Munitions Empire-Chapter 1156 - 1076 Art
"I am ashamed of my past thoughts, General Lu Qianshan! Humans have deceived and oppressed Orcs for thousands of years. You once allied with us to defeat the Dwarves... but you never fulfilled the promises you gave us, and still, we live amidst the hopeless sands." Standing on the beach where traces of blood could still be faintly seen, the Orc commander Shan Lu spoke with a hoarse voice.
He saw the neatly arranged bodies on the beach, the destroyed armored vehicles, some craters, and the remnants of blown-up bunkers.
This was a bloody battlefield he had never seen before. To be honest, just seeing the remnants of the fortresses and trenches on the beach, he knew that this was not a battle Orcs could win.
As a commander, he simulated the steps of the assault in his mind and then realized that no matter what he did, the only outcome would be piles of bodies on the beach, followed by a retreat back to the sea.
Unless, he also had countless Destroyers providing artillery support; unless, he had water route tanks and armored vehicles that could directly land on the shore; unless, he had the kind of advanced weapons he had never seen before.
Unfortunately, Orcs do not have good equipment. Their best-equipped troops are currently fighting in Fengjiang, and those weapons are provided by the Great Tang Empire. It’s unclear whether they will need to return them after the war ends.
While walking, Shan Lu reflected to Lu Qianshan, "So, when you had powerful weapons and wielded greater power, we thought… you would no longer talk to us about fairness."
Honestly, Orcs are a relatively simple and honest race. They were once seduced by humans to exert a great effort in the war against the Dwarf Empire.
Back then, humans and Elves promised the Orcs a suitable habitat, but that place was located far in the northern part of the Poplar Empire, bordering the Dwarves: rather than giving them a habitat, it was more like sending them to guard the border.
Of course, if it was just that, it would have been acceptable. However, humans and Elves did not allow Orcs to proliferate there, always harassing and attacking the Orcs there. Even more, ten years ago, they completely wiped out the Orcs of the Eastern Continent and subjected them to ten years of enslavement and slaughter.
That place was once the homeland of Yue’er.
Shan Lu paused in his steps because a Type 59 main battle tank that was landing obstructed his way. Nearby, some Engineers were building a floating dock along the beach, sinking objects similar to containers into the sea, almost as if they were discarding steel.
"When I saw tens of thousands of Orcs being enslaved and driven away, I thought we were about to endure even worse suffering," Shan Lu said as he watched the Type 59 tank roll over the beach, turning his head to Lu Qianshan nearby.
Lu Qianshan did not speak. He was the officer responsible for accompanying the group of Orcs to observe the frontline situation. The blood of the Great Tang Empire should not be shed in vain. It was necessary for all Orcs to know who truly deserved their loyalty and allegiance.
In fact, there were people nearby carrying cameras, and more media teams had already landed, beginning to film firsthand footage of the landing operation.
Some film crews were also reshooting various scenes: yes, the so-called staged scenes. They wanted to make the entire documentary fuller and more realistic.
The reactions of Shan Lu and other Orc commanders and officers proved that the series of propaganda preparations by the Great Tang Empire were not in vain. They were profoundly grateful to the Great Tang Empire for its benevolence and even developed a readiness to die for it.
"But reality has shown me that there are trustworthy humans among you. You have given us Orcs a life we never dared to imagine before, with two full meals a day, requiring only work to live happily," Shan Lu said deeply moved.
He was once a leader among the Orc slaves of the Great Tang Empire, and later became the head of the Orc mercenaries, so he felt the Empire’s favor most profoundly.
"That is why we are willing to fight for you. We thought that the sacrifices in Fengjiang were a price we had to bear," he reflected every time he thought of their life inside the Great Tang Empire.
At this point, Shan Lu’s speech became more solemn: "But today, you are fulfilling your promises to us. I have witnessed thousands of soldiers sacrificing their lives to secure our Orc paradise."
"By the Orc God above, if you wish, I can summon a hundred thousand, even a million Orc soldiers to the frontline to fight, even if you only provide us with swords and spears, we are willing to fight to the death for our homeland," he solemnly swore to the god revered by the Orcs.
He said this, and truly thought so as well. In his simple political view, if the benefits are not earned through bloodshed, they are definitely unstable and bound to be taken away by others. fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm
Only the land obtained through sacrifice and courage is truly one’s own. Only by fighting bitterly for the Tang Empire can the Orcs genuinely live on this seemingly abundant land.
He paused once again, sidestepping a truck laden with fuel: "Sacrificing for our brothers is what we should do; we Orcs cannot stand by and watch others fight on our behalf. Please be sure to convey our feelings to His Majesty The Emperor; he has given us hope, and we will surely repay his trust with our loyal blood."
Lu Qianshan finally spoke with a smile: "The truth is the battle is still at a stalemate, and we cannot yet determine the outcome of the war. With limited transportation, we are unable to move the weaker Orc troops here... This is irresponsible to you, and to ourselves as well."
Had someone else said this, Shan Lu would have objected, striving to prove his valor and demonstrate that Orcs are passionate fighters.
But now that Lu Qianshan said this, Shan Lu could only silently acknowledge: Orcs truly do not measure up to Tang People in terms of combat strength; the gap in national consciousness puts the two forces on entirely different levels in terms of war belief.
Furthermore, the Tang Army possesses advanced weaponry and equipment, more mature supporting tactics, and more flexible and varied command, with world-class fighting capabilities among its soldiers.
Comparing oneself with such a military force truly brings shame; the impoverished yet brave Orcs can only bow their heads in acknowledgment, their pride pales in comparison to the war machinery of the Tang Empire.
So after being silent for a while, Shan Lu nodded and said to Lu Qianshan: "I understand what you mean. As an Orc, I earnestly request that, when circumstances permit, let us do more!"
He did not know that in saying these words now, he resembled a little wife at home supporting her husband’s ventures. Only, this wife... was a bit ugly.
Lu Qianshan came prepared with his script, knowing exactly what to say. Thus, he set a clear path for the Orcs, a path to redeem themselves and live peacefully with the support of the Tang Empire: "You can do better things in the rear, build more airports, lay more railways, construct more skyscrapers, that is the greatest loyalty to our Emperor."
"Before coming to the Tang Empire, I thought being slaves and laborers was a torture sent by the heavens, but you have provided so much, far more than we could ever have hoped for, so now I feel, for Orcs to work in the Tang Empire... this is a blessing from the heavens." Shan Lu quickly decided: "I think, more Orcs will work for the Tang Empire, their ultimate goal is to come here, to this paradise for Orcs."
The thought that some Orcs could have such a wonderful future excited him immensely, his voice trembling with enthusiasm: "What’s more, after our labor, we will eventually be rewarded, and in the future... millions of Orcs could live in such a beautiful place... just thinking about it makes my blood boil!"
"If needed, please ask His Majesty The Emperor directly, we may not be needed now, but in the attacks on New Island, Ben Island, and Northern Island, we Orcs can serve His Majesty The Emperor!" Immediately following, the leader of the Orc mercenaries continued.
That was exactly what Lu Qianshan was waiting for from these Orc generals; frankly, he didn’t actually hope to send the elite forces of the Tang Empire to those Goblin islands to fight any policing battles. So, he smiled and said, "I will convey the loyalty of the Orcs to His Majesty The Emperor."
"Thank you, General Lu." Shan Lu and Lu Qianshan had completely different thoughts: his Orc troops were weak in combat and had no advanced weapons, their only advantage being their sheer numbers even if expendable. He feared regular warfare but didn’t mind adding fuel to the fire like in Fengjiang amidst the ruins.
On a distant beach, a group of soldiers crawled in the sand under the director’s command, moving forward as several cameras filmed them.
"What good are smoke bombs! With smoke bombs, my filming is useless? Second group! Second group! Did you find a proper bunker? Listen to me! The explosives must be packed tight, it must be explosive! Understand? The whole bunker must blow up into the sky—that’s what makes an explosive! Explosions are art!" A director rejected the good intentions of a nearby battalion commander, who tried to restore the landing battle from the most realistic perspective, but the director insisted on shooting the scene from an artistic viewpoint according to his own understanding.
The recently landed soldiers of the 9th Group Army watched a bunch of fools bustling about on the beach, feeling that this was even more ridiculous than their previous landing drill.
The battle continues, General Feng Kezhi’s frontline command had started working, more troops from the 9th Group Army were landing, and armored assault forces were steadily pushing north.
Unbeknownst to them, it was already half-past one in the afternoon, and the paratroopers of the Tang Empire were still fighting bitterly in Leping and Dongshan, while tens of thousands ngx...
