North America 1849, from Gold Rush to Warlord

Chapter 136 Still Not Lost?

"Fire! Shoot!"

When the 16th Regiment of the American Army came within 300 yards, Shi Dakai and Zuo Zongtang shouted this sentence almost simultaneously.

"Da da da... da da da da...!"

Six Maxim machine guns on several positions instantly unleashed a dense hail of bullets.

"Bang bang bang... bang bang bang...!"

More than a thousand militiamen in this direction simultaneously aimed their HM49 rifles and fired fiercely at the approaching enemy.

"Boom boom boom... Boom boom boom...!"

The twelve 81mm mortars on the mortar position simultaneously launched a barrage of fire on the densest area of ​​enemy troops!
A barrage of bullets and shells, like a sudden storm, swept towards all the enemy troops hundreds of yards away.

Even if they learned from the failure at Elephant Mountain and tried their best to attack with skirmish tactics, all tactics were futile under such a dense hail of bullets.

"Puff puff puff... puff puff puff puff...!"

The first wave of American infantrymen charged forward fell like wheat being harvested, with large numbers falling instantly.

The worst-hit soldiers were riddled with bullets in an instant.

"Da da da... da da da da...!"

The six Maxim machine guns positioned in this direction fired bullets that seemed to form a flying whip of fire, incinerating everything on the battlefield!
"Boom boom boom... Boom boom boom...!"

The mortar shells exploded in the enemy ranks, and the powerful shockwaves blasted the surrounding soldiers into the air!

"Pat, pat, pat...!"

The mangled torso, along with bloody limbs and severed parts, crashed heavily onto the newly reclaimed land.

"Ah... my leg...!"

"Ah, ah... my hand!"

"Ah, ah, ah... my eyes!"

"Ah, ah, ah, ah... my intestines...!"

"Bang, bang, bang...!"

The relentless barrage of rifle bullets felled anyone still standing on the battlefield!
"Bang bang bang...!"

Although the American soldiers were not yet within range of their Springfield M1841 rifles, they were overwhelmed by the unprecedented firepower and fired indiscriminately towards the trenches.

"Follow me!"

Major Nien Murphy, deputy battalion commander of the 4th Battalion, 16th Regiment of the United States Army, was awarded the highest "Medal of Honor" by Congress for his bravery and outstanding service in the Mexican-American War!
Moreover, before he was even thirty years old, he was promoted two ranks directly from lieutenant deputy company commander to major deputy battalion commander.

Today, the first wave of attacks by the 16th Regiment was personally led by the brave and fearless Major Neil Murphy.

"Follow me!" Major Nien Murphy, brandishing his Colt revolver high, roared, "Soldiers, charge with me!!!"

Even when faced with overwhelming firepower he had never experienced before, Major Murphy never showed any fear.

This, on the contrary, inspired his unparalleled courage and determination!
"Charge!!"

Inspired by Major Murphy's charge, the soldiers, bayonets gleaming, followed closely behind him, shouting deafeningly as they charged forward fearlessly!

"Da da da... da da da da...!"

Seeing this wave of menacing charge, the machine gunners turned their guns and opened fire on the hundreds of enemy soldiers.

"Puff puff puff... puff puff puff puff...!"

Soldiers fell one after another around him.

"Follow me! Charge!!"

Major Murphy continued to charge forward without fear.

Although he was at the forefront of the attack, Major Murphy was also exceptionally agile, dodging the dense hail of bullets with a roll, a leap, or a nimble movement at any moment.

Despite the dwindling number of soldiers charging alongside him, Major Murphy, who was at the very front, was completely unharmed!

The distance of over three hundred yards was rapidly shortened under Major Murphy's leading charge.

The trenches that seemed so far away were now right in front of us.

Behind the lines, Brigadier General George Phillips, through his binoculars, witnessed Major Murphy's heroic actions and couldn't help but exclaim, "Who is that officer charging at the very front?"

Chief of Staff Walton, who was also watching everything on the battlefield through his binoculars, immediately replied, "It's Major Nien Murphy, the deputy battalion commander of the 4th Battalion, 16th Infantry Regiment. He's a recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor, and he's distinguished himself in the Mexican-American War. He's only twenty-nine years old!"

"What a brave young man!" Brigadier General George Phillips took note of the name and decided that he would definitely promote this young man after the war.

Chief of Staff Walton lowered his binoculars and said in a deep voice, "General, the enemy's firepower is simply too strong!"

"Of the hundreds of soldiers who charged in the first wave of the 16th Regiment, only a small group remains, including Major Murphy's men."

"Should we get them to step down first, and then figure out a solution?"

"Hmph!" Brigadier General George Phillips sneered, "Absolutely no retreat! I believe Major Murphy can definitely break through those Chinese positions. In close combat, our American Army can easily crush those yellow-skinned rats hiding in the trenches...!"

Brigadier General George Phillips was right; Major Murphy was only a few dozen yards from the trench.

If he can lead his soldiers into the trenches and engage in hand-to-hand combat, he will surely be able to break the Chinese formation and create an opening for the subsequent attack.

"Soldiers, charge!!"

Major Murphy had only a few dozen soldiers left, but the trench was already within reach!
"He is indeed a rare warrior...!"

Zuo Zongtang looked at Major Murphy, who was dozens of yards away, and couldn't help but admire him.

"boom……!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than Shi Dakai, who was beside him, drew his Colt revolver from his waist and fired a shot!
"Snapped……!"

The shot hit Major Murphy squarely in the face!
Major Nien Murphy, whose appearance was exceptionally resolute and handsome, was shot so accurately and ruthlessly that his face was covered in rosy cheeks.

"what……!"

Major Murphy let out a piercing scream and fell backward!
Although Major Nien Murphy fell, the dozens of soldiers who followed him in the charge had already reached the trench!
"Brothers, grenades...!"

Shi Dakai shouted, and dozens of militiamen around him threw grenades almost simultaneously.

"Boom, boom, boom...!"

Dozens of grenades exploded amidst the American soldiers rushing forward!
Shrapnel and steel balls flew everywhere, sweeping away all living things around them!
After a series of explosions, when the smoke cleared, not a single American soldier was left standing on the battlefield!

The ground was littered with mutilated corpses, flowing blood, and horrifying dismembered limbs!

Countless wounded soldiers lay on the battlefield, rolling and groaning in agony!
Watching the first wave of attacks being completely wiped out, Chief of Staff Walton felt extremely conflicted.

He slowly lowered his binoculars and said in a deep voice, "General, the infantry's attack is completely ineffective! Isn't that right...!"

"Pass on my order: the second wave will continue the assault!"

Brigadier General George Phillips interrupted his chief of staff in a cold voice, issuing the order without hesitation.

"Yes Sir!"

At this point, no staff officer dared to question the general's orders.

Moments later, the second wave of attacks from the 16th Infantry Regiment, unsurprisingly, swept up across the hillside.

What awaited them was an even more intense barrage of artillery fire and bullets!
The hundreds of soldiers in the second wave of attack fell to the ground in large numbers, like wheat being harvested.

This wave of attacks was far less effective than the first wave.

In less than ten minutes, most of the soldiers had fallen on the battlefield. Only a mere hundred or so remained and retreated!
"General...!" Chief of Staff Walton could no longer bear it: "General, the enemy's firepower far exceeds our expectations. If we continue fighting like this, the 16th Regiment will be completely wiped out...!"

"Order!" Brigadier General George Phillips said coldly without changing his expression: "The 16th Regiment withdraws to the rear to rest and reorganize. The 18th Regiment will come up to cooperate with the three cavalry battalions and launch a general offensive!"

"Yes Sir!"

With nearly half its troops killed or wounded, the 16th Regiment retreated like a receding tide.

Under the orders of Brigadier General George Phillips, the American troops quickly adjusted their formations.

Two quarters of an hour later, a complete infantry regiment and three cavalry battalions were arrayed two thousand yards away! Zuo Zongtang clearly saw the movements on the other side through his binoculars and said in a deep voice, "It looks like the other side is preparing to launch a general offensive!"

"Mr. Zuo, how about we give them a surprise now?"

Zuo Zongtang nodded calmly: "This is the moment we've been waiting for. Send the signal!"

Soon, a plume of smoke rose straight into the sky from this model village!

Almost everyone on the battlefield saw the smoke almost immediately.

As Colonel Walton gazed at the smoke rising straight into the sky, a strong sense of foreboding suddenly arose in his heart.

"Boom boom boom... Boom boom boom... Boom boom boom...!"

The thirty-six 81mm mortars deployed in the three model villages started firing almost simultaneously after receiving the signal!
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...!"

Thirty-six mortar shells, accompanied by their distinctive whistling sound, bombarded the enemy ranks that were gathering.

"Boom boom boom... Boom boom boom... Boom boom boom...!"

Thirty-six shells exploded with a deafening roar in the dense enemy ranks, and the powerful shockwave blasted countless enemies into the air!
Countless shell fragments, like countless scythes of death, mercilessly reaped everyone's lives.

"Boom boom boom...!"

Thirty-six mortars unleashed a barrage of shells like raindrops in a dense, continuous barrage.

"Hiss...!"

"Ah, Hellp me!"

The wounded warhorse was neighing, and the wounded soldier was screaming in agony!
The U.S. Army, which was adjusting its formation and preparing to launch a general offensive, was utterly routed by the barrage of artillery fire!

"General...retreat quickly...!"

Even the hill where the command post was located was within the range of the mortars.

Scattered shells continued to explode around the command post.

The staff and guards, no longer caring about anything else, pushed Brigadier General George Phillips onto his horse and gave it a hard slap on the rump.

Let the general go first!
"You bunch of sons of bitches... I haven't lost yet...!"

The general was carried by his mount and ran very fast!

The staff officers also hurriedly mounted their horses and retreated!

Without the command of headquarters, the various units could no longer hold out and retreated in droves.

In the chaos, the retreat turned into a rout!
Over a thousand cavalrymen, less than two thousand infantrymen, and two or three hundred artillerymen fled in panic.

Especially the artillerymen, they didn't even care about their own cannons anymore!

Because after the enemy's artillery extended its fire, even the artillery positions were within the enemy's coverage area.

"Boom boom boom...!"

Heavy cannons were overturned on the ground by mortar shells, and there were artillerymen who did not have time to escape!
"boom……!"

Unfortunately, a mortar shell detonated the powder magazine...!
"boom……!"

After a deafening roar, the entire U.S. Army artillery position was wiped out in an instant!
The remaining three thousand American soldiers retreated in panic.

This retreat covered several kilometers!
They retreated until they reached the bank of a river!
Only after Brigadier General George Phillips, Chief of Staff Walton, and officers from various units desperately tried to stop them did the three thousand terrified soldiers barely manage to halt their advance.

It wasn't until nightfall that the army managed to reorganize its formation.

Night had fallen, and a somber mood hung over the combat tents erected along the river.

"The casualties and losses of each unit have been tallied!"

Chief of Staff Walton held a piece of paper in his hand and read aloud in a somber voice: "The 16th and 18th Infantry Regiments have suffered a total of 772 dead or missing and 533 wounded; the three independent cavalry battalions have suffered a total of 86 dead or missing and 141 wounded; and the artillery battalion has suffered a total of 58 dead or missing and 79 wounded!"

"A total of 916 people have died or gone missing, and 753 have been injured!"

"In addition, we lost 450 horses, as well as almost all of our artillery and shells...!"

Brigadier General George Phillips, with a stern face, remained silent.

Chief of Staff Walton could only continue, "We severely underestimated the firepower of Huamei Industrial!"

"They not only have more advanced rifles, but they are also equipped with a powerful firearm capable of high-speed continuous fire!"

"This unknown weapon caused the most damage to us!"

"Furthermore, their artillery, in terms of range and rate of fire, far exceeded our expectations!"

"Based on my observation, at least two-thirds of the shells came from the other two model villages."

“Those two model villages are about four thousand yards away from us.”

"In other words, the enemy's artillery has a range of at least four thousand yards! Such a long range is far beyond our understanding."

"It was the sudden barrage of artillery fire that routed our forces as they were gathering!"

"Boom...!"

Brigadier General George Phillips slammed his fist on the table and roared furiously, "That damned Chinaman, he's been deceiving us all along!"

"He clearly possesses powerful cannons with a range of four thousand yards, yet he has never demonstrated the power of such cannons!"

"He clearly possesses unknown and powerful firearms, yet he has never demonstrated their true capabilities!"

Brigadier General George Phillips roared, "That son of a bitch Chinaman, he's been deceiving us all along! He's been waiting to frame me and my soldiers! This is not a fair fight at all!"

"I will personally kill that son of a bitch of a Chinese!"

Brigadier General George Phillips, in a fit of impotent rage: "Gather more troops for me! I must kill him with my own hands...!"

"General, I'm sorry!" Chief of Staff Walton said, "General, apart from the wounded, we only have a little over two thousand soldiers at our disposal!"

"And the model village across the street suffered almost no substantial losses!"

"The village we are fighting today is only one of the model villages; the other two model villages were only supported by artillery!"

"General, if I may be so bold, if we continue fighting, our entire army will be wiped out here!"

"Bang!" Brigadier General George Phillips slammed his fist on the table again: "Move troops from other places, from Colorado, Utah, and Nevada...!"

“I’m sorry, General!” Chief of Staff Walton replied, “To mobilize more troops, we need authorization from Congress and the President!”

"Moreover, most of the troops that can be mobilized within the entire area under the jurisdiction of the Southwest Command are already here with us."

"The troops stationed elsewhere also maintained only a minimal presence, as they had to deal with Native Americans and suppress bandits, and could not spare many troops."

"Bang!" Brigadier General George Phillips plopped back down on the bench, his anger vanished, replaced by utter frustration!
"Three thousand eight hundred American soldiers were defeated by a bunch of peasants who had just picked up guns!"

Brigadier General George Phillips could hardly believe what had happened that day.

"General!" Chief of Staff Walton reassured him, "General, it's not that our American Army soldiers and officers are incompetent, but rather that the firearms and artillery under Huamei Industrial are simply too advanced and powerful."

“Yes!” Brigadier General George Phillips said, “Their guns and cannons are too powerful. If only we had their guns and cannons…!”

At this point, Brigadier General George Phillips' eyes suddenly lit up: "As far as I know, Huamei Industries' arsenal is located on Alcatraz and Angel Island in the Bay Area!"

"Our army can't do anything about the arsenal on the island, but the navy...!"

Brigadier General George Phillips clenched his fist: "These advanced firearms and artillery must be in the hands of our American army."

"Ahem!" Chief of Staff Walton cleared his throat twice, interrupting the brigadier general's ambitions: "General, you'd better think about what to do now!"

"At present, we certainly cannot defeat Model Village, which is equipped with advanced firearms and artillery, let alone the entire Huamei Industrial Group."

"If we completely break ties with Huamei Industries, then there may be no place for our Southwest Command in the entire state of California!"

"Heh!" Brigadier General George Phillips sneered, "Haven't we completely torn off all pretense of civility yet?"

“I don’t think so!” Chief of Staff Walton said in a deep voice. “Almost all the dead and wounded were our soldiers, while the Chinese on the other side did not suffer many casualties or substantial losses.”

"Therefore, there is still room for things to be resolved!"

(End of this chapter)