Stephen listened quietly, a cold sweat appearing on his forehead. His perspective was too narrow; he only focused on one place. Although he had considered these factors, he never saw through them as thoroughly as Liebgoet!
Liebgoet turned and pointed to a point on the interstellar map and said, "For such an advantageous opponent, time is abundant for them. Have you ever considered why they want to attack?"
Stephen replied, "Isn’t it the domestic demand to reclaim national territory?"
Liebgoet responded, "In the eyes of politicians, there are only interests. In the eyes of military strategists, there are only interests as well! They stockpile troops at the space jump point because they can afford to wait! They have a gateway that can enter the Galileo Star System at any time! They stand outside and constantly threaten Gazalin, keeping this nation in a perpetual state of war readiness, endlessly magnifying its economic and political issues! They will never give Gazalin a chance to breathe. They can rotate fleets through secret jump points, tying up Gazalin’s forces here, depleting them, and simultaneously achieving the goal of training their troops! The lack of combat experience is the only disadvantage they have compared to Gazalin!"
Seeing Stephen’s somewhat bewildered face, Liebgoet smiled and said, "Otherwise, why don’t they send more fleets over? Why don’t they send the experienced First and Second Mixed Fleets? Why send the Fourth Mixed Fleet? Haven’t you thought about these questions?" Nᴇw ɴovel chaptᴇrs are published on novᴇl(ꜰ)ire.ɴet
Stephen suddenly realized, "So, you simply let them in to fight the decisive battle in Galileo! But why not retreat all the fleets and leave such a flaw?"
Liebgoet sighed. This disciple had extremely high talent, but there was a fatal flaw. Hopefully, this battle could help him mend it. He earnestly said, "In military command, one must act with justification. Sometimes you need to be frugal, other times you need to be generous. In the balance between gain and loss, if you don’t recognize the opportunity, you will make mistakes! You must understand, flaws or traps can be utilized by both sides. Our flaw can turn into a trap, and the enemy can turn a trap into a snare against us. Military struggles do not revolve around one time and place. You just mentioned that the space jump point is a favorable position. We need to attract the Federation in while not missing the opportunity to strike the enemy. Sacrificing this part of the fleet to achieve a two-to-one battle result is worthwhile for the subsequent situation in this star system of Gazalin."
"Moreover..." Liebgoet said deeply, "I really look forward to facing Russell in battle. The issues involved in the Galileo Star System are far too complex; it’s no longer just a matter between you and the Leray Federation."
************************
When Fatty returned to the forward command room, the wartime atmosphere was already so intense that it could ignite at any moment. The heads of various departments were gathered around the command platform, waiting for the final orders.
At this time, the 4th Fleet finally began to maneuver towards the space jump point, while the First and Second Mixed Fleets were also prepared for a forced breakthrough. With just one command from Russell or Bernadotte, the campaign to assault the Galileo Star System would officially commence.
Russell and Bernadotte were frowning deeply, staring at the intelligence reports of the 4th Fleet and occasionally discussing in hushed tones. Several generals stood behind them, periodically offering their opinions.
The activity space of the 4th Fleet was suddenly compressed. This maneuver was already their best effort, seizing this rare opportunity to shake off the pursuit and siege of the Imperial Fleet and advancing towards the space jump point. They had only obtained a few dozen hours, and after those hours, the Imperial Fleet would be able to reach the exit area of the space jump point.
Fatty squeezed in among the generals, carefully examining the interstellar map and the 4th Fleet’s battle reports, muttering, "A rare opportunity, a rare opportunity..." Although his task was to speculate on the forward command’s battle plan from the army’s landing, the previous fleet offensives were still deeply intertwined. Maybe he could discern the old ghosts’ thoughts on the entire plan from the fleet’s actions. What puzzled him was that, given the Federation’s current forces and the intelligence from the 4th Fleet, a forced breakthrough was almost completely feasible. The requirement for the 4th Fleet to maneuver and coordinate was just to reduce losses at the space jump point, but such losses were unavoidable no matter who commanded!
Russell suddenly smiled, whispered something to Bernadotte, and waved to the deputy coordinators below, "Plan delayed! Announce army rest, reduce battle readiness to level one, space fleets to stand by, total attack time to be determined."
Seeing the coordinators leave disappointed, Bernadotte smiled, "Let’s go to my office for a meeting." He turned to Fatty and said, "Lieutenant Tian, you come too."
Just as they returned to Bernadotte’s office, Space Fleet’s Chief Coordinator, Admiral Fei Ouwen, couldn’t help but ask, "General Russell, why cancel the planned attack? The high battle readiness has made everyone very tense. Will canceling now affect morale?"
Russell smiled, looking at Tian Xingjian, "General Fei Ouwen’s question, you answer it." Fatty was taken aback, pointing to his nose, "Me?" Russell’s face darkened, "Have you forgotten the courses on time and place regarding battles?"
Fatty smiled bitterly, "How could I dare forget? I remember even in my dreams." Russell said, "Less nonsense, speak!"
Fatty stood upright, chest out and head high, "Never achieve victory at the enemy’s prescribed time and place, and never suffer their planned strikes at their prescribed time and place either!"
Russell nodded, "Then tell me, the significance of delaying the action."
Fatty replied without hesitation, "Rhythm! The pace of war must never be controlled by the enemy! Even if certain casualties are inevitable, they must be kept outside the enemy’s rhythm. Now, they’ve only given us a dozen hours. Whether it’s a trap or not, it’s part of their overall battle plan. Though our forces can forcefully break through with strength, the casualties at the jump point would definitely be over twice that of the enemy’s." He became more excited as he spoke, revealing his true character and proclaimed, "My view is, even if I have to take a beating, I’ll never let the damn bastards have it easy!"
Seeing several generals with wide eyes and puzzled expressions, Russell smiled awkwardly, "Crude words but truthful meaning. Actually, that’s the gist. Since we’re prepared to pay the price for breaking through the jump point, we can’t let the enemy control the rhythm. On the surface, the maneuver of the 4th Fleet can reduce the losses of the First and Second Mixed Fleets during the breakthrough, but it’s within the enemy’s prescribed time. We cannot grasp their detailed force distribution. Only by disrupting their rhythm can we truly reduce losses, which is especially crucial for the subsequent battle situation."
Fatty nodded, "If I have to take a beating, get beaten at the enemy’s prescribed time and place, and be seen by several beauties, wouldn’t that be extremely humiliating! Such a situation, I would never do."
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