Chapter 99

Upon learning that the Red Army's Independent Division had gathered in Hanyuan, they immediately advanced straight toward Xingjing. The Sichuan Army, which was guarding Xingjing, although fearful, knew that this battle had to be fought. If they chose not to fight out of fear, they would not be able to explain themselves to Liu Wenhui.

Although Liu Wenhui had stationed a full division in Xingjing, the city itself was only defended by one main regiment. The other two main regiments were guarding the two important routes leading into Xingjing.

He Zhengdao, leading the main force of the division, arrived outside Xingjing and observed the defensive positions set up by the Sichuan Army. He frowned slightly and said, "It seems Liu Wenhui has really invested a lot. These defensive positions are quite well-constructed!"

Through his binoculars, He Zhengdao could clearly see that the defensive position not only had well-built trenches but also machine gun bunkers. These bunkers would be difficult to deal with even with mortars.

Zhang Cheng, the regimental commander who was also conducting pre-battle reconnaissance, said with a grimace, "Commander, if we launch a frontal assault, it will be hard to control the casualties! We tried earlier, and our mortars couldn't even dent those bunkers!"

He Zhengdao, understanding Zhang Cheng's concern, smiled and said, "Don't worry. The reconnaissance battalion has already reported this to me. So, I've prepared a special weapon for you!"

"Are those the big cannons?"

When the Independent Division set out for Xingjing, many of the soldiers saw that the artillery battalion commander, Zhu Dingyi, was dragging along several strange large cannons. Zhu Dingyi claimed they were cannons, but they looked very peculiar.

Because the 1st Regiment joined up with the division headquarters last, Zhang Cheng was unaware of the new weapon's testing. However, He Zhengdao was confident that the powerful weapon he had developed in advance would render those machine gun bunkers ineffective.

He smiled and said, "Old Zhu, bury those big cannons in front. Zhang Cheng, order the troops to provide fire support for the artillery battalion. Old Zhu, don't get too close. We're not in a hurry; we'll move forward bit by bit and slowly break through their defenses."

"Yes, Commander! Just watch, I'll show them that those bunkers are no match for us!"

The other soldiers of the 1st Regiment waiting to attack soon saw Zhu Dingyi and the artillery battalion soldiers carefully pushing what looked like oil drums to the attack position.

The defending Sichuan Army soldiers, seeing this, were puzzled. "What are the Red Army soldiers doing? What can they do with a few oil drums? Can these oil drums even fire shells?"

If Zhu Dingyi had heard this, he would have smiled and said, "These oil drums can't fire shells, but they can launch explosive packages! Although their range is not as good as mortars, they can still throw explosive packages 200 to 300 meters away!"

If someone from the future had seen this rudimentary weapon, they would have recognized it as the improvised heavy artillery used by the Eighth Route Army during the Liberation War, when they lacked proper siege weapons.

He Zhengdao and Zhu Dingyi called this weapon the "Flying Thunder Cannon." However, He Zhengdao preferred another name for it: the "Conscienceless Cannon." It looked simple but was incredibly powerful.

As the oil drums were buried one by one, eight artillerymen, holding ignition devices, ran to a position several dozen meters away from the drums upon Zhu Dingyi's command to "ignite."

This action puzzled the Sichuan Army soldiers watching. But then, with a loud "thud," a lid-like object flew out of the oil drums. When this lid reached the Sichuan Army's defensive position, a massive explosion followed, causing many Red Army soldiers preparing to attack to cover their ears. The reaction of the Sichuan Army soldiers on the position was unimaginable!

This seemingly simple weapon had astonishing destructive power. Although it was not very accurate, any area hit by an explosive package would lose all combat capability within a 20-meter radius.

When an explosive package accurately hit a machine gun bunker in the front defensive position, the explosion turned the previously impervious bunker into a pile of rubble.

Seeing this, the attacking Red Army soldiers knew that the enemies inside the bunker were likely dead. The destructive power of these rudimentary shells exceeded their expectations.

As the Sichuan Army soldiers on the position were terrified by the dozen or so Flying Thunder Cannon shells, the mortars, which had a longer range, resumed their attack on the front position.

Zhang Cheng, who had been closely monitoring the battle, said with delight, "1st Regiment, prepare to assault!"

The two most threatening machine gun bunkers had been completely destroyed, and the front-line defenders seemed to have lost their will to fight. This was the perfect time to launch an assault!

However, He Zhengdao, who was with the 1st Regiment, cautioned, "The enemy's defensive position is deep. When the 1st Regiment attacks, don't rush forward. Just control the front-line position first.

We need to break the enemy's will by focusing on key points. Be steady and don't be overly eager to win. Compared to our soldiers' determination, these Sichuan Army soldiers have little resolve to defend."

"Yes, Commander! I understand!"

After modifying the order, the mortar fire from the artillery battalion ceased, and the 1st Regiment, ready to charge, launched their first assault under the regimental commander's roar.

"Comrades, charge!"

Led by the company and platoon commanders, the 1st Regiment's soldiers quickly advanced along the route previously blocked by the enemy. The machine gun bunkers, which had been silenced by the artillery fire, seemed to have lost their effectiveness.

The remaining defenders, who had lost their will to fight, could not resist the 1st Regiment's assault. Soon, except for those who retreated to the second line of defense, the remaining Sichuan Army soldiers surrendered to the 1st Regiment.

The Sichuan Army had believed that the machine gun bunkers would effectively kill the attacking Independent Division. However, with the appearance of the Flying Thunder Cannons, these bunkers became easy targets.

When Zhang Cheng arrived at the front-line position, he saw some Sichuan Army corpses with no visible bullet wounds but with blood flowing from their seven orifices. This sight made the 1st Regiment's soldiers, who had taken over the position, wary of the oil drum cannons.

Even the Sichuan Army soldiers who had retreated to the second line of defense, seeing Zhu Dingyi setting up the oil drum cannons again, panicked and shouted, "Fire! Shoot quickly! We can't let them set up those cannons again. Otherwise, we're all dead!"

However, when they tried to counterattack, the Red Army, who had already taken the front-line position, did not let them off easily. During this process, Zhu Dingyi and the artillery battalion set up the oil drum cannons again.

Seeing the oil drum cannons being ignited again, the soldiers who had narrowly escaped earlier immediately ran away, shouting, "Run! If you get hit by those shells, there's no chance of survival!"

Seeing this through his binoculars, He Zhengdao nodded in satisfaction and said, "Zhang Cheng, we can take this defensive position in one go. These Sichuan Army soldiers have lost the courage to fight us!"

Compared to the destructive power of the Flying Thunder Cannons, He Zhengdao felt that their psychological impact was even stronger. Anyone who had seen or heard the terrifying consequences of these cannons would be afraid.

Thus, what was expected to hold the Independent Division for at least a day ended by noon. The Red Army Independent Division, following the defeated Sichuan Army soldiers, launched a coordinated attack with the reconnaissance battalion that had infiltrated the city. In this situation, the Sichuan Army commander defending Xingjing knew the situation was hopeless.

The Sichuan Army commander led his loyal troops to break through and escape toward Ya'an. He Zhengdao, who had taken Xingjing, truly understood the importance of weapons to an army.

If he had not prepared these Conscienceless Cannons in Hanyuan, it would have been impossible to take Xingjing so quickly. Even if they eventually captured Xingjing, the Independent Division would have suffered heavy casualties.

But now, with the help of a dozen Conscienceless Cannons, the battle had fundamentally changed. Not only did it greatly reduce the casualties of the attacking force, but it also completely shattered the will of the defending troops.

The main regiment commanders, who had initially thought the oil drums were too ugly, now looked forward to using the Flying Thunder Cannons, saying, "Commander, can we use these Flying Thunder Cannons in our regiments? They look unremarkable but are incredibly effective!"

"What for? Do you plan to carry these cannons with you? They are not light! I hope that in the future, our Independent Division can be equipped with large-caliber howitzers as soon as possible. That's the truth!"

Indeed! Even though they had captured two mountain artillery battalions from the Central Army, the mountain guns were too cumbersome to carry, so they were buried on site. As a result, attacking a city occasionally seemed very difficult. The Flying Thunder Cannons were mainly created to reduce casualties during attacks.