Chapter 213 Breaking the City

In the year of Jiachen, Xin Weiyue, Xinhai said, Yanhuang 4602, the fourth day of June, the Western calendar 1904, July 16, at noon, Lie said head, the earth was burned by Lie said a heat wave, and the heat wave rising from the ground twisted people's lines.

While the heat wave was scorching the earth, a team of officers and soldiers approached the houses in the outer city last night, with bayonet rifles in their hands, staring at the door, and even raising their heads to the roof from time to time. They were waiting for the shelling. The submachine gunners used the last time to check the submachine gun, and the light machine gunners closed their eyes to refresh themselves.

At this moment, the sky and the earth are quiet, and there is no smell of gunpowder in the air, but everyone can feel the tension of the atmosphere at this time. The officers of the commandos in the private house looked at their pocket watches from time to time, and sweat dripped down the brim of their hats, but they did not raise their hands to wipe their sweat. Some nervous soldiers picked up the kettle, regardless of the squad leader and The sergeant's scolding eyes were drinking water.

Not to mention them, some reporters from all over the world who came from Tianjin outside the city were also waiting and looking forward to it. The reporters set up cameras and even brought the movie machine. They knew what they would record. They would record the end of the next empire. This may be the first time in modern history, an empire. His fate is about to end today.

On the cannon bar in the field, the dark black and bright gun body pointed straight into the air. Several officers were there, with pencils and notebooks in their hands, and several people were mapping the distance with maps.

Zhao Nianbai, who came from the turret tube belt, walked around in front of each gun position from Tianyi Fangming. He inspected the fort and artillery for the last time. The cannon shield was installed in front of the cannon, and the news pulley was also installed to transfer the shells. The far-range room and the command post were ready.

Originally, two cannons should be tried according to the plan to test whether the fort could be put into use, but Zhao Nianbai, a fort officer who was changed to Wusong fort because the Yantai fort was broken, slapped his chest and said it was okay.

"11:57!"

Take out the pocket watch from the waist and close the pocket watch with a bang.

"Measure the distance!"

Zhao Nianbai shouted.

"6,500!"

The distance measuring hand in the distance room reported the distance with a double-cylinder distance meter, and this distance is also obtained from the map.

"Flode a cannonball!"

Zhao Nianbai's order was repeated by the captain of the six forts.

Almost after the completion of the fort, this group of gunners hoped to be able to fire the gun, and they were even a little impatient. They just gave an order and immediately cheered and launched the shells with a cart. At the same time, they also launched a nitrified cotton-wrapped smokeless firing bag. The original artillery was equipped with black bullets and black medicine firing. After the occupation of the Dagu Fort, although they didn't like these cannons made by Jiangnan Manufacturing Bureau, it didn't mean that they didn't like the shells, so most of the shells were transported away. Now the shells used in these six forts are all new shells and new firing kits from the south.

excitedly shouted at the soldiers to lift the heavy shells high with cranes and stuff them into the gun barrel, and then put another heavy medicine bag into the gunballs. After loading the gunpowder and pulling the hydrant, they finally closed the bolt.

"Aim, don't let us lose face!"

The gunners shouted excitedly on the fort.

"Son, sir, you won't destroy the cannon!"

A second lieutenant of the artillery asked the chief director with some concern.

"These guns used to use colored gunpowder in the past, but now they use smokeless gunpowder!"

"Don't worry, we have fired dozens of shells in Wusong. There must be no problem!"

Zhao Nianbai comforted the young second lieutenant, who was only sixteen or seventeen years old.

"When the first row of cannons is fired, everyone hides in the explosion-proof hole!"

In order to avoid accidents, Zhao Nianbai shouted that there were dozens of guns in the warehouse in Tianjin, but there were not many gunners. These gunners were temporarily transferred.

"The ruler is 250 degrees! Get ready for each gun!"

"Except for the captain and the aiming hand, enter the explosion-proof hole!"

With an order, the gunner immediately went to the cannon pit more than ten meters away.

The gun's body pointed to the sky like this, while Zhao Nianbai took a look at his pocket watch, and there were still two minutes left!

"Dad..."

The hour hand walked slowly, and every turn was so slow. In the command room, Zhao Nianbai's hand pressed the phone and waited for the command of the command. At this time, there was no sound at all in the command room.

Suddenly, the phone rang and hurriedly picked up the phone. There were only two words on the other end of the phone. At the same time, the same order was also conveyed to the artillery positions of the Guangfu Army and the Beiyang Army, with only two words.

"Ji Shen!"

"Full battery! Open fire!"

Six columns of fire flew straight from the cannon barrel. In an instant, after a flame disappeared, there was a faint smoke covering the fort. The shock wave of the muzzle raised a burst of smoke near the fort, and the air was full of pungent smell of gunpowder smoke. The gunped back with the back seat, retreated to the end of the column, and began to follow again. The cannon mount slowed down the slope. Under the automatic action, it slowly reset. When the soldiers jumped out of the anti-gun copper, the cannon was reset.

At this time, there was a huge noise from the direction of the capital. The three huge explosive smoke masses in the city almost rushed up to a hundred meters high in the sky, which was caused by the explosion of 240mm and 210mm shells, and the city wall was also shrouded in a black smoke cloud raised by the explosion, which was to suppress the defense of the Qing army at the front of the city. Fire suppression.

"Pret No. 1 is in good condition!"

"The No. 2 battery is in good condition!"

"The No. 3 Battery is in good condition..."

In the sound of successive cannons, the bolt was opened. The gunner immediately lifted the water cannon to clean up the gun, pushed a grenade again with a cart, hung a crane, and began to load the bomb. When the gunners were busy, Zhao Nianbai and others were waiting for the data given by the hydrogen balloon in the rear.

"It's getting closer!"

A soldier shouted with the phone, and then began to report new readings. The first shelling was a test launch. New guns, new shells and new propells always had to go through several rounds of test firing.

"Fuck down..."

Suddenly, there was a shout from the fort, and then a roar of shells came. As soon as a order was shouted, the fort was immediately shrouded in smoke and dust. Concrete blocks and steel fragments flew in all directions. The soldiers who pushed the shells even used shells as a bunker to hide behind the shells. This was the Qing army on the head of the city. The gunner's counterattack.

As soon as the danger passed, the battery became busy again.

"Son, the cannon is ready!"

Then the captains began to issue new ruler orders, and the soldiers were busy adjusting the shooting angle.

"Fire!"

After about ten seconds, a section of the wall blew up a cloud of smoke, part of the wall was blown up, and cheers suddenly sounded on the fort.

The gunners in the gun position observed and measured the results of each shooting. Whenever the shell was deflected, they would scold their mother angrily. However, as the calibration of shooting became more and more accurate, the shooting accuracy became higher and higher. The thick wall was constantly hit by shells, and each explosion could blow up part of the wall.

"The shooting speed is five minutes and thirteen seconds to shoot a row of cannons, which may be improved!"

Zhao Nianbai put down the timer and said to the staff beside him. The rest was to flatten the city wall one by one.

"Boom..."

Another sound of drama. The doors, windows, and roofs of the houses, which were completely shrouded in flying dust and smoke more than 100 meters away from the city wall trembled. The soldiers hid in them with their mouths. Their ears were buzzing, and they could not hear any other sound except the explosion.

The flying dust made everyone have a layer of yellow dust, a few half-person-sized holes in the roof, which were smashed when the flying bricks fell, and a slight and painful moan could be heard in the house. This was the injured soldier.

Listening to the shells whining into the air, there was a burst of shouts and scolding in the room. They hated the artillery from their bones, and the cannon was so dazzling. Just then, a sudden whistle sounded from the yellow smoke cloud.

The officers and soldiers who wanted to restore the light under the root of the city cursed at this time. Liang Bi, who was in charge of the defense of the capital on the city wall, had already scolded his mother as early as the first round of shelling. The explosions and screams were endless.

Accompanied by a violent "adult,"

The officer dressed in the standing army full of gray ran to Liang Bi and knelt down first.

"The city wall has been blown up!"

When he reported, there were bursts of rapid whistles from the smoke and dust, accompanied by whistles and hoarse horns, charging against the army!

"Brothers, it's time to serve the country!"

As soon as they heard this, the Qing soldiers, who had been avoiding the shelling on the remaining wall, immediately shouted and rushed to the gap in the explosion of the wall.

The dust in the sky enveloped the head of the city, and the dust flew with the whistle. Dozens of guns stood up. In a low voice, they just stared at the soldiers in front of them and approached the root of the wall bombarded by the cannon. The bullets roared beside them. The bullets in the smoke and dust were not very accurate, but they always hit some people, and no one spoke. Yu, even the person who fell to the ground hummed and fell to the ground. The soldier behind him jumped over his body, jumped into the mud-mixed moat, and rushed up the gently slope of the collapsed wall and bricks.

At this time, these soldiers, whose bodies had been stained with dust, were like ghosts rushing to the earth from hell. The whole charge removed the trumpet in the rear and the whistle of the officers' command, only the heavy breathing was the sound of rapid footsteps.

At the head of the city, the flag soldiers with all kinds of long guns tried to see the movement in the smoke and dust at the gap. The blurred and harsh whistle of their sight made them afraid. They pulled the trigger in the continuous smoke and dust.

"There is movement!"

"Uptown!"

The sudden strange sound made the city chaotic. The Qing soldiers shouted and pulled the trigger into the smoke and dust with their rifles. With the sound of guns, they could hear a muffled hum, but the footsteps were getting closer and closer. This completely different charge, and the smoke and dust full of smoke and gunpowder, made the Qing soldiers in the city feel a little afraid. Even the hairs all over the body stood up.

"Wow..."

Breathing heavily, breathing the choking dust in the air, Ma Youcai only saw a few figures in front of him. At this moment, a long-pressed roar burst out from his throat.

"Kill!"

With a deafening roar, the Qing army on the head of the city only saw more than a dozen shadows flashing from the smoke. The next moment, they saw the dust-stained bayonet rushing out of the smoke. The bayonet was serrated, and the knife body seemed to reflect the cold light. The thick and long knife body only let the fierce silence be broken, and the heart was The trembling soldier was even more flustered, so that he forgot to aim when he pulled the trigger.

Just when the gunfire sounded from the slightly lighter smoke and dust, a roar and roared at the back of the snowy bayonet. No, they are not human beings. They are full of sweat and ash and the ferocious on it only turn people into the devil. The sharp bayonet instantly pierced the body of the Qing army in the front row, and the impact even made the Qing army's. The body was pushed back. After the nearly two-foot-long bayonet pierced a person, it was pushed back with blood dripping. The scene at this moment immediately scared the Qing army in the back row.

When they reacted, they saw this group of evil spirits rushing out of hell, throwing out the bodies hard and rushing towards them with a bloody bayonet.

In the scream, they pulled the trigger backwards. After a puff of smoke, they saw the group of people rushing towards them like immortal ghosts. At this moment, almost everyone thought they were a group of immortal ghosts, and they didn't notice that someone fell in the rushing crowd. The people behind rushed up.

Fear on the battlefield is like an infectious disease, which will spread, and once it spreads, it may even be irreparable. The previous dull and silent charge made their frightened, and this will attack the enemy rushing like evil, adding to their fear.

"Oh my God!"

I don't know who shouted first, turned around and ran backwards. First one person, then a few people, and finally dozens of people, hundreds of people. When they were running, the shouting behind them became louder and louder. The officers and soldiers of the Guangfu Commando rushed to the head of the city along the collapsed city, just attacked the city in an hour. Become a pursuit of the enemy.

The submachine gunners rushed to the top of the city began to exert their divine power. They held submachine guns and rushed to the front row. While chasing, they lowered the muzzle and aimed at the enemy's legs. The beating of the muzzle often made the bullet hit the enemy's body. At this time, the submachine gunner and the light machine gunner became the leading actors on the wall. They were divided into three or four rows to run in the front of the army. At the moment when the first row emptied the bullets and changed the magazine, the second row made up and continued to chase and shoot.

They rushed forward, ignoring the moaning and struggling with the wounded along the way. The riflemen following behind would stab the wounded soldiers directly in the heart or neck, and the muscles of the dying wounded soldiers shuddered. They couldn't believe what they saw until they died.

This is a bunch of devils!

At least when they died, such an idea came to their minds.

When the battle on the head of the city was white-hot, Cai E, who was holding a telescope, looked at the soldiers who were tearing up on the head of the city. He just nodded and finally took off the telescope and looked at the city wall for a long time. As an equally young soldier, it was rare to see such a battle scene with his own eyes. Once you see it with your own eyes, you can't help but arouse a stronger psychological impulse than ordinary people.

For a moment, he almost had an impulse to climb up the head of the city with a bayonet and tear the enemy with a rifle. The man's bones advocate violence. The scene of tearing will not only not scare them, but also arouse their brave heart.

Finally, after a long time, Cai E sighed to herself.

"It's a good fight!"

"Our soldiers have nothing to say!"

Lin Yuqing continued to say that he knew that almost all of these soldiers crawled out of the dead after tearing up with the Russians on the battlefield.

"When we are outside the customs, it is impossible for us to train for a few months. On the battlefield, we rely on the anger in our hearts to fight with the blood of our brothers. The men in Kanto are red in their eyes! If you call him and drag him down, he won't come down!"

Cao Shijie followed Lin Yuqing's words and said that he was a native of Kanto, and he knew the blood surname in the bones of Kanto men.

"It can't go on like this! Our soldiers, even if they fight for ten or twenty, it doesn't count! It's good to fight hard, and sometimes it's necessary. However, you can't fight like this! Calculate how many soldiers have been recruited by the volunteer army for more than a year. There are no 200,000, but also 170,000 or 80,000! But now how many people are there after the whole volunteer army is reorganized into the Guangfu army?

Cai E said regretfully that he, who had been torn and killed outside the customs, could not know much about that army. If it hadn't been for this kind of fighting method of fighting, the Volunteer Army might have been the largest army in the whole Guangfu Army, but what about now? How many people does he have? Nearly half of the people either died on the battlefield or were disabled and retired.

Listening to this, Lin Yuqing was startled for a moment, and then looked ahead. In his eyes, he seemed to see those soldiers who were desperately, let the bullets hit, and would never shout if they did not receive the enemy, "pounce into the enemy's array like ghosts and tear them like evil spirits."

"There's nothing we can do. The Russians didn't leave us time to train, and we also didn't have time to train!"

"It's not a matter of not having time to train!"

Cai E's small but very sharp eyes stared at Cao Renjie's face and categorically denied his excuse.

"For us, the whole restoration army emphasizes the role of officers from beginning to end. Officers are the soul of the army. What about soldiers? They are cannon fodder, just a group of animals. We rely on military law, rely on the officers' guns, and rely on the company of the team to drive them to fight!"

When he said this, Cai E's small eyes closed, and a trace of pain appeared on his face.

"If the Ninth Battalion did not hit the wall today, or was beaten back to wait for them, what would it be?"

With a painful expression, Cai E knows what is waiting for them. Failure is not accepted in the restoration army, and failure is okay! Unless the whole army is killed in battle, as soon as he receives the order, the regimental commander presses the battalion commander. If he fails, he will become benevolent. The battalion commander presses the company commander, and finally the first level is the first level. In the last sentence of the order, there will always be only one sentence "Successful and become benevolent!" This is their only choice.

"We! All the orders about retreat have been burned. For us, we can only move forward forever!"

Either destroy the enemy, complete the task, or be destroyed by the enemy! The officers rely on the strength to liberate the whole nation and restore the national reputation. What do the soldiers rely on? While the officers instilled honor on them, they relied more on the machine guns and submachine guns of the gendarmerie. From the moment they received the attack order, they faced the muzzle of the enemy forward and the muzzle of their own people against the back.

"Do you die on the battlefield like a hero, or die like a coward!"

Whether it is for officers or soldiers, this is a multiple choice question. For officers, they need to maintain their honor. They all risk killing their heads to join the army, while for soldiers, there is only one answer to this multiple choice question, or they will be killed by their own people when retreating, like wild dogs. With the corpse wilderness, either move forward bravely like a soldier. In that case, their families can get a pension of hundreds of yuan, as well as dozens of acres of land that their families will get after the restoration in the future.

"Our soldiers have no choice, either to kill the enemy or be killed by the enemy!"

Once upon a time, when he arrived outside the customs from Japan, Commander Lin once told them that whether they were officers or soldiers, they were always the same in front of orders. Even if they were meritorious, there were only two choices on the battlefield. Whether it was the restoration army or the volunteer army, they relied on strict military law without leaving a face. .

"Commander-in-chief, success is the honor of a soldier!"

Lin Yuqing said coldly that he might have pity for those soldiers, but it did not mean that he could accept the commander-in-chief's attack on the army.

"If there were half of the army in the Qing Dynasty, even one-third of the soldiers had the awareness of success. Will this country look like this?"

His voice asked rhetorically, which made Cai E dumb. Indeed, if the army of the Qing Dynasty had the awareness of success decades ago, this country would never be like this. This country is because soldiers do not have the consciousness of death.

"If you go to the battlefield, you must have the consciousness of death, either killing or being killed. With this awareness, you can win the battle!"

Cold words came out of Lin Yuqing's mouth. When he spoke, he just stared at the wall in front of him.

"Relentless, people have their own feelings, but military law is ruthless. If military law is affectionate, the country will die. In the past, now and in the future, it will be the same. Commander-in-chief, we are soldiers, we should understand this. What do you think?"

At this time, Lin Yuqing picked up the saber in his hand with one hand. The saber was captured from the Russian cavalry and was the first weapon he captured on the battlefield.

Cai E nodded.

" As commanders, we must try our best to avoid unnecessary casualties of soldiers, which is what we need to consider!"

The conversation failed to interrupt the sound of gunfire on the battlefield. No matter what the three people said at this time, they all knew the fact that the capital was broken!

(to be continued)