A full moon hangs high in the sky, and below is the beautiful moonlight on the sea. The sea is as dark as a large piece of velvet, with countless dots of silver flashing on it, as if sprinkled with diamonds, announcing the calmness of the sea.
However, at the end of this calm "velvet", on the sea level, a few black bumps appeared faintly. Gradually, the few bumps disappeared and merged into the entire black "velvet". Then
, more bumps appeared on the sea level, and these bumps soon disappeared.
This is the Ming army's task force. Under the cover of night, these tall warships only "appeared" briefly on the sea line, and then melted into the dark sea.
The entire fleet consists of 2 battleships, 2 aircraft carriers, 6 heavy cruisers, 8 light cruisers, 24 destroyers, 18 minesweepers, 6 3,000-ton troop carriers, 26 transport ships, and 55 large assault ships.
It consists of 15 flat-bottomed diesel barges, 15 flat-bottomed diesel barges, and 28 other ships.
The strength of the Marine Corps transported by the fleet is one division. It is equipped with a tank battalion and an armored vehicle infantry battalion. According to the established plan, after the bombardment of Liandao, a battalion-level commando will be sent to take the lead in landing on the assault boat and annihilate Liandao.
The Qing garrison on top occupied the fort and controlled the entire island.
Then, the forts on the southern slope of Liandao Mountain were used to bombard Yuntai Mountain on the other side of the strait. The cover fleet entered the strait and officially launched the bombardment of the Yuntai Mountain forts. Finally, the leading commandos carried by assault boats and flat-bottomed barges occupied the port and controlled the clouds.
Taishan Fort, and finally, the troop transport ship officially sent the large troops ashore in the port area.
The Ming Marine Corps is affiliated with the Navy and is an elite force in the entire Ming Army. Its combat effectiveness is much stronger than the general army and even stronger than the People's Guard Mobile Team. This time, the Navy General Staff has high hopes for them.
…
At 3:30 in the morning, the fleet was following the scheduled plan, bypassing Liandao from 25 kilometers east of the coastline to the northeast of Liandao. Then, it approached Liandao from the northeast until it entered the shooting position.
However, the General Staff of the Ming Army did not expect to enter the shooting position silently. As the Ming Army formed a breakthrough in the southeast of the Central Plains Corps and pressed hard against Haizhou, the Ming Army's intention to capture Haizhou was "Sima Zhao's heart.
"Everyone knows it". Guangwu must be no exception. He must be in Haizhou
They have strengthened their vigilance, and one of them must be to order the torpedo boats in Haizhou to strengthen patrols. Fortunately, the control of the sea is in the hands of the Ming army, and the Qing navy cannot even mobilize torpedo boats in large numbers. According to the daytime aerial reconnaissance, the number of torpedo boats in the Yuntai Mountain port area
The number is about 15 ships.
But unexpectedly, until 4:15 in the morning, when all the warships entered the firing position, the sonar still did not detect the engine sound of the torpedo boats. It seems that the Qing army's torpedo boat formation had made up its mind not to let go of the eagle when it saw the rabbit - no sight.
When the Ming fleet appears, they will never scatter their limited torpedo boats so that others can easily eat them. The Qing army is probably planning to send out more than a dozen torpedo boats at once in an effort to truly destroy a "serious" torpedo boat.
A large Ming army ship.
Twenty-four destroyers have been cruising within 1,000 meters northeast of Liandao, using sonar to search for torpedo boats. The southernmost destroyer has been close to about 500 meters. So far, the sonar has still not heard the sound of the torpedo boat's engine.
I wonder if the Qing army heard the engine sound of the Ming army fleet? Since there are no warships on the sea, does the Qing army have fixed sonar installed on the nearby seabed?
…
4:30, attack time has arrived.
On the Hongwu, the flagship of the task force, the fleet commander watched the minute hand of his pocket watch officially reach 30, looked at the endless black in the distance, and said lightly:
"Let's start as planned."
The staff officer beside him immediately shouted into the microphone:
"According to the original plan, let's start——!!!"
On the flagship of the destroyer squadron at the forefront, the radio staff officer heard the radio instructions from the chief flagship, raised his head and shouted to the commander of the destroyer fleet:
"General Flagship Order: Start as planned!"
The destroyer commander made a gesture, and the radio staff officer immediately shouted into the microphone:
Flashes of light and muffled thunder came one after another on the vast sea. Flashes of light quickly crossed the night sky, flew over Liandao in an instant, exploded, and turned into illumination bombs.
Dozens of illumination bombs sprayed magnesium light one after another and slowly fell, illuminating the entire island as if it were daytime.
"Attention all squadrons -" On the flagship of the destroyer fleet, the radio staff listened to the microphone again and loudly reported the order of the commander of the fleet, "Target - Liandao Qing army fort - high explosive bombs - free fire!
!!
"Attention, destroyer fleet - A-1 to A5, keep irradiating, A-6 to A-24, load high-explosive bombs," the destroyer commander quickly ordered, "Target - Liandao Qing Army Fort - free fire!
!!”
As soon as he finished speaking, several bright spots appeared in the black on the opposite side, and then the air roared, and several water columns rose two to three hundred meters behind the destroyer fleet.
The Qing army's fort on the island also opened fire. Every captain was shocked: The Qing army responded quickly enough this time!
…
The Ming fleet was also unceremonious. From the destroyer fleet to the battle fleet, all firing lines opened fire. For a time, in a large area of sea northeast of Lian Island, the muzzle flashes of naval guns flashed densely, layer by layer.
Muffled thunder resounded across the sky. In the night sky, orange lines of fire were as dense as a comb, arcing in the black sky and flying towards Liandao.
The first batch of destroyer shells arrived. From 20mm Oerlikon shells to 150mm main gun shells, they exploded intensively on the hillside of Liandao. There were flashes of fire and black smoke billowing, and half of Liandao was boiling.
A few seconds later, a series of larger explosions appeared on the hillside. Small trees were thrown into the sky in pieces, the mountain trembled, and large rocks rolled into the sea. This was the arrival of the cruiser's heavy artillery shells.
Finally, the battleship's super-heavy artillery shells also howled "landing". For a time, the scene on Xiaolian Island was so spectacular that it almost turned into a volcano. It seemed that it could be felt on the flagship 10,000 meters away.
The island was shaken.
At the same time as the bombardment, in the transport fleet 20,000 meters away, the naval commandos of the first attack wave were eating breakfast in the cabin, listening to the fleet commander's speech on the loudspeaker, and finally boosting morale.
"...You are the elite among the elite of the Ming Empire's army! You are the pride of the entire navy! Your combat effectiveness is no less than that of the Army Aviation Commandos! No less than the Royal Guards! No less than the People's Guard!... You must represent the Ming Navy.
Set foot on land from here and go
Liberate tens of millions of oppressed people in the north! Your boots will start from the moment you set foot on Liandao and continue to traverse millions of square kilometers of land!... I have full confidence in you, and I am proud to have you as my subordinates.
!Because, you are the Marine Corps of the Ming Empire!"
The sound of gunfire in the distance outside continued to enter the cabin of the troop carrier. The soldiers who had finished eating began to receive weapons and equipment, and then gathered on the deck. Dozens of assault boats had gathered around the troop carrier. These assault boats roared.
The engines, undulating in the water, bumped against each other, trying to get into formation.
The driver of each Zodiac was shouting curses and waving his arms at others, accusing others of disrupting the formation.
A rope net was hung on the side of the tall troop carrier, and the assembled Marine team was climbing down. These soldiers were carrying heavy equipment and were clumsy like bears on the rope net. Everyone finally jumped into the assault boat.
At that time, everyone on the boat was worried - the assault boat was too small and kept swinging violently. Everyone was afraid that the next person would trample the entire boat.
The sound of artillery in the distance, the loudspeaker on the bridge of the troop carrier, the harsh sound of the diesel motor of the assault boat, the sound of sea water lapping against the side of the ship, the soldiers' shouts, "Fuck your mother, fuck your mother, shout Kaban" and so on.
The curses...all the sounds came together, like a big band.
…
At six o'clock in the morning, the sunrise begins over the sea.
However, the usually spectacular sunrise over the sea was now completely stolen by the bombardment of the Grand Fleet from the west. No one on the deck looked east to watch the sunrise. They all lay on the railings to watch the bombardment to the west. As a result, they found that there were already many people around them.
When it gets brighter, I know the sun has come out.
As the visibility became better, the artillery on both sides became more accurate. In just ten minutes, the destroyers destroyed several bunkers one after another, and the Ming fleet was also hit one after another. There were 3 destroyers, 1 light cruiser and
One heavy cruiser was hit. Both cruisers were unharmed, but the three destroyers all had deck fires and were still dragging thick smoke and persisted in participating in the bombardment.
Now, according to the original plan, the destroyers and light cruisers of the first and second tiers have retreated, and the heavy cruisers and battleships of the third and fourth tiers have now come forward with their armor to show off their skills.
Especially the Sansou battleship, which had the biggest target, behaved like a bachelor. It drove straight to within 2,000 meters, with hundreds of guns and cannons all over its body like hedgehogs, spitting out tongues of fire. For a time, the island seemed to have become a
Hell, there was a shocking explosion all over the island, accompanied by flames and thick smoke that covered the sky, as if the entire island was about to sink into the sea.
On the contrary, the three battleships were also blackened in patches, with scratches and deep and shallow pits. These were all traces left by direct hits from various artillery shells. However, one place was penetrated.
There was none. The giant battleship was still in high spirits, as if nothing had happened.
In the sky, dive bombers from the Army Aviation also arrived. Fighters from the two aircraft carriers had already taken off in formation to escort them. Soon, aerial bombs more powerful than naval guns also hit Liandao Mountain like meteorites.
…
At about seven o'clock in the morning, there were almost no forts on the north side of the island that could fight back. Even if there were, there probably were no Qing soldiers who still had the courage to fire.
The destroyer formation once again approached a few hundred meters away from the island to observe and patrol. After confirming that the bombardment effect had been achieved, 55 assault boats carried a battalion of commandos, and 15 flat-bottomed barges carried an armored company, revving their piercing motors.
, cutting through the waves, heading towards the coast.
At 7:35, the Marine Corps Assault Battalion landed on the beach in the northwest of Liandao. There was no resistance on the beach. Immediately, 15 tanks drove up the beach from the flat-bottomed barge along the wooden planks, covering the infantry as they advanced towards the island.