"Has anyone ever tested the damage effect of that mortar in actual combat?"

Faced with the young staff officer's opinions on the bombardment, the regiment leader Sheng Nan did not rush to explain, but asked a question first.

The 170mm-caliber "Gronde" mortar presented to North Vietnam was an experimental product of the military industry department. After testing the data at the shooting range, it was thrown into the warehouse until it went to the front line this time.

So not many people have seen the shelling live.

But this does not affect the staff's calculation of the power of the mortar. Although such a large-caliber artillery has not yet appeared in the Army's standard weapons, we often see the Navy's 24-pound cannon firing, so we can probably calculate the power of the mortar.

Fire intensity.

"It's good to know." Sheng Nan saw that the staff quickly calculated the power of the artillery with their pens, and smiled happily: "It's just such a small power, but the damage effect is still discounted. What are you worried about?"

Sheng Nan then stretched out his fingers: "170 millimeters, 17 centimeters, hum, the diameter of the cannonball is not as wide as mine."

"This level of bombardment is not bad for dealing with warships or soft targets. But if it is used to bombard a solid fortress wall defense system... Haha, I can only say that you are overthinking."

A 170mm caliber gun is converted into a 7-inch gun. This caliber can also be regarded as a secondary main gun on the super battleships of World War II, and its power is quite impressive.

However, this 17th-century mortar that appeared at Zhengjiangkou is fundamentally different from the 7-inch barrel artillery of World War II: one is an iron ball shell, and the other is a high-explosive bomb equipped with a bump fuse.

The power of iron balls propelled by black powder is completely different from the bombs that people in later generations are familiar with. If used to smash fortresses, it cannot be said to be useless, but it is far from the destructive effect.

"You have been doing homework these two days, and I have not been idle either."

Sheng Nan spoke and lay back on the green canvas folding chair: "According to my observations, the troops in the South Vietnamese fortification area probably have an attitude of 'defending their hometown', so they generally have high morale and are skilled in tactics and techniques."

"Everyone knows that behind this defense system is Hue. South Vietnam's national destiny is now maintained on this fortress wall, and most of the soldiers inside should be South Vietnam's elite."

"So, don't worry about the South Vietnamese anymore. That cannon won't accomplish anything big. The tug-of-war between the two sides, according to my judgment, will continue."

"In this case, why don't you agree to use the artillery to fight? ...Looking at your expressions, you really think that the prince is a fool? If this matter is ignored, how will it work in the future? You must have an overall view!"

Having said this, Sheng Nan waved his hand to indicate that the conversation was over and that he wanted to take a rest. However, looking at these young people who were hesitant to speak, Sheng Nan finally sighed and shouted angrily: "Don't think that you don't know what you are thinking.

! Don’t worry, the real killer weapon is already on the way. Now get out of my way, I want to take a nap!"

Captain Sheng failed to get back to sleep after all.

Soon after, a stream of North Vietnamese envoys began to come and go from the station, constantly reporting the location of the artillery and asking for instructions on the next step, harassing Commander Shanda very much.

This kind of ubiquitous anxiety undoubtedly shows that the pressure on the North Vietnamese court is so great that it cannot be covered up. In the end, Sheng Nan, who was harassed, could only get up and put on his military uniform: "Let's all go out and take a look.

,"

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On the top of Xiaoshi Mountain, a group of yellow-skinned men wearing large iron-gray caps stood tall and straight, overlooking the Han family's homeland on both sides of the Zhengjiang River.

The Zhengjiang River, which runs from west to east, has no waves during the dry season. It quietly divides the land into two halves and flows flat like the sea.

As far as the eye can see, large areas of land on both sides of the Zhengjiang River and even upstream are covered with amazing mountains and native forests. The greenery is endless and birds are everywhere, and the scenery is breathtaking.

Like most islands in the world, Indochina is also the product of orogeny in various prehistoric periods.

Since it is an orogeny, the terrain is the same: mountains and plateaus are "extruded" from the surface, and there is a narrow flat land at the foot of the mountains.

Located on the edge of the peninsula and occupying a narrow flat land, Vietnam's terrain faithfully follows this natural law.

The entire mainland of Vietnam, from Thang Long in the north to the bottom of the south, is a narrow vertical strip of continental "skirt".

This narrow plain area from north to south is where the essence of Vietnam lies. The reason why the North Vietnamese court, represented by Thang Long Palace, always calls itself "Zhengshuo" is because the area around Thang Long Palace is the only one in Vietnam.

Large grain producing area: Red River Plain.

Throughout the dynasties, the North Vietnamese forces that occupied the Red River Plain had a hard power advantage over South Vietnam, so every time it was North Vietnam who initiated the war.

Sheng Nan and the others were now standing on the small rocky hill at the mouth of the river, with a clear view. Looking to the north, they saw a narrow coastline with a constant flow of people. Looking to the south, they also saw a narrow coastline composed of white sand and tropical forests.

It's just that this coastline is now artificially divided into two sections: the narrowest point on the south bank of the Zhengjiang River, a section of coast less than 500 meters away, on which a thick and solid defense line was built... In the 17th century

Oriental Maginot.

The next moment, a huge roar attracted the attention of the soldiers on the stone mountain. Everyone turned their heads and shifted their gaze from the southern defense line to their feet.

Sure enough, the 7-inch mortar was passing by Shishan.

Under the escort of organized soldiers and horses on the outside, a large number of conscripted civilians were moving the steel behemoth weighing several tons forward with "inch" as the distance unit.

Since most of the land near the coastline is sandy land, the first step is to constantly place logs on the path of the mortar.

Two rows of trackers with ropes on their shoulders were pulling hard in front of the cannon. The loud roar just now was the trumpet of these trackers.

At the same time, there were constantly rotating hands working hard to push the iron wheel of the cannon. In this way, everyone worked together to slowly move the cannon.

Yes, this majestic and powerful "Ge Long Duc" cannon has become the confidence of the North Vietnamese court since it was disembarked at Thang Long Pier. After the war started, the North Vietnamese court forcibly used civilians to remove the cannon by an inch.

Pushing and pulling one inch to the front line of Zhengjiang River can be described as extremely difficult.

By the time the cannon was loaded onto the ship and transported across the river, it was already evening. Sheng Nan knew that the cannon would roar early tomorrow morning.

It's no wonder that the North Vietnamese court was so anxious. Sheng Nan knew the inside story.

It is the end of March, the end of the dry season in Vietnam. Thanks to the Little Glacier climate, the cool dry season temperature is only about 10 degrees Celsius, and there is no rain around the battlefield. This is an extremely favorable climate condition for the attackers to launch a campaign.

By the way, the staff members of the observation group can also show off in handsome military uniforms. The temperature is neither too cold nor too hot.

However, the rainy season in Vietnam comes as soon as possible. Usually as soon as April enters, the temperature will rise rapidly to 40 degrees, and continuous rain will fall... This is a huge disaster for the attackers who are in a field state. The rise in temperature will cause

When a plague breaks out in the army, the falling rain will greatly increase the advantage of the defenders hiding in the fortress.

Therefore, the North Vietnamese court must take advantage of this short window of favorable weather to complete the victory in one battle and win Hue. Otherwise, it will have no choice but to fail as before.

—————————————————————————

The next day, early morning.

The moment the morning sun rose over this coast, the impatient "Yankee" army had already concluded the first round of the offensive of the day.

The "Nanke" soldiers stationed at the fort line did not panic. After all, in the past few days, both the offensive and defensive sides had turned the war into a standard three-part routine: attack, shoot, and retreat.

Therefore, although this latest attack came earlier than before, the Yankees still skillfully blocked the Yankees back.

However, the South Vietnamese soon realized that something was wrong.

Just 200 meters away from the front line, layers upon layers of North Vietnamese troops gathered together again. Even at this distance, the attackers stayed put, and the two sides suddenly entered a strange state of silent confrontation.

The nervous South Vietnamese were not given much time to guess. After about half an hour, the tide-like army separated, revealing a dark... mound.

Behind the small mound is today's protagonist: a 170mm large-caliber mortar with its muzzle pointing toward the sky.

Mortars with short and thick barrels were originally used to fire into the sky.

Compared with later generations, the metallurgy and other metal processing techniques of the Yan Kingdom are still lagging behind. The caliber of this Grond is only 170mm, but its actual barrel thickness is far more than 170mm, and there are three stirrups on the barrel.

This scene is actually similar to those cannons that are cultural relics from the late Qing Dynasty. The barrel seems thicker than a person, but in fact, only a fist can fit into the muzzle.

Finally, the cannon, operated by the Ming Dynasty's foreign-aided artillery crew, let out a deafening roar: a 17-centimeter iron ball was pushed out of the barrel by the black powder gas.

The iron ball spanned a short distance of 200 meters and hit the stone bastion in the middle of the defense line. It broke a hole in the wall and killed several gun crew members and damaged a French gun.

Machine cannon.

Compared with other forces of this era, Dayan's military products are still trustworthy. Although the projectiles fired by the mortars did not penetrate the bastion, the results were still good, and a Nanlao artillery group was directly eliminated.

This bastion is located in the center of the defense line. The multiple artillery placed in it can cover most of the trenches and is the core support point of the entire battle line.

Prior to this, the Yankees had filled in the various obstacles and trenches in front of the bastion with human lives, creating a 30-meter-wide thoroughfare.

With today's artillery fire, Nan Lao, who had not paid much attention to the passage before, suddenly broke into a cold sweat: If this strange artillery fire continues to bombard, wouldn't the bastion be gone? If the bastion is gone, wouldn't that passage be able to

Let the Yankees penetrate directly into the depths of the defense?

The Yankees naturally saw the problems that the South Vietnamese were aware of. In fact, this was the result that the Yankees had been waiting for: it was finally proven that the lives they had spared were valuable.

Next, when the South Vietnamese were frantically looking for countermeasures, another advantageous technology of quality military industry appeared: the mortar fired 20 projectiles in a row before starting to cool down and recover.

As for the military technology of the "Ming Dynasty", all the Yankees who had worked in Thang Long Palace and been bombarded before had expected it. So when the muzzle stopped, the Yankees who were familiar with the rhythm were once again full of momentum.

A storming attack on the bastion was launched.

Facing the bastion with its combat effectiveness reduced, the frightened Yankees urgently mobilized their reserves. For the first time, they used brutal hand-to-hand combat in which lives were exchanged, and they fought back the Yankee attack with great difficulty.

However, when the time came in the afternoon, after the Yankees confirmed the high accuracy of the cannon, their morale was greatly boosted. They adopted the high-end and high-end tactics proposed by the observation group: infantry and artillery coordination.

Tens of thousands of cannon fodder launched a wave-like attack on the bastion in front of them, with roars like tides and iron balls flying overhead.
Chapter completed!