1235 Right and wrong
Black Fox stood at the door of the conference room with his head down, staring at the dust on his body. He had just returned from transporting the fertilizer and was covered in dirt.

When a staff officer approached him and said that Commander P5092 wanted him to make a trip to the conference room, he already knew what he would have to face again.

Cruel war.

However, Black Fox was not nervous at all. Instead, he suddenly felt a little excited.

He had studied at the Pyro Company’s military university for four years and served in the 3rd Division for many years. Everything he learned and experienced was for the sake of war.

!!
Some time ago, Black Fox even felt a little regretful when P5092 came to him and said they might serve as logistical troops going forward.

However, it was a soldier’s duty to obey orders. He would do whatever his superior said.

But if he had another chance to bear arms, Black Fox would actually be very happy.

Moreover, he believed that the other Pyro Company soldiers would also be as happy as him. That was because everyone had been waiting for this moment.

Black Fox knew it might not be right for him to think this way. After all, war was war, and there was a price to pay.

However, this was their expertise, and it was also a cause they were willing to sacrifice everything for.

P5092 sat in the conference room and looked calmly at Black Fox. “There’s no need to be happy yet. When you find out about the enemy you’ll be facing, you’ll start worrying.”

“I won’t.” Black Fox laughed. “I’m mentally prepared for it. I’ve been prepared since ten years ago.”

“Go and tidy up yourself first. After that, take your men to the armory to collect your equipment.” P5092 said.

“OK.” Black Fox was like a recruit who had just enrolled in military academy. He turned around and ran off without a trace, full of energy.

P5092 continued to say in the quiet conference room, “This time, the 3rd Field Division will not be constructing any new defensive positions. Facing such a powerful enemy, we won’t be able to stop them at all in the plains. So we’ll have to use guerrilla warfare to delay them.”

Indeed, the 3rd Field Division was truly unable to stop the enemy. All they could do was to buy some time so that as many of the Northwest’s residents could evacuate to the rear as possible.

They did not have to defeat anyone and only needed to buy some time.

“What kind of support do you require?” Ren Xiaosu asked, “I’ll participate in the battle together with the 6th Field Division. That will buy us more time.”

“No.” P5092 shook his head and said, “Future Commander, now that you’re still alive, and by letting everyone know you’re alive, that’s the greatest significance of all. You and Commander Zhang are the spiritual pillars of the Northwest, so neither of you can fall. If anything happens to either one of you, how great of a blow will it be to the morale of the entire Northwest Army? Do you know?”

Ren Xiaosu naturally understood this logic.

P5092 continued, “This has nothing to do with being fearless. It’s the same for me as well. A dead commander is a worthless commander. The world has never needed unnecessary passion. You and I need to calmly stay alive til the end. It’s not that we want to live, but that this war requires us to survive.”

Ren Xiaosu took a deep breath and said, “Then what other support do you need?”

The situation facing the Northwest was a little different from that of the Qing Consortium.

There was no path between the Qing Consortium and the Wang Consortium, so there was no possibility that the mechanized troops would pass through the southwestern forest.

But it was different in the Northwest. The Wang Consortium had already garrisoned their troops at the border. There were roads here, and the Wang Consortium’s forward operating bases were also close to the border. Even if their supply line was not enough to support the large-scale movement of mechanized troops, a small number of armored vehicles and tanks could still reach the Northwest.

Therefore, if the Northwest wanted to engage in guerrilla warfare against such troops, they would have to keep up in terms of mobility.

Wang Yuexi, who was participating in the meeting, hesitated for a moment before saying, “But the problem is that diesel, gasoline, and vehicles will all be needed urgently by the residents when they evacuate. All the transportation in the stronghold has to be fully operational so that the residents can be taken away as quickly as possible.”

The conference room fell silent. Resources were limited, so Ren Xiaosu had to decide who to allocate them to.

If it were given to Wang Yuexi for the evacuation of the residents, P5092 definitely could not ensure high mobility for his troops.

No one could have their cake and eat it too.

Ren Xiaosu frowned. He got up and said to Wang Yuexi, “Go and make arrangements for the evacuation first. There’s no need to hide it from the stronghold residents anymore. We can’t keep something like that under wraps anyway. Zhang Xiaoman, lead a brigade into the stronghold to maintain order. If anyone incites the civilians to cause trouble, arrest them. As for the evacuation plan, I’ll try to think of another way.”

P5092 suddenly said, “Wang Yun, select 10 soldiers from the military who used to live in Fortress 178 and get them to come and see me. Remember, I want soldiers whose families are still at Fortress 178, and they should not be an only child. Also, hand me all the Eyes of True Sight Future Commander gave to you all that haven’t been used to activate Enchanted Doorway yet.”

Ren Xiaosu was stunned. He immediately guessed why P5092 needed these 10 soldiers.

P5092 thought for a moment and added, “It’s best if they volunteer.”

More than a 1,000 soldiers from the 6th Field Division had been deployed to Stronghold 144 with Zhang Xiaoman. Therefore, it was not difficult to find 10 such soldiers among them.

In the afternoon, P5092 recollected all the Eyes of True Sight Ren Xiaosu had handed out, including every Eye of True Sight that was the red grade and above.

Originally, they had more than 20 Eyes of True Sight, but most of them had already been used to activate enchanted doorways recently. If they wanted to use them again, the previous owner of the Eye of True Sight would first have to die.

Each Eye of True Sight corresponded to one soldier. For example, the red Eye of True Sight held by Zhang Xiaoman that had not been activated yet could become key to this evacuation plan.

The soldiers’ families being at Fortress 178 was very important. Although the Enchanted Doorway’s destination was not something that could be controlled, there was a very high probability it would lead to the soldiers’ respective homes since they had been away for so long.

This was the condition P5092 had for selecting the soldiers.

The width of an enchanted doorway opened by a red Eye of True Sight allowed one person to pass through at a time, while an enchanted doorway opened by a gold Eye of True Sight allowed two.

Of course, civilians could not pass through the enchanted doorway as orderly as soldiers could, probably taking two to three seconds for each person to go through the portal. This timing was also not an accurate estimate and would have to be calculated again.

But once a soldier could activate an enchanted doorway that had its destination at Fortress 178, it would reduce a lot of burden on the entire civilian evacuation plan. At the very least, people like children, women, and the elderly who were not conditioned for arduous journeys could retreat through the enchanted doorway.

There were a total of four strongholds that needed to be evacuated, so Ren Xiaosu had to come up with a shortcut.

However, the soldiers who activated those enchanted doorways would not be spared. They would have to wait for everyone to pass through before turning their Eyes of True Sight counterclockwise ten times to close their portals at their entrances.

In this way, everyone who passed through the enchanted doorways would not fall back to the other side if they got destroyed.

Based on the remaining time left for their evacuation, there was a high chance these soldiers would not be able to leave Stronghold 144. That was why P5092 instructed that the soldiers selected for these roles should not be the only child at home.

Honestly, Ren Xiaosu was very unwilling to make a choice like this. That was because this decision would be very unfair to any soldier.

P5092 looked at Ren Xiaosu and asked, “Future Commander, you can’t bear to do this?”

Ren Xiaosu glanced at P5092. “Yes.”

P5092 said, “This is something all of us have to go through. Do you remember the trolley problem? On a forked track, you have ten people on one side and hundreds of thousands of people on the other. The trolley is slated to crash into the path of hundreds of thousands of people, and the track switcher is in your hand. How will you choose?”

Ren Xiaosu shook his head. “No, that’s not the right analogy. These 10 people did nothing wrong. They weren’t even standing on the other path to begin with. But just because they are soldiers, we have to sacrifice them? We have to make them volunteer to stand on the other fork in the tracks and trade their lives for the lives of others?”

P5092 said, “Yes, it’s precisely because they’re soldiers. All of our soldiers are prepared to sacrifice themselves for the hundreds of thousands of civilians.”

Ren Xiaosu shook his head again. “I still have other methods.”

P5092 said, “It’s alright, Future Commander. If you can’t bear to do it, I’ll talk to them.”

“Let me do it,” Ren Xiaosu said firmly.

When the 10 soldiers came to Ren Xiaosu, Ren Xiaosu looked at their faces. They were all watching him expectantly. They knew the future commander had something very important for them to do.

“What are your names and ages?” Ren Xiaosu asked softly.

“Zhao Wankun, 40 years old!”

“Jiang Feifei, 31 years old!”
“Zhang Hao, 31 years old!”

“Liu Daixu, 25 years old!”

“Xin Gengfan, 23 years old!”

“Cheng Fangwei, 24 years old!”

“Xu Penglong, 21 years old!”

“Wang Fojun, 21 years old!”

“Dai Jinkai, 26 years old!”

“Tang Boying, 28 years old!”

Of these 10 Northwest Army soldiers, the oldest was 40 years old, and the youngest was 21.

Ren Xiaosu remained silent as he thought about how to bring up the matter. Instead, it was Zhao Wankun who said with a laugh, “Future Commander, it’s alright, just say it. We’re already mentally prepared. We came here voluntarily.”

Actually, they already knew what was going on when they were asked by P5092 if they were an only child.

Jiang Feifei said with a laugh, “Future Commander, Commander P5092 has already told us what’s going on. We’re willing to stay behind and wait for everyone to pass through the enchanted doorway and close it. Actually, compared to our comrades who have to do battle with the enemy, we’re very fortunate. They’re the ones facing the most danger.”

Ren Xiaosu was silent for a moment before saying, “I’ll accompany y’all at the front line until the last moment, then I’ll use the steam locomotive to take y’all away.”

This was the method Ren Xiaosu was referring to. Perhaps, as an outstanding commander, P5092 was already used to making sacrifices and letting those around him die in the name of ideals. However, Ren Xiaosu still found it difficult to get used to it.

Therefore, he wanted to accompany these soldiers until the last moment.

“Let’s begin.” Ren Xiaosu said, “You just need to take the stone that was handed out to y’all and drip a drop of blood onto it. After that, turn it clockwise ten times on the wall behind me and the enchanted doorway will be activated. The candidates for Stronghold 144 will be Zhao Wankun, Jiang Feifei, and Zhang Hao.”

The residents of a total of four strongholds had to be evacuated, so the 10 soldiers were evenly assigned to the various strongholds, with two to three soldiers for each stronghold.

As for whether they could open the enchanted doorway to Fortress 178, no one knew.

“Future Commander.” Someone said hesitantly, “What if the portal we activate doesn’t open to Fortress 178?”

Ren Xiaosu said, “Don’t feel too pressured. There’s no way we can be sure of it in the first place. It might open up to a place next to you, or it might open up to somewhere you’ve never been to before. It’s a gamble even for me, so even if y’all fail, no one will blame you. Don’t worry, I’ll still have others test it out later. Y’all’re only the first batch to try.”

The first to go was Zhao Wankun. After he dripped his blood and turned the stone clockwise ten times, a ripple spread out on the wall.

As soon as he stepped through the enchanted doorway, he returned to Stronghold 144 in disappointment. Then he said with difficulty, “Future Commander, there’s a snowy mountain behind the door. It’s probably negative 10 degrees Celsius there.”

Ren Xiaosu helped him to brush off the snow on his shoulder. “It’s alright, you can go back and get some rest.”

Zhao Wankun walked out of the room with his head down. Ren Xiaosu thought his expression looked a little off, so he quietly followed behind.

Just as Zhao Wankun stepped out of the door, this veteran suddenly drew his gun from his hip and tried to shoot himself.

Fortunately, Ren Xiaosu discovered it in time and kicked Zhao Wankun’s gun away.

“What are you doing?” Ren Xiaosu asked coldly.

“Future Commander, Commander P5092 told us this enchanted doorway can only be opened once. If the person who activated it is alive, no one can activate it a second time.” Zhao Wankun said in a low voice, “So, Future Commander, you don’t have to lie to us anymore. We know what we need to do.”

Ren Xiaosu suddenly felt a little stifled as though there was something stuck in his chest.

He had just said a few minutes ago that he would find someone else to activate the enchanted doorway, but that was just to console these soldiers. He did so precisely because he was worried they would do something silly.

In the end, P5092 had actually anticipated this before him and hinted to these soldiers that if they could not open a portal to Fortress 178, they should instantly end their own lives.

P5092 did this because he wanted to trade human lives so they could continue to trial all 10 Eyes of True Sight’s corresponding enchanted doorways until they opened up to Fortress 178.

This way, the evacuation plan would be much more efficient with two to three enchanted doorways in each stronghold.

Perhaps it would only take ten days for all the stronghold residents to retreat back to Fortress 178.

Ren Xiaosu dragged Zhao Wankun to look for P5092. He said coldly, “Were you the one who hinted to them to take their own lives?”

P5092 glanced at Zhao Wankun and said calmly, “Yes.”

“Just because this is the most correct choice of all?” Ren Xiaosu asked.

“That’s right.” P5092 nodded and said, “The enchanted doorway is too unstable. Moreover, Future Commander, the civilians can’t pass through at the rate of one person every few seconds. They’re not trained soldiers of the 6th Field Division, so there’ll be overcrowding at both sides of the door. The first group of people slated to pass through are the children, elderly, and women. You’ve overestimated the speed at which they can do it, especially the elderly.”

P5092 continued, “An enchanted doorway that can fit two people can probably let through a 100,000 to 150,000 people in three days. What if there’s only one enchanted doorway that fits one person at a time? That would be even less. There are a total of 1.1 million people in Stronghold 144, so one enchanted doorway won’t be enough for them to evacuate in time. If these civilians fall into the hands of the AI, how much of a threat will it pose to our back line? How many soldiers will have to die then?”

Ren Xiaosu listened quietly. Actually, he was well aware that P5092 was choosing the best solution for their current situation.

Without considering human nature, emotions, or morals, constantly using human lives to test until all 10 enchanted doorways opened to Fortress 178 was indeed the most efficient plan.

P5092 said calmly, “Future Commander, I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to bear the guilt. Just pretend that you don’t know about this and leave it to me to bear…. After all, I’m more ruthless.”

Ren Xiaosu gave P5092 a stern look and said, “The problem is that you’re not as ruthless as you claim. You might think that I’m being loyal and impulsive, or that I’m not mature enough, but the Northwest Army has never needed such sacrifices. If we really have to die, we’ll die together.”

After that, Ren Xiaosu ordered Wang Yun to send someone to keep an eye on the soldiers who had failed to open their enchanted doorway to Fortress 178. Then he returned to the room where the activation of the enchanted doorways was taking place.

Off to the side, Wang Yun said to P5092, “Future Commander also knows you’re doing this for the good of the Northwest. He understands that, but it’s just not his style.”

P5092 said calmly, “I understand. This is why a leader is a leader, while I can only be a commander.”

In the end, for Stronghold 144, only one enchanted doorway that fit a person at a time was activated after three attempts.

The other soldiers got into their vehicles and drove off to the other strongholds with their Eyes of True Sight.

In the evening, Ren Xiaosu went to look for P5092 again and said in seriousness, “I know very well what kind of person you are. If you were really that ruthless, you wouldn’t have sat alone in your tent until dawn when your soldiers sacrificed themselves to protect the Pyro Company’s Great Wall. So, if you make such a decision again next time, remember to tell me in advance. The Northwest belongs to all of us. You don’t have to bear the burden alone.”

P5092 looked at Ren Xiaosu quietly. After a long time, he said, “But sacrifices are always necessary in war. Moreover, they’re already prepared for it.”

Ren Xiaosu said, “You’re right, but there’s not only right and wrong in the world. There’s also choices that we make from our conscience.”

On the same day, alarms blared in Strongholds 143, 144, 145, and 146 at the same time. The announcers of the various strongholds announced the decision for an evacuation over the radio.

The officials did not hide the details of the war and frankly admitted that everyone had to retreat to favorable terrain to stand a chance of winning.

All of a sudden, the four strongholds were in an uproar.

The Northwest Army was already prepared to maintain order, but the chaos they expected did not happen.

Translated by: Legge

Edited by: weirdo