Cannon Fire Arc

Chapter 774: Chapter 30 Vasily Receives the Time-Traveling Lid (4K Words)_2

Wang Zhong: “I would actually like to see that collection of poetry, do you have it?”

Filippov shook his head like a rattle-drum.

Wang Zhong patted his shoulder and strode into the factory building.

Many plants had grown inside the ruined building, and upon everyone’s entrance, some small animal scurried away in fright.

The local Bishop apologized: “We’ll clear this place up soon—”

“There’s no need to preserve this,” Wang Zhong said, “Battlegrounds like this are found all over the country, can we preserve them all? A monument has been built to commemorate the battle of Loktov, that’s enough. This place should be demolished to construct a new factory, to provide jobs for everyone, produce goods.”

…

Bishop: “Alright.”

Wang Zhong: “By the way, I have a list here. Vasily!”

Vasily immediately took out the notebook Wang Zhong used to record the names of fallen comrades, and handed it over to Wang Zhong.

“On this notebook are the names of the fallen that I recorded myself; you can build a stone tablet in the memorial square and write their names on it.”

The Bishop was deeply moved: “You actually recorded their names! You know, in the past two years of the war of resistance, so many people’s names have already been forgotten.”

Wang Zhong: “Their names may be forgotten, but their deeds will last forever. In Yeburg, there will be a special monument built for these people, with an eternal flame that will never go out.”

“That’s so.”

After finishing, Wang Zhong continued to walk deeper into the building.

“I remember this corridor, move straight ahead and it was the group headquarters back then.”

Vasily: “Right, right here, the Artillery Mirror was placed in front of that window, and at this spot, later the enemy broke in, and Yegorov himself commanded the machine gun that was set up here.”

After he finished, Filippov added: “General Yegorov also came to see this machine gun position specifically; look, this big footprint next to it is his.”

Wang Zhong, looking at the big footprint Filippov pointed out, laughed: “He came too, huh? Why didn’t he take photos and videos?”

“He said he would leave that to you, couldn’t steal your limelight,” Filippov said.

“Hmph, that Yegorov, clearly so much older than me, yet acts like a child.”

Wang Zhong shook his head, paced with hands behind his back around the “headquarters”.

Filippov: “General Yegorov did the same, strolled around here with hands behind his back, the movements exactly alike.”

Wang Zhong: “Is that so? I understand why he would do that, walking here, it’s as if I could see the scene from back then. When the artillery fire came in, I was lying right here, back then we only had a few precious B4 Heavy Artillery, no way to counter the artillery firepower of the Prosens.

“When the artillery fire came, we could only lay on the ground, praying for it to pass quickly.

“Our only anti-tank gun at that time was a 76-millimeter gun, assembled by the workers; for this precious gun, we prepared several firing positions.”

Vasily: “That gun ran out of shells in the end, so we used it as a bait to deceive Prosen Tanks’ direct fire, and finally, the gun carriage was blasted crooked.”

Saying this he turned to ask the local Bishop: “Have you found that 76-millimeter gun nearby? We retreated in such a disarray, we didn’t take it with us. That’s a relic, assembled by the workers from parts!”

Bishop shook his head: “No. Actually, most of the weapon remnants left here were recycled by the Prosens, they wanted to reuse them. It’s only the tougher ones like tanks that were left behind.”

Wang Zhong: “It seems that the Prosens are not in great shape either.”

Bishop smiled: “Yes, at the end of last year, they were scraping the city bare. The metallurgists in the guerrilla think that the Prosens might have problems with rare metal supplies.”

Wang Zhong recalled that on Earth, the Sturmtigers also started to lack various rare metals in the later stages, leading to a decline in the quality of metallurgical products. One of the reasons their tanks were so heavy later on was the lack of rare metals, resulting in low-quality armor that had to be made thicker.

“You see,” Wang Zhong said to Filippov, “we’ve found another weakness of the Prosens! Their days are numbered!”

Filippov silently nodded.

Wang Zhong: “Wait a second!”

He looked at the Bishop: “Does the guerrilla have a metallurgical engineer?”

“Yes, an old soldier who has been fighting since the occupation.”

Wang Zhong: “I want to see him, now, immediately!”

———

30 minutes later, Wang Zhong met the metallurgical engineer at the playground of the school that used to serve as the Headquarters.

His mouth was skewed with a smile: “Do you still remember me?”

“How could I not,” the engineer gripped Wang Zhong’s hand, “Back when I was with the Guardian Army fighting to besiege Loktov, I watched you charging towards the enemy on a tank, and later the news came you had sacrificed. Rezenov who was leading us then said: ‘It seems the General has fallen, at the very least we must recover his body.’”

Wang Zhong clasped the engineer’s hand tightly: “Yes, I remember you, you were among those who rescued me from under the tank! I remember your face!”

Engineer: “I’m the only one left!”

“Only you left?”

“Yes, just me. Most of the people sacrificed after that, and when the Prosens entered the city, they deliberately slaughtered the Guardian Army, they’d kill us even if we surrendered.

“In front of the wall beside the church, they brutally killed hundreds, if not thousands of Guardian Army, claiming that we were not regular troops, had no uniforms, and were spies and guerrillas.

“Those of us who hid away were lucky to escape. Then everyone discussed, since the Prosens already treated us as guerrillas, let’s just become actual guerrillas!

“At that time, many priests and clerics also went underground, establishing underground parishes, and we fought under the lead of the church, finally awaiting your return! General! No, Marshal!”

Wang Zhong: “I’m back! Leave the rest to us.”

Engineer sighed: “I originally wanted to join the regular army to continue the fight, but they said I was an engineer and needed to stay back to restore the city’s production, to contribute to the war effort, and forcibly discharged me from service!”

Wang Zhong: “The role you play in the factory is greater than in the frontline!”

“So, all I can do now is bid farewell to those lads, they’re all top-notch warriors, having fought the enemy behind enemy lines for over a year! Comrade Marshal, please lead them to advance into Plowsonia!”

Wang Zhong: “Don’t worry, I will! I definitely will!”

Engineer: “Some say now that we have liberated all our territories we should cease hostilities, let the lads go home, I say fuck that, they lorded over our homes, and now they want to talk ceasefires as they leave our land, where’s the sense in that!

“If you ask me, we should march onto their land, whatever they did to us, we do the same to them!

“I know it’s wrong, but I can’t help thinking like this, everyone here, they all have friends and relatives who died under the Prosens’ blades, we can’t accept not taking revenge!”

Wang Zhong: “Rest assured, there won’t be a ceasefire, absolutely not! I promise you in the name of the Saints, we will advance into Plowsonia, capture the mastermind behind all this, and make him face the judgment of justice!

“Not to mention, I too have many debts of blood, and I have a settling to do with that Plathen Emperor!”

After a brief silence, he repeated: “Many, many debts of blood.”

Filippov wore a serious expression: “Yes, debts of blood.”

Vasily: “Hmm, we all have accounts to settle.”

Sergeant Gregory nonchalantly held a cigarette: “I dream of storming into Plowsonia, haven’t had my fill of Prosen women yet.”

Wang Zhong: “Sergeant! Mind the occasion.”

After a brief silence, everyone burst out laughing.