Reborn as King of South America

Chapter 473 Acceleration

"Thank you for your hard work, Colonel Andruete." The gate of Asuncion opened and a team of Brazilian soldiers riding Lusitano horses walked out.

The Lusitano horse originated in Portugal and was introduced to South America during the Portuguese colonization of Brazil. After more than two hundred years of reproduction and development, it has become one of the largest horse populations in Brazil. It is usually domesticated for use as a military horse. In order to emulate the military horse breeding system of the Han army, the Brazilian military selected the Lusitano horse as the main horse breed, and crossbred it with the local Brazilian Criollo horse to select a new type of military horse with greater endurance and load-bearing capacity.

The sound of horse hooves was orderly. After a while, the cavalry marched to the port. The leading officer dismounted gracefully, raised his right hand casually, saluted, and greeted: "Did you have a good journey? Did you encounter any trouble?"

"It went relatively smoothly. On the 28th of last month, we received an order from Rio de Janeiro to pick up the land logistics supply troops departing from Mató Grosso do Sul. We waited for five days at the port of Corumba before we were able to pick them up."

"Are they in trouble?"

"I encountered some minor troubles."

Colonel Andrew, the commander of the transport fleet, explained: "At the request of His Excellency the Admiral, Rio de Janeiro allocated about 3.7 tons of various combat supplies and logistical supplies, some of which were purchased from the United Kingdom and the United States. It needs to be transported from Rio de Janeiro to the Mato Grosso do Sul transit logistics base via Sao Paulo State, and then transferred to the Port of Corumba. Because the tonnage of supplies is greater than the previous two supplies combined, there is a shortage of manpower, mules and horses for transportation, so it was delayed for a few days."

"A month ago, Rio de Janeiro approved General Wagner Santoro's battle plan and agreed to recruit 2 adult men from Mato Grosso do Sul, Sao Paulo and Paraná to serve as logistics and transportation personnel for the Asuncion front. Could something unexpected have happened again?"

"There were some minor setbacks during the conscription period. Major, you are fighting on the front line, so you may not be very clear about the domestic situation. In order to accumulate troops to deal with the attack from the Han country, the mainland has carried out two mobilizations. Together with the local garrison troops of the Eastern Border Defense Force and the Western Border Defense Force of the Paraguayan front, the total number of the Republic's army has doubled in 5 months, with more than 26 people in the troops and more than 15 auxiliary personnel recruited. Because of the excessive number of conscripts, the normal production and operation of the country has been affected. Now every day, people protest to Rio de Janeiro and oppose the expansion of the conscription of local residents for war activities. His Excellency the President and the gentlemen in the Rio de Janeiro Government Office have been under pressure and forced to push forward the conscription task, and then gave priority to strengthening the logistics and transportation troops of the Asuncion front with the conscripted people.

The number of transporters was barely enough, but during the transportation, many people were passive and lazy. A small number of blacks, black mixed-race people, and Indian natives who had just been allocated land followed the transport team and disappeared. Before disappearing, they did not forget to steal some food and take it with them. "

Colonel Andruite saw the serious frown on the other person's face, stopped joking, and said seriously: "Three days ago, General Luca Bianchi dispatched a company of military police and four battalions of militia to various bases along the logistics supply line to supervise and maintain order in the transportation troops. The subsequent material delivery time should not be affected."

"The Han army is approaching step by step. According to the latest intelligence from the front line, the Han army's vanguard has advanced to the town of Oliva, less than 70 kilometers away from Asuncion. The Han inland river fleet is also continuously clearing the mines that our army has deployed in advance in the downstream river channel south of Asuncion. It may break into the waters north of Asuncion at any time and attack your transport fleet."

The officer said seriously: "General, I hope you will strengthen your vigilance. If you find any trace of the Han army's inland fleet, you should prioritize preserving your strength and evacuate to safe waters in time to ensure the safety of our army's logistical supplies."

"The Han army is advancing so fast?"

Influenced by the other party, Colonel Andrewt said nervously: "Are you sure it is the main force of the Han army? Don't they need to stockpile troops, weapons and ammunition?"

"The total number of Han troops heading towards Asuncion is more than 5, and it is estimated that at least 4 of them are field troops."

"4 Han field troops? That's also a very intimidating army."

After several wars, the Republic of Brazil regarded the Han Kingdom as its first imaginary enemy and tried its best to collect intelligence from the Han Kingdom, especially intelligence on the Han Kingdom's military strength, which was of utmost importance.

The Han Dynasty's military force consisted of a three-level system of field army, garrison army, militia and reserve force.

The field army was the standing army of the Han Dynasty. Before the outbreak of the Second Paraguayan War in 1889, the total number of standing field armies was about 20.

After June 1889, according to the analysis of intelligence, the Han field army expanded to a certain extent, with an estimated increase of 6 to 2 people.

The garrison is about 5 to 15 people, and the militia reserve is 10 to 20 people. Not to mention the garrison and militia reserve, every ordinary soldier who enlists in the field army needs to undergo two years of tactical training before being sent to the front-line troops to perform combat missions. This means that every Han army field force encountered by the Brazilian army, even an ordinary recruit, has two years of military experience.

In addition, after 1885, the new recruits each year generally had a junior school education, and their cultural and tactical qualities had been qualitatively improved compared to the early days of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

The war with the Han State lasted for nearly half a month. After three defensive battles in Villarrica, Pilar and Alvedi, the army of the Republic of Brazil barely blocked the attack of the Han Army and preliminarily completed the established strategic goals. So far, the situation has developed in the predetermined direction, but no one dares to test the combat effectiveness and strength of the Han Army.

Underestimating the enemy will lead to defeat. Brazil has suffered from underestimating the enemy several times and really does not want to experience it again.

"The Han State may have accelerated the delivery of war supplies to Paraguay. The core area of ​​the Han State is close to the Paraná River. The speed of water transportation from Buenos Aires, Rosario and other riverside areas is several times that of land transportation."

"From a military perspective, the Han State had the upper hand from the beginning of this war. Using the waterways throughout the Paraná River basin, it was much more convenient to transfer troops and war supplies than from Mato Grosso do Sul."

After hearing the explanation, Colonel Andrew complained: "No wonder the local merchants are against sending troops into Paraguay. Fighting the Han in Paraguay is too uneconomical. Even if the Han are forced to retreat, with the same number of troops and equipment, the cost of various materials consumed by the local side is several times that of the Han."

"Colonel, war cannot be just about military matters."

"Oh, I see. War must serve politics. My god, damn politics!"

Colonel Andrew expressed his dissatisfaction without hiding it, then lost interest and handed over an account book with a blank expression. He said: "The local government purchased 3 Martini Henry rifles, 5000 Gatling hand-cranked machine guns, 72 30mm field guns, 75 12mm howitzers, and 105 6mm heavy guns from the British in advance. These weapons and accompanying ammunition are gradually being transported to the logistics transit base in Magrosso do Sul.

这一批优先输送了4门155毫米重炮、1万3000杆步枪 14门75毫米野战炮，6门105毫米榴弹炮，弹药携带不多，步枪子弹60万发，各式炮弹2000枚，请阁下查收。”

"There is no problem with the account. I need a favor from you, Colonel. Please transport two 2mm heavy artillery pieces, 155 rifles, six 2000mm field guns, two 6mm howitzers, and 75 rifle bullets and 2 artillery shells to Hume Tower Fortress. The remaining weapons and supplies can be moved down here."

"Is it the order of His Excellency the Admiral?"

"Yes, the garrison of Hume Tower Fortress requested additional support, and the Admiral agreed to their request five days ago."

"Okay, we'll refuel the fleet in Asuncion tonight and set out for Humeta Fortress tomorrow morning."
The Brazilian soldiers who carried weapons, ammunition and supplies, as well as the Paraguayan civilians who were forced to work as laborers, were busy all day. In the evening, the sunset dyed the river red. When the last shipload of cargo was unloaded, a low roar suddenly came from the south, as if it was a signal. The roars continued one after another, startling a group of roosting birds.

"The Hume Tower Fortress has been attacked."

Listening to the sound of artillery explosions from the south, the Brazilian officer who was receiving supplies realized the severity of the war. As if to verify his guess, a steamship came from the upper reaches of the Paraguay River, bringing news from the front. The Han army occupied the town of Orly. Together with the troops retreating from Pilar and Alvedi, the total garrison of more than 2700 people, they held out for less than a day under the attack of the Han army and were completely wiped out.

The rapid fall of Aoli Town was strange and bizarre. "Could it be that the resistance of the local army over the past half month was a false impression created by the Han army? Did they deliberately delay the progress of the attack?"

A question arose in Colonel Andrew's mind.

"Never mind, let Admiral Wagner Santoro worry about the frontline. It seems that we can't go to Humeta Fortress. We should take a day off and leave Asuncion with the fleet as soon as possible."
(End of this chapter)