Conquer Europe from the West

Chapter 141 Light Machine Guns and Sidecar Motorcycles

When Raine led his men back to the rear camp closer to Insterburg, the Second Battalion had already set up camp there.

The current Second Battalion has significantly more personnel than it did at the beginning.

Leaving aside those who were the first to die in Balfour, the Second Battalion's entire combat force has reached 1,200 men, based on the current numbers.

If you include the battalion headquarters, that's 1,300 people.

But Raine's troops were different from other troops—they were meant to rampage through the front lines.

Therefore, although the Second Battalion's command post was called a command post, under Rein's modifications, it became more like a guiding force used to adjust the direction of troops on the front line.

Unfortunately, radio communication these days is a mess. To ensure the precision strike capability and organization of troops on the front lines, it's necessary to send a bunch of commanders to the front lines to guide the troops' offensive.

Furthermore, most infantry units in this era still operated on a standard mass assault pattern. Therefore, regardless of whether it was the Empire or other countries, the effectiveness of their battalion-level command posts in actual combat was primarily in logistical coordination rather than immediate command and control.

To put it simply, if the pre-planned attack succeeds, then everything is fine; if it fails, the battalion command is responsible for rallying the soldiers to organize defense and treating the wounded.

Furthermore, since the soldiers under Rein had neither rear camps nor friendly forces at the front during the operation, the size of the front-line command post was reduced to twenty people, which was just enough to coordinate the work of the subordinate companies and platoons.

However, none of these twenty people were originally from the Second Battalion's headquarters.

The original battalion headquarters still exists, but it's no longer on the front lines; it's located in the rear, and the work remains the same as before.

However, the twenty newly appointed men were all legitimate imperial officers.

Or, to put it another way—a human beacon.

In the rear encampment.

Before Ryan could even see the Second Battalion, he was spotted by the Second Battalion's human beacons.

Two female warrant officers, whom he had personally recruited from the military academy, carrying their communication backpacks that could launch honor communications simply by pulling a rope, immediately appeared in front of Rein with their four platoon leaders, saying, "Report, the entire Second Battalion, a total of 1,225 men, are all in position."

"good."

Ryan nodded first, then saluted them unilaterally without asking them to return the salute, and asked, "Where are the men from the fourth and fifth companies?"

The Second Battalion originally consisted of only three companies. Because part of the unit's organization was responsible for logistics and supplies, these companies were dismantled and replaced with two newly incorporated combat companies.

Of the four platoon leaders that Ryan saw, one was from the first company, one from the third company, and two from the second company, but the fourth and fifth companies were nowhere to be found.

The same female warrant officer said, "The company commanders of the fourth and fifth companies have gone to the front lines to survey the terrain. They are the vanguard in this operation."

When did they go?

The platoon leader of the second platoon of the first company glanced at his watch: "Three hours ago, they should have been back by now."

"So fast?" Renn was a little surprised.

Then he heard another female warrant officer explain, "General Mackensen lent us twenty motorcycles with sidecars."

Ryan immediately frowned: "This is quite a favor."

The Empire doesn't actually provide motorcycles to its troops. All the motorcycles are purchased by the commanders themselves, plus a portion of the troop budget. They also pay for their own maintenance, with only the gasoline being provided by the troops.

Even Renn is only willing to equip each company with two motorcycles now, which is why he said it was a big favor.

These twenty motorcycles were naturally purchased by General Mackensen, the commander of the 17th Army, with his own money for the reconnaissance company. This was a huge favor.

But the female warrant officer added, "The battalion commander didn't want them at first, but General Mackensen said they were all motorcycles produced by his own motorcycle factory, and if we didn't want them, he would destroy them on the spot, so we took them over."

"Is he that stubborn?"

This really opened Renn's eyes.

He hadn't realized General Mackensen was this kind of person when he was at the army group headquarters.

But since the favor has already been owed, not repaying it would be ungrateful.

After thinking for a moment, Ryan changed the subject and said, "In that case, you can use those motorcycles as much as you want, but remember to tell me if they break, and I'll pay for them."

"You have to pay extra?"

The other female warrant officer and the two platoon leaders immediately panicked, muttering things like "I should have just left it."

Ryan was amused by these college-educated officers: "He only gave us so many motorcycles because he felt it was embarrassing for him to have an entire army group covering his retreat with just a battalion. Do you really think we just took them for free?"

"But there's no use thinking about it now. All you need to remember is that the troops must never lose a battle. Leave the rest to me."

With just a few simple words, he immediately dispelled the concerns of these young officers. It was at this moment that Ryan saw the deputy platoon leader of the third platoon of the first company of the second battalion, the old sergeant Schultz who shared the same name as the platoon leader of the first platoon of the assault company.

Schultz was pushing a motorcycle covered in mud, which looked much like a bicycle with a basket attached to the side, towards a hill behind him.

"Schultz!" Renn shouted the other person's name.

The old sergeant immediately jumped, looked around for a while, and finally found Ryan.

He quickly handed the motorcycle to his cheap platoon leader, then turned and ran to Rein: "Commander."

"How's the new car?" Renn's gaze passed over Schultz and looked at the cheap third-row leader, who couldn't even push a motorcycle properly and slipped every two steps uphill.

Schultz stood next to him and said with a smile, "It's a bit more troublesome than riding a horse, but this thing is not afraid of gunfire or cannon fire. If a real battle breaks out, no bullet can catch up with it."

Schultz can ride horses, or rather, he had raised horses before joining the army and could also drive a car. He was the most worry-free sergeant in the army.

He just doesn't know many foreign languages, otherwise he could at least be the deputy platoon leader of a main platoon, just like the platoon leader.

But he only learned to ride a motorcycle a month or so ago. At that time, everyone in the group was required to learn to drive cars, trucks and motorcycles, and a small number of people who couldn't ride bicycles were also forced to learn to ride bicycles.

Many people don't understand why Rennes did this, but Schultz is clearly an exception.

“General Mackensen gave us almost all the motorcycles from his army headquarters, keeping five for himself.” Schultz scratched his neck, looking at his platoon leader: “Everyone in the battalion is saying he’s a good guy, but they just haven’t decided who to give the motorcycles to.”

"What did your battalion commander say?" Ryan tapped two cigarettes out of his dented cigarette pack, handed one to Schultz, and lit it for him. "He should have decided who to give it to by now, right?"

"Thanks."

Schultz accepted it familiarly, took another puff of his cigarette, and said, "It's currently intended for those communications officers who came out of military academies, but I always feel that those kids riding motorcycles are too conspicuous, and they don't have any offensive capabilities."

Ryan casually found a flat spot, squatted down, and said, "How about giving it to the machine gun company?"

"You want to send the machine gun company to infiltrate the front lines?" Schultz immediately guessed what Rein meant: "That's a good idea, but the ammunition and machine guns are heavy, you can't carry them, can you?"

Ryan shook his head: "Find someone who knows welding or has the tools to fix the machine gun mount to the sidecar. When the machine gun is needed, just drive there and start firing as soon as you stop."

Schultz paused for a moment, then slapped his thigh: "This has potential."

"Then I'll leave this to you?" Renn glanced at Schultz.

"No, no, no, I can't."

Schultz waved his hands repeatedly, almost flicking the cigarette butt out of his mouth: "I can't handle this kind of thing, so please don't bother me, no way."

But Schultz was actually capable of handling this, and Rein knew that too. However, this was a battlefield, and Schultz also had to take care of his cheap platoon leader in his battalion, so Rein was just joking and didn't take it seriously.

He planned to have Brinkman or McQuay handle this matter; both of them were free from now until the war started, which was perfect.

The men of the Second Battalion need to take this opportunity to familiarize themselves with the battlefield, otherwise they will not have the chance to launch an offensive later.

Just then, the artillery positions behind them began their attack.

A muffled but not loud artillery barrage rang out on the other side of the horizon. Soon after, Rein heard the sound of trucks speeding by overhead, accompanied by the vibrations of the air as countless shells ripped through the sky, heading towards the distant Imperial Army positions. The soldiers of the First Army, spurred on by the series of artillery shots, quickened their pace. The remaining two regiments, urged on by their officers and sergeants, shoved and jostled their way into the makeshift trenches leading to the front lines. The trucks behind them stopped, unloaded their ammunition and grenades, and then hurriedly headed towards Insterburg to prepare for the next resupply.

Schultz looked at the distant horizon, flashing with the light of explosions, and asked with a relaxed expression, "How many rounds of shelling tonight?"

Rein knew the battle plan, and Schultz was no novice, so he had no reservations: "Six rounds, forty-five minutes per round, and we'll keep fighting until sunrise tomorrow."

"Isn't that just one night?"

Schultz paused for a moment.

But his expression immediately changed.

Because the Empire's normal artillery bombardment was calculated in proper hours and days, never in minutes.

Moreover, Raine said they would keep firing until morning, which means the intervals between artillery fire are too long. It's like firing once and resting for fifteen minutes, which is more than enough time for the enemy to react and launch an attack.

Keep in mind that the two armies' positions on the front line are now less than 500 meters apart, just over the range of a typical rifle. A 15-minute rest is obviously enough for enemy infantry to get right up to them.

However, Renn immediately calmed Schultz down.

He said, "The Empire's supplies are insufficient. This shelling is a deterrent. We need to ascertain what their transport units are doing. If firing all night doesn't deter them from launching an attack, then we will be the next ones to attack."

"Isn't this a preparatory artillery barrage?"

Schultz breathed a sigh of relief: "That's good then."

Raine patted his butt and trouser legs, stood up, and said, "Good my ass. Tomorrow we're going to fight our way through the front of the Empire's 27th Army with two regiments from the First Army, and then fight our way back from the rear."

"what?"

Schultz froze.

Ryan ignored him, patted him on the shoulder, and then turned back to the warrant officers and sergeants who had been there before.

"Colonel."

They immediately looked at Ryan.

"The First Army has already begun combat. You are too conspicuous here and will attract the attention of the Imperial Tea Garden. Dismiss now. Your battalion commander will explain the details of the next operation to you later."

After saying that, Raine shouted "Dismissed!" several times in succession, finally driving away all his men who had gathered at the entrance to the front lines.

The soldiers of the First Army couldn't contain their curiosity, but their officers kept them under tight control. So most of them just glanced at the female officers in Rein's unit and then obediently turned their heads and crawled into the trenches.

But it wasn't because they were lustful; rather, it was because most of the female officers under Ryan were communications specialists, who were important figures that ordinary people would never even see.

Similarly, the appearance of a large group of communications soldiers at the front line was tantamount to telling everyone that a major battle was about to take place.

It was because of this that Raine began to notice the 34th and 45th Infantry Regiments whispering among themselves.

They weren't discussing the dirty jokes and anecdotes that soldiers would tell when they entered the trenches, but rather the upcoming battle.

This is not a good thing, as it may lower the morale of the troops.

Fortunately, compared to the female officers, these young men were clearly more interested in the Blue Star Max Medal hanging around Rein's neck.

Colonel Frederick, the commander of the 34th Infantry Regiment, also knew this, so after guiding his troops to the designated position, he came over and chatted with Ryan. He also helped Ryan by offering cigarettes to himself, as well as some soldiers and commanders of the 45th Infantry Regiment who appeared last.

This trick is indeed effective.

Before a few puffs of smoke had even dissipated, Renn could hear cheers and boos coming from the trenches. Colonel Frederick looked apologetic at Renn: "They don't know the subsequent battle plan. I hope Colonel Frederick won't mind."

Ryan didn't say much, but casually lit a cigarette for Frederick before speaking: "It's my fault. The troops came too quickly. I should have let them come to the front lines at dawn."

“The work is tough,” Frederick sighed. “I heard from the commander that you are the main attackers.”

Ryan held a cigarette between his fingers, the smoke drifting from his lips into the cold air, only to be immediately dispersed by the cold wind: "More than 1,500 people, that's not a small number."

"But they are an army."

Frederick's tone lacked the usual bravery of an Imperial officer, instead revealing more fear: "I would absolutely not dare to lead a battalion to charge into the enemy's corps-level position."

Raine knew the other person was flattering him and also trying to shut up those who wanted to gossip, but with soldiers all around, he couldn't get to the point, so he just smoked.

But this only made Colonel Frederick feel worse.

Because his troops were the ones that were to immediately follow up from behind after the first wave of attacks by the Rein forces.

Next were the 45th Regiment of the 2nd Division, and the 43rd and 44th Infantry Regiments of the 1st Division.

In other words, if the soldiers of the 34th Regiment were too slow in their charge, not decisive enough, or too suppressed to move, it would mean that Rennes's troops would be surrounded by an entire enemy army.

That was a certain death situation.

Ryan remained silent until he was suddenly burned by a cigarette butt, realizing that he had already finished his cigarette.

"Well, it's just a matter of whether there are more or fewer people."

He shook his hand, pinching the scalded flesh: "Besides, the battles we fought before were all similar to today's, so we're used to it."

Frederick dared not discuss this further in front of the soldiers, so he changed the subject: "How long do you think the ceasefire will last in Ireland?"

"It will take a few months, at the latest, until after spring planting."

Ryan shook hands with a curious deserter, then told the sergeant and officer beside him not to cause trouble for the kid, before saying, "But it depends on how well this operation goes."

"The Empire is furious about the truce agreement signed by the United Kingdom and Farland. Even if they lose this time, they will still launch another attack in the spring."

Frederick: "Perhaps, but didn't they say the Ottomans were going to sign an agreement with us and the Empire?"

"Do you think the Empire will still sign at this point?" Renn didn't know what to say: "I feel it's unlikely. Besides, news came from the capital yesterday that they found out that the Empire's commander is that idiot Zhilinsky."

“Zhilinsky? How could it be him?” Frederick clearly hadn’t heard of this: “Wasn’t that man arrested once during the Russo-Japanese War ten years ago? How can he be a front commander?”

"The devil knows."

Renn shook his head: "Perhaps the Empire has run out of troops."

After saying goodbye to Frederick, he casually flicked the cigarette butt into the pond beside him, turned around and walked towards Brinkman, who was already waiting nearby.

Brinkman immediately said, "The company's arrangements are all set. McQuay will lead a platoon to the front lines under cover of darkness when the second round of shelling begins."

"What about the second and third rows?"

Brinkman: "They will launch attacks after the fourth and fifth waves of shelling begin, but truck-mounted artillery cannot be deployed to the front lines."

"what happened?"

"The artillery fire from the front just missed and accidentally hit the area in front of the Imperial Army's position, destroying part of the ground. That was the only way to rush into the Imperial Army's position."

"That's a bit troublesome."

Ryan scratched his head: "In that case, the truck-mounted artillery won't rush into the enemy's position; it can just fire in the open field."

Brinkman nodded, but Ryan added another sentence.

"Then take a few people who know welding and motorcycles to the rear. The 17th Army sent us about twenty sidecar motorcycles. I need you to quickly fix the light machine guns to the sidecars so that we will have mobile firepower."

"Yes!"

(End of this chapter)