Phi-Fic Chapter 381 Qi Guanlie's Anger
Chapter 381 Qi Guanlie's Anger
The night was as dark as ink, with cold stars twinkling, as if the cold eyes of heaven were overlooking this war-torn land.
On ancient battlefields, night raids often come quietly at such quiet moments, bringing with them endless dangers and unknowns.
The army led by Shan Ning moved forward quietly like a ghost. Their goal was clear, heading straight for the camp of Qi Guanlie and Sai Jinzhu.
After experiencing the baptism of a great war, the enemy still has hundreds of thousands of troops, and its strength should not be underestimated.
Sai Jinzhu guarded a camp alone, while Qi Guanlie dispersed his troops into two camps. The three camps were arranged in a triangular shape, echoing each other.
At night, soldiers on horseback patrolled back and forth outside the camp. The sound of horse hooves was particularly clear in the silence. They looked nervous and scanned the surroundings vigilantly, not missing any slight movement.
"Today's goal is to destroy one of the battalions. If the cavalry outside dares to approach, they must be annihilated in one fell swoop."
When they were about a mile away from the target camp, Shan Ning lowered his voice again and gave instructions to his men with a serious expression.
His eyes were firm and serious, as if he could see through the darkness and see the coming victory.
"Don't worry, Commander! Our First and Second Regiments will be on guard on the left and right respectively. The artillery can just bombard as much as they want."
Niu Kun's tone revealed a strong sense of confidence. In the dim night, his big white teeth were particularly eye-catching, like a ray of light in the darkness.
"Please rest assured, Commander, we will pay attention to safety and resolutely complete the mission!"
Xu Xiang also made a solemn promise, his eyes full of perseverance and determination.
"Yeah!" Shan Ning nodded slightly and patted their shoulders lightly.
His eyes were filled with trust and expectation, a look of confidence in his comrades and a desire for victory. He then waved his hand, signaling them to proceed.
Like hunters in the dark, the artillerymen carefully infiltrated the enemy camp. When they reached about 800 paces, they all stopped, their movements so gentle that they seemed afraid to wake the sleeping enemy.
The soldiers held their breath and were extremely careful with every movement, for fear of making any sound.
They gently set up the mortars, their eyes focused and nervous, waiting quietly for the order to attack.
Danning looked up at the sky, estimating the time in his mind.
About half an hour later, he thought the team should have arrived at the designated location.
He took a deep breath, as if to suppress all the tension and anxiety in his heart, and then decisively gave the order for a night attack.
At the artillery position, the soldiers quickly put the pre-prepared shells into the gun barrel.
"Dengdengdeng..."
In an instant, fifty guns fired in unison, the tails of the shells cut through the air, making a sharp bagpipe sound, and whistled towards the enemy camp.
Sai Jinzhu, who was sleeping soundly, was instantly awakened by the familiar roar. His heart suddenly tightened and he felt that something was wrong.
Before he could get up from the camp bed, he found that flames were already rising up all around him.
"Huh? That's not right?" Sai Jinzhu was shocked. He keenly noticed that the sound of the explosion was different from that in the daytime. Although the power seemed to be slightly weaker, there was already a raging fire outside the tent.
What he didn't know was that the Tannin troops were using newly developed incendiary bombs tonight.
The bomb is filled with flammable materials such as ointment and phosphorus powder. The bomb body is made of ceramic and will explode instantly in the air.
The weather was cold and the Di soldiers were sleeping soundly in their tents.
Once the ointment, ignited by phosphorus powder, came into contact with combustible materials, it would spread like a demon. Even if it landed on a person, it would be extremely difficult to extinguish.
Sai Jinzhu's tent also failed to escape the disaster and was instantly engulfed by the fire. The area around him instantly turned into a sea of fire.
Winter finally passed and spring came, but the weeds on the ground were still withered and yellow. With the help of the wind, the fire became more fierce and spread wildly.
The patrolling cavalry were stunned by the horrific scene before them and were at a loss for what to do for a moment.
Many of the soldiers who rushed in first to try to put out the fire were mercilessly burned or even burned to death by the fire, and their screams of pain echoed one after another in the sea of fire.
The new army fired rounds of shells, first incendiary bombs, then kerosene bombs, and then incendiary bombs again.
The production of kerosene bombs is actually not complicated. They are filled with pure kerosene and mixed with solidifiable starch. They will scatter after exploding in the air.
After all, the raw materials for making simple incendiary bombs are currently limited, and using this substitute to add fuel to the fire in an already burning area can have a very significant effect.
Niu Kun looked at the sea of fire in the enemy camp and was extremely anxious, as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. He couldn't suppress the urge in his heart several times and wanted to rush in and kill the enemy immediately.
Soon, the patrolling cavalry discovered the location where the mortar was fired and immediately rushed towards this side on horseback.
There were not many cavalrymen training at night, only about a hundred.
But their movements were keenly noticed by the infantrymen on guard around the artillery, and a dense barrage of bullets rained down, knocking them all to the ground in an instant.
Seeing that the purpose of the night attack had been achieved, Shan Ning made a quick decision and ordered: "Artillery retreat first, infantry cover!"
The soldiers immediately took action after receiving the order, withdrawing from their positions in batches in an orderly manner. Their movements were swift and orderly, without any panic.
When Qi Guanlie learned that Sai Jinzhu died in the fire, he was heartbroken and his heart was broken.
A camp of 50,000 people was instantly devoured by the fire, and nearly 20,000 were killed. He was not only extremely saddened by Sai Jinzhu's death, but also felt deeply sorry and angry for those Di people who died innocently in the fire.
The attack that night ignited a strong desire for revenge in Qi Guanlie's heart.
On the second day, he concentrated all his artillery and vented his anger madly towards the city.
Fortunately, the required artillery shells were delivered to Dingbian City in time. The production requirements of this type of artillery shells are not high, and there are not too many requirements for strength, as long as they can explode.
In just one morning, the Di tribe had used up half of the artillery shells they had transported.
In contrast, Danning's mortar shells were manufactured in Luancheng and could not be replenished in Shangjun.
Yan Ruxiang had no choice but to transfer his troops to the front line to fill the gap, but the weapons here had a limited attack range and a very poor hit rate.
Some people may ask, why can't we increase the amount of gunpowder to make the shells go farther?
In fact, since the shell mold determines the explosion time of the fuse, if it is fired a few hundred meters more, the shell will explode in the air, which will have almost no lethality.
This problem did not receive enough attention when Zhao Sheng was developing it, and it was difficult to solve in a short period of time.
At the south gate, Daraxinbu also launched a fierce attack.
In just one morning, the city walls inside the West Gate and South Gate and many buildings in the city were destroyed beyond recognition. At the same time, many houses were on fire, and thick smoke billowed, covering the sky.
At the same time, the enemy outside the city did not stop their crazy actions, and the infantry launched an attack on the city like a tide.
At noon, the two city gates were lost one after another.
Street fighting then began.
Daraxinbu and Qi Guanlie's troops did not gain much advantage because of the presence of Shan Ning's troops, whose guns dealt a heavy blow to the enemy.
However, this advantage only lasted for less than an hour.
When the cannons, shotguns and other heavy weapons outside the city were transported into the city, Shan Ning's army was instantly defeated, and the number of casualties increased sharply, reaching as high as 30%.
The most deadly thing was that those residents who did not have time to evacuate suffered greatly.
The panicked residents who fled in all directions also caused great trouble to the defenders. Yan Ruxiang had to urgently send people to evacuate them, but this also gave the inhumane invading forces an opportunity to take advantage.
They completely ignored the lives of the people. Wherever the artillery went, there was chaos, rubble flying, walls collapsing and houses falling down. The cries and cries for help from the people were intertwined, which was heartbreaking.