Inside the Yan Army's positions outside the Macedonian military factory.
The shelling of the military factory had ceased, but the line of two hundred cannons remained, and the cannons were still pointed at the factory. This was not a preparation for a general offensive, but a defensive measure to prevent the Goths inside the factory from breaking out.
Opposite to this line of defense is another line of defense targeting the enemy forces behind them. The artillery bombardment currently underway is being carried out by the artillery battalion in this line of defense.
Currently, there are fewer than 50,000 Yan Army troops stationed here, and Qin Ze is overseeing the operation.
As the artillery bombardment began, scouts continuously brought military reports. A few minutes earlier, Qin Ze had received the latest intelligence: after his side launched the bombardment, the enemy did not retreat in the face of difficulties, but instead chose to speed up their march, intending to charge into the enemy lines. This was exactly the news Qin Ze wanted to hear.
Although he knew that there were enemy troops lurking behind his side, Qin Ze did not know how many troops they had. Therefore, he did not launch an attack on the enemy forces behind him during the day and night.
This was not out of fear that the enemy's superior numbers would put them in danger, but rather because Qin Ze believed that if the approaching enemy was a small force, attacking them, even if they were completely wiped out, would alert the enemy, causing subsequent enemy forces to become more cautious, making the battle longer and more difficult to eliminate their manpower.
Based on these considerations, Qin Ze held back his troops. If the enemy were to launch an attack, it would be because they had amassed a sufficient number of troops, which would give them the confidence to launch such an attack. That is why Qin Ze ordered the shelling of the Macedonian military factory tonight, in order to probe the enemy forces behind him.
The distance from Port Foster to Port Brullow wasn't too far, and Qin Ze had reason to believe that Port Brullow, which the Goths considered of utmost importance, would send a large force of reinforcements to support them.
As expected, after bombarding the Macedonian military factory for several hours, the enemy forces behind them finally lost their patience and chose to advance and launch an attack. This signal marked the beginning of tonight's "encirclement and annihilation" campaign.
Encirclement and annihilation warfare means eliminating as many enemy troops as possible, which is what Qin Ze has always wanted to do. Only by eliminating as many enemy troops as possible in a short period of time can the obstacles in the march be reduced in the next period of time. He does not want to be constantly ambushed by the Goths in the next few days or half a month of marching, because this is their home ground and they have a huge advantage in terms of terrain.
Therefore, a large-scale annihilation battle is needed to severely damage the enemy forces and reduce the number of ambushes they will launch next.
Since the attack on the Star Islands began a few days ago, Qin Ze believes that the western region, centered on Port Brulo, has entered a state of full military preparedness. They will definitely gather a large force to intercept them on the coastline, and the battle tonight will undoubtedly be when the enemy's forces are at their strongest.
In other words, it's time to close the net.
At this moment, Qin Ze, who was in the military camp, looked ahead, towards the direction where the enemy was rushing. Thanks to the prior deployment and the long range of the artillery, the shells were now causing casualties to the enemy. However, Qin Ze did not know how effective these shells were.
The artillery barrage launched at night was hampered by poor visibility and inaccurate range finding, but fortunately, there were enough artillery pieces and ample ammunition, so they could simply bombard the enemy relentlessly.
The longer such long-range fire suppression lasts, the more enemy casualties they will suffer, and the more likely they are to retreat. After all, no matter how strong the fighting will or how confident the Goths are, they are not fools. If the casualties are too great, they will naturally choose to retreat in order to preserve their strength.
But this is definitely not what Qin Ze wants to see.
If the enemy was planning this battle in order to preserve their strength for withdrawal, then they must have gone to great lengths.
Thinking of this, Qin Ze looked to the left and right. More than an hour ago, the cavalry waiting on the left and right flanks filed out and rushed along the north and south directions to extend the battle line in a pincer formation. This was a large-scale flanking maneuver and encirclement over a very long distance.
Their mission was to surround the enemy as quickly as possible, and then coordinate with the main force to encircle and kill them!
"No matter how many people come, we will kill them all."
"Leave no one alive."
Amidst the thunderous artillery fire, Qin Ze's expression remained stern, his eyes radiating an intense killing intent.
——
"Sir, what did you say? Withdraw the troops?"
"...Withdraw the troops..."
Shells exploded all around him, but Miner had no time to pay attention. He tried to carry the severely wounded Klein out of the battlefield, but Klein's severe bleeding and horrific wounds made Miner afraid to even move his body.
Faced with Klein's order to withdraw troops, Miner was so flustered that he didn't know how to respond.
In preparation for tonight's battle, all troops except Commander Dingle, who left a division at headquarters, have been mobilized. Although they are currently under enemy artillery fire, it is common knowledge that the enemy possesses superior weaponry.
Therefore, casualties are inevitable and will be numerous, but who doesn't know that?
Deploying hundreds of thousands of troops to fight this battle is precisely about using numerical superiority to compensate for the disparity in weaponry. Before the battle, who wasn't prepared to sacrifice themselves?
This chapter is not finished, please click the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
