Munitions Empire

On the fourth day of the attack on Li Family Village, perhaps due to the news that Tang Country's Navy had stealthily attacked various nations' ports with great success, the Dahua Empire's assault intensified. The soldiers charged like a tidal wave, seemingly indifferent to losses. As they shouted their slogans and pressed forward, the Dahua artillery's bombardment continued without cessation. Along with the rain, hundreds of shells fell, densely carpeting Tang Army's positions, subjecting them to a taste of what fire suppression truly meant. The repeatedly reinforced trenches, under the ravages of shellfire, became battered beyond recognition. With every explosion, the earth trembled, and the water filling the foxholes seemed never to regain stillness. A soldier, carrying an ammunition box nailed together from planks of wood, hurried through the narrow trenches to an inconspicuous machine gun position near the end and set down the delivered ammunition box. He opened the box, took out the ammunition belts, and in a makeshift rain shelter cobbled together from raincoats, completed the handover with the assistant gunner, "Five belts, 500 rounds, use it sparingly, okay? It might take me half an hour to make another run." "Don't worry! We'll definitely not waste any, but you've got to hurry back with more; the enemy is mounting another attack," responded the assistant gunner, his clothing soaked, surrounded by many leaks, because this was no villa, definitely far from comfortable. The soldier, clad in a raincoat, gave an affirmative nod, turned his head, and slipped back into the rain, while distant open grounds, pocked like the surface of the moon, were struck again by more falling artillery shells. "They've been firing for more than three days and still haven't adjusted their fire control?" The machine gunner looked at the exploding area with some disdain and muttered. The Dahua military's artillery force was massive but commanded in a staggeringly inflexible manner. Their combat experience was scant, and their tactics were rigid. Over the course of the attack, they rarely managed to pour shells onto the most accurate locations promptly; they either fell short onto the no-man's-land between the two armies or overshot into Li Family Village, utterly failing to exert effective suppression. Compared to them, the Maxim heavy machine guns pushed forward by Dahua soldiers, with shields attached, posed a far greater threat. They at least provided immediate and precise fire suppression within visual range. "Tatatata!" In the woods on the other side, the machine guns began to roar. The continuous sound, akin to fabric tearing, had a unique cadence amid the rain. The attacking Dahua Troops, under the cover of tanks braving the rain, charged into the woods, and a chaotic skirmish ensued as both sides attempted to settle the outcome there. Accompanied by the ongoing fight, a terrifying screech suddenly tore through the air. Even amidst the pattering rain, the chilling sound was distinctly audible. It was the noise of extra-large caliber shells ripping through the air, which was followed by plumes of black smoke rising skyward from the woods. A dull and despair-inducing explosion emanated from within the timberland; the Dahua Empire's 300mm heavy artillery had finally joined the battle. From 15 kilometers away, the Railway Cannons of the Dahua Empire joined the conflict with their fierce roar, rendering the frontline battle even more gruesome. "Damn it! The enemy's heavy artillery! Are they not waiting for their own troops to retreat before they fire?" The Tang Army commander ground his teeth in anger at the sight before him. He had arranged numerous defensive Troops within the woods, as it was a critical area. Little did he expect the Dahua Empire to resort to indiscriminate attacks. Without waiting for their own Troops to retreat, their artillery eagerly commenced covering fire. Countless shells rained down, blasting the trees into a zigzagged mess. In reality, he was unaware that the Dahua Empire's artillery had simply miscalculated their coordinates, inadvertently directing the barrage intended for Li Family Village onto the woods to the north. This artillery strike, a blessing in disguise, indeed inflicted heavy damage on the Tang Army defensive Troops stationed to the north of Li Family Village. "It's over, several of our Tank Model 4s in the woods are done for, along with a battalion of soldiers!" The Tang Army commander turned deathly pale as he witnessed the barrage raining down. Watching the continuous assault of the Dahua Troops on the woods, the Tang Army commander knew that his flank was likely to be lost. "The reinforcing platoon has been called back; they lost seven or eight men and just couldn't make it across. The artillery fire was too fierce," reported an officer, returning in disarray with the news of the failed reinforcement. Within the woods, nearly deafened by bombardment, the combat continued relentlessly. Grenadiers, beside the destroyed Tang Army tanks, exerted their utmost effort to fend off the enemy's approach. They fired their Type 56 assault rifles nonstop, pouring bullets into the enemy's ceaseless waves. As the last magazine was emptied, the soldiers had no choice but to pull out hand grenades and affix bayonets to their assault rifles. Finally, the last machine gun position went silent as the gunner, out of ammunition, smiled ruefully and drew his sidearm. "The enemy is coming!" The commander shouted a warning to everyone and aimed the muzzle of his pistol at the advancing Dahua soldiers. "Fix bayonets!" A platoon leader pulled out the distinctive spike bayonet of the Type 56 assault rifle and belted out, "Long live His Majesty the King!" "For His Majesty the King!" All the soldiers who had run out of bullets drew their bayonets and affixed them under the muzzles of their guns. Tang Mo, when designing weapons, didn't make the bayonet a fixed folding style, but rather a detachable design. Following the commands, Tang Army soldiers fixed their bayonets, pulled out their only remaining hand grenades, and engaged in a bayonet fight with the charging Dahua troops. Just after the explosion of the grenades, Tang soldiers burst out of the smoke like fierce wolves, catching the front-line Dahua soldiers by surprise; the Dahua fell to the ground, skewered by the Tang bayonets. "Kill!" Tang soldiers charged with overwhelming momentum; though few in number, they launched a counter-attack. They crossed the wreckage of their own tanks and the enemy tanks, and at one point even pushed the Dahua soldiers who had charged into the woods to the edge of the forest. Cries and shouts of killing filled the air, along with the clashing of cold metal, cries for mercy, and wailing, turning the entire forest into a scene of frenzied activity. Unfortunately, the disparity in troop numbers was just too great, and the less than two hundred Tang soldiers were quickly overwhelmed by the thousands of Dahua forces. One by one, the attacking Tang grenadiers fell, while the number of advancing Dahua soldiers showed no signs of decreasing. "Ah!" Having emptied his last magazine, the Tang commander threw his pistol to the ground, picked up an Engineer Corps shovel beside him, yelled, and charged at the enemy following his men. He ran forward non-stop and, upon colliding with the first enemy, swung the iron spade in his hand, cleaving it into the opponent's neck. Before he could withdraw his weapon, a Dahua soldier thrust a bayonet into his chest. Blood splattered, covering the assailant's face. The Dahua man who had pierced him was young, no more than twenty years old; he was clearly terrified by the blood, drew his bayonet, and stabbed viciously a second and third time. Only when the officer of the Tang Country lay on the ground motionless did the young man exhaustively stop. Amidst the rain, more Dahua soldiers stepped over him and ran wildly into the woods. Whoever took this forest first would be rewarded with a Gold Coin! Retreaters would be executed without mercy! These were the orders from above, the reason for their frenzied attack! "Boom!" Another round of artillery shells fell, but this time it wasn't the Dahua Empire's artillery, it was the Tang Army's artillery unleashing their ammunition. The panicked Dahua soldiers, caught off guard, instantly lost hundreds of men. However, they ultimately occupied the forest and began to construct their own positions. "Rat-tat-tat!" On the newly resupplied machine-gun position, Tang gunners began to fire. The Dahua forces attacking Li Family Village in the rain again collapsed. They left behind hundreds of bodies, and after successfully seizing the forest on the flank began their hasty retreat. Now, they didn't have to launch an attack from the remote open ground anymore. If they attacked from the side of the forest, they could breach Li Family Village in just a few dozen meters. The urgently reinforced grenadiers had already begun building a defensive line along the northern side of the village, relying on the ruins within the village to set up flank machine-gun positions, and concealing snipers within the buildings. "Huff! Huff!" Just when everyone thought there would be a brief pause in the fighting, the Dahua Empire's heavy railway cannon, with corrected coordinates, roared once more. Huge shells cut through the air, falling onto Li Family Village, and then exploded inside buildings and on the streets. The massive explosions blew off roofs, brought down walls, and left craters with diameters of a dozen meters on the ground. The terrifying blasts made the entire village shake, almost as if all the shattered glass from the buildings were clattering down. Another building, which had seemed relatively intact, collapsed with a thunderous crash, its roof tiles shattering and burying a scrapped jeep under the rubble. The jeep had been destroyed by previous shelling, its engine broken, and its body full of shrapnel holes. Now, it was completely done for, leaving only the rear end exposed. The bombardment continued unabated, as if the Dahua Empire's shells were free of charge. Then, the Empire's 150mm heavy artillery joined the frenzy, and the Great Tang Kingdom's defenders endured this onslaught for several more hours. "I really am a jinx," muttered the demoralized Tang Army machine-gunner in the trench, watching his rear get bombarded into what seemed like a ghost town. He had just said that they hadn't made any progress, and then they had proven him wrong. "You'd better not talk anymore." The assistant gunner felt slightly ashamed too and complained from his damp foxhole, "Jinx."