CHAPTER 432: CHAPTER 432 WE’RE SURROUNDED AGAIN

"Blitzkrieg" on a strategic level means "attack the unprepared," while on a tactical level it means "strike the weary."

The idea is to never attack an enemy’s prepared defenses, as that would only mire oneself in a terrifying quagmire.

A tank is not a gun turret; its greatest advantage is its mobility. It bypasses strongholds and fortifications, using thick armor, cannons, and machine guns against virtually defenseless infantry.

This is the so-called "pincer movement" of World War II.

At the same time, frontline commanders of the German Army have significant freedom. They can decide whether to fight or not based on the situation, or even choose their attack routes, as long as the general direction is correct.

As a result, many orders are made on the fly, creating a lack of patterns that leaves opponents confused.

At this moment, Shire is bypassing Mons, for which the German Army had painstakingly prepared, even at the cost of blood and lives.

Originally, Fajin Han thought all this was worth it, but Shire’s maneuver rendered all of Fajin Han’s efforts and preparations futile.

A gap in the encirclement?

Shire had already constructed another encirclement on the outer layer, with Mons within it, so it certainly couldn’t be called a "gap."

City fight as the graveyard of tanks? Buildings and ruins making tanks immobile?

Shire’s tanks hadn’t entered the city at all, so there was no talk of a graveyard or being immobile.

...

Puville is a small village almost forgotten by time. There are over a hundred households in the village, and the total population is only more than three hundred. The only building that can be called a high-rise is the church located on the west side, but it is also made of wood like the other houses.

A few days ago, a large number of Germans poured into the village, breaking its tranquility.

Its location is just ten miles east of Mons and can serve as a reception point and transit station for the German Army’s breakout.

Thousands of wounded soldiers withdrawn from Mons also gathered here, their numbers were continuously increasing, making the field hospital overwhelmed and urgently needing cars, horse carriages, and other possible means of transportation to move them away.

The first to garrison here was an infantry regiment, reinforcements hurried from Charleroi. They were pieced together from several logistical units and mostly facing the battlefield for the first time. Hearing they had to defend against Shire’s troops, their faces turned pale with fear.

"This is not a battle we can handle."

"We haven’t received relevant training, and I haven’t even seen a tank."

"If Shire can defeat our tank division, why do they think a few of us can stop Shire?"

...

This was the dilemma inside the German Army’s defensive line, with its hollowed-out strength making it difficult to organize an effective defense.

Yet, they still built a field defense line outside the village, tasked with defeating any pursuing enemies to cover the main force’s retreat.

Before long, more and more German troops who retreated from the encirclement gathered here, eventually amounting to over twenty thousand. They were organized to reinforce fortifications.

After several days of preparation, the defense line extended from the small river in the north to the nameless mountain in the south, with multiple layers of trenches, barbed wire, and widened trenches to defend against tanks.

Besides frantically digging soil, they didn’t know what else they could do.

Major General Jornis commanding these troops looked somewhat disheveled. His 109th Infantry Division had been stationed in Combray a few days ago but was completely scattered under the assault of the French Army.

Now, he was commanding a similarly pieced-together group of scattered soldiers.

However, Major General Jornis still had confidence in his defense line.

"We don’t expect to stop Shire’s army," Major General Jornis said. "Our goal is very simple: to delay Shire’s offensive and cover the main force’s retreat. Just cover the main force’s retreat!"

Considering that there might be a large number of friendly troops retreating continuously, Major General Jornis opened a passage through the barbed wire in front of the defense line, wide enough for infantry to pass but too narrow for tank attacks.

Additionally, he placed thick wooden planks over the widened trenches as bridges.

The thickness of these planks was carefully considered, such that soldiers and cars could pass but not support the weight of tanks.

Major General Jornis also stationed sappers nearby, prepared to blow up these wooden bridges with explosives if necessary.

Major General Jornis set up his headquarters in the village and, with a glance, chose the church because it was the only high point in the village, and the surrounding was flat, allowing a few sentinels to have a panoramic view of a few miles around, except at night.

Except at night!

...

In the early hours of that day, Major General Jornis fell asleep on his desk.

Since taking over the defense line, he had been diligently seeking his deficiencies, thinking about any methods that could block Shire’s potential offensive.

Although they didn’t bring artillery out of the encirclement, maybe setting explosives could be a good idea.

Or organizing sapper squads to use bundled grenades to destroy them!

Damn it, where are our tank units? And the planes?

Why are they always nowhere in sight when needed!

In a daze, Major General Jornis was awakened by a series of dog barks. He looked alertly out the pitch-black window and vaguely saw a few figures.

"What’s going on?" he asked the communication soldier.

"It’s the villagers," the communication soldier replied. "They said they’re going to worship. We occupied the church, so they have to gather somewhere else."

Major General Jornis "oh" and remembered that today was Sunday.

He glanced at the candle behind him and silently crossed himself on his chest.

This is compelled by circumstances; God wouldn’t blame those who only wish to save their lives.

Soon, the village quieted down, empty and silent, except for a few early birds chirping on the branches.

Major General Jornis suddenly felt something was wrong. He took out his pocket watch and looked at it; it was 5:30 in the morning.

"Do villagers usually worship this early?" Major General Jornis asked.

The communication soldier looked puzzled. "I don’t know, General. Maybe the place they go to is far, like a church in the neighboring village."

Though speculative, it made sense; they couldn’t just gather in the open field!

Major General Jornis didn’t dwell on it too much, but a faint sense of unease lingered.

He lay back on the desk, thought for a moment, and decided to make himself comfortable by walking a few steps to lie on the church’s long bench.

Just then, a faint "rumbling" sound came from the darkness.

At first, Major General Jornis thought it was an illusion, but the sound grew louder and louder.

He suddenly opened his eyes, sat up from the bench, and listened intently.

His face changed drastically, and he shouted to his subordinates:

"Damn it, it’s Shire’s troops, it’s tanks!"

"We were deceived, the villagers didn’t go to worship but received news and withdrew from the battlefield."

"Combat readiness, everyone into the trenches!"

...

Before he finished speaking, the lookout on the roof responded: "But General, the enemy is not coming from the front; they are behind us!"

"What?"

Major General Jornis froze in place, the enemy behind them?

They were surrounded again?!