Arc of Fire

In the midst of Wang Zhong’s manic laughter, the heavy tank gradually approached the white horse.

Only at this distance did Wang Zhong clearly see the tank’s tactical number: 67, perhaps heavy tanks were rare, so the tactical numbers were also one digit less.

The tank hatch opened, and the commander popped his head out, “Excuse me, Lieutenant Colonel, is this Upper Peniye Village?”

Wang Zhong: “Yes, it is.”

The commander saluted and then asked, “Has someone here called for reinforcements? Was it you?”

Wang Zhong: “Did you receive the ‘Hymn’?”

"No, no, I’m not a Monk, I can’t hear it. But after we arrived at Bogdanovka, the 63rd Infantry Army, which was organizing a defensive line there, told me that someone in Upper Peniye Village was calling for reinforcements. It was eleven o’clock at night, and the only ones who could make it in such a short time were us.”

As he spoke, the commander patted the turret top, “This guy, though slow and prone to breakdowns, is still much faster than the legs of the infantry.”

Wang Zhong asked in confusion, “What about the trucks?”

At this time, the driver also poked his head out, “Xie Liaosha, if there are jeeps left, it’s because they know our Lada would break down on its own.”

Everyone but Wang Zhong burst into laughter.

Although Wang Zhong claimed to be very familiar with Soviet jokes, as an outsider, he was a second late in catching on and laughed along with the others.

The laughable performance of Soviet-manufactured Lada cars had become a part of Soviet humor.

After the laughter, Wang Zhong said in all seriousness, “You came from Bogdanovka? How is the defensive construction there?”

The task of Wang Zhong’s unit—in fact, the mission of the 31st Regiment, Second Battalion of the 4th Tank Army—was to hold this position for 38 hours, with the aim of buying time to establish defensive lines at Bogdanovka.

So it was perfectly reasonable for Wang Zhong to ask about the status of the defensive line.

Commander Xie Liaosha shook his head, “Don’t mention it, when we left Bogdanovka, not many anti-tank stakes had been built, only one anti-tank ditch had been dug, and the machine gun bunkers and firing positions were all under construction.

"Rumor has it that aerial attacks were so fierce during the day that construction progress was severely hindered.”

At that moment, Yegorov arrived with the staff. Hearing Xie Liaosha’s words, he cursed, “What is the Air Force doing? Didn’t they say there are three thousand planes in Kazarlian territory? Why haven’t we seen a single one of our military aircraft?”

Wang Zhong raised an eyebrow; if the progression of this war was similar to that of Earth’s, then it was likely that the entire Ante Empire Air Force had been destroyed on the airfields at the outset, with the commander of the Air Force having committed suicide afterward.

Of course, this universe might differ, as after all, in this universe God still guided missiles, creating quite a significant divergence from Earth.

Furthermore, he keenly caught on to a term: Kazarlia, which sounded like an administrative division. A division capable of deploying 3000 aircraft was probably quite large.

These matters could be more slowly understood later; what needed to be considered now was how to make good use of the newly arrived heavy tank.

The first order of business was to confirm whether its protection level was the same as in the original universe; this would determine how Wang Zhong would use it going forward.

Wang Zhong, “I’m not very familiar with your tank, Lieutenant. Tell me about it.”

Xie Liaosha is a nickname, which Wang Zhong, as someone meeting him for the first time, certainly couldn’t use; theoretically, he should call out Xie Liaosha’s long paternal name, but Wang Zhong was unaware of it.

So, Wang Zhong could only address him by his military rank.

The Lieutenant saluted, “This thing is formidable. When we joined the Winter War, it was nearly over, and Manahaim was almost winning. We took part in the final offensive, and the anti-tank weapons at the Manahaim front couldn’t penetrate it! Had it not been for a mechanical failure that left us immobilized, we could have steamrolled the enemy all the way!”

Wang Zhong, “I didn’t ask for your experience using it, I asked for specific details about the tank, like the thickness of its armor.”

"Sorry, the specifications, right! The front…”

The Lieutenant recited the detailed specifications of the tank. Wang Zhong actually couldn’t quite remember the specific parameters of the KV1, but he thought the turret’s front defense of 120 millimeters should be impenetrable to the enemy’s 50-millimeter flame throwers, and the body’s sloped 80 millimeters would probably give the enemy a hard time too.

His only concern was if the enemy brought up the 88 millimeter anti-everything gun—Prosen’s equipment all had that Germanic feel to it; it made no sense for them to lack this most quintessentially German piece.

Fortunately, Wang Zhong had an aerial view, which meant as long as he kept a direct visual on the enemy from the front line, they would spot an 88 gun before it even got off its transport.

The remaining question was, how to get this tank commander to relinquish his position.

Wang Zhong looked through his aerial view and saw that the tank had not been added to the troops’ roster, meaning it was not yet under his command.

"Lieutenant,” began Wang Zhong, “I am Count Rocossov, the highest commanding officer here. I’ve commanded the troops to fight against the enemy here for a day. You can see the remains of the enemy’s tanks and vehicles in the village, and at the entrance of the village, that Jing Guan. It was I who ordered Hymn Monk Sufang Batu Wendusu to call for reinforcements. I request—I hope that you and your crew would accept my command.”

"Of course!” the Lieutenant agreed readily, “After all, we should look at the rank.”

Wang Zhong switched off the aerial view and noticed that the troop marker had not been added.

Could it be that a verbal agreement wasn’t enough; he had to gain the trust of his allies?

Wang Zhong decided to try again, “I now request direct command over you, which means I need you, the tank commander, to give up your command position.”

The Lieutenant frowned, “Have you undergone Armored Troops training? Do you know how to use the equipment on board?”

Wang Zhong, “No, but I have commanded the 422nd tank of the Second Battalion of the 31st Tank Regiment of the Fourth Tank Army and destroyed eight tanks.”

The Lieutenant pondered for a second and then shook his head decisively, “No, Sir, I and my crew took part in the Winter War, we have been injured and bled together. Put yourself in my shoes, if a random officer whom you don’t recognize suddenly emerged and wanted to take over the command of your comrades, would you agree?”

At this point, Yegorov angrily said, “Enough with the nonsense! The Count has shown his superb command skills, and we have all witnessed it! If you don’t believe it, go take a look at the tanks in the village, and those on the fields!”

The Lieutenant was stubborn, “I am part of the Armored Troops; the Count is an infantry officer by the looks of it, correct? Initially, I have the right not to accept your command. It’s just that given the current situation on the battlefield, we agree to comply.”

"Look at the kill rings on the gun barrel, even if you truly destroyed eight tanks, we have destroyed many more!”

"Are you doubting our capability, Count?”

Wang Zhong raised his hand to stop Yegorov, who was about to continue speaking.

He wanted to take direct control as the tank commander because this cheat code would be incredibly useful in urban combat.

Moreover, the T28 tank was just rubbish—thin-skinned and vulnerable. Without Wang Zhong’s ‘cheat’, it was impossible to eliminate so many enemies.

But the KV1 was different; its performance crushed all enemy armor.

Besides, Wang Zhong suddenly thought of a tactic to fully utilize the KV1’s capabilities without having to personally step into the role of tank commander.

After a victorious battle and earning the respect of the crew of Tank 67, who would willingly accept his command, there would be no rush to take over a tank.

Wang Zhong: “I trust you, lieutenant. Moreover, I have fought directly against enemy tanks and am intimately familiar with their tank guns’ power and precision. I have a method to fully exploit your armor advantage.”

Wang Zhong dismounted and signaled to Yegorov: “Map of the village.”

Yegorov gestured, and Pavlov took out the map from his bag himself.

Yegorov was shocked: “Where’s the staff who usually carries the map around with you?”

"Sacrificed,” Pavlov said calmly, unfolding the map and passing it to Wang Zhong, “Speak, Your Excellency.”

Wang Zhong couldn’t help but give Pavlov another look. At that moment, the commander of Tank 67 also jumped off and came to the side of the map.

Wang Zhong adjusted the map so that the side facing him was south, and then pointed to the west side of the village, saying, “This area is an open field. The enemy, in today’s—no, yesterday’s battle had already calculated the firing data, and they will set up a smoke screen here when they attack.”

Wang Zhong tapped on that point on the map.

He had seen it clearly from a bird’s-eye view—the enemy’s smoke was deployed at the same location twice, so now he pinpointed the enemy’s expected position for the smoke deployment on the map with utmost precision.

Yegorov used his large hand to measure on the map before exclaiming, “How did you pinpoint the smoke location just by pointing? I need to measure it with my hand as well.”

Wang Zhong: “Just a little trick. In any case, the enemy deployed smoke here twice today. I expect they will do it again tomorrow. My plan is simple, hide at the west entrance of the village, right here!”

He pointed on the map, emphasizing the spot twice more.

Wang Zhong: “The infantry will cover you with camouflage. As soon as the enemy starts deploying smoke, start your engine and charge towards it. By the time you break through, the enemy’s offensive line should be here.”

Wang Zhong pointed several more times.

Lieutenant Xie Liaosha nodded: “That’s exactly our optimal range; too far and we might not hit them.”

Wang Zhong: “With smoke behind you and the enemy about to flank you, simply reverse into the smoke, then wait for them to emerge while reversing.

"You only have one tank and can maneuver along the road, but the enemy needs to spread out to cover their infantry, meaning they have to move through muddy terrain.”

Lieutenant Xie Liaosha asked, “How many tanks does the enemy have left?”

Wang Zhong recalled what he had seen from above and replied, “Twenty, why?”

Lieutenant Xie Liaosha laughed: “Then we might just wipe them all out.”

Wang Zhong: “The enemy infantry are well-trained, and they have anti-tank grenades. Be extremely cautious.”

Xie Liaosha: “Don’t worry. We’ve dealt with Molotov cocktails during the Winter War. We will be careful.”

Wang Zhong reached out and patted Xie Liaosha’s shoulder: “It’s in your hands. When I asked to take over as your commander earlier, it wasn’t out of distrust, but a wish to avenge the Tank 422 crew I fought with.”

In truth, he wanted to utilize the ‘cheat.’

But his words weren’t false either—Wang Zhong did indeed want revenge.

Lieutenant Xie Liaosha asked, “How many from your crew are left?”

Wang Zhong: “Just me and the driver now.”

Lieutenant Xie Liaosha asked again, “How did you become the commander? You’re clearly infantry.”

Wang Zhong recounted the incident with the fearful sergeant.

Lieutenant Xie Liaosha was taken aback: “So that’s what happened; I misunderstood you. I thought it was just some noble’s whim to pilot a tank!”

Yegorov: “We thought the same initially, but let me tell you, the Earl is as skilled as Suvorov resurrected. When Tank 422 was around, they even called him the ‘Star of Victory’!”

Though Yegorov was flattering, Wang Zhong couldn’t feel happy at the mention of Tank 422.

Observing Wang Zhong’s expression, Lieutenant Xie Liaosha asked cautiously, “May I take a look at your seat in the tank? The Armored Troops will pay tribute to those brave comrades, and I would like to show my respect.”

Wang Zhong nodded: “Of course, but first move the tank into position so the infantry can camouflage you.”

Yegorov shouted: “Leave that to us; position the tank and take the time to rest!”

Xie Liaosha leaped onto the tank and climbed into the turret, putting on his headset and ordering, “Ashka, advance!”

The tank engine roared, but after a few grumbles, the tank remained motionless.

The driver complained: “Damn it, the gearbox is down again!”

Wang Zhong was astonished; he knew the KV1 had a high rate of failure in the early days of the war, but he wasn’t expecting it at this critical juncture.

He hurriedly asked, “Can it be fixed?”

The nimble driver climbed out of the cockpit, smiling: “Of course!”

As he spoke, he opened the large satchel on the side of the turret: “We brought a bunch of spare parts; it’ll be fixed in an hour.”

Lieutenant Xie Liaosha spread his hands: “It always broke down during the Winter War. Later, the design bureau made some improvements, claiming the issue was resolved, but we still brought spares and a toolbox based on our experience then.”

Wang Zhong let out a sigh of relief.

It seemed this crew really were seasoned veterans.