First Battlefield Commander! - Chapter 55

Chapter 55: Idiot

Since everyone wanted to know how the Chu team would handle this unexpected situation, all camera feeds were focused on them. Yet no one anticipated Lu Mingyuan's first action would be to call Lian Sheng.

As soon as his voice came through the screen, applause erupted in the stadium. The exaggerated exclamations carried tones that were unclear whether they expressed anticipation or jeers.

This match truly kept delivering climax after climax. The only question was how the Chu team would conclude this.

Lian Sheng's earlier analysis had been spot-on - the infantry squad who heard it recognized her genuine competence. However, none of this had been shown in the live broadcast. With the battlefield divided into multiple sectors and perspectives, the stadium screens only displayed the most crucial scenes.

Such as how the Chu team captured the central checkpoint to gain early advantage, or how the Liu team broke through their defenses to stage a counterattack.

These camera angles never featured the common soldiers, who remained nameless cannon fodder.

Moreover, even if the cameras did focus on them, the administrators wouldn't give audio priority to a mere foot soldier.

Only after being transferred to the Chu team's officer channel did this zero-point soldier, infamous for stripping uniforms at the start, have her voice clearly broadcast throughout the stadium.

Most remained skeptical.

The three questions Lian Sheng asked, while incisive, also demonstrated her complete lack of situational awareness. In such turbulent battlefield conditions, instead of quickly finding someone knowledgeable to take command and stabilize morale, they were calling upon a rookie foot soldier.

If Alliance University wanted to promote their junior members, they were being far too obvious about it.

Lin Lie shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

The department head asked, "Major Lin, if it were you, what would you do now?"

"I'm not skilled at command. And right now, my opinion holds no weight because I'm not on the field - I actually have more information than they do." Lin Lie paused before adding, "But the Chu team's disadvantage is undeniable."

The Chu team's greatest loss wasn't just one commander and over a thousand points, but their plummeting morale and loss of initiative.

Though Lu Mingyuan was deputy commander, he remained primarily a data analyst. While command naturally devolved to him after the chief commander's death as an emergency measure, they needed to quickly establish a proper chain of command.

As a foot soldier, Lian Sheng might hold some prestige within Alliance University, but in this military academy tournament where Alliance University represented only a minority, how could she convince others to follow her orders?

Even if Lu Mingyuan wanted to install her as chief commander, it wouldn't be that simple.

"Yes, the situation is bad, but not yet at its worst," the department head said. "Lian Sheng's expression tells me that."

Lian Sheng couldn't quite suppress the smile tugging at her lips.

She'd wanted to quietly remain a foot soldier, but they hadn't given her that opportunity.

After all their previous orders and dismissals, it turned out she was simply born to command.

The infantry captain beside her asked in horror, "Is your face spasming?"

Lian Sheng shot him a disdainful glance and pushed his head away.

The infantry were retreating to camp to make room for the cavalry.

"I..." Lu Mingyuan glanced at the map. "I'm currently busy receiving reports. Someone briefly summarize the battle situation."

A captain snapped impatiently, "Wasting time at a moment like this? Explaining to a foot soldier? Just regroup already!"

Lu Mingyuan retorted, "Regrouping is what I'm doing. And she's not a foot soldier now - she's a captain."

"I'll explain," another captain volunteered. "My mouth is free anyway, not being used to spout nonsense."

The first captain, having been rebuked twice by Alliance University members, swallowed his irritation and stayed silent.

The volunteer explained: "Actually, the enemy has been strongly attacking the center the whole time, but with limited numbers - about one battalion."

A standard battalion comprised seven hundred soldiers. Due to participant limits, theirs held about five hundred.

"We initially left four battalions there, so we didn't pay much attention," the captain continued. "But for some reason, they became obsessed with center attacks, constantly sending more troops until their early point count plummeted."

"Then reconnaissance showed their forces were scattered across all routes. The chief commander saw no danger, so he dispatched one battalion to expand our map coverage." The captain added, "Our numbers were still sufficient then - one unit at the supply depot, two at the banners."

Lian Sheng frowned.

So those early points hadn't come from combat victories, but were freely given by the enemy.

"Of course, we remained vigilant! At first we thought they had some scheme, but after three hours, all we got was a pile of points with nothing else happening." The captain took a deep breath. "With numerical advantage established but still unable to locate the enemy supply depot, we sent another battalion to search for it. Nothing wrong with that!"

Lian Sheng thought he sounded afraid she'd criticize him.

Lu Mingyuan interjected, "I'm sending you the current troop distribution."

He sent Lian Sheng an additional message: "Lian Sheng, the second map shows enemy positions before their assault. Dotted areas are my estimates."

Early on, the Chu team had indeed scouted the Liu team's general troop distribution. But later, obsessed with expanding their map, they kept advancing and left the Liu team behind.

This resulted in numerous uncertain dotted areas on Lu Mingyuan's predictive map, mostly in lower regions. A careful observer should have grown wary.

But because the Liu team feigned defeat, with half resisting pursuit while half secretly moved downward, these "retreating" forces gathered at the Chu team's base. Combined with their original battalion, they launched a surprise attack when defenses were relaxed.

When maintaining advantage, it's easy to lower guard. With the Liu team constantly suppressed, retreating soldiers seemed perfectly normal. Having tracked the main force's movement, the Chu team didn't give it another thought.

What a brilliant strategy of feigning weakness to induce arrogance.

The captain continued: "Now let me explain how our commander died."

"The enemy suddenly appeared with about fifteen hundred troops - we were shocked. At first they attacked the banners. With only two battalions at base, losing the banners would be disastrous, so we temporarily transferred half the supply depot defenders as reinforcements while recalling midfield cavalry."

"But halfway through, they stopped attacking and diverted to the supply depot."

"That couldn't stand! With only half a battalion at the depot, they'd overrun it! How could we continue?" The captain inhaled sharply. "Though it's strange how they located our depot - but that's irrelevant now."

"Anyway! Our commander led troops to defend the depot, leaving banner defense to the arriving cavalry."

At this point, troop movements became chaotic, constantly shifting. Soldiers, unaware of details, must have panicked.

Frequent command changes amounted to suicide.

"But halfway through, they stopped again and turned back to assassinate our commander. Completely unexpected! Those mountain paths you saw - no room to retreat with the commander trapped in the middle. Rear lines couldn't see what happened, and by the time they realized, it was too late to fall back. The commander got pinned by his own troops. Then the enemy charged recklessly forward and killed him. Tch!" The captain said, "After the commander's death, with no immediate successor, the enemy seized the opportunity for more kills."

"We quickly regrouped to resist - our adaptability isn't lacking, truly. But mid-fight, their commander suddenly—shouted, 'Burn their supplies!' Damn it, they went for the depot again!"

Lian Sheng thought this captain's vivid storytelling practically painted pictures with his words, making his expressions easy to imagine.

The Liu team, taking advantage of their lack of command, kept changing tactics to toy with them and harvest points amid confusion. From the start, they'd never intended to capture banners or burn supplies - only to intimidate.

Had they actually destroyed the supplies, the Chu team, with nothing left to lose, would have blocked all escape routes, likely wiping out all fifteen hundred attackers.

Lian Sheng hated nothing more than people playing tricks over her head - it felt like mocking her intelligence.

The Liu commander clearly possessed remarkable daring. Their opening trap seemed blatantly obvious yet effectively concealed true intentions behind baffling moves, dangling irresistible bait.

Initial wariness eroded under mounting point advantages and constant victory reports, giving the Liu team their opening.

Risking a thousand points for such a trap - worth it?

Absolutely. Hadn't they recouped it all already? Plus bagged a chief commander.

The stadium erupted in laughter. Many had come just to watch or gather study material, never expecting the match to be this entertaining.

"I'm becoming a Chu team fan! One comedian, one legendary foot soldier - what is this?!"

"I'm stanning our school - both from Alliance University!"

"Shh! They're about to speak - quiet!"

The crowd gradually settled, clutching their stomachs.

During their discussion, the Liu team had eliminated the Chu team's scattered forces and taken the central checkpoint.

Current point count:

Chu Team (2021) : Liu Team (2250)

The lead had been overturned.

The Chu team had no energy to dwell on this, forcing themselves to ignore the numbers on their maps.

Lu Mingyuan asked, "Lian Sheng, what should we do now?"

Having reached camp, Lian Sheng stood with the infantry, shading her eyes as she surveyed the distance.

"Abandon the supply depot," she stated bluntly.

Silence filled the channel for a second before exclamations erupted: "What did you say?"

"I said abandon the depot. Should've done it earlier to claim those thousand points. With that advantage, we could end this within two hours." Lian Sheng said, "They've been using this leverage to extract far more than just one depot from us."

A male voice shouted, "Never heard of abandoning your own supplies! Are you a spy? Do you even know warfare?"

Lian Sheng: "Never heard of 'burning bridges'?"

"That's completely different!"

Lian Sheng took a deep breath and said sternly, "When someone threatens you with something, it's because they want to extract greater value. Don't expect any mercy from opponents - you're literally adding fuel to the fire, understand?"

The man snapped, "Easy for you to say! Anyone can talk strategy off-field! If they learn we abandoned supplies and start guerrilla tactics, can you guarantee eliminating over a thousand enemies in two hours? Don't be so arrogant!"

Meanwhile, the Liu team was regrouping while clearing the battlefield, preparing for a major assault.

Fang Jianchen and Zhao Zhuoluo guarded the banners. Squatting, Fang mused, "Actually... killing their commander might not have been wise."

It gave her legitimate grounds to seize command.

The Liu commander said, "'To catch rebels, first catch their chief.' What's wrong with killing commanders?"

Fang replied, "They still have another commander."

"They've got plenty! Their military program trains many." The Liu commander said, "So what? Can they compare to the original? Losing the chief commander is the biggest blow - how good can replacements be?"

The Alliance students silently looked up, thinking this one might surpass the heavens.

Ji Fangxiao said, "Relax, she won't take over so easily. This isn't an internal Alliance University competition."

The Liu commander asked, "Who are you talking about?"

"Lian Sheng." Ji Fangxiao paused. "That zero-point foot soldier on their side."

The Liu commander laughed uproariously: "Are you seriously scared of her? A zero-point foot soldier? Does Alliance University play this big?"

Another added, "I'll laugh about this for a year! What's wrong with you all? Commander Ji, I thought you weren't the fearful type."

Fang Jianchen shook his head mournfully: "You don't understand. Even though you're our commander, I kind of want you to die once too."

In this critical moment, the Chu team descended into arguments over their next move.

Lu Mingyuan said, "Everyone calm down. Panicking won't help - discuss properly."

"How can we not panic?" the hotheaded captain shouted. "The enemy's about to attack and we're listening to some woman's nonsense? A zero-point foot soldier who knows warfare? I don't care what Alliance University wants, but don't drag us all down!"

Lian Sheng suppressed her anger: "Have you ever fought a war?"

"More than you!"

"Without abandoning the depot defenders, we can't win a direct confrontation! Their two thousand versus our two thousand aren't equivalent, understand?" Lian Sheng's temper flared at the gender dig. "Our cavalry suffered heaviest losses in that chaos! How do foot soldiers fight cavalry? You want to suicide charge? Stop obsessing over your precious points!"

The captain retorted, "Then how do supplied troops fight unsupplied ones? Starve ourselves first?"

"Idiot!" Lian Sheng snapped. "Use your brain!"

The captain ignored her, triggering the system prompt: "Self-nominating for chief commander!"

Lu Mingyuan quickly self-nominated too.

"Enough bickering - let's vote." The captain said. "Choose between a zero-point foot soldier sending Alliance University to their doom, or me for one last stand. Quickly - we're out of time!"

Though Alliance University members supported her, military tournament selections were limited, with even fewer captain spots.

Final tally: Lu Mingyuan received four votes; the opposing captain got eight.

[Announcement] System: Chu team command transferred.

Lian Sheng: "..."

Lu Mingyuan: "..."

Lian Sheng sneered, "Heh."

---

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