Chapter 35: Total Mobilization of Three Hundred Thousand Imperial Troops!

Immediately, Xiao Erzi stepped forward and said solemnly,
"Commander, I also support Commander Jiang's strategy!"
Seeing the usually antagonistic Reformist and Local factions unite so unexpectedly,
Wang Lin was overjoyed and laughed heartily,
"Excellent! Since there are no objections, we shall proceed according to Jiang Bai's plan!"
With the issuance of battle orders, Wang Zuoxiang, the commander of the Fifth Corps, promptly initiated war mobilization.
On September 14, 190028, Wang Zuoxiang ordered Tang Yu, commander of the Twelfth Corps stationed at Lenghe, to launch a full-scale attack on Chaha's military stronghold, Guyuan.
Though Tang Yu's troops were well-equipped, their training was insufficient and combat effectiveness low.
To ensure swift occupation before Sanlaodeng could respond,
After careful consultation with Jiang Bai, Wang Zuoxiang also instructed Yu Zhishan, commander of the Thirtieth Corps, to advance west along the Changcheng defensive line, forming a pincer movement with Tang Yu's forces.
Despite Sanlaodeng's previous efforts to guard against Wang Lin—investing war funds to build numerous fortresses and bunkers in northern Chaha, and deploying seventeen security divisions to focus on defending the Chengyun faction—
As the frontline battles intensified, Sanlaodeng redeployed fifteen security divisions southward.
This left only two security divisions and a few security regiments in Chaha.
Facing the surge of Tang Yu's Twelfth Corps, the Ninth Security Division of the Jin faction stationed in Guyuan offered only token resistance for two days before beginning a full retreat.
Meanwhile, Yu Zhishan's Thirtieth Corps also advanced smoothly,
Occupying the Changcheng fortress of Wanquan the next day, leaving a division to garrison it, then joining forces with Tang Yu to push into other parts of Chaha together.
When Sanlaodeng was personally commanding operations at the Xuzhou frontline, he received a report on the situation:
The Chengyun faction now held full control of northern Chaha and had begun probing attacks on key towns in southern Chaha to assess the actual strength of the defending troops.
"Curse that Wang Zuoxiang!"
Sanlaodeng, still smelling the gunpowder on his clothes, angrily tore up the telegram and said resentfully,
"If I don't trouble him first, that old bastard actually dares to strike at me!"
"Does he really think I'm easy to bully?"
"Fight! Let the troops go all out! If I can defeat him once, I can rout him a second time!"
"General, this is unwise!"

Chief of Staff Wang Shouren pleaded anxiously, "The battle at Xuzhou has reached a critical juncture. If we hold out for just two more days, we can take Xuzhou!"
At this moment, sending troops north to confront the Chengyun faction requires us to consider not only whether we can defeat their massive army.
Simply adopting a two-front strategy would be disastrous for our logistics support system.
As the saying goes, victory in war often depends on logistics.
To secure victory at Xuzhou, Sanlaodeng has already concentrated all available resources at the Xuzhou front.
Both road and rail supply lines are stretched to their limits.
If we open a second front in the north now, frontline supplies will face severe shortages, possibly even starvation!
At that point, defeat at Xuzhou would be almost inevitable!
Yet, Sanlaodeng not only ignored the advice but instead slapped the table and retorted loudly,
"Should I just stand by and let Wang Lin annex northern Chaha?"
"I could have attacked Lenghe at any time and threatened the Chengyun faction."
"But now the situation has reversed; instead, he's threatening me!"
"If southern Chaha falls into his hands, then the connection between Jin and the Jingjin region will be completely severed!"
"I cannot allow this to happen!"
Sanlaodeng's analysis rendered the generals in the tent speechless.
It must be admitted, the Chengyun faction's military action truly caught Sanlaodeng off guard and left him deeply embarrassed.
If Wang Lin had attacked the Jingjin region, Sanlaodeng would have immediately mobilized troops to counterattack.
Even if he withdrew half his forces from the Xuzhou front,
Feng Yuzi and Li Ziren would not object much.
After all, if they lost their own base, how could they continue fighting at Xuzhou?
But Wang Lin chose not Jingjin or Jin, but northern Chaha!
This left Sanlaodeng in a dilemma.
If he proposed withdrawing troops to assist, Li Ziren and Feng Yuzi would be the first to oppose:
"For the sake of a place hardly worth mentioning, you want to make a fuss? Are you planning to let us die at the front while you sit back and reap the rewards?"
Yet if he didn’t withdraw troops, southern Chaha would remain under the watchful eye of Wang Zuoxiang and the Fifth Corps of the Chengyun faction.
If Wang Zuoxiang wished, he could cut off the Jin faction's territory at any time.
After much inner struggle, Sanlaodeng finally seemed to make a decision and declared firmly,
"To hell with it! Since he struck first, he can’t blame me for hitting back hard!"
"Quick! Contact that kid Kawashima immediately!"

Meanwhile, in Dongjiaomin Lane of Old Ping, inside the Jin faction’s embassy occupied by the foreigners,
Kawashima Naniwa, ambassador to Old Ping, was discussing the situation in the Great Plains with Nezu Ichika, general manager of the Chengyun Province Railway Corporation.
The meeting was originally to include Ito Sasaki, ambassador to the Chengyun faction,
But after he died unexpectedly in a "car accident,"
The foreigners no longer sent an ambassador to the Chengyun embassy, entrusting Nezu Ichika, who was well-connected with Yang Ting, with Chengyun Province affairs.
"Damned Wang Lin! Again and again he sabotages our plans—does he truly intend to oppose us?"
Upon receiving the report from northern Chaha,
Nezu Ichika was furious, stomping and cursing.
Though he had already learned of the Chengyun faction's troop movements through spies before their large-scale deployment,
The speed at which this highly secret operation unfolded far exceeded expectations.
Before war mobilization, Wang Zuoxiang cleverly bypassed pro-foreigner military officers, spreading a wealth of misleading information so that Nezu Ichika had almost no insight into Wang Zuoxiang’s actual military plans.
"We absolutely cannot allow Wang Lin to continue encroaching upon southern Chaha, otherwise all our previous efforts will be for nothing!" Kawashima Naniwa's expression was dark and his heart seethed with anger.
If Sanlaodeng succeeded in defeating Shui Fangzheng and establishing a puppet regime there, as the mastermind of this strategy, Kawashima Naniwa would be highly lauded at home, perhaps even promoted directly to a cabinet post.
If luck favored him, he might even become Minister of the Army.
But he never expected, at the very moment Sanlaodeng was about to win outright, Wang Lin would unexpectedly intervene in the battlefield.
If Sanlaodeng failed to secure victory this time, not only would Kawashima Naniwa's career suffer a severe blow, but the entire dynasty's strategy in Hua would be gravely undermined.
"Damn it! Does Wang Lin really think that withdrawing beyond the frontier makes him invincible? Have they forgotten how we once drove them to the gates of Chengyun City?"
As the consul of the Chengyun Province Railway Company, Nezu Ichika didn’t even consider Yang Ting a factor. Under his influence, many senior military officers within the Chengyun faction were guided by the Railway Company.
In other words, the Chengyun Province Railway Company was virtually the second power center within the Chengyun faction.