Living as a Salted Fish, No Snake on the Marshal's Wrist

Chapter 72: Trap

Discovering the pirates encoded messages was a big help.  It revealed important information and clues on those helping the pirates behind the scenes.

Jun De had been chasing every tip and trace sent to him from the emperor or found by his crew.

"Marshal, we've received word that the pirates are attempting a large scale attack." An Officer reported.

"Do we know the size of their forces or the location?" Jun De asked.

"Yes. The location is not far from the current location of Marshal Hujing. They intend to use an asteroid belt expected to pass the Marshal's rear in three days time."

"Chatter on the line suggest 300 ships will take part in the attack."

"Something doesn't feel right. We've been successfully attacking their rear with pincer attacks and predicting their movements. By now they must have realized a leak in their communications. To reveal this information feels more like a trap." Jun De revealed his suspicions.

A third of those attending the meeting were surprised, while the other two nodded their heads in agreement.

"It's been getting easier to find the enemy, but the overall damage we've managed to cause has been negligible." Commander Ma pointed out.

"This attack, real or not won't be simple."

"It's either going to be a larger force than the 300 reported, or their location."

"I think it's the target. Marshal Hujing has kept the pirates contained, but he can't deliver a killing blow. Marshal Shizi, has been messing around like an idiot, and than there's us. We've hurt them. I think the real target is us." Another officer suggested.

"I agree, but the question is how they plan to deal with us."

"If we appear at the location revealed, it will probably turn into a reverse pincer with us as the target."

"That's to predictable. I think they will take advantage of us being preoccupied and take out the lifeline of the front lines."

"Are you thinking they're going to hit the logistics network? Impossible, even if they know where it is, the supply lines and logistics centre is the most heavily guarded force. It's suicide to try and attack it."

"No, I think he's right. The logistics centre is located opposite of Marshal Hujing's location. If we arrive on site against 300 possibly twice as many enemy ships, we would have no choice but to call in reinforcements. Taking troupes from the area would leave gaps in the line. To take the diverted forces place and leave no large gaps, the logistics' guard would need to spread themselves thin." Jun De hypothesized.

"Then the pirates take advantage of the loosened security to steal or destroy all our supplies" Commander Ma muttered in thought.

"If that's correct we can't ignore the location near Marshal Hujing, nor can we divert attention from the surrounding troupes."

"Marshal, what needs to be done?" An officer asked. He couldn't figure out a way to solve the problem.

Jun De leaned back in contemplation. The current situation was lose-lose from their perspective. He needed an alternate approach.

Ding!*

Jun De looked down at his wrist. Flashing across his bracelet were the words "Taio Ru". It was an alarm he had set to remind him to call Taio Ru.

He couldn't promise to always call him at the same time every night. Even so, he tried to call at roughly the same time.

Looking at Taio Ru's name, Jun De decided to pause the meeting for an hour. It wasn't because he didn't care about the meeting, but that he needed inspiration or a different perspective. Often times speaking with Taio Ru led him to some innovative ideas.