Chapter 1293 From sea to land
After two rounds of shelling by the combined fleet, all the various coastal defenses built on the shore had been completely destroyed. At this time, several troop transport ships that were originally on standby on the farther sea finally came forward. Under the cover of many warships, Arrive close to the coast.
The troop transport ship used by the military in this exercise is different from the ship Liu Shang and others took. It also has a steam-powered propulsion device on the ship. The speed of approaching the coast is naturally much faster than that of an ordinary sailing ship.
"This is the latest Type 34 landing troop carrier. Its short-range speed in wartime can be more than twice that of the ship at our feet. Each ship can carry more than 200 soldiers, and they can quickly land through the movable springboard on the bow. In addition, there are hoisting equipment on the ship, which can quickly unload heavy weapons such as artillery to the shore." The accompanying officer promptly introduced the performance characteristics of this troop carrier to everyone.
While they were talking, several troop transport ships had already arrived at the coast. After putting down the gangplank on the bow of the ship, the soldiers on the ship quickly landed on land. After a brief assembly, they built a beachhead on the spot to prevent the enemy from counterattacking. Several warships parked a little further away continued to fire artillery shells at the fortress area on the shore at a stable frequency. However, in order to avoid accidentally injuring friendly forces, the angle of the bombardment was obviously adjusted to avoid the area where friendly forces were landing.
Haihan's amphibious landing operation plan relies to a large extent on the advanced performance of weapons and equipment. It relies on firepower superiority to suppress the enemy's coastal defense forces before landing and clear a relatively safe landing site for its own landing forces. This style of play is basically to attack the enemy forcefully, and it seems difficult to find an opponent who can counter Haihan in the Far East of this era.
But for Haihan's followers and competitors, this style of play is difficult to imitate. After all, the weapons, equipment and training level are far behind Haihan's army. If they try to imitate others, they may end up trying to imitate others. Not an anti-dog. When the Haihan Army used artillery fire to cover the land forces, they did not let other allied warships participate. After all, in order to use relatively high-end tactics such as sea-land coordination and infantry-artillery coordination on the battlefield, only their own troops who have undergone rigorous training can Talent is reliable.
Naturally, Liu Shang had never seen such a tactic before, and the more he saw it, the more frightened he became. If the Haihan Army used this tactic to attack various places along the coast of the Ming Dynasty, they would be invincible. Even if he now knows the fighting methods of the Haihan Army, Liu Shang can't think of any way to stop their landing. What can the Ming Army do? Just rely on flesh and blood to block the enemy's cannonballs?
Although the Haihan Army currently uses force to occupy some islands along the coast of the Ming Dynasty, and has not yet heard of them landing in a certain place to attack a city or other blatant invasions, in Liu Shang's view, this is no longer a question of Haihan's ability. The question of attacking Ming Dynasty depends on whether they want to do so. Although the Ming Dynasty claimed to have millions of troops, it may not be able to stop Haihan's invasion from the sea.
While Liu Shang was thinking about things, the army had basically completed the task of seizing the landing point and setting up a beachhead. Several six-pound field guns were hoisted to the shore from the troop carrier. The firepower output they could provide was enough to allow the landing force to withstand possible counterattacks launched by the opponent. Due to the limited troop input in the exercise, there are not more armies to conduct follow-up landing operations. Therefore, the amphibious landing subject is actually considered to be the end of the exercise at this point.
After the accompanying officer announced the news, everyone was a little unfinished. After all, it was a rare opportunity to see a real war scene. However, the rhythm seemed to have just begun to enter the main drama, and it came to an abrupt end. It was like having a sumptuous banquet in front of them. Everyone had just listened to the chef introduce the highlights of each dish, and when they were about to use their chopsticks, the host announced that the banquet had been withdrawn. It was so uncomfortable to whet their appetites.
Even a well-informed official like Yu Xiaobao was a little dissatisfied with this arrangement and asked the officer: "It's only noon. Isn't today's military exercise going to end here?"
The officer smiled and responded: "Director Yu also said that since it is already noon, everyone must have a meal and rest."
Yu Xiaobao said unhappily: "Is there time to eat during the war?"
The officer looked solemn and said: "Of course there is no such thing on the battlefield, but this arrangement is not for the consideration of the soldiers participating in the exercise. I hope Director Yu can understand it."
Yu Xiaobao suddenly realized that the exercise was suspended at noon not just to take care of the participating troops, but also to take into account the various gods and goddesses present. These invited audiences were all of extraordinary status, including many dignitaries from various countries. They were not patriotic people like me. It seemed to be a sign of neglect to allow all these people to watch the military exercise on an empty stomach. Choosing to take a break at the appropriate time is also a smart arrangement.
Yu Xiaobao figured out the reason, and immediately clasped his fists at the officer and said, "I made a mistake!"
The officer hurriedly responded: "Director Yu is being polite, which is why I didn't explain it clearly before. Then everyone, please take the time to eat first. We have other arrangements in the afternoon."
Hearing that the officer said there were other arrangements, everyone finally recovered from their originally depressed mood and hurried to eat in Luo, lest they miss the afternoon exercise. The conditions on this ship are limited, and there is no way to prepare a decent meal. However, everyone's thoughts are not on eating at all at the moment. It doesn't matter if they have simple meals, as long as they can have a bite of hot food to fill their stomachs.
Everyone finished their lunch in a hurry and returned to the deck, eagerly looking forward to the afternoon drill starting soon. However, there is no one with influence on the military on this ship. No matter how anxious he is, he can only wait for the military's arrangements.
After waiting for a long time, a flag was finally sent from the military liaison ship. The ship they were on slowly approached Xieyang Island, and it looked like it was about to land here.
Sure enough, the accompanying officer explained to everyone: "The military exercise in the afternoon will be held on the island, so everyone is invited to go on land to watch."
Liu Shang naturally preferred to stay on land. The rocking of the boat was really uncomfortable, and the soles of his feet were not stable. Seeing the ship getting closer and closer to the shore, Liu Shang suddenly had a question in his mind. Since the afternoon exercise was on the island, there should be nothing wrong with the navy next, right? Now that there are arrangements for changing the battlefield environment, it should be that the Haihan Army has something amazing to show off. The place where everyone landed on the island was the place where the army was sent to land after the naval bombardment of Haihan in the morning. However, by this time the army had already left this place and went to the inland direction of the island. The army's temporary beachhead was still intact. Liu Shang went over to take a look and listened to the officer's explanation. In fact, the structure of the bunker was very simple. It was basically a multi-functional flatbed truck used to transport cargo. It was destroyed by artillery fire. A series of parapets were built in the ruins of the coastal defense fort, and several positions were left in between, and then the infantry used rifles to fight behind the bunkers.
With the range advantage of Haihan weapons, this kind of beachhead can at least repel enemy counterattacks within a hundred feet, but it will be difficult for the enemy to shorten the engagement distance to within the range of one's own long-range weapons. Coupled with the combination of light and heavy firepower, using such a position to deal with enemy forces several times larger than ours will not be a big problem for at least a day and a half.
The shells poured in by the Haihan battleship during the morning bombardment can be seen everywhere on the ground. Liu Shang took a closer look. The largest one was as big as a human head, and the smallest one was as big as an adult's fist. As far as he could see, there were at least hundreds of shells. many. Most of these shells can be reused directly after recovery. Engineers will come to clean up the place later to collect and clean up all the shells.
Liu Shang also paid special attention to the fortress fortifications that Haihan had built here in advance. Judging from the thickness of the protective wall alone, Haihan did not adulterate this temporary facility. The thinnest part is about four inches thick. Although the strength of this kind of fortification is definitely not as good as the city wall, it is not bad as a coastal defense fortification.
As far as the Daming ports that Liu Shang himself has visited, there are not many places where fortifications like this are built. Although there are a small number of garrisons and even navy camps near most ports, they are used for anti-landing operations. There are not many fortifications. If we encounter a similar raid, I'm afraid the outcome will be worse than the fortifications here. The Haihan people's tactic of relying on firepower to forcefully clear the area, unless they build the city to the port coast and rely on the strong city for defense, may the defenders be able to There is a chance to prevent it from landing.
Of course, it is impossible for the city to be built to the coastline, so this method of resistance is naturally untenable. Liu Shang looked at the shells all over the ground and sighed secretly in his heart. If the situation continues to develop at the current rate, I am afraid that in a few years, the Ming Dynasty will really be in trouble. Thinking about the barbarians outside the northern pass who can only fight immediately, and the bandits in the Central Plains who are only good at burning, killing and looting, there is no way to compare with the Han people across the sea who can both manage and fight, and there is no weakness at all. Although Haihan seems to be treating Ming well now, Liu Shang feels that when the Haihan people are full-fledged, Ming will definitely become the target of their encroachment, and they will never stop after robbing some money and people.
"Mr. Liu has never seen such a large formation before, has he?"
Liu Shang was staring at the cannonballs on the ground in a daze, when suddenly a creepy voice sounded behind him. He didn't even need to look back to confirm, he knew that the evil star had appeared next to him again.
Liu Shang quickly calmed down and turned around and replied: "I have never seen an army fight before. Today I am lucky enough to see the power of the Haihan Fleet. I am deeply shocked. My blunder made Director Zhang laugh."< br>
The uninvited guest who suddenly appeared was Zhang Qianzhi from the Security Department. Liu Shang originally thought that he would not see him again on this errand, but he did not expect that this person would appear at this juncture and immediately target him again. Liu Shang wondered in his mind whether his horoscope was in conflict with him, why could he meet this evil star wherever he went, or was this guy actually secretly monitoring his movements?
Zhang Qianzhi smiled and said: "It's not surprising that you are a little shocked when you see this scene for the first time. Forget about you, even a professional soldier may not be able to accept the scene he saw today calmly."
After Zhang Qianzhi finished speaking, he pointed behind him. Liu Shang turned around and saw that several boats had stopped on the shore. Representatives from all parties who came to observe the military exercise had descended to the shore one after another. Some people were scratching the ground while yelling. The cannonball seems to be intended to see how heavy it is.
Only then did Liu Shang realize that Zhang Qianzhi should have watched this military exercise on another ship. In the current environment, given his status, he naturally has to monitor senior military officers of other countries and perform intelligence and security tasks, rather than staying with the patrol team, a group of harmless guys. As for a little person like himself who came in as a temporary substitute, it was even more insignificant.
Liu Shang figured out the key and relaxed his mood. At this time, the accompanying officers were already greeting everyone to assemble and prepare to head to the next destination on the island. Liu Shang said hello to Zhang Qianzhi and quickly followed the inspection team.
Xieyang Island covers an area of less than two square kilometers, and there is no depth to speak of. The team set off and walked for a while, and saw the flag of the Haihan Army outside a mountain col in front. At this time, the accompanying officer announced to them the content of the afternoon military exercise, which was the display of army weapons.
Liu Shang thought to himself. If this link was not arranged, how could the Haihan people sell their weapons to these audiences? These Haihan people are businessmen at heart and will never miss any opportunity to do business. If you really think about it, this may be one of their few flaws, right?
Upon closer inspection, it turned out that this small mountain col was originally a shooting range, and the target was placed at the innermost position of the mountain col. All shooting positions were outside the mountain col, so there was no need to worry about stray bullets injuring innocent people. The telescope previously obtained on the ship was not recovered, so Liu Shang subconsciously took it out to observe the target position deep in the mountain col.
These targets have different distances, some are large and some are small, and it seems that they have different shooting requirements. Some are no more than the size of a gong, propped up with wooden sticks and stuck in the ground; some targets are tied to tree trunks, tracing the outline of the upper body of the human body; and there are targets as big as door panels placed in the deepest part of the col, about 100 meters away. The shooting position was at least a mile away, and the target was marked with concentric circles. This distance is probably out of reach for rifles, and is probably a target for artillery.
The shooting positions outside the col are also very diverse, including those in trenches, behind parapets, and even shooting positions on sentry towers more than three feet high. The artillery on several gun emplacements was already in place, but the artillery was covered tightly with tarpaulin, and its true appearance could not be seen for the time being. Liu Shang was not in a hurry at this time. He was already here anyway, and as long as he waited, he would definitely be able to see the weapons of the Haihan people on display.
(End of chapter)