Nanyang Storm 1864

Chapter 325: Everyone is thinking about being cannon fodder
"What's the matter? Aren't the foreigners going to fight anymore? Why are they calling it a day so early?" Standing on the ruins of the second floor of the dilapidated bunker, Lieutenant Colonel Hu Jinqi, with a bandage on his head, looked surprised and couldn't help blurting out.

"I see you're addicted, Lao Hu. Wouldn't it be better to close the shop early? Leave some seeds for my one ball and your five balls, don't kill them all."

Lieutenant Colonel Zheng Ming, the commander of the First Regiment, whose face was also covered in smoke, took out a wrinkled box of cigarettes from his military jacket pocket, handed one to Lieutenant Colonel Hu Jinqi, then took a bite of one himself, lit it with a match, and took two delicious puffs.

Although there are still more than 1700 people left in the two regiments, more than of them are new recruits.

this means
The two regiments together had less than 1800 people left. It should be noted that the newly formed Fifth Regiment had a strength of 3000 people, and the First Regiment had more than 1500 people. The casualties were more than %.

Even if the remaining reinforcements were all put in, the original establishment would still not be filled.

Lieutenant Colonel Hu Jinqi took two deep puffs of his cigarette, and thick smoke came out of his nostrils. Looking at the Indian soldiers from Baotou who were waving white flags to clean up the battlefield in front of him, he felt very angry.

He cursed, "None of these damn Brits are good. I don't know where the hell they got these curry soldiers from? They killed one after another, and there are still so many left."

"Old Hu, didn't the General Manager say this at the combat meeting? These are all Indian soldiers, from India, west of the Kingdom of Burma. They're said to have a population of 2 million, not much less than our Qing Dynasty."

"The British are too cunning. Those white people are hiding in the back, picking up these curry soldiers and sending them to their deaths."

"Hmph, it's a colony. We occupy so much territory in Southeast Asia. If we incorporate those natives into the army, the situation will be the same." Lieutenant Colonel Zheng Ming took his last puff, threw the cigarette butt into the rubble, and turned to look at the battlefield.

on the battle field
The Chu reinforcements also waved white flags and took out the guns and personal belongings of the fallen British and Indian soldiers. Each of them walked back happily with seven or eight guns on their backs.

Recently

Excluding the damaged guns, at least 3.5 to good guns were seized. Now that local Chinese workers are being added to the army, these guns can be put to use immediately.

If we wait until 12 o'clock tonight, the mission will be successfully completed.

As the defending side, the reason why the Chu army soldiers suffered such heavy casualties in the mountain fort defense line was that at least half of them were caused by the fierce artillery fire of the British army.

The 10-pound Parrot rifled cannon equipped by the Chu army was at a great disadvantage in the bombardment with the British 32-pound heavy artillery. Even though it was hidden in a sturdy bunker, it was destroyed one after another.

The power of the 32-pound artillery is not to be underestimated. Under the fierce bombardment of such heavy artillery day and night, the mountain bunker defense lines collapsed one after another, and even the sturdy bunkers could not withstand it.

Two and a half of the three large bunkers were blown down, and only half of the remaining bunker remained.

The British and French allied forces bombarded with heavy artillery fire. Each round of bombardment lasted for more than two hours. The number of cannons increased from a dozen at the beginning to more than a hundred. It was so fierce that the sky collapsed and the earth cracked. They couldn't even lift their heads.

If the main force had not been moved to the rear, the 1st Regiment and the newly formed 5th Regiment would have basically been wiped out on the front line.

Now that we have gained experience, casualties have dropped dramatically.

Now they don't put many troops on the defense line. They will wait until the British and French coalition forces have finished their artillery bombardment, and then run into the position from the rear and launch a volley of gunfire against the British and French coalition forces that launched the attack.

The Chu army did not have as many artillery pieces as the Anglo-French coalition forces, nor did they have such large caliber ones, so all of their artillery positions were now located in the rear, mostly 1.5 kilometers behind the defense line.

If placed there, the large-caliber heavy artillery of the British and French coalition forces would not be able to reach the range and would not be easily destroyed. It could also be used to carry out concentrated fire strikes when the British and French coalition infantry attacked.

Both sides are growing rapidly in the brutal war.

Lieutenant Colonel Hu Jinqi sat on the rubble and smoked two cigarettes. Her bloodshot eyes finally regained some spirit, and she said carelessly:

"Old Zheng, withdraw all the soldiers in your regiment. I'll leave only one battalion to guard the position to prevent the foreigners from launching a surprise attack at night."

"Alright, my regiment is almost out of fuel, so let's retreat to the second line to rest. I'll be waiting for you after 12 o'clock."

"Well, we've been holding out for four and a half days. We can't let our guard down with this final tremor. I've signed a pledge in front of the commander-in-chief. We must hold out for five days and five nights, not a minute less."

"It depends on whether the foreigners let us retreat smoothly. If they come again at night, it will be very dangerous." Lieutenant Colonel Zheng Ming did not want to be modest with him. He shook his head and walked down the rubble.

He led a group of black and slovenly soldiers to retreat, and each of them looked extremely exhausted.

On this front line
No one knows when the British and French forces would suddenly launch a bombardment. They were walking between life and death every day, fighting after another, and fighting back against the enemy again and again.

Every time many brothers fell, and in the end they became numb to the killing.

Lieutenant Colonel Hu Jinqi left a supplementary barracks to hold the ruins, and the remaining troops retreated 500 meters, ate something on the side of the mountain road, and fell asleep leaning against the rocks with their guns in their arms.

If a battle breaks out, reinforcements will arrive in just a few minutes.

Fortunately, the night was peaceful, and Lieutenant Colonel Hu Jinqi fell asleep peacefully on the ruins.

Don’t know when?
He was covered with a military blanket and slept soundly that night leaning against the rubble.

He was not awakened until a patrolling soldier accidentally fell on the rubble and cried out in pain.

I took out the Swiss gold watch from my pocket and looked at it. It was already past 2 o'clock in the morning.

Lieutenant Colonel Hu Jinqi perked up, rubbed his eyes, looked at the silent British and French positions opposite, spat in hatred, patted his butt and stood up.

Then he kicked up several officers who were sleeping soundly around him and shouted, "Why the hell are you still sleeping? Get up and run away. There are plenty of places to sleep in the back, and you can even hug the fragrant bodies of women. It's better than this damn place. Get up! Let's retreat..."

This command

These officers, who were like mud monkeys, were all energized and used their swift hands and feet to kick all the officers and soldiers awake.

Then they quickly reorganized their troops, made a final check to ensure that no soldiers were left behind on the rubble, and happily withdrew at night.

Early the next morning

The British and French forces successfully occupied the mountain bunker position which had become a ruin. Malay laborers quickly dismantled the rubble on the position, laid rails, and moved the heavy large-caliber artillery forward.

At noon
The rumbling sound of artillery resounded through the mountains again, and the British and French forces began their fierce attack on the second line of defense again. This time the fierce bombardment lasted for more than 4 hours.

It was not until around 4 p.m. that the British and French forces deployed more than 2000 troops at once and launched a fierce attack on the second line of defense, catching the defending Chu army off guard.

In the previous five days, each attack involved three to four hundred people, and at most only seven to eight hundred.

This time, they deployed 2000 troops at once. Taking advantage of the smoke, they directly attacked the defense line along the city wall that was collapsed by heavy artillery and rushed into the dusty and foggy defense line.

But they were immediately attacked by artillery fire from the Chu army. The Singapore Expeditionary Force concentrated 35 10-pound Parrot cannons and bombarded the collapsed gap.

The defending Chu soldiers were not in a hurry to rush forward. Instead, they stood behind the earth wall at a distance of more than 200 meters and fired volleys, round after round, covering the dusty defense line with dense rain of bullets.

This round of exchange caused heavy casualties to the British and French forces.

Half of the British and French soldiers who charged forward were white French mercenaries, and under the intense artillery and volley fire, over 630 were killed or wounded. Of the more than 712 who charged forward, only retreated, with the rest lying densely packed in the second line of defense, becoming nourishment for the blood-stained defense.

The Chu army gained a great advantage in this round of exchange, with no more than 30 casualties, which was the most disparate casualty ratio to date.

After suffering a head-on blow, the British and French forces became even more enraged, and they launched a fierce bombardment all night long, from dusk to midnight, and then launched another attack at night.

This time

The Chu army fired rockets, igniting the firewood between the second line of defense and the earth wall behind it, exposing the attacking British and French soldiers.

A fierce close-range shootout ensued, which was bloody and brutal, with heavy casualties on both sides.

After the British and French forces made an all-out effort, they occupied the second line of defense in just two and a half days.

However, the Anglo-French coalition forces once again paid a heavy price of more than 4700 casualties, and the Chu army on the second line of defense also suffered more than 1100 casualties, with an overall exchange ratio of 4:1.

At this point, the second line of defense was lost.

After tasting the sweetness, the British and French forces seemed to have found the trick and began to use firepower to clear the way and bombard the enemy all the way.

When attacking the third line of defense, the British and French forces concentrated more than 130 cannons and carried out a fierce bombardment on the bunkers and strong walls on the third line of defense for 10 hours, completely reducing the third line of defense to rubble.

Then they launched a group charge. On this line of defense, the Chu army refused to give an inch.

Relying on the chest-high earthen walls, they engaged in close-range firefights with the British and French forces, repelling their attacks time and time again, and persisted for a full three days and three nights.

On the third line of defense, the British and French forces finally conquered it at the cost of 5752 casualties.

But at this time, the offensive of the British and French forces also weakened.

After successively conquering three strong lines of defense, the British and French forces suffered a total of more than 1.8 casualties, and their total strength dropped sharply from 5.1 at the beginning of the offensive to more than 3.3.

The French Legion in the Allied Forces suffered another 3351 casualties, leaving a total strength of only 6700. There was resentment in the barracks and morale was on the verge of collapse.

The British Indian Corps was in an even worse state, with widespread self-harm, attacks on officers, and desertion from the battlefield, which the white officers could not suppress.

If the fighting continues, morale will collapse at any time.

Nothing to do

They could only temporarily cease fighting and rest, waiting for more troops to arrive from the rear, so that at least these soldiers could see hope, instead of being driven to their deaths.

At this moment

Due to the blockade of information, the British and French forces did not know that the Chu army had already captured Darwin, Townsville, Brisbane, Sydney and other four states in eastern and northern Australia, and began large-scale immigration to Australia.

"This batch of artillery can no longer be used. The final bombardment exploded several guns and injured dozens of officers and soldiers. We have consumed too much ammunition and the logistics are unable to deliver it."

"How much longer will it take?"

"The new supply fleet is expected to arrive within a week, bringing us artillery and ammunition from mainland Europe. By then, we'll be ready to use them."

"Where are the reinforcements I need?"

"The Governor's Office is currently mobilizing troops. They can replenish over 1.5 troops within three days. The remaining troops will take some time. We can probably replenish another within a month."

"It's not enough, it's too slow, I need to see 2 replacements within two weeks."

"I'm sorry, sir. The Governor's Office is already doing its best to cooperate with the expeditionary force's military operations, but manpower is not unlimited. It takes time to recruit and transport soldiers."

"Well, we have to suspend the attack." Lieutenant General Connor said with a somewhat sullen look.

He was not in the British Indian Army. How many casualties were there?
No matter how much it costs, Singapore must get it back, there is no doubt about that.

Lieutenant General Connor glanced at General Menion and saw that General Menion had lowered his head and did not actively make eye contact with him. The contempt in his eyes became more obvious.

This is like two people running a business together. The British one keeps investing the capital, while the other one starts playing dead and naturally has no confidence.

"General, our legion needs new forces now. I know that the French have trained some indigenous troops in Indochina. When can they be transferred here?"

"Oh, dear General Connor, I will coordinate the actions of the Governor of Saigon as soon as possible."

"Alright then. Within two weeks, I need to see at least less than 1.5 troops. Our legion needs fresh blood."

"I will do my best, General Connor."

"hope so."

Seeing the heavy casualties in the attack, the two men coincidentally set their sights on the indigenous colonial soldiers.

White armies could not withstand such attrition, but indigenous vassal armies could, and there was a large amount of such cannon fodder available in the British and French colonies.

coincidentally
The Singapore Expeditionary Force also had the same idea. After the four regiments of the expeditionary force suffered heavy losses, Major General He Ruolin finally became angry and realized that this was not a solution.

The original 1.2 reinforcements were all deployed, basically reviving the Singapore Expeditionary Force and returning its total strength to 1.7.

The large number of casualties among veteran soldiers still makes Major General He Ruolin feel distressed.

Therefore, the local Chinese workers, including some Malays and whites, who had received emergency military training for more than 10 days, were forcibly incorporated into combat troops by the Chu army.

These newly formed infantry were organized into battalions, with each infantry battalion having more than 300 people, totaling more than 110 infantry battalions. All the veterans of the newly formed Fifth Regiment were sent down to serve as grassroots officers in these infantry battalions.

In the subsequent battles, Major General He Ruolin planned to put these infantry battalions at the forefront, and the regular army soldiers would serve as supervision battalions to oversee the battles of these soldiers in the rear.

There are ten earthen walls at the back, with four infantry battalions stationed on each wall, which means more than 4 troops.

If we defend each earthen wall for one day and strive for two days, we can at least gain half a month.

Once these 40 infantry battalions were wiped out, the main force of the expeditionary force and the remaining newly formed infantry battalions would retreat back to Singapore and engage in a bloody urban battle with the enemy, fighting house by house.

Fight to the last soldier and never retreat!

(End of this chapter)