The distance of more than two thousand meters was not far. The two fleets charged head-on and soon the bows of the ships were intertwined. The Esmedale and Juanasca were actually as close as ten meters to each other. At that moment, the commanders on both sides could see the flames in each other's eyes without using binoculars.
"Fire...fire..." The top commanders of the two fleets issued the order almost at the same time, and bright flames suddenly erupted in the center of the battlefield.
Boom boom boom... Port to port, all the light and heavy weapons opened fire at that moment, the 24-pound main gun, the 16-pound secondary gun, the 12-pound rapid gun... plus a large number of Hotchkiss rapid-fire runs, Gatling The heavy machine guns all poured out firepower on the opponent like crazy.
Such an outpouring of firepower at such a close range was simply not something that twenty or thirty millimeters of armor could withstand. The armor on the explosion surface was all overturned, and huge holes were blown into the inner wooden shells. Shell fragments whizzed inside the battleship. Flying harvests life.
The two battleships that were shot at the same time watched as they trembled on the sea, and their hulls tilted strangely.
At the critical moment, the Esmedale, with its thick armor, had the upper hand due to its large tonnage. The Juanasca's boiler room was hit twice by bombs. The high-pressure steam boiler exploded immediately, and powerful steam rushed out from every gap in the ship's hull.
The sailors were screamed by the high-temperature steam, and the blazing coals were sprayed everywhere like fireworks with the explosive air waves, falling on the sea and rising up with white smoke.
"Well done! God is on our side..." The command room of the Esmedale was filled with joy, but at this moment, the Peruvian ironclad Sol Sol on the starboard side of the battleship fired, and a salvo exploded. Smoke suddenly billowed out from the riddled starboard side.
The most terrible thing was that a shell hit the command room. The huge explosion knocked down all the officers. When the smoke cleared, the sailors discovered that the entire command room was dead silent. The officers who had cheered just now did not know whether they were alive or dead.
This naval battle has become a complete mess by now. The Peruvian flagship Huasca began to tilt, and tons of seawater poured into the cabin. Countless sailors jumped from the deck into the sea, holding the wreckage of wooden boards in the seawater and desperately fighting towards the ship. Swim to the shore.
But the most fortunate thing for Peru is that the commander is still alive. A dozen officers escorted the admiral in a lifeboat to the nearest ironclad ship Lima. Soon the Lima raised the flagship flag, and the Peruvian command system reluctantly It's been restored.
Looking back at the Chilean Navy, the Esmedale is still fighting tenaciously on the sea, and the artillery on both sides is firing desperately, but without the commander, they no longer know where to go.
"Open fire... sink the Esmedale! Victory must belong to us!" The Peruvian navy began to besiege the Chilean flagship like a pack of wolves.
The time has reached 9:10, the battle on the sea is fierce, and the battle on land has also become crazy. The Chilean army, charging like a swarm of ants, began to forcibly attack the city.
The field artillery was pushed forward repeatedly, and the artillery fired at an accelerated rate to provide fire suppression to the warriors in front. The grenadiers holding explosive packages bravely rushed forward, staring at the enemy's bullet rain and stuffing the explosive packages to the foundation of the fortress.
This was a death assault with no return. The musketeers on the fortress shot down like crazy, and the grenadiers died one by one.
Boom boom boom... Finally, an explosive package was ignited, but the result was not ideal. Because too many grenadiers died during the charge, the number of explosive packages at the foundation of the fortress was limited, making it difficult to form a large gap.
"Twenty more brothers, follow me and rush up!" At the critical moment, Tang Lei was about to rush forward regardless of life and death, but was thrown to the ground by the veteran behind him.
"We can't let the commander take risks. Here are two people to keep an eye on the commander... The rest come with me, including those who are not afraid of death! Don't let the ambush brothers look down on us..."
"If they can win in Osaka, we won't eat for nothing! This life was earned in vain, so it's not a pity to tell the truth here today!"
"Master Tang! Go back and tell the Prime Minister...he saved this stupid life! We gave it back to him today...let him remember his promise!"
"Taiping Army... kill me!" More than two hundred veterans rushed out of the military formation. Many of them were brought by Tang Lei from Nanyang himself. He could call these people by their names.
Tang Lei was pressed on the sand, tears bursting from his eyes, and he howled like a wolf, "Brothers! I took you away from a fire pit... Why did you jump into a fire pit again! I can't help you..."
The veteran pressing down on Tang Lei shouted with red eyes, "This is fate! My father and mother couldn't bear to give birth to me! Since we are reborn in this troubled world, we have to accept our fate... Sir, if you live well, how will you ask for credit from the Prime Minister and how will you reconcile with him?" Chileans fight for benefits, this is what you have to do..."
"Let's do this kind of thing like fighting to the death! As long as we don't let our death be in vain... Brothers, beat the drum!"
Dong Dong Dong... The cowhide military drums resounded across the ground, and the blood of the Taiping veterans was invigorated. Groups of dead soldiers holding explosive packs mixed with the grenadiers and charged towards the enemy fortress.
The rain of bullets knocked down the veterans one after another, and the blood was sprinkled on the yellow sand, but no one looked back. As long as they could still move, they would move forward even if they struggled to crawl forward.
The God of Death was also afraid of these desperate men. Soon more and more soldiers rushed through the fire net. Explosive packets were piled at the foundation of the fortress, and soon it was as high as a hill.
"The city is broken! Old and young men, don't forget to avenge me..." The veteran roared, and the revolver in his hand fired at the explosive pack.
There was a loud bang, and the ground shook. The fortress in the southwest of Iquique finally fell. The explosion opened a three-meter-wide gap.
"Breakthrough! Charge..." The soldiers behind rushed in fiercely, and soon the Peruvian flag inside the fort was ignited by a fire, and the Chilean flag and the peace pennant began to rise.
Tang Lei sat helplessly on the sand, as if he had been drained of all his strength, "How could this happen? So many people died just after we attacked the next fort... There are six more! There are still six remaining forts. !How many people are we going to die?”
At this moment, a roar of mountains and tsunamis suddenly erupted in the east of the battlefield. When people looked back, they realized that the 5,000 reinforcements led by Weng Derong from the east had finally arrived. At 9:25, Weng Derong's army entered the battlefield.
The veteran looked at the burning Iquique and the rumbling sea in the distance and said in disbelief, "How did the fight end up like this? Why was the fight so difficult? I was your grandma, but you Chileans gave us bullshit information." !”
"Fuck! Brothers, try your best... We can't count on these losers. If we want to conquer Iquique, we have to look to the Chinese!"
"Brothers, charge with me..." The five thousand reinforcements once again threw themselves into the bloody battle regardless of their fatigue.
