The water is so cold that it is impossible to swim across the river at this time...
As the largest river in the Nubisian continent, the Dolinibara River is extremely wide.
It took two days for Belklin to find a section of the river about thirty miles upstream of the enemy's warning camp. It looked like the river was very gentle and it should be easy to cross. But the two banks were nearly a kilometer apart, so I didn't know how to cross.
How long does it take to row from one bank to the other bank? In addition, there are no ferries or fishermen here. Boats crossing the river need to bring their own...
Claude asked the residents of Ferru Town, and some old residents from Guinco Town told Claude that the two pontoon bridges guarded by the enemy's warning camp were not built by them, but existed originally.
It is the only channel for the Beringana Direct Territory to connect the territories on both sides of the Dolinibara River. The pontoon bridge was built there because that section of the river is the narrowest, only more than 600 meters, and the river is also very gentle, which will not have a bad impact on the pontoon bridge.
.
Originally, the ferry was located there, but a ferry trip took at least more than an hour. So some businessmen involved in the bison trade spent nearly a thousand gold crowns at their own expense to build such a pontoon bridge to facilitate the transportation of vehicles transporting bison carcasses between the two sides.
As a result, not long after the pontoon bridge was built, the enemy came. They successfully crossed the pontoon bridge, captured the town of Jienko, and came to the capital Bricaman City...
No wonder that on the map issued by the Kingdom, the Beringana Direct Territory did not have the word "pontoon bridge" on the Dolinibara River on the label, only a ferry was marked. Claude always thought that the two pontoon bridges were the enemy himself.
It was built. It is good to understand the origin of the pontoon bridge, but the problem now is what to do if the 131st Battalion wants to cross the river.
An old man from the town of Gianco recommended a sheepskin raft. This sheepskin raft does not mean wrapping the raft with sheepskin, but using sheepskin to make a floating ball, which is about the size of a basketball and is tied to the bottom of the raft to provide buoyancy. A raft can also
It is only about five or six square meters and requires twenty-five or six sheepskin floats, enough for more than ten adults to stand on it to cross the river.
The old man said that when the first batch of immigrants arrived here, they used sheepskin rafts to cross the river to hunt the bison herds on the Albato prairie, creating the famous bison trade in the Beringana Territory. With the expansion of the bison trade, the kingdom eventually
Decided to establish Beringana Direct Territory...
But later on, ferries were introduced, and sheepskin rafts disappeared from the stage of history. Now that the ferries and ferries are all in the hands of the enemy, Claude had to pick up the sheepskin raft again if he wanted to cross the river. Making a sheepskin raft is very simple, and the materials are all readily available.
Yes, but the old man also told Claude that the disadvantage of the sheepskin raft is that it is slow and not very stable...
The logistics support squadron of the 131st Ranger Battalion immediately came into use. The carpenters and cobblers quickly created the actual object based on the old man's description and made improvements at the same time. Claude personally took the people to the Dolinibara River.
They tested sheepskin rafts and found that they were indeed feasible, so they ordered more sheepskin rafts to be built in an effort to cross the river to the other side at once to complete the attack mission.
On December 9, 584th year of the Holy Light Calendar, Claude led two directly affiliated field brigades across the Dolinibara River on a sheepskin raft.
Only two brigades were brought to attack the enemy's camp because Belklin, who had crossed the river first to conduct reconnaissance, sent back news that the enemy's security at the camp on the other side where a pontoon bridge was being built was very lax, and the number of troops was only a garrison battalion.
The camp was filled with logistical supplies and lumber for building pontoon bridges that were ready to be transported to the other side. Claude might not be able to guarantee that he could capture this camp, but he was 100% sure that he would burn it down and lead two brigades.
Enough.
In addition, the remaining two groups of the 131st Ranger Battalion need to set up a defensive line at the river crossing to prevent the enemy on their side from discovering that the camp on the other side is on fire and sending troops to search along the river bank and occupy Claude and others.
Crossing the river. In that case, Claude and others who crossed the river would be doomed and would not be able to come back. Moreover, they did not even bring their mounts with them, so they lost their mobility and supply base, and would be waiting to die on the other side of the river...
The river crossing was in the upper reaches, about thirty-five miles away from the enemy's camp where the pontoon bridge was built. Claude and the others spent a whole morning crossing the river, rested for a while, and then marched quickly. At about six o'clock in the evening, they arrived one mile away from the enemy's camp.
A thousand meters away, I found a leeward place and began to rest. At about ten o'clock in the evening, I started taking action and approached the enemy's camp silently.
As reported by Belklin, the enemy's security was very lax. The sentry guarding the camp gate was leaning against the gate with a musket and snoring. There were no soldiers on guard duty at all on the guard tower next to it. Originally,
The bonfires placed about twenty meters in front of the camp to prevent enemy night attacks were not lit, allowing Claude and his men to approach the camp smoothly.
Claude pointed at the camp gate, pointed at the sentry, and made a motion of slitting his throat. Michael nodded to indicate that he understood, and quickly rushed over with the big man Gemie on his hands and knees. Soon, with the help of vague words,
In the moonlight and the firelight burning in the camp, you can see that several soldiers sleeping close to the camp door have been put down on the ground. Michael pushed the camp door down, poked his head in and observed for a while, and then waved to Claude.
, which means you can enter the camp.
There was a silent killing at first. Many of the enemy soldiers who fell asleep in the camp would never wake up. But soon the enemy discovered that someone was attacking the camp. The sound of gunshots, cries, and screams became one, and the entire camp
They all became noisy...
"Set fire." Claude ordered.
Burning torches were still placed on tents, warehouses, stables, and haystacks, and the flames shot into the sky. The enemy officers rushed out of the camp, blowing whistles or shouting: "Don't panic, gather here..."
Then a gunshot from the darkness quickly knocked these brave and responsible officers to the ground. The summoned soldiers were once again frightened and screamed like headless flies, adding to the atmosphere of panic.
For those enemies who escaped from the camp, Claude ordered the soldiers to ignore and chase them. Their mission was to eliminate all enemies who dared to resist in the camp and burn everything that could be burned. In fact, the progress of the night attack was better than Claude expected.
The enemy moved faster, and there was almost no organized resistance from the enemy. The only time that was more thrilling was when an enemy officer commanded a dozen of his men to launch a light artillery from nowhere, preparing to build a simple defense line with it.
It is a pity that this light artillery has not been loaded and loaded. When the enemy was looking for tools, the attackers discovered their intentions. Unsaid, the officer and the soldiers next to him immediately fell to the ground amidst the sound of gunfire.
, Ambition is hard to achieve, and the opportunity to turn the tide is lost.
Claude came to the riverside of the camp. In front of him were two long pontoons stretching to the other side. There were also four ferries loaded with wood and ropes parked on the pier. The gunshots in the camp behind him no longer sounded.
Everyone who should escape has already fled the burning camp. The fire is getting bigger and bigger. It is certain that Claude and the others will no longer be able to evacuate the camp according to the original attack route.
"Collect your troops and count the number of people. Michael and his men poured kerosene on the pontoon and the wood pile over there and set it on fire. Captain Murield and Captain Andrewk, take your people to the ferry and put the wood on it.
Throw it on the pontoon or on the shore, and let's take the ferry and leave here." Claude immediately gave the order.
The fire here has been spotted on the other side. There are many people crowded on the river bank looking at this side. With the blazing fire in the camp, they can clearly see Claude and the attackers throwing torches everywhere, on the pontoon and the shore.
Fires were ignited on the piles of wood, and the burning area quickly expanded...
With the burning camp as the background, the four ferries slowly left the river bank and headed upstream. Sparks and small sparks flying from the camp occasionally flew from the air and circled around the four ferries.
On the water surface, there was a "chichi" sound. There were also explosions in the camp from time to time. This must be some ammunition exploding.
"Hold it harder!" the big man Gemi roared, instructing the soldiers holding the poles to move the ferry away from the burning camp as quickly as possible. It is not suitable to set the sail at this time, as it can easily be ignited by the flames: "Get a wooden board next to the boat.
Help row the boat, and those who don’t have wooden boards will find buckets and spoon water to splash on the deck and bulkheads, so they can move faster!”
From the camp on the other side, faint shouts and curses could be heard downwind.
McJack walked quietly to Claude: "Sir, if we go directly upstream, the enemy over there will easily find our crossing point..."
"It doesn't matter. We have burned down the camp here and destroyed the enemy's attempt to build a pontoon bridge. Even if they discover our crossing point, it is not a big deal. Don't forget that the enemy garrison on the other side is infantry and is thirty-five miles away.
It would take them about four hours to arrive. Moreover, our Major Schneck led two brigades to set up defensive positions at the crossing point, so it would not be easy for the enemy to break through their defenses."
Claude pointed upstream: "We are going to the landing site to burn those sheepskin rafts and cross the river directly by ferry. This saves energy and time much faster than the enemy marching on foot. When we get ashore, the enemy will take advantage of us."
There is no way. Next, I want to see how the enemy survives this cold winter after the heavy snow comes..."
The enemy at the security camp on the other side did send two battalions of troops upstream along the river bank to search for the crossing point of the 131st Ranger Battalion, but their movements were very slow and they did not approach the crossing point until dawn, and then they were attacked by Schneck.
The ambush of two brigades led by the major. Covered by shotgun shells fired by eighteen light infantry field artillery pieces, the enemy left nearly a brigades of corpses and wounded, and fled back without firing a single shot...
After Claude led the night attack force ashore, Major Schneck happily reported to him the results of the ambush operation. Claude was greatly regretful: "You should have ordered the horseback to pursue the enemy immediately when they turned around and fled. Think about it,
The enemy camp is thirty-five miles away from here. The troops they sent are infantry. They have been walking all night, and they are ambushed by you. Even if they turn around and run away, they will be tired, panicked and frightened. If you let the soldiers mount their horses at this time, they will chase them.
, I don’t think any of the enemies can escape back to their camp.”
Major Schneck was filled with regret, but Claude could only talk about it. He knew Major Schneck very well, and he would do it properly if he was told to do it. However, he did not have the ability to adapt to changing circumstances, and his on-the-spot command was relatively rigid.
The task of guarding the river crossing point is very good.
On December 15, Claude set up an ambush and sent Belklin to lead a light cavalry brigade to raid the transport convoy heading from the town of Ginco to the camp of the Crado Legion under the city of Bricaman, and successfully burned the transport convoy.
Transported ammunition and provisions, and lured out the only remaining light cavalry regiment of the Crado Legion to pursue.
More than an hour later, the enemy's light cavalry regiment was lured into the ambush circle. After a fierce battle for more than two hours, a small number of the enemy broke out. At this point, the enemy lost the mobile combat capability that could compete with the 131st Ranger Battalion and could only
Huddled in the defensive positions of the garrison camp and the town of Guinco, they sat and watched Claude's 131st Battalion of Rangers galloping in the wild.
Since the ten-mile long transportation road from Ginko Town to Bricaman City was cut off by the 131st Ranger Battalion, the day before the heavy snow came, the Krado Army that besieged Bricaman City ran out of supplies of food, grass and ammunition.
Unable to continue the attack on Bricaman City, the entire army was forced to break camp and retreat to the town of Ginko. Brickaman City, the capital of the Beringana Direct Territory, was relieved of its siege!
The rescue of Bricaman City was like a shot in the arm for the 131st Ranger Battalion. With a strengthened battalion, it entered the Beringana Direct Territory and dealt with an enemy legion on its own, winning consecutive battles and victories.
Under the command of Germany, the enemy's legions were actually forced to evacuate the capital city of Bricaman, which had been besieged for nearly five months. This was simply a miracle in the history of war.
Even the governor and admiral of the Beringana Territory couldn't believe that the reinforcements only had the strength of one battalion, the 131st Ranger Battalion. But Claude didn't have time to talk to them, he just hoped that they could seize this
When the opportunity is favorable, let the wounded in the city and the residents of the kingdom evacuate Bricaman City first, and replenish the garrison strength, ammunition, food and other things from the rear...
At this time, it had begun to snow in the sky, and the temperature dropped suddenly. Indeed, as the residents of the kingdom said, although the snow time in Nubisia continent is shorter than that in Farea continent, the temperature is much colder.
Claude hoped to use the cold and lack of warm clothing to weaken the fighting will of the officers and soldiers of the enemy Crado Legion. After this winter passed and most of the Rangers arrived, they might be able to launch a full-scale attack on the Crado Legion and completely defeat the Crado Legion.
Completely annihilate this enemy legion.
What Claude and the officers and soldiers of the 131st Ranger Battalion did not expect was that on December 26, a fleet docked at the ferry dock of the security camp. This enemy fleet consisted of three ships.
It consists of a first-class three-masted sailing battleship and six ocean-going transport ships. After docking at the ferry dock, they unloaded countless logistical supplies from the transport ships...
Claude could only shake his head and smile bitterly. Without the ferries and pontoons, the enemy, and the battleships and transport ships to help transport logistics materials, his idea of annihilating the Krado Army failed again.
The enemy's fleet transported not only the logistical supplies, but also a regiment of escort troops that came with the ship. As a result, Claude was unable to attack their transport convoy and could only watch as they swaggered and escorted the fully loaded
A large convoy of supplies entered the town of Gianco.
After unloading the supplies and soldiers, the three warships of the fleet went to the section of the river where the city of Bricaman was located, and conducted a day-long violent bombardment of the city of Bricaman, turning the city wall next to the river into ruins.