Chen Xu asked quickly.
"Oh, that's not the case. Fighting against an enemy like the Abyss is difficult from the beginning, through the middle, and to the end.
Simply put, if it were that simple, why have we waited until now? It's because it's difficult.
While there were losses in today's defeat, they weren't as significant as I'd imagined. In every previous conflict on the mainland, millions of soldiers and tens of millions of people were lost. In reality, our tolerance for casualties is much greater than we might imagine.
"The reason you all feel bad today is simply that we suffered so many casualties without causing any harm to the enemy. But think about it carefully: did we really not have any negative impact on the enemy?"
The other four fell into silence. From a distance, it seemed that the leaders were really hungry and were actually busy eating.
After a long pause, after swallowing the last mouthful of porridge in his bowl, Xia Junao slowly said, "We understand what you mean. It's nothing more than depleting the opponent's weapons. The opponent's weapons are already weak, so as long as we keep depleting them like this, we will definitely win."
Lin Hai nodded and said, "The truth is cruel, but it is the truth. In fact, as long as we establish a defense line similar to that of the Abyss Defense Force, even if we have the same weapons, we will have to suffer huge casualties to break through. And considering our equipment, it seems that the correct approach is to continuously deplete their ammunition stocks."
"That means massive casualties without any commendable achievements will continue to occur."
"Didn't I tell you this before the war started? The casualties will undoubtedly be enormous. Today's casualties may seem high, but looking back, today's casualties won't even be a fraction of the total."
"Mr. Lin, don't worry. We are mentally prepared. In fact, considering the scale of the conflict we anticipated, today's situation is indeed bad, but it is not the worst. However, we need an explanation for the public."
"Explain, His Majesty Xia Junao means that we should whitewash... oh no, package today's situation before releasing it to the public?"
Chen Xu immediately thought of Zhou Shangwen. Now that he had the telegram, it should be in time to give him a remote order. Zhou Shangwen was used to covering up defeats and glossing over the situation. When it came to celebrating funerals, he was a professional. If he were to write today's battle report, it would indeed look much better.
"No, we can't lie."
Lin Hai shook his head and said, "Not only can we not lie, we can't even cover up. Many people witnessed what happened today, and I'm sure the news has already begun to spread. If we forcibly cover up our defeat, it will lead to even more speculation. Believe me, the panic it causes will be no less than directly announcing the results. Besides, such losses will seem trivial in the future. We can't just send out fake battle reports every day, can we?"
"So what do you mean?"
"Once we get out, have someone release the battle report. We must not only clearly explain today's losses, but also repeatedly emphasize that this is just the beginning. Our sacrifices will be even greater, and more and more troops will be thrown into this bottomless pit. If he dies today, it could be me tomorrow. We must make these statements clear, and while we still have control over the situation, we must prepare the psychological foundation."
At this point, Lin Hai still had a smile on his face, but his tone revealed a hint of coldness: "If we tell the people and soldiers today that we have won, they won't be able to bear the casualties tomorrow. So we must not only tell them the truth, but also tell them that the reason today's losses are 5,000 is because we only sent out 5,000 people. If we sent out 10,000, the losses would probably be 10,000. And as the scale of the war expands, the casualties will be even greater in the future!"
As Lin Hai's words grew colder, the four of them felt their scalps tingle. They even wondered, "How can it be so cold in June?" They must have not eaten anything to feel the slight chill. It seemed that breakfast was essential for health.
Xia Junao was the first to react. He took a deep breath and asked tentatively, "Mr. Lin, you're really not afraid of causing unrest among the people? If we really said that, I'm afraid it would cause an uproar, right?"
Lin Hai glanced at Xia Junao, then at the other three people who were nodding their heads frantically. Well, Wei Mingyuan still had a steamed bun in his mouth. He was probably the only one among them who was really eating breakfast.
"You're not really talking about a huge uproar, are you? You're worried that out of fear of casualties, especially these seemingly meaningless casualties, the angry soldiers and civilians will eat the five of us alive, without any soy sauce?"
"Yes, you have a keen eye."
"I don't have any discerning eyes."
Lin Hai smiled self-deprecatingly.
"I don't want any casualties, but I have no other options. For now...
The first thing is to find the records of the great battles on the continent in the past, so that everyone can see how many casualties would be incurred in a single battle if the Abyss continued to exist.
Second, we must do a good job of propaganda, telling the people that past wars were meaningless and should never have broken out, yet we paid such heavy casualties. And now, every life lost is significant, their sacrifice ensuring that there will be no more meaningless sacrifices in the future.
Third, we must make sure that the people understand that we are in a difficult situation, but the enemy is in an even more difficult situation. Our strength is still gathering, but the enemy's strength is decreasing bit by bit. We are getting better day by day, and the enemy is getting worse day by day. One day, we will surpass our enemies in all aspects.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com