47: The Monkey Kingdom was stunned!

Day one: Operational tactics formulation.

Inside the General Command Room, the operations staff began mobilizing various units and relaying relevant tactical orders.

The Army commanders of the five field armies also departed immediately after the meeting to personally command the battle on the front lines.

Four o'clock in the afternoon.

On the Eastern Front, the 1st and 4th Artillery Divisions, 38 ground artillery regiments, 9 anti-aircraft artillery regiments, and artillery detachments from various corps and divisions—totaling approximately 9,399 artillery pieces—began shelling Viet Cong positions!

At the foremost front-line positions along the border, an average of 60 artillery pieces were deployed per kilometer!

According to the predetermined tactics, independent artillery divisions were reorganized with corps and divisional artillery into multi-level artillery groups, providing comprehensive artillery coverage of all enemy positions!

The artillery groups rapidly shifted positions using road mobility and temporary emergency military roads.

Often, after completing a round of shelling, they would quickly change positions to prevent enemy counterattacks targeting their artillery positions.

Artillery groups engaged in crossfire strikes with each other.

For a time, the entire Viet Cong border direction was transformed into an ocean of artillery fire!

Although without the guidance of reconnaissance infantry, the accuracy of the shells would be much poorer.

However, a barrage of ten thousand cannons was inherently a feint attack tactic.

What the General Operations Command wanted was a continuous, high-intensity bombardment, like a "steel storm"!

They aimed to collapse the Viet Cong's psychological defenses with 12 hours of continuous shelling!

The tactical effect of "shells like raindrops, nowhere to hide" had to be achieved!

"A steel storm! We've never fought such a well-resourced battle!"

After the ten thousand cannons roared, the operations staff were all somewhat excited.

This was absolutely the strongest display of firepower projection capability by the Dragon Country Army since the founding of the nation.

"If we could use new artillery equipment and have a complete logistics and transport capability, our firepower output would definitely be even stronger!"

"Yue Hou Country is lucky, too."

"If this war had been fought a year later, our Army would absolutely have been able to 'plow the ground with shells' in Yue Hou Country!"

Peng Lin said with a hint of dissatisfaction.

Currently, the Dragon Country's independent artillery divisions and corps/divisional artillery regiments were still using old equipment such as the Type 59 130mm field gun, Type 54 122mm howitzer, and Type 63 130mm rocket launcher.

These pieces of equipment not only had limited range but also relatively small calibers.

Furthermore, ammunition for the front lines relied entirely on human transport, meaning there simply weren't enough shells to fire.

If Changhe Weapon Industry Group were given a few more months, they would absolutely succeed in developing the 155mm howitzer truck-mounted artillery.

By then, large-caliber shells combined with mechanized artillery.

The artillery units alone would be able to turn over Yue Hou Country's land!

"This war has indeed exposed many shortcomings in our Army."

"As the general commander, I can deeply perceive the importance of modern weapon and equipment innovation!"

"To this day, the 'Van Fleet ammunition load' fired by the USA Army at Sang Gam Ryeong in the Korean War thirty years ago still leaves a deep impression on me."

General Xu Liyou said with emotion.

Nearly thirty years ago, the USA Army could fire 1,974,545 shells on a 3.7 square kilometer position!

Additionally, bomber formations air-dropped over 5,000 heavy aerial bombs!

This level of firepower is still beyond the reach of the Dragon Country Army.

Even if the number of artillery pieces met the standard, the logistics of human-transported ammunition could not keep up.

It was also since that campaign that General Xu Liyou had developed a deep-seated fear of insufficient firepower.

Even now, he still compares it to the firepower displayed by the USA Army in that war.

"When the Heavy Combined Arms Brigade is developed, it will be the turn of the USA and the Soviet Union to suffer from a fear of insufficient firepower!"

Peng Lin thought silently to himself.

As the few of them chatted, time quietly slipped away.

Night enveloped the battlefield.

But on the Viet Cong positions, the artillery fire illuminated the mountains and forests as bright as day.

Eight o'clock in the evening.

The UAV combat group rapidly maneuvered to their launch positions.

As coordinate positions were confirmed one by one, 500 "sickle" suicide drones, equipped with 50-kilogram and 100-kilogram fuel-air explosive warheads, were launched!

For a time, the entire night sky was filled with the "buzzing" sound of motor engines.

Fortunately, with the start of the next round of shelling, all these sounds were drowned out by the artillery fire.

Compared to the deafening roar of the bombardment, their sounds were nothing.

500 "sickle" suicide drones would penetrate deep into Yue Hou Country to execute a "precision strike" lightning decapitation operation!

...Meanwhile.

Eight o'clock in the morning, Eastern Time.

For the USA, the war began in the early hours of their time.

Now, eight hours had passed.

The The White House.

The President of the United States began reviewing the State of the Union brief early in the morning.

Undoubtedly, today's State of the Union brief revolved around Dragon Country's self-defense counterattack against the Viet Cong.

"The war has been going on for eight hours, and the Dragon Country Army hasn't advanced even a kilometer along the border?"

"They have only sent out artillery units to conduct shelling so far?"

The President of the United States looked disappointed after reading the brief.

Since the war broke out, after being awakened from his sleep by his assistant, he had instructed The Pentagon to withstand the pressure from the Soviet Union.

They absolutely could not allow the Soviet Union's forces to intervene in this war.

But now, he believed that given the combat power currently displayed by the Dragon Country Army.

Perhaps the Soviet Union had no interest in ground troop intervention at all.

After all, the Viet Cong's Army was not to be trifled with.

"If the Dragon Country Army's pressure on Yue Hou Country can only be limited to this?"

"Then how can Yue Hou Country withdraw its troops from Cambodia and Laos?"

The President of the United States frowned, expressing his disappointment.

Yue Hou Country was currently fighting on three fronts, and the USA had helped Dragon Country withstand the immense pressure from the Soviet Union.

But now, the Dragon Country Army's apparent lack of intention to advance even a kilometer greatly disappointed him.

Was this still the Dragon Country Army that had struck fear into the hearts of the USA and UN forces on the Korean Peninsula?

...Yue Hou Country.

346th Division Command Post.

This was a fully manned, elite Soviet-equipped division, one of Yue Hou Country's ace units.

All the equipment for this unit was supplied by the Soviet Union.

At this moment, inside the division command post, the 346th Division Commander, Chief of Staff, and other core officers were discussing operational plans.

"The Dragon Country Army is too cowardly!"

"We prepared three layers of defensive positions for them in the mountains and jungles!"

"Almost every few kilometers, there was a tunnel and cave with a platoon of troops ambushed!"

"But nine hours into the war, they still haven't dared to set foot on our territory?"

The 346th Division Chief of Staff said with a sneer in his voice, laughing.

"In previous years, when the USA invaded our Viet Cong, we weren't afraid of the USA' artillery fire and aerial bombing. Why would we be afraid of Dragon Country's artillery fire?"

"Dragon Country's artillery firepower is still a bit lacking compared to the USA!"

The operations staff echoed, laughing.

"The Dragon Country Army's large-scale combat strength is incomparable to the USA; they are good at positional warfare and ambush warfare."

"They relied on this skill to drive out the island nation and win the war of national foundation back then."

"However, when it comes to positional warfare and ambush warfare, we have already surpassed them."

"In the past, Dragon Country was our teacher, but now if the Dragon Country Army dares to step one foot into my Yue Hou Country, we will teach them a lesson!"

The 346th Division Commander said with great confidence.

But just as they were discussing how the Dragon Country Army dared not attack for so long.

A buzzing sound appeared in the gaps between the artillery fire, and then an incredibly violent explosion occurred not far away.

The powerful shockwave even caused the front-line divisional command post to shake.

"Such a powerful explosion, could it be an airstrike?"

"Impossible, the air defense radar didn't give an alarm, and the Soviet Union's reconnaissance satellites didn't give us a warning. How could there be an airstrike?"

Inside the 346th Division Command Post, everyone shook their heads, completely bewildered by what had happened.

But then, suddenly, more "buzzing" sounds appeared.

Immediately after, a huge mushroom cloud of fire rose above the 346th Division Command Post!

The entire command post was instantly razed to the ground.

The attacks on the front-line command posts were all carried out by "sickle" suicide drones equipped with 100-kilogram fuel-air explosive warheads.

The immense explosive power, a core temperature of 2500 degrees Celsius, plus the instantaneous vacuuming of air within a radius of several hundred meters nearby.

Under the clustered "precision strikes," the command post and its divisional anti-aircraft battalion were both "reduced to ashes"!

At the same time, all the deep-seated command posts of front-line units such as the Viet Cong's 3rd Division, 316A Division, and 9th Division were also "precision struck"!

This was followed by the command centers of all military strongholds and logistics ammunition depots in Lạng Sơn, Cao Bằng, Đồng Đăng, Đông Khê, and other key towns!

Next, even deeper within the Viet Cong's territory, Highway 4, the Ho Chi Minh Trail, railway stations, and the road and rail transportation hubs of important bridge structures were targeted!

Including field hospitals, none were spared!

In chronological order, as the "sickle" suicide drones penetrated deeper, rear ammunition depots, communication hubs, airport hangars, and all other military-related facilities were subjected to clustered "precision strikes"!

By midnight, even the rear ammunition depots, including anti-aircraft missiles supplied by the Soviet Union, had all been subjected to "precision strikes"!

From front-line deep command posts, military stronghold command centers, to anti-aircraft missile ammunition depots, railway hubs, important bridges, road hubs, field hospitals, ammunition depots, communication hubs, airport hangars, and so on.

Within a short period, all were "reduced to ashes"!

Hanoi City, the Viet Cong Capital.

When the Viet Cong authorities received these continuous reports of attacks late at night, they were utterly bewildered.

Because important bridges and transportation hubs were destroyed, coupled with the precision strikes on front-line command posts and headquarters, and attacks on communication facilities.

The Viet Cong authorities had almost completely lost contact with the hundreds of thousands of troops on the front lines!

Without the front-line deep command posts, the companies, platoons, and squads at the very front were like a scattered mess!

After all, the Viet Cong authorities couldn't possibly command each platoon individually, could they?

For a time, an atmosphere of terror spread throughout the Viet Cong Capital!

Within just a few hours, they were completely stunned!