It's better to conquer them than to command the steel torrent

Chapter 149 | Using the Enemy's Weapons to Counter the Enemy
In the fighting a few days ago, a detachment of the 'Hunyatti' military police regiment captured a Russian-made 120mm mortar and 27 rounds of ammunition.

Afterwards, the soldiers would occasionally use it to fire, but considering its enormous power, they didn't waste it, and a few shells are still left to this day.

Before long, the mortar squad received its orders.

This makeshift team consisted of only nine people and was equipped with a van.

Next to a restaurant with all its windows shattered, soldiers sat or lay down, joking and discussing the current battle situation.

Upon learning of the new mission, everyone's eyes turned to them, and they immediately became excited.

"What are they going to bomb this time? We still have eight shells left." Corporal William, the captain, threw his cigarette butt into the rubble.

"Hunting deer, and most likely a herd of red deer, this is an order personally given by Colonel Shang," the messenger who came to deliver the message said.

"What are the specific details?"

“An observation post spotted a suspicious high-value target, a convoy of cars and armored vehicles, inside a shelter, located to the side of Jones Cinema.”

“Sounds like a general,” Corporal William said excitedly.

Upon hearing this, the team members were all highly motivated.

Previously, their orders were usually to bomb the enemy's temporary strongholds, fire two or three shells and then move on, which was not very fulfilling. This time, however, they had a chance to catch a big fish.
The mortar squad immediately took action.

Get in! Let's go!

The van towing the heavy mortar set off, slowly driving through the streets, leaving behind a trail of debris and broken bricks.

Arriving two blocks southwest of Heroes' Square, they chose a flat garden, quickly dug with shovels, set up the captured mortar, and then planted two markers.

Corporal William and his two assistants, the calculators, were busy determining the firing direction with the artillery compass, and then using a calculator and slide rule to solve the firing data problem by referring to the map.

There's only one chance, and there might not even be time to calibrate the shot. If the first shot misses, the enemy might escape.

A female sergeant arrived by car to relay communications. She relayed, "Colonel Shang promised that if you kill the enemy general, he will apply for a bonus and medal for you."

"Don't worry! I'm confident I can blow those Ivan Rossites to smithereens!" Corporal William said confidently. "I'm ready to collect my bonus and medal."

Fifteen minutes later, the team was ready.

However, the female sergeant said, "The colonel told you to stand by. He thinks that the bunker is relatively sturdy and that the mortar might not be able to penetrate the top layer, so we have to wait patiently."

“We can use a delayed fuse; the penetration power of this heavy mortar is actually quite good,” Corporal William said somewhat urgently.

"No, the colonel warned you that 'a hasty person can't eat boiling hot stew,' so now we must patiently wait for the best opportunity."

"Ok."

The 120mm mortar was facing east of Heroes Square, with a row of OF-843 high-explosive fragmentation grenades laid out on the ground next to it.

Everyone remained silent, awaiting the order.

【Picture】

At this moment, Shank also led Reika and the others to the top floor of a building next door, where the view of the cinema was better.

Time passes minute by minute.

The third echelon of the Imperial Russian offensive forces continued its combined infantry and tank attack on Heroes' Square.

Their defeat was evident; seven or eight tanks were destroyed by the defenders, and their infantry charged into the position three times, only to be driven back each time. However, there was a limit to their desperate struggle.

A spent force bow cannot pierce the silk cloth of Lu.

By 16:50 p.m., after more than an hour of fighting, there had been no decisive progress in the attack, and several T-26 crew members even reported that they had run out of ammunition.

Major General Barannikov's hands trembled slightly, and he sighed involuntarily before issuing the order to retreat with great difficulty.

Feelings of loss, confusion, frustration, and annoyance all rushed into his mind at once, leaving him in a daze and unsteady on his feet.

"Chief of Staff, the soldiers have done their best. Let's go back," the adjutant reassured him.

The group walked out of the shelter and prepared to leave the war zone by vehicle.

Two or three kilometers away, Shang Ke and his group witnessed this scene.

We've been waiting for this!
My eyes are sore from staring at the artillery scope for so long!

"Alright, fire! Mortars, fire immediately!" Shank decisively ordered, then added, "Go all the way! Let the artillery also lend a hand and strike the cinema with the highest trajectory."

At his command, a mortar squad two blocks away immediately fired.

The mortar shells flew toward the target with graceful parabolic trajectories, and the first one landed just two or three meters away from an armored vehicle.

"boom!!!"

The armored vehicle's left front wheel was blown off, and the entire vehicle burst into flames. The windshield of the Hillman sedan behind it also shattered instantly.

Seven seconds later, the second shell whistled as it crashed down, exploding next to a staff officer.

After the loud bang, several bloody severed limbs flew into the air like tree branches and then fell back down.

At 17:01, the third OF-843 high-explosive fragmentation grenade landed five meters to the right of Hillman's car. The 1.6 kg TNT inside exploded violently, scattering hundreds of high-speed fragments and riddling the car door and body with holes.

In just two minutes, the mortar team had used up all their remaining shells, and the intersection on the side of the movie theater was almost completely obscured by the billowing smoke and dust.

Shortly afterward, artillery fire also began from the west bank of the Danube.

This was originally Shang's call with the mentality of killing two birds with one stone. Even with the use of high-trajectory firing, most of the shells still had a large deviation in their landing point, and some shells were blocked by nearby buildings.

The continuous, deafening explosions completely engulfed that large area, creating a spectacular sight, but in reality, it was likely just smoke without causing any damage.

Shang Ke stood up and stretched to relax his body.

He said enthusiastically, "The mortars were very accurate. I reckon there was some success. That's a great achievement. Reka, have the radio monitoring unit keep an eye out tonight and see if they can verify the situation."

“Yes, Colonel, I even think we’ve taken down a marshal,” Reka replied with a smile.

“The Marshal would never come to such a frontline location,” Shang Ke laughed.

If he were a marshal, that would be great. If I killed a marshal, I could probably jump three ranks and enjoy the treatment of the dead, with my country's military rank directly promoted from major to brigadier general.

In Ivan Rus's army, only lieutenant colonels and above were issued private cars, and these were domestically produced cars, which were said to be of mediocre workmanship and quality and not very popular.

Given that the car appeared to be an imported British long-wheelbase sedan, clearly belonging to a higher-ranking officer, Shank estimated that a colonel or a brigadier general might have been killed this time.
He lit a cigarette, looked at the setting sun on the downhill slope, and said casually, "That's it for today, time to head to the Business School command center."

(End of this chapter)