GBP Chapter 32 Breaking Through the Stronghold and Subduing
Chapter 32 Breaking Through the Stronghold and Subduing
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Seeing the terrifying power of the cannonball, Lin San was horrified. Could this be sorcery? For a moment, he lost his ability to judge, only fear remained. The musket was already so powerful, and the cannon that Mr. Yan had described was beyond his comprehension; it could only be explained by sorcery.
He had been through countless battles and killed countless people; he had seen even the most gruesome deaths. But this small iron ball possessed such immense power that even with his innate superhuman strength, capable of taking on ten men at once, he could not withstand a single, gentle strike from it.
Before they could think any further, the two iron pipes opposite them spewed out deadly flames once more. After the first test shot, the second shot was even more cunning, hitting the top of the wooden wall directly. Wood chips and fragments flew everywhere, and many soldiers were impaled by wood shards, falling to the ground with cries of agony.
All the soldiers threw down their knives, trying to find a safe place. For a moment, chaos erupted as they ran rampant along the wooden wall.
Lin San didn't run. It wasn't that he wasn't afraid; he was terrified. He wasn't just afraid of dying, but even more afraid of the certain defeat he would suffer, and the destruction of his years of hard-earned power—that terrified him more than death itself. He stood against the wall, his hands and feet ice-cold, watching his once-valiant men run in panic, his mind blank—was this it? Was it all over? Was he to surrender, lose the entire stronghold, and then die a humiliating death?
Liu Ye watched the soldiers' panicked state with schadenfreude and said to Liang Xiaoming, "Mingzi, it seems they're not planning to surrender. How about we try a grenade?"
Liang Xiaoming nodded: "Shatter their psychological bottom line and see if they surrender."
Following instructions, the gunners adjusted the gun's angle and replaced the shells with those equipped with fuses. Although their movements were not yet fully skilled and appeared somewhat clumsy, they were still methodical. With both guns loaded with shells simultaneously, preparations were complete, and the two gunners responsible for ignition brought torches close to the ignition ports.
Liang Xiaoming gave the order: "Light the fire!"
Liu Ye, mimicking the tone of a Western film, gruffly shouted, "Fire!"
The fuse was lit, and the first grenade used in actual combat in this timeline was propelled out of the muzzle by the force of the gunpowder explosion, flying towards the other side with enormous kinetic energy.
The grenades traced an arc, flew over the wooden wall, and landed inside the village. Moments later, the delayed fuses detonated the explosives, and with two loud booms, the two grenades, propelled by the explosive force of the black powder, shattered into more than thirty fragments, which flew mercilessly towards the people around them.
The soldiers standing on the wooden wall were only part of the mountain stronghold's troops; most of them were behind the gate, preparing to meet the enemy. Shrapnel from the explosion enveloped the dense crowd near the gate, and the soldiers fell in droves like felled rice stalks.
In just three rounds of shelling, the mountain stronghold suffered dozens of casualties. This was far more despairing than charging into a musket formation. Charging into a musket array, as long as casualties weren't a concern, offered the possibility of close combat. But facing iron pipes that could claim lives from hundreds of paces away, all the soldiers lost their will to fight, and the entire force collapsed. No one cared about holding their positions anymore; everyone fled into the stronghold, wanting to escape the terrifying fire of the heavenly thunder.
Seeing the people on the wooden wall fleeing in droves, and hearing the chaotic howls and shouts from inside the village, Liu Ye snapped his fingers: "It's about time to break in!"
He ordered: "Concentrate fire on the gate. Once the gate is open, musketeers in front and spearmen on the sides, maintain the attack formation and advance. Upon encountering the enemy, riflemen fire while spearmen provide cover. Advance!"
The guards responded in unison, "Yes, sir!"
The cannons were advanced two hundred meters to bombard the gate. At this distance, aiming was unnecessary; they could simply level the cannons and fire solid shot. The wooden gate, unlike the copper-clad gates of city walls, was quickly reduced to rubble after a few shots.
Passing through the billowing smoke, the guards formed a neat formation, with spearmen protecting the musketeers as they filed in.
After two months, the musketeers had grown to 220 men, and their firepower was formidable. The mountain stronghold was in chaos, having lost all organized resistance. Sporadic counterattacks were easily thwarted by flintlock muskets, and the spearmen simply finished off the fallen soldiers as they passed by. The advance was swift, and in less than half an hour, they reached Lin San's mansion.
The large house was located in the center of the village. The soldiers had abandoned their protection of their leader and scattered in all directions, leaving no one guarding the front of the house.
Liu Ye and Liang Xiaoming stepped past the security guards and stood in front of the house. The door was tightly shut, and there was no sound from inside. Liu Ye said with a grin, "Sooner than expected! Mingzi, what do you think?"
Looking at the tightly closed door, Liang Xiaoming felt quite emotional.
Now, they stand here as victors, the fate of the entire stronghold resting in their hands. Modern education and human rights concepts are incompatible with this scene, yet the feeling is exhilarating.
He exclaimed, "Now I understand why the ancients were so obsessed with power and wanted to control the army. In a society without the rule of law and human rights, power and the army represent absolute strength. The feeling of arbitrarily deciding the fate and life and death of others is like a drug; once you've tasted it, you don't want to give it up!"
Liu Ye laughed heartily: "It's not just the ancients; throughout history, money has been an aphrodisiac for women, and power has been an aphrodisiac for men. Our opponent, Lin San, has also fallen into this trap."
As he spoke, he stepped up the stairs and kicked open the door. Shi Ying and several guards quickly followed, just in case.
At the far end of the hall sat a burly man, none other than Lin San, with a scholar-like figure standing beside him. Lin San had bloodstains on his shoulder and a grim expression, clearly indicating he was injured.
Shi Ying and the others pointed their guns at the two men. At a distance of less than twenty paces, they could easily riddle them with bullets without even aiming. The team members had already loaded their ammunition, their fingers on the triggers, awaiting Xia Tiannan's orders.
After the grenade exploded, Lin San didn't stand on the wall waiting to die. He returned to his house, dejected and distraught. This was the center of his power in the mountain stronghold, a place once feared by all the neighboring strongholds. Now, it was about to become his grave.
Others could escape, but he couldn't. Without the hundreds of brave soldiers of the stronghold, Lin San was no longer the valiant Xiao Fengxian who was the most valiant in the stronghold. No matter where he fled, he would just be a walking corpse.
Liu Ye looked at Lin San, this once brave and confident muscleman, who now seemed to have aged considerably, his eyes lifeless and his face pale. Faced with modern firearms, even the bravest individual is insignificant.
Liu Ye then glanced at the scholar next to him.
"This gentleman is calm and decisive in handling matters. May I ask where you are from?" Liu Ye turned to Mr. Yan. Judging from his attire, he was a scholar. Regardless of whether he had any official rank or not, Liu Ye was desperately short of scholars under his command. He felt that he had set up his operations but had no capable people to lend a hand, and it was precisely at this time that he was eager to find talented individuals.
Mr. Yan sensed his opportunity and roused himself: "My surname is Yan, and my given name is Guang. I was originally the Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of War in Nanjing, but I offended my superior and was demoted to Yazhou. I am currently awaiting punishment."
Liu Ye felt even more confident in this man's abilities and asked, "I intend to make a name for myself in Qiongzhou Prefecture. Would Mr. Yan be willing to assist me?"
Yan Guang had been waiting for these words. He could see that Xia Tiannan was ambitious. A man with both powerful military force and ambition was worth following and serving. He himself was just a convicted criminal exiled. If he missed this opportunity, he might die of old age on this island. Without any pretense, he answered crisply, "I am unworthy, but I am willing to serve my lord like a dog!"
Liu Ye was very pleased with the address "My Lord." Didn't the subordinates of Cao Cao and Liu Bei in the Three Kingdoms period also address their leaders as "My Lord"? This Sima De had passed the imperial examination at the lowest level, so his cultural level was likely quite high. Remarkably, he lacked the pedantry and naiveté of typical scholars, and his analysis of military strategy was insightful; he would undoubtedly be a great asset in the future. One was eager for talent, and the other was desperately seeking a worthy lord; they quickly reached an agreement.
They then successfully subdued Lin San.