Although the captain and each vehicle commander were shouting loudly to let the wingman understand, the forty-three mortar vehicles on the battlefield formed a snake-like battle line, and it was difficult to coordinate the loading of ammunition. .
Only about half of the mortar trucks carried out the order immediately and replaced the bombs with grenades. However, only twenty grenades were shot out of the thick barrel one after another, which was enough to make the defenders on the opposite side drink. .
The rebels at the top of the city were surprised to find that this small broken vehicle not only contained a hidden secret, with a firecracker installed in the body, but its rate of fire was much higher than the Hongyi cannon, and only inferior to the Folan machine.
While they were still scrambling to guard the cannons, dozens of vehicles had already launched cannonballs. Some soldiers stood blankly behind the parapet, at a loss, until the medicine packs fell on the ground. explode.
"Boom~!"
"ah……"
The ferocious fireball expanded rapidly on the city wall, instantly enveloping soldiers and ordnance. Some of the crenellations were blown to pieces in an instant, and the ammunition placed in the barrels was not spared.
Dozens or even hundreds of kilograms of gunpowder were detonated due to the explosion, and an even more violent explosion occurred. After a while, the flames and thick smoke receded one after another, almost turning the city head within a dozen steps to the left and right. Nothing.
The defenders at the scene were either dead or injured. Those who survived by chance let out extremely miserable howls. Although some people were wearing armor, their faces were still covered in blood and they were rolling on the ground in pain.
Due to the explosion, the iron beads acquire a speed that is not inferior to that of a cannon bullet. They can easily penetrate armor, enter the skin, flesh, and even bones, causing the injured to suffer unbearable and huge pain.
Almost seven or eight of the defenders at the crenels were affected by this bombardment. More than 30 people were killed and injured. The power of the bullets fired by the invading enemy far exceeded the imagination of the defenders. .
Except for senior generals, in the era when there were no accompanying military doctors, the wounded on the battlefield could only be placed in a corner to wait to die after being removed.
Only two of the explosive packets fired by the mortar truck landed on the city wall. According to precision strike standards, the hit rate was less than half.
Forty-three explosive packets were thrown out, but the number of casualties caused to the defenders was less than a hundred. It can be said that such a long-distance attack could not be considered a true success.
Most of the medicine packs landed in front of and behind the city wall. Even if they exploded successfully, they would not reach any target. At most, they would serve as a deterrent to the enemy.
Hu Dawei's artillery unit had limited training time, and it was their first time to participate in actual combat, so they were unable to achieve precise strikes, that is, projecting ammunition packets into relatively concentrated areas.
It's all a matter of luck that the medicine pack can land on the city wall. Don't be surprised if you don't hit any enemies. The level is like this and you can't force it.
For a certain prince, the Longqing-style mortar was a weapon used against enemy infantry in field battles, and its use to attack cities was at best a side job.
Otherwise, mortars would not be placed on vehicles. This is to reduce artillery casualties and cover the advancement of our own infantry for a long time, rather than really attacking the enemy at the top of the city.
There is nothing wrong with Hu Dawei's use of troops in this way, because most of the firecrackers equipped by the crusade army are extremely clumsy. Even if vehicle-mounted propulsion can be achieved, except for the Folan machine, it is also very slow to load.
The Folang machine reloads quickly, but its range is too short. To achieve the effective range of this weapon, it must be violently attacked by the enemy at the city head in the early stages of advancement.
The mortar truck has a fast rate of fire, and the vehicle is also very flexible. It can be propelled together with the shield truck and can cover the infantry charge, so it is really the best choice.
If it weren't for the fact that there were only so many mortar trucks on hand, Hu Dawei would have sent as many as he wanted, but as a result, he made a big mistake when his brain got hot.
Seeing that his own vehicle formation was out of touch, it was no longer possible to withdraw. Yang Wenyue could only use drumming to order the entire army to speed up the advance.
After the mortar truck fired two batches of ammunition packages, the heavy shield truck slowly caught up.
If the same situation occurs when the army is fighting in the field, our artillery units will have been completely wiped out by the enemy before the shield vehicles follow up.
When Wang Pu saw an opportunity, he would not let the defenders attack. The distance between the small car and the big car was not too big.
Maybe the garrison's cavalry had just left the city, and before they could reach their designated position, their shield chariot troops would catch up.
At that time, you will have to run back in despair. Once the men and horses are lost, the gain will not be worth the loss.
There is nothing wrong with adopting a conservative defense method, because in addition to direct fire, mortar vehicles can also carry out horizontal fire strikes.
In emergencies, especially in dangerous situations involving close combat, mortars can be used as direct-aimed weapons.
It's just that this kind of direct shooting will be very difficult. The artillery needs to estimate the direct shooting distance in advance to determine the length of the fuze.
The explosive package will fall to the ground after hitting the target. If the fuse is still burning, an instant explosion cannot be achieved.
For these artillerymen who became monks on the way, measuring distance is the most difficult thing.
The gun mount has an elevation angle and the weight of the medicine pack is also determined, so the distance of the upward shot is roughly fixed.
But once level shooting is required, you have to rely entirely on the capabilities of the artillery.
A certain prince did teach them the famous "thumb distance measurement method", but only a few mastered it.
For these illiterate people without talent, this method is too high-end.
There are more than 400 artillerymen in a regiment, but there are less than ten who can master this method freely.
Therefore, it is absolutely reasonable for a certain prince to order the angles to be marked on the gun mounts, otherwise these artillerymen would just be firing blindly on the battlefield.
"boom……"
When two more holes were blown up at the top of Gaoxing City, four mortar trucks were also destroyed, leaving thirty-nine.
This made Hu Dawei, who was supervising the battle from a distance, just anxious and angry. He was stomping his feet and couldn't help. He wanted to go into battle in person, but was dissuaded by his subordinates.
The mortar truck does not have a reversing function. Even if the crew members can slowly move the vehicle backward, it will be much slower than when pushing forward. It is not an exaggeration to say that it is a turtle speed.
Reversing the vehicle would also distract the artillerymen from reloading ammunition at the normal speed, so it was better to just engage in firefights with the city head from a long distance.
It was too late to regret now. Hu Dawei could only hope that the shield truck troops could go up early to disperse the firepower at the top of the city and reduce the losses of the artillery trucks.
He had mortar trucks, siege vehicles, cavalry, and infantry under his command. There were only less than 800 infantrymen, which did not play much role in siege.
Moreover, there were several other general soldiers in the battle, so there was no need for the icing on the cake. He only needed to let the mortar troops provide fire cover for the friendly forces. It was enough.
The infantry and artillery advance together and go up together, which actually helps the defenders a lot. The bigger the target, the easier it is to aim.
Originally, the rebel gunners could not hit the mortar truck, but when the shield truck was near the target, they got a very good reference object.
Most of the mortar trucks can still survive because the gunners at the city head can only measure the accuracy of the artillery fire with one shot.
It is extremely difficult for artillery of this era to hit a moving target four to five hundred meters away that is only the size of a three-bouncer.
Even if the opponent stands still and lets you hit him, if he can hit him ten times in a row, he is considered lucky.
There were no less than a hundred muskets placed at the top of Datong City. They fired at the mortar vehicles coming from afar for a long time, but they only destroyed four of the opponent's vehicles.
Of course, the accuracy of the attackers is not much better, and being able to hit the enemy at the top of the city mainly relies on concealment...
"Damn~! Destroy those bastard vehicles for me!"
Wang Pu, who was supervising the battle at the city gate tower, saw that the impregnable city of Datong was hit one after another by small and unattractive vehicles. He became furious, shrank his telescope, and angrily ordered his men to destroy the artillery vehicles in the distance.
It would be fine if Yang Wenyue used tens of thousands of troops to attack the city. There were dozens of artillery carts in front of him, but the firecrackers at the top of the city couldn't do anything to them. How could he feel embarrassed?
No matter what Yang Wenyue did, Wang Pu would first destroy the opponent's prestige and weaken his spirit. If he could not defeat the enemy's siege first, the morale of the defenders would be greatly affected.
"boom……"
Datong is an important town on nine sides. Even if the gunpowder is stored at a high level, it can last for more than half a year.
It's just that the hit rate is far from Wang Pu's expectations. It was just as outrageous as it was just now, and it remains the same now.
It is difficult to adjust the elevation angle of the Hongyi cannon, and the range of the Folang machine is out of reach. There are only thirty or forty defensive muskets that can shoot at the opponent's artillery carriage.
The firepower projected by both sides is roughly the same, but the rate of fire of the mortar truck is much higher than that of the muzzleloader, which is very troublesome to load.
The loading principles of the two are actually the same, but which cannon can clear faster than a large-diameter iron barrel?
The artillerymen here first wiped off the residue with a wet rag, and then repositioned the propellant and charges.
The whole process takes less than twenty seconds, and a launch can be completed in up to twenty-five seconds.
On the battlefield, due to nervousness, the movement may be slowed down, but it will only last for thirty seconds at most.
The process of firing a mortar couldn't be simpler, and no artilleryman who has become a monk can make it wrong.
The situation is different for our colleagues on the opposite side. If the barrel is not cleaned properly, the barrel will explode.
And if the mortar is found to be cracked, just replace it with a spare cannon, without delaying the attack at all.
"Hey? Quick! Adjust the direction! Hit the tower for me! Listen to me! Hit the tower! Hit the tower! Hit the tower!"
After shooting three times in a row, the captain who led the team also found that his hit rate was really unsatisfactory.
He wanted to attack the defenders at the top of the city without letting the medicine pack fall elsewhere, so he quickly came up with what he thought was a good idea.
The tower is much higher than the parapet, like a big net that can catch some of the fallen medicine bags. As long as the hit is not too outrageous, it may be able to fall onto the tower.
More importantly, there should be a garrison commanding the city. If it could be killed with one shot, it might shake the defender's determination and cause chaos among the garrison soldiers.
“Boom…boom…boom boom…”
After hearing the latest order, more than twenty vehicle crews aimed their guns in the general direction of the tower. If they could cover it with one shot, they would be lucky.
Just now it was a scattered attack, each attacking his own, but now it is a concentrated attack, with more than half of the mortar trucks targeting the huge tower.
The gunners could see through the narrow observation gap in the car that in the direction of the tower, explosive packets were falling one after another like dumplings.
The fuses of some medicine packages were still burning after they landed on the ground, but the defenders were not stupid. When they realized that the items were falling from the sky, they instinctively guessed that they were bullets fired from outside, and everyone ran away.
As long as the unburned fuse is not too long, the rebels' running speed cannot keep up with the "gift" of the medicine pack to them. Often, they will be blown away by the air wave generated by the explosion halfway through.
The landing point of most of the medicine packs was not perfect. Although they were only a few meters away from the city tower, they either landed outside the city wall or inside the city, far from producing the expected lethality.
"boom……"
When only one medicine bag fell, it got stuck on the carved eaves of the tower. When the defenders below were still unaware, the explosion in an instant destroyed half of the tower.
Wang Pu was directing the battle not far from the explosion point. He fell to the ground under the protection of his own soldiers. Fortunately, he was not seriously injured, but he was choked by the smoke and dust raised by the explosion and coughed uncontrollably. He hurriedly waved his hands to disperse the turbid air.
"It's so disgusting! You bullied me too much!"
While he was glad that he was not seriously injured, Wang Pu, who got up from the ground, turned around and looked at the dilapidated tower that was burning to the ground, feeling very resentful in his heart.
If we can repel the invading enemy this time, in the winter, we must join forces with Huang Taiji and his troops who are heading south, so that Prince Dog can learn how powerful he is.
Do you want Yang Wenyue to lead an army to attack you?
Not that easy!
So what if the city tower is blown down?
No matter how powerful your waves are, our city of Datong will still stand firm.
Seeing this handsome man kill you makes you stand on your back. Don’t dare to underestimate this city again.
After Wang Pu secretly withdrew his troops to Datong, he proclaimed himself the "Generalissimo of the Northern Territory Troops"!
That is to say, after resisting the imperial edict and disrespecting the emperor, he wanted to draw a clear line with a certain prince. From now on, Datong City would belong to the Ming Empire's excluded areas.
After establishing a firm foothold here, we can attract the Qing emperor's masters as external aid and imitate the son of the Khitan's son Emperor Shi Jingtang.
Since Datong is located in Shanxi, Wang Pu even thought about the country's name and decided it to be "Jin".
However, to distinguish it from the Later Jin established by Shi Jingtang, our country is called "Former Jin", and the country's name is similar to Fu Jian's "Former Qin".
As long as Huang Taiji agrees to lend a helping hand to him, then the "Qing Dynasty" and the "Previous Jin Dynasty" will be the country of father and son from now on, and the "Previous Jin Dynasty" can accept the king's garrison here to guard against the attack of the "Bao Ming".
In this way, the "Qing Dynasty" had an impregnable bridgehead in the north of Shanxi, and tens of thousands of cavalry could move southward and enter the pass at will to attack the defenders in various places.
Wang Pu preconceptionally believed that Huang Taiji would not refuse such generous terms. As long as the "former Jin" and the "Qing" cooperated internally and externally and fought together, the destruction of the "Ming Dynasty" would be just around the corner.
Yang Wenyue, who was fighting outside the city, was puzzled when he saw the "Former Jin" flag erected at the top of the city. After thinking for a while, he realized that Wang Pu, a rebellious man, really wanted to make himself a king. He even thought of the name of his country. .
Datong is an important border town, and no matter what, this place must not be allowed to fall into the hands of the enemy. It must be recovered as soon as possible, and whether it is life or death, Wang Pu, a traitor who has willingly fallen, must be brought to justice.
Fortunately, there is hope ahead. The slow shield truck finally caught up with the mortar truck that took the lead. With the support of a large number of infantry, the artillery truck unit will no longer be fighting alone.
Seeing more and more enemy vehicles gathering under the city, Wang Pu also knew that a fierce battle was inevitable. Today, he must fight to the death with Yang Wenyue, the slave of the Dog Prince!
