Chapter 6: No Guns, No Cannons—the Enemy Makes Them For Us
“Quick retreat! Have the artillery regiment gather and pull back their cannons!”
Seeing the advanced deployment of their artillery positions being shelled by the enemy, Major General Dejizer anxiously shouted orders repeatedly, but it was too late.
The Belgian artillery was in disarray, a bloody mess, not even having time to retrieve their artillery spades, let alone drag the cannons back.
Colonel Deyoka, the commander of the Belgian 3rd Regiment of the 4th Division, specifically responsible for this offensive, was personally leading his last few hundred men, taking cover in the ruins of buildings near the shelled artillery positions, in the northeast corner of the town.
He had a closer view of their side’s terrible state than his superior, Major General Dejizer, and was naturally more anxious than the Major General.
Seeing their artillery in disarray, he quickly adjusted his deployment and urged his soldiers to hold their ground: “All infantry to hold position and buy time for the artillery to retreat!”
Messengers braved enemy fire and shrapnel, darting between the ruins, urging officers of all ranks to carry out the regimental commander’s orders.
The Belgian infantry still had some courage, and relying on the partial positions they had already occupied in the town, they were reluctant to retreat.
But at that moment, Colonel Deyoka vaguely noticed that in the twilight, many German soldiers had appeared on the south side of these streets, slowly approaching. It was clear that the enemy infantry had taken the opportunity to launch a counterattack.
“The Germans dare to counterattack so decisively? They aren’t planning to wear us down first like the previous two waves?”
Seeing this, Colonel Deyoka was also spurred into action and decided to hold his ground and counterattack, aiming to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy’s fighting strength.
Even if the enemy was skilled at elastic defense, that’s not how it’s played! The Germans are too arrogant!
They dared to launch a full-scale counterattack before wearing down the attacking force to exhaustion, so they would be shown the power of machine guns!
The few heavy machine guns the Belgian forces had just deployed in the northernmost buildings of these streets immediately began spitting fire with a “rat-a-tat-tat,” blocking the streets.
The German infantry charging north from the southern end of the street were indeed suppressed for the moment, scattering to find cover.
Although the darkness made it impossible to see how many casualties they had inflicted, it at least greatly slowed the speed of the German counterattack.
But the good times didn’t last long. Just a few minutes after the Belgian heavy machine guns opened fire, a flash of fire appeared from behind a broken wall of a building opposite,
A 77mm grenade flew straight towards one of the ruins where a heavy machine gun was hidden. With a “boom,” it collapsed half the wall, and the Belgian heavy machine gun inside was immediately buried.
Colonel Deyoka was shocked, completely unable to understand what had happened.
Indeed, he had learned minutes ago that the Germans had artillery, but how could artillery appear in such a position?
Even rapid-fire cannons, with direct fire, should be positioned in open artillery emplacements, shouldn’t they?
How could even cannons be deployed inside buildings? Did cannons that could be flexibly deployed indoors still exist in this world?
Seven or eight seconds later, another shot was fired from the spot where the fire had flashed earlier. This time, the shell flew directly towards Colonel Deyoka’s position—he was temporarily stationed in the ruins of a church in a corner of the town. Messengers were running in and out, and the enemy’s hidden observation posts had long since discovered this was an important location.
Colonel Deyoka was blown to pieces with the confusion of not understanding until his death, and went to another world.
The 3rd Regiment of the 4th Division, having lost its commander, fell into complete chaos. Those few German artillery pieces with direct fire, still hidden in some ruins on the south side of the long street, fired periodically every seven or eight seconds or tens of seconds, like playing a game of “call my name,” always hitting something.
Without the suppression of the Belgian heavy machine guns, the German infantry finally advanced agilely and loosely, maintaining their tactical formation well to avoid heavy casualties from enemy concentrated fire.
The remaining Belgian offensive forces, their morale shattered, completely lost control and scrambled out of the town, fleeing wildly. They were severely routed and almost annihilated.
“Quick, you guys, bring the horses over and hitch them to the gun carriages! Take two Schneider rapid-fire cannons in good condition back! Don’t leave them here to be bombed by Britannia’s cruisers! Don’t take too many! We don’t have much ammunition! More cannons won’t be enough to fire! Take all the 75mm shells you can find on the positions!”
On another part of the battlefield, Lieutenant Barrack, the deputy company commander of the German cavalry company, shouted orders, directing numerous draft horses and even warhorses to pull the gun carriages, thus directly hauling away two relatively intact Belgian cannons.
He was also strictly following Colonel Lister’s orders.
Before this counterattack, the Colonel had already assigned tasks:
The main force of the artillery company of the 16th Regiment was responsible for counteracting the enemy’s forward-deployed artillery positions after they had been lured in. However, two cannons were to be detached and deployed separately in the southern ruins of the contested street block, selecting two good firing positions for direct fire to eliminate enemy strongpoints during the counterattack.
The infantry of the 4th Battalion of the 16th Regiment, which had been used as reserves, had now rested enough and was being brought up as the main force for the counterattack’s charge.
The cavalry of the Division Reconnaissance Company were to contribute their horses for rapid battlefield cleanup after the battle, hauling away enemy abandoned cannons.
The caliber of German and Belgian artillery differed by two millimeters, making the shells completely different. Therefore, the Colonel knew that bringing back too many enemy cannons would be useless; two would be enough.
Anyway, the enemy’s artillery positions had only so much ammunition stored temporarily, and with more cannons, there wouldn’t be enough shells to go around.
Lieutenant Barrack had never fought such a lucrative battle. He didn’t even need his soldiers to kill anyone; they just needed to clean up the battlefield and haul away cannons and ammunition.
He hoped for more such tasks in the future!
“Sir! My unit has perfectly completed the mission! We’ve brought back two 75mm rapid-fire cannons, three hundred rounds of ammunition, and captured over twenty artillerymen.”
Upon returning to the command post to report, Lieutenant Barrack, beaming with joy, informed the Colonel.
The Colonel nodded with satisfaction: “Well done. But this victory was so thorough, Lelouch, your idea was also instrumental—how did you think of forcibly removing our 77mm anti-shell shields and then deploying the cannons indoors?”
Lieutenant Barrack looked at Lelouch again at this, but this time his eyes held only admiration.
It turned out that just before the enemy’s attack, Sergeant Major Lelouch had offered another small suggestion to the Colonel, which Lieutenant Barrack had also heard personally.
German 77mm field guns originally lacked the ability to be deployed indoors because all cannons of this era had a front anti-shell shield, which was inconveniently large.
A 77mm cannon couldn’t even fit through the double doors of an ordinary civilian house, so indoor deployment was not considered—unless it was a specially designed and constructed fortress battery.
But just before the operation, Lelouch overheard the Colonel discussing the problem of “luring the enemy deep and counterattacking to capture cannons.” He had a flash of inspiration and suggested to the Colonel to select two 77mm cannons, remove their anti-shell shields, significantly reducing their overall size for flexible deployment.
This strategy had now proven effective, and Lelouch naturally took the opportunity to be a backseat strategist, explaining his thought process:
“My idea was actually quite simple. I thought: our 77mm cannons have a much higher muzzle velocity than the Schneider 75mm, but their final range is about the same. This is because the 77mm cannon’s maximum elevation angle is too small.
And with a smaller maximum elevation angle, the cannon body can be made lower, and the anti-shell shield area can also be made correspondingly lower. This was originally an advantage for our army. But how to maximize this advantage? I thought, why not completely remove the anti-shell shield, and then use the advantage of our low gun carriage to deploy directly inside collapsed buildings, finding gaps to deploy.
This would maximize their concealment. And since it’s urban warfare, the external walls already provide ballistic protection. If an attack could penetrate brick walls, that thin sheet of iron certainly wouldn’t offer protection either. So, why keep it?”
Lelouch spoke eloquently, and Colonel Lister, Lieutenant Barrack, and other officers found his explanation quite enlightening.
This approach could not only be used this time but could also be a reference for friendly forces in the future, and should be included in the artillery manual’s summary of urban warfare experience.
Thinking of this, the Colonel couldn’t help but casually ask: “How are your writing skills? Can you write an addendum to the artillery manual, introducing new tactical experience? This would be very beneficial for grassroots officers like yourselves, allowing you to quickly gain seniority.”
For those who had received a higher education, writing an article was not difficult. As long as there was substance, and a template was provided, it could be done.
Lelouch didn’t need to think much and directly agreed: “Don’t worry, sir, I’m also a university graduate.”
However, there was no need to rush such things; it could be discussed later.
For now, having just achieved a local victory, the officers and soldiers should celebrate properly and take turns resting to prepare for the subsequent, more brutal battles.
Colonel Lister, well-versed in troop management, immediately announced an enhanced meal for the soldiers:
“Barrack, when you occupied the town, did you check the captured inventory? Is there any alcohol? This is the first victory since the troops arrived. If there’s alcohol, bring it all out to boost morale.
It’s completely dark now, and we’ve completely eliminated and captured the 4th Division’s artillery. Dejizer has suffered a crushing defeat this time and shouldn’t dare to attack again immediately. We can have a peaceful first half of the night.
However, we must be vigilant in the latter half of the night. Considering the time, Victor’s 6th Division should definitely arrive on the battlefield by then.”
Lieutenant Barrack quickly replied: “Understood, I’ll go prepare. That cellar that was repurposed into a telegraph room was originally the wine cellar of a manor in town; it contains some champagne and cognac brandy.
And the church where the enemy was temporarily stationed also has a cellar with wine for communion.”
This area was already the westernmost part of Belgian territory, bordering Frankish lands, so the local wines were similar.
Theoretically, only the sparkling apple wine produced in the Champagne region of Picardy was qualified to be called champagne, but in reality, sparkling wines from surrounding provinces also used the name.
The Colonel’s eyes lit up upon hearing about champagne: “Excellent! Champagne is perfect for this occasion, and its alcohol content is not high. Open it all! Save the cognac brandy for later!”
The German army of 1914 had high military standards, but also many bad habits, mainly that officer-soldier equality was far inferior to their enemies.
Officers frequently subjected soldiers to corporal punishment, military law was harsh, and the disparities in food and treatment between officers and soldiers were immense.
Colonel Lister, though a capable commander, was no exception in this regard. The champagne given to the soldiers was only one bottle per squad, to be distributed by the squad leader.
Not even an ounce per person; the soldiers received the wine in their mess kits, and it was gone in two gulps.
However, Lelouch’s platoon received preferential treatment due to him, with two bottles per squad.
After receiving the wine, Lelouch had his subordinate, Sergeant Klose, distribute it, and also instructed: “Keep an eye on the other unconscious NCOs. Wake me if they stir, and save some wine for them. I am currently the acting platoon leader and need to familiarize myself with the team.”
Klose immediately agreed with a full mouth, stating he would not fail.
During the lull in combat, Lelouch had also inquired about some details from Klose. Primarily, what happened before he woke up that afternoon, including why he was affected by the enemy’s tear gas and why other NCOs were also affected.
Klose answered all questions truthfully, telling him that in the morning, the Communications Platoon had just arrived in town, and the enemy in the town had not yet been completely cleared, with French forces still offering scattered resistance.
Lelouch and several other NCOs had entered the town’s Telegraph Company office （ similar to post offices in China in the 1980s that could send telegrams ） to inspect equipment and lines.
Unexpectedly, there were still remnants of French resistance nearby. They threw a few gas grenades. As it was a confined space, several of them repeatedly tried to open the door to rush out, and some were already suffering from suffocation.
However, tear gas was generally not fatal, and those people should wake up after being gassed for an afternoon.
After instructing Klose, Lelouch himself was favored by the Colonel and invited to dine with his trusted officers.
He had transmigrated at around 1 p.m., and it was now 7 or 8 p.m. Considering he had been unconscious for a while due to poisoning that morning, he hadn’t eaten anything all day.
He saw the Colonel, two friendly battalion commanders, a regimental staff officer, a cipher clerk, and Lieutenant Barrack, all gathered around a long table, with a relatively abundant meal laid out as best as possible: stewed cured meat with potatoes, and fried sausage with cabbage.
Lelouch’s rumbling stomach could no longer bear it, and he began to eat with admiration from the end of the table.
On the whole table, except for a cipher clerk who was a Second Lieutenant, everyone else was at least a Lieutenant, and he was the only one who was not yet an officer.
However, none of the officers of the 16th Regiment dared to look down on him, and they were all very kind to him.
Perhaps it was for saving the entire regiment from being drowned by his telegraph warning.
Lelouch ate heartily, finishing three whole sausages, and suddenly remembered something. However, considering table etiquette, he waited until the Colonel finished before asking:
“Sir, I heard that when you arrived with the entire regiment on forced march, you also rescued several hundred Belgian civilians along the way? Did those people eat?”
The Colonel paused, clearly not having considered this issue. He hastily inquired, and it turned out that a regimental logistics officer responsible for this matter replied that they had only given the civilians some potatoes.
This was wartime, after all. The troops themselves only carried three days’ worth of rations, and the meat they were eating now was all captured locally in the town. They had no surplus to distribute to refugees.
Upon hearing this, Lelouch’s eyes lit up, and another plan formed in his mind:
“Sir, I have a suggestion. Since we don’t have extra military rations to give them, and they didn’t have time to bring any provisions when they fled, why not release some Belgian civilians and let them seek refuge near the Belgian army’s positions?”
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PS: I’ve signed a contract, so I’ve updated by another 4,000 words today.
Requesting comments, follows, collections, votes, and recommendations for the new book.
If you could increase the number of 1 yuan active followers to occupy the rankings, I would be even more grateful （ I heard that a paragraph reward of 2 cents can also occupy the ranking now. I haven’t operated it and don’t understand. Those who know can try. 2 cents is not even enough to subscribe to a thousand words, and you can’t buy loss or get tricked. It’s purely to occupy the ranking and increase the number of active followers. ）
