Chapter 1181: Offense is the Best Defense

Jiang Xuan was anxious after being overruled; he wasn't anxious because his strategy had been rejected, but simply because the military situation was urgent and they needed to come up with a countermeasure immediately!

Right now, Liu Zheng was also very anxious.

After all, the situation was not favorable for him, and it had been a long time since he had encountered such a disadvantageous matchup.

Liu Zheng was deep in thought, and seeing Liu Zheng like this, Jiang Xuan grew anxious.

"Young Master, make a decision."

"What are we going to do if things go on like this?"

"If Suez is lost, then all our previous efforts will have been in vain!"

"Don't disturb him; he should have a method soon," Xie Chan said, frowning.

Xie Chan understood Liu Zheng; with Liu Zheng in such deep thought, a method should emerge very soon.

Half an incense stick of time later, Liu Zheng finally spoke.

"Order Nashadier's troops to withdraw from Egypt back to the Sinai Peninsula."

"What? Withdraw? Young Master, are we giving up on the Canal? If we withdraw, we will lose half of the control over the Canal."

"That's right, even if we cannot fight them head-on, we should seek other methods. Once we give the opposite bank of the Canal to them, it won't be easy to take it back."

It wasn't just Jiang Xuan; Ling Chen was also strongly urging Liu Zheng.

Although Xie Chan did not understand war, she also found it incredible; why would Liu Zheng make such a choice?

Wouldn't this be...

"Who said I wanted to give up control of the Canal?" Liu Zheng asked with a smile.

These words left the few of them completely bewildered.

Wasn't it you who said you wanted to withdraw the troops? If they withdraw from Egypt proper, the Britain army will inevitably occupy the riverbank, and at that time, it will be "ruling by dividing the river." If the other side occupies the initiative, they'll be screwed!

"Retreating is because I want to attack; offense is the best defense."

Liu Zheng chuckled.

"?"

The group was all confused, unable to understand what Liu Zheng meant at all.

"The strength gap between the enemy and us is vast. If we wait for the Britain army to attack, that is just waiting for death. Withdrawing the troops is to lull them into a false sense of security, so that when they least expect it, we can send troops to deal the enemy a heavy blow!"

Liu Zheng felt that this was feasible.

"Does the Young Master mean to 'openly repair the plank road while secretly crossing the Chencang'?"

Jiang Xuan's eyes lit up.

"Correct! That is exactly what I mean! Alright, let's take action."

Regarding the order to withdraw, Nashadier did not hesitate at all, because when he heard that Britain had an army of one hundred thousand, he was nearly scared to death; he had been afraid that Liu Zheng would make him hold the line to the death.

After all, these fifty thousand men were his last bit of capital; if he exhausted this little bit of capital, he would have even less say in the future.

The laborers and soldiers building the fortresses withdrew to the Sinai Peninsula in batches by boat. Because it was organized and they had the cover of the Yinzhou fleet, the Britain army did not dare to pursue.

Liu Zheng's withdrawal was, for Britain, both unexpected and within reason.

What was unexpected was that they did not think Liu Zheng, a person who never suffered a loss, would actually compromise and step back.

Could it be that he really didn't want Suez anymore?

This was completely unlike Liu Zheng's personality!

What was within reason was that the strength gap between the two sides was vast; even if Liu Zheng held the line to the death, he might not be able to hold it. The only method was to withdraw to the Sinai Peninsula and defend based on the dangerous terrain.

This made Governor Hans overjoyed. He had originally thought this would be a tragic and bitter battle, but he didn't expect that before the great battle even began, they had only conducted an exercise and scared Liu Zheng and his men back to the other side of the river!

Although the difficulty of crossing the river to fight was great, winning without a fight boosted their morale significantly. Furthermore, most of Nashadier's soldiers were Cavalry, and only a small number of units had the ability to fight along the river. He believed that it wouldn't be long before their military flag could be planted on the land of the Sinai Peninsula!

Hans had never fought the Longyan army head-on, so he naturally looked down on Liu Zheng, but Luojinsi did not.

The memory of the last crushing defeat was still fresh in his mind; Luojinsi did not dare to have the slightest bit of contempt for Liu Zheng.

Although Liu Zheng's move was truly a last resort, for Liu Zheng to "admit defeat" and withdraw before the two sides had even fought—was this really Liu Zheng's idea?

Being able to command such formidable figures as Qin Zhangfeng and Su Qi, this Liu Zheng was definitely not a simple character. Could he have some kind of conspiracy?

Even the current master of Australia, Xie Fang, was a defeated opponent of his.

His generals and strategies could block that tiger-and-wolf army, the Tsarist Russia Army, outside the central hub and leave them bogged down; could such a person be an ordinary person?

"Governor, I suggest stationing troops on the riverbank to avoid any changes."

Luojinsi thought for a moment and reminded him.

"There is no need for that. My soldiers can just stay in the military camp. If the Longyan dare to cross the river, my troops will surround them and wipe them out!"

Hans laughed heartily.

At a time like this, he still wanted to be cautious?

Cautious my foot!

He was holding an army of one hundred thousand; what the hell was he afraid of!

No wonder this Luojinsi was defeated; it was because he lacked the courage to take risks! These Noble young masters, which one of them wasn't a coward who feared death?

Hans had already made up his mind.

If Luojinsi was truly willing to yield all the military merit to him, he wouldn't mind helping him take back Australia after taking Suez!

"Governor, Liu Zheng is not a simple opponent. I still suggest that stationing troops on the riverbank is more secure. Taking Suez is an unparalleled achievement; Governor, please reconsider."

Luojinsi naturally knew that Hans was already getting carried away, so he hurriedly continued to remind him.

"Fine, fine, fine. Then I will send two thousand men to guard it."

It was a small matter, and Hans didn't want to argue with him anymore, so he agreed to his request. This was because Luojinsi had given him quite a lot of military funds this time, and these funds were very important to them, these poor army men. Of course, it wasn't just the military funds, but also the military merit he had promised him!

This was what Hans wanted most!

There was no need to continue this dispute with Luojinsi over such a trivial matter.

Hans immediately gave the order, commanding two thousand men to carry heavy weapons and rush to the riverbank.

Although there were defense troops, Luojinsi still felt uneasy; besides Hans's troops, he also dispatched several Scout Ships and Artillery Ships for support.

Hans's troops were stationed on the riverbank, and this worried Nashadier terribly.

Judging by the posture, they were about to attack immediately; looking at that aggressive appearance, their river defense capability might not be able to hold out!

Nashadier had a worried look on his face, while at this moment, a smile appeared on Jiang Xuan's face.

Stationing troops on the riverbank—this really was not taking their Yinzhou ships seriously.

"Young Master, the meat is served on a platter; shall we eat it?" Jiang Xuan asked with a smile.

"Do not worry about the Cannonballs, blast them to death."

Liu Zheng laughed.

With Liu Zheng's order, Jiang Xuan let loose; at his command, all the ship guns of the Yinzhou ships aimed at the riverbank where the British Soldiers were stationed, Cannonballs were loaded, and a hundred guns roared in unison.

Over a hundred Explosive Shells landed instantly on the British Soldiers' positions, and suddenly, flames soared into the sky.

The sudden shelling caught the British Soldiers off guard; the soldiers were blown into a state of chaos, wails filled the air, and soon, the riverbank position became a sea of fire.

The shelling continued incessantly; no one could withstand such an attack, and they fled the place regardless of everything else.

No one had expected...

At this moment, Liu Zheng's side had actually launched an attack!

How dared they!

And it was a naval bombardment! This left Hans's army

guards with absolutely no Method to deal with them!

Even though they also had Cannon, they simply could not aim accurately!

These Yinzhou ships were like ghosts, giving them no chance to aim at all. The Yinzhou ships' super-strong artillery attack capability instantly left this side with no power to parry.

The British Soldiers were stationed very densely, and caught unprepared, a few rounds of shelling directly caused over half of them to become casualties; in the end, only six hundred men escaped in one piece.

After a round of shelling, the morale on Liu Zheng's side instantly soared, while for the British, it was the exact opposite.

"What is the situation, what is this situation! How did he dare, how did he dare!"

Hans was furious.

Before the two sides had even officially engaged in battle, his troops had already suffered over a thousand casualties!

He did not hate Liu Zheng now; what he hated was Luojinsi!

If it weren't for Luojinsi asking him to station troops on the riverbank, how could he have suffered such heavy casualties?

He would settle this score with Luojinsi!

Luojinsi was also a smart man; when the cannons sounded on the riverbank, he knew something had gone wrong.

Disaster!

This was definitely Liu Zheng's Alienation Strategy!

Having thoroughly studied the Longyan "Sun Tzu's Art of War," his expression changed instantly.

This Liu Zheng was simply too wicked!

Although he had previously suspected that Liu Zheng might have ideas about this place.

But he had only been cautious and had not taken it seriously... because the location here was inherently the kind of position where the cost outweighed the gain.

But now...

He was a bit panicked; his relationship with Hans was already poor, and this time, because of his suggestion, Hans had lost so many troops, so Hans would definitely settle this score on his head.

With a great battle imminent, the commanders of the naval and land forces were at odds; this was not a good omen.

Luojinsi did not hesitate and rushed to Hans's Governor's Office at the first opportunity.

He had to do his best to minimize Hans's anger.

"Someone, tie him up for me!"

When Hans saw Luojinsi, his rage could no longer be suppressed.

A group of soldiers nearby had already surrounded them.

But Luojinsi's guards were no pushovers either.

"What are you doing, what do you want to do?"

"Stop, do not be rude to the General!"

Suddenly, these naval soldiers wearing luxurious equipment stood in a standoff against these rustic-looking land soldiers.

"Do not stop them!"

Luojinsi knew that the situation was becoming hard to explain, so he waved his hand lightly.

Hans's gaze at Luojinsi at this moment was already filled with fury: "Baron Luojinsi, give me an explanation for this matter! Otherwise, I do not mind sending you to a military tribunal again!"

Luojinsi smiled bitterly: "If I say this is the Longyan people's strategy, would you believe me, Governor?" Recently, pop-ups are severe; you can click to download to avoid pop-ups.