Cannon Fire Arc

Wang Zhong had no idea that he had blown up the military department's cauldron, causing a huge psychological shock to the enemy.

He was focused on the imminent close combat happening across the river with the naval forces.

The navy's inland gunboat, seeing so many tanks approaching, promptly retreated back to the harbor for cover.

The machine gun positions on the eastern bank opened fire, with tracer bullets flying over the enemy tanks and falling beyond them.

The enemy infantry was already hindered by the mortar fire, and now encountering the overhead shooting, they were completely obscured.

Yet the naval infantry didn't rush forward but lay prone on the breakwater, waiting for the tanks to come closer.

When the enemy tanks advanced to within less than ten meters from the riverbank, the first group of naval infantry jumped up, lunging forward to a distance where they could throw Molotov cocktails.

The new model of Molotov cocktails Wang Zhong procured from the capital did not need to be ignited first; they would combust as soon as the cap was pulled off.

In critical situations, these devices could even be thrown directly, as the white phosphorus inside would ignite upon shattering.

The glow of the white phosphorus was like will-o'-the-wisps, tossing patches of ghostly fire onto the enemy tanks, breaking into areas of blazing inferno.

The tanks caught on fire and came to a halt; as soon as the tank operators popped their heads out, they were mowed down by the naval infantry's submachine guns.

In the blink of an eye, seven or eight tanks were aflame, and those further from the riverbank stopped, using their machine guns in an attempt to push back the naval infantry.

Just then, an enemy tank from the direction of the crossing charged down the riverbank, half of its tracks submerged in the water.

He pivoted the tank gun and began to strafe along the riverbank with the coaxial machine gun.

Immediately, several naval infantry were brought down, and the remaining men were pinned to the ground.

Wang Zhong grabbed the Ante-produced wireless radio next to him and called out loudly, "422! 422!"

Vasily: "Better use the captured one; I've set the frequency. Here."

Wang Zhong took the microphone: "422!"

"General!" The response came immediately; it was Alexander Yefimovich filling in for Wang Zhong's position for now.

"Take out that Panzer IV in the river!"

Then Wang Zhong saw tank 422 make its way to the end of the bridge approach, aiming from an elevated position.

Alexander's gunnery was as reliable as ever, with the first shot hitting its mark!

The Panzer IV's turret hatch burst into flames, sending a jet of fire over a meter high. Its crew all scrambled out, each one ablaze.

But since the tank was in the water, diving in quickly extinguished the flames.

However, the suppressed naval infantry did not let them escape; a hail of bullets from submachine guns swept over them, creating ripples in the water.

The enemy tank operators soon vanished from sight—likely pulled under by their gear. Only the spreading red in the water marked their fate.

The enemy tanks began to turn their barrels, exchanging fire with 422. Unfortunately, at this distance, the enemy couldn't penetrate the T34's angled front armor.

At that moment, Vasily exclaimed, "The bridgehead fortifications!"

Wang Zhong swiftly shifted his focus and indeed saw the enemy infantry closing in on the bridgehead fortifications.

"Cover them with fire! Blast them, don't let them enter the bunker!"

As soon as Wang Zhong shouted out, Pavlov said, "I've already given the order."

The sound of whistling shells followed his words.

That's the advantage of the defender; all parameters had been calculated, and firing for coverage meant heavy artillery shells could even land a hundred meters in front of the position.

The telephone suddenly rang, and Pavlov answered: "Division headquarters. I understand, no need to call for this."

Pavlov hung up the receiver and seeing Wang Zhong was watching him, he said, "The bridgehead fortifications, they said the shelling was good."

Wang Zhong: "The commander of the bridgehead fortifications is...?"

"Some of the new arrivals."

This time, the 1st Guards Division was almost fully replenished with personnel, and because of Wang Zhong's great reputation, many officers were eager to transfer into the 1st Guards Division.

Wang Zhong: "New arrivals, huh? That's understandable."

Popov approached the observation window, peering outside: "Strange, the enemy has covered our fire points with smoke, and then their tanks charged to the riverbank. What are they planning? They can't cross the river either."

No sooner had he spoken than a strange-looking tank appeared.

It looked like a Panzer IV with a tall hat on.

Wang Zhong: "Submersible tanks, those are submersible tanks! They're planning to force their way through at the crossing point!"

Popov squinted: "Are those the tanks reported at the start of the war, appearing from the water? Can that thing really come across?"

Wang Zhong: "It's the dry season now, and although the navy said they dug the channel deeper, who knows. Tell the infantry on the eastern bank to prepare for close combat. Also, it's time to bring out our 'secret weapon'."

Pavlov: "Are you sure you want to use that thing?"

Wang Zhong: "I'm sure, let them roll out. And, give me the radio."

He took the microphone from Vasily's hand: "422, clear the tracks, clear the tracks. Our 'Maidens of the Earth' are about to be revealed."

"That thing is coming into play? Alright, we'll clear the tracks."

Wang Zhong watched as tank 422 withdrew from the bridge approach, making way on the rail tracks.

Pavlov put down the receiver: "It's coming."

The next moment, three flatcars rolled onto the railway bridge, each carrying a KV1 tank.

These were the only three KV1s Wang Zhong had left!

They were moved using a locomotive, avoiding the limitations of the KV's poor mobility and frequent mechanical failures.

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The flatcars themselves were very sturdy and had a simple structure, which made them hard to damage.

The vulnerable locomotive was placed behind the flatcars, and it was reversed; coal cars followed the three flatcars, and then came the reversed locomotive.

The flatcars backed onto the bridge.

In this way, the most vulnerable part—the locomotive boiler—was protected at the very back and even obscured by buildings, making it impossible to hit.

The KVs fired.

Wang Zhong, watching the fully engaged three KVs, thought to himself that if these were KV2s, it wouldn't be possible to play this way. With their poor balancing, firing sideways might just flip both the tank and the flatcar into the river.

Vasily complained, "This dame is blocking all our vision. We can't see the situation at the ford."

Wang Zhong switched to a top-down perspective and thought smugly: How about that, Vasily, you see the disadvantage of not having cheats?

At that moment, the Prussian tank crews, with nothing left to lose, charged headlong towards the ford.

The accompanying infantry released smoke bombs for cover.

The first wave of tanks entered the water!

Wang Zhong could no longer see them with his own eyes, and as a result, he lost the highlight. But relying on the vision of his deployed troops, he could see the snorkels making progress under the water.

Wang Zhong: "Order the artillery—"

The phone rang, interrupting Wang Zhong's order.

After answering the call, Pavlov reported, "Brother Peter heard the reconnaissance plane; it's an old acquaintance of ours, up high."

Wang Zhong sighed.

They could no longer use heavy artillery to bomb the submerged tanks.

They could only hope for the infantry meat grinder now.

Popov: "Shall we call in the mortars?"

Wang Zhong: "No, the mortars don't have delay fuses. They'll explode upon hitting the water surface. Leave it to the infantry. Let our boys teach the enemy a lesson and tell them that without accompanying tanks, they are easy prey to the infantry."

No sooner had he finished speaking than he saw the snorkel at the forefront disappear with a 'plop'.

Hmm?

This was followed by the second and third snorkels, while the fourth sank halfway and then stopped, stuck and immovable.

Then the enemy tank operators emerged from the water, gasping for air, and turned to swim towards the western bank.

More and more tank operators surfaced.

Wang Zhong was stunned.

The others couldn't see the situation in the river and were all fretting.

So Wang Zhong's expression stood in stark contrast to theirs.

Vasily noticed this contrast. He looked back and forth between Wang Zhong and Popov.

Then Vasily fell into thought.

It was at this moment that Wang Zhong finally figured out what had happened to the enemy: The Naval Infantry had dredged the riverbed, but with the water level low now, it was not washing away the silt, so the banks were gradually silting up again, but the middle was still deep.

The Prussians had fallen into a trench halfway across.

If that was the case, Wang Zhong thought, it was truly amusing.

By now, the smoke on the eastern bank had dissipated quite a bit, and the infantry units on this bank, seeing the situation, immediately began sweeping fire.

The enemy tank units, originally positioned on the western bank for fire support, were now stunned by the three KVs and had no time to deal with the exposed machine gun fire points.

By the time the enemy mortar units, set up to cover the assault, had their smoke completely cleared, the blocked-off 57mm anti-tank guns began firing.

The enemy tanks scattered smoke—not to cover an assault this time, but to cover their retreat.

Wang Zhong put down his binoculars: "The enemy's been driven back... Vasily, why are you looking at me? Is there something on my face?"

Vasily: "Nothing, I just think you look very handsome commanding the battle."

Nelly was shocked, looking at Vasily.

Wang Zhong also took a step back from him: "What do you mean by that?"

Vasily: "Just stating a fact."

Popov: "So how exactly were those submerged tanks destroyed in the end?"

Wang Zhong then realized Popov couldn't see.

"Uh," he pondered a moment, then said, "It might be because the Naval Infantry dredged the riverbed, deeper than their submerging depth."

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Prussian Army, Asgard Knights First Army Headquarters.

"The hydrographic data was wrong!" the submerged tank unit commander said to Giles, "Theoretically, our submerging depth was more than sufficient, but once we got to the middle, the water went over the snorkels causing the engines to cut out. Many loyal soldiers drowned like that!"

Giles: "The enemy might have dredged the riverbed. That White Horse General made ample preparations; it's impossible he didn't anticipate our submersion. He's considered everything, a formidable opponent indeed."

Feliz, the adjutant, shook his head: "Using flatcars and heavy tanks as an armored train, what a terrible idea, it lacks any aesthetic sense."

"But it's effective," Giles said, toying with a toy tin soldier with one hand, "All of the enemy's actions are plain and effective. And they've posed us a significant challenge—the river surface can't be blocked with smoke, as smoke bombs lose their effectiveness quickly when they fall into the water. As long as the armored train is on the bridge, we cannot cross."

Feliz frowned deeply: "It might be better to bypass this bridgehead instead of forcing a crossing."

Giles: "Contact General Walter Mendel of the Ninth Army Group and ask if he's made any headway downstream."

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