Since November, after Spain formally signed three agreements with the Ming Dynasty, its Ministry of Finance issued an administrative order to melt all precious metals in stock to support the war.
The first batch of molten gold exceeded one hundred tons, with a total value of approximately US$100 million, not including silver. Thirty percent of the real gold and silver was shipped to Guangzhou and finally to Nanjing; another 50% was shipped to Berlin.
The first batch of ordnance materials shipped from Guangzhou included 50 Type 26 tanks, 120 Type 12 80mm howitzers, 300 Type 28 80mm mortars, 26,000 Type 21 rifles, 400 Type 22 Type 10 heavy machine guns, as well as a large number of bullets and artillery shells, the second and third batches of materials are still being transferred and inspected.
The Ming Dynasty, which had made a large amount of war wealth as early as the European War, was already familiar with this. The delivery speed was quite fast, and it would surely receive five-star praise from buyers.
While the ministers in the Palace of Wenhua were discussing with great interest how to "grab" more real money and silver, on the other side of the world on the Iberian Peninsula...
The sun in Madrid is warm in winter, and its temperate continental climate meant that its day and night temperatures in the last month of the year 7936 were as high as 8-12°C.
Madrid can be said to be a unique "Tale of Two Cities". In addition to the urban area, there is also a huge university town in the northwest suburbs.
The former capital of the Spanish Empire has long lost its glory, and the urban area where many architects and designers have worked hard has been reduced to ruins under the ravages of shelling and air raids.
The university town that passed down knowledge and wisdom has also become a killing place full of blood and fire. In addition to broken bricks, empty cans, and bullet casings, things that can be seen everywhere on the ground are also pages and shreds of paper torn by the explosion shock wave. .
Also due to the temperate continental climate, the frequency of rainfall in Madrid in winter is much higher than in other places.
In the drizzle, broken corpses rotted in the muddy water accumulated in the crater. The wounds of the corpses were soaked so that they were swollen and deformed, and the exposed yellow-white fat was covered with wriggling maggots.
"Lucio! How many bullets did you collect?"
"One hundred...oh no, one hundred and twenty! And four grenades!"
At dawn, under the morning light and mist, two young men in their early twenties were collecting usable ammunition from the corpses of both the enemy and ourselves in this area.
Their actions startled a few dark crows that were pecking at people's eyes. They flew up and down with a splash, but the two of them didn't panic at all and had become accustomed to it.
Starting from October, the main force of the National Army, under the command of General Leo, marched straight towards Madrid along Toledo Avenue in an attempt to quickly capture the capital.
The Nationalist Army, which was bound to win, was well-equipped and well-trained, and with direct help from the Italians, its front was very sharp.
As a result, the Republican Army lost the courage to defend the capital. After the airport fell into enemy hands, the National Army's frontline was only twenty kilometers away from the city, so the government quickly decided to evacuate.
However, the remaining militiamen and the citizens of Madrid did not give up hope. Even though they were short of weapons and ammunition, they were well organized and had high morale, resisting the fierce attack of the National Army with their flesh and blood.
Facing the enemy's superiority on both land and air, as well as the scorching firepower, entire rows and entire companies of defenders fell on the ground. It could be said that they were using their own blood and lives to slow down the enemy's pace.
When the sun jumped about thumb height above the horizon, the mist began to dissipate and visibility improved.
The two young militiamen each carried three or four rifles, and the canvas bags they carried were also filled with collected ammunition. But at this moment, they seemed to hear strange sounds.
The sounds of "crack" and "puff" came from a distance. The two stood there and listened for a while, then opened their eyes wide and looked in that direction.
After a while, a ferocious tank came into view, followed by two, four, eight...
A tank company of the National Army, about two dozen Italian-made CV-33 ultra-light tanks and Russian-made T-26 tanks are heading here!
"They didn't do the shelling first?"
"Run! They want to sneak attack!"
The two men were so frightened that they ran away, shooting into the air as they retreated.
While running, when they were so tired that they were out of breath, they suddenly saw three soldiers wearing different military uniforms and two motorcycles parked beside them.
Wearing a black and gray jacket, a hammer-compass-shaped cap badge, and holding a Steyr MP34 submachine gun, this is a group of the 1st Platoon, 2nd Platoon of the Armored Reconnaissance Company of the Red Eagle Legion.
Obviously, there was a language barrier between the two parties, so they finally figured out the current situation through chattering and gestures.
"Tank!" One of the exempt soldiers suddenly pointed to the northwest and shouted the word panzer.
Several people followed the sound and could vaguely see rows of tanks in the distance in the thin morning mist that was about to dissipate.
The junior noncommissioned officer leading the team put down his binoculars, took out his flare gun and loaded an orange flare, then fired it into the sky, and then fired a red flare.
Orange means that the enemy has been discovered; red means that the enemy is in an offensive posture and is entering the warning area.
Although the three Germans remained calm, the two militiamen could not sit still.
A moment later, when the last wisp of mist dissipated, the roar of tank engines was heard from behind.
A row of tanks painted with unique dark gray paint appeared, and the Iron Cross paint was very conspicuous; the turret hatch of each tank was open, and the commanders were all wearing headphones, with half of their bodies exposed, constantly passing by. Gestures and radio communicate with each other.
Immediately, they spread out to both sides in a double column, turned into a horizontal formation, and slowly stopped.
"Enemy armored vehicles, eleven o'clock direction! Prepare for battle!"
One after another, the commanders retracted into the turret and closed the hatch.
The four No. II command tanks originally at the front of the company stayed put, while four platoons of a total of 20 No. II B tanks moved forward, lined up in a line.
Just like this, just a few minutes later, the first tank battle in history broke out 4.3 kilometers northwest of the University City of Madrid.
The Fiat CV-33, which weighs just over three tons, has very weak firepower and armor. With only machine guns, they hardly pose a threat.
"No waste of firepower! Don't shoot those little things!" the captain in the command vehicle shouted.
Those Fiat CV-33s are like toy cars at the moment. How can the 6.5mm heavy machine gun they carry penetrate the front armor of the Panzer II tank?
However, the T-26, which is very different from it, is quite fierce in terms of firepower. The 45mm long barrel gun can dwarf all opponents in this era.
"boom!"
At a distance of less than 600 meters, a 45mm armor-piercing round easily penetrated the turret of a Type II tank, penetrated the armor and exploded inside!
This UBR-243 artillery shell is actually an APHEBC, an armor-piercing high-explosive shell with a small amount of explosives filled inside the warhead.
The Type II B tank numbered 112 immediately stopped, and there was no movement. Only wisps of blue or black smoke floated out from the gaps, and the flesh and blood of the tank crews merged with the steel.
(End of chapter)
