ps: Thanks to the Nanyang Empire, there was once a Yunmeng who rewarded and supported me.
The smoke from the battlefield has not yet cleared, and another battle is about to begin.
The first line of defense of the Bolivian troops was now filled with soldiers wearing black military uniforms. They were soldiers of the 1st Regiment of the 1st Mixed Brigade, taking over from the Chinese troops in the first round of attack.
In the first exploratory attack, the Chinese Independence Army suffered a total of 325 casualties and wiped out 478 Bolivian soldiers.
This battle was the battle with the largest casualty ratio against the enemy since the Chinese Independence Army uprising, and a regiment commander was killed in the battle. The deceased regiment commander was an officer under Wang Dashan. After the first battle, Wang Dashan specially
He came to Li Mingyuan's side and took the initiative to bear the responsibility for the heavy casualties of the attacking troops.
However, Li Mingyuan did not blame Wang Dashan because a regiment commander was killed in battle. Although Li Mingyuan also felt sorry for the death of a regiment commander, on the battlefield, everyone may die in battle, and you cannot blame your subordinates because of troop casualties.
Cibu took charge of the army and personally experienced the battlefield for nearly half a year. Li Mingyuan experienced more than a dozen battles, large and small, and saw tens of thousands of enemy and friendly soldiers die. The original discomfort with the bloody battlefield gradually disappeared.
Li Mingyuan gradually got rid of his previous role as a small mercenary and gradually adapted to view the success or failure of the battle as a decision-maker with 100,000 Chinese troops.
The key to determining the success or failure of a battle is whether the outcome of the battle meets the expected goals.
The first attack of the Chinese Independence Army verified the deployment of the Bolivian troops on the mountain and successfully occupied the first line of defense. From this point of view, the first attack was successful, but before this battle,
The Chinese Independence Army adopted mobile warfare and always took the initiative on the battlefield, so there were no huge casualties.
In the face of the many victories of the Peruvians, the top brass of the Chinese Independence Army formed a fixed understanding. When Chinese troops fight with the enemy, victory can only be considered a victory if the Chinese army annihilates the opponent with a small number of casualties. The casualty ratio between the two sides is 1:
2, or if the casualty rate is close, it is considered a failure.
The thinking of the top leaders of the Chinese Independent Army cannot be said to be wrong, because the concept that Li Mingyuan instilled in them is to annihilate the enemy at the minimum cost. Under the influence of Li Mingyuan, they also took it as a matter of course that the Chinese Independent Army defeats the opponent at a small cost. Suddenly,
It is inevitable to be a little confused when you suffer a loss.
El Alto guards the strategic position of La Paz. Once El Alto is captured by other troops, they can transport artillery onto the walls of El Alto and bombard La Paz from above. For those who defend La Paz,
It is very disadvantageous for the defenders.
The city of La Paz has been built for hundreds of years. Not only did the Spanish regard La Paz as a strategic point to increase construction, but after Bolivia became independent, the new rulers also increased construction of La Paz.
Aalto and the Bolivians have made great efforts to maintain and strengthen it.
The Bolivian soldiers used the terrain to resist the attacking Chinese Independence Army soldiers, and the regiment leader led the team to rush forward. The combination of these two factors led to a large increase in the casualties of the Chinese Independence Army.
If the leader of the team had been more prudent, maybe there would not have been losses of more than 200 people.
In the final analysis, the Chinese Independence Army is still a feudal army and has not entered the ranks of the modern army. Most officers still believe that leading soldiers to charge forward is a sign of bravery.
And their mentality also led to the death of the Chinese leader who led the team.
"The Bolivian troops have a geographical advantage. Although the casualties of the attacking troops are higher, it is reasonable."
After thinking about it, Li Mingyuan said to Wang Xiaoshan.
"We lost troops and generals in the first battle. I am guilty of this. I hope that the crown prince will allow me to personally lead the attack and avenge my brothers who were injured or killed."
Li Mingyuan did not criticize him harshly, but Wang Dashan could not get over this hurdle in his heart. His regiment commander was killed in battle, which was the first among the 100,000 soldiers of the Chinese Independence Army. If he could not capture the Bolivian soldiers' positions, Wang Dashan felt that he
He had no face to face his soldiers.
Wang Dashan has a calm personality and acts strictly, so Li Mingyuan is not worried that he will act impulsively.
"I agree to your request, but please don't lead the troops to charge. It is the duty of a senior commander to sit in the center of the troops and give overall command."
Li Mingyuan ordered.
"I understand the humble position."
"There are two lines of defense outside El Alto. How many troops do you plan to use to capture them?"
Li Mingyuan asked.
"According to reports from frontline soldiers, the enemy's second line of defense is 400 meters away from the first line of defense. Including the defeated Bolivian soldiers who retreated, the total number is about 600. Therefore, I plan to lead the first regiment of the mixed brigade.
Thousands of soldiers attack the enemy's second line of defense."
"The Real Mountains are high and the roads are dangerous. Even if the soldiers attack too many, they will not be able to carry out their attacks."
Li Mingyuan looked at the mountains ahead through the telescope and said, "The number of people attacking has been reduced by two hundred. I will allocate you thirty snipers, and the machine gun company from the headquarters will also cooperate with you in the battle. Get the second line of defense for me before noon."
"I accept my order from a humble position." Although the number of soldiers in the First Mixed Brigade was reduced by 200, with the cooperation of 30 snipers and machine gun companies, the total number of attackers was nearly 1,000.
With the addition of machine gun companies and snipers, the offensive force's firepower and overall combat effectiveness became stronger. Wang Dashan was more confident in taking down the Bolivian positions.
…
The military flags were waving, and the Chinese lined up on the first line of defense began to move closer to the Bolivians' second line of defense.
Nearly a thousand Chinese soldiers were divided into three groups, with the first two hundred Chinese soldiers taking the lead. They dispersed and searched in small groups.
Two hundred Chinese soldiers were followed by three hundred soldiers, and thirty snipers were scattered among the three hundred soldiers, using the cover of the surrounding soldiers to snipe the Bolivian officers.
The machine gun company and the remaining soldiers of the 1st Brigade formed the last offensive group. Once the front troops occupy favorable terrain, the machine gun company will follow up to provide fire support to the front soldiers.
In groups of three, the attacking Chinese soldiers cooperated with each other and cautiously moved forward.
Three hundred meters, two hundred meters, one hundred meters... the Chinese soldiers were getting closer and closer to the Bolivian defense line.
"Boom," within a hundred meters, the Bolivian soldiers in the second line of defense began to use artillery to attack the frontline Chinese soldiers.
With the roar of artillery, two hundred Chinese soldiers lay down on the ground and stopped advancing. Learning from the lessons of the first attack, this time the attack array was more dispersed, and the Chinese soldiers at the front were replaced by the 1st Mixed Brigade with more combat experience.
Before the soldiers of the first regiment approached the second position 100 meters away, the two hundred Chinese soldiers advanced along a route with rocks, potholes and other cover.
The artillery fire lasted for three minutes, but the artillery fire, which was denser than the first line of defense, did not cause any more damage. After the smoke passed, the two hundred Chinese soldiers continued to crawl forward, closing the distance with the Bolivian position.
The position of the enemy's artillery was exposed. Thirty snipers hidden in the middle unit walked out of the unit and sped up to the front among the two hundred Chinese soldiers.
There was a "bang" gunshot, and a Bolivian gunner eighty meters away was shot dead and fell straight on the gun.
The corpse pressed against the cannon, causing the muzzle to shift downward.
"Boom"
The shell exploded directly in the Bolivian position. A dozen Bolivian soldiers around him were knocked to the ground by the huge waves caused by the shell. They rolled on the ground and howled in pain, holding their injured parts.
After the first Chinese sniper counterattacked, more than twenty other snipers also aimed at their own targets.
"Bang, bang, bang," the gunfire was not dense, but every gunshot was accompanied by the fall of a Bolivian officer or the temporary flameout of an artillery piece.
Snipers officially appeared on the war stage during World War I. The Soviet-German War during World War II made sniper operations shine. But now, the development of rifles is still in the perfection stage. It will take about half a century for specialized sniper rifles to be available. Therefore,
It is impossible for Chinese snipers who have been trained for less than half a year to kill enemies hundreds of meters away with advanced sniper rifles and targeting systems like their counterparts in World War II.
You can only aim and shoot at a distance of 80 to 90 meters with your naked eyes and experience.
The role of thirty snipers was undoubtedly huge. Under the targeted attacks of snipers, the Bolivian officers on the second line of defense suffered heavy losses, and most of the artillery was also silenced due to the casualties of the gunners.
At this time, the machine gun company under the cover of the troops also followed up to the front of the attacking troops. Eighteen Gatling machine guns fired dense bullets, killing the Bolivian soldiers exposed outside the fortifications.
The situation was favorable to the Chinese Independence Army. Wang Dashan, who was commanding from the center, immediately issued the order for a general attack. With the fire support of the machine gun company, the crawling Chinese soldiers jumped up towards the erupting cheetahs and pounced on the prey in front.
As fast as the wind, the Chinese soldier who was charging ahead leveled his musket, stabbed a Bolivian soldier in front with his bayonet, and kicked the Bolivian soldier who was stuck on the bayonet away. The Chinese soldier aimed at another enemy.
The tiger came out of the cage, and the Chinese soldiers who rushed to the defense line continued to charge forward and broke through the defense line organized by the Bolivian soldiers.
The battlefield situation changed so quickly that the Bolivian soldiers were divided and surrounded by Chinese soldiers before they could escape, and finally surrendered.
