No matter how heavy the losses are, this battle must be won.
However, Lushun is also very important to Mao Xiong, because Lushun is Mao Xiong’s only ice-free port in the Far East. In this era of giant ships and cannons, whoever can control the sea will have the first-mover advantage.
Therefore, since Da Mao Xiong was leased to Lushun from the Qing government, it has been continuously strengthening Lushun's defenses.
Today, Lushun has 8 semi-permanent forts, 9 central forts, 6 of which are permanent forts, and 4 corner forts connected to the trenches at the front of the position, with almost no defensive blind spots.
In addition, Mao Xiong also set up support artillery positions on the rear highlands. If the main line of defense is breached, there are forts and forts connected with trenches and secondary positions surrounding Lushun, which can provide support for resistance and counterattack.
In terms of sea defense, Lushun has 220 cannons to prevent enemy fleets from attacking Lushun from the sea.
In addition, Mao Xiong also stationed two reorganized divisions of 30,000 people in Lushun. If the original defense troops, engineers, artillery and other services of the fortress were added, the entire Lushun garrison would reach nearly 50,000 people.
Lushun, which has many defensive capabilities, is also known as the first fortress in the Far East. Mao Xiong even claimed that Lushun Military Port is a fortress that can never be breached.
In order to capture Port Arthur, the Sakura Kingdom launched three general attacks, killing more than 60,000 people and injuring countless others.
As we all know, the Sakura Kingdom is a beast in the skin of civilization but with savage muscles. After conquering Lushun, the soldiers of the Sakura Kingdom showed their bestiality and carried out a massacre of local people that lasted for several days. Tens of thousands of innocent people died tragically.
In the play, Xia Yuanzhang's family died in this massacre, and only his daughter survived.
‘Eh.’
Suddenly, Li Jie noticed two middle-aged men wearing long robes and mandarin jackets standing in front of him on the left. The older one looked very similar to Xia Yuanzhang in the play.
Based on past experience, no surprise, this person should be Shopkeeper Xia Yuanzhang.
"Lao Xia, if I remember correctly, your wife and daughter are all in Lushun. I heard from the boat boss that there is a war going on over there. It's such a chaotic situation. Do you want to send them back to their hometown?"
"Hey, that's what I planned. I originally went back this time to take them back to Sanjiangkou, but who would have thought that the ship would never leave. Old Tan, I've been worried to death during this period."
"Don't worry, Lao Maozi has built so many fortifications in Lushun. Don't they say that Lushun is an unbreakable fortress? I guess the Japanese are afraid that they won't be able to capture Lushun for a while."
After approaching, Li Jie did not rush forward to chat, but stood aside and listened for a while. When 'Old Tan' said this, he knew that the opportunity to chat had come.
Immediately, Li Jie deliberately let out a disdainful sneer.
laugh!
This smile immediately attracted the attention of the two people.
When the man with a mustache saw this, he looked quite unhappy and asked sullenly.
"Little brother, I wonder why you are laughing?"
Li Jie cupped his hands and said: "Old sir, there is no unbreakable fortress in this world. Whether a fortress can be broken down depends on the determination to attack it."
"As long as you are determined enough and use your lives to fill it, there is no place that cannot be conquered!"
Before Mao Xiong leased Lushun, the Qing government also built a large number of security fortifications in Lushun, but these fortifications did not play any role in the end because the Qing government ignored the threats from behind.
Just like the Maginot Line, which was claimed to be impregnable in later generations, French goods began to be constructed in 1928, costing nearly 5 billion francs (prices at the time), and lasted 12 years until completion in 1940.
However, the German army did not directly conquer the Maginot Line. Instead, it induced the British and French forces to support the Netherlands, then made a sneak attack on the Ardennes, and combined with the Dutch and German forces to besiege the coalition forces at Dunkirk.
As a result, the Maginot Line also became ineffective due to German attacks on its back.
The man with a mustache sneered and said: "Haha, little boy, what do you know? The Japanese are not stupid, how can they be willing to spend so many lives to fill it?"
Faced with the man's ridicule, Li Jie was not angry. He just stretched out his hand and pointed to the north.
"Sir, you haven't been back to the other side of the sea for a while, right?"
Lao Tan said flatly: "So what?"
Li Jie deliberately sighed and said slowly: "Hey, I have an uncle who just came back from the other side of the sea some time ago. According to the news he brought back, the situation on the other side of the sea is not optimistic."
"At the end of last month, the Japanese captured Panlong Mountain..."
"What!" X2
When the two of them heard the news, they were shocked and looked in disbelief.
The name Panlong Mountain may not be very eye-catching, but anyone who is familiar with the terrain around Lushun knows that once Panlong Mountain is captured, the attackers can directly set up artillery positions nearby and bombard Highland 203.
The 203 Highlands is the last barrier in Lushun.
When Xia Yuanzhang heard the news, he immediately became confused and directly interrupted Li Jie's words.
"Little brother, are you trying to trick me?"
Li Jie did not answer his question directly, but asked instead.
"Old sir, have we known each other before?"
"I don't know."
"In that case, there is no grudge or grudge between us, so why would I lie to you? Besides, what's so easy to lie about this kind of thing?"
Xia Yuanzhang pondered for a moment and felt that what Li Jie said was very reasonable. He nodded subconsciously. Then he suddenly remembered something and asked quickly.
"Little brother, do you know what's going on over there now?"
Li Jie shook his head: "I don't know."
Hearing these words, Xia Yuanzhang's eyes flashed with disappointment, but what Li Jie said next made him frightened.
"However, I'm afraid the Japs will not give up easily. After all, the Japs have already launched two general attacks. It is estimated that the third time will not be too far away."
"Hey, the Japs have always been inhumane. Ten years ago, when the Japs captured Port Arthur, they massacred the city. This time, if the Japs take over again, I'm afraid they will do it again."
Although Xia Yuanzhang had never read any military literature, he had traveled extensively for many years, and he had a set of standards for distinguishing reality from reality.
Since ancient times, the victors of wars have launched countless massacres of cities. Firstly, they want to let the soldiers vent their anger, and secondly, they want to frighten the enemy.
If the Japanese want to capture Lushun, they must sacrifice human lives. If the Japanese really succeed in capturing Lushun, the Japanese generals will most likely allow the soldiers to burn, kill and loot in order to appease the soldiers.
At this moment, there was a sudden commotion on the pier.
"The ship is sailing!"
"The ship is sailing!"
For a time, cheerful sounds echoed throughout the pier, one after another.