Joseon Needs a Coup - Chapter 200



Only Noblemtl

#200. Modern Warfare (6)

The enemies were now gravely mistaken and seemed to have bet everything they had.

It suddenly occurred to me that officers and instructors who like to play cards always make mistakes.

They tend to act recklessly when they think their cards are very advantageous and their opponents have no cards to play. That was the situation the Japanese army was in right now. They thought they had the advantage and didn’t seem to consider what their opponents would do.

As soon as the enemy thought that all four infantry battalions of the 3rd Brigade had been committed to the front line, they threw themselves into a desperate bid to break through, but they seemed to have forgotten, or at least tried to forget, that the artillery battalion was still holding firm.

People always think in their own favor, so the enemy commander probably didn’t want to pay attention to the silent artillery battalion.

However, they suffered little damage in the artillery battle last night. No, the Japanese artillery fire on Bugaesan, where the artillery battalion was located, was too light and inaccurate.

This was a natural result, as their direct targets were the main defensive line and forward positions of Juansan.

“Make them pay a heavy price for keeping us alive!”

Capable of firing up to 12 rounds per minute, this versatile French-made cannon rained down shells on its enemies.

Shrapnel and high-explosive bombs exploded in the air and on the ground, giving two battalions of advancing Japanese troops an unforgettable first experience.

The Japanese battalions that had been advancing in four columns suffered unspeakable damage.

In particular, the shrapnel bombs that exploded in the air caused such severe casualties that it could be said that they were truly made in hell.

Losing limbs was a given, and if you were unlucky, you would lose your head or have huge holes all over your body that even modern, or perhaps even incredible future medical technology could not repair.

For those who had to climb the mountain ridge bare-handed and without any cover, the concentrated fire was difficult to endure.

They could greatly reduce casualties by simply lying down, but they won’t be able to do that.

“The enemy is spreading out. All batteries, replace the ammunition with shrapnel and continue to fire at the designated coordinates!”

The artillery battalion commander continued to shout into the receiver.

He continued to fire concentrated shells, prepared to use up all his remaining ammunition this time.

I don’t know how many enemies we can destroy with artillery fire though.

Unfortunately, unlike the hellish battlefield taking place on the ground, the sky was so beautifully clear.

***

Director Kikoshi realized that something was seriously wrong with the situation that had been so optimistic until just a moment ago.

The enemy artillery, which we thought had clearly been overpowered in the previous night’s engagement, was still alive and well.

And they poured shells on the heads of the two battalions that had advanced to expand the breach and on various parts of their advance route, and soon a huge cloud of gun smoke completely obscured the view.

Everyone was stunned by the sight. The enemy’s artillery fire was incredible, extremely accurate, and extremely fast.

And it seemed that nothing could survive their barrage.

Major General Kikoshi realized for the first time since he began his military career, while commanding the Imperial Army, just how helpless humans were.

In the midst of a storm of steel, the will of a human infantryman was easily broken.

No, to be exact, even if the will itself was not broken, the steel was strong compared to the weak flesh.

Between the hail of shrapnel and high-explosive bombs, humans made of flesh and blood lost their lives too easily, and the two battalions that had advanced were paying the price in real time.

“What, what is this···.”

“Enemy artillery has resumed its activities. The shelling that was falling on the Mansusan area has not stopped…”

As the staff said, they were preparing to gape open to devour the follow-up units that had entered to expand the battle.

What if all this was planned, or if the enemy had taken such a risky action from the beginning, using the brigade command post as bait to completely attrite our units?

“Those crazy guys···.”

Even as he cursed, he had to shout at the unbelievable current situation.

In an instant, Director Kikoshi, who had been confident until just a moment ago, became confused as he sorted out numerous possible scenarios in his head.

I thought it was a very simple math formula, but somewhere along the way, something went wrong.

“We must immediately stop fighting and retreat. If we are not careful, the retreat route of the units deployed to expand the breakthrough may be blocked by the enemy!”

No, maybe I had input the formula wrong from the beginning, but what was certain was that if the enemy’s artillery had resumed its activities with full vigor, sending additional troops would be tantamount to suicide.

In addition, the 3rd Battalion, which had advanced all the way to the brigade command post, was observed being slowly driven out from the top of the mountain.

“What on earth is going on in the mountains!”

“Our 3rd Battalion is retreating. The 2 battalions that received reinforcements from the 12th Division… Haa….”

The staff officer looked astonished. He could not believe that even though the 23rd Brigade had been striking at its main force, the friendly forces were being pushed back.

But what was happening in front of us was not an illusion, it was reality.

“The messenger has arrived. The enemy infantry companies are moving on the flank of the 3rd Battalion in the line!”

“What?”

“Enemy infantry companies have launched a charge into the flank of the 3rd Battalion. The follow-up formations have been cut off by artillery fire, and the 3rd Battalion has also suffered too many casualties during the three assaults, so they cannot hold out and are retreating!”

“How is the offensive against the enemy’s kitchen fishing boats going?”

In order to secure a new breakthrough, Chief Kikoshi asked how the main offensive battle of Juansan Fishing Fleet was going.

But the battle there also did not give Major General Kikoshi the answer he wanted.

“We were unable to make any significant breakthroughs due to the enemies who had given up on defending the front line and were relying on their double-dug trenches and defensive positions to fiercely resist. We did manage to break through the left wing of the Juansan main fishing boats for a short while, but the enemy battalion sent in their reserves and used shock tactics to push back our infantry, forcing us back to square one.”

“The right wing is the same. We made six assaults throughout the afternoon, but all failed. All the battalion commanders on the scene are requesting a withdrawal or a change of formation. They say there are too many casualties.”

“Okay.”

He had thought he had the momentum going until just now, but he felt as if the goddess of victory had turned away from him at the last moment.

No, perhaps the Goddess of Victory had never turned her head here in the first place. For the enemy, the artillery, the darling of modern warfare, was still alive and well.

“Brigadier General, we can finish them off by deploying the reserves. If we reorganize the retreating units and deploy them for the offensive…!”

“Everyone is too tired. If we continue like this, the combat mission itself will be impossible.”

Lieutenant General Hasegawa would have been more than capable of doing so, but the commander of this battle was Major General Kikoshi himself. And the 23rd Brigade was also his unit, so he had no intention of risking more lives in a place that had already failed once.

It was right to admit cleanly that I had failed this time. Of course, it took a lot of effort and patience to get to that point.

“···Retreat all troops. Someday we will reap the glory of victory, but today it seems that we will not be allowed to do so. Let them enjoy their victory for today. When this war is over, we will bury them.”

Although he was extremely disappointed with the outcome of the battle, Major General Kikoshi did not express his anger to his subordinates like Hasegawa did.

Because expressing disappointment and expressing anger are two very different things.

Instead, as Major General Kikoshi looked at his retreating troops, it occurred to him that he had encountered perhaps the most worthy enemy he had ever faced.

***

Meanwhile, in Uiju, the Russian advance cavalry detachment was well advanced.

Under the command of Major General Pavel Mishenko, they began to advance south first, leading four battalions, two battalions of the 7th East Siberian Rifle Regiment of the Priamur Military District and two battalions of the Posyet Regiment, totaling about 2,400 men.

As soon as Kuropatkin heard the news that the Russian fleet had been attacked at Chemulpo, he decided to deploy them immediately.

Initially, they had intended to link up with the Korean forces in Hunchun in North Gando and Hamgyong Province across the Tumen River, but at the earnest request of Governor-General of the Far East Alekseev, who wanted to stop the Japanese army, which was clearly going to advance to Port Arthur, and at the request of the Korean government, they changed course and began crossing the Yalu River.

Instead, the unit to take over their mission was already being formed in the Primorsky Krai region, and it seemed that the entire Priamur Military District under the command of Major General Anisimov and the South Ussuri District Army were being transferred to Hamgyong Province.

“Welcome, Major General Misenko. My name is Kim In-su, Lieutenant General of the Korean Empire Army. You can call me Viktor. Either way, it’s all my name. I am currently in charge of the overall defense and troop operations in North Pyongan Province. Please go inside and listen to the situation briefing.”

“Thank you for your hospitality.”

As he entered Uiju, Director Misenko felt that the atmosphere here was brighter than he had expected.

Rather than feeling gloomy, I thought the entire city was full of energy. Perhaps it was because of the strong hatred towards the invaders.

“I didn’t know that your country’s troops would arrive so quickly.”

“Because Commander Kuropatkin was already preparing.”

Major General Mischenko felt relieved when he saw Lieutenant General Kim In-soo, who spoke Russian so fluently. He had worried during his dispatch about what it would be like to conduct an operation with people he couldn’t even communicate with, but it seemed that the Korean Empire had also thought about it and had deployed quite capable people to link up with the Russian military.

“Currently, our troops and the Japanese are engaged in a fierce battle on the Gyeongin Highway in Jemulpo, and the main forces of the royal family, government, and military in the capital are withdrawing to Hamgyeong-do and Pyeongan-do, respectively. The 3rd Brigade unexpectedly entered the battle, but thanks to that, we have gained time to engage in a more systematic delaying battle.”

Chief Kim In-su said while showing a map.

“Currently, our main fishing boats will start from South Pyongan Province. Based on the fortified positions that were expanded last year thanks to Major General Roman Kondrachenko, we are building a total of three deep defense lines.”

“Who is your commander-in-chief?”

“Well, I haven’t arrived in Pyongyang yet, but this is Kim Si-hyeok, the chief of the Yangseo Police Station.”

“That little brat?”

Major General Misenko frowned and said, “How dare you promote a young kid who isn’t even thirty to the position of commander.

During the Napoleonic Wars, there was something unsettling about appointing someone so young as commander-in-chief, let alone one of the commanders-in-chief of the European countries. He certainly had talent, but experience was not something that could be substituted for it.