Chapter 1242 Is this a village or a fortress
The intensity of the firepower output in the village far exceeded the imagination of the coalition forces. It destroyed the protective system of the vanguard team almost in a moment, causing considerable damage. In this case, it would be too crazy to attack forward despite the opponent's hail of bullets. The leading officer could only ask the troops to retreat first and regroup in a safe area to wait for the orders from the rear commander.
After the coalition forces made a move to retreat, the gunfire from the village stopped abruptly. After Roger noticed the opponent's movements, he immediately ordered a ceasefire. He did not want to kill all the enemy troops who came to explore the road. The main force of the opponent had not yet been dispatched, so he could not play his cards too quickly, lest he To alert the snake. Moreover, the side that wants a quick victory now is the opposing coalition forces. Roger is now eager to prolong the fighting time, so as to leave more action time for the friendly forces who go around to the Strait of Johor to cut off the opponent's retreat.
Hogg, who was in the distance, was really surprised when he saw the fighting process. The two sides only engaged in a very brief exchange of fire, and his troops retreated. The shield protection measures previously set up did not seem to have the desired effect, and the Haihan people's firepower still caused a lot of damage. But the good news is that the gunfire in the village is obviously relatively sparse. Hogg believes that this may be because Haihan was in a hurry and did not have time to deploy all the troops to the village, and only sporadic armed personnel were resisting.
Hogg didn't blame the officer leading the team for giving the order to retreat. He didn't really expect that a vanguard team would be able to break through the opponent's village. He just sent it out to test the opponent's deployment. This tactic The goal has been basically achieved, and there is no need to increase casualties. Hogg immediately issued an order and sent several teams to explore in the east and west directions to see if they could find other marching routes to bypass this trap-like rice field.
The battle information of the vanguard team was quickly sent to Hogg. They lost seventeen people in the battle, but the enemy's casualties could not be confirmed because the observation line was blocked. Along with the battle report, there was also a large shield full of bullet holes. After Hogg carefully looked at it, he understood the opponent's trick - the Haihan people had two kinds of muskets in their hands, the less powerful one, and the bullets fired were indeed unable to completely It penetrated the thick wooden shield, but the other bullet was obviously much more powerful, leaving clearly visible bullet holes in the shield. Judging from the diameter of the bullet hole, the caliber of this powerful musket is larger than that of ordinary muskets, and it can be regarded as an armor-piercing weapon.
When encountering such a targeted weapon, Hogg could only knock out his teeth and swallow it. Who made the coalition's intelligence collection work insufficient? If he had known that his opponent had such a killing weapon, he might have suggested adding a layer of iron sheet on the front and back of the large shield to enhance its protection - of course, that would greatly increase the weight of the shield, and it is very likely that a single person would not be able to operate the shield. It will be a new problem to transport such a heavy thing over long distances. In addition, the battle formations and tactics of the troops will also need to be rehearsed.
Fortunately, the number of such weapons in the hands of the enemy seemed to be very small. After carefully questioning the leading officer, Hogg learned that only a few shield bearers were injured by penetration shots, and most of the injured infantry in the formation were on the shield. The gap left after the hand fell. This means that the opponent's tactic is to rely on a small number of large-caliber muskets to break through the shield protection, and then other muskets aim at this breach to fire.
Hogg felt that this tactic was very targeted. It seemed that the opposing commander had already been prepared for the coalition's offensive methods, but where did they get this information?
"This should be just some kind of coincidence!" Hogg could only console himself in this way. He really couldn't bear the possibility of leaking his own combat intelligence. If the Haihan people knew the coalition's tactics in advance, then this operation would not have the nature of a surprise attack.
"How far is the main force from us?" Hogg asked his adjutant.
"There are still about four or five miles." The adjutant replied cautiously: "But our artillery will be slower. We probably won't be able to reach it before dark today."
This news is indeed a bit frustrating, because there is no road from the north of the island to here, and the transportation of heavy equipment is extremely troublesome, and there is no way to reach the battlefield at the same time as the infantry. Hogg wanted to use artillery to break the situation, but this idea is unlikely to be realized today at least.
Hogg looked at the village in the distance. There was still no sound at all, as if it was dead silence. If it hadn't been for the battle that happened a moment ago, Hogg would really doubt whether this village had been abandoned by the Haihan people. But the officer leading the team said that all the entrances to the village were blocked by roadblocks, and there were many wooden stakes surrounding the dense barbed wire fence. It was not that easy to break through to the village. Looking at the defensive measures Haihan deployed inside and outside the village, it seemed that they were not improvised. The amount of work did not look like they could be deployed in half a day.
Could it be that the Haihan people really knew their intentions in advance, so they had already arranged preventive measures? This idea flashed through Hogg's mind, but he immediately rejected it. If the Haihan people knew the coalition's plan in advance, they would definitely send their warships to patrol the Johor Strait to deter the coalition from crossing the sea. How could it be possible to put the coalition forces on the island so easily when they could clearly keep the enemy out of their territory? Isn't this asking for trouble?
But after the vanguard team suffered losses while exploring the road, Hogg did not dare to launch a new round of offensive at will. This was not only because the opponent had mastered a weapon that could penetrate large shields, but also because the terrain here was indeed not suitable for large stocks. The troops were assembled and arrayed, but they could not exert their due combat effectiveness at all. If a large force is sent to step into the mud pit, Hogg believes that their end may not be much better than what happened to the vanguard just now. He now hopes to find a more reliable attack path as soon as possible, and then concentrate his forces to break through the village's defenses. one of the weak points.
Soon Hogg discovered that God's favor did not seem to be far away from him. The scouts discovered a main road for the army to pass not far to the west. This main road passed through the middle of the farmland and led to two Although the road between Haihan Village is not wide, there are dry fields for growing vegetables on both sides, so there is no need to worry about getting stuck in the mud and being unable to pull out.
"Between the two villages..." Hogg quickly checked the general location on the map and found that the end of this road seemed to be the location of Haihan's official agency. The Haihan people probably built these institutions between the two villages in order to make it easier for them to look after the two villages. However, as a result, the courtyards in the middle were all alone in the middle of a large open space. It has become an easier target.
If the middle area can be occupied first, then the two Haihan villages can be separated, and then the troops can be concentrated to attack one side, which will definitely be much more advantageous than the current situation. Moreover, there are not many buildings in this area, and the number of troops that the opponent can station should be extremely limited. Compared with villages with many houses and complex terrain, the former is obviously easier to capture. Hogg had an idea in his mind and immediately ordered his troops to move west and change the target of the attack to the area between the two villages. "They're moving!" Roger used a telescope in the bunker to confirm the enemy's movements a mile away, and then ordered the soldiers around him to immediately enter combat positions.
The bunker they were in was Tan Juren's official residence. It had a masonry structure and was much stronger than the adobe houses in the immigration village. However, in order to achieve maximum firepower output, many shooting holes were specially dug out on the north-facing wall, and shooting positions were even arranged on the roof. Although the place is not big, there are hundreds of people deployed in these few courtyards, and they basically only need to defend one direction in the north, so the firepower points are densely packed. In the gaps between the courtyards, two small-caliber artillery pieces capable of firing grapeshot were also deployed to increase the intensity of the firepower output.
Roger set up his headquarters here for the purpose of using it as bait, but he didn't dare to overestimate it, so he specially arranged these courtyards like military fortresses, with all weak points covered with sandbags. Reinforced inside and out. There is a thirty-meter-wide area outside with a large number of barbed wires crisscrossing the ground, making it impossible to pass through easily. But only when you get close can you notice the murderous intent lurking in this place.
Hogg believed that the area between the two villages was a weak point in the Haihan defense line, and decided to concentrate his efforts to capture this area first. He reorganized his team and sent out organic mercenaries, and the number of shieldmen covering the front also increased. Double. I plan to rush into the middle courtyards in one fell swoop and occupy the space before talking.
"Whoever can pull down the Haihan flag in the yard will be rewarded with a hundred silver coins!" Hogg pointed his sword forward and announced loudly to his soldiers: "Capturing Haihan officials alive will also have the same reward. ! ”
The soldiers who were stimulated by the bounty immediately became energetic. Their purpose of joining the war was to make money. As for whether their opponents were Haihan people or others, they didn't care that much. Of course, after this battle, most of them will no longer think so. If you have money, you must have the life to spend it. Not every opponent can challenge with courage.
Two queues, composed of about three hundred soldiers, advanced one after another along the north-south dirt road toward the open space between the two villages. In the eyes of some people, the few inconspicuous houses in the distance had become Mountains of money. Although they did not know the combat effectiveness of Haihan's army, they had heard of Haihan's reputation for wealth. If they could capture Haihan's stronghold this time, everyone would be able to make a small fortune.
However, the coalition soldiers soon discovered that things were not that simple. Several courtyards in the middle looked forward to the advance, but as they walked, they discovered that these buildings were actually farther south than the villages on the east and west sides. If viewed from the air, these three buildings formed a large depression on the plain, and the direction of the coalition's attack was exactly the depression to the north.
But at this point, no one dared to disobey the military order and turn around and run back. They could only bite the bullet and continue to move forward. After the team moved closer, they found that there were various bunkers and shooting holes in the east and west villages towards the middle. The shooting holes on the walls of the courtyards in front were even more densely packed, and there were also very deep and wide holes on the periphery. A piece of land was covered with a barbed wire fence that was as high as half a person. It was impossible to rush through it.
Even if they come, they can't retreat without firing a shot. They can only fight according to the established battle plan. The officer leading the team stopped the team about a hundred meters away from the target and prepared for a salvo. But the opponent seemed to be very good at seizing this kind of timing. While the coalition shield bearers were still lining up, the buildings in the front and the villages on the east and west sides opened fire almost simultaneously. In an instant, at least dozens of projectiles were fired from three directions at the same time. To the coalition forces in the middle.
Immediately, several people in the coalition formation screamed and fell to the ground. The leading officer quickly adjusted his shield hand to protect the left and right wings, and at the same time asked the frontal musketeers to fire back immediately. But it’s hard to say whether this kind of counterattack has played its due role. The firepower from the front doesn’t seem to be reduced at all, and after the shields are dispersed to both sides, the frontal protection is not that strong. Bullets still come from the gaps in the shield from time to time. Go through and hit the coalition soldiers hiding behind them.
Although Hogg was far away, he could see the battle scene clearly, and he was so anxious that he almost jumped - was this place an ordinary immigrant village, or was it a trap deliberately set by Haihan, disguised as a stronghold and fortress? What does the village look like?
Under attack from three sides, the response that the coalition forces could make was extremely limited. Their musketry skills could only be maintained at the front for counterattacks, while the two sides could only be passively beaten. Although protected by peripheral shields, casualties continued to increase. But they couldn't feel at all whether they had caused damage to the enemy, so they could only bite the bullet and continue to hold on.
In the Haihan position on the other side, Roger did not end the battle personally, but silently observed the damage done to the enemy and the opponent's countermeasures. Obviously, the coalition forces had no good way to deal with the Haihan Army hiding behind the bunker. They could only shoot blindly with their eyes closed. The chance of hitting someone was too low. The soldiers on Haihan's side were all behind the bunker, so they could aim calmly before shooting, pursuing a safe hit rate.
The coalition forces lasted longer this time, but they did not advance into the barbed wire formation laid by Haihan. After losing a certain number of men, the leading officer realized that his troops could no longer advance forward. They had no choice but to retreat out of the range of the Haihan Army. The sniper hiding in an unknown corner sent them off the battlefield with three consecutive headshots.
(End of chapter)