America 1881: Legend of the West

The Spanish position, which lost heavy fire cover, was quickly captured.

The factory was not really a strong fortification, and the remaining Spaniards in the factory had no intention of risking their lives.

The American soldiers first surrounded the factory and then rushed in.

Unlike Elviso, the Spaniards here saved a life.

Because these guys raise the white flag fast.

Roosevelt stopped his men before they could kill them and accepted the surrender of the remaining men.

At this time, Rubin, the commander-in-chief of the San Juan Highlands campaign, was commanding the frontal defense.

Their unilateral massacre of the First Division continued.

The firepower on the San Juan Highlands kept the soldiers of the First Division still near the river beach, unable to move.

Rubin, who was in a happy mood, looked around with a telescope to observe the battle.

But when his eyes turned to the direction of Hushan next door, his expression suddenly became serious.

Thick smoke rose from the position on the top of the mountain, where a firefight appeared to be taking place.

"What's the situation in Hushan?" Rubin turned his head and asked a staff officer beside him.

"It seems that several US troops are attacking them," the staff officer said. "The communications soldiers over there came over and said that the other side was hiding behind a hill in the front and had not launched an attack for a long time."

Rubin put down his binoculars.

"When did the nearest signal trooper arrive?" he asked, tilting his head.

"One hour, sir."

Rubin picked up the telescope and looked towards Hushan Mountain again, and found that some people wearing US military uniforms appeared on the top of the mountain.

The commander is struck by lightning.

"Quick! Support Hushan! Quick!" He roared at his subordinates like a lion, "If it is captured, take it back at all costs."

The staff officer was startled.

According to his commander, Hushan seemed to be in danger.

"The firepower we have deployed in Hushan is very sufficient. It is stronger than Fort Elviso. It should not be easily broken."

"In addition, the enemy has a strength advantage. If we attack rashly, San Juan's defense may become weak."

The staff officer carefully gave his advice.

Unexpectedly, Rubin became furious.

He changed his usual calm demeanor and lost his composure in front of his subordinates.

"Listen, this is an order. Organize personnel immediately to launch a counterattack! We must recapture the Hushan Highlands as soon as possible!"

Rubin's words already acquiesced that Hushan was lost.

No one knows better than him what Kettle Mountain Heights means to the San Juan Highlands.

The two sides are at odds with each other. If one side fails, the other side will become isolated and helpless, and will also be exposed to the firepower of the other side.

What worried him the most was.

He didn't know which American unit was attacking Hushan.

Can you reach the top of the mountain in such a short time?
Combined with the poor performance of the US Army's First Division on the river beach, is there a possibility that our side is a feint attack, and the main force of the US Army that can fight is in the direction of Hushan?
Thinking of this, Rubin really regretted not deploying more troops in the direction of Hushan.

Now we can only hope that we can take advantage of the gap after the bloody battle to counterattack and recapture Hushan.

However, at this time, on the top of Hushan Mountain opposite, Chen Jianqiu was greeting his soldiers.

He was not sure whether his and Roosevelt's troops were considered the "main fighting force" of the US military. He only knew that under the superior firepower, his troops did not suffer too many casualties.

After all, they are all exchanging money for the lives of their own soldiers.

"Come on, bring up all our heavy machine guns!" Chen Jianqiu ordered his soldiers.

Thirty or so latest models of Maxim heavy machine guns were carried up.

These heavy machine guns had not had time to play their role in the critical battle just now, and the battle had already fallen into close combat. It was not until the end of the battle that they were lifted up again.

"Twenty troops were deployed on the high ground and attacked the hilltop opposite. The remaining ten troops continued to charge with the team." Chen Jianqiu said.

But as soon as he finished speaking, Roosevelt had already hurried over:

"Chen, come and take a look. It seems that San Juan Highlands has organized a counterattack. We have to deploy our defense quickly, otherwise there will be pressure!"

Chen Jianqiu laughed when he heard this.

"You delivered it to your door yourself? That's great, it saves me having to go find them."

The Spanish troops preparing to counterattack soon experienced the feeling of the American army in Elviso.

No one can attack from the bottom up and withstand the fire of a row of side heavy machine guns.

Not to mention that they were defeated at the first touch, but within ten minutes they abandoned their armor and withdrew towards the San Juan Highlands.

"We defeated these damn Spaniards!" Roosevelt's adjutant took off his cowboy hat, threw it to the ground, and said excitedly.

But he suddenly found that his commander had rushed out with a group of people with guns in hand.

"Hey! Chief Roosevelt, what are you doing?" He did not retreat, so he had to pick up the hat on the ground and rush after him, shouting as he rushed.

Roosevelt heard his cry.

"The Second Support Cavalry Brigade has already rushed down, we are already too slow!" he said without looking back.

Roosevelt was still in high spirits.

If the war horse is hit, even if he is on foot, he can't be slower than others!
Commander-in-Chief Schefter, who was sitting at the command post and observing the battle ahead, was worried that the First Division of the Army was still in trouble.

The First Division was still unable to move even half a step forward and was trapped on the river beach.

Since he chose to attack the two strongholds of El Canie and San Juan at the same time, he now has no reserve troops to use.

The only part of Chen Jianqiu's Second Volunteer Brigade that was drawn out was also put into the battlefield at this time, without any news feedback.

He was somewhat reflecting on whether he had underestimated the enemy, and whether he should stop attacking Elkanie first and transfer the troops over there.

Shaft paced anxiously back and forth on the top of the mountain, occasionally raising his binoculars to look at the situation on the other side of the river beach.

Suddenly, he found that the situation on the river beach seemed to be getting better.

The 1st Division actually began to cross the river! What was going on? What happened? Was there a problem with the ammunition supply in San Juan?

Just when Schefter was confused, a signal soldier suddenly ran up.

He reported something to the staff officer standing aside.

The staff officer walked to Schefter's side and said excitedly to the general:

"Sir! The Hushan position has been captured!"

"What? Say it again?" Schefter stopped and looked at the staff officer in disbelief.

"Yes, sir, the Hushan position has been captured." The staff officer said with certainty, "Firepower is being deployed there to suppress the San Juan Highlands."

"But I didn't send troops to attack there?" Schefter was puzzled. "The firepower there is too strong, and the sacrifice will be huge."

"The 1st and 2nd Volunteer Cavalry Brigades and two cavalry regiments took it," the staff officer said. "It took less than two hours."

"Chen Jianqiu and Roosevelt's troops?" Sheft suddenly didn't know what to say. "Are they stationed there now?"

The staff officer turned around and asked the signalman, then shook his head:

"No, they have already begun their assault on San Juan Heights."

After defeating the Spanish counterattack, Hushan's troops pursued the victory and killed their way to the foot of San Juan Heights.

Without making any adjustments, they began to attack the high ground from the direction of Hushan.

These troops mainly included the 1st and 2nd Volunteer Cavalry Brigades, and the 1st and 17th Cavalry Regiments.

Due to the chaos in the command system, these troops originally did their own things.

However, after Chen Jianqiu and his troops appeared and easily captured the Hushan position, these legions suddenly had a backbone.

Just follow Chen Jianqiu and everything will be fine.

When fighting, you have to fight at your own pace.

An excellent commander does not need false reputation or military rank to motivate the friendly forces around him!

The Maxim heavy machine gun deployed on the top of Hushan began to pour bullets at the opposite high ground.

Almost all the fortifications there were under their noses.

The artillery positions on San Juan Hill fell silent, and the artillery on the US side finally came back to life.

As a result, the pressure on the First Division in the direction of the tidal flats was suddenly reduced a lot, and it began to move forward.

Originally, launching an attack together with the First Division on the front was a good choice.

However, Chen Jianqiu believed that speed was of the essence and that time could not be wasted, so he began to attack San Juan Heights fiercely.

The results of the battle were lackluster.

Surprisingly one-sided.

Rubin wanted to organize a counterattack, but his troops had already collapsed.

In addition to the mortar package, Chen Jianqiu also provided parabolic bullets for heavy machine guns.

There is no increase in the price.

The ten heavy machine guns that were originally used to provide fire cover were almost going crazy.

In addition to the twenty guns deployed on Hushan Heights and the snipers in ambush,
White, black, Chinese and Indian soldiers rushed up from all over the mountains, and there was no end in sight.

The Spanish soldiers refused to fight any longer.

They have never fought this kind of battle.

Rubin was unwilling to give up.

Their carefully prepared San Juan Mountain defense line was about to be destroyed.

From the very beginning when we were blocking the U.S. troops in the jungle to the direct battle on the river beach, we fought very well and everything went smoothly.

Why did it suddenly collapse in an instant?

However, now is the time to preserve our strength.

Even if he and his soldiers died here, it would be meaningless to this battle.

Rubin gritted his teeth and decided to retreat back to the city of Santiago with the remaining soldiers.

The vanguard of the Army's 1st Division also quickly arrived at the foot of San Juan Heights.

Apart from the counterattack they encountered on the mountainside, the rest of the attacks were basically sporadic.

Most of the people who resisted were too engrossed in fighting or did not hear the order to evacuate at all. Not many of them really wanted to fight the Americans to the death.

But when the first soldier from the Army's First Division rushed into the courtyard at the top of the hill, he was stunned.
The imagined fierce battle did not occur.

A group of soldiers are gathering in front of the command post left by the Spanish, um, taking pictures?

"Everyone, smile, smile, don't be so serious." Chen Jianqiu commanded the soldiers behind.

He and Roosevelt stood in the middle, holding the trophies in their hands - the Spanish army uniforms that Rubin did not have time to take away.

Roosevelt did have a certain talent for taking photos.

He looked very high and cheerful.

The soldiers came from various units participating in the attack and had different skin colors, including white, black, Indian, Mexican, and Chinese.

Having just fought side by side and won a great victory, they were arm in arm with each other and were in a very happy mood.

Behind them stood a pole with an American flag hoisted on it.

A reporter from the New York World stood facing them.

Next to him stood a huge Kodak camera, and there was an assistant in charge of lighting.

This camera was also carried up by Chen Jianqiu's soldiers just for use at this moment.

"Crack! Bang!"

With the sound of a shutter, this moment was frozen.

Soon, this photo will appear in the best-selling New York World at the time through screen printing.

At the same time, it will be delivered to thousands of households in America along with newspapers.