readx; ps: Thank you for the support of the two monthly tickets of the book friend 'Tiger Anger', thank you very much! The one promised yesterday was not uploaded because of time, and I will make it up for you today. Pen @ fun @ pavilion wWw. ｂｉｑUｇE。 infoI would like to say sorry to all of you, and I hope that all of you can support the Far Eastern Empire of the Easterners along the way. Thank you!

Chapter 426: The Final Battle

"Report to Commander, I grew up in Erie since I was a child, and I am very familiar with the terrain around me. Moreover, my father was a fisherman, and when I was a child, I used to go fishing with my father in Lake Erie, so I was a good swimmer, and I was also familiar with the changes in the water temperature of Lake Erie, so after receiving the order tonight, I found them in a similar situation to me, and they also grew up in Erie!" said Ron Weidenfeller, gesturing to the other eleven companions around him.

"We found a small fishing boat ourselves, rowed through the Chinese fortified line from Lake Yili at night, and when we were 300 meters from the shore, we abandoned the boat and swam to the shore. Then we evaded the Chinese scouts by familiarizing ourselves with the surrounding terrain. As a result, we happened to walk near the railway station in Yili City, and we clearly saw a large number of squadrons boarding the trains, and also saw many trains that were already full of soldiers heading west! We were sure that the Chinese probably felt that Yili could not hold on, so in order to avoid greater losses, they retreated westward!"

After hearing his words, Johnston nodded, and after a little contemplation, he turned to the other soldiers and asked, "You all saw it too?"

"Yes, Commander, we all saw it?" replied with the soldier who had come with Ron.

"Okay, I'll take note of your merits this time, and I'll personally reward you when you defeat the Chinese!" Johnston finally said with a look of approval.

"Thank you, Commander!"

Seeing them out, Deputy Commander Howard Hughes walked over, "Commander." Now it seems that your original guess was correct, and the squadron opposite us is indeed already retreating!"

Listening to his uplifting words, the chief of staff, Brock Cena, also showed excitement on his face, and they fought for more than a month, suffering nearly 600,000 casualties. Now we finally see the dawn of victory in the war.

After listening to their words, after asking more than a dozen reconnaissance teams that came back in a row, Johnston is now basically sure that the retreat of the ** squadron on the opposite side is not a trick, but is really preparing to retreat!

Think of these. Joseph Johnston had a certain look on his face, and he made a decision in his heart, looked up at his two partners, and said with a straight waist: "Immediately notify the commanders of all the regiments to go to the headquarters for a meeting, and there is an urgent combat mission to be issued!"

"Yes, Commander!"

Looking at Brock Cena as he hurried out. Johnston looked at the dark night outside and said secretly in his heart: "After fighting for more than a month, I have caused so many casualties to my troops, and now I want to leave, how can there be such a cheap thing! This time, even if I can't leave all of you, I must bite off a piece of meat from you!"

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The night grew deeper, and the pre-dawn darkness was unusually heavy. The sporadic fires not only did not bring warmth, but added a solemn atmosphere to the two sides of the confrontation.

"Bang ......bang!" As the sound of horses' hooves became more and more dense, the black-pressed cavalry gathered like a tide in the wilderness 1,500 meters away from the Erie Line.

"General, the troops have been assembled!"

After listening to the staff officer's words, Roy Hughes, commander of the Fifth Cavalry Corps, nodded with a solemn expression, originally his troops were under the command of the American Center Line Corps. However, because the Chinese river fleet blocked the wide Mississippi River and built strong defensive forts on the west side of the riverbank, they firmly blocked them on the east bank of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers.

Render the 45,000 cavalry heroes of Roy Hughes' Fifth Cavalry Corps useless. In the end, because the strategic main direction of the US Army was placed in Yili, which was not blocked by the big river, and the First Cavalry Army, which was originally part of the Northern Front Corps, was ambushed by the Chinese. All of them were sacrificed in the icy Lake Erie, so the U.S. War Department transferred his Fifth Cavalry Corps and the Seventh Cavalry Corps, which was also subordinate to the Center Corps, to Johnston's Northern Front Corps.

And the Fourth Cavalry Corps, which was originally drawn from the Northern Front Corps to reinforce the Southern Front Corps, also fell back.

And tonight, their fourth, fifth, and seventh cavalry corps, a total of 135,000 cavalry, received the task of attacking the Chinese defensive fortress head-on. Rush through enemy artillery interception with cavalry speed, opening the way for the attack of the follow-up troops.

Thinking of this, Roy Hughes slowly pulled out his command knife, looked at the cavalry gathered by the hedgehogs around him, and their young faces, "I don't know how many of them will survive after this war is over!"

After the day's fighting, he clearly knew how powerful the firepower of the Chinese artillery on the opposite side was, and in the end, even if they could break through the defense line of the squadron, I am afraid that the remaining cavalry would not exceed half. However, the military order is like a mountain, and now he has no choice but to rush forward with his cavalry.

Thinking of this, Roy Hughes pointed his command knife forward, and then ordered: "Go, you must take down the Chinese fortress!"

"Yes, Commander!"

Looking at the sturdy cavalry riding past him, Johnston didn't have the slightest expression on his face, but the guilt in his eyes still made it clear what he felt at the moment.

As the implementer of this offensive plan, he did not let these cavalry attack head-on in order to open the way for the follow-up troops to attack, as he said in the headquarters. Rather, let them attract Chinese artillery fire and lay the foundation for the large army to outflank the squadron.

He knew very well that these cavalry were an outcast he had thrown out, and that most of them would probably never come back after this war.

"Commander, the attacking forces are ready, and they are waiting for your orders!" Howard Hughes came over after receiving the report from the troops.

"Well, order them to attack according to the original plan, and this time they must leave all these remaining Chinese troops behind!" After saying that, Joseph Johnston, walking down the small dirt slope, took the reins of his horse from the hands of the guard, stepped on the stirrups, and sat down at once.

"Commander, where are you going? It's a battlefield, you can't go over!" Howard Hughes, who was following behind, saw Johnston riding his horse towards the hilly defense line of the Huo family's army, and hurriedly shouted behind him.

"Howard, I will personally command this war, I will personally lead the US Army to defeat the Chinese and achieve the final victory of this war! The command of the rear will be handed over to you!" Johnston's words came from afar, making Howard Hughes sigh deeply, he knew that no matter what he said, Johnston would never come back, unless this war ended.

"Keep up, and whatever happens, keep the commander safe!" Howard Hughes commanded the guards around him.

"Yes, Commander!

The large-scale offensive of the Americans could not hide from the Huo Jiajun, who was on alert at all times.

So, by the time the American cavalry began to gallop, loud trumpets were already sounding from all over the fortress of Erie. Immediately, the originally quiet night quickly boiled like boiling water.

The artillery of the Huo Family's Army, who was originally sleeping on the position, quickly got up, and then under the command of their respective squad leaders, they were in place and ready for battle. The whole process did not take more than a minute, showing the good technical and tactical level of the artillery training of the Huo Jiajun in peacetime.

Soon, the headquarters of the Independent Artillery Division, which had been on alert, gave the order to open the artillery, although it was now night, and the high-altitude fire guidance of the airship had been lost, but the artillery coordinates that had been adjusted long ago during the day still allowed the shells of the Huo Jiajun to accurately smash into the charging cluster of the American cavalry unit.

"Boom ......!" A large number of cannonballs with tracer light streaked across the sky like meteors, which was extremely beautiful, but after falling to the ground, it bloomed into a blood-colored demon flower, bringing up a broken arm of residual value.

The raindrops of cannonballs lit up the dark night sky and made the faces of the soldiers on both sides extremely hideous.

Behind the main body of Yili Fortress, the 1st Cavalry Division of the Huojia Army, which was already fully armed, had long been ready to fight and block.

With the tunnels that had been dug before, the 104 60mm mortars attached to the First Cavalry Division, and more than 250 light and heavy machine guns were ready to shoot for a long time, and the remaining 15,000 or so cavalrymen of the First Cavalry Division had already polished their sabers and cavalry guns, and quietly rode on their horses, waiting for the coming of war.

The defense line of more than ten kilometers long is certainly impossible for only the 20,000 people of the First Cavalry Division to be able to hold, even if there is a large number of artillery fire support behind them, but the 20,000 cavalry of the Seventh Cavalry Division are also ready for the same battle, while the 20,000 troops of the Fourth Cavalry Division are in the hilly area on the south side of the defender's fortress.

Although in the past month or so of war, the US Army on the opposite side has rarely launched a large-scale offensive from the hilly areas where the geographical advantage is not dominant, but it is indispensable to guard against it.

"Boom, boom......!"

"Where's the sound of cannons?" Sitting on his horse, Li Zhenwu asked with a sudden frown.

Although he was on the battlefield with the rumbling of artillery, Li Zhenwu could still hear the subtle differences from the whistling sound of his own shells. He was sure that it must be American artillery, but, to his surprise, although he heard the sound of cannonballs, no shells fell around. (To be continued.) If you like this work, you are welcome to come to the starting point () to vote for recommendation, monthly pass, your support, is my biggest motivation. For mobile phone users, please go to M. to read. )9