Chapter 1461: Chapter 1378: Let Them Name Their Terms

The officers and soldiers of Tang Country’s 7th Corps, who had been adrift at sea for half a month, finally felt the pain of the 9th Group Army. They truly felt that it would have been better if they had entered Shu Territory from the entrance of Shu.

While almost vomiting, these soldiers climbed onto the beaches of Shu Territory. They did not encounter any resistance from the Qin Army because the chosen landing site had already been bombed flat by Tang Country’s Navy Air Force.

In the area of over 30 kilometers nearby, only one regiment of troops from Qin Country was stationed. After the soldiers at the sentry post saw the fleet of Tang Country, the People of Qin fled.

In the past, this was almost unimaginable: the garrison of Qin Country fleeing without a fight, leaving behind only bomb-destroyed empty trenches and some debris.

Indeed, after taking over these positions, the Tang Army found various things that could be called junk inside: all sorts of materials and miscellaneous items, almost no different from a scrap station.

The People of Qin lacked too many things while constructing the defenses, so they had to make do with whatever they had on hand: door panels from demolished houses, broken raincoats, pots, bowls, and pans from common folks, along with stones and broken bricks.

Calling it a position would be less accurate than calling it a living area, and a poor one at that. In the past, perhaps such areas could be seen within the Great Tang Empire, but those were labor camps for Goblins and Orcs…

The soldiers of the Great Tang Empire did not understand why these Qin soldiers fled without fighting, but Eric believed that the Qin Army would soon launch a counterattack.

So he ordered the troops to disembark quickly and sent heavy weapons and equipment ashore. Yet after a round of busy activity, as the sky gradually darkened, the Tang Army hadn’t encountered even a decent shelling from the enemy throughout the day.

When the Tang Army’s Type 59 tanks landed and the armored reconnaissance units began to expand and control the surrounding area for dozens of kilometers, they realized that the nearby Qin Country troops were indeed scarce.

Under the bright lights for the whole night, the Tang Army unloaded a large number of troops, along with ammunition and heavy equipment. Early the next day, Eric, now well-prepared, launched a proactive attack.

After resting for a night and somewhat regaining their strength, the soldiers of Tang Country’s 7th Corps quickly occupied the nearby villages. Then they heard various cries and pleas from the indigenous peoples of Shu Territory.

The People of Qin ran away, taking their food with them. The reason they did not commit murder was because they wanted to keep these people to slow down the advancing Tang Army.

Earlier, there was only one division of Qin Army stationed here, with one regiment ordered to guard the beachhead landing area for the Tang Army. Unfortunately, last night, this regiment had already left.

All that was left here was a broken-down jeep, which seemed to be from the early years when the Great Tang Empire assisted Qin Country.

The Tang Army commander, stunned in place, could not understand why such things happened. Before landing, they were repeatedly told about the dangers of amphibious landings and the bravery and combativeness of Qin Country’s troops.

Yet, the fact in front of them was that the People of Qin ran away… without firing a single shot! Apart from the seasickness aftereffects, they barely encountered any difficulties after landing.

Compared with previous landings, the Tang Army’s organization and landing experience had matured significantly. The landing craft coordinated perfectly, greatly improving the speed of disembarking the troops.

Plus, there was no enemy counterattack. The beachhead troops were orderly, without the interference of self-deployed smoke, making the scene look much clearer.

The Engineer Corps quickly set up a floating pier, and transport ships began to approach and unload troops, significantly improving efficiency again. The reconnaissance units began to expand their search range, and the Qin Army planes appearing near the landing site were expelled by Tang Country’s carrier-based aircraft.

Apart from shooting down two enemy planes, no form of battle erupted. The previously estimated bloody fight turned into a complete spring outing.

Afterward, Eric’s follow-up troops and supplies began to land in succession, and the news that tens of thousands of Tang Army soldiers had landed more than 150 kilometers away from Qingluan Port almost simultaneously reached Sun Guang’s ears.

He did not expect the Tang Army to be so conservative, but now the opponent had landed and was far from the main area he was responsible for defending.

Zhang Xuan’s position was relatively safe, so Sun Guang immediately made a correct decision: fortify the defenses, stand firm, and never counterattack!

His judgment was extremely accurate: he could not defeat the Tang Army, and gathering troops would easily be targeted and destroyed by Tang Army’s carrier-based aircraft. The idea of pushing the Tang Army back into the sea was naive and ridiculous, as the Qin Army did not have such field battle capabilities.

So, instead of wasting valuable strength on a counterattack, it was better to honestly fortify the defense and wait for the Tang Army to hit them.

Furthermore, he ordered the nearby Qin Army to retreat immediately and assemble in the direction of Qingluan Port, ensuring that the Tang Army could not capture any Qin Army units after landing.

After three more days, Eric found that almost all of his troops, and even the 6th Group Army fighting in Chu Territory, had established tenuous contact, yet the Qin Army still showed no intention of counterattacking.

At this point, he finally confirmed that the Qin Army had no plans to counterattack, and their strategy was to wait for his action. As a result, the 7th Corps began its offensive, advancing more than 50 kilometers within two days, crushing the unsettled Qin Army and bringing Qingluan Port, where Sun Guang was located, to within less than 100 kilometers of the front line.

In the Imperial Palace of Wuyang City in Qin Country, Ying Duo, only a few hours later, heard about the Tang Army landing in Shu Territory. The thing he feared most had finally happened.

The perfect model of Shu Territory’s money and grain supporting Qin Territory’s soldiers was finally broken. Qin Country’s treasury and granary were about to be lost. For Qin Country, this blow was undoubtedly fatal.

Now, Ying Duo had to start considering how the Great Qin Empire would continue fighting in the future after losing Shu Territory and Chu Territory.

“Tang Country still refuses to agree to negotiations?” With no other options, Ying Duo looked toward the previously diplomatically silenced minister.

The other party, looking bitter, lowered his head and replied, “Your Majesty! The conditions offered before… the Tang People do not want to accept.”

He actually wanted to complain that, previously, the terms given in the rift between Qin Country and Great Tang were nowhere near those of a defeated country. It was more like mocking Tang Country, right? Without mentioning territorial concessions or reparations, it seemed like saying restoring the pre-war state was a big favor to Tang Country… Why would anyone negotiate with you on this?

“This time, ask them… what they want! Let them set the terms! I want to see what my good son-in-law dares to ask of me.” Ying Duo ordered, gritting his teeth and clenching his fist.