Changjin Lake: From Xinxingli to Seoul

Chapter 245 Taking Back the Stolen Cultural Relics! (Seeking Monthly Tickets)

The silence of the battlefield was shattered by the roar of the British attack on the southern side of the battlefield, which was filled with the smoke of gunpowder.

Twelve Churchill tanks stood in a wedge formation like steel behemoths, their heavy tracks crushing the scorched earth.

The roar of the engine made the ground tremble slightly, and at the same time, the turret slowly rotated.

The 75mm main gun's dark muzzle was pointed directly at the Chinese People's Volunteer Army's position, while the Bersa machine guns on the sides of the vehicle were already loaded with ammunition belts and ready to fire.

Thousands of British infantry followed closely behind in skirmish lines, their dark brown uniforms appearing and disappearing in the smoke.

They pushed forward, risking their backs.

The bayonets of Lee-Enfield rifles gleamed blindingly in the morning sun, and the grenades hanging on the British soldiers' bodies clanged with each step.

The officer brandished his Webley revolver and roared orders. The soldiers provided cover with skillful tactical maneuvers, and the light and heavy machine gun teams quickly seized the flank slopes.

The Bren light machine gun's mount was deeply embedded in the frozen ground, and the metallic click of the drum magazine being chambered echoed throughout the room.

"Commander George, I heard that these Chinese are fighting very fiercely, and the French army has been wiped out by them in whole units."

A British machine gunner, after setting up his machine gun, looked towards the position of the 7th Steel Regiment in the distance and said.

"The French army? A bunch of cowards!"

"The Germans surrendered before they even reached Paris. How can they compare to our British Empire!"

As for China?

"Didn't we already have a contest during the Opium War?"

"They still have territory under our control!!!"

"Set up your machine guns and watch! The British Empire's steel torrent will crush these Chinese!"

A British officer gave an arrogant snort, looked into the distance, and said disdainfully.

In the distance, a group of British tanks suddenly accelerated and charged forward.

The diesel engine roared deafeningly, and snow and shrapnel kicked up by the tracks flew everywhere.

The British soldiers behind them quickly caught up, using the tanks for cover, and kept a watchful eye on the front with their guns at the ready.

However, after they charged for a while, the opposing 7th Steel Regiment's position still did not react.

On the earthen slope on the flank and rear, the temporary observation command post of the British 27th Brigade.
"These Chinese are really patient. They haven't even revealed their firepower yet. Let's let the artillery fire break the deadlock!"

"Pass on my order: have the tanks stop and fire a few rounds of ammunition first!"

British brigade commander Codd, holding binoculars, observed and gave orders.

"Yes, sir!"

Upon hearing this, a British military staff officer immediately agreed.

The order was quickly relayed to the British tanks via radio.

All British tanks immediately stopped and aimed their guns at the artillery battalion's position.

In an instant, the main guns of twelve British tanks roared simultaneously.

"call out----"

"Boom! Boom! Boom..."

With a deafening explosion, high-explosive shells set off pillars of fire on the position.

The scorching heatwave blew away the half-buried sandbags, and fragments of the broken fortifications rained down like a storm.

……

Inside the fortified positions

"The regimental commander was right after all. They've brought out more than a dozen British tanks as bait. They're really going all out!"

Yu Congrong looked at the tanks in the distance and said.

"The British tanks have stopped. Tell Lei Gong to fire quickly!"

Wu Wanli shook off the dust from his clothes and gave a loud order.

"Yes!"

Upon hearing this, the cipher clerk relayed the message to the artillery battalion via radio.

Artillery Position No. 1
"Damn it, it's finally our artillery battalion's turn to shine!"

"Half cannons it is, we'll use these ten-odd howitzers to create the impression of dozens!"

"Adjust the muzzle parameters according to the coordinates provided by the front line..."

"Dinner's ready!!!"

Lei Gong raised the command flag, waved his hand, and roared loudly.

"Bang! Bang! Bang..."

In an instant, blinding flames suddenly erupted on the south side of Chipyong-ni, which was shrouded in smoke, as more than ten howitzers from the Volunteer Army's artillery positions roared deafeningly.

The first volley of shells tore through the air, whistling as they hurtled towards the British tank formation.

"Boom! Boom! Boom..."

Twelve shells struck Churchill's tank formation with pinpoint accuracy, tearing the three steel behemoths to shreds in the first salvo.

The barrel of the 75mm main gun was blown out of shape and twisted upwards.

The spinning turret, engulfed in flames, crashed into the infantry ranks, instantly crushing more than ten British soldiers who had no time to dodge.

Diesel fuel gushed out of the ruptured fuel tank.

The flammable liquid snaked across the frozen ground, trapping two tanks attempting to reverse in a sea of ​​fire.

The second volley of shells followed immediately, and the shockwaves from the impact points flipped both Churchill tanks over.

The 30-ton steel body slid dozens of meters across the ice, crushing the position of the Bren machine gun team.

The bullets in the drum magazine exploded in rapid succession due to the high temperature.

A machine gunner was thrown into the air by the blast wave.

His body, which had not yet landed, was severed in half by flying tread fragments, and pieces of his dark brown military uniform mixed with blood rained down on the scorched earth.

The remaining British infantry were thrown into chaos amidst the hail of fire.

Soon, the howitzer group began to extend its firing range.

The high-explosive shells exploded five meters above the skirmish line, and countless fragments swept across the battlefield like the Grim Reaper's scythe.

The bayonets of Lee-Enfield rifles were broken off in patches.

The clanging grenades detonated one after another at the soldiers' waists, turning the entire assault team into a cloud of blood mist.

When the turret hatch of the last Churchill tank was blown off, the entire assault group had become a graveyard of steel.

On the hillside, the British 27th Brigade observation command post
"Fuck!!!"

"Those damned Chinese, they actually dared to fire the cannon!!!"

"Send a telegram to Division Commander Freeman immediately, ordering the Air Force to blow up those Chinese artillery pieces!!!"

Brigade Commander Cowder angrily threw down his binoculars and roared.

His expectation was that the 7th Steel Regiment would first send their men, one after another, carrying explosives and bazookas to blow up tanks.

Then, the British army used firepower and armored forces to inflict heavy casualties on the soldiers of the 7th Steel Regiment.

Then the 7th Steel Regiment was forced to open fire when they were on the verge of losing their position.

Based on battlefield experience, he wasn't wrong.

In the previous Korean War, the artillery of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army could indeed only be used at the most critical moments.

Unfortunately, he ended up dealing with the wealthy and powerful Seventh Steel Regiment.

When firepower is available, Wu Wanli will not let his soldiers fight desperately.

"Sir, Division Commander Freeman is calling!"

"He said the reconnaissance unit had immediately relayed the situation to him, and he knew that the Chinese artillery had been exposed."

"He has already ordered the air force to accelerate the bombing of Chinese artillery positions."

A British military staff officer said.

"Okay, damn it, let's get those infantrymen back first. A direct assault like this will result in too many casualties."

"Get the remaining twenty-four tanks ready. As soon as the air force destroys the Chinese artillery, launch the final offensive!"

British brigade commander Codd thought for a moment and then gave the order.

"Yes, sir!"

Upon hearing this, the British Chief of Staff quickly agreed.

....................................

“Buzz buzz buzz buzz——”

In the distance, 120 U.S. military aircraft flew in in a massive, overwhelming roar.

Inside Eagle One
"Coordinates confirmed. All troops, proceed directly to the Chinese artillery positions. Ignore all other targets!"

"Repeat once, head straight for the Chinese artillery positions, over!!!"

The U.S. Air Force colonel shouted into the communications radio, "Roger that, over!"

"Received, over!"

"..."

The American pilots of each fighter jet responded and pulled the control stick to accelerate towards the artillery position of the 7th Steel Regiment.

At this moment, on the artillery position
"Fire, fire!"

"Those British devils want cannons? Bomb them hard!"

"The political commissar told us that they burned down our Old Summer Palace and looted all kinds of antiques and treasures!"

"Damn it, and that port area is still under British control!"

Lei Gong grew angrier the more he thought about it, and he waved his command flag and roared.

"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang..."

A series of muffled cannon shots rang out, and plumes of white smoke billowed out in all directions.

"call out------"

"Boom! Boom! Boom..."

Each shell seemed to carry the roar of the Chinese nation, exploding into brilliant clouds of fire amidst the dense concentration of British troops.

Many British troops were blown up while they were still fleeing, lying on the ground covered in blood and gore.

Firepower Battalion Position
Wu Wanli personally operated a heavy machine gun, firing wildly at the retreating British troops and reaping their losses.

The flames of the explosion reflected in his clear eyes, as did the gleam of his vengeful joy.

"That's how they slaughtered our Chinese troops during the Battle of Baliqiao!"

"I really want to march all the way to that damn British island and take back all those Chinese artifacts!!!"

Wu Wanli cursed.

"Hahahahaha..."

"The tougher we fight now, the greater the chance that these foreign devils will return the cultural relics in the future."

"If all else fails, we can capture a few thousand or even ten thousand UN soldiers."

"Or we could just arrest a high-ranking official and see if they'd give it to us!"

"If we can 'fight' back these cultural relics on the battlefield, wouldn't we also be remembered in history?"

Yu Congrong laughed heartily.

The return of cultural relics is not a figment of imagination; it has indeed occurred in history.

After achieving victories in the middle of the Korean War, the Soviet Union directly returned 11 volumes of the Yongle Encyclopedia in 1951.

After the war, China's international standing and national strength expanded rapidly.

France later returned the bronze rat head from the Yuanmingyuan and the bronze rabbit head to China.

The United States was hit the hardest, and it is also one of the countries that has returned the most cultural relics.

Several hundred cultural relics, including Tang Dynasty Buddhist statues from the Longmen Grottoes, were returned.

Other countries, such as Britain and Italy, have also returned some cultural relics.

But overall, there are still many things that haven't been recovered!
"Let's fight as hard as we can."

"The more brilliant the achievements, the higher the international standing, and the more bargaining power the diplomats at the negotiating table have in getting things back!"

Liu Hanqing felt a pang of pain in his heart as he thought of those precious cultural relics, and said...

"Dong dong dong dong dong dong..."

"Boom! Boom! Boom..."

The final roar of machine guns and artillery fire ensued as the British commando force of over a thousand men fled in disarray, leaving behind hundreds of corpses.

“Buzz buzz buzz buzz——”

At this moment, countless American warplanes appeared in the sky above the position, swarming in like locusts.

"hidden!!!"

Upon hearing this, Yu Congrong immediately shouted loudly.

Upon seeing this, the soldiers of the artillery battalion scattered and lay down in the trenches.

"Tell the artillery positions that these fighter jets are heading straight for them."

"If necessary, abandon the artillery at the No. 1 artillery position as originally planned."

"In my heart, the skilled artillerymen of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army are far more important than those howitzers."

Wu Wanli showed no fear as he looked at the American warplanes in the sky and spoke.

"Yes, I'll go and relay the message!"

Seeing Wu Wanli's confidence, Chenggong immediately got up and ran towards the radio station.

Wu Wanli's battlefield threat detection was not triggered at all, indicating that these US warplanes were not coming for them.

Sure enough, the American warplanes did not stop at all, but flew directly over their positions and headed towards the artillery positions behind them.

....................................

Artillery positions

"Are the anti-aircraft guns all set up?"

"When the US Air Force arrives, give them a good beating! Don't let them touch my precious howitzer!"

Lei Gong touched the massive, slightly hot muzzle of the howitzer and gave the order.

"Lei Gong, didn't the regimental commander say that we should abandon Artillery Position No. 1 if necessary?"

"Anyway, we still have more than a dozen cannons, which is enough to complete the second artillery barrage against the British armored forces as planned."

Upon hearing this, one of the artillery soldiers scratched his head and asked.

"Hey kid, translate this for me, what exactly constitutes a necessary situation?"

"All I know is that the boss promised our Seventh Steel Regiment."

"As long as we win the final stage of the battle and achieve one or two more major merits, we can be promoted through an expansion program!"

Do you know what "expansion-style promotion" means?

"Our regiment can promote hundreds of military officers at once, from platoon and squad level officers to higher-ranking officers!"

"At that time, the joke Wanli made on the train to North Korea about appointing me as the commander of an artillery regiment will come true!"

Lei Gong recalled the past and said with a touch of emotion.

"Battalion Commander, perhaps the Regimental Commander wasn't joking from the beginning..."

The artillery soldier said.

"Hahahaha...maybe it really is!"

"Anyway, an artillery regiment should look like an artillery regiment!"

"A dozen or so howitzers would only make up an artillery battalion at most, not enough!"

"If we can save this batch of artillery, we'll have dozens of howitzers. That'll make us look like an artillery regiment."

Lei Gong laughed heartily as he spoke.

"Dozens of howitzers, some army-level artillery might not even have as many as we do."

Upon hearing this, the artillery soldier couldn't help but speak up.

"What's the big deal? Our firepower is now in a class of its own among the Volunteer Army!"

"If air superiority could be guaranteed indefinitely, we could probably even build an armored unit!"

Lei Gong said.

“Buzz buzz buzz buzz——”

At this moment, American warplanes approached the artillery position where Lei Gong and others were located, and the roar of their engines grew closer and closer.

"Don't panic, it's just a few hundred fighter jets!"

"We don't need to win the battle. We just need to shoot down some of the American warplanes and hold out until the Chinese Air Force arrives!"

"Anti-aircraft guns, get ready! Shoot them like bastards!"

Seeing this, Lei Gong's eyes flashed with a look of fearlessness as he roared loudly.

For Wu Wanli, artillery was indeed more valuable than cannons.

But for Lei Gong and his artillerymen, these cannons were their lifeline!
....................................

In the distance, a group of 150 Chinese People's Volunteer Army fighter jets is heading towards the artillery positions to provide support.

Inside the Wanli-1 fighter jet
"Accelerate, accelerate, accelerate!"

"Our comrades are being bombed by the American devils' air force. Let's go and take back air superiority!"

Wang Wei shouted into the radio.

(End of this chapter)