Chapter 331 We need reinforcements!
Major General Ford and Macartney and others stood leisurely on the tail of the flagship Lion and looked at the battle situation in front of them. Only five warships were dispatched, which made the other party's fort change the ability to fight back. Major General Ford couldn't help raising his eyebrows. In his opinion, he did not send eight or even ten warships to deal with them. This fort is indeed a wise choice. It not only shows the excellent quality of British naval soldiers, but also reflects the wisdom of his commander.
In a word, when he saw that the fort had lost resistance again and Colonel Keane commanded the warship forward, Macartney couldn't help frowning: "General, isn't Colonel Gene's action too urgent?"
"Dear Ambassador, I trust the judgment of my men. Colonel Gene is an excellent naval officer. He is at the center of the battle and knows very well what kind of choices should be made under what circumstances. Don't worry, in front of our British navy, these Qing troops are really..." Before Major General Ford's words fell, he heard a thunderous artillery roar. Major General Ford's gray eyes full of relaxation and smile were a little prominent at this moment, and his smile was frozen on his face.
The fort, which had been silent, was just approaching Keane's squadron, and before it could set up the artillery formation, it suddenly spewed dozens of pipe flames. Fifty-four 12-pound guns, almost every ten cannons aimed at a British warship, and that kind of hammer bullet roared on the water at the mouth of the Pearl River. , frantically spinning into a dark halo, smashing at the British squadron that had not had time to react.
Coloe Keane looked at the smoke spewing out of the thick trees in disbelief, and he already knew in his heart that he had been fooled and fooled by those damn Qing people. Soldiers, don't panic, turn the rudder and use our sideboard cannons to make these damn Qing people understand that their tricks are ineffective in the face of absolute strength.
Before the words fell, a hammer bullet hit their main mast fiercely. With the roar and the wood chips, the main structure began to tremble, and the burned red hammer bullet was slightly lower after a period of flying, but it still ignited those stuck in The cable on the main mast and the surrounding canvas.
Those who had already come out of the cabin and stood in line on the deck. After waiting for the warship to drop the boat, the Indian Asan mercenaries who jumped on the boat and engaged in the landing battle couldn't help staring their eyes widening. With their dark skin, their eyes looked extremely exaggerated and shiny.
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The first hammer bullet came like divine help, and it happened to sweep between the chests and abdomen of the group of Indian Asan mercenaries who were stunned and had not had time to react. There was no strong collision sound, only the tragic fracture sound and the howl of dying on the warship one after another, and the broken limbs were The rotating hammer bullets were thrown fiercely in all directions, and even some Indian soldiers who were not swept by the hammer bullets died under the broken barrel of the broken barrel in their throats.
This tragedy broke the fragile nerves of all the Indian Asan mercenaries trained by the British Empire, calling all kinds of local languages, praying for their gods or God or God. In short, as long as they can save their lives, Even if they were willing to believe in Aladdin's magic lamp, their scattered escape not only made the deck more chaotic, but also blocked the British sailors and soldiers from fighting fire and rescue.
Another shrill roar came, and a hammer bullet smashed a hole from the bow of the warship and turned into the second-floor artillery deck. Its crazy rotation speed was enough to sweep everything that dared to block its way, whether it was artillery, artillery, or gunpowder barrels or shell piles, it was driven away by it. In a hurry, he became its subordinates and raged crazily in this small space with it.
The fire bucket, which was detonated by its hot sphere, even pushed two cannons into the front of the ship and fell into the sea. Although the British sailors on the deck were a little panicked by the sudden attack and the congestion of the Indian miscellaneous fish, they soon woke up after a long battle. The first mate and second mate now waved the handle of the gun and the back of the knife to beat the hurried Indian mercenaries fiercely, or calm down. Or just drop the ship from the side of the ship. In a short time, it finally suppressed the panic of the timid mercenaries. After the water, they began to avoid the gunfire and carry buckets to pour out the cables or canvas ignited by chain bullets.
However, at this time, the positions of the six-pound gun, which should have been destroyed by the squadron, roared again and roared briskly. The red-burning solid bullets rushed to the hulls or sails of the five British warships under the wrap of the fire elves.
The gunfire just now was really fierce enough, but the problem is that although the bombardment of the naval gun caused a certain amount of damage to the fort, it could not hurt the artillery soldiers who were hiding in the trenches and artillery positions. Unless they were destroyed from the front, they could still continue to exert their power. The six-pounder gun was really difficult to destroy. Destroying the opponent's warship, however, it can also cause enough damage to the personnel and items on the ship, and can also play a good role in interfering with the opponent's shelling sight.
"...Fed, damn it." Standing on the flagship of the squadron, watching the other side's bullets raging the warships, watching the excellent naval soldiers and sailors fall under the other party's shells, and watching the towering mast falling down with a terrible cracking sound. Colonel Keane's heart was almost broken, but at this time, he needed to calm down, because the formation of the warship had not been put in place, and he could not give the other party an effective counterattack.
He can only watch the other party hit him, but he can't deal with his opponent, which is what makes Keane feel the most uncomfortable. Of course, he also has a sense of anger of being fooled and deceived. Those damn Qing [***] people are afraid that they have already prepared a condom to get themselves in.
"Colonel, the main mast and secondary mast were seriously damaged, the captain of Sesso was killed, the ammunition depot of the Lille was ignited, the deck was lifted, and the combat effectiveness was lost." The mate's face was full of sweat and oil, but at this moment, he could no longer care about it. The other party's shells were still roaring, continuing to bombard the ship and sails. The holes were torn one by one. The sailors struggled to climb up the mast and lift the water with ropes, hoping to extinguish the fire demons that were raging on the sails. .
"It doesn't matter, keep turning, and the ready gun position will fight back immediately." Keane's expression was cold and harsh, and his calm voice was like a reef, which calmed the first mate a little and loudly repeated the commander's orders to the flag bearer and the summoner.
"Boom! Boom! Boom! ..." After being hit hard by the other side, the British squadron began to fight back. However, although their gunners were excellent and their guns did not have fake products, the problem was that the other party's bunkers were so strong that their shells could only shoot out stone crumbs one by one. The depression even exposed the bamboo tendons inside, but it could not penetrate the concrete bunker a few feet thick.
As long as the other party's shelling can hit the target, it will cause damage to the British warships, which is the disadvantage that the shore gun and the naval gun cannot hide and erase when fighting.
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The Lille has completely turned into a sea scenery swallowed up by fire elves. The high masts are like delicate torches. From time to time, the gunpowder barrels are detonated, and the splashed fragments float in all directions with flames.
The first mate of the Thurso stood up after the captain's death and bravely commanded the soldiers to fight back. However, unfortunately, a chain of bullet swung through his chest and he stepped in the captain's footsteps.
"It can't go on like this. Tell Major General Ford that we need reinforcements." Keane's nails had sank into his skin and soaked in blood. His voice was still cold and hard, but everyone could hear the urgency of his tone.
"Look, our warship has arrived." At the moment he gave the order, the eyes of his first mate passed over the commander with a severe expression, pointing behind him and shouting loudly.
Keane suddenly turned his head and looked back and saw five three-masted warships slanting a beautiful arc on the sea, and when they inserted it into the right-wing waterway of the Dajiao Mountain Fort, Keane's face showed a gratified smile. I saw it and told the soldiers to fight back with more fierce artillery to attract the enemy. Our companions will make the damn Qing people understand that their actions are in vain. When the fort is occupied, I will make the surrendered Qing people pay the due price and avenge our brave soldiers.
Seeing the flag from Keane's flagship, Lieutenant Colonel Lampard, the commander who was going to slant into the right-wing waterway of the Dajiao Mountain Fort, raised the corners of his mouth slightly, swirled and converged, straightened his proud body, holding the side of the tail building, and the other hand holding his command knife. Lampard's deep light The blue eyes showed the perseverance and pride of the British people, and their thin lips were tightly squeezed.
At the first time he received the order of Major General Ford, Lampard commanded the squadron to break away from the main force of the fleet at the fastest speed and slanted in this direction. In order to prevent gunfire on both sides of the strait, Lampard chose to move forward in the central area of the waterway. At least, the 12-pounder gun could not be at this distance. Hit the British warship.
Soon, the appearance of this fleet attracted the attention of those clear [***] people on the Dajiao Mountain Fort. Some artillery slanting in this direction began to fire, and the projectiles spewed from the muzzle fell on the sea about 50 meters away from the squadron. Except for hitting the splash, it was really not too big. The threat.
"Tell all the captains to slow down, and it's time for us to perform." Lampard sneered, didn't care about the opponent's attack without any threat, and gave the order to prepare for battle.
However, what they didn't notice was that on the land on the other side of the main waterway of the Pearl River Estuary where they were sailing, a huge and ferocious dark gun barrel carefully poked out of those hidden gun positions...
(to be continued)