Chapter 139: Establishing Oneself as King

After Chen Jisheng left, the office fell into silence. Lin Yu stood by the window, watching Shen City in the night, deep in thought.

"Sir," Zhou Wei broke the silence, "I don't quite understand. Why does the Court regard our Fourth Bureau as the greatest threat?"

He furrowed his brows and continued: "In terms of strength, each of the four great families in Jiangnan can mobilize tens of thousands of troops. In terms of influence, the Security Army and the Garrison Brigade are the legitimate forces of Shen City. Our Fourth Bureau is merely a newly established security agency, which by logic shouldn't attract such attention from the Court."

Lin Yu turned slowly, a faint bitter smile on his face: "These past months, our actions in Shen City have indeed been too flamboyant."

He walked to the desk and relit a cigarette: "Redefining the rules of the French Concession, forcing the foreign firms to pay protection fees, burning the Eastern Consulate, bloodletting the Eastern Concession... these actions have already been reported to the Court by the Great Powers."

"But sir," Zhou Wei said, puzzled, "aren't these all about defending national dignity?"

"That's the problem," Lin Yu took a deep drag, "our troops are summoned from the system, equipped with firepower far beyond this era. My background is also hard to verify. In the Court's eyes, an unknown, well‑armed force suddenly appearing in a Jiangnan stronghold and repeatedly challenging Great Powers' interests is itself a huge variable."

Amid the swirling smoke, Lin Yu's voice carried a hint of coldness: "In the end, the Court's view that we are the greatest threat isn't without reason."

"But sir, we are clearly..."

"Doing the right thing?" Lin Yu sneered, "Just look at the Da Qian Court! Closed off, isolationist, stagnant, causing the nation's strength to wane day by day. Before the Western Great Powers they are obsequious, retreating again and again, humbled to the extreme. Every time we strike at the Great Powers' arrogance in Shen City, we become a thorn in their side."

He slammed the cigarette butt into the ashtray: "Such a Court is obsequious to foreign devils, yet hits its own people hard. They would rather sacrifice national dignity to please the Great Powers. This Great Dry has rotted to the core!"

Zhou Wei looked at Lin Yu, having never seen him so angry.

"Perhaps the time has come." Lin Yu's voice suddenly steadied, but his eyes flashed with dangerous light, "It's time to turn our back on this corrupt Court and declare ourselves kings. This incident is just a fuse."

He walked to the sand table, looking at the markers representing various forces: "Since they want to push me to the opposite side, I'll show them what true power is!"

4 a. m., outside Shen City.

"First defensive line deployment complete!" the communications soldier reported to the Command Center.

Zhou Special Envoy stood before the sand table, watching the dense deployment markers. The Allied Forces had, within a few hours, built three concentric defensive lines, sealing off all possible advance routes of the Ghost Division.

The first line consisted of remnants of the Security Army and the Garrison Brigade. Every fifty meters a machine‑gun fire point was set, crossfire covering all possible approaches. The mountain artillery battery was scattered on rear high ground, ready to strike enemy armored units at any time.

The second line was the Lu Family's naval infantry. These seasoned veterans placed numerous explosive traps in streets and buildings, prepared to engage enemy armor at close range. Each block deployed at least one sniper team, targeting enemy observation posts and commanders.

The third line was guarded by two main brigades of the Sun Family. Gu Changfeng deployed his troops along the stretch from Zhongshan Road to Nanjing Road, constructing multiple anti‑tank positions.

Soon, a roar of engines came from afar.

"Enemy sighted!" the lookout shouted urgently, "Enemy armored units detected, advancing toward the first line!"

Zhou Special Envoy immediately ordered: "All units, heed the plan and intercept!"

On the first line, the Security Army's machine‑gunners stared tensely ahead. Quickly, a squadron of Leopard Tanks entered the view.

"Open fire!"

Dense machine‑gun fire immediately enveloped the tank column. Though unable to pierce the armor, the hail of bullets at least disrupted the tank crews' sight.

The mountain artillery battery also opened fire. Though the old mountain guns couldn't penetrate modern tank armor, the successive explosions and tremors slowed the tanks' advance.

As the battle reached a fever pitch, an urgent report came from the Zhongshan Road sector.

"Report! The Zhongshan Road sector has suffered a major breakthrough by enemy forces, the First Brigade suffers heavy casualties, requesting support!"

Zhou Special Envoy frowned: "Deploy reserve forces immediately for reinforcement!"

Yet when the reserves arrived, a gap had already opened in the Zhongshan Road sector. The armored units seized the chance to break through, heading straight for the second line.

At the same time, the Ghost Division's armored grenade troops began their assault. The German‑made MG42 machine gun fire was exceptionally fierce, suppressing many of the Allied Forces' fire points. Fortunately, the Allies' numbers were large, and fresh machine‑gunners soon filled the gaps.

For a moment, the entire battlefield became stalemated. Though the Ghost Division's firepower was fierce, the multilayered defenses and dense fire network of the Allies markedly hindered its advance. Especially in narrow streets, the armor had to slow down, giving the Allies' fire coverage opportunities.

"Interesting." Lin Yu observed the battlefield from the Fourth Bureau Command Center, "They actually came up with a good idea for a war of attrition."

Shiteyin was somewhat anxious: "Sir, should we let the Marshal's Staff artillery group..."

"No hurry." Lin Yu waved his hand, "Let them exhaust themselves for a while. Anyway..." he glanced at the time, "the day is still long."

"Sir, Chen Jisheng requests an audience." Zhou Wei appeared again at the office door.

Lin Yu set down the battle report: "Let him in."

"Commander Lin." Chen Jisheng hurried in, his expression rushed, "Just received word that the Court's reinforcements have already passed Qinghe."

"Tell me."

"It's the First and Third Field Armies stationed at Luzhou." Chen Jisheng pulled a intelligence file from his briefcase, "The commander of the First Field Army, Xiao Yunlong, a top graduate of the Military Academy, studied in the Bord Empire, excels in field warfare. He commands twelve thousand troops, equipped with Krupp 75 mm field guns and British Vickers heavy machine guns. Their artillery battalion and machine‑gun company are the Court's elite units."

Lin Yu nodded: "What about the Third Field Army?"

"Commander Chen Yue, a veteran general who fought in the pacification campaign. Its strength is eleven thousand, renowned for heavy artillery. Their heavy‑artillery battalion is equipped with the latest 105 mm howitzers, very fierce firepower."

"Marching route?"

"The First Field Army will advance along East Front Avenue, the Third Field Army along the canal line. At current speed, they can reach Shen River by the day after tomorrow." Chen Jisheng paused, "They have already begun planning tactical deployment. The First Field Army intends to break in from the east, the Third plans to establish artillery positions on the west."

"Logistics supply?"

"The Court has set up a temporary supply depot at Qinghe, stockpiling large amounts of ammunition. Additionally, over a thousand wagons have been conscripted to transport supplies."

Lin Yu stood and walked to the window: "How is the combat power of these two armies?"

"Both are Court elites. The First Field Army quelled the northern rebellion last year, the Third eradicated the western mountain bandits the year before. However..." Chen Jisheng lowered his voice, "no matter how good their equipment, it can't match your Ghost Division."

"Thanks for the information." Lin Yu gave a slight nod, "Tell Young Commander Sun to handle the upcoming matters directly."

After seeing Chen Jisheng out, Lin Yu turned to Shiteyin: "Looks like we need to speed up. Notify the Marshal's Staff artillery group to prepare for the final assault."

"Yes!" Shiteyin stood at attention and saluted, then turned and left.