Dawn of the Empire

Chapter 308 Joy is not over (9)

The sparse sound of cannons announced the beginning of the battle.Black smoke continued to rise from the artillery barracks of the Liao Army and the Jin Army, and the haze in the sky became thicker.The power of the artillery is already very obvious. Whether it is the Liao army or the Jin army, the cavalry army or the infantry army, they all carefully lined up outside the effective range of the enemy's heavy artillery.

Zhao Xingde stood on the battery, looking down at the infantry accompanying the battery.The gunners are wiping the barrels over and over again, because they are worried about damaging the paper-packed ammunition, and regulations prohibit nervously checking ammunition on the battlefield.Just behind the artillery barracks, thousands of Jin soldiers and Han troops were sitting on the ground waiting for the military order to set off. Some people looked up curiously at the gunners who repeated the process of raising and loading the guns over and over again under the command.Before the battle, these gunners had been shot with live ammunition more than ten times.But on a battlefield under tremendous pressure and chaos, no one can guarantee these complicated movements.The only way is to repeat, and repeat.

With a sound of "boom--", the round iron projectile whizzed through the air, crossed an arc, and flew slowly for a distance of about two miles, and finally smashed heavily on the ground not far from the Liao army's artillery barracks. Dozens of steps in the open space.The shell missed, and the Liao army around the front artillery barracks cheered loudly. Many Khitan cavalry shouted and waved their sabers wildly.

"It's still too far away." Tong Yunjie looked ashamed.Although the artillery shells could reach the vicinity of the artillery fortresses of the Liao army, they had already exceeded the effective firing range of the heavy artillery, and the shooting accuracy dropped sharply.

Zhao Xingde patted him on the shoulder, signaling Tong Yunjie not to blame himself, he turned his head and asked, "Are you ready?"

"You can attack at any time." Liu Zhijian said in a deep voice.

Beside the central battery, a battery of fourteen three-inch guns was making its final preparations.They will follow behind the cavalry of the Kingdom of Jin to a place three hundred steps away from the Liao army's frontal artillery fortification, and suppress the frontal artillery fortification of the Liao army.The predetermined position is just outside the effective range of the Liao army's small and medium-sized artillery, and it is difficult for the Liao army to hit such a small target with only a dozen heavy artillery pieces in the frontal battery.The three-inch artillery position is just within the effective firing range of the central battery, and the heavy artillery arranged on the central battery can bombard the Khitan cavalry trying to turn around from the side and rear.

"Let me go to the front." Tong Yunjie looked at his right leg.After a lot of hard training, he was able to follow the artillery carriage on foot. In terms of aiming and proofreading the three-inch and four-inch guns, he was the strongest gunner in the artillery battalion of the Han Army.

"I want a reliable person to guard the rear."

Zhao Xingde took out the binoculars and looked into the distance.The field of view of the telescope is all inverted images, but Zhao Xingde has already gotten used to it.The artillery fortress on the opposite side was carefully constructed, and from time to time one or two shells were fired, accompanied by roaring flashes, black smoke rising into the air, it was the enemy artillery firing.Through the smoke, one could see a Sun and Moon flag erected high, which represented that the emperor of the Liao Kingdom was behind the artillery barracks in front, but Zhao Xingde's sight was just blocked by the artillery barracks, and he could only see the cavalry who were constantly sending orders. Running around inside and outside the camp.The field of vision of the binoculars passed over the camp of the Liao army, and saw some officers shouting at the soldiers.Because the distance was too far, Liao Bing's face could not be seen clearly, but he could vaguely feel that some people were afraid, some were excited, and some were numb.

In the middle of the Jin army and the Liao army, except for a few solitary small trees, all the trees have been cut down, but the weeds and shrubs are very lush. This open field is full of scouts from the two armies. Another small group of cavalry drove and chased each other, and the battle was short and fierce.

Zhao Xingde turned the binoculars to his side. The large and small stockades of the Jin army were connected one by one, stretching from the artillery fort to the north and south wings and rear.In the camp, the Jin Kingdom cavalry of the brigade was forming a team, and more were sitting on the ground. The expression of the Jurchens seemed calmer than that of the Khitans.

The emperor's fortress was right behind the artillery barracks, surrounded by a group of generals from the Kingdom of Jin, Wanyan Aguda, who was looking ahead expressionlessly, like a statue.Zhao Xingde saw Wan Yanci approaching from behind without hesitation, and bowed to report a few words.Wanyan Agu nodded, the faces of the generals showed excitement, and several messengers rushed out.The Jurchen cavalry mounted their horses one after another, and a group of kidnapped horses rushed forward from both sides of the runners.

"Are you going to start the attack?" Zhao Xingde secretly said, just as he was about to put away the binoculars, Han Ningshuang appeared in his field of vision.She led [-] Han cavalry stationed behind the central battery to protect the advancing battery and battery.Because the binoculars just moved from far to near, she almost occupied most of the field of vision, and her expression was very clear.Han Ningshuang was thinking about something with her head down, but she seemed to be aware of it, her brows were slightly erected, her pretty face was cold, she raised her head and glared in this direction.Zhao Xingde was nervous, secretly thought it was not good.At this moment, Han Ningshuang suddenly smiled and made another gesture of taking care.

There was a rush of hoofbeats from behind the artillery barracks, and the messenger holding the flag shouted loudly in Chinese: "Artillery Battalion, attack! Attack!"

"Fireball Battalion stand up!"

"Prepare to attack!"

"Line up, line up!"

In an instant, various passwords sounded near the central battery, like a pot of boiling water.The gunners chanted and worked together to push the artillery.Horse-drawn artillery carts can be used in the middle section from the central battery to the front position, but when leaving and entering the artillery positions, these heavy big guys can only be pushed by manpower.In order to boost morale, even Liu Zhijian rolled up his sleeves and worked with the gunners.Accompanying the artillery crew was a battalion of gunners, two thousand spearmen of the Han army, two thousand Jurchen archers, and five hundred iron floats who dismounted and fought on foot.

"Forward—forward—"

On the vast battlefield, the five thousand infantry only occupied a small area.In front of the infantry, [-] cavalry formed a tight front.Outside the effective firing range of the Liao army's artillery, the Jurchen cavalry controlled their horses to march slowly.In the center of the cavalry formation, Wanyan Zonghan followed Wanyan Digu forward. He had a gloomy face, and it was his honor to lead the cavalry to attack the Liao army's artillery fortress, but the offensive tactics were all arranged by that surnamed Zhao. He was extremely dissatisfied.The brigade of cavalry had to lower their speed so that the following artillery battalion and infantry would not fall too far.

"Everyone work harder!"

Officers such as Zhao Xingde and Liu Zhijian did not ride horses, but walked on both sides of the cannon carriage like ordinary gunners.The battlefield looked flat, and the path of the gun crew had been surveyed in advance, but there would always be unexpected potholes and small slopes ahead.At this time, Zhao Xingde and Liu Zhijian must quickly lead the gunners to push the artillery carriages, and must not delay the rhythm of the army's attack.

Although it is not within the effective firing range of the heavy artillery of the Liao army, the shells can hit here.The artillery battalion of the Liao army on the opposite side has already opened fire, and round iron projectiles flew across the sky with the sound of howling wind. Although most of them fell on the open space, from time to time a shell happened to hit the Jin army. Either death or injury, no matter how thick the armor is, the flesh will be smashed to pieces. Even four or five hundred steps away, the power of the heavy artillery shells is still frightening.

"Here it is! This is it! Set up the artillery!"

Zhao Xingde pointed to the triangular rubble pile piled up a few days ago. In order to prevent the Liao army from noticing, the rubble pile was very inconspicuous, but it was enough to mark the preset position.

The artillery was separated from the artillery carriage and pushed into the artillery fortress, the reining horse and ammunition cart were placed behind, and each gunner was in place.The gunmen directly guarded the artillery position. In the eyes of Jin Jun, the gun is also a small artillery.More than 4000 infantry troops guarded the periphery of the artillery positions.

"Quick!" "Quick!" Liu Zhijian looked at and shouted.All the gunners were already sweating profusely, but they still desperately accelerated their movements, even ignoring the enemy shells flying overhead from time to time.The cavalry in front had already entered the distance where they could accelerate, and Wanyan Digu Gunai's messengers looked back from time to time, waiting for the signal from the artillery position.Zhao Xingde checked the gun positions one by one, and after ensuring that the shooting angle was correct, each gun group began to load ammunition.

When everything was ready, Zhao Xingde glanced ahead, raised the binoculars, and said in a deep voice, "Fire!"

"Boom!" There was a loud noise!The No. [-] artillery group, all of which were 'operated' by Ms. Xia ***, fired a trial shot, and the shells whizzed out and slammed into the front of the Liao army's artillery barracks. "It's a pity." Zhao Xingde sighed slightly, without any hesitation, and said in a deep voice: "Raise it by half a point!" All the gun crews immediately moved the levers of the gun mounts in a hurry, and the muzzle was slightly raised. a little bit.

"Half point... half point..." the gunners murmured, because of nervousness, sweat dripped down from their foreheads, and they didn't care to wipe it off.Soon, all fourteen gun groups were corrected.

"Fire!" The sparse sound of cannons announced the beginning of the battle.Black smoke continued to rise from the artillery barracks of the Liao Army and the Jin Army, and the haze in the sky became thicker.The power of the artillery is already very obvious. Whether it is the Liao army or the Jin army, the cavalry army or the infantry army, they all carefully lined up outside the effective range of the enemy's heavy artillery.

Zhao Xingde stood on the battery, looking down at the infantry accompanying the battery.The gunners are wiping the barrels over and over again, because they are worried about damaging the paper-packed ammunition, and regulations prohibit nervously checking ammunition on the battlefield.Just behind the artillery barracks, thousands of Jin soldiers and Han troops were sitting on the ground waiting for the military order to set off. Some people looked up curiously at the gunners who repeated the process of raising and loading the guns over and over again under the command.Before the battle, these gunners had been shot with live ammunition more than ten times.But on a battlefield under tremendous pressure and chaos, no one can guarantee these complicated movements.The only way is to repeat, and repeat.

With a sound of "boom--", the round iron projectile whizzed through the air, crossed an arc, and flew slowly for a distance of about two miles, and finally smashed heavily on the ground not far from the Liao army's artillery barracks. Dozens of steps in the open space.The shell missed, and the Liao army around the front artillery barracks cheered loudly. Many Khitan cavalry shouted and waved their sabers wildly.

"It's still too far away." Tong Yunjie looked ashamed.Although the artillery shells could reach the vicinity of the artillery fortresses of the Liao army, they had already exceeded the effective firing range of the heavy artillery, and the shooting accuracy dropped sharply.

Zhao Xingde patted him on the shoulder, signaling Tong Yunjie not to blame himself, he turned his head and asked, "Are you ready?"

"You can attack at any time." Liu Zhijian said in a deep voice.

Beside the central battery, a battery of fourteen three-inch guns was making its final preparations.They will follow behind the cavalry of the Kingdom of Jin to a place three hundred steps away from the Liao army's frontal artillery fortification, and suppress the frontal artillery fortification of the Liao army.The predetermined position is just outside the effective range of the Liao army's small and medium-sized artillery, and it is difficult for the Liao army to hit such a small target with only a dozen heavy artillery pieces in the frontal battery.The three-inch artillery position is just within the effective firing range of the central battery, and the heavy artillery arranged on the central battery can bombard the Khitan cavalry trying to turn around from the side and rear.

"Let me go to the front." Tong Yunjie looked at his right leg.After a lot of hard training, he was able to follow the artillery carriage on foot. In terms of aiming and proofreading the three-inch and four-inch guns, he was the strongest gunner in the artillery battalion of the Han Army.

"I want a reliable person to guard the rear."

Zhao Xingde took out the binoculars and looked into the distance.The field of view of the telescope is all inverted images, but Zhao Xingde has already gotten used to it.The artillery fortress on the opposite side was carefully constructed, and from time to time one or two shells were fired, accompanied by roaring flashes, black smoke rising into the air, it was the enemy artillery firing.Through the smoke, one could see a Sun and Moon flag erected high, which represented that the emperor of the Liao Kingdom was behind the artillery barracks in front, but Zhao Xingde's sight was just blocked by the artillery barracks, and he could only see the cavalry who were constantly sending orders. Running around inside and outside the camp.The field of vision of the binoculars passed over the camp of the Liao army, and saw some officers shouting at the soldiers.Because the distance was too far, Liao Bing's face could not be seen clearly, but he could vaguely feel that some people were afraid, some were excited, and some were numb.

In the middle of the Jin army and the Liao army, except for a few solitary small trees, all the trees have been cut down, but the weeds and shrubs are very lush. This open field is full of scouts from the two armies. Another small group of cavalry drove and chased each other, and the battle was short and fierce.

Zhao Xingde turned the binoculars to his side. The large and small stockades of the Jin army were connected one by one, stretching from the artillery fort to the north and south wings and rear.In the camp, the Jin Kingdom cavalry of the brigade was forming a team, and more were sitting on the ground. The expression of the Jurchens seemed calmer than that of the Khitans.

The emperor's fortress was right behind the artillery barracks, surrounded by a group of generals from the Kingdom of Jin, Wanyan Aguda, who was looking ahead expressionlessly, like a statue.Zhao Xingde saw Wan Yanci approaching from behind without hesitation, and bowed to report a few words.Wanyan Agu nodded, the faces of the generals showed excitement, and several messengers rushed out.The Jurchen cavalry mounted their horses one after another, and a group of kidnapped horses rushed forward from both sides of the runners.

"Are you going to start the attack?" Zhao Xingde secretly said, just as he was about to put away the binoculars, Han Ningshuang appeared in his field of vision.She led [-] Han cavalry stationed behind the central battery to protect the advancing battery and battery.Because the binoculars just moved from far to near, she almost occupied most of the field of vision, and her expression was very clear.Han Ningshuang was thinking about something with her head down, but she seemed to be aware of it, her brows were slightly erected, her pretty face was cold, she raised her head and glared in this direction.Zhao Xingde was nervous, secretly thought it was not good.At this moment, Han Ningshuang suddenly smiled and made another gesture of taking care.

There was a rush of hoofbeats from behind the artillery barracks, and the messenger holding the flag shouted loudly in Chinese: "Artillery Battalion, attack! Attack!"

"Fireball Battalion stand up!"

"Prepare to attack!"

"Line up, line up!"

In an instant, various passwords sounded near the central battery, like a pot of boiling water.The gunners chanted and worked together to push the artillery.Horse-drawn artillery carts can be used in the middle section from the central battery to the front position, but when leaving and entering the artillery positions, these heavy big guys can only be pushed by manpower.In order to boost morale, even Liu Zhijian rolled up his sleeves and worked with the gunners.Accompanying the artillery crew was a battalion of gunners, two thousand spearmen of the Han army, two thousand Jurchen archers, and five hundred iron floats who dismounted and fought on foot.

"Forward—forward—"

On the vast battlefield, the five thousand infantry only occupied a small area.In front of the infantry, [-] cavalry formed a tight front.Outside the effective firing range of the Liao army's artillery, the Jurchen cavalry controlled their horses to march slowly.In the center of the cavalry formation, Wanyan Zonghan followed Wanyan Digu forward. He had a gloomy face, and it was his honor to lead the cavalry to attack the Liao army's artillery fortress, but the offensive tactics were all arranged by that surnamed Zhao. He was extremely dissatisfied.The brigade of cavalry had to lower their speed so that the following artillery battalion and infantry would not fall too far.

"Everyone work harder!"

Officers such as Zhao Xingde and Liu Zhijian did not ride horses, but walked on both sides of the cannon carriage like ordinary gunners.The battlefield looked flat, and the path of the gun crew had been surveyed in advance, but there would always be unexpected potholes and small slopes ahead.At this time, Zhao Xingde and Liu Zhijian must quickly lead the gunners to push the artillery carriages, and must not delay the rhythm of the army's attack.

Although it is not within the effective firing range of the heavy artillery of the Liao army, the shells can hit here.The artillery battalion of the Liao army on the opposite side has already opened fire, and round iron projectiles flew across the sky with the sound of howling wind. Although most of them fell on the open space, from time to time a shell happened to hit the Jin army. Either death or injury, no matter how thick the armor is, the flesh will be smashed to pieces. Even four or five hundred steps away, the power of the heavy artillery shells is still frightening.

"Here it is! This is it! Set up the artillery!"

Zhao Xingde pointed to the triangular rubble pile piled up a few days ago. In order to prevent the Liao army from noticing, the rubble pile was very inconspicuous, but it was enough to mark the preset position.

The artillery was separated from the artillery carriage and pushed into the artillery fortress, the reining horse and ammunition cart were placed behind, and each gunner was in place.The gunmen directly guarded the artillery position. In the eyes of Jin Jun, the gun is also a small artillery.More than 4000 infantry troops guarded the periphery of the artillery positions.

"Quick!" "Quick!" Liu Zhijian looked at and shouted.All the gunners were already sweating profusely, but they still desperately accelerated their movements, even ignoring the enemy shells flying overhead from time to time.The cavalry in front had already entered the distance where they could accelerate, and Wanyan Digu Gunai's messengers looked back from time to time, waiting for the signal from the artillery position.Zhao Xingde checked the gun positions one by one, and after ensuring that the shooting angle was correct, each gun group began to load ammunition.

When everything was ready, Zhao Xingde glanced ahead, raised the binoculars, and said in a deep voice, "Fire!"

"Boom!" There was a loud noise!The No. [-] artillery group, all of which were 'operated' by Ms. Xia ***, fired a trial shot, and the shells whizzed out and slammed into the front of the Liao army's artillery barracks. "It's a pity." Zhao Xingde sighed slightly, without any hesitation, and said in a deep voice: "Raise it by half a point!" All the gun crews immediately moved the levers of the gun mounts in a hurry, and the muzzle was slightly raised. a little bit.

"Half point... half point..." the gunners murmured, because of nervousness, sweat dripped down from their foreheads, and they didn't care to wipe it off.Soon, all fourteen gun groups were corrected.

"Fire!"

This time, the shell crossed a perfect arc, almost hitting the center of the Liao army's frontal battery.The artillery barracks of the Liao Army were waiting in formation, ready to hit the charging Jin cavalry head-on, when they were suddenly bombarded by the opponent's artillery. Although it was only one shell, it caused a commotion.The yelling could be heard clearly even three hundred paces away.

Zhao Xingde said in a deep voice: "Signal to the cavalry, we are fine." He paused, and then said: "All guns, fire at full speed!"

Just in front of the artillery crew, the Jurchen cavalry who had already been unable to hold back got the signal.Wanyan Digu Nai led [-] cavalry to stay in the rear, and Wanyan Zonghan led [-] cavalry to accelerate and sprint.The sound of horseshoes shook the ground, and at this moment, the artillery position behind the cavalry began to roar almost continuously!

The scene of [-] cavalry charging is extremely magnificent, as if the mountainous waves are rushing forward, wanting to collapse everything into pieces.The gunners on the artillery barracks in front of the Liao army and the infantry guarding in front all changed their expressions.Chai Yi, the supervisor of the Xiangwen Division of the Artillery Army, didn't care to think about why he was "just" hit by an enemy shell and shouted loudly: "Listen to my orders and prepare to fire!"

On this frontal battery, in addition to a dozen heavy artillery pieces, there are more than 200 various small and medium-sized artillery pieces. The effective firing range ranges from dozens of paces to one or two hundred paces, and the ammunition has already been loaded.The gunners suppressed their breath, while nervously watching the approaching Jurchen cavalry, while waiting for the military order to fire with full concentration.

This time, the shell crossed a perfect arc, almost hitting the center of the Liao army's frontal battery.The artillery barracks of the Liao Army were waiting in formation, ready to hit the charging Jin cavalry head-on, when they were suddenly bombarded by the opponent's artillery. Although it was only one shell, it caused a commotion.The yelling could be heard clearly even three hundred paces away.

Zhao Xingde said in a deep voice: "Signal to the cavalry, we are fine." He paused, and then said: "All guns, fire at full speed!"

Just in front of the artillery crew, the Jurchen cavalry who had already been unable to hold back got the signal.Wanyan Digu Nai led [-] cavalry to stay in the rear, and Wanyan Zonghan led [-] cavalry to accelerate and sprint.The sound of horseshoes shook the ground, and at this moment, the artillery position behind the cavalry began to roar almost continuously!

The scene of [-] cavalry charging is extremely magnificent, as if the mountainous waves are rushing forward, wanting to collapse everything into pieces.The gunners on the artillery barracks in front of the Liao army and the infantry guarding in front all changed their expressions.Chai Yi, the supervisor of the Xiangwen Division of the Artillery Army, didn't care to think about why he was "just" hit by an enemy shell and shouted loudly: "Listen to my orders and prepare to fire!"

On this frontal battery, in addition to a dozen heavy artillery pieces, there are more than 200 various small and medium-sized artillery pieces. The effective firing range ranges from dozens of paces to one or two hundred paces, and the ammunition has already been loaded.The gunners suppressed their breath, while nervously watching the approaching Jurchen cavalry, while waiting for the military order to fire with full concentration.