Chapter 47 Metal Storm

Chapter 47 Metal Storm

Chapter 47 Metal Storm
The night was cool as water and the battle was over.

Jiang He's assault squad received new reinforcements. Fortunately, the hunter Barney hid well and did not die in the bunker charge, otherwise he would not even have a familiar adjutant.

Tommy brought in a young boy who looked only seventeen or eighteen years old.

"He is the lieutenant's younger cousin, nicknamed Lucky Dorn, and the best demolition expert in our company. The lieutenant doesn't want to show up, so he is in your hands, Sergeant."

[Hint: Your reputation +200]
[Hint: You have become a Sergeant (700/700)]
Jiang He nodded. The company commander could only appoint him as a sergeant at most. He sent a telegram to the battalion headquarters, informing them that the basic combat organization of the British Army was the county battalion. The army, division, brigade and regiment were just joint units organized during wartime. At the end of 1915, the commander of the English Expeditionary Force was replaced. The newly appointed Haig vigorously promoted an army group commander who was nearly years old and gave great power to lower-level officers. In this way, he quickly gained the strong support of the Somme regional troops.

"From now on, you will be called Charles III. It will be easier to remember."

The boy thought about it carefully and agreed after feeling that there was nothing profound about it.

Tommy lit a cigarette. Through the hazy smoke, his blue eyes showed a little fatigue. He clearly realized that his enthusiasm for achieving success was waning.

There was continuous artillery fire outside.

The company retreated to its original trench position at night.

Apart from two artillery bombardments that killed more than a dozen people, the army did not encounter any Prussian ambushes along the way.

After returning to the trench, the lieutenant commanded his men to deploy Maxim heavy machine guns. Since nightfall, the bombing of the trench at position No. 145 had stopped and it was listed as a friendly area by the artillery group.

Tommy, as the sergeant major, presided over the roll call. After one round, there were only 143 people left in the entire company, half the number of yesterday.

After the roll call, morale dropped noticeably.

Jiang He checked his rifle and said, "With the Maxim, the company can hold out until tomorrow, but if the bullets run out and there is no support, everyone will be finished."

Tommy smoked his next cigarette and sighed, "I remember someone asked me what a friend is. I said a friend is someone who turns your problem into his own, so you don't have to go through it alone."

Jiang He carried his rifle and said, "Who can come up with a solution? According to normal thinking, the battalion support should arrive during the day, and the artillery fire should be used to capture the trenches on the left and right. When the general offensive begins, this place can become a bridgehead to tear through the defense line."

"Maybe the higher-ups don't think it's necessary," Tommy said. "Before I saw the Maxim machine gun, I also thought this would be a quick battle."

Jiang He went to the simple fortifications to rest. Deep sleep was not advisable in a dangerous environment, and the noise caused by the bombing made it very difficult for him to fall asleep. The good news was that the task of killing 50 Prussians had been completed. Next, as long as he survived until the end of the Battle of the Somme, he could complete the main task one.

At dawn, it was the second day after the capture of position 145.

Corporal Arthur distributed ammunition to the soldiers at each defense node. Since the regiment headquarters of the second trench line was taken down last night, the ammunition was very sufficient. Jiang He received 300 rounds and received special care.

Breakfast was still No. 4 biscuits and rum.

Not long after, the deputy company commander came out of the tunnel again, followed by four hundred privates who filed out, all of whom were death row prisoners who had been deployed to the front line.

"Sir, we have been ordered to hold out for three days. From today on, our company will be directly under the command of the Birmingham Infantry Division. The Major General appoints you as the acting battalion commander, with full responsibility for holding position 145. The ranks of all officers and soldiers will be promoted to one level."

The lieutenant sneered and said loudly, "He thinks we can't go back, so he is so generous. Everyone follow me, we will go back through the tunnel now!"

"Mr. Lieutenant, don't make decisions when you are angry."

Tommy quickly grabbed the lieutenant who was about to leave. The order had been given. If they returned, they would be court-martialed and would surely die. "Arthur, go and assign the personnel."

On the other hand, Jiang He's assault squad became an assault platoon, with 32 members and a rank of sergeant. He had a hunch that as long as he could survive the Battle of the Somme, his rank would automatically rise, saving him a dozen or even dozens of years of effort.

[Hint: Your reputation +300]
[Hint: You have become a sergeant (1000/1000)]
……

In the evening, the artillery group's bombardment was suspended.

Faced with the loss of Position No. 145, the Prussian army gave up the frontal charge to avoid heavy losses like last time, and a large number of soldiers attacked the left and right sides of the position along the trenches.

Jiang He lay in his old position and shot an officer 150 meters away. The bullet pierced his head and blood splattered.

A grenade fell and landed in the trench. Five or six death row prisoners who were transporting ammunition were immediately killed or injured. The surviving leader had his right leg blown off and he lay beside the crater, wailing.

Jiang He pulled the bolt and fired four shots in succession, killing three and injuring one within fifty meters, but the enemy soldiers still maintained their momentum of charging in layers, as if ignoring their comrades falling one by one beside them.

"I can't kill them all. I can't kill them all." Barney roared. Every shot he fired hit the target, but the effect was minimal. The narrow defensive plane made the sniper's movement extremely restricted.

The earth trembled, and more than a dozen shells fell. When someone stood up with difficulty in the smoke and dust, he found that Charles III had disappeared. A shell blew the boy to pieces, leaving only craters and charred, turbid flesh and blood fragments.

Jiang He left his spot and ran to the pit to seize the use of the machine gunner. The Maxim heavy machine gun spewed out the cold flames of death. His strong physical fitness allowed him to perfectly control this killing machine. The theoretical firing rate was 600 rounds per minute. The metal storm enveloped the next passage, setting off a bloody storm.

As an obstacle that had to be removed, howitzer shells exploded around the pit. Two of them fell straight down and according to their trajectory, they were about to blow the machine gunner into pieces.

Seeing this, Jiang He hugged the heavy machine gun and ran away. The gun weighed 27.2KG, and including accessories and protection, it weighed more than 40 kilograms. The long ammunition belt was on the ground. A soldier rushed over to help regardless of the danger.

Jiang He returned to the front of the right position, held the lower edge of the machine gun with his right hand, and tightly grasped the handle with his left hand. His muscles were tense and as cold as iron. After pulling the trigger, his whole body began to tremble violently, and bullets spurted out.

"Da da da."

The sound of machine gun fire was incessant, and dense beams of bullets flew into the Prussian battle formation. Whole waves of soldiers were mowed down, and row after row of them fell to the ground and died. Because there was no cover, the surviving wounded could only play dead on the ground. The passage became a veritable place of death.

Player kills +187
Someone shouted almost crazily: "God bless me!"

The soldiers cheered, "We've repelled the attack!"

There were roars and cheers mixed together, but most of them were meaningless roars. The soldier who came to help kept reloading, feeling proud of it.

But at some point, two sniper bullets came from a distance.

Someone was hit on the forehead and lost his balance and fell to the ground, feeling a pain in his neck as his muscles were torn. The soldier who came to help died instantly, and the light in his eyes dimmed in an instant.

"Good-bye, Charles IV."

Jiang He helped the other person close his eyes. A moment later, the British artillery group started a new round of bombing, and the Prussians were forced to stop the attack.

(End of this chapter)