Empire Conquest
Chapter 240 - 236: Resolved to Die

Chapter 240: Chapter 236: Resolved to Die

January 18th afternoon, about two hundred kilometers east of Ancient Pipe Island in the central North Ma Islands, aboard the "Jingang" Battleship.

As the Type 97 large aircraft vanished into the depths of the clouds to the north, Lan Yun finally withdrew his gaze and then raised his hand to check his watch.

It was already four in the afternoon.

If all went well, by this time tomorrow they should be preparing for battle.

He hoped everything would go smoothly!

At this moment, Lan Yun’s emotions were extremely complicated.

In just over twenty days, the changes had been so great that even the phrase "the transformation of the oceans into mulberry fields" was not sufficient to describe it—it felt like plunging from the clouds into the abyss.

More than twenty days earlier, after the annihilation of the Mobile Fleet, specifically when the four carriers of the first and second Air Corps were successively sunk, Lan Yun had intended to die as atonement, following the "Jiahe" in its sacrificial sinking. Regrettably, a staff officer from the Mobile Fleet headquarters had thwarted his attempt.

Later, after receiving the news in Marra Bay, Nanzhu Country, that the Main Battle Corps had been destroyed and Admiral Takano had died in honor, Lan Yun once again considered suicide. Little did he expect his most trusted subordinate, Colonel Kitamura, to beat him to it. That man had committed seppuku on the deck of the "Jingang," but due to insufficient courage, he finally had his head severed. The grisly sight made Lan Yun abandon the idea of seppuku himself.

Upon reaching Tuk Fortress, Lan Yun prepared for his third attempt at ceremonial suicide.

This time, he obtained a bottle of poison.

Regrettably, a telegram from the Military Command Department once again spared his life.

The Prime Minister had officially appointed him as the Commander of the Permanent Fleet and promoted him to Navy Admiral, responsible for leading all battleships stationed at Tuk Fortress.

There was no room for negotiation; it was a direct order.

For Lan Yun to seek death again would be to shirk responsibility, and he would definitely not enter the temple after death.

Although he later received several pieces of good news, such as the Newland Federation agreeing to provide the equipment needed for battleship repairs and crucial operational supplies, including the new armor-piercing bullets originally intended for sale to the Saiyi Navy, stored on Guan Island, and the scarce fuel at Tuk Fortress, Lan Yun did not consider these to be good news, because the Newland Federation would never provide carrier support.

What could a few battleships do?

In replying to the telegram from the Military Command Department, Lan Yun emphasized repeatedly that he would urge the Newland Federation to send troops to join the war; otherwise, he would consider not returning to the homeland.

It was more valuable for the Permanent Fleet to stay at Tuk Fortress.

The reason given was that it could flank the enemy and potentially force the Liangxia Navy to divide its forces.

Of course, this was actually an excuse to avoid battle.

To put it bluntly: was it up to Lan Yun if the Liangxia Navy wanted to separate its forces?

The subsequent events had actually proven this point; the Liangxia Navy did not split its forces because of the four Fast Battleships in Tuk Fortress, but remained fully concentrated to support the Army in sweeping the Ice Storm Peninsula and protect the Marine Corps in capturing Jeju Island.

This situation lasted until Tanimoto entered the Military Command Department, or rather, took command of it.

Despite being only a Major General, Tanimoto had gained high trust from Prime Minister Wen Wei through a personal letter from Takano, becoming the Prime Minister’s spokesperson in the Military Command Department.

Besides, the Military Command Department indeed couldn’t find anyone to replace Takano.

Once in the Military Command Department, the first thing Tanimoto did was to order Lan Yun to prepare the Permanent Fleet for departure as soon as possible.

In the telegram, Tanimoto also specifically told Lan Yun that when the Permanent Fleet returned to the battlefield, the outcome would be decided!

Although he was uneasy inside, Lan Yun still had some confidence in Tanimoto. Honestly, his biggest regret was sending Tanimoto off on a seaplane on the night of the 25th, not keeping him there. If he had spoken to retain him, if Tanimoto had not returned to the flagship but had continued on as a guest staff member in the Mobile Fleet, perhaps the battle on the 26th would have had a different outcome, at least not as disastrously lost.

Even if they were to be defeated, just destroying a few more Liangxia Navy carriers could have significantly changed the situation.

Regrettably, there were no pills for regret.

Not until four days ago, on the 14th, when he received a telegram from Tanimoto did Lan Yun know that his time to die had come.

The Liangxia Navy’s Special Mixed Group had already left the Xu Sea and were possibly en route to Liuhuang Island, possibly already nearing there.

From the overall situation on the battlefield, the likelihood of the Liangxia Navy moving to the West East Ocean after completing the operation of aiding the Army in sweeping the Ice Storm Peninsula was extremely high.

"Attacking and occupying Liuhuang Island, only after completing the strategic encirclement of the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom, can we talk about other matters."

"No matter what, the Saiyi Navy must defend Liuhuang Island to the death."

"The battle plan is this: while the Army staunchly defends Liuhuang Island, the Permanent Fleet will set out from Tuk Fortress, make a dash to the landing site, and annihilate the Landing Fleet and the Landing Forces."

"Casualties?"

"No need to consider them."

Tanimoto had stated explicitly in the telegram to Lan Yun that if Liuhuang Island were lost, what awaited the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom would be total defeat. The best outcome would be to surrender to the Liangxia Empire before being reduced to ruins by the war, thus preserving the capital to rise again.

Then it would be decades of bearing humiliations.

However, whether they could rise again after decades remained an unknown.

With this lesson in mind, when the Liangxia Fleet once again invaded East Capital Bay, when the Liangxia Army once again dominated East Imperial City, it was inevitable that the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom would be severely punished.

At the very least, it would emasculate the ambitions of the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom, turning it into a cringing servant.

Indeed, it would be better to die gloriously in battle!

The implication was clear: the battle for Liuhuang Island would determine the final victory or defeat.

Could they hold it?

To this, Tanimoto had also given a clear reply.

Not just to hold it, but to firmly hold it for half a year, at least three months.

In other words, as long as they held it for three months, it would be considered a victory!

The reasoning was simple: just three months were needed to receive sufficient support from the Newland Federation and complete the homeland’s defense deployment.

Three months was the shortest time needed for the Army to mobilize and train new recruits.

The implication was, even if they lost Liuhuang Island after three months, they could still fight a defensive battle on their homeland.

That way, there would be hope of victory.

To be accurate, there was hope of persisting until the day the Newland Federation troops entered the war.

In short, they must defend Liuhuang Island to the last moment, and to say they would risk the Permanent Fleet, even the entire Navy, was not an exaggeration!

If Liuhuang Island were lost, they could only retreat to defend their homeland.

For a homeland defense battle, there was no need for a fleet.

At that time, Lan Yun really had full confidence.

At least from the telegram sent by Tanimoto, one could see the hope of dying for one’s country.

If they could achieve the final victory, even if it meant martyrdom, they could enter the temple, worshipped by the people of the Saiyi Imperial Kingdom for thousands of generations.

After the battle of Flame Sea, Lan Yun also sought only death, to die a worthy death.

Little did he expect, the situation developed faster than he had anticipated.

In fact, it exceeded even Tanimoto’s judgment.

On this day, the morning of the 15th, the Liangxia Navy had already bombed Liuhuang Island, killing Commander Guan, leaving the defending officers and soldiers like headless flies.

Otherwise, the Permanent Fleet would not have left the port overnight, let alone sailed north at full speed.

They sailed at full speed for nearly three days, fortunately encountering no trouble.

Perhaps, the Liangxia Navy did not know that the Permanent Fleet had left Tuk Fortress, or perhaps they did not expect that the Permanent Fleet would speed toward Liuhuang Island at full throttle.

Regardless, they just needed to hold on for one more day.

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