustain the fierce offensive of the past. No wonder the Nikancas on the defensive front are now able to resist the Hicks and easily repel them... "

“I think the Hicks are a little strained.” Claude's words made General Beechlin and General Albert a little unbelievable.

“Impossible, they have three standing legions, all of which together number 180,000. How could they possibly be short of troops when two more standing regiments were sitting on the northern coastal mountainous zone and the border of the Rodex Bay colony?” General Bitchicklin rebutted.

Claude laughed: "Let's leave him alone with the two standing regiments on the northern mountain border, beginning with the three standing regiments of the Hicks kingdom attacking the eastern mountains. From their capture of our first defensive front to their current attack on our second defensive front, how many do you think were killed or injured? ”

General Bitchicklin was somewhat excited: “When our first defensive front collapsed, our regiment lost the strength of one regiment and more than 20,000 Nikanchas were killed and injured. I estimate fewer Hicks casualties, and they should have lost three regiments of troops.

Then the Hicks attacked our second defensive front, and we were already guarded against their throwers and those iron pumpkins, and they lost a fortune. It has always been our defensive side that just the shoulder stamps of the Hicks veterans we killed before we cleaned up the position, we got over 6,000, and a lot of bodies, because they were closer to their own troops, we didn't get them.

I believe that more than one division has been killed or injured since the beginning of the Hicks war, and that the strength of more than 30,000 troops in the five regiments should be a more accurate estimate. For the next ten days, their offense has been a little fussy, and I always thought the Hicks would be ready to launch a key offense to test the weaknesses of our defensive front... "

“No, they're just strained.” Claude shook his head, then picked up a wooden stick and lit the eastern frontier mountains occupied by the Hicks on a sand plate: “They had only three standing legions, and maintaining this rear supply corridor used the strength of a standing legion. And you estimate that they lost five regiments in their offensive against the Front de défense, and I killed more than 10,000 of them by night raids and ambushes in the mountains ahead.

The main operational force of the Standing Regiment of the Kingdom of Hicks is also around 50,000 troops in nine regiments, and the remaining 2,3000 are logistical and civilian officials. Together, their three Standing Regiments have lost more than 40,000 horses, and it can be said that one of their Standing Regiments has been maimed and rendered incapable of fighting. Apart from that standing army that maintains the logistics supply corridor, I think the Hicks who want to confront us in front of the defensive front are at most a standing army force... "

“Wait, I can't figure it out..." General Albert said: "If you're right, then the Hicks are just a little more than a standing army in front of our second defensive front, which is clearly not going to be able to defeat our defensive front or even prevent us from turning into attackers. But why do the Hicks launch futile attacks on our defensive front every day, even though small casualties are also a great drain on their troops and morale? ”

Claude laughed, “That's what the Hicks commander-in-chief was all about, trying to keep the current situation stable. To be honest, I don't think he wants to capture our defensive front right now, or abandon the frontier mountains that they already occupy, he just wants to drag us here and wait for their follow-on reinforcements.

Now he launches a daily probative attack on our defensive front, retreating after dozens of casualties, mainly to mislead us in their search for weaknesses in our defensive front, thus maintaining a high level of vigilance and not pulling large numbers of troops from the front line to disrupt his rear. In fact, it seems to me that the three Hicks' standing legions in the eastern mountains are now a dead snake, trapped in the immediate battle.

A standing legion defended the first defensive front in the eastern mountains in case we launched a counter-attack, a standing legion maintained the logistical supply corridors in the rear mountains, and a standing legion was maimed by us and lost its fighting power. So they had to launch small-scale exploratory attacks on our second defensive front every day, mainly because they were trying to seduce us, and also because they had the initiative to take the battlefield, and they didn't dare to fight back easily.

For the Hicks, the greatest key to lifting this dilemma lies in the arrival of the follow-on reinforcements, not forgetting that the Hicks still have five standing regiments that have not been transported to the Rodex Bay colony. As long as they last more than a month, the third group of Hicks standing legions will be transported by their fleet. By that time, the Hicks will have to replace the two standing regiments stationed on the northern mountain border by the newly arrived forces, and their eastern front will again have more than 100,000 fully rested viable troops and will be able to re-attack us. ”

General Bitchicklin suddenly realized: "So what are we waiting for? I immediately organized a counter-attack against the Hicks, and we drove them back the way they came. ”

“Oh, no!” It was General Albert who said that.

“No, no counter-attack...” Claude said almost simultaneously.

General Bitchklin was a little grumpy: "Why can't we do a counter-attack? ”

Claude looked at General Albert and said, "Go ahead. ”

General Albert immediately pointed at the sand plate and said: "Now that the Hicks have tied their hands and feet, as Claude put it, they have become a dead snake, immobilized before the frontier mountains reach our second defensive front.

If you counter-attack the command forces, you're helping them decouple, and the farther we drive them, the more they can regain combat and mobility. Instead, the farther we go, the longer the front stretches, and in the end, we become entangled with them in the frontier mountains, consuming each other's strength.

For the Hicks, this is a battle they can't afford. Remember, we have only two regiments in the war zone, 130,000 main combat troops. But five more standing regiments have not arrived in the colony of Rodex Bay. Even if their three standing legions were to die with one of our legions, it would be a great victory for them... "

“But if we don't counter-attack, isn't that what makes the Hicks' plot work? With just over a month to go, when their subsequent standing army arrives in the colony of Rodex Bay, they can attack us again. What are we gonna do if you don't fight back?” General Bitchicklin asked.

General Albert grabbed his head: “I hadn't thought of that. I just had a hunch in my heart that we shouldn't attack back. The enemy must be able to find a good chance to defeat them now...”

Claude could only shake his head, perhaps the biggest difference between offensive and defensive generals. After listening to his own analysis, defensive General Bitchcline's first reaction was to launch a regular counterattack, drive the enemy back to their point of departure, recover all the eastern frontier mountains that had fallen into the hands of the Hicks and restore the posture of war to its pre-war situation.

General Albert, who has a sense of aggression, feels intuitive that it would be beneficial for him to keep the current situation in the face, that the enemy cannot move, and that he can freely look for a good opportunity to break the enemy. As long as they find the opportunity, they may be able to defeat the enemy directly, which is more beneficial to the enemy than to carry out counter-attacks and drive them back.

Claude coughed slightly, drawing the attention of General Beechlin and General Albert: "We don't conduct counter-attacks, but we can turn around here. ”

General Bitchicklin: "Attack the northern mountain border between the two Hicks kingdoms of the Standing Army? ”

General Albert's eyes lit up: "Yes! I didn't think of that. The two Standing Regiments of the Kingdom of Hicks are being rehabilitated. They think our strength is being held hostage by the three Standing Regiments of the Eastern Front. They had no idea we were going to attack them..."

“Unexpectedly, it was unprepared.” Claude nodded, "The Hicks wanted to burn this pot of water on the Eastern Mountain Front, so we were guarded from touching the pot and the water. Since we can't move the pot and the water, we can lift the firewood under the pot and see how he burns the water. In our view, the two Hicks' standing regiments on the northern mountain border are firewood reserved by the enemy to increase their firepower.

In fact, the three Standing Regiments of the Eastern Mountain Front, the Hicks, have become immobile in their attempts to maintain the current battle, and the two standing regiments on the northern mountain border are already isolated and defenceless. According to agents who infiltrated the Rodex Bay colony, the two Standing Army Regiments in the northern mountains were incomplete, as they also had a division stationed in their main battalion near Rodex Bay City, the general logistics base for the Hicks.

I want the Hicks to take the lesson that not using a standing legion of troops to defend logistical supply corridors means that we won't be surprised and logistical supply transportation will be safe. Instead of attacking his logistics convoy, we can directly attack his overall logistics base. When we burn down their stockpiles of grass and armaments, I wonder what else they can transport in convoys... "

“You mean we directly attacked the two Hicks Standing Army regiments on the northern mountain border and took the opportunity to dismantle the enemy's general logistics base camp?” General Albert finally figured out why Marshal Michel used to praise Claude for his unparalleled sense of offense, and when he was looking only for his own intuition to break the enemy's fighters, Claude had made it clear where the enemy's weaknesses were...

“We will not attack the two standing regiments on the northern mountain border.” Claude pointed at the sand plate with a wooden stick: "The troops of the Rock Legion led by Birk continue to engage the three Standing Legions of the Hicks on the Eastern Front on the second line of defense. I let Battalion Thunder 131, led by Lieutenant Colonel McJackie, continue to infiltrate the eastern frontier mountains and ambush the enemy's logistical transport routes with landmines, making them think that we have no other option but to harass them with this little noise.

I took a division of the Legion of Thunder, from the Legion of Thunder 1301 to the Legion of 304, lurking across the defensive lines of those two Hicks Standing Regiments on the northern mountain border, first attacking the Hicks General Logistics Base battalion near Rodex Bay City. There was only one enemy division stationed there, and they couldn't stop us from attacking, and of course they didn't expect us to attack there. As we begin to set fire to the grass and armaments, the two standing regiments deployed on the northern mountain border will certainly be dispatched to the rescue.

I will ambush the reinforcements on their way to rescue them and then take them with me to attack the battalions of those two standing regiments on the northern mountain border. I attack from the back, Alan, and you take another division of the Thunder Legion from the front, and the two sides should clamp down quickly to capture the enemy's battalion. Then we'll join forces, detour back to the eastern mountain border, put those three Hicks standing regiments in the eastern frontier mountains, no logistical supplies, I'm sure they'll collapse soon enough to surrender... "