Arc of Fire

In August 914 of the Jules era, on the morning of the 9th, the headquarters special train of the 151st Division rolled onto the Duva River railway bridge.

Wang Zhong stood in the open door of the stuffy tank car, looking at the dense bomb craters by the river.

Accordingly, the bridge bore numerous signs of repair, and through the steel structure, one could still see the scratches left by bombs on the piers.

This type of bridge could be easily repaired as long as the piers were not destroyed; usually broken by day, it could be fixed to allow traffic by night.

As for crushing the piers—that would be tricky, as even sticking explosives directly onto the concrete wouldn’t guarantee damage unless placed correctly.

The piers in Ante were particularly well-stocked with materials.

Indeed, any Ante construction that used reinforced concrete had more than enough material.

No, in the country of Ante, any matter involving materials was bound to be generous, the epitome of crude and overbuilt.

The train reached the east bank of the Duva River, where the anti-aircraft artillery positions came into Wang Zhong’s view.

Wang Zhong said, “See those fresh patches of earth? They must have filled in the craters. This position has been bombed many times.”

Just then, a captain with a bandage tied around his head emerged from the bunker and stood by the railway, watching the train of the 151st Division, his gaze fixed on the red flag flying from the carriage.

At this moment, the train’s speed is quite slow—after all, a recently repaired railway bridge isn’t too sturdy, and speeding could be dangerous.

Wang Zhong called, “Captain! Do you belong to the garrison command here?”

“No, we are from an anti-aircraft artillery battalion of the Railway Troops. There’s no city defense command in this town; all the defenses are on the west side,” the captain replied.

At that moment, Wang Zhong’s carriage passed in front of the captain.

The captain asked, “Are you Aleksei Rokossov, General?”

Wang Zhong waved, “I am.”

More anti-aircraft gunners emerged from the bunker, watching the train.

Unfortunately, the train had already traveled too far for Wang Zhong to hear their discussions.

Then the train’s whistle sounded from up ahead.

Pavlov remarked, “We’re about to enter the station. If all goes well, Popov should be waiting for us at the station. I hope he has got the division headquarters ready.”

“Hmm,” Wang Zhong paused before adding, “I’m more concerned about Argesukov’s situation, though.”

The division headquarters kept the radio operational aboard the train, but since they could not unfurl the antennas inside and the power supply was poor, the information they received was intermittent.

Wang Zhong was only aware that the Southwestern Front Army had initiated a breakout and that Duke Meishikin was also making an effort to coordinate.

As they spoke, the train slowly glided into Shostka railway station platform.

Popov indeed was on the platform, standing with his hands on his hips, looking anxious.

He had just locked eyes with Wang Zhong and immediately looked away.

Wang Zhong had an ominous premonition.

He was reminded of the illusion just before leaving Kazarlia yesterday.

Now the train came to a stop, and Wang Zhong leaped onto the platform and strode up to Popov, “How are you, Bishop?”

Popov saluted Wang Zhong, then hesitated to speak.

Wang Zhong urged, “Go ahead, I’ve heard all kinds of bad news since the war started.”

Popov rubbed his nose, “Last night we received a telegram. His Royal Highness the Crown Prince died leading his troops in a breakout, alongside him was the founding War General… Duke Konstantin Alexandrovich Rokossovsky.”

Wang Zhong pursed his lips.

In truth, he had only “met” these two figures upon arriving in Argesukov, and theoretically, he shouldn’t be overly heartbroken.

Yet, he walked on along the platform, away from the division clerks and staff disembarking, away from tank no. 422 being unloaded from a flat car, and away from Bucephalus, the restless horse clattering his hooves.

————

Grigori, shouldering the red flag, wanted to follow, but Popov signaled him to stop. So the sergeant major, holding the flag, followed at a distance, merely maintaining a visual contact.

At this moment, Ludmila descended from the train.

Popov and Pavlov called out together, “Ludmila Vasilyevna!”

Ludmila ran over, puzzled, “What happened?”

“Duke Rokossov and the Crown Prince have both died for the country. Go comfort him…” Popov suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

Because Ludmila herself was on the verge of breaking down, covering her mouth, “Uncle Connie… is gone?”

“Connie” was Konstantin’s nickname, and according to Antean tradition, only a child who was especially beloved by an elder could use such an affectionate term.

Ludmila appeared to be struck by grief, her tears and snot running uncontrollably.

Nelly handed her a handkerchief.

Ludmila, with the handkerchief in hand, said, “Go to Alyosha! He must be more heartbroken than I am.”

Nelly stuffed the handkerchief into Ludmila’s hand and then ran forward along the platform, chasing the figure of Aleksei Konstantinovich Rokossovsky.

————

Wang Zhong continued to the very end of the platform, where the noise was less obtrusive, and only two railway workers stood by the switch, watching him.

There were still workers checking the locomotive, tapping each wheel with a hammer to listen to the sound and assess its condition.

In the monotonous tapping, Wang Zhong stopped and looked up at the azure sky.

Although he did not know exactly when his dear brothers and old father had passed away, he always felt it must have been the moment he saw the hallucinations.

After all, in a world with Hymn Monks and prayer hands, it didn’t seem strange that a dying person could emit a “final ripple.”

Wang Zhong carefully examined his inner thoughts and found that aside from melancholy, regret was what he felt the most: I haven’t had enough time to get to know you all.

It was then that he heard the slapping sound and turned his head to see Grigori standing in the distance, holding the red flag.

Only then did Wang Zhong notice Nelly running over.

Nelly didn’t seem overly sad, so Wang Zhong asked, “Do you know that my father and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince have died for our country?”

“Mm. Liu Da cried a lot. Are you going to cry too?” asked Nelly.

Wang Zhong: “Aren’t you sad?”

Nelly did not answer but only looked at Wang Zhong.

Wang Zhong: “Let me teach you, next time this happens, you just say, ‘I have a high threshold.'”

Nelly: “I have a high threshold.”

Light-speed application, oh!

Wang Zhong was amused by Nelly’s response and his expression relaxed a bit.

He looked at the railway stretching into the distance and said to himself, “I’m a little sadder than I thought I would be. I don’t even know why.”

Nelly: “I thought you would say ‘Good riddance, now no one can boss me around anymore.'”

Wang Zhong: “Am I such a bastard?”

“I think so. But now I’m not sure,” said Nelly.

Wang Zhong thought about it and felt that many might have misunderstood the original host, who was actually quite sentimental; so much so that these emotions even transmitted to him, despite being unrelated.

Alyosha, Alyosha, how much more do people misunderstand you.

At this time, Pavlov and Popov appeared together, but did not dare to come over, standing with Grigori.

Wang Zhong: “Come over here, I’m all right.”

Popov and Pavlov exchanged glances, then walked over together. Both were big men, walking side by side like two bears.

Popov: “There’s another piece of news, we’ve been transferred to the Reserve Army. We maintain our independence as a division. The Reserve Army has ordered us to construct fortifications on-site, in preparation for combat.”

Wang Zhong: “We’re familiar with that, no time like the present, let’s set off now to survey the terrain. Call up the mapping officer, that Arkadi from last time, he’s good at drawing maps…”

“His leg is broken. He’s probably been sent back to the medical center in Tula by now,” Pavlov interjected, “I’ll call someone else, another good fellow who transferred from the forestry department, a former civilian.”

Wang Zhong: “Alright, and get Vasily to bring my captured Prosen radio! And Bucephalus, saddle him up!”

Popov: “You have one day to survey the terrain.”

Wang Zhong, puzzled, asked, “One day? Why only one day?”

“Because the plane coming to pick you up will land at the airport next to the city tomorrow.”

“The airport next to the city!” Wang Zhong exclaimed in surprise, “So we’re finally going to have an Air Force?”

“Just one fighter squadron, responsible for the protection of the bridge. But they often fail to deploy in time.”

Wang Zhong: “Put Brother Peter on it! Find a high tower, and set up a sound array for him!”

Popov: “I’ll arrange it, don’t worry. Did you hear what I just said? There will be a plane tomorrow to take you to Yekaterinburg.”

Wang Zhong frowned, “Why would I go there? My post is here! Don’t you know that the better the fortifications we build, the fewer casualties we’ll have? The reason we managed to escape with so many fighters this time is because we built fortifications for nearly half a month, do you understand half a month?”

“I understand,” Popov replied, “haven’t you forgotten that it was I who organized the labor for the fortifications?”

Wang Zhong: “Uh, sorry. Indeed you did. So you should know, the more familiar I am with this area, the more ingeniously I can command the construction of the fortifications! And the more enemies we can kill.”

Popov: “I suggest you still take a trip to the capital. With the situation as it is, we may soon face the largest defeat since the beginning of the war. So…”

Popov did not continue, but glanced at the railway workers beside them.

Wang Zhong: “I understand, you need me for propaganda, right? At the start of the major defeats, you used me to boost morale, and now you’re doing it again.”

Popov: “The defeat is inevitable, so now we need to manage the aftermath and inspire the morale of the entire army. Without morale, even an army of a million could collapse in an instant. As Ante’s best War General, you understand this, right?”

Wang Zhong understood, of course he did.

He clenched his teeth and said to Nelly, “Get my dress uniform ready, spiff me up so I’m presentable by the end of the day, and Grigori! You’re my standard-bearer, clean yourself up too!”

Grigori, who was standing far away, heard this and replied, “I’ll have Aksinya take care of it, don’t worry.”

Wang Zhong paused: “Who is Aksinya?”

“A girl from the laundry squad, I met her last night.”

Wang Zhong looked closely at his guard: “You… hooked up with someone last night? You’re that impressive?”

Wait a moment, I seem to have been ‘had’ on the train too.

Is this some kind of Ante tradition?

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