"Dinner's ready."
At eight o'clock in the evening, Morins brought over two dinners and, after sitting down beside Song Heping, gave one to him.
"I didn't ask for this."
Song Heping was somewhat irritated at the moment.
The day had passed, and it was now nighttime, but he still hadn't received what he wanted from Fer.
The pressure was not only from Fer's side not getting things done, but also from the whole conflict, which was moving in a direction increasingly disadvantageous to the ELN armed group as time went on.
To the north, the AUC armed force, numbering over ten thousand, had broken through two defense lines.
To the south, the situation was even worse.
The defense lines at San Jose and San Rita had been breached, and the southern defensive zone was almost split in two.
Once breached, the AUC armed forces could complete the encirclement of the southern ELN troops.
Because the entire ELN defense zone was actually a narrow strip of land next to the Venezuela border, it looked like a youtiao (fried dough stick) on the map.
In its early years, when the ELN armed group was establishing bases and occupying territory, it always prioritized these areas: firstly, because there were many oil fields here; secondly, they could run to Venezuela if anything happened.
In many places along the border, the rainforest was dense and scarcely populated, making escape easy.
This line of thinking by the founders of the ELN armed group wasn't wrong.
Initially, when the organization was weaker, survival was the first priority – fight if you can win, run if you can't; this very much fitted the essence of guerrilla warfare.
However, as they slowly grew and expanded, the thinking of the successors didn't keep up with the changes.
After so many years, they're still using the old mindset of struggle, still thinking of running off to Venezuela if they can't win the fight.
Hence, the land now has this peculiar shape.
Such a territory is like a snake – actually, it has far too many vulnerabilities.
If it were a guerrilla mindset with small groups and small arms, that might be okay.
But having developed into the third-largest anti-government armed force within Colombia, it's surprising they haven't expanded their territory logically. Being so established and sticking to the thinking of their guerrilla roots is what has created the current awkward predicament of being stuck between a rock and a hard place.
To say they can't win and should retreat: now that they have grown larger, with many more assets, it's not just something you can walk away from.
In the past, being barefoot, of course anything could be lost.
Now, although there are no leather shoes on, at least there are rubber shoes to wear.
If you truly don't want the rubber shoes, returning to the barefoot state is unacceptable to anyone.
This is why Morins, as the group leader, stubbornly refuses to choose between shrinking the defense line at either end of the northern and southern territory.
Put simply, it's all about saving face at the cost of enduring hardship.
In fact, Song Heping had many grievances with Morins and even the ELN armed group's high-level officials.
These people were simply more trouble than they were worth.
A long defensive area, hundreds of kilometers from north to south, had at most, just under five thousand men.
How could they defend?
No matter how high Song Heping's level of tactical command was or how smart he was, there was only so much he could do with what he had.
The AUC armed group was using multi-pronged attacks, over ten thousand men split into several groups, ferociously tearing at different points of the Long Snake Formation. If they could break through one point, the snake's body would be severed, unable to cooperate with the front and rear, and would eventually be easily surrounded and divided.
This basic knowledge of tactics, Song Heping understood, and of course, Morins too.
But they were powerless.
As soon as they talk about giving up some territory to shrink the defense line, those high-level decision-makers would react like the incompetent old officials in the Late Qing dynasty, wailing and lamenting as if the ancestral family business was about to be ruined.
In the afternoon, Song Heping had a phone meeting with Morins and those others, ending in a discordant split.
At the time, Song Heping was so angry he nearly quit his position to return to Venezuela to be a tranquil school principal.
But then he thought that, in the midst of intense battle, to simply let go and leave Morins behind for Venezuela would be highly unprofessional, so he stayed.
"You can still eat?"
Song Heping, looking disdainfully at Morins wolfing down food beside him, couldn't help but say sarcastically, "If your spies don't step it up, this might be your last dinner."
He pointed to the map in front.
"By tomorrow night, given the current rate of advance, I predict there will be gunfire near the headquarters."
"I trust my people, they will find the evidence."
Morins seemed unfazed, with his appetite still robust, devouring his meal as if he hadn't eaten in ages.
"I've deployed all my undercover agents implanted within the military, one of whom is at the Special Operations Division base, and the military command center for this operation is there, though he's not a core member, so he can't get close to that command center yet, nor has he captured anyone inside. But I believe he will find a way."
Hearing this, Song Heping had no choice but to refrain from any further complaints.
After all, being undercover was extremely risky.
As the leader of the ELN armed group, Morins was surely more anxious than himself.
After this battle, Morins would have nothing left.