Chapter 581: Soldiers Surrounding the City!
Translator: Min Editor: Rundi
Santos still could not believe it.
Even when the joyous division commander of the 5th Division placed the report in front of him, Santos still could not believe that the victory came so easily.
Against the advanced equipment and sophisticated training of Country F’s troops, the guerrillas seldom won in battles. They only relied on terrain advantages as the armor units couldn’t traverse across the mountains and jungles. Therefore, they regained a little advantage in those battles. The guerrillas constantly tested the bottom line of Country F’s government through the stalemate.
However, with the support of Celestial Trade, his troops defeated two divisions of Country F’s government forces and advanced to the suburbs of City K again three days later. If it were not for the fact that Country F would not give up City K, Aquino might have brought up negotiations in exchange for the return of thousands of captured prisoners, two division commanders, and the Navy Admiral.
The fiasco on MLL Island was well beyond Country F’s capabilities and beyond the capacity of Aquino authority. UA’s reluctance to come to their aid may also be because of hidden reasons.
Originally the Army commander and the Navy commander vowed to him that they would surely win. Now, one turned into a turtle with his head shrunk in its shell while the other became a prisoner of war of Celestial Trade. Country F Navy had more than 120 ships in total. Almost all the ships were mobilized to demonstrate its prowess.
The result was that 101 ships were destroyed in the Pacific Ocean and more than 4000 sailors were captured as prisoners of war. Not to mention the grief of Aquino, the pace of Celestial Trade’s advancement also terrified the Capital on the other side of the Earth.
However, they also didn’t have a solution. After learning about the naval battle on the border, the UA president immediately contacted Zhang Yaping, who was currently in the Capital for a diplomatic visit. He expressed the hope that he would restrain Celestial Trade’s behavior. What he meant was: you already made so much trouble, it is time to stop. However, President Zhang Yaping expressed that there was nothing he could do.
Strictly speaking, Celestial Trade was a private military contractor and was not controlled by the country. It participated as a mercenary in the civil war and did not violate international laws. And since the UA was the largest “military contractor” in the world, their mercenaries were notorious overseas. From this perspective, the UA couldn’t denounce Celestial Trade.
Of course, the so-called jurisprudent was only excuses and sounded rhetoric. The real fear of the Capital was those weapons showcased in the war. Not to mention that the mysterious sky reaper, Aurora-20, the daunting ship-based electromagnetic pulse cannon was studied by the Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
It was one of the research projects carried out by DARPA. Yet even the state-of-the-art experimental electromagnetic pulse cannons equipped on its aircraft carrier now couldn’t reach the horrifying destruction they observed from their spy satellites.
One cannon shot that sunk the Hamilton patrol ship was something many UA warships could do. But one cannon shot from one hundred kilometers away that could put a hole through the ship, was a different story… Moreover, the precision was something unheard of at that range for conventional artillery. Also, the Aurora-20 demonstrated excellent performance in the dogfight with the FA-50, which also made the Capital cautious.
According to the assessment report, a conservative estimate of 30% loss to the aircraft carrier battle group was likely to result if UA tried to reestablish the non-flying zone in MLL Island airspace given the presence of Celestial Trade.
It was a conservative estimate! In peaceful times, a high loss was unacceptable to the Capital. The crash of the F35 already left the Capital in a mess with pacifists still surrounding the Capitol with signs and photos of the pilot.
What’s more, the strategic role of the aircraft carrier battle group was to contain Hua. Unwise intervention in the conflict between Country F and Xin would result in the disruption of UA’s strategic deployment in the region.
The outbreak of the zombie virus in City K gave the greatest headache to the Capital. Because of Country F’s control of the news, media reports generally suspected that the virus was a biochemical weapon deployed by Country F government in City K. Aquino did not have enough evidence to clarify this point, but just used “lies” and “slander” against the media.
Any mature politician would be aware of how foolish it was to scold the media. However, even the most mature politician would have a hard time remaining rational during this time. In many cases, it was not wise to publicly support the Country F government at this moment.
Of course, some politicians also proposed that Moro would leak the virus to the terrorists, given Moro’s current hostility toward the UA.
An appeasement strategy would be no different from a chronic poison. After all, there was currently no vaccine or antidote to control this virus. Once the virus was spread in a densely populated area, the consequences would be disastrous. Although the Walking Died had a good rating; this did not mean that the people really wanted their country to become a zombie land.
It was precisely because of this that some politicians also immediately proposed that the UA Marine Corps be sent to City K. Or at least peacekeeping troops, and the WHO’s medical team should be dispatched to bring the city into the joint control of the international community. Viruses that threaten human society should be managed by all of humanity…
As the Capital discussed which tactics to adopt, the Celestial Trade Marine Corps assembled in the southern mountain ranges of City K, redeploying artilleries using transport helicopters. The 5th Moro Guerrilla Division, after having confiscated Country F’s UA-made equipment, became the division with the most sophisticated equipment in the country.
After a short reorganization period, all prisoners were taken over by the 6th Division, and the 5th Infantry Division followed the path of Celestial Trade Marine Corps and captured the largest airport in northern MLL Island, City K International Airport, with the help of the Aurora-20.
With two divisions defeated in a day, Country F Army’s morale was completely destroyed. When they defended the airport, they didn’t offer too much resistance before they retreated toward City K. The morale of the 14th Division stationed in City K hit rock bottom.
The constant sound of fighters soaring above them made them hide under cover. The noise previously belonged to their allies, but now it has turned into a nightmare. They could only shiver in the bunker while keeping their heads low. The battles in the city was not as easy as the battles in the jungle, especially with Country F’s defensive stance.
The 14th Division was one of the most elite military units in Country F’s Army. Not only has it participated in the joint military exercises, but the two Motorized Brigades were the only modernized units that were appraised by the UA instructors.
As Aquino was determined to protect City K at all cost, Country F Army commander mobilized another tank brigade from the northern theater to strengthen defenses. In order to make up for deficiencies in their air force, the original decommissioned F-5A “Freedom Fighter” was also dragged out from the grave and entered service after some simple maintenance.
The F-5A accompanied the OV10 Mustang Fighter to fill the blank in their air force. However, Country F’s pilots were fearful toward the “Flight of Death”. Using F-5A to combat Aurora-20, which was unmatched even by the FA-50 was like using a toothpick to poke an elephant, they simply didn’t have the courage to climb into the cockpit.
With the low morale in the military, Aquino in a deep rage couldn’t do anything about this fate. He had to visit the army countless times to boost their morale through passionate speeches. But the soldiers’ reactions were mild; his speeches were received by sparse applause and more supercilious looks.
In order to not cause the leader to be sad, the observant Country F military officers gave each soldier a pair of sunglasses…
While Country F was in crisis, Tanaka from Takeda Pharmaceutical was under political inquiry from the Nippon government. The spread of the virus far exceeded the expectations of the Prime Minister.
Not only did Jiang Chen not die, Xin also put the blame on Country F and sent troops as a response. Country F was one of the strategic allies of Nippon, and Nippon was not willing to see one of its allies be attacked.
Country F served a key role in containing Hua in the region, especially given the close relationship between Hua and Xin lately…
Also, the mutiny committed by the F35 made the Nippon government fearful of Kurofune. The dog that was being raised by them even extended its claws to its master without their knowledge. CIB was now involved in the current investigation.
Nippon politicians knew how sensitive the UA was to conspiracy. In order not to bring trouble, it was necessary to train this disobedient dog…