nucmednet Chapter 203 Landing on the Beach
Chapter 203 Landing on the Beach
"Boom boom boom!" Several warships on the shore opened fire with full force, causing the Japanese troops on the shore to flee in all directions.
"Fight back! Fight back!" A Japanese major brandished his sword, and the cannons beside him immediately opened fire on the warship.
Unfortunately, these were all hastily assembled army artillery pieces. Not to mention that warships are small targets at sea and difficult to hit. Even if they could hit a medium-sized enemy, cruisers would hardly be able to cause significant damage.
The Japanese artillery bombardment not only failed to achieve any results, but also attracted a barrage of artillery fire from several cruisers.
Dozens of 205mm shells rained down, instantly turning the Japanese artillery positions into an inferno. The plumes of smoke from the exploding shells rose dozens of meters high.
Just as the officers and soldiers on the warship were cheering, a muffled cannon shot rang out. Several shells exploded dozens of meters away from the warship, sending up huge columns of water dozens of meters high.
"You've finally shown up! Order the warships to move out of range. Continue the bombardment and lure the Japanese into opening fire!" The cruiser squadron commander smirked.
On Hill 203 next to the Lushun naval port, a dozen cannons are lined up in a row, with huge muzzles large enough for a person to climb inside.
These massive cannons, weighing twenty to thirty tons, were now firing at the sea with their muzzles raised high. The shells, each weighing over four hundred pounds, required several artillerymen to move.
Four burly Japanese soldiers used large, specialized iron tongs to clamp the shell, then shouted a command in unison. Together, they lifted the shell and strode quickly toward the cannon.
Reaching the gun mount, the four loader soldiers roared and together lifted the shell high, placing it on the mount.
Two Japanese soldiers, each holding an iron bar, then braced the shell against it and together pushed it into the breech. Next, they pushed in a propellant cartridge.
"Ready!" the gunner shouted, hoisting the rigging.
All the artillerymen quickly ran a few meters away, squatted down, and covered their ears with their hands!
With a loud "boom," dust billowed up from the ground.
"Cut it!" the Japanese artilleryman shouted.
It was with these giant cannons that they not only captured the Lushun Fortress, but also sank the Russian warships in the port one by one from their high vantage point.
"The target parameters have been measured, right?" About eight or nine kilometers from the shore, on the battleship Taishan, Sa Zhenbing held up his binoculars and looked at the place where white smoke was rising from the opposite mountain.
"Reporting to the commander, the results have been obtained!" the chief of staff replied.
"Alright! Do not fire all at once. Each main gun fires in turn. Cover the Japanese artillery position!" Sa Zhenbing ordered calmly.
It's no secret that the Japanese army possessed eighteen massive 280mm howitzers. A single shot from one of these cannons would kill anyone within dozens of meters. One shot could wipe out an entire company—that's no joke.
Fortunately, because the gun barrels were too heavy, the Japanese army did not send them to the front line. Instead, they were used as temporary coastal defense guns in Port Arthur.
Shen Lian had already obtained the parameters of these cannons. Their range was only seven or eight kilometers.
The battleship's 343mm main guns had a range of 20 to 40 kilometers. Therefore, Sa Zhenbing deliberately anchored the battleship about 8 or 9 kilometers from the shore.
This way, he could bombard the Japanese positions without any scruples. Now that the enemy had been exposed, they could just wait to be destroyed!
The massive turret slowly rotated, its dark muzzle rising and falling gently until it finally stopped adjusting its angle.
"Boom!" A flash of light appeared at the muzzle, and a shell shot straight toward the Japanese position.
About ten seconds later, a cloud of white smoke rose from the opposite hillside. The huge explosion startled the Japanese artillerymen.
"Quickly, return fire!" The massive explosion far surpassed the previous ones. The Japanese soldiers, realizing they were being targeted by the battleship's main guns, anxiously ordered a return fire.
The main guns of the Taishan paused for a few minutes, then readjusted their angles and began firing one by one. Large plumes of dust rose from the hillsides along the shore.
After three rounds of barrage, a deafening explosion suddenly erupted on Hill 203. A mushroom cloud shot straight into the sky, indicating that the ammunition depot had been hit and the shells had detonated.
"Long live! Long live!" The officers and soldiers on the battleship cheered. Sa Zhenbing also nodded with a satisfied smile.
Meanwhile, the Japanese soldiers on the shore looked at the thick smoke rising from the mountaintop with expressions of despair.
The main force here had already been transferred to the front line, and the few remaining troops suffered heavy casualties from the enemy's intense artillery bombardment.
The future looks bleak!
"Order the gunboats and cruisers to approach and fire, destroying all Japanese troops and fortifications in sight!" Sa Zhenbing ordered.
More than a dozen small warships immediately moved in, and fierce artillery fire set the shore ablaze. Some Japanese soldiers who had been hiding tumbled and scrambled out of their fortifications, desperately trying to escape.
Their fortifications and bunkers couldn't withstand the bombardment from naval guns.
The shelling continued for over an hour, destroying the Japanese beachhead. The warships then began their advance into the harbor.
Two massive battleships also slowly started up, ready to support the warships ahead.
"Let the Marines move out!" Seeing that the Japanese resistance was weak, Sa Zhenbing gave the order.
The Navy currently only has two Marine Corps brigades, and due to limited transport capacity, it only brought one brigade of 5,000 personnel this time.
Four strangely shaped troop transport ships, resembling iron coffins, sped toward the beachhead.
Several gunboats followed alongside, continuously firing at the shore to bombard any potential enemy.
The troop transport ship came to a stop on the beach, and a huge iron plate was lowered at the front. A series of strange troop transport vehicles appeared, started up, drove off the ship, and rushed towards the beach.
This troop carrier resembles a ship, except it has four huge wheels. Two small cannons are mounted at the front, firing at suspicious locations as it advances.
Large groups of soldiers jumped into waist-deep water, rifles in hand, and followed the tanks toward the beachhead.
"Wow! What kind of tank is that? And this kind of troop transport ship? It's amazing!" Officers on warships from various countries watching from afar were discussing among themselves.
The Shandong New Army constantly produced various new weapons, which amazed the world.
This new Shandong army had only been established for five years at most, and Shen Lian had only been in command of Shandong for a little over four years. How did he manage to manufacture such advanced weapons?
Military officers from various countries who were observing the battle sent telegrams back, reporting the new weapons in Shandong to their governments. They hoped the government would intervene and acquire these weapons!
In this era, there were no tactics for amphibious landings, let alone preparations for a counterattack. Under naval bombardment, the Japanese army abandoned its positions on the shore.
The 1st Marine Brigade easily seized the beachhead and, under the cover of armored vehicles, advanced forward, continuously expanding its occupied territory.
Upon receiving news of the New Army's landing at Lushun Port, Oyama Iwao was furious and ordered Major General Suzuki, the garrison commander of Lushun, to immediately organize troops to drive the Chinese army back into the sea.