Warlords: Rising from the Northwest Border and Sweeping Across the Powers

Chapter 1203 A Request for Help from Nev Town

Khabarovsk Command Center, five in the morning.

"Emergency communication!" the operator suddenly shouted, "The Nev Town stronghold is under attack by the Northern Division, requesting emergency reinforcements!"

Lieutenant General Kulikov, the highest commander of the garrison, immediately stood up from the sofa and walked quickly to the communication station. He listened carefully to the message for help from Nev Town, and a gleam of brilliance flashed in his eyes.

"Northern Division?" Kulikov frowned. "Is a small Nev town worth all their efforts?"

Chief of Staff Sergei stepped forward and said, "General, this is most likely the enemy's tactic of besieging a point and attacking its reinforcements. They are trying to lure us to send reinforcements."

"That's right," Kulikov nodded, "Otto, the old fox, has this in mind."

At this moment, a young staff officer rushed in and said, "General, Battalion Commander Korzakov sent an urgent request, saying that they can't hold on any longer!"

Kulikov's expression suddenly became complicated. Korzakov was the nephew of the deputy commander of the Far Eastern Military Region. If something happened to him in Nev Town...

"Sergey," Kulikov turned to the chief of staff, "what do you think?"

"From a military point of view," Sergei replied cautiously, "we should not rush to reinforce. This is clearly a trap set by the enemy."

Kulikov paced back and forth, caught in a dilemma. As a military commander, he knew that this was a trick by the Northern Division to lure the enemy; but as a senior general of the Far East Military Region, he could not ignore the nephew of the deputy commander.

"Damn it," he finally slammed his fist on the table, "Order the 34th Armored Division to reinforce Nev immediately. Tell them to be careful and beware of enemy ambushes."

Sergei hesitated to speak, but finally obeyed the order and left. He knew that the political considerations behind this decision were far more important than military considerations.

Kulikov stood in front of the large map in the command center, staring at the location of Nev Town. He knew he might be falling into the enemy's trap, but under the dual pressure of military rank and family affection, he had no choice.

"Otto," he whispered to himself, "you cunning fellow, this time I have no choice but to play this game with you."

Northern Division temporary command post, early morning.

Otto sat at the conference table, his face serious and his eyes sharp. He stood straight with his hands crossed on the table, and the staff around him were busy and nervous.

"Division Commander," an intelligence staff officer walked in quickly, "We just intercepted enemy communications. The 34th Armored Division has been dispatched and is heading to Nev Town for reinforcement."

Otto nodded slightly, with a barely perceptible smile on his face: "Sure enough, they took the bait."

The siege of Nev Town was a naked conspiracy. Otto knew that the other side would never dare to abandon Korzakov. The nephew of the deputy commander of the Far Eastern Military Region was the best bargaining chip in his hand.

"Everyone," Otto looked around at everyone present, "our plan is going well."

Chief of Staff Delan nodded in agreement: "Yes, division commander. The enemy's reinforcements have entered our preset area."

"Very good," Otto said in a steady and powerful voice, "Inform all troops to carry out the plan. We are going to catch them in a trap outside the town of Nev."

He stood up, walked to the battle map, and pointed to the area between Nev Town and Khabarovsk: "This will be the key to our next move."

Otto knew that this tactic of besieging a point and attacking the reinforcements was a gamble. But he had enough confidence because he understood the opponent's weakness - under the pressure of family affection and politics, they would never dare to abandon Korzakov.

"Prepare to meet our prey," Otto said to his staff, "This will be our first step to open the gates of Khabarovsk."

In this carefully planned battle, Otto controlled the development of the entire situation with calmness and wisdom.

Khabarovsk Command Center.

"Korzakov, listen," Kulikov lowered his voice, trying to make his tone sound calm, "The 34th Armored Division is on the way, but you have to understand that we can't play it completely according to the enemy's script."

Korzakov's slightly nervous voice came from the other end of the phone: "General, I understand."

"If possible," Kulikov chose his words carefully, "you'd better find a way to... withdraw from Nev Town on your own. We can't let the initiative be completely in the hands of the Northern Division."

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a few seconds.

"General," Korzakov said hesitantly, "I... I must tell you that my wife Masha is here too."

"What?" Kulikov's voice suddenly became louder, and he almost dropped the phone. "You brought Masha to the front-line base as well?"

"Yes," Korzakov said, sounding somewhat guilty, "She...she said she wanted to come and see me."

Kulikov felt like his nose was about to be crooked. He took a deep breath and tried to suppress his anger: "Do you know that this is a military stronghold? It's not a resort!"

"I'm sorry, General," Korzakov whispered, "so now... it's difficult for us to evacuate."

Kulikov rubbed his temples hard, feeling a splitting headache. The nephew of the deputy commander of the Far Eastern Military Region not only put himself in danger, but also his wife.

"Okay, very good," Kulikov said gritting his teeth, "Listen to me, hold the position and wait for reinforcements to arrive. But remember, if anything goes wrong, you will have to wait to explain to your uncle!"

After hanging up the phone, Kulikov slammed the phone on the table.

"Idiot!" he swore under his breath. "Bringing your wife to the front is crazy!"

Chief of Staff Sergei stood aside, hesitant to speak. The situation was now more complicated, not only was Korzakov involved, but also his wife. This made the entire rescue operation even more difficult.

Kulikov looked at the battle map and secretly groaned in his heart. He knew that the Northern Division had made a brilliant move, and Korzakov's stupid behavior had plunged them into a deeper quagmire.

Khabarovsk Command Center, Operations Room.

Kulikov stood in front of the huge sand table, frowning. He couldn't let the Northern Division completely control the battle situation, and he had to find a way to regain the initiative.

&34；谢尔盖，&34；他转向参谋长，&34；调出第64装甲师的实时位置。&34；

The Chief of Staff quickly marked the armored division's marching route on the map.

&34；听着，&34；库里科夫开始部署，&34；我们不能按照北地师预想的方式增援涅夫镇。让第64装甲师分成三个战斗群。&34；

He used his baton to draw a route on the map: "The main armored group will advance from here, but don't rush directly to Nev Town. Let them deploy in this open area and form an attack posture."

"The second battle group will make a detour from the east," he continued, "carrying engineering equipment to open a retreat route for the Nev town stronghold."

"What about the Third Battle Group?" Sergei asked.

"The Third Battle Group is our key," Kulikov's eyes flashed with a sharp light, "Let them go around this mountain road and build a counter-encirclement position outside the encirclement preset by the Northern Division. If Otto wants to play a siege and attack the reinforcements, we will let him taste the taste of being counter-encircled."

The staff officers quickly recorded the orders.

"In addition," Kulikov added, "immediately mobilize the Air Force reconnaissance aircraft. I want to know the specific location of every unit of the Northern Division. We must not give them the opportunity to set a bigger trap."

"Notify the artillery," he continued, "prepare long-range fire support. Once the battle begins, put the greatest pressure on the Northern Division."

"General," Sergei warned, "such a deployment may delay the rescue."

"I know," Kulikov said solemnly, "but it's better than letting the entire 34th Armored Division fall into the encirclement of the Northern Division. Tell Korzakov to let him hold on for a while longer."

In this battle with the Northern Division, Kulikov decided to give it a try. He couldn't let Otto's plan succeed completely, and even if he had to rescue the town of Nev, he had to do it at his own pace.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he looked around at his staff, "let's get started. Let's show the Northern Division that they're not the only ones who can play chess."