Chapter 579: From this moment on, the offense and defense are reversed

Did everyone hear that?

Hmm.

Do whatever needs to be done; don't worry about the rear. The enemy's goal is to disrupt our judgment and interfere with our frontline battle plan. The supply vehicles transporting ammunition have left early, but it's not a serious problem. Just follow your plan.

The Red Side commander said sternly: "We can delay a bit, using small-scale, phased weakening attacks to disturb the enemy's judgment, making them mistakenly think our frontline ammunition is really running low."

Make sure the battle is completely over by midnight at the latest; twelve full hours should be enough to seize all of the Blue Army's positions, at the very least to cripple them.

As for those two sneaky Blue Army 'cockroaches' in the rear who are good at hiding and evading, I'll send extra people to track them down; I won't let Lu Yang continue his wanton destruction.

Yes!

Huang Honghui hung up the comms, immediately summoned the platoon leader below, organized a team to flank from the side, and kept a constant watch on every enemy move.

At the same time, he began adjusting the battle plan, preparing to use continual weakening attacks to cause the Blue Army headquarters to misjudge the battlefield situation.

In fact, Huang Honghui was building up strength, waiting for the moment the Blue Army let down its guard, then he would strike hard and scatter them completely.

Meanwhile, in the Blue Army headquarters, Wang Zhongxi had also just learned this good news.

He lit a cigarette, a smile spreading across his face; beside him, Tan Yuanzhou, unconcerned with his image, kept punching the air.

It feels so relieving, so relieving!

Again taking out logistics, and again taking out that information-technology soldier!

Lu Yang, you've been missing for two and a half days, and you really pulled off a big one; silent until now, you've made a stunning debut!

On that side, Lu Yang was directly contacting the other party via mobile phone; radio is easier to jam, while civilian communications work better.

The main reason is that Xiao Tang's director was taken out; otherwise, with someone capable of tracking heat sources and locking onto signal origins, he wouldn't dare initiate contact, fearing exposure of his position.

Wang Zhongxi asked: "Lu Yang, how safe is your current situation?"

Lu Yang: "Kang Changyi died covering our retreat; Ding Tengfei and I escaped and are now hiding in a thicket. With few of us and a small target, we should be safe for now."

"Commander, how's the situation on your end? Can you hold? Should we come back to help?"

Wang Zhongxi shook his head: "No need, you're just two people; by the time you get back, the fight will almost be over. As you said, the Red Side's reserve supplies have already set out and should reach the front around noon."

Also, they're likely to send another batch of supplies by sea, though it will take longer.

Your next task is to lie low within Red Side territory, waiting for an opportunity as before.

Yes.

After the call ended, the regiment chief of staff immediately inquired: "Commander, Lu Yang's combat command skills are not bad; why not let him find a chance to return? An extra person means extra strength right now."

Wang Zhongxi shook his head: "Your vision is a bit shallow; you're only noticing this battle at hand."

The regiment chief of staff didn't understand: "You mean...?"

Tan Yuanzhou said calmly: "The commander means that if Gao Feng and his team can hold out until the very last moment, the Blue Army will sound the charge for a counterattack; then Lu Yang will be our eyes, a nail we've planted in the Red Side's heartland."

"Even though only two of us remain, as long as this nail is planted in Red Side territory, it will keep them restless."

Wang Zhongxi wore a grave expression: "Although Lu Yang's side cut off Red Side logistics and blinded one of their eyes, the frontline situation remains far from optimistic."

"The enemy still has enough ammunition for several rounds of attack; we don't know where their reserve ammo is coming from, nor can we intercept it."

"All we can do now is hold our ground; if Gao Feng can withstand wave after wave of enemy assaults and fight to the end, we still have a chance to turn the tide."

Tan Yuanzhou nodded: "I just don't know if he can endure, if he can hold on to the end."

Wang Zhongxi: "He definitely can!"

Regiment chief of staff: "Commander, I have a suggestion; let Ma Qing'an lead Zhou Kaidong and the others to try to flank when the enemy attacks, harassing Red Side's rear from multiple directions."

"Numbers don't need to be many; the point is harassment, just like Lu Yang's pair or trio, mainly to cause nausea."

"This way, it will not only disrupt Red Side's attack formations, but also ease some pressure on Gao Feng and the troops on the position—what do you think?"

"Not a bad idea!"

Wang Zhongxi immediately adopted the idea.

Ironhead Golden Bell Iron Cloth, sworn to defend the position to the death.

Iron Foot used its high mobility to launch harassment from the rear.

Plus, Lu Yang's small group, rooted in Red Side's heartland, would occasionally pop up to strike.

The combined efforts of all sides let Wang Zhongxi see hope of a turnaround victory, his fighting spirit burning brightly.

He had people spread Lu Yang's victories, so everyone in the Blue Army could see the dawn of victory and rekindle their fighting spirit!

The sun gradually rose to the zenith, then slowly sank westward, shifting from golden to fiery red.

On the drill field, the battle had reached a white-hot stage.

Red Side soldiers launched charge after charge, exerting all their strength to completely breach the Blue Army.

But Gao Feng, combining terrain advantage with crossfire cover, turned the Blue Army's last position into an impregnable copper wall and iron barrier.

The sky gradually darkened until it was black, and the tug-of-war over this small area never ceased.

After several days of high-intensity operations, plus continuous fighting lasting ten to twenty hours, Huang Honghui's body started flashing warning signs.

Not only was his backside sticky and messy, his bleeding was so severe that even a sanitary pad couldn't contain it; the physical toll of high-intensity combat worsened his condition severely, even causing his gun-hand to tremble, possibly from excessive blood loss.

What's worse, the ammunition brought up by supply has nearly been exhausted; if the next assault can't take that position, we'll truly have only retreat left, waiting for another chance.

A grimy-faced platoon leader ran up, crouching: "Deputy battalion commander, ammo is low, troops' condition is deteriorating—let's withdraw!"

Huang Honghui gritted his teeth and said stubbornly: "Just a little more, just a little more and we'll break through!"

"Deputy battalion commander, don't bother—every time it's just a little short; we've tried several times already, the Blue Army are unkillable little cockroaches!"

"If we had ample ammo we could surely beat them, but isn't the problem that ammo supply can't keep up?"

"If the next round still can't break through, our remaining ammo is nowhere near enough to fend off their counterattack."

"Then the offense and defense will flip; we'll be the ones they chase, and besides, the Blue Army has a bunch of speedy legs who occasionally come to harass—can't catch them, can't kill them."

"Yeah, while we still have strength, let's withdraw quickly; as long as the green hills remain, we're not firewood-less—we can pull the line back a bit, wait for the sea-borne supplies to arrive, finish equipping, and then it'll be the Blue Army's doom!"

Despite many around urging him to give up, Huang Honghui simply refused to compromise.

He promised the commander to secure victory, at least to cripple the Blue Army.

But now none of that has been achieved; instead, this stalemate has turned the battlefield into a tug‑of‑war war of attrition.

Looking at the not‑far‑away position that could not be taken, Huang Honghui pounded the ground with his fist, his heart full of unwillingness.

"Rest ten minutes, eat something to replenish fluids; this last time, don't bother with the harassing people in the rear, launch the wedge assault all at once forward—who knows......"

Before Huang Honghui could finish speaking, the communications operator ran over with the radio on his back, handed him the telephone, saying it was a call from headquarters.

"Commander, I'm Huang Honghui!"

"Withdraw."

The voice on the other end, sounding somewhat helpless: "Withdraw to the middle position, build a defensive emplacement, wait for the sea‑borne supplies to arrive before making further plans."

Huang Honghui fell silent for a moment, then finally squeezed out that word from between his teeth: "Yes......"

Although the commander did not blame him, he felt deeply responsible and, helpless, could only issue a full retreat order.

Seeing the Red side organizing a retreat, Ma Qing'an had Zhou Kaidong and Chen Panpan keep following, to prevent them from feigning, as the strategic withdrawal was actually a counter‑attack.

After thoroughly confirming they had been repulsed, he hurried back to the Blue Army position and excitedly delivered the news to Gao Feng, who was holding the post.

"Gao Feng, the Red side has retreated, we've beaten them back!"

"Old Gao, why aren't you speaking? Give some reaction, smile a bit!"

"You've blocked the Red side's repeated attacks, successfully held our last piece of ground—you're a hero!"

Ma Qing'an kept shaking Gao Feng's shoulders, but Gao Feng was like a soul‑less puppet, dull and unresponsive.

Only after he slapped Gao Feng twice did the fellow's eyes gradually regain focus, like a network lag.

"You, what are you saying?"

"The Red side has withdrawn?"

"Not a feigned retreat, but a genuine collective withdrawal?"

Gao Feng turned his head mechanically like a marionette, looking at the troops on the position—just as dust‑covered and numb‑eyed as he was.

"Brothers, we… seem to have actually held on?"

"Wow!"

The next second, a muscular guy released his grip on the heavy machine gun, plopped onto the ground, covered his face and burst into tears.

Kong Long hugged his knees, the muscular man in tears: "It's too hard, too damn tough, this battle makes me want to die, makes me want to vomit… ugh, ugh!"

Wan Baoshan also plopped onto the ground, his dirty face numb, the small eyes that should have shown shrewdness and calculation lost their original luster.

"Twenty‑five hours, exactly twenty‑five hours; I didn't dare leave the position for a moment, I just pissed straight into my pants—wet, dry, dry, wet."

"It stinks and is filthy; even I damn well despise myself; it's too disgraceful, too nauseating—I want to change my pants, I want to wash them with water."

Guo Yongwen's eyes also reddened; he strode up to Gao Feng and gave him a big hug: "Company Commander, we did it, we really did! The spirit of the hard bone hasn't been lost, hasn't been lost!"

Gao Feng's nose felt sour; he quickly lifted his head, afraid tears would stream down his cheeks: "It's just that we pushed the enemy back; we didn't win, what's there to get excited about?"

"Whether the hard‑bone spirit is lost or not, how could I not know? Wherever I go, I am that hardest bone!"

"Get lost, you stinking lot; even you big‑man‑girls whispering aren't ashamed enough!"

Ma Qing'an cleared his throat and shouted loudly: "Come on, tell me, is your company commander handsome today?"

"Handsome to the max!"

"Cool or not?"

"Cool to death!"

Ma Qing'an eased the atmosphere with a joke, slightly relieving the soldiers' physical and mental fatigue.

Wang Zhongxi and Tan Yuanzhou also left the headquarters at risk, specifically bringing bread and water to the front line to comfort Gao Feng and the hard‑fighting soldiers.

He even undid his belt, offering to take off his pants and give them to Wan Baoshan, which frightened Wan Baoshan into waving his hands in refusal, saying, "How embarrassing would that be?"

Soon, Lu Yang's side also learned of the Red side's retreat; he stood on high ground looking south toward the sea, a faint smile curling his lips.

"Now the offense and defense have switched!"