"By the intelligence we have come by, the Northern Goose Group can now produce in a single month 150,000 T2 Tibetan Mastiff-class Medium Interstellar Destroyers, or 30,000 T2 Snow Mastiff-class Heavy Interstellar Battleships. And this Northern Goose Group has some capacity to produce T3 warships besides. Every month it turns out at the least 2,000 T3 Blizzard-class Light Interstellar Battlecruisers and 3,000 T3 Flame Dragon-class Medium Interstellar Destroyers, and furnishes them to the rebels' several legion fleets. And the hand behind this starship manufacturer is the Owl Dragon Legion. Destroy this target alone, and one might say we have already won half this civil war. That is the chief strategic aim of this military plan of ours!" Qin Longcheng said gravely.
The company nodded in agreement.
"And the Owl Dragon System? Is it to be left alone?" one rather elderly Marshal Xie asked; he too was among the surviving Five-Star Marshals.
Qin Longcheng pointed at the Owl Dragon System, marked out specially upon the Starlight Empire's map.
"By the state of the fighting when we struck the Owl Dragon System before, the Owl Dragon System's defenses are strict, and it has advanced military star-ports fitted out besides. And with that being the Owl Dragon Legion's home base, the Owl Dragon Legion's grade of defensive measures must certainly be very high. To storm the Owl Dragon System would want a commitment of at the least 100 times the enemy's strength! And a pity it is that we cannot at present move military force on any such scale, nor mount a surprise plan on any such scale. So the first step of this operation of ours is to destroy a portion of the rebels' effective strength! And then at the last to gather every military force we have and assault the Owl Dragon System in full. Though in the course of this action we shall send a small number of fleets to make a feint at the Owl Dragon System, to cover our true military aims. Which are the three strategic targets named above!" Qin Longcheng explained.
The company looked at one another, and every one of them declared himself in agreement with this plan of action.
"Since the gentlemen are all in agreement, then I declare it. At 20:00 hours on the tenth of June, this military action opens. This action is of the highest secrecy! Excepting the allocation of the relevant logistical stores, no military movement whatever is to be issued save within the 72 hours before the action. And the code name of this military action."
A killing intent flashed in the depths of Qin Xiaotian's eyes. "Operation Dragon-Slaying!"
…………
"20:00 hours on the tenth of June. That is the hour we set! And we open our military action against Qin Xiaotian!" Zhao Chen rapped the table, looking at the company gathered before him.
The Chu River Governor, Chu Changhe.
The North Wind Governor, Zhu Kai.
The royal Princess, Qin Xiaolei.
And others besides — Zhao Ruyue and the rest…
Chu Changhe looked at the plan of military action the Owl Dragon Legion had drafted.
The North Wind Governor beside him wiped the sweat from his forehead and looked at the smiling Zhao Chen opposite. "My lord of the Owl Dragon…"
"Elder Zhu, why stand on ceremony? Call me by my name and it will serve."
"Zhao Chen, then… this military plan of yours is a little too forward by half, surely. This… this… you actually mean to attack the Snow-Swallow Star Region outright!" The North Wind Governor pointed at the plan.
For the first target set down upon it was not the Starlight Central Star Region, but the Snow-Swallow Star Region — once Qin Xiaotian's home base as Prince Yan.
"Qin Xiaotian holds the Starlight Central Star Region now, true; but Qin Xiaotian's home base is in fact still the Snow-Swallow Star Region — for he spent some decades before this running the place. Set against the Starlight Central Star Region, that is what matters most to him," Zhao Chen said in earnest.
Before this, what everyone had been thinking of was attacking the Starlight Central Star Region, and the Snow-Swallow Star Region, which truly mattered, had been overlooked.
The greatest reason for that was of course geography.
Between the Snow-Swallow Star Region and the North Wind and Chu River Star Regions lay exactly the Starlight Central Star Region and the Grey Moon Star Region.
Zhao Chen had T4 Lucent-class Interstellar Jump Ships, granted; but for an invasion on any scale one had to reckon with logistical supply, with the arrival of following fleets, and the rest of it.
Before now, the number of T4 Lucent-class Interstellar Jump Ships in Zhao Chen's hand had not been enough to carry a military action of the kind.
Once jumped into the Snow-Swallow Star Region, if the military aims required were not achieved, one would stand in a pass of extreme difficulty.
And with certain unknown cards possibly in Qin Xiaotian's hand besides.
Before now, Zhao Chen had been unwilling to take the risk.
And now the Owl Dragon Legion's strength had risen fast, and could carry a surprise plan on such a scale.
So Zhao Chen had settled upon this action.
"To my mind this military plan is wholly workable. To storm the Snow-Swallow Star Region by surprise alone would carry great risk. But in this plan we first feint at the Starlight Central Star Region, and feint frontally at the Snow-Swallow Star Region as well, giving Qin Xiaotian the sense that we are coming at him by both channels at once. While our true trump is Zhao Chen leading the Owl Dragon Legion by T4 Lucent-class Interstellar Jump Ships to strike Qin Xiaotian's home base in the Snow-Swallow Star Region! By which the likelihood of success can be greatly increased!" Chu Changhe said in agreement.
Qin Xiaolei looked at Zhao Chen in earnest. "Brother Chen, simply set us our combat tasks. My Princess Royal Fleet is wholly at your command!"
Zhao Ruyue looked at her own younger brother; owing to the Owl Dragon Legion's showing of strength before, she and Qin Xiaolei both trusted Zhao Chen entirely.
The North Wind Governor, seeing the two of them agree to this plan, nodded as well. "Then I too am willing to fall in with Zhao Chen."
Zhao Chen raised a hand and opened the Starlight Empire's interstellar map.
"Our plan of action is in fact very simple, and not complicated. First, the Chu family's legion fleets and the North Wind legion fleets set out from the Chu River Star Region and the North Wind Star Region and attack the Starlight Central Star Region. The little Princess's Princess Royal Fleet sets out from the Azure Star Region already taken, and attacks the Starlight Central Star Region. And my Owl Dragon Legion, from the Grey Moon Star Region — which by then will be wholly under our control — attacks both the Starlight Central Star Region and the Snow-Swallow Star Region at once. Five lines of operation, pressing Qin Xiaotian on all of them together! And if Qin Xiaotian, as we reckon, sends fleets to meet us frontally and hold off our attack— then by this plan of battle, my Owl Dragon Legion strikes straight at Qin Xiaotian's home base in the Snow-Swallow Star Region!" Zhao Chen pointed at the five lines of attack upon the interstellar holo-table.
"Wait… your Owl Dragon Legion attacks in two directions at once from the Grey Moon Star Region. And then is to strike the Snow-Swallow Star Region besides… this… will that not be too many tasks?" Zhao Ruyue asked in concern.
Zhao Chen smiled slightly. "And who says the one attacking frontally will be the real Owl Dragon Legion?"
At which words the company understood his meaning on the instant.
"But let the gentlefolk remember: anything at all may happen upon a battlefield, and Qin Xiaotian holds cards we know nothing of. Should anything change when the hour comes, the plan of battle must answer the change as it arises. A plan is a dead thing; a man is a living one." Zhao Chen said it in earnest.
Chu Changhe nodded in agreement; from long years of campaigning he understood the principle well, which was why he went to the front line in every battle — for only so could he take hold of a battlefield's turns at the first instant!
"Then ought this plan of battle not to be given a name?" Qin Xiaolei asked, blinking.
Zhao Chen considered a moment, and brought out four words. "The Starry Purgatory."
As to the name of this plan of action, Qin Xiaolei and the rest found it rather past understanding just now, and supposed it might be merely a dashing thing to say.
But before long, they would come to feel the terrible meaning behind that name.