Munitions Empire

The battle on the ground was still raging on, and Liu Guozhu felt the slight jolts atop his own tank. Peering through the cracks of the commander’s view window, he saw the village ahead and the routed soldiers crowded on the road.

The Qi Country’s troops had been completely defeated, and these retreating soldiers from the Qi Army finally showed their so-called true colors.

At least one-fifth of these units were even equipped with Shireck Flintlock Guns, they had no steel helmets, and some weren’t even fully equipped with individual gear.

The troops of the Third Prince were known to have the worst equipment, which is why they never completed their rearming before the outbreak of the war.

The original plan was that, with the support of strong defensive fortifications, it wouldn’t matter much if the troop’s equipment was slightly inferior.

But who could have known that the positions would be completely lost on the first day of combat, exposing the Qi Country’s troops in the open field and revealing their outdated equipment.

Now, the Qi Army couldn’t even think of organizing a counterattack, they couldn’t even muster enough to reorganize their defenses.

Liu Guozhu looked at the Qi soldiers blocking his path and felt that wasting time on these enemies, who had long since lost their will to fight, was a crime.

To him, these men had been frightened out of their wits by the bombers, they would only surrender or flee, completely devoid of any will to resist.

He thus ordered his driver to drive the tank directly forward, since more Tang Army soldiers were catching up behind him.

At the rumbling of the engine, the Qi soldiers began to panic. A Tang tank burst through the trees, shot out, and terrified them into a scattered flight.

"The Tang Army is coming!” A soldier screamed at the top of his lungs as he scattered, prompting those around him to start running in chaos as well.

"Tat-tat-tat!” The coaxial machine gun began firing bursts, and the attack from mere dozens of meters away caused countless deaths and injuries among the Qi soldiers who had just settled down to camp.

These Qi soldiers were latecomers; they had not heard the sound of the tank engines because Liu Guozhu and his men had already stopped here for a rest before they decided to pause in this clearing.

In fact, the combat quality of the Qi Army was really poor, it could even be said they lacked proper training and didn’t know what combat was all about.

Before setting up camp, these men had not even sent out patrol squads to scout the perimeter, nor had they arranged for sentries.

They were merely fleeing and had not anticipated that the enemy’s attack would be faster than their retreat.

So when Liu Guozhu burst forth, the Qi soldiers panicked once again; they ran out of habit, and some even raised their hands in surrender.

No one noticed that only one tank, commanded by Liu Guozhu, had broken out of the woods, and nobody saw that there weren’t even any Tang soldiers behind it.

Yes, nearby there was only Liu Guozhu’s Tank No. 4. He had contacted his platoon leader just minutes ago, and the latter with another tank were currently waiting for supplies in the next village.

Unknowingly, Liu Guozhu’s tank had moved to the very front of their forces, and not far ahead was another small village.

"Tat-tat-tat-tat!” The coaxial machine gun kept firing, mowing down those Qi soldiers who turned their backs to the enemy.

One after another, the Qi soldiers fell, completely breaking the last line of psychological defense.

They began to give up running, surrendering en masse, all raising their hands high and waiting for the judgment of that steel beast on their lives or deaths.

Thank God, as soon as Liu Guozhu saw that the situation was under control, he immediately ordered a cease-fire.

The sound of machine gunfire stopped, and the battlefield fell silent again. Liu Guozhu opened the hatch and poked his head out, looking down at the Qi soldiers within arm’s reach.

"Stack your weapons over there! No tricks!” Liu Guozhu shouted loudly, surrounded by vast numbers of Qi soldiers.

The Qi soldiers never expected the driver of the terrifying tank to be a child; they looked somewhat stunned at the young figure before them, and eventually resigned to their fate, stacking their weapons on the cleared ground beside the tank. ꞦΑ𐌽ỒβĘᶊ

Soon, a squad of Tang Army soldiers arrived. They had a truck with them, carrying ammunition and various assorted items.

The Tang soldiers that arrived consisted of roughly two squads. The reason for their scattered arrival was that they encountered a large number of fleeing Qi soldiers along the way and had to allocate a substantial number of troops to guard these surrendering enemies.

"The road is pretty much blocked by these captives. You guys with the tanks got here fast, but the following infantry had a tough time,” said the platoon leader, lighting a cigarette, to Liu Guozhu.

In front of him, his men stood with weapons held, continuing to disarm the Qi soldiers. He raised the cigarette pack in his hand, Liu Guozhu shook his head and raised his hand to signal a decline to the kind offer.

Tank soldiers weren’t allowed to smoke on the tanks, and Liu Guozhu was just a kid who hadn’t grown his full set of hair yet, so he didn’t smoke at all.

"Thanks! Our tank platoon is in the next village over! We’re in need of manpower to have a look at the village ahead!”

"With tank cover, I don’t mind! Twelve people, and me… that’s about all we have… the truck will have to stay behind; it’s just dead weight if we bring it along,” the infantry platoon leader was willing to follow and pointed at the truck behind him as he spoke.

"Get ready, we’re moving out now! We’ll take that village so we can rest there for the night,” Liu Guozhu’s tactical plan was crystal clear.

"No problem at all! Your flank is my responsibility!” the infantry platoon leader delegated tasks, “Squad leader 1, take a few men to occupy the edge of the forest on the flank! Find a place with a good view and set up the machine gun!”

After finishing his instructions, he pointed to another direction, “The rest of Squad 1 will be under my command! Follow the tank and keep to the right flank for guard! Keep low! And keep an eye on any movements on the sides of the village!”

Liu Guozhu pressed his throat communicator, reminded his driver to start the vehicle, and then continued to remind the infantrymen, “I’ve opened fire before, so they’re definitely aware of us in the village! They’ve probably prepared themselves, so don’t let your guard down!”

"Got it! Old Zhang! Old Zhang! Get the mortar down from the truck! Set it up! If combat breaks out, aim at the village and fire! Suppress the enemy’s firepower!” The more cautious infantry platoon leader turned back to the group that stayed behind and shouted.

An old soldier raised his arm; he was once a man from Zheng Country, but now he was a man of Tang Country, without much talent, he just muddled along in the military…

Under his direction, a few from Squad 2 who stayed behind to watch the prisoners came to assist, lifting a 60mm caliber mortar from the truck; a piece of support weaponry commonly equipped by company and platoon level units.

Because of its small size and ease of installation and operation, it was particularly favored by the frontline troops. In this battle, the mortar seldom had a chance to demonstrate its capabilities and thus was left on the truck, following the advance.

Now, with the indirect fire support ready, Liu Guozhu felt more assured, and he commanded his tank to turn around, leaving behind a group of puzzled Qi soldiers, and charged towards the nearby village.

The rumble of the tank’s engine burst forth along with plumes of black smoke. The leading infantry, carrying MG43 machine guns, had already entered the forest, while the remaining troops had spread out, taking attack formations along the road.

Liu Guozhu commanded his tank to brazenly drive down the highway, charging straight toward the village of Qi Country.

Soon, gunfire echoed from the village ahead. Liu Guozhu quickly retracted his head and stretched his hand to close the hatch above.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw his own infantry lowering their bodies, their advance slowing down.

All the men skillfully sought cover; it must be said that the combat aptitude of the Tang Army was much higher than that of the Qi Army’s.

"Attention! Enemy attack! Locate the enemy’s fire source! Can you see the shooter’s position?” Liu Guozhu asked his gunner, as he searched through the commander’s observation window for the enemy’s firing location.

The gunner, peering through his own scope, couldn’t make out the target either, since his view was even more restricted. Although it was clearer, he could only see buildings within the village.

"Damn it.” Liu Guozhu had to once again lift the hatch above him, peeked out quickly, then ducked back in to complain.

He saw Qi soldiers scattered throughout the village, along with Qi Army trucks, startled warhorses, and a mess of supply boxes piled haphazardly along the roadside.

"Machine operator! Fire the hull machine gun! Don’t bother aiming, just strafe! Suppress the people in the village!” Liu Guozhu loudly issued the firing order.

Then he ordered his gunner and loader in front, “Load the high-explosive shell! Open fire when you have a target! Don’t wait for my command!”

The loader quickly pulled out a shell from beside him and adroitly slid it into the cannon’s breech. By then, Tank No. 4 was still advancing, but because it was driving on the road without much jostling, the loader was able to operate smoothly.

Only then did Liu Guozhu belatedly order a halt, and the tank shook slightly before it stopped in the middle of the road.

The machine operator, who had just hung the drum on the machine gun, pulled the trigger, and the hull-mounted machine gun began its relentless roaring.

Simultaneously with the machine gun’s ceaseless strafing, the short barrel 75mm caliber cannon on the turret of Tank No. 4 belched a thick cloud of smoke, launching a shell!

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