1627 Rise of the South China Sea

Chapter 270 The North Vietnamese Army's Defense Means
After avoiding several consecutive rounds of bow and arrow strikes from overhead, some South Vietnamese infantry finally approached the line of defense with wooden shields on their shoulders.It's just that facing the wall that is more than one foot high, the small group of infantry with a shield in one hand and a weapon in the other has no good attack methods. They can only curl up behind the wooden shield as much as possible, hoping that the ladder-carrying behind them can hurry up rushed up.

The North Vietnamese army erected tall log walls as a means of defense in areas vulnerable to attack, and built stepped fortifications in some areas according to the terrain. Even if the opponent breaks through the first line of defense, they can retreat to a higher terrain. Continue to defend after leveling the fortifications.The defense line currently under attack has built three layers of cascaded defense lines, and thousands of defenders have gathered behind the defense line. It is not easy to conquer this place.

As more and more South Vietnamese infantry rushed under the wooden wall, the lethality of the North Vietnamese archers gradually decreased.A wooden ladder has already started to build up the wall from below, and infantry ants immediately attached themselves to it, but the first South Vietnamese soldier who leaned over the wall was pierced through by several spears, and jumped from the ladder. fell down.At this time, the archers on both sides also adjusted their strategies and began to carry out projectile attacks at a longer distance, so as not to accidentally injure their own people who were already in the fighting state.

The casualties of this kind of hand-to-hand combat were far more than the previous long-range strikes. Mu and Feng saw that the South Vietnamese soldiers climbing up the wall were constantly being poked down by the spear array behind the wall.But there are quite a lot of people who are not afraid of death. Some people even flew into the spear formation behind the wall with their wooden shields straight after climbing on the wall. Companions can have a little more time to react.

"It's brutal!" Feng Annan held up the camera and sighed: "Nanyue's frontline fighters are peasants and soldiers, and they can fight like this. It seems that our previous thinking that peasants and soldiers have no fighting power is a bit extreme!"

"There is a supervising team following behind, and these farmers and soldiers can't retreat, so they can only do their best." Mu Xiabo has a clearer understanding of the reasons for this situation: "However, Annan's soldiers are indeed ruthless, no wonder this The country has not been truly conquered for hundreds of years! In the future, when we come here to fight, we must be more cautious, and we must not underestimate these monkey soldiers."

"I think we can consider absorbing more Annan's soldiers in the future." Feng Annan said: "From the students we met in the training camp, we can see that these monkey soldiers are not afraid of fighting at all, and they also take life and death very lightly. .This kind of soldier can only work hard on the battlefield!"

"The executive committee probably won't agree with your idea." Mu Xiabo held a different view on this: "The executive committee just wanted to turn Annan's army into an allied army, but it didn't have the idea of ​​incorporating them into the directly subordinate troops. In my opinion, it would be good to recruit some soldiers from North Vietnamese immigrants like Qian Tiandun did at most."

While the two of them were talking, more and more wooden ladders had already reached the top of the wall, and the number of places where they hit the top of the wall quickly expanded from one or two places at first to four or five places.Some South Vietnamese infantry had already climbed over the wall and began to fight the North Vietnamese army head-on.The North Vietnamese Army, which previously had some advantages, has now begun to suffer casualties in the melee.

"The North Vietnamese army can't hold on!" Feng Annan couldn't help feeling a little worried when he saw that the North Vietnamese defenders had begun to gradually retreat to the second-tier defense line, which was a higher level.In less than half an hour since South Vietnam launched its offensive, the North Vietnamese army has been faintly unable to hold on, and there are still several waves of attacking forces behind the South Vietnamese army that have not entered the battlefield. Can such a strategy really hold the position?
"I don't think so. The North Vietnamese army is retreating consciously." Mu Xiabo said, "The North Vietnamese army is very particular about building this stepped fortification. The platform between the first and second defense lines It is very narrow, and the number of soldiers that can be accommodated is extremely limited. If the South Vietnamese army wants to use this as a platform for upward attack, it will not be as easy as attacking the first floor."

After Mu Xiabai's explanation, Feng Annan also noticed this fact: "They intentionally let out the first line of defense, so as to reduce the pressure of attack on themselves... This Zheng Bai really has two brushes!"

"If I didn't have two brushes, I wouldn't have been entrusted by the Zheng family to lead this army." Perhaps because the battle in front of him was too intense, Mu Xiabo didn't put down his binoculars for a moment: "Before I came, I was a little worried about the North Vietnamese. The master will be mediocre, but it seems that my worries are a bit unnecessary."

Sure enough, after the North Vietnamese army slowly withdrew from the first line of defense, the attack speed of the South Vietnamese army slowed down a lot—the second wave of infantry had already reached the bottom of the first wall, but due to the gap between the first two lines of defense, The space between them is very small, so the number of soldiers who can enter this platform to attack the second line of defense is extremely limited. A large number of South Vietnamese infantry can only wait for orders under the first wall.Only when the companions above made progress in their attack, or if the casualties retreated, could the soldiers below the wall have room to replenish.

The defense focus of the North Vietnamese army is obviously the second line of defense. The North Vietnamese regular army is obviously deployed on this line of defense. Most of them wear iron armor or have equipment to protect their vitals. The combat effectiveness of soldiers is much stronger.So this line of defense immediately became a meat grinder for the South Vietnamese army. Although infantry from the rear were constantly replenished, after half an hour of fighting, they still couldn't make any progress. Instead, they were on the platform between the first and second lines of defense. Hundreds of bodies were left behind.

The progress of the South Vietnamese attack on the other side is not much better than this side. Due to the steep terrain, the South Vietnamese army suffered more casualties when attacking the first line of defense. At this time, they are also falling into the trap of stepped fortifications Can't extricate myself from the trap.

"The South Vietnamese Army can't take it down." Mu Xiabo finally put down his binoculars and made a judgment on the trend of the battle: "The North Vietnamese Army's fortifications did make full use of the terrain advantage. The combat area of ​​the troops is too small to reflect this advantage. Although the mountain defense line is ten miles long, there are only a few strategic points that are really suitable for large troops to attack. If the South Vietnamese army wants to attack from the front I am afraid that this line of defense can only be filled with human lives!"

"If you were to command the troops to attack this mountain position, what would you do?" Feng Annan asked with great interest.

Mu Xiabo was silent for a while before answering: "If it's just a way of fighting with cold weapons, it may be difficult to open a gap in the frontal battlefield, and some unconventional means must be used, such as night attack and fire attack. In terms of the quality of the soldiers of the South Vietnamese Army, these combat methods are probably very difficult to be effective, or they will put themselves in the hole. In my opinion, the best way is to bypass this line of defense directly."

"That would be difficult. The boats we saw all the way south were small boats carrying only a dozen people. The situation in South Vietnam is probably not much better. We need to use this kind of boat to transport tens of thousands of troops to bypass this line of defense. , it would take thousands of ships." Feng Annan sighed.

Mu Xiabo said: "I heard from the students in the training camp that Annan used to have some large ships, but they were almost consumed in the previous civil wars, and the cost of building and maintaining sea ships is too high, so the cost performance is not as good as cheap Gradually, both sides have no idea of ​​building new ships to participate in the war. So now the sea ships going south to transport food for this army are all small ships with a tonnage of no more than [-] tons, and they have no combat capability at all. , which is very consistent with the prediction of the base camp."

"At least we don't have to worry about being taken from the sea when we are fighting." Feng Annan smiled and said: "It seems that the South Vietnamese army can't fight anymore and is about to withdraw."

After hundreds of corpses were dropped in the small space in front of the second line of defense, there were fewer and fewer places for the attacking South Vietnamese army to settle down. The infantry had to step on the pile of corpses to fight, which was even more difficult than It was the time when he climbed the ladder from the bottom of the steep slope to attack.If this situation continues to force the attack, it will only increase the casualties in vain.

Sure enough, soon after the South Vietnamese Army, the gong to withdraw troops sounded, and the surviving infantry withdrew from the front line as quickly as possible.Then, under the cover of the archers, he returned to the dense forest on the hillside.The North Vietnamese Army let out a burst of cheers to celebrate the victory of this battle in this way.Mu Xiabo raised his hand and looked at his watch. The entire battle, from the dispatch of the South Vietnamese troops to the retreat, took a total of just over three hours, but as a witness, he felt that only a moment had passed.

"Let's go and have a look." Feng Annan suggested.

After explaining the situation to the officer Zheng Bai stayed at this stronghold, a small group of North Vietnamese troops escorted Mu and Feng to the line of defense where the battle was most intense just now. Here they saw Zheng Bai who had just personally commanded the battle. cypress.

"General Zheng has worked hard!" Mu Xiabo now has a new view on Zheng Bo, and his attitude is more cautious than before.This has nothing to do with the country and position he is in, but respect for the military qualities he has just shown in the combat command.

"What do you two know from watching our army fight?" Zheng Bai asked Mu and Feng after taking a sip of water.

"Your army's defensive operations are very good, they are impeccable, and their tactics are very mature." Mu Xiabo praised sincerely.

"If the stalemate continues like this, I think it's unlikely that the rebels in the south will break through this line of defense in a few more months." Feng Annan also gave a very high evaluation of the performance of the North Vietnamese army.

Although the Executive Committee and the Military and Police Department formulate this military intervention plan based on "taking advantage of others' dangers", Mu and Feng have to admit that the war situation of the North Vietnamese army here does not seem to have deteriorated to be as dangerous as imagined. To a certain extent, at least for now, it still looks like a very capable player.If the war situation continues to develop like this, then South Vietnam, which has an advantage in the number of troops, might be grinded away by the North Vietnamese army bit by bit in this flesh and blood mill.

"It is impossible for us to fight with Ruan Ni for a few more months." After receiving the praise from Mu and Feng, Zheng Bai did not show any joy on his face, but looked very tired instead: "Ruan Ni has the Champa Kingdom to provide Part of the material and financial support, but we don't have it. We have recruited a large number of farmers and soldiers for this war. If we fight for a few more months, it will directly lead to a comprehensive reduction in food production. In addition, maintaining such a large-scale army in combat requires a lot of effort. A lot of expenses. Even if we win the battle, we will not be able to go south to attack Ruan Ni. Just now, both of you have seen how our soldiers fought bravely, but if they cannot get the promised military salary and reward for a long time, The morale and combat power will still decline quickly."

Zheng Bai raised his finger to the south and said: "Ruan Ni knows that he can't attack this line of defense, but he still insists on attacking every day. They just want to fight with us. Not only soldiers, but also financial resources and supplies. The distance here is rising. Dragon Mansion is [-] miles away, but it is less than [-] miles away from Guangzhi controlled by Ruan Ni. Whether it is transporting food or soldiers, we have to spend more than double the consumption. The longer this battle lasts , the advantage over Ruan Ni will be more obvious!"

Mu Feng and Mu Feng exchanged glances, they both thought that Zheng Bai could have such an understanding and analysis of the battle situation, it seemed that he was not just a stalwart warrior.Thang Long Mansion is determined to continue the long-term confrontation with the South, but the commanders in front of the North Vietnamese Army obviously do not think that a long-term confrontation is a good solution.

At this time, some personal soldiers came over and whispered a few words in Zheng Bai's ear. Zheng Bai nodded and said to Mu and Feng, "Will you two come with me to watch before the battle?"

"Then ask General Zheng to lead the way."

Although Mu Xiabai and Feng Annan both came from the military before crossing over, their minds were considered strong, and they had observed the entire battle from a distance just now, but when they saw the piles of corpses on the battlefield, they were still hard to suppress Hold the blow to your heart.

The thick smell of blood in the air indicated the brutality of this battle. In some low-lying and uneven places, large patches of blood had begun to coagulate into clots.Teams of auxiliary soldiers and civilian husbands entered the battlefield and carried the bodies of their own soldiers to the rear for disposal. Those South Vietnamese soldiers who died here were not so lucky. After dark, the civilian husbands would throw all their bodies away. Go to the edge of the dense forest below the hillside and let it fend for itself.When the South Vietnamese army launches another attack tomorrow, the corpses of their comrades who died in battle will become the first weapon to attack their psychology.

Only then did Mu and Feng understand why there was a strong smell of corpses among the bloody smell. It seemed that there were quite a few corpses of South Vietnamese soldiers in the dense forest tens of meters away.These South Vietnamese soldiers still mustered up the courage to attack after stepping over the rotting corpses, which shows their toughness-from another perspective, they can also be called barbaric.

Zheng Bai led Mu and Feng to inspect the battlefield while introducing the results of this battle.The South Vietnamese army left a total of more than 100 corpses on the two battlefields, which was the most casualties in the past ten days.The slightly dominant North Vietnamese army also could not avoid casualties. The number of direct casualties exceeded 300, and there were hundreds of wounded soldiers who would lose their fighting ability for a period of time due to their injuries.

In the area where the corpses were emptied, craftsmen entered immediately and began to repair the damaged walls and fortifications. Some of the wooden walls that were knocked down or felled by the South Vietnamese army would be rebuilt in the shortest possible time.In addition, there are civilian husbands carrying loads of sand into the field to bury those conspicuous blood pits.The reason for this is not only to protect the soldiers stationed from the smell of blood, but more importantly, to avoid breeding mosquitoes on the defense line and causing epidemics.All kinds of aftermath work is proceeding in an orderly manner, and it seems that the North Vietnamese Army has already gained experience here.

"General Zheng is so confident and bold to let craftsmen and civilians enter the field. If the opponent seizes this opportunity to launch another attack, wouldn't it be messed up?" Although Feng Annan admired the North Vietnam's aftermath arrangements, he still raised his own doubts.

Zheng Bai gave a rare smile and said: "Ruan Ni has indeed done this before, but after suffering a few losses, they will never be fooled again. Now they have sent real craftsmen and peasants to clean the battlefield, Ruan Ni But I dare not act rashly any more.”

Feng Annan suddenly realized: "It turns out that General Zheng used this as a plan to beat their ambush?"

Zheng Bo said: "It's just a trick, the two of you are laughing!"

After finishing speaking, he looked up at the sky, and then said: "It's a bit late today, it seems that there will be no second attack, you two can go down the mountain and go back to the camp to rest."

The two were escorted back to the Chinese army camp by Zheng Bai's personal soldiers, and that night they began to sort out today's battle observations separately.In terms of the general direction of development, the situation of Annan's civil war is basically in line with the judgment of the base camp, but the specific situation of the war has quite a lot beyond the expectations of the military and police department.Whether it is the brutality of the battle or the tactical offensive and defensive tactics of both sides, there are many points worthy of the attention of the military and police department. Otherwise, after a few days, the Haihan militia will embark on this battlefield to fight, and there may be mistakes in the tactical arrangement. cause undue loss.

In addition, Zheng Bai, the commander of the North Vietnamese Army, also attracted the attention of the two. Not only did he understand military strategy, but he also seemed to have a good view of the overall situation, and he did not show any repulsion or aversion to Haihan's assistance.If North Vietnam can make a good comeback after this, then Zheng Bai's status in the North Vietnamese military may further rise in the future. For the Traversing Group, this should be an object worthy of making and maintaining relationships.

The reports compiled by the two were sent to Tushan Peninsula and Victory Port by radio that night for the reference of the operation planners behind.In addition, they had to prepare the content of the meeting with Zheng Bo the next day, and ask the other party for the personnel, materials and combat strategy support needed by the Haihan militia.The first thing to bear the brunt is to let the North Vietnamese side send civilians to build a dock and logistics base in Yong'an Port in the north in advance.

(End of this chapter)