The disastrous defeat of the cavalry and the destruction of the artillery battalion made all the German officers and soldiers realize the danger of their situation. Without Hasler's orders, they consciously accelerated the marching speed. As soon as they arrived at Standedton, they inexplicably fell into the encirclement of the Qing army and suffered heavy damage one after another. The morale of the entire army had fallen to the bottom, and they all hoped to escape from the encirclement of the Qing army as soon as possible.

Hasler, who was riding on horseback, had a gloomy face and said nothing. He never expected that the Qing army was so bold that he dared to take the initiative when his troops were at a disadvantage, setting up a trap to annihilate his well-equipped 6,000 forwards in one fell swoop.

Is the Qing army strong in combat and did not take them seriously at all? Or is the Qing army gaining the news in advance and has already launched a large increase in troops to Transva? If it were the former, at least there would be a chance. No matter how strong the Qing army is, it is limited, and it is impossible to stop the 100,000 coalition forces. However, if it were the latter, the situation of the entire expeditionary army was very dangerous. However, even if it was to convey information, it would be impossible. The wired telegraph line had long been cut off.

A rapid sound of horse hooves came from behind him. He turned around and saw a dozen fast horses galloping towards him. In the front was a shaking lieutenant who was stalking the horse and struck him without even saying a word.

After asking the soldiers who followed, they learned the details of the destruction of the artillery battalion. The Qing army's artillery range was at least ten kilometers, and the firing rate was fast, and the shells were very powerful. One shell could cover at least fifty or sixty meters. In addition, the artillery and cavalry cooperated very well. As soon as the artillery bombardment was completed, the cavalry rushed to the front. The entire artillery battalion was wiped out without firing a shot, and only a dozen of them escaped.

It seems that the Qing army's artillery technology is also improving rapidly, and it is still steadily suppressing them. Hasler's heart is heavy and his face is even more gloomy.

Hou Degui rode on the horse and quietly looked at the moving long black dots ahead. More than 300 cavalrymen were scattered around him in groups of three or three. In order to save the strength of the war horses, the cavalry had dismounted and fed the horses with soybeans they carried with them. The machine gunners were fighting for digging trenches in seconds. Even the simplest trenches could greatly reduce casualties. All infantry had developed the habit of digging trenches anytime and anywhere, and engineer shovels had become a must-have for infantry.

A cavalry rushed over and reported a few words to Hou Degui. Hou Degui's tense expression suddenly relaxed, and then turned his head around and said loudly, "No need to dig." Seeing the machine gun soldiers, he raised his chin, "It's too late, just with our little manpower, we can't stop it. The brigade commander ordered us to evacuate temporarily."

After hearing this, the machine gun soldiers breathed a sigh of relief and threw away the engineers' shovels to breathe heavily. In fact, everyone knew that it was impossible for them to stop the footsteps of more than 30,000 German troops with this little fire. However, the military orders were as high as a mountain, and no one dared to disobey even though they knew they could not do anything.

"Don't rest, the enemy is only three kilometers away from us, retreat quickly!" Hou Degui said loudly and shouted: "Get on the horse!"

The main force of the German army rushed out of the encirclement as he wished, but was bitten by the Qing cavalry. His legs ran past four legs. If the two cavalry battalions were still there, it would be enough to expel them. Now there are only less than 200 cavalry left, and the opponent has a new light machine gun, so he can only let the opponent follow him from a distance.

Hasler was helpless about this. At this time, they were like prey staring at by a group of African wolves. There was no way, they could only run forward and try their best to drag it until dark. Only after it was dragged until dark can they make a living.

Two hours later, when he found that more and more large troops appeared behind him and on the right side, Hasler had no choice but to give the order to build a position on the spot. He marched for several days and was in a state of marching and marching all day long. He was exhausted and exhausted. If he could get rid of the Qing army far away, he might be able to escape in one go. When he found that he could not escape, the only remaining belief in his heart collapsed. However, under the threat of death, all the officers and soldiers still had the last strength to build a position and prepare for the final decisive battle.

Just after six o'clock, the 252nd Brigade had already chased after it. The brigade commander Chen Baicun did not rush to launch an attack, but called to report to the command center first. In his opinion, the German army was already in his mouth and could not escape at all. If there were major casualties due to greed for merit, it would be more than worth the loss. Sure enough, the command center's order was also waiting on the spot.

When it was dark, the 251st Brigade also arrived. Several flares fell over the German positions, reflecting the vast positions as if it were day. Then, several artillery shells landed on the east side of the German positions from a distance. Soon, the terrifying roar of artillery shells passing by in the sky, and a series of explosions sounded on the east side of the position, and the dim sky was filled with a suffocating smell of gunpowder.

Hasler quickly determined that there were at least thirty large-caliber artillery guns, and the artillery position was at least four thousand meters away. "The Qing army was demonstrating..." Frank's tone was full of despair, and the words "surrender" rolled in his mouth, and finally swallowed it.

Hasler felt a clear mind. He knew that this battle could not be fought. The army had been running around for a whole day, and from top to next, they were tired like dogs. The cavalry was gone and the artillery battalion was gone. Faced with such powerful artillery fire from the Qing army, he could not even have the confidence and courage to resist. Not to mention resistance, now he no longer has the courage to escape, and he has no chance to escape.

He even felt a little regretful. If he had known this was the result, he should have resisted on the spot. At least he would have had the chance to fight a war with the Qing army in a dignified manner. Even if the entire army was wiped out, he could consume some of the strength of the Qing army and understand the combat power of the Qing army, so that he would not be as cowardly as he is now...

He could only make the decision to surrender. Hasler dared not hesitate. He did not know how patient the Qing army was. He did not dare to be clear. As the one round of artillery attacks like the one just now would inevitably cause huge casualties, and there was no need to increase casualties. Moreover, the Qing army always treated prisoners of war quite favorably.

"We have done our best." Hasler said simply: "Send people to negotiate with the Qing army and surrender!"

Shanghai, Zhennan Wangfu, Changle Bookstore.

At 8 o'clock in the morning, Yi Zhizu walked into the study, Zhao Liewen and Yan Yangtian followed in. After seeing the ceremony, Yan Yangtian handed a telegram with a smile on his face, "The Standedton victory captured more than 5,000 German soldiers in one fell swoop, and no more than 100 casualties were killed or killed. It was a rare victory."

"There is no dog son in the Humen." Zhao Liewen smiled and said, "Xingzhi's battle has shown great power..."

After reading the telegram, Yi Zhizu smiled and said, "This great victory in the battle is Feng Zicai's ability, and he is just a name." After a pause, he continued, "Temporarily take the prisoners to Maputo to serve hard labor, the old rules are not to raise idle people."

After responding, Yan Yang Tiancai said: "Feng Zicai reported that the German army had a 77mm rapid-fire cannon and a machine gun that was not inferior to the Maxim heavy machine gun. Although it lost 6,000 forwards, its strength remained. After this setback, it must be cautious. In the battle of Standerton, it is unlikely to win quickly. The Kimberley coalition has been dispatched, and Fort John is afraid that it will be dangerous."

"Fort John doesn't have to stand firm." Yi Zhizu said unconsciously: "If you call back, you will be allowed to evacuate if you can't resist."

Zhao Liewen hesitated and said, "Did the shopkeeper intend to let the coalition forces capture Fort John?"

Yi Zhizu said slowly: "Fort John is famous and newspapers from all over the world have been promoted, but the reports in the newspaper are just numbers after all. They will only be loyal to the South Africa for a few months."

Yan Yangtian was excited and said, "Implement Plan B?"

"Yes!" Yi Zhizu nodded, "Instead of fighting without pain, it is better to fight a fierce battle in exchange for twenty or thirty years of peace, so they will always be worried about it." After a pause, he reminded: "Block the news."

"Yes!" Yan Yangtian stood up and replied loudly.

Yi Zhizu said: "Tell Feng Zicai that the German army is also good at artillery warfare. When fighting with the German army, they must not only be good at leveraging the range advantages of artillery, but also use the advantages of flexible maneuverability of 20 mortars."

Standedton, Qing army camp, command center.

The first battle won, and I didn’t sleep well for a few days. Last night, Yi Zhengxing, who was waiting until midnight, had a rare sleep. He didn’t get up until three o’clock in the afternoon. After washing up, he filled his stomach and was about to go out. Feng Zicai held a telegram and walked in quickly, "Your Highness, this is the telegram that the prince just sent."

Seeing him frowning, Yi Zhengxing couldn't help but feel strange. After receiving the telegram, he couldn't help but smile, "General Feng is confused about why he wants to give up Fort John?"

"Your Highness's clarification." Feng Zicai said softly: "The main fleet will arrive in Maputo in less than a few days, and Maputo and Fort John have a railway, so you can completely defend Fort John..." Speaking of this, he hesitated: "Will the main fleet arrive delay?"

Yi Zhengxing smiled and did not point it out, "This is a good thing, General Feng doesn't need to worry."

A good thing? Feng Zicai was confused. What good thing could be the loss of Fort John? The other party he saw was unwilling to say much, and he couldn't ask. Don't take into account the safety of Fort John. It was indeed a good thing that he could fight Standerton's battle with all his heart.

Feng Zicai was confused, while Frederick Carl was frightened and suspicious. Hasler's six thousand forwards suddenly disconnected from communication. This was definitely not a good thing. Realizing that the forward was in danger, he not only ordered to speed up the marching speed, but also personally led a division to leave the main force and march to seek help.

However, the more he moved forward, the more frightened he was. He did not dare to advance any more at the distance of Standerton, but camped on the spot. It was too strange. The Six Thousand Forwards had no news or movement, and all the sentry cavalry sent were gone without returning. He knew very well what this meant. The Six Thousand Forwards had been wiped out!
Chapter completed!