Sword of Light: Humanoid Self-Propelled Artillery

This is similar to how Wang Gensheng laid landmines on the Shuimenqiao Highway but did not lay them on the hillside outside the highway.

The mines were laid only on the road to prevent Smith's Marine Corps vehicles from escaping, while the hillsides on both sides of the road were for Wang Gensheng and his men, as well as the pursuing reinforcements from Chaozhou, to move forward.

The same applies to the Imjin River. Although a large number of minefields have been laid to block the south bank of the Imjin River, there are still passages left so that our own people can move around without being blown up.

So in order to obtain the exact location of this passage, Wang Gensheng began interrogation. Originally, Wang Gensheng thought that these soldiers from the Southern Tide Kingdom would be extremely stubborn.

But I didn't expect that we had only just separated them for interrogation, and hadn't even taken any action yet! We just said a few words to scare them and told them what the ancient Chinese punishments were like!

Then all the scouts confessed. Of course, just in case, Wang Gensheng interrogated them separately.

They checked the testimonies and found no errors. However, it was a pity that the road was narrow, so a large number of soldiers could not pass through in a short time.

Of course, it wouldn't be a problem if Wang Gensheng's less than a thousand marines were allowed to pass.

However, it was still not possible to let the large force of 116 lions, which numbered over 10,000, pass through.

However, this was not the key intelligence. The most crucial thing was that this team of scouts from Nanchao Kingdom actually knew where the Lion Commander's headquarters of the First Lion of Nanchao Kingdom was located.

It's important to understand that the key point of the 116 Lions' breakthrough was the Imjin River, and the Imjin River was defended by the main force of the Nanchao Kingdom's First Infantry Lions. If Wang Gensheng could capture the command of the Nanchao Kingdom's First Infantry Lions, it would greatly help the 116 Lions' attack.

Shortly after Wang Gensheng captured a reconnaissance squad from Nanchao, the U.S. Army Command received the news.

However, because the reconnaissance troops from the South China Sea often lost contact, the intelligence staff of the Eighth Army Command of the United States Army did not pay much attention to it. What could they do even if they did? Could they send a large force to search north of the Imjin River?
So the next day, December 31st, the US Army intelligence staff summarized the intelligence received the previous day and reported it to Li Qiwei:
"Mr. Jin, yesterday a reconnaissance team dispatched by the army from the Jiangnan Chao region of Imjin mysteriously disappeared. According to intelligence gathered behind enemy lines, the railway in northern Beichao has been extremely busy recently, as if it were preparing for the station!"

Li Qiwei looked at the map and thought for a while before speaking:

"Have you noticed any large-scale enemy troop buildup?"

Regarding Li Qiwei's question, the intelligence officer shook his head and said:

"Reconnaissance aircraft conducted round-the-clock surveillance but found no trace of it!"

The US military reconnaissance aircraft at this stage are not the kind of reconnaissance aircraft with passive infrared and low-light night vision capabilities that will be available in the future. The current reconnaissance aircraft basically rely on the eyes of the reconnaissance pilots for observation.

It might be somewhat useful during the day, but at night, unless there's a fire or any light on the ground, it's basically blind. Even during the day, simply draping a white cloak over your body can provide perfect concealment.

This intelligence officer naturally understood the effectiveness of reconnaissance aircraft. If reconnaissance aircraft were useful, they wouldn't have been beaten so badly in the first two battles!
So the intelligence officer hesitated for a moment, worried that the newly arrived Li Qiwei might place too much faith in the reconnaissance results from the reconnaissance aircraft, and then reminded him: "But the aid-to-Korea army is very good at infiltration and dispersed attacks. I'm a little worried about the enemy!"

Li Qiwei naturally understood the intelligence officer's warning; his reconnaissance planes wouldn't be able to detect anything anyway. In fact, the heavy snow would better conceal the movements of the aid-to-Korea army. Therefore, Li Qiwei could only sigh:

"The severe weather caused by the heavy snow should have been a disaster for the reinforcements of Chaozhou, but they managed to turn it into an advantage. This force is extremely strong and awe-inspiring. Warn the first lion of the Southern Chaozhou along the Imjin River to prepare for battle!"

However, the intelligence officer responded as follows:
“Jingjun, I think the Southern Tide Army will take this as a good opportunity to escape. Tell them that as long as they can hold out for half a day, our reinforcements will arrive and the whole battle situation will be completely reversed. I am not as good-tempered as Walker. I will never tolerate deserters!”

Just as Li Qiwei thought the reinforcements from Chaozhou would launch an attack soon, Wang Gensheng was discussing specific battle plans with the leader of the 116 Lions on the banks of the Imjin River.

Wang Gensheng's plan was the same old one: a decapitation strike. He planned to lead the Marines to quickly advance along a side road and then strike directly at the command post of the Southern Chao Army's Marine Corps Commander-in-Chief, thus breaking down the command structure of the Southern Chao Army's Marine Corps Commander-in-Chief.

Ultimately, in terms of cost-effectiveness, the best option is to eliminate the enemy's command post, followed by raiding the enemy's logistics depots to deplete their ammunition and supplies, and only then should a direct confrontation be considered!

Lion 116 did not object to Wang Gensheng's plan to launch a surprise attack on Lion 116 of the Southern Chao Army's land forces.

Although the attack was scheduled for December 31st, it was in the middle of the night, about half an hour before it got dark, because this was the optimal time to attack.

Because during this time period, when the US military's fighter jets and bombers have just flown over, it gets dark and they can't see the situation on the position, so they don't have to worry about being bombed.

The reason for not choosing to attack after it was completely dark was that it would be difficult to clear the mines in the dark. In addition, there were barbed wire and landmines south of the Imjin River, which needed to be cleared by artillery fire. After it got dark, the artillery fire could not be used to confirm the effectiveness of the attack.

With the addition of artillery brought in from within the country, as well as the cannons left behind by Smith's Marine One Lion, there were more than two hundred cannons clearing the way for the 116 Lions' attack.

Such a density of artillery fire was unprecedented in the previous two battles, and as the time for the attack approached...

The artillery positions on the north side of the Imjin River, which had been prepared in advance, were all covered with camouflaged white cloths.

That's right. These heavy artillery pieces with a caliber of over 100 millimeters could not have been transported on the same day. Instead, they were transported over the previous nights and camouflaged artillery positions were set up.

Using a white cloth and then covering it with snow, unless you walk in and touch it, you can't see anything from the air with the help of the reconnaissance pilot's observation.

So when the camouflage cloth was lifted and heavy artillery roared, the soldiers on the defensive positions south of Imjin River in Namchao Country didn't even realize where the heavy artillery came from.

The artillery barrage was extremely rapid, as the firing parameters had already been determined, so firing now only required targeting the previously marked locations. (End of Chapter)