Chapter 1246 Catching a turtle in a urn

The handling method mentioned by Roger was undoubtedly quite simple and crude, but Tan Juren thought about it and realized that there seemed to be no better solution to deal with the large number of prisoners that would inevitably appear after the war. He could only make do with it. Tan Juren didn't think so.

He doesn't have the kind of Virgin-like kindness to consider trivial things like the treatment and human rights of prisoners of war. As long as the value of these people's labor can be fully utilized, he won't mind Roger taking some harsh measures to suppress it.

Enemy prisoners of war.

As for the way to deal with British prisoners of war, Tan Juren indeed had no relevant experience. Naturally, he did not know that Haihan had already had corresponding routines in this regard. He fought against the Portuguese, Dutch and Spanish, and after the war, they all used ransom exchanges.

The captives were returned to the opponent in a certain way. This kind of extortion was nothing but nothing, and there was nothing to be polite about.

Of course, it is still a little early to discuss these details. After all, the war is not over yet. Even if the Haihan Army is more certain of winning, it must first defeat its opponent before arresting it. Tan Juren took the idea from Roger,

So he went back to organize manpower and supplies. For the thousands of people who came out of thin air to eat, drink, and have sex, arrangements had to be made in advance.

Mu Xiabai cut off the Johor Army's retreat in the north of the island, and annihilating all the enemy forces was a sure thing. Roger's mood was much more relaxed than the previous day, and he even made a special trip to the villages on both sides to cheer for his soldiers.

.Although the Haihan Army also suffered a small number of casualties in yesterday's battle, it did not affect the morale of the troops as the battle situation was clearly dominant. In addition, Roger claimed that he would start a decisive battle with the enemy today. This short, flat and quick attack

The fighting rhythm kept the soldiers excited.

Roger was not the only one who had the idea of ​​​​a decisive battle today. The two coalition generals Hogg and Bapen actually had similar plans. They came across the sea with the idea of ​​​​a sneak attack, and had no intention of following the sea.

The Han were fighting a protracted war. The longer the battle dragged on, the more disadvantageous it would be to the coalition forces that needed long-distance supplies, so they had to fight quickly. If they still cannot gain an advantage on the battlefield today, then they have to consider whether to continue

On this battlefield, he continued to fight to the death with the Haihan Army.

The eight artillery pieces that took a lot of trouble to be transported are now placed in the camp. The gun mounts were installed overnight last night, and all the ammunition was in place, just waiting to be pushed into position and put into effect. The coalition offensive yesterday has already

It proved that it was difficult for infantry alone to break through the Haihan defense line, and the firepower output was difficult to cause effective damage to the Haihan soldiers behind the bunker. The task of attacking the enemy must be completed by artillery with stronger firepower. Although these guns arrived a little late,

But it is better late than never. As long as it can be used on the battlefield, the trouble of transporting it from Johor is not in vain.

Hogg will personally direct the artillery operations today. Whether they can make a comeback depends largely on how well the artillery performs. However, Hogg is also convinced that as long as it can perform normally, the eight artillery pieces can destroy the few buildings between the two villages.

The eyesore of the building is only a matter of time. The only thing that needs to be worried about is the Haihan people's response method - will the opponent's invisible defense line also have several artillery hidden in it?

Hogg immediately denied this possibility. If the Haihan people really had artillery deployed on this line of defense, it should have been put into use in yesterday's battle. How could they hide such a powerful weapon? Of course, there is another possibility. That is because the Haihan people responded in a hurry and did not have time to deploy artillery to the front yesterday, but with the buffer time last night, this is not necessarily the case.

It is not difficult to confirm from the telescope that the Haihan Army repaired the defenses outside the defense line overnight after the truce yesterday, and densely buried many sharp wooden stakes on the outer layer of the barbed wire fence. These wooden stakes were at an angle to the ground. The horns, with the pointed end facing the direction of the coalition forces, were buried in several staggered rows, making them more difficult to destroy than the Juma Luzhai which could be lifted away. Before advancing to the barbed wire area, the coalition forces had to spend time clearing these newly installed roadblocks. The Haihan people had If there is time to lay out new fortifications, it stands to reason that getting a few cannons to the front will not be a big problem.

Hogg didn't know much about Haihan's artillery combat capabilities, but he thought it probably wasn't too bad. After all, several Western competitors had been defeated by the Haihan army. There was no turning back now, Huoge said. Ge only hopes that his own artillery can take the upper hand in the next battle. No matter how the opponent deploys it, as long as it can destroy its defense line as soon as possible.

Ba Pong's task today is to supervise the battle in front of the formation. However, considering the tragic situation where the deputy general was shot dead by the opponent's musketeers in front of the formation yesterday, Ba Pong's position of supervising the battle will no longer be so forward to avoid the risk of being hit by stray bullets as much as possible. .But both Papen and Hogg knew very well that if they wanted to win the battle today, the price they had to pay would definitely be greater than yesterday.

The prologue of the battle was still opened by the coalition forces. The infantry escorted the artillery into the combat position. Then the artillery estimated the distance and determined the artillery position. Everything was carried out in an orderly manner according to the combat process. Although most of Hogg's artillerymen were mercenaries, they The main gunners of each gun were genuine British people, many of whom had served in the British army, and their professional military quality was not bad. Most of Hogg's confidence in this battle came from them.

It's a pity that the opponent has no intention of leaving them with the opportunity to pre-emptively strike. Just when the coalition gunners were still calculating the shooting distance and angle, several bunkers on the opposite Haihan defense line were suddenly opened and appeared in the gap. Behind them were dark artillery pieces. Hogg's heart suddenly sank when he noticed this change. The Haihan people deliberately waited until their own artillery entered the combat position before showing their fangs. This was obviously a plan that had been planned long ago. The coalition forces If you want to use artillery to break through the opponent's defense line, this combat plan will probably be counterattacked by the opponent soon.

"Fire." Roger gave the order in a calm tone.

In this area outside the defense line, the Haihan Army had already carried out school firing before the opponent invaded. In particular, the area that might be selected by the opponent as an artillery position was set as a preview target. Roger did not intend to leave any Time for the opponent to demonstrate their artillery shooting skills. Now that the target is in place, the next task is to destroy them mercilessly.

The sound of artillery boomed at various artillery positions on the Haihan defense line. Although the number of artillery deployed by the Haihan army in advance was not much different from that of its opponents, the effect of launching an offensive first was obvious because of the preemptive firing exercises.

, several artillery shells almost hit the position where the coalition artillery was deployed with fire coverage, and there were several screams mixed with the flying dust.

After three rounds of rapid fire, each artillery position stopped and slightly adjusted the artillery firing angle based on the observed impact point position, and then continued three rounds of artillery fire. During this period, the coalition artillery positions only fired twice intermittently.

The artillery was used as a counterattack, and then it completely misfired. But Haihan did not stop there. He fired three rapid rounds in each round and fired five rounds at the coalition artillery position before stopping.

Hogg had been forced to retreat a hundred meters. If he had insisted on commanding from the artillery position, he might have turned into a pile of burnt minced meat at this time. After being plowed through by dozens of artillery shells, he had just deployed

There were not many people alive on the artillery positions, and the smell of gunpowder smoke and blood mixed together made it almost impossible to breathe normally.

In addition to being shocked, Hogg also understood that the reason why his opponent clearly had a powerful weapon but had not used it was because he was waiting for him to reveal the treasure at the bottom of the box, and then use his superior firepower to destroy it in one fell swoop. This defeated not only the coalition forces.

The artillery unit is the last hope of victory. Without artillery, if the coalition forces want to continue their offensive, they have to rely entirely on people to attack them. And the other side has already shown its artillery. If they want to fight in the same way as yesterday,

If you attack the opponent's position head-on, the intensity of the firepower you need to withstand will be even greater.

If he continues to fight, he may pay a very heavy price, but he is really unwilling to give up. He turned to look at Ba Peng next to him, only to see that Ba Peng also had a livid face and said nothing. He didn't ask.

It can be seen that the other party has similar thoughts to my own, and it is difficult to make a decision about the current situation.

"General Pabon, we...may have failed!" Even though he didn't want to admit this result, Hogg, as a senior officer responsible for the war, still had to tell the truth.

Ba Peng's answer seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth: "Withdraw your troops, it's still too late!"

Hogg understood what Papen meant by "having enough time". Now it seems that breaking through the opponent's defense line has become a delusion. Launching another offensive will probably only increase casualties. If we continue to drag on this battlefield, our own disadvantages will continue to increase.

Bit by bit is amplified, and when the situation changes from active to passive, it will be very difficult to leave the island safely. At this time, choosing to withdraw can also stop the loss in time, which is a relatively rational decision. Of course, wait

After returning to Johor, how they want to explain this defeat will be discussed later.

Since the Haihan people had deployed their artillery in advance, I didn't know if they had secretly arranged any other means that day. Hogg knew that he really couldn't fight anymore at the moment. Since Ba Peng also had the same view, he would not hesitate to take advantage of the sea.

The Han army should evacuate this place as soon as possible before they take the initiative to attack.

"The enemy is about to escape!" Roger had been paying attention to the opponent's movements. Seeing that his main force was gradually leaving the range of the artillery, he roughly guessed the opponent's intention. It seemed that the opponent's commander was still thinking clearly and had no plans.

We must attack again and fight to the death. However, this Star Island is not a place where you can come and leave as you please. If you want to evacuate safely, you must first ask yourself whether you agree.

"Send a signal to the second and third companies to prepare for action!" Roger immediately issued an order to let the troops deployed in advance to fight ambush in the wild join the operation.

Roger's next order was to give the remaining local troops to assemble immediately and prepare to attack and suppress the retreating enemy troops.

For the coalition forces going to Star Island, this trip was really hard. They crossed the sea from Johor the day before and marched for dozens of miles on land. After only a short rest, they immediately went into battle. After sleeping in the wild for a night,

As soon as they engaged in battle the next day, they were at an obvious disadvantage again, and then they had to retreat. Next, there was another emergency march of dozens of miles waiting for them. Such a combat journey would be very strenuous even for an elite army, let alone

It’s said that this kind of coalition army has limited training level.

It rained continuously all night, and the coalition forces had just evacuated a few miles from the battlefield when they ran into the ambush of the Haihan Army. After a burst of gunfire in the forest, most of the coalition soldiers walking in the front had already fallen.

In a hurry, I couldn't see clearly how many Haihan troops were ambushing in the forest. I just felt that gunshots were ringing from all directions, so I could only turn around and run back.

Ba Peng was also surprised and confused after receiving the report. It was obvious that the Haihan Army had already set up an ambush in the forest. So the question became, how many troops did the opponent have stationed on the island, and how many troops could they still have to divide their forces to set up an ambush? And it was very difficult.

Obviously the other side has calculated that the coalition forces will choose to retreat, so they set up an ambush on the retreat route in advance. Doesn't this mean that our own combat intentions are completely under the control of the other side?

Uncertain of the size and deployment of the opponent's ambush, Ba Peng did not dare to arrange for his troops to rush forward. At the moment, he could only inform Hogg and bypass the forest area where the opponent's ambush was set up. Hogg, who was responsible for leading the team to the rear,

Suddenly, they discovered that the Haihan Army originally stationed in the village was already following them in the direction of their evacuation. It seemed that they did not intend to let them leave just like that.

"Tell General Babon to speed up the march. We don't have time to stop and hesitate!" Hogg judged that the situation was not good and immediately issued an order to his messenger.

But the ambush of the Haihan Army in the forest was not just a one-man trick. No matter how Ba Peng took a detour, gunshots would always be heard from time to time in the forest. People kept being hit by cold shots and fell down, but there was no time to fight back. Ba Peng saw that it was not the case.

Looking for a way, he ordered a group of soldiers to pounce on a bush where guns were being fired continuously. Unexpectedly, there were still a few feet away, and dozens of gun muzzles suddenly stretched out from that place. A series of guns fired at the coalition soldiers.

Unable to raise his head, the lucky man who was not shot could not even care about his companions and quickly turned around and ran for his life.

Now Ba Peng does not dare to easily allocate manpower to deal with those sporadic cold guns. Who knows whether there is a large group of Haihan ambushes hiding behind the bushes where the cold guns are fired. The current response method can only be to be cautious.

Just fire back at the cold gun. In short, try not to be too lazy to fight. But in this way, the overall march speed is greatly slowed down, and the pursuers behind are getting closer and closer. The current situation is very obvious.

The Haihan people had no intention of letting them go back from the beginning. They continued to flee north. There might be more traps and ambushes waiting for them on the road.
Chapter completed!