Chapter 78: Second Northern Expedition 3

The air inside the command post was like solidified molten iron, heavy enough to crush a person's breath. The Adjutant looked at Li Yuxuan's tense profile, his Adam's apple rolled a few times, and finally couldn't help but speak: "Chairman, perhaps… should we request the Chairman?"

Li Yuxuan did not turn around, his fingertips traced heavily over the Shangbu area on the Jinan map, leaving a deep crease: "No need to request." His voice was terrifyingly calm, like the dead silence before a storm, "If we request, they'll probably just tell us to go around and give up Jinan."

"But that's not the outcome I want," he snapped his eyes up, the red veins in his eyes spreading like a spiderweb, "If I don't grind these beasts into meat paste, my Dao heart will be unsettled."

The final words, burning with a resolve that would consume both jade and stone, made everyone in the command post shiver. They had never seen this Li Yuxuan—the commander who could always find Balance between profit and loss—now like a blade drawn from its sheath, its edge fully exposed, heedless of consequences.

"How many Japanese troops are in the city?" Li Yuxuan turned to the intelligence officer, his tone regaining a soldier's competence.

"Reply Chairman, the main force of the Sixth Division plus its attached units totals over 5,000 Japanese soldiers." The intelligence officer hurriedly handed over the troop deployment map, "However, they have occupied the core of Shangbu, relying on foreign firms and the consulate to build fortifications; their firepower is densely arrayed." He hesitated, then added, "Chairman, if this battle breaks out, it may trigger a full‑scale conflict between the two nations…"

"Conflict?" Li Yuxuan snapped his head around, his gaze like lightning, striking the intelligence officer's face, "When they slaughter our soldiers and civilians, kill our diplomats, how could they not think of conflict?" He seized the command baton on the table and slammed it onto the map, "Those outside the army, the sovereign's orders may be disobeyed! Today this battle, we must fight whether we want to or not!"

"How much longer until the forces are fully assembled?"

"The divisions are scattered around Jinan, the farthest in Tai'an…" the operations staff officer pinched his watch to calculate, his expression uneasy, "It may take between two and four weeks to complete the full gathering."

"We don't have time to wait that long." Li Yuxuan bluntly rejected, walked to the window and looked toward Shangbu, where distant gunfire could be heard, "If we let them firm their footing, strengthen their fortifications, how much more blood must our brothers shed? Has the German Advisor arrived?"

"Arrived, Chairman!" the Adjutant replied just as the tent flap was thrown open, Manstein, Rommel and others hurried in, still dusted with wind‑blown grit.

"Li, are you sure we should attack them?" Manstein got straight to the point, his blue‑gray eyes cautious— as a professional soldier, he understood the fire of vengeance, but was even clearer about the risks of international conflict.

Li Yuxuan met his gaze, unmoved: "I must fight this battle." He spoke each word deliberately, as if issuing a military decree, "Even if I am dismissed afterward, barred from commanding, I will not regret it."

Rommel exchanged a glance with Guderian, the former stepping forward: "Since it's decided, stop the idle talk. How many divisions can we mobilize here right now?"

"About fifteen divisions." Li Yuxuan pointed to the markings on the map, "Three Tank divisions are just outside Jinan city, five infantry divisions guard the outskirts, and the remaining seven divisions are within a hundred li, the fastest can arrive in two hours."

"That will be enough." Guderian tapped the defense map of Shangbu, "Although the Japanese have fine equipment, their forces are scattered across various strongholds; we can concentrate superior troops and defeat them one by one."

Manstein added, "First cover their fortifications with artillery fire, have Tank units break through from the east and west, infantry follow to sweep the remnants, and the air force suppress their fire points— the battle can be resolved in one morning."

"That's the plan." Li Yuxuan hammered the decision, "Discuss the specific attack routes, give me the plan in ten minutes."

Ten minutes later, the operation plan was finalized. Li Yuxuan picked up the telephone, his voice traveling through the current to all units: "Notify every deployable unit to assemble around Shangbu within one hour and commence the attack directly."

"Yes, Chairman!" a deafening reply came from the other end, laced with long‑suppressed fury.

In the command post only the rapid footfalls and the telegraph machine's ticking remained. The Adjutant watched the clock on the wall; each tick of the second hand tightened the air further. He knew that from the moment the order was given, the Fifth Army had embarked on an irreversible path— defying the potential will of the Chairman, engaging the Japanese head‑on, each step capable of unleashing a cataclysmic wave.

An hour later, the messenger, panting, rushed into the command post: "Reply Chairman, the troops have fully assembled around Shangbu! The three Tank divisions are arrayed, artillery positions are ready, and the air force is airborne on standby!"

Li Yuxuan nodded, walked to the telegraph machine, and personally drafted a Document: "The Japanese are massacring soldiers, civilians and diplomatic personnel in Jinan, a humanitarian atrocity; Chairman, please make a decision. Fifth Army Li Yu."

He handed the Document to the telegraph operator: "Send it out to the Chairman."

"Yes!"

The moment the Document was sent, Li Yuxuan turned and ordered: "After the telegraph is sent, shut down all radio stations."

"Chairman?" the Adjutant was stunned, "If we shut down the radio stations, we won't be able to receive orders from headquarters…"

"I know." Li Yuxuan's gaze swept over the troops outside the window, ready for battle, the Tank barrels pointing straight at Shangbu, "From now on, the Fifth Army will heed only my orders."

He intends to cut off every retreat, including his own.

The telegraph operator hurriedly shut down the radio stations, the machine's ticking ceased abruptly, and the command post fell suddenly silent, only the distant roar of engines remaining. Sunlight streamed through the tent's cracks, casting mottled shadows on the ground and illuminating the dust dancing in the air.

Li Yuxuan walked to the hanging Fifth Army banner, his fingertips brushing the silk stained by gunpowder smoke. From its formation to now, this army has borne so much— the principal's expectations, the brothers' blood, and his own obsession carried across time.

"Let's go." He picked up his military cap and put it on, the brim pulled low, hiding the emotions in his eyes, "Go see how these wolf cubs die."

The instant he left the command post, the roar of Tank engines surged like waves. The soldiers' faces showed no fear, only resolute hatred of the enemy. Rommel patted his shoulder and handed him a telescope: "Ready, Li."

Li Yuxuan raised the telescope, looking toward the Shangbu district's buildings fluttering the Sun flag, a cold curve lifting his mouth.

Those outside the army, the sovereign's orders may be disobeyed.

Today, beneath Jinan city, blood debts are repaid with blood.