While Lin Ziran was waiting for the arrival of the experimental sample of the rear-loading artillery, there was also a kind of calm outside Pingdan City.

After suffering the first defeat, the county defenders learned to be clever in the next few days, hiding directly in the defensive line and not coming out, and at the same time using a large number of artillery, the troops of the 6th Division were slightly ahead, and their artillery was carrying out intensive bombardment, completely ignoring the loss of ammunition.

In fact, this is not the main reason for the calm of the fighting outside Bindan, but the main reason is because of the problems of the Sixth Division itself.

The Sixth Division came in a hurry, and a lot of ammunition, especially artillery shells, could not be transported later.

What's more, the bullets of the Aoyama rear-loading rifle used by the First Step Corps are not enough!

On the first day of the tentative assault, the First Infantry achieved results beyond everyone's imagination, but also fired a number of bullets that no one expected.

Before the start of the campaign, the soldiers of the First Infantry Corps carried 50 rounds of ammunition with each of them, and the baggage units at all levels of the battalion, regiment, and division carried a total of 50 rounds of ammunition in reserve.

That is, a hundred rounds of ammunition for each rifle.

But in fact, on the first day of the battle, although it was only a tentative attack, in fact, because the opponent took the initiative to counterattack, the fight was actually very fierce.

At that time, the soldiers of the First Infantry Corps fired almost non-stop, because the enemy was so dense that they didn't even need to aim to shoot, so that most of the soldiers directly used up the 50 rounds of ammunition they carried with them in this battle, and even the baggage troops at the battalion and regimental levels urgently provided an average of 20 rounds of ammunition for the front-line troops during the period.

Subsequently, although the reserve ammunition in the baggage regiment was also transferred, the ammunition left on the side of the first regiment was actually less than 50 rounds per rifle.

Fifty rounds per rifle is enough for a front-loading gun, and in the era of front-loading guns, soldiers consumed an average of ten rounds of ammunition in a campaign, and sometimes dozens of rounds of ammunition carried by soldiers may not be able to finish from the beginning of the war to the end of the war.

However, for a rear-loading rifle, this is completely insufficient.

For this reason, the Ordnance Section of the Food and Payroll Department has urgently approached the Aoyama Machinery Factory to increase orders and expand the production of bullets, and at the same time, it has also mobilized all the recently produced bullets to the front line.

But it takes time, and even the ammunition from the stockpiles can take at least a few days to get there.

The preparation of metal bullets is insufficient, which is also a very helpless thing.

Originally, according to the ammunition supply standard set by the General Staff Office, it was necessary to prepare 200 rounds of ammunition for each rear-loading rifle, and this standard has been several times higher than the previous front-loading gun, and it is enough according to the general situation.

However, the standard is the standard, and whether it can be actually achieved is another matter.

The metal bullet production line of Aoyama Machinery Factory has only been in operation for more than a month, and the output is not large, and the time is tight, so it has not been able to reserve too many bullets in advance.

This helplessness directly affected the actions of the First Infantry Corps.

Because according to the current ammunition consumption situation, the first corps only needs to fight another fierce and high-intensity battle with the enemy, then it will be declared out of ammunition.

The 1st Infantry Corps is the core and main force of the 6th Division, not only because they are equipped with rear-loading rifles, but also because this unit is the army with the longest formation time, the longest training time, and the highest quality of officers.

Whether the subsequent southward operation can break through the defense line of the 10,000-strong army of the opposite county guard depends on the performance of the first corps.

Under such circumstances, the Sixth Division will naturally not rush forward, let alone continue to launch a large-scale offensive when the ammunition of the First Division is short.

In this regard, Wu Guanlin said: "The colleagues in the staff office unanimously believe that although Lord Zhao's side is under great pressure, although Lord Zhao's troops are lacking in weapons and equipment, physical fitness, etc., their will to fight is very high. ”

"It is impossible for the county guard to quickly take Yonggu County and other areas with the current 30,000 troops."

"Therefore, we have enough time to wait for artillery units and a large number of shells to arrive at the front line!"

"At the same time, the time is longer, and too many accidents can be avoided!"

This last sentence was not explicitly stated, but Lin Ziran knew what Wu Guanlin's accident was referring to.

This accident was naturally to prevent Jian Minggang from changing his strategic direction, giving up hitting Zhao Song first, and turning back to the main force to fight the Sixth Division.

Although this time it was the three major feudal towns that joined forces to start a war with Jian Minggang, and the three feudal towns seemed to join forces, but in fact, you were guarding against me, and I was guarding against you.

At least Lin Ziran absolutely didn't want to see himself stupidly fighting with Jian Minggang for life and death, and being picked up by Zhao Song and Li Dingjun.

Therefore, even if it is a battle in the south, the rhythm of the southward movement must be grasped well, and it cannot dominate the crowd.

In the current Luo'an civil war, the life-and-death battle between Jian Minggang and Zhao Song is the highlight, and he Lin Ziran and Li Dingjun are at most a supporting role.

The purpose of their troops to fight was not to directly engage in a life-and-death decisive battle with Jian Minggang, but to contain Jian Minggang's troops.

It is best to create a situation in which Jian Minggang and Zhao Song fight and lose in the end.

In this way, when Jian Minggang and Zhao Song's side fought almost the same, or even lost both, it was time for Lin Ziran to take the opportunity to reap the benefits.

This point has always been what Lin Ziran has been pursuing, and Wu Guanlin, as an important general in the Sixth Division system, naturally knows this.

Therefore, Wu Guanlin's meaning is obvious, that is, in the current situation, after maintaining pressure on the enemy in front of him and containing a certain number of county guard troops, he will slow down and then see the situation.

At the same time, this time will also allow the 6th Division to be truly combat-ready.

At the very least, the artillery units, as well as ammunition, should be well stocked.

Thus, after launching a tentative offensive with unexpected results on the first day, the Sixth Division's actions became more conservative.

However, the calm of Pindancheng does not mean that other directions are also calm.

In Yonggu County and the northwestern area of Pingdan, that is, in the area controlled by Zhao Song, the 30,000 troops of the county guard launched a fierce attack from multiple directions at the same time, and Zhao Song was at a disadvantage in terms of troops and equipment, which was extremely difficult to resist.

Zhao Song has sent letters to Lin Ziran three times in just three or four days.

The content of the letter is almost the same, it's nothing more than what kind of cold lips and teeth are dead, Jian Minggang is very bad, Brother Lin, you can't just look at it and not move, even if you don't help me, but for your own sake, you have to do your best!

In short, there is only one meaning, Lin Ziran, you hurry up and send troops south, don't watch the show, if you watch the play again, brother, I will be finished, and you will be finished as soon as I am finished.

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