America 1881: They Call Me Legend

Chapter 566 Basic Strategy of the Cuban War of Independence

"Mr. Chen! They ran away! Shall we chase them?"

He Jianshun rushed to Chen Jianqiu's side, rubbing his hands excitedly.

"Chasing, why not chasing?" Chen Jianqiu said while arranging his gun, "but master the rhythm well, like mosquitoes biting prey, like wolves driving sheep, don't be tricked."

"okay!"

He Jianshun was just about to go back to convey the order, but he had just walked a few steps when he suddenly remembered something and turned around to ask.

"Mr. Chen, what about these trophies?"

"Someone will pick it up, let's just chase and beat it." Chen Jianqiu said.

There is a good saying that the poor should not chase after them, but although these Spaniards fled, they obviously still have a way out, and they are not considered poor.

They hurried back to San Diego with all their attention.

There is a line of defense carefully arranged by the Spaniards, and the San Juan Mountain outside the city is the top priority of the line of defense.

Once they get there, they're safe.

But the journey of four or five hours seemed too long for them.

He Jianshun and Chen Jianqiu followed them leisurely with less than a hundred Chinese soldiers.

But as long as they stop for a moment, there will be gunshots from the back of the ass.

The marksmanship of the soldiers of the rebel army may be ordinary, but the marksmanship of the Long Xiang group and Chen Jianqiu is accurate.

From time to time, someone would run and get shot and fell to the ground.

Without the officers, there is no one left who can judge how many pursuers are behind them. It is an extravagant hope to organize resistance on the spot, and everyone wants to escape for their lives.

It doesn't matter whether you can run faster than those Chinese, as long as you can run faster than your comrades.

Some Spanish soldiers even felt that the guns on their backs were cumbersome, so they threw the guns away.

Not to mention the luggage, it fell to the ground.

Chen Jianqiu told He Jianshun and the soldiers to ignore those things and continue to bite the front and finish the job.

Not because he didn't care about the loot, but because someone else would pick it up for them.

While they were fighting fiercely with the Spaniards, Lai Hua and Luo Xiangrong's troops were firing new guns not far from them.

Lai Hua did not follow Chen Jianqiu's instructions, and went to the foot of the mountain to find a place to hide.

His team was not far from Chen Jianqiu's position, and he sent scouts to observe the situation here.

Once the situation here is not right, such as Chen Jianqiu playing tricks or they have encountered an enemy, and the battle situation is not strong, they can rush over immediately.

The scouts soon sent news:

A fight broke out in the river valley. Chen Jianqiu and He Jianshun's [-] men encountered about [-] to [-] Spanish soldiers. The specific battle situation is unknown.

When Lai Hua heard this, he became extremely anxious.

This young man is still too big.

He couldn't be more clear about the combat effectiveness of his fighters.

Although these people were already considered the elite of his team, they wouldn't have much advantage in meeting the well-equipped Spanish fighters head-on.

What's more, they formed a temporary team with the soldiers brought by Chen Jianqiu, so there was no tacit understanding!
What's more, the number of people is still a disadvantage!
"Luo Xiangrong! Hurry up, everyone, grab your weapons, march quickly, and go to the river valley to support!"

He stood up, picked up the bolt-action rifle he just got, and shouted at Luo Xiangrong who was firing the gun.

Luo Xiangrong was taken aback.

"Yes, but we don't know how to use new guns yet!" He glanced at the soldiers who were researching new guns.

"I can't handle that much anymore!"

Lai Hua has already taken the lead and walked forward quickly.

He didn't even look back, his hair paler in the sunlight.

"Use it if you know how to use it, and use the original gun if you don't know how to use it!"

"Everyone! March quickly!" Luo Xiangrong also raised his gun and shouted at the soldiers behind him.

After receiving the order, the soldiers trotted behind without saying a word.

Santos watched the Chinese soldiers pass by in front of him one after another, and then glanced at the half-empty carriage behind him, feeling a little dazed.

"Lai, Captain Lai! Me, what shall we do?"

He shouted towards the front of the line.

"Let's go first, you follow slowly behind." Luo Xiangrong turned his head and waved at him.

Lai Hua and Luo Xiangrong led the soldiers to the mouth of the valley with the fastest speed.

However, the expected gunshots did not come.

"They won't finish the fight, right?" This was Luo Xiangrong's first reaction.

"What do you think that is?" A soldier suddenly pointed at the river and shouted.

Everyone looked over and found a corpse floating down from the upper reaches.

But judging from their clothes, they are all Spanish soldiers, and none of them are Chinese.

"It seems that things aren't that bad!" Luo Xiangrong beamed with joy.

But Lai Hua, who has experienced many battles, did not take it lightly.

He took off the rifle he was carrying, loaded the bullets in the way Santos said before, and held it in his hand.

"It's possible that the Spaniards did it on purpose. Let's be careful."

Everyone went upstream along the river bank, and it didn't take long before they arrived at the scene of the battle.

From a distance, they saw several familiar figures walking up and down the river.

"Huang Dakuan, what's the situation?" Lai Hua rushed to one of them with a gun in hand.

"Oh, report Captain, we are cleaning the battlefield."

Huang Dakuan didn't seem surprised by Lai Hua's arrival.

He turned around to salute the officer, but found that his accustomed right arm was injured and he couldn't lift it up, so he had to switch to his left hand.

Lai Hua glanced at the battlefield.

The corpses of Spanish soldiers were lying on the ground in different ways; the guns were scattered on the ground, and Huang Dakuan and a few Chinese soldiers who were less injured were collecting these guns and ammunition, and incidentally shot the corpses on the ground.

Wait until the dead bodies can no longer die before taking out the useful things from these people.

"We won." Huang Dakuan said with a relaxed face.

He pointed to a few Chinese soldiers who were sitting or lying on the hillside not far away: "Four of us died and a dozen were injured. Mr. Chen asked us to wait for you here, saying that you would help pick up the equipment. "

"How did he know we would come?" Lai Hua's mood was not relaxed because of the victory, his eyebrows were twisted into twists, and he asked eagerly, "Where is he and He Jianshun?"

"Oh, they chased after him." Huang Dakuan replied.

"Leave some people to clean up the battlefield, and others will continue to chase after me. Don't be afraid of [-], just in case. If you are too aggressive, you may be ambushed by the Spaniards!" Lai Hua said to Luo Xiangrong.

At this time, Santos and Dias arrived late in the carriage.

"Ah! Mr. Santos! Mr. Dias!" Huang Dakuan recognized the two people and waved at them.

At this moment, the two men were looking at the corpses all over the ground in bewilderment.

"Mr. Chen asked me to give you a sentence, asking you to follow and help load the guns and other trophies you found into the carriage."

"He said these German Mausers were fine."

Huang Dakuan also pointed to the Maxim at the foot of the mountain.

"He also specifically emphasized that this machine gun must be recycled, and he will figure out a way to use the bullets."

Santos and Dias looked at each other.

They didn't quite understand what Chen Jianqiu meant by "recycling", but they still nodded.

So, Lai Hua and Luo Xiangrong led the soldiers and chased them all the way to the other side of the valley.

They don't have to worry about losing their track, because the Spanish soldiers left luggage and guns along the way.

They chased all the way with the carriages and picked them up. The half-empty carriages were not only filled again, but also piled up high.

In the end, Lai Hua and Luo Xiangrong finally met Chen Jianqiu at a place about one kilometer away from San Juan Mountain outside San Diego.

Chen Jianqiu was standing behind a hillside, holding a telescope in his hand and looking towards the direction of the San Juan Mountain position in the distance.

He Jianshun stood behind him, guessing punches with the soldiers boredly.

Seeing that his soldiers were safe and sound, Lai Hua breathed a sigh of relief.

When He Jianshun saw his officer, he stepped forward and reported the details of the battle to Lai Hua.

Lai Hua was overjoyed.

It seemed that he was overthinking.

As expected of the descendants of the King of England, this one is also first-class in battle.

Luo Xiangrong even ran to Chen Jianqiu immediately, and said excitedly:

"Young master, let's continue to chase after the victory and teach those Spaniards a lesson! Later, we will join forces with other rebels, and we may be able to capture Santiago! This is the second largest city in Cuba!"

The telescope in Chen Jianqiu's hand has not been put down yet.

He was still watching the Spanish positions on San Juan Hill.

Although San Juan Mountain is called a "mountain", it is actually a highland outside San Diego.

The location of this highland is unique.

Any army attacking the city of San Diego from the south coast must pass through here.

Colonel Francis has arranged a very tight defense here.

Needless to say, various sandbags and semi-permanent fortifications, the Maxim machine gun he is most familiar with has been deployed a lot.

What Chen Jianqiu could see were the machine gun positions set up in the open, layer after layer, not to mention the firepower points in the dark.

"We can't take the city of Santiago for the time being." Chen Jianqiu put down the binoculars in his hand and looked at Luo Xiangrong. "To put it bluntly, we can't even take down the highland in front of us now."

Luo Xiangrong was stunned for a moment.

"Yes, we really have nothing to do with these cities for the time being." Lai Hua walked up and sighed, "Mr. Chen, do you have any good solutions?"

"Retreat first." Chen Jianqiu picked up the binoculars and said without hesitation.

The soldiers of the Chinese Volunteer Army quickly withdrew from around Santiago.

They headed north along the Sierra Maestra, preparing to join another Chinese volunteer army, that is, Hood's army.

"There should be no hope for the big cities and their surrounding areas." On the way, Chen Jianqiu and Lai Hua analyzed the current situation of the Cuban War of Independence.

During his time in Cuba, he learned a lot of information from various sources, especially in Santiago.

"These areas should have been set by the 'butcher' as a strong wall to clear the field. With our current firepower and military strength, it is not enough to pose a threat to these areas." Chen Jianqiu said.

He pressed his hands on the "table" made of boxes, on which a map of Cuba was unfolded.

"I suggest that you go to the northwest, where there are large tobacco plantations employing Chinese, liberate there, and then incorporate the Chinese inside into your own troops."

Chen Jianqiu drew a circle on the map with a pen.

"And some small ports there can avoid the patrolling of Spanish warships, so I can transport supplies here."

He straightened up and threw the pen on the "table":

"Give up those big cities, attack and liberate remote rural areas, use the rural areas to encircle the cities, strengthen your own team in mobile warfare, and eventually become a decisive force in Cuba."

Chen Jianqiu glanced at Lai Hua:
"This is my suggestion."

In Lai Hua's eyes, there was a light of hope.

He said to Chen Jianqiu very sincerely: "Jianqiu, stay and join me in fighting for a place for the Chinese in Cuba.

Chen Jianqiu chuckled.

It is definitely necessary to create a space for the Chinese in Cuba, but now he still has a very important thing.

"My wife and I have to go back to the United States." Chen Jianqiu scratched his head, "I have to continue to arrange the next batch of supplies for you."

"However, the soldiers from the Longxiang Group will stay here to train your soldiers. They are all experienced fighters." He added.

So, Chen Jianqiu and Camilla returned to the United States.

The two of them even walked the port of San Diego swaggering.

The squad that went to trouble them was dead.

No one knew that the fighting that took place southwest of San Diego was related to these two men.

The two of them still used their identities as reporters for the New York World.

Although at this time, the relationship between Spain and the United States has become somewhat tense, but it has not yet reached the point of showing swords to each other.

So Chen Jianqiu and Camilla didn't encounter any trouble along the way.

Chen Jianqiu's first stop back in the United States was to Roswell.

He went straight to the Roswell Armory.

At his request, the Ordnance Factory quickly organized a team of mechanical engineers and artillery engineers.

That's the benefit of being rich.

Today's Roswell brings together the best scientific and technological talents in the United States.

Chen Jianqiu provided them with high salaries and abundant research funds.

So, what about the desert?So what if it's close to the border?
At the first meeting of the group, Chen Jianqiu put forward his request:
"I need a curved-fire artillery. It needs to be easy to carry. It is best to carry it by one person. It also has a certain power and lethality. I hope that the range can reach at least 500 meters and blow up the enemy's machine gun position."

The mechanical engineers started their daydreams, but the artillery experts looked at each other in blank dismay.

They really don't know that such a thing exists in the world.

Fortunately, Boss Chen has carried forward his fine traditions.

He continued his creative career of "abstract painting", and it took less than half an hour to provide the engineers with a schematic diagram:

A barrel is mounted on an adjustable bipod, and the end of the barrel is fitted with a bowl-shaped seat to absorb recoil.

Use fabric wrapped smokeless gunpowder to make a waist bag and put it on the bottom of the shell, put it into the barrel, and fire the primer to complete the launch.

Chen Jianqiu's drawing was somewhat vague, and his speech was also quite complicated.

But he clearly knew what he wanted.

Mortar.

(End of this chapter)