Chapter 1033 Longxi after a fierce battle

The situation has developed to the current stage. Both Haihan and the local indigenous tribes have suffered many casualties. The feud is too deep and there is basically no possibility of reconciliation. No matter whether the natives stop now, it is too late. Haihan

Since the Ministry of National Defense has made up its mind to clean up this area, it means that the outcome is already determined. The only variable that remains is whether the implementation process goes smoothly.

To achieve complete control over the Miaoli area, conquest and killing are naturally unavoidable, but after several years of conquests in the north and south, the travelers no longer have much sympathy for the uncivilized natives.

, Morgan, Wang Tom and others are more concerned about how much effort it will take to clear this area and eliminate all hidden dangers that threaten Haihan's development of this area. As for the casualties of the natives, even the casualties of their own subordinates, they will eventually be eliminated.

It's just a series of cold numbers in the post-war report submitted by the military to the Executive Committee.

It didn't rain on the day Morgan led the team back to the coastal camp. Although the sky was still hazy and not clearing up, it had been raining for ten days before, causing water everywhere in the oil field camp. God finally stopped.

I can take a breath. But it’s hard to say whether it’s a good thing or a bad thing that the rain has stopped.

At present, more than half of the materials needed for the oil field camp have been transported to the mountains, but more than half of the subsequent supporting facilities must wait until the end of the rainy season, so the transportation pressure is not as great as in the early days. If the rainy season can last until May

In the second half of the year, we will definitely be able to complete the scheduled transportation volume.

As for after the rainy season, Houlong River may lose its navigation conditions in the mountainous reaches due to reduced water flow. Liu Shanxia has already thought of two countermeasures. One is to build a road along the bank of Houlong River, about four or five miles long.

It can lead to the river valley where the oil field is located; another method is to build a dam to store water at the outlet of the mountainous river to increase the water depth upstream, thereby gaining the ability to navigate on a ladder, and by the way, a small hydropower station can be built. However, this latter method

The amount of work to be carried out and the corresponding costs are definitely greater than building roads. Although there are many benefits, if you want to implement it at this stage, you must face many difficulties that are difficult to overcome. With the manpower and material resources that Haihan has in Miaoli,

I'm afraid it will be difficult to implement this.

Of course, if the coast of Houlong River can be cleaned up to ensure that there will be no more harassment by the natives, in fact, it is not a big problem to transport these few miles through land channels. Then it will just be more than transporting more pack horses.

, using animal-drawn carts to complete the transportation of this section. In comparison, it is definitely much easier than building a dam for transportation.

The empty fleet's speed down the river was at least twice as fast as when it entered the mountain. The more than ten miles from the oil field camp to the second stronghold took just over an hour. However, Morgan did not arrange for this trip.

He stayed here, so when passing by the section of the river outside Stronghold No. 2, Morgan just walked to the bow of the boat and saluted the sentry on duty on the river bank.

In addition to a platoon of army troops currently stationed at Stronghold No. 2, there are also more than a dozen logistics personnel assigned here, including cooks, blacksmiths, carpenters, plasterers, etc. After Haihan cleans up the nearby area, he will

Immigrants gradually moved in and agricultural development was carried out in the surrounding valley and plain areas.

From a safety point of view, Morgan actually does not want the rain to stop, because the rain will affect people's vision and make it more difficult for them to aim at targets on the river. Moreover, the slippery and muddy river banks will create more trouble for the natives to sneak attacks. There are many obstacles. If they try to approach the barge in the middle of the river before launching an attack, they will easily get stuck in the mud and become unable to extricate themselves, becoming a living target for the escorting soldiers.

According to statistics these days, the natives launched a total of thirteen attacks along the Houlong River, nine of which were concentrated in the area between the two river bend strongholds, which was also the gap in the riverside defense system. Location. Almost all of Haihan's casualties in the battle with the native armed forces came from this area. Among these nine attacks, seven were launched during the cessation of rain. From the probability, it is enough to predict the rainfall. It has a significant impact on the actions of the natives.

The last report of an attack by the natives was three days ago. Judging from the frequency of their dispatches in the past, Morgan believed that the possibility of being attacked during the voyage today was very high, so after the fleet passed the second stronghold, Morgan Order someone to fly a signal flag to notify all personnel in the five fleets to enter a state of combat readiness.

Morgan also gave all three telescopes he brought to his subordinates, asking them to take turns on duty to observe whether there were any human activities on the shore. Because the garrison scale of the two strongholds was limited, and the activities of native armed forces in this area were relatively frequent, so During this period, Morgan also specifically ordered the out-patrol scope of the garrison in the stronghold to be consciously reduced to avoid unnecessary casualties.

About six or seven miles after leaving the No. 2 stronghold, the natives from Maolishe appeared on the west bank of Houlong River almost without any suspense. Morgan got up immediately after being reminded by the sentry. Even without a telescope, he could already see See the figures that are passing by in the bushes in the distance.

"Load your rifles and prepare to fight!" Morgan gave the order immediately without taking any chances. He knew very well that these natives did not appear on the nearby river bank to watch the fleet. Since they were already here, they were sure Will take action.

Morgan did not intend to passively resist. This time he specially brought many students with him. One of his purposes was to use his own weapons and tactical advantages to eliminate some of the enemies from a long distance before the other party took action. This should It can also have a certain deterrent effect. If this can deter the natives from taking action, Morgan actually does not intend to go on a killing spree during this voyage to the coastal camp.

However, when it comes to shooting at an enemy a hundred meters away on a ship that is slightly bumpy and in motion, even the experienced Morgan dare not say that he has complete accuracy. Therefore, although Morgan has discovered traces of the enemy, he is not in a hurry. To start, just put the rifle in the shooting position on the side of the ship and wait patiently for a better opportunity.

"Chief, the water in the river bank ahead is slower. They have attacked the fleet several times in the past, and this is where they started."

The boatman driving the boat had been on Houlong River many times, and they were the ones with the most experience in encountering enemies. They immediately took the initiative to remind Morgan. The river in front suddenly widened, and the water flow slowed down, but the boat was far away from the river bank. The closest point was still only about ten or twenty meters, just within the range of the weapons of the natives. Most of the Haihan soldiers who had been casualties in previous battles were injured in this area by the bows, arrows and spears fired by the natives.

After being reminded by the boatman, Morgan concentrated his men on the left side of the ship in order to maintain the strongest firepower output. The team he led was equipped with four seven-shot rifles and seven Trinity sniper rifles.

The escorts of several other fleets that followed used standard flintlock guns as their main weapons. Morgan ordered people to hang a signal flag symbolizing battle on the bow of the ship. The armed personnel on several other fleets saw this

After raising the flag, you can choose the firing timing and combat method in the next battle without having to ask Morgan for instructions.

As a horn sounded in the woods on the river bank, a noisy human voice soon came. Many people were chanting and shouting with unknown syllables. Morgan had interrogated native prisoners before and knew that these were native soldiers before the war.

Cheer yourself up and ask for the protection of the gods. However, under the muzzle of Haihan's rifle, I am afraid that the gods they believe in will not have much effect.

Soon a person ran out of the forest. Morgan could see that this young man was shirtless, with a deerskin around his waist, a pair of straw sandals on his feet, and a bamboo spear about two meters tall, striding towards the river bank.

Come.

The bamboo spears and arrows used by the natives are made from local mottled bamboo. A fine tip is cut off and then baked on firewood. After it is dried and hardened, the hardness of the tip is almost the same as that of copper and iron.

. Although this type of bamboo weapon is very primitive, its lethality is not weak, and some natives will also smear snake venom on the tips of arrows and spears, making it difficult to treat people once they are injured. Therefore, although the Haihan side has the advantage in weapons,

But if the combat distance is not well controlled and the natives are placed too close, the risks faced will increase exponentially.

Of course, the one who rushed out to attack the fleet was not just such a native warrior. Morgan knew that this was a common tactic used by the natives. A selected tribal warrior would lead the charge at the front, and the others would follow. Sure enough, it didn't take a blink of an eye.

In a short time, dozens of native warriors suddenly emerged from the forest, and followed the man from before and rushed towards the river bank.

These natives knew that the ship was escorted by armed personnel and that the weapons were more advanced than the ones in their hands, but they still used this very primitive method to launch attacks without fear of death again and again. Morgan really admired the ruthlessness of these people.

But even so, he had no intention of being merciful. Morgan put his index finger on the trigger and slowly aimed his sight at the native warriors who were rushing over.

Morgan knew that before he fired, the subordinates next to him would not shoot in advance to steal his spotlight, so he had to hit the target with this shot, otherwise his face as an instructor would be somewhat damaged.

As the leading native warrior ran closer and closer, Morgan could already clearly see the totem pattern drawn on his face with chalk soil, a few pheasant feathers inserted on both sides of the headband, and the appearance of his body due to his vigorous running.

A somewhat ferocious expression.

This native warrior started to adjust his pace when he was still seven or eight meters away from the river bank. He raised the bamboo spear with his right arm. It seemed that he was preparing to use the momentum of running to launch a shot. It was on his body.

When he leaned back and prepared to throw the bamboo spear in his hand forward, Morgan pulled the trigger. A stream of green smoke came out of the muzzle with the sound of the gun. Almost at the same time, the chest of the native warrior bloomed.

A bloody flower, the arm that had been swung halfway suddenly lost its strength, and the bamboo spear turned and stabbed the ground before he could take action. Although he tried hard to stabilize his body with the bamboo spear, the gunshot wound he suffered made him

He had lost the strength to control his body. After kneeling on his knees, his body also fell to the ground. It seemed impossible to get up again.

This shot was extremely accurate, and the timing of the shot was just right. If it had been a moment later, the bamboo spear in the hands of the native warrior would have flown out. And the fall of the leading warrior also caused the large number of soldiers following closely behind.

The team was stagnant, but these natives did not stop there. No one even took a second look at the fallen man, and continued to rush towards the river bank.

After Morgan's gun fired, everyone around him also opened fire one after another. Since the fighting methods of the soldiers around him were different from those of ordinary armies, and the guns they used were not uniform, Morgan would not ask them to fire a salvo, but let them find the target on their own.

And grasp the rhythm of shooting.

As gunshots rang out one after another, some of the natives on the shore began to be shot. However, a large number of natives successfully rushed to the river and fired their weapons at the barge where Morgan was.

A bamboo spear was suddenly stuck on the side of the ship less than one meter away from Morgan's position. If you hadn't seen it with your own eyes, it would be hard to believe that this kind of bamboo spear was so powerful that it could fly over twenty meters.

After a long distance, it was inserted into the wooden plank of the ship's side. Although its power was not enough to shoot through the ship's side, looking at the spear tail that was still shaking, it was not difficult to imagine how powerful this bamboo spear contained. If this was not a stab,

A transparent hole would immediately be poked in the side of the ship instead of the human body.

Most of these native warriors were equipped with bows and spears. After throwing out the bamboo spears, they immediately took off their bows and arrows for a second round of attacks. Although the ship was constantly firing, the psychological quality of these native warriors was obviously very good, and they were still

They fired their bows and arrows at their own pace, aiming and shooting. And they seemed not to care about the following fleets at all, and just chased the barge where Morgan was and launched an attack.

This is probably because the protective measures of the ship Morgan is on are too eye-catching. The tighter the cover, the more the natives think it is necessary to attack the ship with fire. There are still half-grown children holding bundles in the forest.

The bamboo spears and bows and arrows were brought out and transported to the front line. It seemed that the natives had not rested during the few days of the truce, but had been preparing for war.

Since the flow of this section of the river was relatively slow, the natives chased and attacked the fleet on the shore, but were not dragged down too far. In addition, they were outnumbered, and bamboo arrows and spears flew towards Morgan's barge like rain.

, the density is actually better than the attacks from the ship.

Although the rifles used by these people on the ship are superior in many aspects such as range, accuracy, and lethality, they are inevitably complicated in loading and have a slow shooting frequency. In addition to four seven-shot rifles that can be easily fired

In addition to shooting, the rifles used by others have to be loaded once after each shot is fired. Although the flintlock gun using fixed-loading ammunition is much faster than the previous matchlock gun, its shooting speed is still not as fast as that of the original bow and arrow.

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Chapter completed!