Munitions Empire-Chapter 1053 - 975 enviable Qian Jinhang

Chapter 1053: 975 enviable Qian Jinhang

When Zhao Chen saw the message from the Imperial Capital, his entire face nearly turned green. He held his breath, almost forgetting to breathe until his body naturally reacted, hastily gasping for air.

Having been a prince for so many years, studied military tactics for most of his life, and fought several years of war, it was the first time he heard of such absurd matters.

The Great Tang Empire had actually prepared for a ceasefire in Fengjiang for a few days to repair the railroad, allowing trains from the Tang Empire to pass through and head to Qin Country…

This was truly unheard of, the request was preposterously absurd! Yet, what made it even more laughable was that the Imperial Capital took this request seriously and forwarded it to the front line for him to consider.

If there’s any shred of shame left, any bit of dignity, would they need to ask him, a frontline general, about such things?

Had this been a few years earlier, Emperor Zhao Kai would never have agreed to such an impudent request! The idea of trains from the Great Tang Empire crossing a war zone and demanding a ceasefire? What a joke!

But after his initial anger, Zhao Chen knew that he must consider this matter carefully before providing the Imperial Capital with a response they anticipated.

Given Zhao Kai’s character, it would not be easy to agree to such terms, so his decision to relay this message to Zhao Chen at the front must be with consideration.

Perhaps Zhao Kai was passing the buck, hoping that Zhao Chen could reject this unreasonable request on his behalf.

Lowering his head to look at the telegram in hand again, Zhao Chen fell into deep thought. He read each word carefully, analyzing the underlying convolutions.

From a purely military perspective, allowing Great Tang Empire’s trains to pass through actually had little impact. To be frank, even if he agreed, Zhao Chen’s offensive operations would not suffer any loss.

There might be two issues; one was that the advancing Dahua troops might need to halt their offensive for a dozen days, or even give up some occupied streets or buildings, ensuring that the damaged railways could be repaired and the trains from the Great Tang Empire could pass safely.

The other issue was whether the trains from the Great Tang Empire would affect the supply of Dahua’s military—after all, this railroad was the lifeline for the Dahua army’s supplies in Fengjiang. If affected, it could trigger a series of detrimental consequences.

Actually, the first point had no real impact. Continuously advancing or pausing the offense would both serve Zhao Chen’s interests: having attacked for so long, finding a valid reason to pause for a few days for the troops to rest was not a problem.

The second point also posed no problem. Since the Great Tang Empire’s trains heading to Qin Country would take the return route, it would not delay the supply lines to Fengjiang. With some dispatch adjustments, the Dahua troops’ supplies would not be affected.

Therefore, from a purely wartime stance, allowing the trains from the Great Tang Empire to pass would not have a significant impact on the battle for Fengjiang.

Yet, Zhao Chen must consider Emperor Zhao Kai’s feelings; leading troops in the field, the last thing he wanted was to lose the Emperor’s trust.

If Zhao Kai really became dissatisfied with him, it would hinder his operations in Fengjiang, leading to many unnecessary troubles.

“Can’t he think it through… ponder over what the current situation actually is?” He dared not to point fingers, but Zhao Chen muttered to himself, expressing his dissatisfaction.

At this juncture, still contemplating having his subjects share the burden and maintain the face of the Dahua Empire, which had already been valued by few, he really didn’t know whether to call Zhao Kai foolish or mad.

Do issues not exist if you refuse to acknowledge them? Will the whole world disappear if you close your eyes? Would the Dahua Empire remain the hegemon of the Western Continent from ten years ago, just because you refuse to admit to changes?

In fact, many high-ranking officials of the Dahua Empire were aware that following this civil war, their empire was likely to become a second-tier power.

Even if they could obliterate the Fengjiang rebels, the price paid would undoubtedly be hefty. Laying beside a bed with an indomitable tiger, it was pitiful to be nothing more than a kitten; the external environment was indeed at its worst.

Just imagine, if Qin Country emerges victorious, the Dahua Empire would be completely surrounded by two nations: one, powerful Qin; the other, flourishing Great Tang…

For the Dahua Empire, both were formidable adversaries, and its current national strength was already no match for either.

As for the so-called second-tier power status, it was also the Dahua Empire’s officials flattering themselves. Whether their so-called strength merited being considered a player on the world stage, or even entitled to the term ‘powerful’, was debatable.

As a landlocked country, the Dahua Empire’s lack of ports was actually a critical shortcoming. In the transformative process of the world, maritime transportation was becoming increasingly important; nations without coastlines and ports were at a natural disadvantage in economic and trade processes.

Imagine, when Qin Country no longer needs to import goods from the Great Tang Empire through Dahua, where would the economy of the Dahua Empire go?

A second-rate national power combined with what might merely be third-rate military strength, how can Dahua still bear the name of an Empire between Qin Country and Tang Country and survive?

Foll𝑜w current novℯls on ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm.

In fact, be it Chu Muzhou or people like Chen Jing and Shen Chuan, they’ve all been contemplating how Dahua should position itself anew to survive between Qin and Tang.

The only one still unwilling to accept reality is the Emperor Zhao Kai of the Dahua Empire. It’s impossible for him to accept Dahua becoming the “Kingdom of Dahua” in practice. Even if the country does not change its title, merely accepting a demotion in status is absolutely intolerable for Zhao Kai.

But everyone knows that such a demotion is already inevitable.

The Dahua Empire cannot possibly continue to exist as it does; at best, the Great Tang Empire might recognize the legitimate existence of the Kingdom of Dahua.

If the Tang Empire has ambitions to continue pushing westward, then whether it be the Dahua Empire or Kingdom, it will all become dust in history.

Now, whether the Dahua Empire can continue to exist depends on the will of the Tang Empire! How much longer the Dahua Empire can last is a question of how much longer Qin Country and the Tang Empire are willing to maintain the status quo!

And all this is just under the most optimistic projection! The Dahua Empire can only continue to survive if it can win the domestic war!

If the conflicts at Fengjiang cannot be pacified for a long period, the national power of the Dahua Empire will be further weakened. As long as this brutal civil war persists, the Dahua Empire will pay the price.

Zhao Chen even feels that they’re actually unable to end the war now. Once Sword Pavilion completes the railway, the Dahua Empire will surely lose a part of its territory in this civil war.

Even if the Fengjiang rebel forces fail, they can retreat to Sword Pavilion, leveraging its terrain to stubbornly resist, backed by support from the Great Tang Empire, and prolonging this civil war indefinitely.

And what fortune is left for the Dahua Empire, having lost Sword Pavilion and the Southern Storehouses, with the Dahua Empire that turned Fengjiang into ruins, with the Dahua Empire completely surrounded by Qin Country in the Southwest… who can know?

“Send a telegram… inform His Majesty that I believe we cannot agree to Tang Country’s unreasonable demands…” Biting his teeth, Zhao Chen still decided to bear this burden for Zhao Kai.

As a General fighting abroad, he must possess the integrity and backbone of a soldier. If even he lacks the courage to say no to the Tang Empire, then who else in this country can withstand the pressure from a powerful neighbor?

However, as a member of the Royal Family, as a confidant, as a subject aware of the situation, he must remind his Monarch of what circumstances they currently face.

So, after letting the officer in charge of the telegram leave, he turned to his own confidant and added, “Draft another secret telegram… With tears of blood, I beseech an audience, the current situation is unpredictable and tricky, and we really should not provoke any disputes. Morale at the front lines is low and recuperation for half a month is not impossible… Agreeing to Tang Country’s demands would not be a loss… I hope His Majesty would ponder on this.”

The telegram he sent earlier, that was taking the hit for Zhao Kai. If Zhao Kai truly does not wish to allow Tang Country’s trains to pass, he can directly use this official telegram.

The latter telegram is to explain the pros and cons to Zhao Kai, if Zhao Kai understands the implications, then Zhao Chen’s first telegram could simply be regarded as hot air.

After all this, he let out a deep sigh. He doesn’t know if generals from the Tang Empire would make such idiotic decisions to care for their Monarch’s feelings while leading campaigns.

He chuckled bitterly upon this thought, at least the generals from the Tang Empire wouldn’t have to consider the messy feelings of other countries, because no one would dare make unreasonable demands to Tang.

Furthermore, the Tang Empire doesn’t seem to have lost any battles since its inception; being a general of the Tang Empire is indeed easier.

“Sigh…” He sighed, and in that moment, envied Qian Jinhang. This former general of the Dahua Empire was now a general of the Tang Empire.

What he didn’t know is that in the ranks of the Tang Empire’s military, there’s not just one Qian Jinhang; there’s also a General Feng Kezhi who he’s unaware of.

Upon receiving the telegram, Zhao Kai was indeed overjoyed, then he instructed his subordinates to deliver the message to Chu Muzhou. As for the secret memorial Zhao Chen sent, Zhao Kai kept it to himself.

Everyone actually understands the situation; this time, Zhao Chen was merely taking the fall for Zhao Kai. Since Zhao Chen had shown weak progress in the offensive at the front lines, now he could only bite the bullet and bear the burden according to Zhao Kai’s wishes to consolidate his own command.

Therefore, Chu Muzhou did not take the telegram seriously: The face of the Tang Empire isn’t enough? Hah. I’d like to see if that combined with Qin Country’s face will be sufficient.

His Majesty is becoming increasingly thoughtless.