Munitions Empire-Chapter 760 - 719 Han Zhiyuan

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"Tut-tut-tut!" The Mark IV tank’s coaxial machine gun spewed flames, tracer bullets wreaking havoc through the crowd.

In an instant, flesh and blood flew everywhere. The secretary who had just screamed had her head blown off by a bullet, and instantly fell silent. A male officer beside her took a bullet in the abdomen, screaming as he fell next to the woman’s corpse.

Cars that had no time to start were riddled with bullet holes from the machine gunfire; drivers slumped in the cabins, pressed against the steering wheel continuously honking the horn.

The Tang soldiers following the tank were within striking distance. A soldier threw a hand grenade, which rolled into the midst of the crowd.

Then, with a massive explosion, the blast flung the surrounding Dahua officers and soldiers into the air, followed by the grenadiers shouldering Type 56 assault rifles and beginning their slaughter.

A barrage of bullets enveloped most of the courtyard. One after another, the Dahua officers who got hit fell, and Han Zhiyuan, who had just drawn his pistol, took a bullet to the arm, suddenly splattering blood everywhere.

"Ah!" He screamed in agony as the gun also dropped to the ground. The captain of the guards immediately shouted in panic, "The General’s been shot! The General’s been shot! Quick! Cover us! Cover the General’s retreat!"

He supported Han Zhiyuan and almost dragged the wounded man to a relatively safer place.

Han Zhiyuan had lost his pistol, and the throbbing pain in his bleeding arm was causing his forehead to be drenched in sweat.

He slightly regretted coming to this damned Wangchun City. He slightly regreted trusting those City Defense Forces and second-line troops too much.

"Fire! Fire! Don’t run! Nobody run!" Despite being covered in blood, Han Zhiyuan kept shouting non-stop.

There were many members of the guard forces in the courtyard, and the officers were armed with pistols. Under no circumstances should they be butchered like this.

Yet, the situation now was that everyone in the courtyard was frantically running away, some kneeling and begging for mercy, with nobody firing back.

A hundred or so people were actually being slaughtered by a few Tang grenadiers, and then, like defeated curs, they knelt and begged for mercy, awaiting death. Han Zhiyuan felt a sudden sense of pathos.

The officers who followed him on normal days, which one of them didn’t boast of unparalleled bravery? When commanding from the rear, they all seemed very impressive, and sometimes they would even draw their pistols and slap them on the table during arguments.

Sadly, now, those officers who dared to pull out their guns during fights, drinking bouts, and quarrels over women were crying like women!

It turned out, they were all pretenders! These men were just acting in front of Han Zhiyuan, catering to his preferences.

They knew Han Zhiyuan liked a rough style, so they all pretended to fear neither heaven nor earth.

Now, with the actual battlefield before their eyes, these officers who had never seen combat couldn’t even muster the courage to pull out their guns and pull the trigger.

"They’re all worthless! A bunch of good-for-nothings!" Han Zhiyuan clutched the wound on his arm, his eyes bulging with rage, loudly cursing.

But the people passing by him didn’t even glance his way, as if they didn’t notice there was such a madman there at all.

"Shoot! Resist! You’re all soldiers of the Dahua Empire!" Han Zhiyuan yelled as he reached out to grab a subordinate passing by.

But before his hand got halfway, a bullet came his way, hitting the deserting officer beside him.

The officer staggered a few steps and then collapsed a few meters from the gate.

The captain of Han Zhiyuan’s guard urged, "General! We must not linger here! We must leave this place swiftly!"

"You want to run, too?" Han Zhiyuan glared at his own captain of the guard, questioning sharply.

"No, General! This place is dangerous, your safety is of the utmost importance!" the captain of the guard continued to urge anxiously.

After all, Han Zhiyuan was a General, the commander of hundreds of thousands of troops in the Central Region! As long as he was alive, these troops would not fall into disarray, but if he were gone, how could these troops continue to block the Tang Army advancing from the south?

"This is not the time for stubborn pride! General! If something happens to you, General Qian Jinhang will be in danger!" The captain supported Han Zhiyuan, tried to pull him into a building while persisting with his entreaties.

But as he was pulling Han Zhiyuan, the coaxial machine gun of the Mark IV tank finally swept over.

The bullets first penetrated Han Zhiyuan, then the guard captain. It was as if a hammer had struck their chests; the two men shuddered and then struggled as they fell.

Han Zhiyuan, a valiant warrior of the Dahua Empire, thus met an untidy end in Wangchun City, leaving behind a defense that was in shambles and practically non-existent.

The attacking Tang grenadiers didn’t bother to look at the fallen Han Zhiyuan, since there were just too many Dahua troops around.

They fired desperately until the entire courtyard fell silent. The corner was full of kneeling, huddled prisoners of war, and only then did combat finally pause.

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These fortunate Tang Empire Grenadiers had captured dozens of senior officers almost without breaking a sweat.

"Who is Han Zhiyuan!" Finally remembering his most important purpose for the assault here, the leading Grenadier officer asked the kneeling captives.

"Sir... that, that is Han Zhiyuan!" A Dahua officer pointed shakily with his finger, indicating a corpse not far away.

The commander of the Tang Army’s Grenadiers followed the man’s finger and saw the body of Han Zhiyuan lying there.

He walked over, looking down at the corpse and noticed the clothing was indeed very lavish. Judging by the style, it was that of a General, and it was quite possible it really was Han Zhiyuan.

"Is he really Han Zhiyuan?" Not quite believing the body at his feet was their target, the Tang commander asked again to confirm.

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Many Dahua officers quickly nodded, confidently answering, "Yes, yes! That’s Han Zhiyuan! Han Zhiyuan!"

Speaking up now could mix in a good personal record, at least making captivity a bit more comfortable. These forthright Dahua officers weakly thought to themselves.

The street battles within the city gradually calmed, and gunfire also became sparse. The subsequent Tang forces arrived, and the main troops entered Wangchun City.

The Tang soldiers who first captured the city had already continued southward, breezily leaving the captives and the city they had taken to those who came after them.

Due to the disintegration of the Dahua military’s will to fight and the Tang Army’s surprise attack, the Dahua defenders didn’t even have the chance to deal with the railways of Wangchun City.

The Tang Army occupied an intact train station, and the tracks were in good condition; there was even an engine stationed at the railway station.

The battle had ended so swiftly that even the Dahua civilians in the city hadn’t realized their city now belonged to the Tang forces.

By the time they realized this, the Tang Army had started rotation duty at the location, and these soldiers were very friendly, not causing much disturbance to the civilians of Wangchun City.

That afternoon, the news that Wangchun City had changed hands and fallen to the Tang Army reached General Feng Kezhi’s headquarters. He was silent, not uttering a word for a long while.

Han Zhiyuan’s rank was not high, but his status was indeed significant! At least in many people’s eyes, Han Zhiyuan was one of the few soldiers who still had a bit of courage.

But now, Han Zhiyuan was dead!

The frontlines of the Dahua Troops were in chaos, the Tang Army had occupied Wangchun City, and General Feng Kezhi was no longer confident whether Tengyun City could be held.

If Tengyun City were lost, South Wind Pass would be endangered! At that point, the nearly one million troops commanded by Qian Jinhang would be surrounded and cut off from support.

General Feng Kezhi couldn’t think of a good solution to the predicament he faced: retreat was unrealistic, as his own Emperor Zhao Kai had just issued a death order a couple of days ago, and he dared not easily defy his Emperor Your Majesty’s arrangement.

As for his Emperor who liked to micromanage, often issuing absurd death orders, Feng Kezhi had already become accustomed to such madness.

Meanwhile, Redman was riding in an armored command vehicle, speeding southward on Dahua’s roads. The vehicle moved over the uneven ground, jostling slightly due to the rough road conditions.

Sitting beside him, a radio operator removed his headset and handed a telegram to his General, "Sir! Just received this message! The Air Force has already been deployed!"

The weather in Wangchun City was clearing up again, and the Tang Army’s subsequent bombers started to bomb the Dahua military outside the city district—easily scattering enemy forces approaching the Tang positions.

One Stuka after another circled near Wangchun City, attacking any Dahua stragglers trying to rush into the city.

On the other hand, the gap in the Dahua military line behind Redman had been further widened by the Tang forces, now over 20 kilometers in depth and breadth.

That afternoon, at the same time Shen Chuan learned of Han Zhiyuan’s death, a Tang military train arrived at Wangchun City.

Liu Guozhu’s Tank Battalion, which had been trailing behind, had endured until now and finally reached the frontline.

According to the plan, they would flank the main attacking forces, directing their assault on the distant Tengyun City.

It was reported that the Dahua military was assembling on the Tang Army’s flank, with a large scale of tank forces in motion.

Redman did not want his flank compromised, so he positioned his elite troops equipped with new tanks there, ready to surprise the Dahua Empire’s counterattacking forces.

This surprise included a long-barreled 75mm caliber tank gun, along with high-performance armor-piercing rounds! With these new tanks stationed on the flank, Redman had the confidence to boldly use the remaining armored forces to continue pressing southward.

By evening, the Dahua Troops began a large-scale assembly. Invoking the slogan "Avenge General Han Zhiyuan," they converged under the cover of night, preparing to strike the next morning and cut off the Tang Army’s supply lines.

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