Munitions Empire - Chapter 1469 - - 1386: the impregnable defense line

Chapter 1469: Chapter 1386: The Impregnable Defense Line

Amidst the blazing fire of the tank wreckage, one could vaguely see the struggling Qin Army tank crew inside the flames, attempting to escape their own tanks, but all efforts were ultimately in vain.

A Qin Army tanker, barely managing to get half his body out, was hanging on the tank, his charred body making the wreckage look even more tragic.

The Qin Army’s offensive did not stop because their tank was destroyed; on the contrary, their infantry launched an even more frenzied charge.

Tracer bullets flew across the battlefield as Qin Country gathered two heavy machine guns to support their troops’ entry. Bullets flew over the heads of the Tang Army soldiers, some tracer bullets hit the ground and bounced, creating extreme chaos.

However, at a distance of one or two hundred meters, the Tang Army had many means to suppress the enemy’s attacking forces. The simplest was to gather their assault troops and use gun grenades to directly cover the Qin Army’s machine gun positions.

The Tang Army found gun grenades extremely useful, as grenades maximized the infantry’s suppressive power and provided valuable indirect fire support.

Of course, besides gun grenades, the Tang Army’s defensive line also had company and battalion-level mortars that could fire flexibly to directly destroy the enemy spreading out in front.

This time, it was the Tang Army’s mortar positions that opened fire, and the Tang Army soldiers in the trenches didn’t even have to fire, as they heard their officers loudly command: “Conceal! Wait for the artillery coverage!”

As soon as the words fell, a dozen mortar shells suddenly descended on the battlefield, one after another, forming a barrier.

“Boom! Boom! Boom!” The attacking Qin Army was suddenly engulfed by the falling mortar shells, while the Tang Army soldiers closest to the front line also felt a tremor.

The 80 mm caliber mortars’ power was much larger than imagined, and the 120 mm caliber mortars from the Tang Army battalion were even more terrifying.

These vehicle-mounted mortars, capable of continuous fire, provided formidable instantaneous suppressive power and were quick to deploy and redeploy, becoming a nightmare for the Qin Army soldiers.

Seeing an entire battalion of his soldiers engulfed by a dozen shells in an instant, the Qin Army division commander in the trenches sighed and put down his binoculars.

He clearly knew that his troops’ attack had once again ended in failure. The losses could be significant, likely estimating a loss of over 100 men.

To maintain the offensive strength, he had deployed four infantry battalions one after another in fierce assaults, yet each time, they were repelled by the Tang Army troops.

In reality, he had made many efforts, including utilizing precious tanks to cover the infantry and even risking gathering more than ten cannons to bombard the Tang Army’s positions.

Yet, the opposition clung stubbornly like a “Dingzi” before him, preventing his troops from advancing even a step despite a full day of assault.

“Withdraw the 3rd battalion and send the 2nd battalion from the 2nd regiment up! I can’t believe the Tang Army is invincible!” The Qin Army’s division commander, somewhat losing his temper, issued new orders angrily.

Then, he looked at the artillery officer beside him: “Fire as many shells as you can! Suppress the Tang Army’s positions for me… Make them suffer casualties! If we don’t create opportunities, we’re stuck here; they could hold out against us for a year!”

In his view, only artillery coverage could inflict heavy losses on the Tang Army, potentially forcing them to abandon their positions and retreat.

Only by driving the Tang Army out from their “strong” defensive positions could they hope to fight a decisive battle, annihilating the Tang Army in the open.

The artillery officer immediately saluted and left, returning to the nearby artillery positions. Here they were ingeniously camouflaged, with camouflage nets covering every cannon, and anti-aircraft gun positions setup on the sides.

The Tang Army’s air raids were not frequent, giving the Qin Army a bit of courage. Under a succession of commands, all the artillery pieces raised their barrels, aiming at the distant Tang Army positions.

“Open fire!” With a command, the signal flag was slashed down, and the Qin Army’s artillery began to roar. It had been a long time since they were able to showcase their capabilities so freely.

On the Tang Army positions, the first Qin Army shell landed. The 155 mm caliber howitzer was indeed powerful, shaking the ground with its explosion.

The artillery and the technology to produce it were sold to Qin Country by the Great Tang Group, and these 155 mm caliber towed guns certainly lived up to their price, their power was beyond question.

The Tang Army soldier, having finally stuffed his last piece of biscuit into his mouth, lowered his head amidst the sound of artillery, dust kicked up by the explosions falling on his steel helmet and uniform.

The Tang Army soldiers’ combat gear was already quite complex, with tactical vests worn over their uniforms, carrying ammunition pouches and hand grenades, making it easy for dust to accumulate in the seams.

The second Qin Army shell exploded beside the foxholes and makeshift trenches, destroying the already unstable trenches and almost burying the foxholes.

Despite having earplugs specially designed for ear protection, the Tang Army soldiers in the foxholes were still left dizzy by the blasts. They had to crawl out of their nearly collapsing foxholes and roll into a nearby crater.

Qin Country’s artillery barrage remained in the era of concentrated, overwhelming firepower, but one had to admit, this kind of coverage firepower, though inefficient, had a strong visual impact.

Judging from the scene, Qin Country’s artillery appeared to have the upper hand, making it seem as if the Tang Army’s troops had all been blown up on their positions.

In reality, the Tang Army did indeed suffer some losses, with soldiers wounded and others killed by the artillery. However, these losses were clearly minor and not enough to shake the Tang Army.

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After over a hundred shells visited the Tang Army’s positions, the Qin Army launched another attack, with an entire battalion spreading out at the front, hundreds of men once again advancing towards the Tang Army’s positions.

At this time, the Tang Army’s divisional artillery was firing at the Qin Country artillery which hadn’t managed to reposition, unable to suppress the advancing Qin Country infantry.

But the Qin Country infantry soon realized that the Tang Army’s arsenal of weapons to counter them was vast, almost endless.

The Tang Country infantry’s gun grenades quickly suppressed the Qin Country soldiers who had exposed themselves, and even the few heavy machine gun positions that had just opened fire weren’t spared.

Finding the frontal assault ineffective, the Qin Army started to flank, only to be met by a hidden Tang Army machine gun position. Two machine gun teams ambushed the advancing Qin Army from the side, turning their efforts into nothing once again.