Chapter 501: A century ahead of the rest of the world in artillery fire

Chapter 501: A century ahead of the rest of the world in artillery fire

Chapter 501: A century ahead of the others (5k)

"What did the adults say?"

The square-faced Commander Yuan asked, but the mountain wind was too strong and Zhao Duan's muttering was too soft for him to hear clearly.

"Nothing," Zhao Duan smiled, and suddenly reached out from his sleeve to take out a yellow pear, chewing it while looking at the rebel camp: "The so-called 'evil beast' is hiding in the enemy camp?"

Zhao Duan learned some information about the Qingzhou army's "secret weapon" from a letter delivered by the imperial eagle on the way.

It is known that King Heng defeated the Five Army Camps by relying on chariots towed by "fang beasts".

"That's right." When mentioning the evil beast, all the generals headed by Yuan Feng showed fear:

"We didn't know beforehand that Prince Heng's Mansion secretly raised more than a dozen fang beasts, which caught us off guard."

As he spoke, as if worried that Zhao Duan didn't understand, Yuan Feng explained:

"South of Yunfu, inside the mountains, outside the territory of Yu State, there is a foreign tribe called 'Liao People'. Their people are strong and muscular, far superior to our people of Great Yu. The Liao people's specialty is a strange beast called 'Liao', which is much stronger than tigers and leopards and extremely ferocious. Once a warhorse gets close to a Liao, its hooves will become weak and it will be difficult to fight. The reason why we of Great Yu call this foreign tribe 'Liao People' is probably because of this beast."

Zhao Duan said, "Yes,"
"The southwestern border troops led by Zhao Shixiong are stationed in Yunfu Road all year round. They are not only suppressing bandits, but also preventing the invasion of the Liao people. Although I have never been to Yunfu, I know all this. In your opinion, is there a shadow of the Liao people behind the Hengwang Mansion?"

Yuan Feng shook his head:
“Given the geography of Qingzhou, it is too far from Yunfu. Moreover, if they were colluding with the Liao people, it would not make sense for there to be only Liao beasts on the battlefield but no Liao people. Therefore, I think it is highly likely that the Hengwang Mansion had long been rebellious and secretly captured the Liao beast cubs from Yunfu and raised them carefully.

They secretly trained a chariot army to match them and suddenly sent them out, catching us off guard. My Lord, please be careful. Once those vicious beasts go into battle, they will charge forward and be hard to be hurt by arrows. When they are joined by the soldiers in the steel-cast chariots, they will kill into our army and cause great destructive power."

Zhao Duan took a bite of the pear, and the juice splashed everywhere. He didn't know if he heard it, so he asked curiously:

"Since this thing is so useful, why didn't the imperial court capture and domesticate it?"

He didn't quite understand why such a strategic-level weapon would not be equipped in the Beijing camp.

On the contrary, a rebel king can be created.

At this time, a general said angrily:

"Your Excellency, you don't know that this beast is extremely difficult to breed. Not to mention the danger of catching it, just to raise it, it would cost a huge amount of money, and you would also need someone who knows how to tame it...

But these are not the key points. The key point is that if the fang beast wants to stimulate its ferocity, it must eat human flesh and blood. If it does not, it will be no different from an ordinary tiger or leopard. "

Zhao Duan paused while eating the pear and looked at him blankly: "Eating people?"

Yuan Feng nodded bitterly:

"That's right. Because taming this beast is against the harmony of nature, the court strictly prohibits its breeding, and naturally the army will not have it either."

Zhao Duan fell silent.

This was little-known knowledge that he didn't know.

Therefore, the Heng Palace raised these dozen beasts, and who knows how many lives were lost. Even if those used as food were all death row prisoners, they could feed their own kind to the beasts...

"Huff." Zhao Duan swallowed a mouthful of pear with great effort and said vaguely, "He deserves to be killed."

No one responded.

Only the cold wind blew across the hills, the green trees rustled, and the clouds in the sky grew thicker.

……

"Rumble..."

The sound of war drums rang out, Zhao Duan looked into the distance and saw that the enemy camp was wide open. A large group of Qingzhou infantrymen carrying military flags walked out in formation, and in front of the formation.

There were more than a dozen giant chariots made of solid wood and covered with iron sheets.

In front of each chariot, there is a strange beast that is two to three meters tall and six to seven meters long.

It is sized like an elephant, with a head like a lion or tiger, but a body like a buffalo. It has sharp and hard horns on its head, bloodthirsty red eyes, and its body is covered with hard phosphorus armor like a crocodile. Its tail hangs to the ground, and along the spine to the end of the tail, the joints protrude outward, forming bone spurs.

At this moment, the evil beasts stomped their huge hooves with horseshoes on them, and hot white smoke spewed out of their nostrils.

"Your Highness, the people on the other side have come out. Hey, haven't the soldiers of the Fifth Army Camp already lost their morale?"

Inside the Qingzhou camp, on the watchtower.

The pampered King Heng, along with his advisers and officials from the palace, stood here to watch the battle.

At this moment, a counselor said in surprise with his hands on the pergola.

A personal guard general with good eyesight frowned and said:
"Those aren't soldiers from the Fifth Army Battalion! Judging from the flags they're flying, they're clearly soldiers from the Shenji Battalion!"

Shenjiying? Reinforcements? So... Zhao Duan is probably real?

Prince Heng's heart skipped a beat and he squinted his eyes, but at this distance, although he could observe the battlefield, he could not clearly see the words on the flags or the specific attire of the soldiers.

He asked irritably, "Where's the telescope?"

An attendant searched for a while and then apologized:
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. There was one originally, and it was with His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. I will go get a new one right away!"

"Why don't you go quickly?!" King Heng was so angry that he almost kicked him out, scaring his followers so much that they ran down the watchtower in a panic.

King Heng had a gloomy expression on his face, and he looked back at the battlefield ahead again. He saw that the tents of the Fifth Army Camp were also wide open, and teams of soldiers from the Shenji Camp, with high morale, walked out in formation.

Because of the presence of the evil beast, neither side sent out cavalry, mostly infantry.

However, in the Shenji Battalion, there were also several officers riding war horses with extraordinary bloodlines, who could resist the suppression of the beast's aura.

The most eye-catching one among them was wearing a silver helmet and armor, holding a spear, and looked very heroic.

"Looking at his attire, if nothing unexpected happens, he should be Tang Ping, the son of the Duke of Zhenguo." The counselor guessed calmly.

Duke Zhenguo... Prince Heng snorted coldly, but his heart sank again. He suddenly said:
"It is said that Zhao Duan conducted a firearms military exercise in Shenjiying last year. It was quite impressive, but the specific process is unknown to outsiders."

The counselor nodded and said:
"It is true. The Empress attached great importance to that military exercise. However, according to the information we received, it should be just a slight improvement on the old firearms.

The point is that it is a kind of musket, but that thing may be effective against people, but a few bullets are not much stronger than arrows, and it is definitely not a threat to our beast chariots. "

Another civil official also laughed and said:
"What firearms? They sound great, but when have they ever become mainstream in real battles? Even the Shenji Battalion is mainly composed of infantry, which is a good example."

For this group of Qingzhou people, the impression of firearms still remains in the past.

The State of Yu had enjoyed peace for a long time. Even though there were some banditry, most of them occurred in the southwest and northwest borders, or on the coastal roads, and firearms were rarely used.

Therefore, not only these civil officials and counselors, but even Wei Xianzong, who was in command at the moment, was not sufficiently vigilant about the new firearms of the Shenjiying.

The biggest idea for it is nothing more than an enhanced version of a bow and crossbow. If that's all, the Evil Falcon Chariot is enough to deal with it.

At this moment, the sound of war drums from both sides on the battlefield was getting louder and louder, and the two armies were slowly approaching under the watchful eyes of their commanders.

"Commander-in-chief, the enemy doesn't seem to have the intention of launching an offensive." On the battlefield, a Qingzhou general turned his head and looked at Wei Xianzong.

Wei Xianzong, wearing armor and holding a sword, stood on a high platform. The energy filled his eyes, greatly enhancing his vision, and he was able to see that the generals of the Shenji Camp were ready for battle.

The leader, Tang Ping, lowered his spear and sat on his horse with a stern expression.

"Release the chariots and charge head-on!" Wei Xianzong said decisively. He suspected that the other party was wasting time and was not prepared to give the enemy more time to prepare.

"Pass the order! Charge!"

"Charge!"

"Charge!"

Excited shouts spread along the army formation, and the morale of the Qingzhou soldiers was high.

The three previous battles had already broken the filter they had for the "Beijing Camp" in their hearts. Now, amid the sound of the exciting war drums, their blood boiled and they roared in unison:

"Charge!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the dozen or so ferocious beasts in front of the formation seemed to have received a signal, and they exerted their strength at the same time, spewing out foul air.

The body that was almost invincible to swords and spears pulled the chariot as it rumbled and rushed towards the Shenji Camp. Behind the chariot, the Qingzhou soldiers were divided into columns and charged forward.

The chariots roared and the earth shook.

In the Shenjiying Camp, Tang Ping sat proudly on his horse, motionless as a mountain, watching the huge chariots approaching from afar and stepping into the buffer zone in the center of the battlefield. He still did not order a charge, nor did he order a defensive formation. He just said in a deep voice:

"Cover your ears!"

The drum sound suddenly changed!
The soldiers of the Shenji Camp worked in unison, took out cotton from their bodies and plugged their ears.

When Wei Xianzong saw this scene, he was stunned at first, and then he instinctively felt a strong sense of uneasiness.

The word "firearm" suddenly jumped into his mind, but he clearly did not see any firearms within his field of vision.

unless……

Wei Xianzong suddenly raised his head and looked towards the sky above the battlefield. Through the dense dark clouds, he could vaguely see a group of ant-sized figures standing on a hill in the distance.

Zhao Duan felt the vague sense of being watched, spit out the pear core in his hand, wiped his hands with a handkerchief, glanced at the pale and frightened faces of the large group of generals from the Five Army Camps around him, and said with a smile:
"Cover your ears."

"What?" Yuan Feng and others were stunned and didn't come to their senses.

But the next second, a huge roar suddenly exploded in a nearby valley, followed by endless thunder, which overwhelmed all other sounds on the battlefield. …

On a hidden hill, Chen Gui, the chief officer of the Firearms Bureau, stroked his beard, his eyes flashing coldly on his thin face, and said loudly:
"Godly Cannon, fire!"

Behind this military craftsman and military attaché, the waterproof cloth had been removed, and nearly twenty of the latest models of powerful red cannons, which had been adjusted in angle, lay silently on the ground like black beasts.

Black gun barrels of astonishing diameter were raised high, and each barrel was engraved with complex patterns.

At the command, the loader took the shells out of the ammunition box covered with straw and pushed them into the muzzle. The artillerymen at the rear compacted them by hand-cranking the wheel and ignited the fuse with a flint.

Amidst the low strange humming sound, the patterns on the barrel lit up one by one, and a strong agitation was brewing.

Finally, with the first roar, the beast that did not belong to this world let out a low growl that was unique to firearms.

……

In the enemy camp, Wei Xianzong saw balls of fire suddenly lit up in the dense forest on the horizon. Those flames were extremely bright, like lightning in the sky before a rainstorm.

But at this moment, in his eyes filled with energy, he saw a different scene:
In the sudden light of fire, one black "bullet" after another rose from the ground at an extremely terrifying speed.

It passed through a precisely calculated parabolic trajectory, crossed a distance of a hundred feet, and fell accurately into the area in the center of the battle between the two armies, where the chariots were charging.

"not good--"

As soon as Wei Xianzong uttered these two words, a huge roar drowned out his voice.

The first shell, packed with the huge force of gunpowder and a scorching air wave, hit the head of a beast accurately.

This beast, which could withstand the volley of arrows, was bloodthirsty and brutal. It seemed to have no idea what the shells were. At the moment before death, it raised its head, opened its mouth wide, showing its fangs, and tried to bite.

But in the next second, its hard phosphorus armor suddenly dented. If time was slowed down countless times, one could clearly see how the hard flesh was crushed into circles of blood and flesh ripples like water waves.

With the combined power of gunpowder and precision barrels, even ordinary iron now has enough power to destroy layers of heavy armor.

Without any surprise, the beast's head exploded with a "pop" and blood splattered. Without the control of the brain, its huge body continued to run wildly under instinct and inertia, but it did not run far before it tilted to one side and fell.

Inside the chariot, the hidden soldiers holding sharp blades fell and rolled along with the chariot in horror, as if they were not on a land battlefield, but on the sea, riding on a bumpy ship that was overturned by the waves.

At this moment, the sturdy chariot became a grave that cut off their escape.

This was the only shell that hit the fang beast with such accuracy. More shells were fired according to calculations, evenly covering the entire battlefield.

Some of the evil beasts were hit and fell down even if they were not dead, while others roared in fear, turned their heads and ran away instinctively, crashing into the array of Qingzhou soldiers who were following them to kill them.

"Do not--"

The Qingzhou soldiers thought it was going to be another easy hunt, but unexpectedly the beast turned around. The roar of artillery fire made them even more confused, and in the blink of an eye, the Qingzhou rebel formation collapsed.

Even though the officers shouted orders, it was of no avail. The soldiers shouted in fear and fled in all directions. The Qingzhou troops were not elite to begin with, and now that they had suffered a setback, their true colors were immediately exposed and they became a group of scattered sand.

Some elite teams were also unable to stop this scene.

"Firearms... Firearms... Is this Zhao Duan's confidence..." Wei Xianzong murmured to himself amid the sound of artillery fire, staring at the front. The chariot that had been invincible was defeated in an instant.

He clenched his fists and his heart was beating like a drum.

"Commander! What should we do? The formation in front has collapsed!" The military officers around him all looked panicked.

"Qiang!"

Wei Xianzong suddenly drew his sword, and a burst of sword energy exploded, raising a cloud of dust on the ground.

The generals subconsciously stopped talking and met Wei Xianzong's extremely calm eyes:
"Why are you panicking? It's just a charge. Pass the order down to stop the fleeing soldiers. Anyone who dares to flee will be killed immediately! We can't let these people break up the rear army!"

After saying that, he turned his head and looked to the side of the Fifth Army Camp, and said harshly:
"The assault team should have arrived by now. The Shenji Camp arrived not long ago, and there must be a large number of demoralized officers and soldiers in the Five Army Camp. Their defenses are lax. As long as we break into the camp and attack from both sides, we can swallow up the Shenji Camp!"

Chariot? He never placed all his bets on the front line.

……

On the side of the Fifth Army Camp, in a forest.

A large group of elite Qingzhou soldiers, all wearing soft armor, carrying crossbows, holding swords, rushed out from the mountains and forests with dense footsteps.

The leading general looked at the camp not far away, listening to the thunderous sounds, and said calmly:

"Prepare to attack the camp!"

From their position, they had no idea what was happening on the front battlefield, but they knew it must be related to the firearms of the Shenji Camp.

But this is not important. As a pair of elite troops that Wei Xianzong had spent a lot of effort to train, the quality of this team is in no way inferior to the imperial guards.

"The commander has ordered that no matter what happens, we have only one mission, which is to launch a surprise attack on the enemy camp." The leading officer whispered to comfort the soldiers behind him.

Everyone nodded, stopped, and moved in unison, removing the crossbows from their backs and loading the arrows.

They drew their swords again, and a group of people moved silently and quickly towards the quiet camp like a tide.

But just when they were about to reach the high wooden wall outside the barracks, suddenly, without any warning, a soldier from the Shenji Camp stood up abruptly above the long wooden wall!
They seemed to have been lying in ambush here for a long time, and only now revealed themselves that these soldiers were not holding knives or crossbows, but each of them was holding a rifle.

"There's an ambush!" The Qingzhou rebels were startled, but they dispersed as they were well-trained, quickening their pace and trying to rush into the wooden wall to attack the blind spot.

"Don't worry, the muskets fire slowly. Just dodge the first round and we'll be fine..." shouted the leading rebel military officer.

But the next moment, the musketeers of the Shenji Camp on the wall silently pointed their guns at them and pulled the triggers.

There is no longer a fuse that was difficult to light during the "military exercises"; the new and improved firing pin has replaced the outdated firing device of the past.

"Bang bang bang bang..."

Dense gunfire suddenly broke out, and the charging rebels had no power to resist. They fell down like a sickle harvesting wheat straw.

"How is that possible?" The leading rebel's pupils trembled and he shouted, "Retreat!"

However, it was too late. The tightly closed wooden wall suddenly opened, and the commander Shi Meng personally led a group of musketeers waiting here with a smile:
"It's just as Lord Zhao expected. You knew he was here, so you must have spared no effort in this round of attack. It's very likely a sneak attack..."

The rebels were terrified and turned around to run, but how could they outrun the bullets that were ready to be fired?

After two more rounds of bullet rain, all the elite soldiers fell. Only a few military officers with training survived, but they were easily suppressed by officers such as Shi Meng.

“We are well prepared.”

Shi Meng pulled out a "flare" from the rebel leader, grinned, stepped on the opponent's seriously injured and bloody body with his boots, and slowly and methodically lit this specially made "firework" in the army.

"Whoosh!"

A bunch of fireworks rose from the ground and flew into the sky, and could be seen clearly from a long distance.

……

Rebel headquarters.

Wei Xianzong paced back and forth anxiously. Suddenly, a streak of red fireworks suddenly rose from the sky, attracting his attention.

Fireworks appeared, but the camp of the Fifth Army Camp opposite was completely silent.

Wei Xianzong's heart suddenly sank to the bottom of the valley. Realizing what had happened, he was stunned for a moment, and suddenly went crazy and shouted:

"Pass the order, beat the drums! Charge! Abandon the fangs and charge the camp! Charge with all your forces!"

The people around were horrified: "Commander?"

They suspected that the commander was crazy. How could he charge under the artillery fire under such circumstances?

Wei Xianzong almost screamed, shouting anxiously:
"As long as we rush to them and fight with the people from the Shenji Camp, those firearms will be useless! They dare not bomb us along with their own people!
On the contrary, retreating will only lead to being covered by the enemy's firearms and being completely defeated! We only have one way, charge forward! The Shenji Camp definitely doesn't have enough troops, we have more people, and we can still win by fighting in close combat!"

At this moment, facing the crushing of advanced firearms for the first time, this unknown commander actually found out the biggest flaw of artillery fire in just a short time.

Keeping the distance away will lead to death, while closing the distance will make the firearms soldiers afraid to use their weapons and stop firing.

However, facing his order, these generals hesitated:
Who will charge? Who will use flesh and blood to cross the area covered by artillery fire?
Wei Xianzong stared at this group of military officers who were afraid of fighting and did not move. He was filled with anger and pushed them away, ready to lead the charge himself.

However, at this moment, the artillery fire on the opposite side of the battlefield suddenly stopped.

Young Master Tang Ping, who had been waiting in line attentively from the beginning to the end, used his little finger to scratch his ears which were numb from the shock and muttered:
"Chen Gui, your uncle..."

Immediately, Tang Ping suddenly raised his spear and charged forward:

"Shenji Battalion! Charge with me!"

"Kill!" Behind him, young military officers shouted in unison and led the soldiers behind them to launch a final attack on the Qingzhou rebels who were on the verge of collapse.

……

On the top of a mountain in the distance.

Zhao Duan squatted on the top of the hill, and with a smile he planted the core of another fresh pear into the soil. He clapped his hands, stood up, and said to the stunned generals behind him with a smile:

"It seems that I won."

(End of this chapter)