I, the prince in distress, send money

Chapter 196 Fierce Battle
Lin Ruoyu could sense that the enemy's attack was very rapid. Their eight cannons had only bombarded the shield array for a short while before concentrating their firepower on the two shield-carrying vehicles in front, smashing them with about ten shells. This created a small opening.

The more than five hundred infantrymen who were ready to attack rushed forward impatiently.

Infantry-artillery coordination is always a high-end military technology, and these Minisians clearly haven't mastered it yet. After the infantry advanced to a distance of 150 meters, the eight cannons ceased firing.

As the enemy infantry approached within a hundred meters in neat formation, the player behind the shield vehicle led his soldiers to open fire.

A row of flintlock musketeers, positioned behind the shield carts and sandbags used to fill the gaps, obeyed their commander's orders, raised their guns and fired forward. After firing a volley, they immediately turned and retreated.

The second rank of flintlock musketeers, led by their player commander, stepped forward, lowered their guns from their shoulders amidst the sharp whistle, and opened fire.

And so it went, row after row. After the front row finished firing, the back row would move forward, and those standing at the back would load their ammunition. Once the brothers in front had finished firing and stepped back, they would be ready to move forward.

Three rows of gunners took turns firing, creating a continuous barrage that turned the shield-cart defense line into a monster that lay on the ground, breathing fire and smoke, with bullets whizzing towards the enemy a hundred meters away.

The Minisian infantry, who were lined up and trying to charge, were also hit. The halberdiers and swordsmen fell to the ground at the officers' shouts, and the arquebusiers following behind stepped forward and returned fire in volleys.

Strictly speaking, flintlock muskets did not actually have an absolute advantage over matchlock muskets in terms of power, range, and rate of fire.

However, the flintlock muskets that Chris equipped his soldiers with were clearly an exception. The materials of the barrels, the reliability of the flintlock mechanism, and the optimized structure from later generations all made them have a faster rate of fire and more powerful firepower.

So when the Minesian arquebusiers also lined up in neat rows and took turns firing according to the officers' orders, although they had a numerical advantage, they were overwhelmed by the enemy behind the shield carts in terms of the number of times they could fire.

They fell one by one.

After only three minutes of exchange of fire, several obvious gaps appeared in the Minisian musketeer ranks, and the musketeers who were rotated in were even isolated and helpless for a time.

The friendly forces on his left and right were gone, and the nearest soldier was actually behind him.

This situation severely damaged their morale. The soldiers who had raised their flags were even looking around. Lin Ruoyu saw that the Minisian infantry ranks had begun to waver.

Then they sounded the retreat drums, and the soldiers quickly retreated, ending the exchange of fire.

The enemy commander realized that engaging in a firefight was a mistake.

When they rallied and launched another attack on the shield formation, the enemy made targeted adjustments.

To the rhythmic beat of drums, the arquebusiers marched forward in neat formations, firing their guns as they approached. In addition, they dragged over eight cannons and bombarded the shield formation from a distance of two hundred meters.

The Ultra Warriors immediately retaliated, with flintlock musketeers and tiger-squatting cannons engaging in a fierce battle of wits, soldiers against soldiers and generals against generals.

However, this time, even though their flintlock muskets had a higher rate of fire than their matchlock muskets, and even with shield carts and sandbags as cover, the Ultramarines were unable to gain the upper hand and could only manage a stalemate.

During this process, the Minesian melee infantry also seized the opportunity to spread out on both flanks, forming several arrowheads in small squads, and launched attacks from the left and right. Not only that, the dragoons who had been lingering on the edge of the battlefield also sent out a hundred riders. They spurred their horses and circled around to the rear of the shield formation, then charged in formation. After getting close, they drew their flintlock muskets and fired wildly, then turned their horses around and fled.

Although these dragon riders did not actually charge the shield formation, Lin Ruoyu dared not gamble, nor could he ignore their posturing. After all, there were no shield carts behind them, only a one-meter-high wall of sandbags. As long as the dragon riders were willing to pay a certain price, they would definitely be able to jump over the sandbags and charge into the shield formation.

Left with no other choice, Lin Ruoyu could only send out over a hundred flintlock musketeers and over a hundred swordsmen and shieldmen who had temporarily switched to halberds to guard the rear, using the constant firing of bullets and the forest of spears erected to drive the dragon riders away.

This battle was very difficult for the players of the Ultra Warriors Legion.

In front, enemy musketeers and artillery, who had a numerical advantage, were firing continuously; on the left and right flanks, enemy melee infantry were charging; and behind, dragoons were harassing them.

The battle lasted for three hours, from noon to afternoon. The Ultramarines repelled five fierce attacks by the enemy. The most dangerous attack was the fifth, when the Minisian melee infantry approached from both sides and had already reached the shield carts.

The player, leading a sword and shield infantry, launched a counter-charge. The two sides engaged in a fierce battle around the shield carts, fighting back and forth for several rounds. It was only at the cost of nearly half of the shield carts being burned by the enemy with Molotov cocktails that the enemy was finally driven back.

After fighting for so long, Lin Ruoyu realized that he couldn't continue fighting; if he did, his entire army would be wiped out.

It's time to retreat.

How do we evacuate?
This is a difficult problem. The enemy has nearly three hundred dragoons, and so far, their numbers have not decreased significantly. The main attackers are the infantry, who are constantly grinding each other like meat grinders. Two or three hundred of them have died, but there are hardly any cavalry among them.

This is the advantage of cavalry; they have mobility, they can fight when they want and retreat when they want, which makes them very difficult to deal with.

"Boss, what should I do?"

"It's time to use our secret weapon! Quick, brothers, before the enemy's next attack, set up the supports and give them a good beating. Hit and run! Drop everything you can, and scatter plenty of barbed wire!"

"Yes."

Meanwhile, a kilometer away, Colonel Sacramento lowered his binoculars. He had been observing the enemy's movements when he noticed them doing something strange. He glanced at the sky.

"They should be unable to hold out for the next attack, Colonel Aeschylus. My troops should be committed to the offensive and crush the enemy in one fell swoop."

“It’s definitely time… Same as always, I’ll lead the vanguard first, and you lead the rest of the way, using the iron felt tactic.”

"Hmm... When attacking the enemy, pay attention to those three cannons. I am quite interested in them. They seem very light and can be carried by a person while running. They can obviously also be placed on horseback. If we can capture them, they should be a good light artillery piece for cavalry."

"I try my best."

(End of this chapter)