First Battlefield Commander! - Chapter 230
Chapter 230: Finale: Night March
After Lian Sheng finished speaking, Zhou Shirui paused at the door for a moment. Then he stepped aside, letting Lian Sheng enter.
"Did you discover something?" Zhou Shirui felt panicked, then instantly understood her meaning: "Or did something happen in Districts One and Two?"
Lian Sheng walked to the computer. "Don't be too nervous. Let's prepare and wait for news. Alliance rescue forces should come, and the docking point will be chosen in the 16th District."
Zhou Shirui: "I understand."
The Alliance mech codes, although the mechs were locked and required approval to activate, served as a form of reassurance and guarantee for Gelen's 16th District. But everyone knew it was just for show. After all, the mechs were developed by the Alliance; would hacking a system really require going through Gelen?
Hundred Meter Flying Dagger's situation wasn't good, as could be seen from the few rough news reports from the 16th District. Some reports and crowds had even begun prematurely mourning Maxwell's defeat and the Alliance's misfortune.
This content represented the mainstream media trend, but its appearance in a region under Maxwell's jurisdiction was quite subtle.
The other side was likely probing, partly based on facts. The results proved that the 16th District was truly a retirement haven; the general public reaction was "Oh," slightly more engaged responses were "Really? I knew it," and special cases were: "Heavens! So this was actually true?"
The Alliance could only roll around in the ditch with Maxwell.
With the change in wind direction, Lian Sheng and the others had to become cautious.
"Mainly, be careful when sleeping, don't sleep too deeply, be alert to noises. Also, pay attention to internal room ventilation, window cracks," Lian Sheng said. "It's best to install an alarm by the door or window. Everyone, be more vigilant to avoid being tricked."
The group understood and took her words to heart.
After being assigned their respective mech passwords by Lian Sheng, they were too nervous to sleep. They simply huddled in Lu Mingyuan's room, taking turns keeping watch, and incidentally taking care of the two veteran night owls—Zhou Shirui and Lu Mingyuan.
Although they had quickly identified a suspicious area, they didn't stop further searching.
The target database was too vast for a comprehensive check, but their suspicion about this location gave them a sliver of hope that they might find special clues nearby to help deduce the position.
"Actually..." Lu Mingyuan's fingers stiffened; his old tendonitis flared up again. He rubbed the knots on his hands daily, sighing deeply. "I'm not very fond of mathematics. A saying from our professor back then was particularly true: whoever forces a data analyst to do the same work continuously is worse than a beast."
That was definitely aimed at driving people crazy.
Lian Sheng, worse than a beast: "..."
Being scolded by two data analysts every day, what had she done?
Both sides acted quickly.
First, the Gelen side.
It's unknown whether the escape of Barite's special son was exposed, or if he sensed the Alliance's restless movements. The day after Hundred Meter Flying Dagger finished talking with her, the entire 16th District entered a state of martial law.
The outer defense line of the 16th District was forced open. Starting with the network cleanup, the government cracked down on all improper speech. Street security was strengthened, deploying large numbers of guards for manual patrols. Electrical safety underwent secondary checks. Going out meant facing frequent identity verification. After twelve hours, all vehicles would be banned from city streets. All enterprises and factories were closed, awaiting rectification.
Faced with such obvious and sudden changes, the personnel in the 16th District found it hard not to react. Fearing the 16th District would be implicated as a war zone, public sentiment flared up. Helplessly, online speech was restricted, forcing them to direct their anger towards the Alliance soldiers still stationed at the airport.
A crowd holding protest signs and trash for venting blocked the airport entrance, only to be firmly held back by Gelen's riot police, who incidentally received the collective ancestral greetings meant for Lian Sheng and her group.
A group of people's guards in bulletproof vests, heads covered in rotten eggs, endured this baptism with immense frustration.
They wished they didn't have to block, but eight Alliance mechs were still parked inside. Those with weapons were the bosses; they acknowledged this boss. This crowd threw trash quite readily, but damn it, they were throwing it at their own people. How capable they were.
Lian Sheng wickedly waved her lunch in front of the crowd, waved at them, then smugly walked back.
A row of people holding weapons behind nervously watched her, finally escorting her back to the warehouse.
Civilians couldn't get in, but that didn't mean the police relaxed their vigilance towards them. During this period, surveillance shifted from covert to overt. Twenty-four hours a day, guns were aimed at them, almost never leaving their side.
To prevent accidents, they moved directly from their rooms to the warehouse. These few days, they lived in the Alliance's own security vehicles, parked outside the mech warehouse.
Lian Sheng was very bold, eating and drinking normally despite the circle of dark gun muzzles aimed at her. But Lu Mingyuan and the others couldn't bear it, suffering from nervous exhaustion.
Fortunately, they didn't endure it for long. The Alliance military soon issued instructions.
The Alliance indeed chose to dock in the 16th District and rendezvous with them.
When Zhou Shirui connected to the military internal channel using intelligence data, the operator on the other end fell silent for a moment, sighed heavily, then said with excitement and a hint of breakdown, "Comrades, I've missed you so much! Finally connected!"
Operating in foreign territory was also a huge challenge for technicians.
Zhou Shirui sent the precise location of the suspicious point to the Alliance's second rescue team. After discussion with their commander, they finally decided to choose a docking point in an area closest to the target location. They also agreed on the rendezvous time, reminding them to be careful. When news arrived, they should react promptly and evacuate.
"We will commence landing on the morning of the 16th. Operations are expected to begin at 03:00 hours, with a forceful breach via the fire line. We aim to officially land in the 16th District between 05:30 and 05:45. After successful landing, our side will contact local government personnel in the 16th District to guide the airport troops for rendezvous and evacuation. Please be ready to depart at any time."
Lian Sheng: "Yes."
Lian Sheng: "Yes."
"We cannot guarantee whether the Gelen side will use you as hostages during our forced entry. If the situation is unfavorable, the captain has the authority to make temporary adjustments and arrangements."
Lian Sheng: "Understood."
"Considering the 16th District is not officially designated as a war zone, avoid initiating attacks, avoid harming innocent civilians, avoid excessive destruction of city property. Under possible circumstances, evacuate safely, otherwise, public opinion will be against us."
Both sides exchanged known information.
Maxwell still had some remaining forces in the 16th District, officially transferred to Alliance command. They controlled a city-wide surveillance network and a small armed force, capable of helping the Alliance intervene in the battle at critical moments.
The first signal of war was the city-wide siren sounding throughout Gelen's 16th District, right on the second night.
Lian Sheng was staring at the flashing lights outside the vehicle when she heard it, reflexively pushing Ji Ban hard.
Ji Ban, who was sleeping slumped over his control console, jolted awake, his whole body bouncing, and instinctively pressed the hotkey beside him.
Simultaneously, dense gunfire erupted from all directions, hitting their vehicle body.
The others quickly covered their heads and crouched down behind the seats. The loud echoes reverberated inside the vehicle. Everyone saw bullets hitting the glass and ricocheting wildly, fearing the shell would be pierced.
Fang Jianchen shouted, "Damn, damn! They started shooting just like that, no hesitation at all!"
Facts proved that their Alliance-exclusive bulletproof vehicle was quite reliable.
Before the opponent could bring out their cannons, Moshi had already blasted open the warehouse's security door and rushed out. It blocked the front of the vehicle, deployed smoke and tear gas weapons, and began interfering with the enemy attack.
Seeing the enemy had deployed mechs, the riot police guarding the entrance quickly retreated. Lu Mingyuan seized the opportunity and drove the vehicle into the rear warehouse.
Lian Sheng pushed open the car door, slid out, walked to the mech, entered the password, and climbed into the cockpit using the tow rope.
Ji Ban fought for a while, finally waking up fully, and began buying time for them.
From entering the mech, equipping the sensor gear, to starting the engine, required several minutes. During this time, the opponent had already pushed high-damage cannons out from the shadows.
If Ji Ban used his mech to block, Moshi would definitely suffer considerable damage. But if he used violent suppression, it would cause large-scale casualties or building damage at the airport. Without any evidence, Gelen could arbitrarily tarnish their image based on the losses.
However.
Lian Sheng put on her gauntlets. "Ji Ban, switch to precise small-area fire, clear the line."
Ji Ban: "Understood."
Gelen still didn't understand manually operated mechs well enough. Manual mechs sacrificed flexibility and durability, but their strongest points were precision and stability, incomparable by human power. And its vast arsenal.
Ji Ban brought up the radar, confirmed all suspicious locations, opened the high-precision close-range firing weapons behind his shoulder, and fired with one key press.
The Gelen forces guarding the airport watched helplessly as a laser beam flew forward, cutting the cannon barrel in half. Metal fragments flew from the shell, and soldiers quickly retreated.
"How many barrels fired just now? Reconfirm the Alliance arsenal; how was such a large weapon hidden?" a Gelen soldier shouted. "Check if the cannon barrel is usable!"
Lian Sheng immediately rushed out from the warehouse. Raising the shield on her left shoulder, she hugged the ground moving forward, bypassed Moshi, pushed aside a row of vehicles and soldiers, clearing a path.
Zhao Zhuoluo and the others followed closely, accelerating and turning, practically scraping the ground as they slipped out through the path. Lu Mingyuan drove the car amidst the mech group. Lian Sheng brought up the rear, responsible for protecting the vehicle and Moshi's controller.
Leading the way, Zhao Zhuoluo directly raised his cannon, blasted away the airport's outer perimeter wall, leaped through the hole created, onto the surrounding ring highway.
A total of eight mechs jumped over the barrier in an orderly fashion, leading a pack of pursuers behind them, officially entering the main urban area of the 16th District.
Lian Sheng glanced at the time in the upper left corner.
04:11
There was about an hour and a half left until the Alliance officially landed in the 16th District. And their distance from the rendezvous point, even at full mech speed, required more than half a day's travel.
Zhou Shirui sent a message to the Alliance reporting the current situation.
He glanced at the vehicle body in the rearview mirror, shivering. "Pothole after pothole, looks a bit disgusting."
The forces left to watch them at the airport didn't seem to be strong armed units. After they ran, they didn't dare pursue deeply. They only came out after rearranging their formation behind. So no enemy appeared in sight, only radar detected movement traces further away.
Lian Sheng estimated the enemy distance. "Stop for a moment, change vehicles. Youxiu and Ye Buqing cover the rear. You three move the stuff over."
A car's driving speed couldn't compare to a mech's. For traveling, Moshi was indeed more convenient. Moreover, Gelen was already under martial law. Driving a car riddled with bullet marks on the road made them an even more obvious target.
No matter how well-equipped a car's bulletproof and bombproof features were, could it compare to a mech?
However, in this case, Moshi's transformation would be restricted, and its attack and movement weapons would become monotonous.
After changing Moshi to driving mode, the three painstakingly moved the control console and communicator onto it.
Sitting in the cockpit after a long time, Ji Ban felt a bit unaccustomed.
Zhao Zhuoluo and Ye Buqing unceremoniously blew up a section of the highway to hinder the enemy pursuit.
The ten set off again.
This stretch of road was still safe. The road was wide and straight. The mechs' headlights shone brightly, allowing them to see almost to the end.
Radar detected no ambush weapons; Gelen probably didn't plan to intercept them on this road.
As they officially entered the main city entrance from the ring highway, a large patch of light shone ahead.
Everyone roused their spirits, knowing the real tough battle was coming.
"Stay alert! Everyone awake?" Lian Sheng said. "Prepare for forced entry!"
"Detected mech control consoles. Quantity..." Zhou Shirui glanced at the display. "Dense."
Lian Sheng: "Analysts, are your descriptions always this abstract now?"
Zhou Shirui: "I just hope my abstraction can alert you."
Lian Sheng: "Very awake. Anyone still wanting to sleep can be granted eternal rest."
Ye Buqing's Fengxing, acting as reconnaissance, led the way. Reaching the toll booth, it slowed down, giving Zhao Zhuoluo a line of sight.
Zhao Zhuoluo extended his arm and once again forcefully blew away the station ahead. Using thrusters to jump, he beautifully entered the ramp, scraping the edge guardrail, arriving at the main road's three-way intersection.
Moshi, in its current form, couldn't perform this maneuver. It could only execute a series of drifts and fishtails on the twisted road. A series of bangs echoed at high speed; it was practically ejected from the ramp, finally spinning twice and stopping behind the comrades' mechs.
Zhou Shirui and Lu Mingyuan nearly suffocated during that flashy maneuver, feeling dizzy and nauseous.
This tested their skills immensely. Forget data analysis; they couldn't even hold their optical computers steady.
Silence fell over the channel, then suddenly Lian Sheng sighed.
The two data analysts clutched their heads and looked ahead.
Green belts lined both sides. Ahead, sensor mechs were arranged neatly like streetlights, spread across every street.
Zhou Shirui finally gave a non-abstract figure: "Current detection data, sixty-eight units. But I think they'll probably round it up."
Harry exclaimed, "Wow..."
Eight versus potentially seventy.
Back when Kafa fought Gelen, even at their weakest, they hadn't seen such a spectacular scene, and that was in a designated war zone.
Generally, main urban areas relied on automated gun defenses, large cannons, and aircraft as primary defensive tools. The number of new model mechs kept was at most around ten, already considered very rare.
After all, a mech was essentially a mobile arsenal. In one's own territory, simply lining up weapons was enough. Why play so many fancy tricks? Moreover, mechs kept in non-war zones generally had no chance of being used, yet still required training and assigning a certain number of operators. Simply wasteful, no, extravagant.
Sensitive political areas might retain over fifty mechs, but that situation basically wouldn't occur outside the top five numbered districts.
This deployment in the 16th District, concentrated in a small area, could be called quite shocking.
Lian Sheng: "They think that highly of us?"
Fang Jianchen: "We gave them time for sneaky development. If they still can't make waves, then I'd suspect Gelen's true motives."
Cornell: "Should we turn and retreat? Are there other routes to the rendezvous point?"
Lu Mingyuan: "There are, but they require a long detour and aren't easy to navigate."
Lian Sheng: "Never leave your back exposed to your enemy. Especially in an unfamiliar guest war zone, facing nearly ten times the enemy numbers."
Cheng Ze said woodenly, "And don't leave your Heavy Armor to your enemies; I can't run fast."
Hearing this, Heavy Armor did seem quite pitiful.
"Choose the left path! We'll take the shortest route! But the mechs on the right road will become pursuers. Let's force back the right-side mech soldiers first," Lian Sheng said. "The enemy should all be old model mechs. Heavy Armor covers the rear, I'll open the way. You guys play freely."
The primary goal was to break this situation of being surrounded.
Although ensuring the city's integrity was guaranteed, under these circumstances, avoiding destruction was almost impossible. Fortunately, personnel had already evacuated, minimizing potential bloodshed.
Lian Sheng and Zhao Zhuoluo helped blast an opening from the side. Fang Jianchen slipped through first under the cover of smoke.
Six mechs guarded the three-way intersection at close range. Seeing one slip away, they immediately opened fire. Jiugong simultaneously deployed weapons for interference and defense.
Zhao Zhuoluo snaked around from the rear to the very front, delivering precise follow-up shots to the three mechs at the right front intersection.
Both sides rapidly closed in.
At a distance of less than five hundred meters, Lian Sheng pushed her speed to the maximum. In such a narrow space, she nearly collided with friendly mechs ahead. She forcefully pushed Cheng Ze aside, then scraped past from the side, charging straight towards the several mechs on the left.
That momentum directly stunned the remaining enemy forces guarding the left intersection.
Sitting in the cockpit of a sensor mech, the feeling of oncoming impact was impossible to overcome. So they subconsciously took a slight step back, avoiding Lian Sheng.
Cornell seized the opportunity, raised his cannon, avoided the shops on both sides, and fired unceremoniously.
The path was cleared, and everyone rushed out.
The mechs from the right road turned densely, pursuing from behind, while the mech group ahead also gradually closed in. They had no numerical advantage. Getting caught in a melee would be extremely passive. They had to disperse the enemy forces and act according to the situation.
"Disperse collectively!" Lian Sheng said. "Run at every intersection!"
At the first crossroads, Cheng Ze and Ye Buqing split off, turning up and down respectively, then turning back onto the left route again.
At the second crossroads, Harry and Ji Ban broke away from the main group. Simultaneously, Cheng Ze and Ye Buqing looked for opportunities to further extend the battle line, dispersing a second time.
The battle situation completely scattered. Eight mechs drilled into different street blocks, spreading out like a fishing net. Their progress varied, but all were heading in the same direction.
Zhou Shirui: "Fang Jianchen, Fang Jianchen, if you don't know the way, look at the map! You're running further and further off course, almost back to the ring road!"
Fang Jianchen looked at the curve ahead, frustrated. "There are no straight roads here, but it's a one-way street, can't turn back! What kind of road did you guys open for me?"
"Blast it!" Lian Sheng roared. "Life is most precious, everything else is nonsense! If there's no road, blast one out for me!"
Fang Jianchen pressed his weapon. "Just waiting for you to say that!"
Lian Sheng and Cheng Ze took the middle path together. Zhao Zhuoluo escorted Moshi above them.
Both sides fought very politely.
This area was a bustling commercial district. Especially with time pressing and no chance for material evacuation, a single random shot could likely wipe out over a hundred million yuan. The Gelen forces felt the pain and couldn't bring themselves to fire carelessly, fighting very cautiously.
Only the road surface could freely absorb their bullets. Thus, the roads became pitted and cratered, with mutual cannon fire deciding outcomes on straight paths.
This actually helped them.
However, playing drift on city streets, with many blind spots, narrow roads, was still a very dangerous affair.
Judging by the opponent's speed, they seemed more inclined to use collisions for safe interception.
Lian Sheng was responsible for clearing the path for Cheng Ze. After repeatedly sliding sideways, a mech would appear blocking the center ahead. Jiugong hid its left side behind the shield, drew its long sword with the right hand, and charged forward. Using the target as cover, confirming other firing positions, then pushing it aside for aiming.
Comparing strength and hardness with the new model mechs, the opponent was simply crazy. This wasn't a simple one-plus-one problem.
The further forward, the more chaotic the scene became. Positions scattered, difficult to coordinate cooperation. Zhou Shirui and Lu Mingyuan were severely understaffed. They had to face different streets, eyes darting back and forth, becoming completely blurred.
They weren't worried about Lian Sheng and Zhao Zhuoluo's group. Fengyi's speed was fast enough, and the risk was relatively small. Moshi had already turned into a dedicated vehicle. The two focused on reminding the others about the map and planning routes.
04:52.
Zhou Shirui began preparing for the eight-person rendezvous. The forward troops slowed down and changed routes.
Fang Jianchen violently broke out of the main city area. Followed by Moshi and Zhao Zhuoluo, turning onto the middle road to rendezvous with Fang Jianchen.
Cheng Ze and Lian Sheng unfortunately encountered the enemy's main pursuing force, finding it difficult to break away temporarily, remaining deadlocked at the intersection.
05:09.
The Alliance command finally received and replied to their message.
Friendly forces in the 16th District understood the ten-person squad's situation and expressed willingness to help.
Non-mech combat personnel began appearing on the streets, patrolling and providing cover assistance for their retreat.
05:21.
The Alliance rescue force encountered strong resistance during entry. Armed forces strength was underestimated, progress hindered. Unable to land as expected. Lian Sheng and others were told to prepare.
The last two mechs, Heavy Armor and Jiugong, broke out of the main city area, officially heading towards the rendezvous point.
05:31.
The standoff continued on the Alliance-Gelen border.
The 16th District maintained network supply. Officials had no time to manage network security; online opinions began to explode.
Lian Sheng's team, en route to rendezvous, detected the pursuing force behind them reduced from eighty units to less than twenty.
Lian Sheng had the team slow down slightly; the data remained unchanged. The possibility of detection failure due to excessive distance could be ruled out. It was basically confirmed: the opponent chose to defend.
Lian Sheng changed direction, heading straight back.
The team stopped. Zhao Zhuoluo shouted, "Lian Sheng?"
Lian Sheng asked, "Played radio direction finding before? At times like this, it means the direction is probably wrong."
That was the only sports activity directly related to electronic equipment Lian Sheng participated in during university.
First, memorize the frequencies of different radio stations, adjust the channel, listen, run, find the hidden station. Besides sound, there was no other intelligence, but as long as the direction was correct, the direction finder's sound would become clearer.
"Why gather nearly seventy mechs in a small area? Of course, to intercept us, hold us as precious hostages. But, the urban area is developed and prosperous, unsuitable for battle. If I were them, I would first safely force the mechs out of the main city area, then in an open location, minimize losses as much as possible, and surround them," Lian Sheng said. "Firstly, the encirclement point shouldn't be set in the commercial district. Secondly, when we left the main city area, the main force should have continued attacking, but the opponent actually withdrew their defense."
They stayed, the opponent sent seventy mechs and bombarded overnight. They wanted to run, the opponent easily let go.
Cornell said, "Indeed, getting out was also very easy."
Fang Jianchen said, "...No way, we have to go back there?"
They only had eight mechs; the force disparity was no joke. If the opponent wanted to play with them, fine. But if they really played, the excitement would be hard to bear.
Who knew if they had other mechs hidden in the city?
"You suspect Barite's real location is still here?" Zhou Shirui said. "But according to Alliance feedback, the docking point, after calculation and analysis, most likely meets the requirements."
Lian Sheng: "Considering the team's overall speed, we are at least ten hours away from the docking point. When the Alliance successfully docks is temporarily unconfirmed. How many interceptions we will encounter during our march is also unconfirmed. Without the guidance and evacuation of the main Alliance force, relying solely on our database and your non-professional optical computers, completing a safe rendezvous is very difficult."
The conditions were very challenging.
Lian Sheng said, "The fact is, the Alliance rescue force doesn't need us, but I cannot let go of this small probability."
Everyone fell silent.
Lian Sheng said, "In another hour, the sky will probably start to brighten."
The pursuing mechs had already begun to approach. The opponent was somewhat confused, not knowing why they suddenly stopped, so they also deliberately slowed down.
Lu Mingyuan: "Then let's solve the previous group first?"
Harry: "Then strike while the iron is hot? Maybe finish early and still make it for dinner?"
"I'm not very resistant to hunger, so let's hurry," Cheng Ze said nonchalantly. "Forward or backward, both are dangerous. I prefer unconventional choices."
Lian Sheng exhaled sharply, facing the direction they came from. "Start turning back to the main city area now. Zhou Shirui, report to the Alliance."
Zhou Shirui: "Okay."
"Incidentally, remind everyone to turn on the omnidirectional combat recorder," Lian Sheng said. "Urban combat has a characteristic: if you don't want to destroy the city's civilization, the intricate streets and buildings become our natural barriers, helping us avoid being surrounded on all sides, even creating favorable conditions for guerrilla warfare. Piloting new model mechs gives us a powerful advantage. But with the city already empty, there's no guarantee the opponent won't choose to shift blame after we charge back in."
"Start with the eighteen mechs ahead!" Lian Sheng ordered. "Go!"
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