Chapter 1800 Force you to take action

As the commander of the first company of the Marine Corps, Sun Bing assumed the role of front-line commander during this landing operation. The other two companies and an artillery platoon equipped with six field guns that came ashore at the same time were all conducted by him during the mission.

command.

In fact, in Sun Bing's view, the fortress in the distance connected by city walls and various fortifications is not scary. The city defense facilities look far inferior to the Manila city that was attacked in the South China Sea a few months ago.

caliber siege artillery, it should take less than half a day to blast a breakthrough in the front. Of course, since the boss emphasized that tens of thousands of Qing troops may have gathered in this area, and there will be a considerable proportion of cavalry troops.

, he did not dare to be careless at the moment.

The equipment of the Marine Corps is considered to be top-notch among the Haihan Army, but there are also obvious shortcomings, such as troop strength and land mobility, which greatly limit the combat effectiveness of the Marine Corps. Although the Marine Corps has never been better after the Battle of Manila.

Sanya has added some military horses, but this unit is affiliated with the navy after all. The number of real first-class horses is limited, so they must be given priority to a few main army units. All the Marines can get is a group of pack horses.

That's it, it's not suitable for charging and fighting.

Since the Marine Corps is generally responsible for offshore amphibious operations, it rarely participates in tough battles to attack cities and strongholds. It has no advantage in terms of heavy firepower. It only has two types of light field combat equipment: 85mm and 95mm.

Artillery is not suitable for fighting tough battles. Therefore, the Marines did not rush in after landing here, but stayed on the riverside to build temporary positions using warehouses and other buildings as bunkers.

Whether the navy's participation in this war was ultimately to aid North Korea or for some other political purpose, Sun Bing didn't care that much. What he paid more attention to was whether he could kill more Qing troops in the process. As one of the few who came from the Haihan Army

As an officer in Liaodong, the accumulation of hatred between the country and the family gave him an irresolvable hatred for the Qing Dynasty, which originated from the Jurchens in Jianzhou. In all military operations carried out by the navy in the Liaodong region, he was one of the first officers to fight every time.

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While commanding the erection of temporary positions, Sun Bing had been observing Jiulian City in the distance. He very much hoped that the Qing army could take the initiative to break out of the castle, so that the Marines could fight under the cover of artillery fire on the river.

The dock defense line should cause as much damage to the enemy as possible. Judging from his previous experience in fighting the post-Jin Dynasty army in Jinzhou, Sun Bing believed that his own defense line would have no problem withstanding the impact of one or two thousand cavalry. In addition,

With fire support from behind, the number of enemy troops that can resist can be at least doubled.

But at the moment, the Qing army did not make such an impulsive move. There was silence on the other side of Jiulian City. If it were not for the fact that he could see the Qing army's flags moving with the wind on top of the city, Sun Bing would have almost thought it was an empty city.

"You can really bear it!" Sun Bing couldn't help feeling a little emotional when he saw that the Qing army still didn't respond to the provocation of his troops approaching the city. This kind of swallowing attitude was rarely encountered in the past when fighting against the Hou Jin army.

, I didn’t expect that when Hou Jin changed his country’s name and was about to use North Korea to sacrifice the flag, he could still be so forbearing. Was this because he was afraid of being beaten by the Haihan Army, or was he secretly planning something else?

Like his boss Wang Tom, Sun Bing is not worried that the Qing army can launch an attack on the combined fleet from the river. Moreover, the Fujian Navy has already deployed river warnings several miles upstream, so there is no need to worry about what else the Qing army can do upstream.

Damn it, the Marines only need to concentrate on dealing with the Qing army here in Jiuliancheng.

However, no one, including Wang Tom, expected that the Qing army would respond to Haihan's provocation by passively avoiding war. Sun Bing was also very distressed now, how to remove the Qing army from the castle without moving his own position.

Zhongyin came out to start the war. He had already asked Wang Tom for instructions, but the answer he received from Wang Tom was only one word - wait!

Sun Bing actually didn't quite understand what his boss was waiting for, whether it was a suitable time to attack, or whether he was waiting for the enemy to lose control and go out to fight on his own to reveal his strength. But since he received this concise order, he still followed it honestly.

Instruct all companies to be on alert and not to act rashly.

The Qing army in Jiulian City stood still, and the Haihan army on the riverside did not move. The tacit understanding between the two sides made this quiet confrontation on the Yalu River seem very strange. Both sides seemed to be testing the patience of the other, and no one was willing to take the lead.

Jin Shangjiu on the ship was worried and couldn't help but asked Wang Tom: "General, the Qing army is not fighting behind closed doors. Could it be that they are secretly mobilizing troops to deal with our landing troops?"

Wang Tom responded calmly: "Mobilize troops? It doesn't take a day or two for them to mobilize troops. Isn't it because your country is asking for help from our country because you have discovered signs that the Qing army is moving troops to the border? If you want to mobilize troops, just move them."

Let them adjust it slowly, and we can wait."

"Wait?" Jin Shangjiu was a little confused about this strategy: "What if the Qing army bypasses here and invades our country?"

Wang Tom turned his head and looked at Jin Shangjiu, and said meaningfully: "There are several places on the Yalu River where the Qing army can cross the river in large numbers. I believe your country must have known it for a long time. Mr. Jin might as well tell the truth, is there any more?"

Where else have docks been built like here?”

Jin Shangjiu responded quickly: "I have been performing duties in Zhejiang last year, and I don't know much about the northern border. But if the border garrison discovers hidden dangers, they must have reported it to the capital."

Wang Tom sneered and said: "This place is across the river from Waihua Island. When the weather is good, you should be able to see Jiulian City from Waihua Island. The Qing army built such a large pier on the riverside, so it must be

It’s not just a matter of a day or two. Could it be that all your border guards are blind? Otherwise, why didn’t your military provide us with information about Jiulian City when we stayed at Ganghwa Island?”

Regarding the lack of intelligence in Jiuliancheng, Wang Tom believed that this was a deliberate concealment by the North Koreans. Although he did not know the purpose of the other party's doing so, Wang Tom was extremely dissatisfied. Originally, he complained to the civil servant Jin Shangjiu about this matter.

It's useless, but there is currently no North Korean official with a higher ranking than him who can make Wang Tom quarrel with him, so he can only be used as a punching bag again.

Jin Shangjiu really didn't know anything about Jiuliancheng. It was only after he came here that he learned that the Qing army had quietly built a large dock here. He never thought about whether this place was within the monitoring range of the Korean frontier army, let alone

He couldn't think of any reason why his country's army would conceal this kind of information from the Haihan people. In response to Wang Tom's question, Jin Shangjiu opened his mouth, but was unable to respond immediately.

Jin Shangjiu subconsciously raised his hand to wipe the sweat on his forehead, and while thinking about it, he responded: "Perhaps... it is due to the lack of information in the army, and the intelligence has not yet been transmitted to the capital... It has been several months since the general set off from Ganghwa Island.

It’s hard to say if you happened to miss it on the day.”

Tom Wang shook his head and said: "Even if it is the situation you mentioned, it cannot absolve your army of responsibility. When I return to the south, I will definitely report this matter to your king and hold the relevant people accountable.

Neglect of duty!”

Jin Shangjiu didn't dare to refute, so he could only agree. He hoped that Tom Wang would not let go of the crisis at the border because of this. He only had a partial understanding of the military field and did not dare to argue with Tom Wang on such professional issues.

, What's more, this matter does seem to be a major omission in the intelligence work of the country's military. No wonder Wang Tom is angry about it.

In fact, Wang Tom also knew that he could not get any effective response from Jin Sangjiu. He could only handle the current situation by himself and could not expect any help from the North Koreans. However, having such an attack could be regarded as a little relief from his depression.

spirit.

Wang Tom did not expect that the Qing army would be so passive in avoiding the war, but as he said at the meeting last night, Haihan could slowly wear out the current confrontation on the Yalu River, while the Qing army was already in a state of assembly.

But it may not be affordable. If the Haihan Army stays here for one more day, the Qing Army may have to bear the daily cost of tens of thousands of people a day. Therefore, after Wang Tom asked the Marines to go ashore, he did not issue an attack order, but only ordered

He built fortifications on the river bank and waited for the other party to lose his composure and take action first.

This silent confrontation started in the morning and lasted until the afternoon. Both sides still had no intention of taking action. The Qing army only sent a small number of rangers, which had been cruising far away, but had no intention of getting closer.

The Marine Corps is in full contraction, and all personnel are in position within the deployed defense lines to prepare for battle.

Seeing dusk approaching, Jin Shangjiu, who had been lying on the side of the ship for a day and watched, almost fell asleep. He thought he would experience a fierce battle when he arrived at the border, but he never expected that the two sides would fight as soon as they met.

It was so restrained that it was not even as exciting as the several small-scale conflicts between the Qing cavalry and the allied warships when they were going upstream. But if you think about it from another perspective, only one fleet came to suppress the intention to go south to invade North Korea.

The power of the Qing army and the Haihan army was fully revealed from this.

Except for a few warships on duty upstream, the other warships in the fleet basically docked at the Jiang'an pier near Jiuliancheng, while the troop transports and cargo ships docked at Waihua Island, keeping a distance from the battlefield.

A relatively safe distance. If the war on land goes unfavorably, the Marines can first withdraw to the nearby warship, then cross the river to Waihua Island and transfer to the troop carrier.

Wang Tom was actually bored with waiting. He knew that the Qing army would take the initiative to attack sooner or later, but he could not confirm how long it would have to wait. Perhaps the Qing army wanted to wait until the army was assembled, then drive away the coalition fleet on the Yalu River in one go, and then

Cross the river directly to the south.

"Send the order for the Marine Corps to fire a few rounds at Jiuliancheng, and then call it a day!" Seeing that it was getting dark, Wang Tom thought that he could not relax the enemy's tense nerves, so he ordered the artillery demonstration.

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The distance between the wharf position and Jiulian City is almost the limit range of field artillery. Of course, such shelling cannot pose any substantial threat to the city defense. It is purely to make the Qing army nervous and express its attitude.

When Sun Bing received this order, he immediately understood Wang Tom's intention. He immediately issued the bombardment order to the artillery and carried out three rounds of bombardment on Jiuliancheng. The six small-caliber field guns quickly completed the firing angle adjustment.

Then they fired at Jiulian City.

In the first round of bombardment, only one shell hit the city wall, but this movement obviously made the defenders in the city nervous. From the lookout point on the mast of the warship, you can see the longing figures on the top of the city. They should be dispatched.

The troops prepared to face the Haihan Army's offensive.

After adjustments, the effect of the second round of shelling was improved. Half of the six shells hit the city wall, but they only hit the city wall. However, the defenders in the city reacted greatly to this, and several shells on the top of the city

The city's defense artillery fired one after another, and a counterattack was launched from a distance. However, the artillery equipped by the Qing army were all primitive cast-iron cannons. Although the caliber was much larger than that of the Haihan army's field artillery, the range was far less than that of the artillery shells.

After exerting all its strength, it landed and bounced several times, finally stopping nearly a hundred meters away from the pier.

In the third round of shelling by the Marine Corps, a shell finally flew to the top of the city and hit the crenellations of the city wall, causing a burst of exclamations from the defenders. However, because it was too far away, it was not clear whether the shell had achieved anything.

.But the Qing army's counterattack also followed. There was a boom of artillery, and at least more than ten artillery fired at the top of the city. This round of counterattacks involved more artillery than before, and it seemed that the Qing army also wanted to take advantage of this.

Show your strength - although I can't hit as far as you, I have more cannons than you.

After the three rounds of artillery bombardment, Sun Bing did not receive any new orders, so he could only stop here. Sun Bing spat on the ground angrily and said to the artillerymen: "Brothers, it's getting dark today.

If it’s too late, let’s let them go for now and wait until tomorrow to bring bad luck to them!”

The Qing army was not willing to give up, and later fired a cannon in the direction of the dock, which was a close match with the Haihan army. However, the Haihan army was not too nervous. First, they knew the range of the opponent's artillery.

It was limited and would not hit its own position. Secondly, the Qing army chose to stay behind closed doors. It was obvious that they did not dare to engage in a direct battle with their own side. The morale of the Haihan army had already gained the upper hand.

The drowsy Jin Shangjiu finally woke up after watching this artillery battle, and then he hurriedly flattered Wang Tom, saying that the Haihan army's firepower was so fierce that the Qing army did not dare to go out of the city to fight, and it was pacified.

Liaodong is just around the corner. Wang Tom thought that the first half was just a matter of fact, but the pacification of Liaodong was too exaggerated. Only by concentrating all the forces of Han Dynasty on Liaodong to fight the war could we achieve what Jin Shangjiu said: "It's just around the corner."

”.

Of course, having said that, even with such conditions, Haihan currently does not intend to pacify Liaodong in a short time. After all, the military threat posed by the Qing Dynasty to North Korea and the Ming Dynasty is also one of the conditions that Haihan can take advantage of.

First, Wang Tom also hopes to gain more political benefits for Haihan in the operation to aid Korea.
Chapter completed!