Arc of Fire

Wang Zhong was in a hurry when he received a response from the Tenth Tank Army, “We have seen the head of the column; your troops are finally about to finish passing through!”

At this moment, Wang Zhong really wanted to change his perspective to see the situation for himself. However, the Tenth Tank Army was not under his command, and its commander was a lieutenant general, ranking higher than his own major general.

But he soon saw the end of the column on the main road as well.

About a kilometer-long procession was left, comprised entirely of the Guardian Army and laborers, mixed in with many local peasants’ horse-drawn and ox-drawn carts.

A platoon of BT tanks was at the roadside, protecting this group of people.

Wang Zhong impatiently waited for these people to pass by.

Finally, the last horse-drawn cart passed by next to tank number 422, and there were no more people left behind—at least no organized groups.

As for how many stragglers there were, Wang Zhong couldn’t do much about that.

“You guys should retreat as well!” he shouted to the tank platoon that was helping with the protection.

The platoon leader popped open the hatch and climbed out, replying, “The commander has ordered us to cover for you. You go ahead, and we’ll handle any enemies that catch up!”

Wang Zhong nodded and ordered through internal communication, “Beliyakov, let’s go!”

Tank number 422 backed up about five meters, then turned right onto the road. After picking up speed for a few steps, it caught up with the tail end of the marching column and began to move forward at a pace not much different from that of walking humans.

Nelly couldn’t help asking, “What’s that banging sound?”

“Oh, that’s the sound of hitting the control stick with a hammer. Without hitting it, it’s impossible to control the vehicle,” Wang Zhong explained.

“It has to be like this?” Nelly looked down at the tank, seemingly gaining a new understanding of the large machine.

At this time, a granny on the last cart in the column asked, “General, are you that General Rokossovsky everyone talks about?”

“I am,” Wang Zhong nodded.

He thought she was going to ask something like, “Do you know how my son who joined the Guardian Army is doing?” But instead, the granny started with, “Thank you for sending my grandson away, and in the end, even giving me a seat.”

Wang Zhong replied, “That… wasn’t arranged by me, but by someone executing orders below. You should thank that person.”

The granny smiled, “I already thanked him. Now, I am thanking you.”

Wang Zhong said, “Once you get to Shepetovka, take your grandson and get on the train, go all the way to the rear.”

“Alright,” the granny nodded, her smile looking genuinely pure.

All of a sudden, Wang Zhong wondered if his current situation resembled Liu Bei retreating from Xinye.

Yes, very much so.

Would he have to go through many retreats like this in the future until finally, retreating to the foot of St. Ye Katerina Fortress and thinking, “Ante is vast, but we have nowhere left to retreat”?

Wang Zhong turned his head to look back in the direction they had come from, and even from this distance, he could see the thick smoke from the fires around Orachi.

————

Twenty kilometers away from Shepetovka, Wang Zhong saw that Ante infantry had taken a small mound by the roadside, where they had set up a makeshift position with machine guns and a 45mm anti-tank gun, with two carts hidden behind the hillock.

Wang Zhong waved to them, “Hello there!”

The captain commanding this small detachment gave a thumbs-up, “Hello! Salute to you!”

It seemed like the captain did not recognize Wang Zhong’s rank of major general.

After passing this “sentry post,” Wang Zhong breathed a sigh of relief, “We have entered our army’s defensive area, I can finally rest easy now.”

Ludmila gently stroked his hair, “You’ve worked hard, Alyosha. Take a rest.”

————

Captain Maldaly Apollonovich watched the T34 adorned with the red flag fade into the distance.

He heard the gunner Vasya chewing his tongue beside him, “Did you see? That tank is carrying two beauties! A tall one, and a pretty young maid. Aristocrats really know how to live it up!”

Captain Maldaly scolded, “What are you talking about? That’s General Rokossovsky! His division held off the enemy’s forces several times their size at Orachi for three days before escaping with so many civilians!”

“What?” Vasya was shocked, “That was General Rokossovsky? What about his white horse? Weren’t there stories of him charging into the enemy headquarters on a white horse, alone with a sword, and killing three generals? Where’s his horse?”

Captain Maldaly replied, “Are you blind? Isn’t a white horse painted next to the tank’s tactical number? That’s his white horse! Don’t you recognize that number? Tank 422! And the red flag! The enemy dies of fear at the sight of that flag!”

Vasya was astounded, “This is the first time I’m hearing this, but why’s he bringing so many women with him to the battlefield?”

That’s when the old loader beside Vasya spoke up, “Silly boy, what do you know? Those are angels sent by Saint Andrew. The bishop said it in his sermon, when Saint Andrew established the Secular faction, he had twelve angels by his side. Those twelve angels, from poor families, were blessed for their virtue and courage…

“The General has received Saint Andrew’s blessing!”

Vasya exclaimed, “Ah, I see!”

Captain Maldaly scoffed, “What now, you’re going to brag in the tavern again? Next time you get caught by a priest after drinking like that, you’ll be in for it!”

Vasya replied, “How could I? We’ve no idea how long we’ll be stationed on this hillock. Heaven knows when we’ll get to go to a tavern.”

————

It was only after seeing the anti-aircraft gun positions deployed around Shepetovka that Wang Zhong truly felt completely at ease.

The soldiers at the high-altitude artillery position curiously watched tank number 422, and someone loudly asked, “Is that General Rokossovsky?”

Wang Zhong replied, “Yes, I am!”

“Did you kill another Prosen general last night?”

Wang Zhong frowned, “When did this happen? I have no idea.”

The anti-aircraft gunners looked at each other in confusion.

Someone else asked, “We heard you wiped out a hundred tanks last night!”

Wang Zhong replied, “No! That’s a rumor! You guys are exaggerating too much! Are you going to say next that I annihilated an enemy Armored Division?”

The expert gunners immediately erupted in jubilation, “Did you hear that, the general wiped out an entire enemy Armored Division!”

Wang Zhong had a splitting headache and tried to change the subject, “Where is Duke Meishikin’s command post?”

A captain pointed to the east, “Keep going, turn left at the cathedral, next to the hospital.”

No sooner had the words left his mouth than tank 422’s engine suddenly made a strange noise, followed by a great billow of black smoke spewing from the exhaust pipe.

The tank then began to slow down, moving a few more meters under its own momentum before coming to a complete stop.

Beliyakov climbed out of the driver’s compartment cursing, “I knew it was about time! General, you better go on foot! I reckon it’s beyond a wrench’s fix now.”

Wang Zhong replied, “Thank God, it held out until we got here. There’s an anti-aircraft gun nearby, so at least we don’t have to worry about getting bombed by a Stuka.”

The very moment his words fell, the captain of the anti-aircraft battalion called out, “Need help? We have blacksmiths and mechanics here!”

Beliyakov replied, “Any help would be great! And if there are any old mechanics who can fix tractors, call them over too! Thanks a lot!”

The captain of the anti-aircraft battalion immediately issued commands, and a fast-legged gunner sprinted out of his position and quickly disappeared.

Wang Zhong, bracing himself against the edge of the turret, tried to climb out, but his joints were so stiff from sitting too long that he nearly fell.

Ludmila and Nelly supported him from either side.

The concerned captain from the anti-aircraft battalion asked, “Are you wounded?”

“No,” said Wang Zhong as he steadied himself with the help of the girls and climbed down from the tank.

A child sitting on the tank asked, “Where are you going, General? Can we come with you?”

Wang Zhong replied, “Stay put! The nuns from the church will come to pick you up soon!”

In times like these, only the nuns were left to take care of the children, as daycares had long since closed down.

The child gripped his submachine gun, “We can fight! We are soldiers!”

Wang Zhong affirmed, “Yes, I know! The nuns will issue you combat orders.”

As Wang Zhong limbered up his numb body, Ludmila also climbed down from the tank, massaging his shoulder, “I could tell during the ride that your shoulders were too stiff.”

Nelly also disembarked, “Shall I find us a horse carriage? I’m quite good at driving them.”

No sooner had she spoken than a jeep drove up the street and stopped in front of Wang Zhong.

The lieutenant driving the vehicle got out and saluted, “We’ve received a call from the anti-aircraft artillery position, and we’re here to take you to the command post, General Rokossovsky! Duke Meishikin is waiting for you.”

Wang Zhong acknowledged, “Good. Uh… am I going alone?”

The lieutenant glanced at Ludmila’s Monk military uniform and said, “The church people are on their way; Bishop Popov, who’s already here, will arrange for Monk Miss to rest.”

Wang Zhong inquired, “I also have an orderly; what about her?”

Nelly volunteered, “Take me to the general’s quarters.”

That’s bound to cause misunderstandings!

Clearly misinterpreting, the lieutenant glanced at Wang Zhong and answered, “Then come along, you can sit in the back.”

Wang Zhong was dumbfounded and simply circled around to the passenger side to get into the vehicle.

————

Wang Zhong had initially thought that Duke Meishikin was a mature and steady middle-aged noble.

To his surprise, he turned out to be a young man not much older than himself.

As Wang Zhong entered the map room, the duke was coughing, enveloped by the aura of a sickly person.

It took the duke about twenty seconds to stop coughing, and as he wiped his mouth, he looked up at Wang Zhong, “So you’ve arrived, General Rokossovsky!”

Wang Zhong inquired, “Are you… alright?”

Meishikin managed a smile, “An old problem; I’ve had it since I was a child. I spent some time in Liechtenstein before the war started, hoping it would improve.”

He spread his hands in a helpless gesture.

Wang Zhong guessed, “Tuberculosis?”

In this era, that was often a terminal illness, incurable and only prolonging the inevitable—and not something you’d die from quickly.

If this had been Ceres, he might have had to take Fail-Drum-Skin Pills.

Duke Meishikin waved the notion aside, “Let’s talk about the situation of your troops. We’ve been steadily receiving scattered soldiers and small units, and I’ve designated the dormitory of the old rail school near the station as your rally point.

“Your chief of staff has already gone there, and your bishop… cough cough cough… is with the church; I don’t really meddle in church affairs.”

Wang Zhong nodded, “That’s a proper arrangement; we will soon set up waypoints at the city’s edge to guide everyone there.”

Meishikin nodded in agreement, “Once the trains are arranged, you’ll retreat.”

Wang Zhong objected, “What? We still have our integrity; we can still fight.”

Meishikin gestured dismissively, “I know you can fight, and I need troops to defend Shepetovka, but what you have left are the core elements. They will be more effective once replenished, I’m very aware of that. No, I can’t afford to have elite troops worn down here. You have to leave.”

Suddenly, Meishikin paused, “However, Her Highness just sent over 30 T34 tanks. I hope you can leave these with us. Once the 10th Tank Army’s troops pull back, we should be able to put together enough crews to operate these thirty tanks.”

Wang Zhong insisted, “I can command these 30 T34s! My own tank, number 422, can also continue fighting!”

Duke Meishikin smiled, “Isn’t it broken down? I reckon it needs to go back to the factory for a thorough overhaul, and with the tank factory dismantled and shipped away, nobody here can fix it.

“And we both know that for you to command a tank, you need a specialized command spot, which the other T34s don’t have.”

This was indeed true.

Wang Zhong still wanted to argue, to persuade Duke Meishikin to agree to let him stay and continue fighting.

But the duke interrupted, “Alright, you’ve had a long day; get some rest. We can discuss other matters tomorrow.”

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