Mr. Yuan was also confused by Cosentz's confused words, but this did not affect the preparations for the battle.
Through the efforts of Zhou Fu and other Shandong officials, all the materials needed by Major General Pulev were finally shipped before the war started.
Now that all the supplies have arrived, what else can the well-prepared 1st Guards Division have to say, except of course the only thing they can do is take the Japanese sacrificial flag in Shandong.
So on February 17th, the sound of guns and artillery that had been silent for more than ten days sounded again in Shandong.
However, this time it was replaced by the Italian-Qing coalition forces and attacked the Japanese army.
"Fire!"
"Boom boom boom!"
In an artillery position at the rear, the 12 1890-type 150mm howitzers on the position roared with the officer's order. The shells, blessed with propellant, flew over a distance of six to seven kilometers and landed accurately on the top of the hill.
On the Japanese army's position.
"Bang bang bang!"
The 150mm artillery shell is extremely powerful and extremely lethal within a range of ten meters. As long as it is swept away by it, it will basically be a tragic human tragedy.
Continuous explosions were heard from the Japanese positions, and all the fortifications that could be seen from the ground, such as parapets, horse barriers, foxholes, etc., were within the range of the attack.
Of course, the Italian army cannot rely only on these 12 150mm howitzers. 72 artillery pieces of various types belonging to the 1st Guards Division also joined the chorus.
Therefore, on the Japanese army's position, a burst of dense explosions sounded, which made the defending Japanese officers and soldiers feel even more tortured.
But they didn't have to worry, the Japanese counterattack started immediately, and artillery fire from the Japanese army immediately launched the counterattack.
Seeing the enemy's artillery counterattack, the Italian artillery was naturally unwilling to be outdone and responded in kind. So the artillery battle between the two sides began.
In his headquarters, Major General Pulev, the commander of this battle, was observing the artillery battle with high-powered binoculars.
"The enemy should have no reservations and let the cannon fire to counterattack."
That's right, Pulev still has one hand left. He still has a cannon in his hand, which is useless.
Following his order, the Italian Army's latest model 1894 120mm cannon also revealed its true appearance.
Yes, this artillery has only been equipped in Italy not long ago, and the army has only been organized into one regiment for the time being.
Italy used it in the Far East battlefield, maybe because it wanted to test it in the war.
So following the order of Major General Pulev, the 12-door Model 1894 120mm showed its heroic appearance for the first time.
"Fire!"
"Boom boom boom!"
"Fire!"
"Boom boom boom!"
After marking the enemy's position, following the artillery officer's order, the 120mm cannon fired at the Japanese artillery position at high speed.
That's right, it's extremely fast. In addition to having a range of 12.4 kilometers, the 120mm cannon also has a super-fast rate of fire. It can fire at a rate of 6 rounds per minute for 3 minutes.
Of course, if you shoot at 5 rounds per minute, it can last for 4 minutes.
Do you feel that the performance is average, which is not worthy of praise?
However, as long as the age issue is taken into account, it is enough to explain the problem.
The rate of fire and range of this cannon far exceed that of artillery from other countries of the same type, and it is the well-deserved king of 120 mm caliber.
Of course, the two major weapons that make it the most outstanding 120mm cannon are the rate of fire and the range. The barrel length has the greatest impact on the range. This cannon reaches an unprecedented 45 times the barrel length.
In addition, its retractor is also the latest model in Italy. It can be said that in order to create this excellent artillery, the designer has designed it to the limit.
Of course, its excellent performance is also reflected in its weight. Its total weight of 1.52 tons allows it to follow legion-level troops and become a weapon for suppressing the opponent's artillery.
The performance of the 120mm cannon in the first battle was also very good. In just one hour, 12 120mm cannons had destroyed three Japanese artillery positions. As long as a Japanese artillery position was found within the range, there was no way to escape being named by it.
Destiny is simply a sharp weapon that can be used to hit wherever you want. It can easily eliminate opponents without any pressure and out of the enemy's range.
This naturally boosted the morale of the coalition forces. As for the Japanese army, it also had the performance of the 120 mm cannon, which made the Japanese artillery unmatched and did not dare to continue to engage in artillery fire with the coalition forces.
The enemy's artillery ceased its activity, which naturally caused hardship to the infantry, as a large number of artillery shells fell directly on their heads.
Continuous explosions resounded in the Japanese positions, as if they were being plowed through, and this also caused heavy casualties.
This bombardment lasted for a whole morning, allowing Japan and Qing Dynasty to see how wealthy the European armies were in fighting.
Of course, as Li Zhongtang's right-hand man, Master Zhou Fu naturally watched the entire bombardment. In addition to being shocked by the precise strikes of the Italian artillery, he was also distressed by the long-lasting bombardment.
How much do so many shells cost? At least hundreds of thousands of taels of silver were spent this morning. You must know that all the needs of the Italian army need to be paid for by the court and Li Zhongtang, but he knew the rules and did not ask, but the anxiety in his eyes
But it's getting deeper.
In fact, if Italy had to fight on its own, it would not be so luxurious, with artillery all the way to open the way. Isn't there someone paying the bill? Of course, it can be luxurious in the fight.
Of course, this also depends on the situation. An attack on a peripheral position like this cannot last too long, so at noon when the sun was the warmest, Pulev finally gave the order to attack.
"Order the second regiment to launch an attack on Qingcheng Ridge. Be sure to test the enemy's troop deployment."
Following Major General Pulev's order, nearly 3,000 officers and soldiers of the Second Regiment launched an attack on the plowed Japanese position at Qingcheng Ridge.
The Italian officers and soldiers all over the mountains and plains look densely packed, but if you look closely, you will find that although these people look dense, they are all scattered. Everyone is separated by at least five or six meters, and they cooperate in their actions, like
It was like a wave rushing toward the Japanese positions.
"Boom boom boom!"
When the Japanese troops saw the attacking Italian officers and soldiers, they immediately launched a counterattack.
However, after being subjected to saturated shelling, the gunfire on the position was not intensive.
Only after the Italian soldiers reached a distance of 300 meters did the gunfire become more intensive than before.
Many Japanese soldiers were finally encouraged by their officers to recover from the shelling.
However, this resistance of the Japanese army was not taken seriously by the officers and soldiers of the Second Regiment. When they conducted war drills, they had to place Maxim machine guns in their positions. A battlefield like this that was only defended by rifles was even more childish.
In fact, the Japanese army is not without machine guns. It is also equipped with six-barreled Gatling machine guns. However, the intensive shelling just now destroyed all the machine guns placed in the position, so they can only use rifles to fight back.
However, this little resistance method could not defeat the officers and soldiers of the Guards Division. Not long after, cheers rang out from the front. The officers and soldiers of the Second Regiment had already entered the position. It seemed that the Japanese army could not hold on to this position for much longer.
At this time, Mr. Zhou Fu, who had been silent for a long time, finally spoke up.
