"Master, the enemy's artillery fire is too fierce, and the brothers have suffered heavy losses. What do you think we should do?"
"Has the other side not landed yet, is it just shelling?"
Facing Zhang Jingyao's question, the staff officer was stunned for a moment, and then said: "Master, it is indeed just a bomb, there is no other action!"
Zhang Jingyao was suddenly panicked when he heard this. Although he was a bit frustrated, he also guessed what the other party meant. He was going to attack Hankou. Speaking of which, the most important thing about Hankou is the Hankou train station, which is the railway station of Lujiang Railway.
At the end point, all the materials transported from the north must be transferred here, and reinforcements must also arrive here. If it is occupied by the other side, the consequences will be disastrous. Of course, Zhang Jingyao does not know that the Sichuan-Hankou Railway has also been connected, and this is also the end point of the Sichuan-Hankou Railway.
, the Sichuan Army also wants to use this train station.
However, Zhang Jingyao had nothing to do at this time. There were gunboats from the other side on the river, and Wuchang's army could not be transported to Hankou. The only thing he could hope for now was that the defenders of Hankou could withstand it. At this time, Xia Douyin was also content to direct the artillery to bombard the river.
Hankou on the north coast.
The 120mm caliber artillery is so powerful that it is not an exaggeration to say that the earth will collapse. Beiyang is in a state of disarray. Beiyang is not equipped with artillery of this caliber, and there is no corresponding training in peacetime. In addition, the fortifications built by the Beiyang Army
It was also very crude and could not even cover half of its body. Faced with the heavy artillery bombardment, it had no power to fight back and was soon beaten to pieces with corpses everywhere.
The soldiers of the Hubei Army had already boarded the north bank at this time, with all the machine guns and mortars ready. The sound of explosions like a sudden burst of wind and rain instantly smashed the Beiyang Army's position to pieces. Xia Douyin also arrived on the shore at this time, and with the help of the explosion
In the light of the fire, he could clearly see the Hubei army constantly leaping forward, breaking through obstacles one after another, and killing the Beiyang troops one by one.
"Chief of Staff, the brothers fought well, but our main mission is to capture the Hankou Railway Station. This is the top priority. If the railway station cannot be captured, you and I will not be able to explain to Qiao Shuai, let the brothers
Don't get stuck here, capture the train station quickly, don't hesitate!"
After Xia Douyin issued the order, the soldiers of the Hubei Army quickly divided into several attack teams and broke into Hankou under the cover of artillery fire. The fortifications set up by the Beiyang Army on the riverside could not withstand the heavy artillery of the Hubei Army. This time the Hubei Army also brought four
A 155mm howitzer was fired. Under the roar of the artillery, a gap was quickly opened, and the army poured into the city like water.
Zhang Jingyao received frequent emergency telegrams from Jiangbei and was panicked. He never thought that the opponent's offensive could be so fierce. Until now, he has not figured out who his opponent is. Hankou will be lost. If these three towns of Wuhan are in his hands
If something goes wrong, how can I explain it to Emperor Yuan?
"Master, the enemy has broken through the outer defenses of Hankou and is heading towards the train station!" Upon hearing this, Zhang Jingyao hurriedly ran to the map and looked carefully. Hankou train station is the end point of the Sichuan-Hankou Railway, although Zhang Jingyao did not know that Sichuan-Hankou
The railway is about to be fully connected, but he also knows that the Sichuan army can rush to Yichang first, then get on the train from Yichang and rush to Hankou. Moreover, the train station is now also used as a temporary cargo yard, hoarding a large amount of arms and supplies, which were originally shipped.
To Hunan and Guangdong and Guangxi, if the train station is lost, the loss in Beiyang will be too great.
"Immediately order the brothers stationed at the train station to hold me back. Anyone who dares to take a step back will be shot on the spot!"
After the adjutant left, Zhang Jingyao gradually regained his composure. The opponent's goal was clear, which was the train station. He must be the Sichuan Army. This important point must not be lost, otherwise how could he be worthy of His Majesty the Emperor's kindness?
Thinking of this, Zhang Jingyao stood up in person and ordered his men to quickly send a distress telegram to Cao Kun. In the telegram, Zhang Jingyao was filled with tears and every word was blood. Cao Kun must help him for the sake of his old brothers in Beiyang.
, rush to Wuchang as soon as possible, otherwise Wuchang is in danger of being lost.
After the distress telegram was sent, Zhang Jingyao sent a message to Wu Xintian, the commander of the 14th Brigade in charge of guarding Hankou, telling him to defend the Hankou Railway Station to the death and never take a step back.
At this time, a group of Hubei troops had rushed to the back of the house more than 200 meters in front of the train station. They set up their mortars and blasted them at the fortifications in front of the train. This 60mm mortar was used by the Sichuan Army.
Among them, there is a wide range of equipment. It is light in weight, easy to carry, and not weak in power. It is deeply loved by the soldiers. The Hubei army also has a large amount of equipment, which played a very good role in today's attack.
A series of six mortar shells landed in front of the train station. Smoke rose from the sky. One of the machine gun positions had been completely blown away. Two Maxim machine guns were also turned into parts. The position on the other side was also affected.
, several Beiyang soldiers got up and wanted to run away. Who didn't have a wife and children? They didn't want to be blown up to the sky.
These people had just escaped a few steps when they met the team led by Wu Xintian. He also knew the importance of Hankou from Zhang Jingyao's words. When he saw these deserters, without saying a word, he just raised his hand and fired three shots.
Kill all these people.
"Brothers, now is the time for everyone to repay His Majesty's kindness. No one can step back. The same is true for me today. If anyone dares to take a step back, they will be punished. Here I promise all brothers that as long as they can hold the train station,
It will definitely be a big reward!”
Under Wu Xintian's kindness and power, these Beiyang troops quickly stabilized and entered the position of the train station one after another. They aimed their rifles at the rushing Hubei troops and opened fire. In an instant, more than a dozen Hubei troops fell.
In the pool of blood, the soldiers of the Hubei Army were unambiguous at this time. After quickly hiding their bodies, they all took out grenades and threw them at the Beiyang Army's position. Clouds of gunpowder smoke rose up, and many lives disappeared in the light of the fire.
However, the Beiyang Army relied on its strong strength and finally withstood the Hubei Army's fierce attack.
"Mr. Xia, we have been fighting for nearly six hours. It is almost dawn. Our brothers are all exhausted. This Beiyang Army is really difficult to deal with!"
Xia Douyin gritted his teeth. He thought that after getting the full set of equipment from the Sichuan Army, his army would be able to compete with Beiyang. But now it seems that things are not that simple. Not only do they need powerful equipment, but they also need rich experience.
This night sneak attack was not because the soldiers got lost and failed to rush to the train station on time, which gave the Beiyang Army a chance to breathe. If they failed to capture the train station at night, their hope during the day would be even slimmer.
However, after a night of hard fighting, the Hubei army had occupied one-third of Hankou city. Xia Douyin had no choice but to let his men temporarily switch from offense to defense and began to rest and reorganize the team.
The Beiyang Army, which had fought fiercely all night, was now exhausted. Some of the soldiers who were addicted to smoking had their faces covered with snot and tears. They had obviously reached their limit. The same was true for Wu Xintian. At this time, his face was covered with black smoke and his shoulders were shot by bullets.
After a while, the wound hurt from time to time, and I no longer felt as carefree as before.
"Chief of Staff, is there any news about Commander-in-Chief Cao Kun? When will reinforcements arrive?"
"Master, Commander Cao has just sent a telegram. They have passed Zhengzhou and can reach Wuhan within a day. We must guard it tightly and never lose an inch of ground!"
After Zhang Jingyao heard the news, he immediately felt relieved. After a night of fierce fighting, Zhang Jingyao already knew that it was only Xia Douyin's division that attacked Hankou this time, and the Sichuan army did not follow up. The strength comparison between the two sides was one to one, and Hankou's
The defenders can also get local armed support from nearby areas. If they can't hold on, that's nonsense.
Zhang Jingyao had high hopes for Cao Kun, but now Cao Kun was extremely depressed. He led the army directly south. Along the way, Cao Kun was still discussing with Wu Peifu how to fight this battle. Wu Peifu seemed confident.
"Commander, the Beiyang Army was established earlier than the army in the southwest, and it is still a small part of the country. There is no reason not to win. The only thing is that His Majesty has suffered too serious a moral loss. It is inevitable for us to sacrifice our lives for him.
We are looked down upon, so we have to give the army in the southwest a way to survive!"
While they were talking, a staff officer hurriedly sent over a distress telegram. Cao Kun and Wu Peifu were surprised when they saw it, "Ziyu, why did the Sichuan army move so quickly? They actually killed Wuhan?"
"
"Commander, I think most of them are Xia Douyin's troops. Now Xia Douyin is almost one with Sichuan. In the two confrontations, Xia Douyin raised troops directly from Yichang. However, this Jingyao is also a loser. He can't even stop the Hubei army. It's completely
I'm a loser!" Wu Peifu was so arrogant.
"Ziyu, this is not the time to complain. Hankou is too important and cannot be lost. Let's act quickly!"
The train started rumbling, and it was about to reach the border of Luohe. At this moment, the soldiers on this special troop transport train suddenly felt a buzzing sound, and then the sky seemed to become dark. Is it going to rain?
Some soldiers stuck their heads out and looked out, only to see a huge fleet of aircraft passing by in the sky. Most of the soldiers had never seen an aircraft before, so they started pointing fingers, completely unaware of the power of this weapon. Cao Kun and Wu Peifu were also alarmed.
Especially when Wu Peifu looked out the car window, a thought suddenly flashed in his mind.
"Commander, it's terrible, stop the car quickly and take cover!"
Cao Kun didn't know how to respond to the aircraft's attack, so he followed Wu Peifu's advice and ordered to stop. At this time, the aircraft formation did not launch an attack, but turned in a large circle and quickly returned. Cao Kun
Before he and Wu Peifu knew what was going on, they heard a series of explosions in the distance, and the soldiers on the train felt the ground shaking.
Wu Peifu's mind turned quickly, and he immediately understood that this was the Sichuan military planes that had bombed the railway line, and they had just come here to show off their power.
"Commander, stop the car quickly, the road ahead must be damaged!"
The train finally stopped. A few hundred meters away, a series of more than ten sections of railway were blown up, with a total length of more than several hundred meters. Rails and sleepers were scattered in all directions, and there were many large and small deep holes in the middle of the roadbed.
.
"Those scoundrels from the Sichuan Army are capable of confronting us head-on, so what's the point of using such despicable methods!" a staff officer said angrily.
At this time, Wu Peifu was frightened and became angry. He slapped the staff officer with his backhand: "Our skills are inferior to others, why do you have to talk nonsense? If the Sichuan Army's planes just bombed our train directly, how many of us would die? They have already saved face."