Munitions Empire

Chapter 675 Chapter 675: 634 pistachios

Shireck's advisors had left, and they had their ways of leaving Beiyuan City no matter what. These men took small boats from the docks at night before transferring to larger ships to return to Shen Country, even escorted by warships along the way.

Now, because Tang Country warships frequently attacked Shen Country transport ships, the shipping route between Beiyuan and Shen Country was no longer safe.

So whether it was transporting materials or troops, escort by warships was required. However, compared to the number of transport ships, there clearly weren't enough Shen Country warships to go around.

This directly led to a serious problem: whether it was because the ports were destroyed, or transport required escort, the total volume of shipments to Beiyuan City from Shen Country had been reduced by four-fifths!

Eighty percent, a full eighty percent!

With so much ammunition lost, and so many reinforcements missing, the Shen Country military defending Beiyuan City fell into despair.

Injured soldiers who should have been transported back were stranded within Beiyuan City, and the place was rife with wounded, with military rogues running amok, keeping Shenwu Sanlang furious at all times.

Meanwhile, the Tang Army was also encroaching upon the Shen Army's control outside the city, destroying Shen Country's defense lines, forcing Shen troops to continually retreat towards Beiyuan City.

"Boom!" A shell landed on the main defensive belt set up by Shen Country outside the city. Before the dust it had kicked up had a chance to settle, a row of Shen Country soldiers carrying their rifles moved past the trench.

Not a hundred meters from this trench, a Tank 4 assault gun was turning around. Its treads rolled over the edge of the trench, and the falling mud terrified the Shen Country soldiers underneath to the extreme.

Just as the Shen Country soldiers huddled under the assault gun, preparing to attack its rear once it passed, a Tang Country grenadier jumped out of the trench at the side of the assault gun.

He held a Thompson submachine gun and sprayed bullets at the Shen Country soldiers hiding in the trench, knocking them all to the ground.

A Shen Country soldier charging with a stick grenade shouted and ran forward, only to be killed by another Tang country grenadier who had jumped into the trench. The two then lay down on the other side.

The grenade exploded amidst a group of Shen Country defenders, spurting a mist of blood. The unbridled Tank 4 assault gun continued forward, with more Tang Army soldiers jumping down into the trench and then flipping out to follow behind the moving vehicle.

"Tat-tat-tat!" The remaining Tang Army soldiers who entered the trench began to incessantly attack both sides, being much more cautious than before.

Because their opponents now had steel helmets and grenades, their combat power in the trenches was rapidly rising.

With the deadly weapon that was the hand grenade now in their possession, the Shen Army's combat effectiveness in the trenches had noticeably improved – they were no longer powerless under the Tang Army's pressure.

"Watch out for grenades!" Following this shout, another grenade exploded. It wasn't clear if it was thrown by the Tang Army themselves or lobbed over by a Shen Country soldier. Continue your journey with My Virtual Library Empire

After the explosion, the distinctive chattering sound of the Tang Army submachine guns rang out again, indicating that the grenade had not had the desired effect.

Because they lacked automatic weapons, the Shen Country military still found themselves in defeat at the hands of the Tang Army soldiers in the trenches, even with the presence of hand grenades.

"Fix bayonets!" Next to him in the trench, a Shen platoon leader had drawn his saber and was giving orders loudly.

Following his shout, Shen soldiers drew their bayonets from their waists and fixed them onto their rifles, which were nearly as tall as they were.

"Long live the King! Long live the King!" They cried out madly, ready to leap out of the trenches and engage in a decisive battle with the approaching Tang Army.

But amid their cries, a grenade rolled to their feet. A loud blast followed, filling the area with black smoke.

The Shen soldiers in the trench were thrown into disarray, and before the rest could get to their feet, Tang soldiers arrived from the flanks, continuously firing their weapons, stopping to reload on the spot once their ammo was spent, while comrades behind them surged past to maintain the rapid advance.

Such fast-paced progress caught the Shen soldiers off guard. Inside the concrete bunkers, including the leading Shen commander, everyone had to immediately engage in battle. They defended the entrance and managed to hold off Tang Army's first wave of attack.

At extremely close range, both sides kept firing relentlessly, with grenades exploding near the entrance of the Shen defense works from time to time.

Soon, the Shen defenders couldn't hold on any more: they only had a few pistols, and the rest were armed with Shireck Model 1 rifles, which were far less powerful than the Tang Army's Thompson Submachine Guns.

On average, by the time Tang soldiers emptied a magazine, the Shen could barely get a shot off in return. If they could hold out in such a fight, they would truly be War Gods.

As the Tang Army drew closer, their grenade-throwing accuracy became more exaggerated: it wasn't long before a grenade was precisely thrown into the bunker's doorway, followed by a dull explosion inside.

"Boom!" The Shen soldiers were blown off their feet. The Tang soldiers took the opportunity to charge into the bunker, turning everyone attempting to flee or rise into a sieve.

"I surrender!" A Shen officer hid behind a table, raising his hands, but before he could stand up, a Tang soldier sprayed a volley of bullets in his direction.

The thin wooden board was no match against the bullets, so when the Tang soldier finished firing and came over to check, the Shen officer was already dead.

"It gave me a scare," the Tang grenadier who opened fire explained somewhat awkwardly, "It was just a reflex..."

"Nobody's blaming you," another grenadier kicked the body on the ground, reassuringly indifferent, "Dead is dead, just apologize afterward and it's done."

Seeing the rookie actually start to step forward, his squad leader quickly put a hand on his shoulder, "He was just pulling your leg, and you were actually gonna do it?"

"Huh?" The new soldier finally realized he had been played by the veteran. He scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed and somewhat flushed.

"Let's go, Happy Nut," the veteran who joked shook his gun barrel, ready to cross through the entire bunker and exit from a door on the other side.

"I'm not called Happy Nut," the new soldier defended himself.

"Alright, Happy Nut. Got it, Happy Nut, let's go... Happy Nut." Around here, no one cares what you're called unless you can survive and make everyone know that following you means survival!