Traveling through the late Ming Dynasty to promote Chinese civilization

Chapter 304 The Rattan Shield Soldiers Collapse in a Single Battle

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The rattan shield soldiers led by the Lin brothers were all carefully selected and personally trained by the brothers. Each of them had some martial arts skills, otherwise they would not have been able to assist the government in suppressing bandits in the Zheng family battles time and again. Their speed on foot was much faster than that of ordinary militiamen, and soon they were only 200 meters away from the "Fine Red Line" of the Qiongzhou Camp.

As Lin Sheng walked, he shouted loudly, "Brothers, today we'll take the lead and win this credit, so that those arrogant guys in the navy can see that the Zheng family can conquer the world not just by relying on the navy!"

The rattan shield soldiers responded in unison:

"Yes!"

"Chief Lin is right!"

"You've done a good job, go back and collect your reward of fifty taels of silver!"

Lin Cha instructed, "The muskets can only fire for a maximum of fifty paces. Everyone, use rattan shields to cover your vitals. After the enemy fires their first shot, rush forward and use your ground-sweeping swords to cut the feet of the musket-wielding soldiers. The enemy's formation will be thrown into disarray!"

"Follow the order!"

When the distance closed to 100 meters, Quartz gave the order: "Prepare for volley fire!"

The rattan shield soldiers started to jog instead of walking briskly. It seemed that they had also witnessed the range and power of muskets and knew that the key to fighting against firearms was to get close and engage in hand-to-hand combat.

90 meters, 80 meters, 70 meters...

Once within the rifle's optimal firing range, Quartz swung his sword down forcefully: "Fire!"

The rattan shield soldiers raised their woven rattan shields, held them in front of them, crouched low, and ran quickly in small steps. What greeted them was a volley of 500 Qionghai Type 3 rifles.

"Bang bang bang!" Gunfire erupted as 500 rifles simultaneously spewed out dazzling flames, raining down lead bullets at the running rattan shield soldiers.

Although the road was very wide, it was bordered by a cliff on one side with the sea below and a mountain slope on the other, leaving less than three hundred men able to deploy directly in front. Of the eight hundred rattan shield soldiers, only about a third were at the front, with the rest following closely behind. These two to three hundred men were subjected to the firepower of 500 infantrymen, and the density of bullets they took was unimaginable.

The seemingly sturdy rattan shield could easily block arrows, and perhaps even one or two lead bullets. However, when three or even four lead bullets hit the rattan shield, the enormous stopping force did not penetrate the shield, but it shattered it. Many people's rattan shields were torn to pieces. After losing their protection, some people were shot and fell to the ground, clutching their wounds and rolling around, howling in pain.

The Lin brothers, Lin Sheng and Lin Cha, were shocked to find that their opponent's firearms were far more powerful than their own musketeer guards. However, with the die already cast, they had no choice but to grit their teeth and charge forward.

To their disappointment, before they could even get close enough to unleash their signature ground-sweeping sword technique, a second volley of fire began. This time, without the cover of rattan shields, rows upon rows of those charging forward fell. Lin Cha, who was at the very front, was also struck in the chest by a lead bullet and died instantly.

Lin Sheng was stunned. The thief's musket could fire continuously, unlike a matchlock gun which required a long wait after each shot. This was completely unexpected. Zheng Zhilong knew a little about it, but unfortunately, he hadn't warned him before they left.

In the chaos, the charging crowd rushed into the area within fifty meters, but every step they took was a path to death. Countless rattan shields were blasted into dust by lead bullets, and the ground was littered with rattan and fragments. The crowd fell down like weeds being cut down.

Lin Sheng ultimately couldn't dodge the third volley and was shot in the head. With both leaders dead, the remaining rattan shield soldiers no longer cared about the fifty taels of reward. They abandoned their rattan shields and broadswords and scattered like birds, fleeing back to Suocheng.

They were defeated just like that? The Zheng family soldiers watching the battle were dumbfounded. Even though they didn't have high expectations for the rattan shield soldiers' battle against the arquebusiers, the fact that they were defeated so decisively still shocked them.

Zheng Zhiwan hurriedly said, "Brother, the only ones who can stop these musketeers are your Black Guards, so let's go!"

How could Zheng Zhilong bear to play his trump card for survival? After a moment of contemplation, he said, "The enemy is at the height of their power; it is not advisable to fight them head-on. Close the city gates and use the cannons to blunt their momentum first."

The city gates were closed, and several cannons on the city walls, already prepared, fired several shots at the city below.

Artillery is, after all, a branch of the military that requires a certain level of technical skill. The Zheng family has always valued naval power, and these land-based city defense cannons are lucky if they even fire; don't expect them to be accurate. Several cannons opened fire, which was quite impressive, but the shells seemed to be flying everywhere. The only shell that was somewhat reliable grazed the Qiongzhou soldiers who were now advancing in column formation, bounced a few times, and created several craters, but it didn't hit a single person.

Xu Yifan looked up at the several Hongyi cannons and suggested to Shi Ying, "Let's knock down these cannons before attacking the city. It will reduce the casualties of our soldiers and make our attack easier."

Shi Ying nodded and waved his hand: "The artillery company of the first battalion halts its advance, sets up cannons on both sides of the column, and takes out these cannons. The rest of you maintain formation and continue advancing."

Zuo Wuwei, the artillery company commander of the 1st Battalion, was ordered to lead his troops away from the main formation and set up cannons by the roadside to avoid affecting the march. The distance was about 700 meters. The cannon positions on the wall were within the range of the mountain guns, but the wall was only 6 meters high, so the angle of the cannon muzzles had to be adjusted.

Zuo Wuwei raised his monocular telescope to observe—with the self-sufficiency of this thing, artillery company commanders could also use this powerful tool after battalion-level officers or naval captains—at a distance of 700 meters, it would obviously be difficult to knock out a target like a Hongyi cannon, as mountain artillery was not yet accurate enough, but fire suppression was no problem at all.

Temporary artillery positions were quickly set up, and after calculating the angles and distances, a counterattack was launched against the city wall.

With a series of booming sounds, six of the twelve standard mountain guns in the battalion's artillery company opened fire, shells whistling as they hurtled towards the city walls. These shots were far more accurate than those fired by the Zheng family. Although none directly hit the Japanese cannons, only one or two shells flew over the walls and landed inside the city. The rest struck the walls and crenellations on either side of the cannons, sending shards flying and terrifying the gunners. Several gunners turned to run, only to be slashed down by the Japanese guards who were supervising the battle.

The gunners returned to their cannons with trepidation, preparing to fire back under the watchful eyes of the supervisory team. At that moment, the other six cannons in the artillery company opened fire, this time with even greater accuracy. One shell struck the crenellation squarely, and flying debris struck and killed a gunner. The gunners erupted in chaos, running in all directions, and even the most ruthless supervisory team couldn't quell the commotion. The artillery company, with just a simple rotational firing tactic, had silenced the Zheng family's cannons.

Seeing that even the Hongyi cannons could not stop the enemy's advance, the Zheng family's followers on the wall panicked. They had no intention of staying with the city to the death, and many were already thinking about how to escape after the city fell.