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Chapter 1158 Trench Warfare 2
Similar scenes continued to occur in the trench that was more than 200 meters long. When the Ming army rushed to about 150 meters, they stopped running and all lay on the ground. Some of them aimed their guns, while others kicked sideways and crawled forward in a very strange posture.

After climbing out about 20 meters, this group of people stopped moving again, aiming their guns, and covering the group behind them who were climbing up. This cycle repeated itself, like waves pushing one another towards the trench.

The soldiers of the Ottoman Guards Corps tried their best to shoot at first to prevent the enemy from approaching, but as soon as they showed their heads, they were hit by intensive fire, and their casualties increased, and their morale became increasingly low.

The officers in charge of guarding the trenches near the river bank had to mobilize reinforcements from neighboring garrisons, but the situation was still not alleviated.

As the Ming army got closer and closer, the accuracy of their shooting became higher and higher. The endless rain of bullets was so overwhelming that the soldiers of the Guards Corps dared not even raise their heads and could only fire blindly.

"Tell Yashar to put the enemy into the trenches. Ahmed, take my Yericheni Guards to reinforce Yashar. Don't be too reckless. Use your brain and use the well-connected terrain to delay the Ming army."

All of this was seen by General Dervish who was in charge of the rear. Seeing that the Guards Corps at the front showed signs of collapse, he quickly sent out the captain of the guard and the most elite corps.

He was also a general who had fought many battles. He quickly understood the tactics of the Ming army and did not intend to waste the lives of the soldiers. He wanted to take the Ming army with him even if he died. At this time, the dense trenches like a woven net could play a role. In addition to avoiding artillery fire, digging such a complex trench was also a good way to set up a battlefield.

"Mustafa Bey, please prepare the cavalry. Once most of the Ming troops enter the trenches, let them have a taste of the Sipahi sabers!"

As soon as the captain of the guard left, Dervish turned his head to the leader of the Sipahi cavalry. The trenches dug by the Ottoman Guards Corps were not only complex but also wide. The main road could accommodate two horses running side by side, and the branch line could also accommodate a single horse.

As long as they could hold the Ming army in a corner of the trench and prevent them from breaking through quickly, they could use the speed of the cavalry to launch a blitzkrieg. No matter how accurate the Ming army's muskets were and how far their range was, they could only fire one shot at the Sipahi cavalry, and then wait to be slaughtered by scimitars and spears.

Regardless of whether the Ottoman defenders were shooting or not, the soldiers of the Warrior Battalion crawled forward at a constant speed. Some were hit by stray bullets on the way, and those with minor injuries stayed where they were and bandaged themselves, while those with serious injuries could only wait to die.

The work of the suicide squad is so cruel. There are no medics and no comrades-in-arms. Staying for one more minute may cause more casualties. If you want to survive, you have to keep moving forward.

As the commander of the Imperial Horse Administration, Zhao En risked his life this time, personally leading the charge and always being at the forefront. After crawling several hundred meters, he was not injured, but he encountered more than one thrilling experience.

A cannonball fired by the Ottomans had passed by him, and he watched helplessly as a centurion two meters away was hit and half of his body melted into the earth without a sound.

"Grenadiers, move forward..." After finally reaching thirty or forty meters in front of the trench, Zhao En stopped crawling, turned around and shouted loudly at the back.

"Bombardier, come forward... bombardier, come forward..."

The shooting continued, the shouting continued, and soon dozens of figures climbed up from behind. They were no different from other warriors, except for the thick leather backpacks on their backs.

Climbing to the front, untied the backpack and unfolded it. It turned out not to be a backpack, but a piece of whale skin with several rows of small pockets sewn on it. Each pocket contained a black egg-shaped iron lump. Holding one in each hand, he stood up and knelt on one leg under the cover of the volley of gunfire, knocked the iron lump hard against the helmet, and threw it out with force. Then the second and third. Each person threw three and immediately lay down motionless.

“Bang… bang bang bang… bang bang bang bang…”

A few seconds later, the trench a few dozen meters away was as lively as New Year's Eve, with a series of explosions. Although the noise was not as loud as a cannonball, it also raised a cloud of dust, and there seemed to be faint screams in the meantime.

"Use the pistol and charge..."

Almost at the same time as the explosion sounded, Zhao En took the lead and jumped up from the ground, desperately running towards the trench. While running and shouting, he pulled out the 24-type revolver from his waist, and lay down at the edge of the trench like a vicious dog, aiming the muzzle at the bottom of the trench, which was more than 2 meters deep.

"Pah... pah pah pah... pah pah pah..." If the sounds just thrown out by the grenade thrower were fire bombs, then the sounds made by the revolver now were like small whips, crisp, short and dense.

There were not only people in the trenches, but quite a few of them, most of them holding machetes and spears, clearly preparing for close combat. But at this point, more than half of them had been injured by grenades and had lost their combat effectiveness, and the rest were a little dazed.

By the time they found the enemy had already shown their heads at the edge of the trench and were ready to fight for their lives, it was too late. The revolver, which could fire six times in a row, was as powerful as a rifle within a few meters, and it would leave a bloody hole no matter if the enemy was wearing armor or not.

"Dafang, tell your men to go south. Wuyuan, lead your men to the west, and I'll attack the center. Make sure to cover each other, and go for stability rather than speed."

Hundreds of warriors looted and cleared the trench closest to the river bank. Zhao En was the first to jump out of the trench, squatting in the corner, loading ammunition into his revolver while calling on two centurions to arrange the next battle deployment.

"Who will stay behind to send the signal? Captain Zhao has fallen on the road."

Wu Yuan also looked like a veteran. Even in the fierce battle, his mind was still clear. He reminded his superiors of their omissions in time, but he also showed a little melancholy.

After only charging a few hundred meters, at least one centurion was injured or even killed. The real battle is about to begin, and I wonder how many familiar figures will fall.

"Send the signal now and have the second echelon follow. No matter how many enemies we encounter ahead, we must gain a foothold in the depths. Let's go!"

Zhao En's face did not show much emotion, and the emperor's words of admonition were ringing in his ears. This battle must be fought well, and the preset positions must be taken down no matter how many people die. Otherwise, when the smoke clears, the next two waves of warriors will lose their foothold and will be exposed in the wilderness and become sitting ducks, and more people will die.

Zhao En guessed correctly that the battle for the trenches was not smooth sailing. The Ottoman Guards lived up to their name. Although they were disrupted by a wave of grenades and short guns that could fire in bursts and were forced to abandon their frontline positions, they quickly reorganized and launched a counterattack on the lost positions.

(End of this chapter)