Bright Sword: The Flowers of War

Chapter 22 Test Shooting
As Su Yaoyang listened to Li Gaoyuan's explanation, his mind was racing.

It is important for a person to know their own limitations. Su Yaoyang knew that he was just a young man who grew up in peacetime. He could not be said to know nothing about war, but at most he could only be said to have some knowledge of it. Now that he had a rare opportunity to learn from an experienced officer, he naturally seized the time to study.

However, while listening to the explanation, Su Yaoyang pointed to a ruin on the right front and said.

“I just saw at least one squad of Japanese troops gathered there, only about 600 meters away from us, completely within our mortar firing range. Why don’t we order the artillery squad to bombard that area?”

To enhance their firepower, Su Yaoyang specially delivered six M2 mortars and five basic loads (30 rounds each) of shells.

However, he overlooked the crucial element of the gunner. He searched through more than a hundred defeated soldiers and found that apart from Li Gaoyuan, who knew a little about artillery, there wasn't a single soldier who knew how to fire a cannon.

Left with no other choice, Li Gaoyuan selected twenty of the more quick-witted soldiers for emergency training, cramming his meager artillery knowledge into them.

Hearing Su Yaoyang speak, Li Gaoyuan said helplessly, "I know you brought over six 60mm mortars last night, but even I am only half-baked. The soldiers I trained are lucky if they can even fire the shells. How dare you order a barrage of artillery fire?"

“It’s good enough that we can get out of here, what more do you want?” Su Yaoyang had a different opinion.

"At least having cannons is better than not having any, right?"

"Firing artillery is just like shooting a gun; it's all about practice makes perfect. I don't believe that after firing dozens or hundreds of shells, we can't even train a qualified artilleryman."

“Nonsense…” Li Gaoyuan rolled his eyes.

Everyone knows this principle. If you let an ordinary person fire hundreds of bullets every day for two or three months, even the dumbest person will become a sharpshooter. The key question is, who can withstand such a torment?

They even fired dozens or hundreds of shells. Do you think shells are free?

Wait... something's not right... this guy provided the shells... if that's the case, then there's no problem.

Su Yaoyang patted him on the shoulder: "Alright, Lao Li... don't worry about those shells. Listen to me, quickly order the artillery squad to conduct a barrage."

"OK then."

Li Gaoyuan nodded, about to give the order, but then changed his mind and said to him, "Commander Su...you are the highest-ranking officer here, so you should give the order."

"also!"

Su Yaoyang didn't think too much about it. He turned to a soldier behind him and said, "Order the artillery squad to fire a test shot at the ruins 550 meters to the right front of the church."

"understand!"

One minute later, after the artillery squad that had received the order adjusted its coordinates, a 60mm high-explosive shell burst out of the barrel and flew into the sky with a muffled sound.

"boom……"

Accompanied by a violent explosion, a plume of smoke rose from a street full of rubble to the right.

"Idiot... you missed." Looking at the explosion point more than a hundred meters away from the target, Su Yaoyang cursed angrily. Li Gaoyuan, who was next to him, also covered his eyes, unable to bear to look. It was too far off.

Despite the criticism, such results were within Su Yaoyang's expectations, and he still ordered, "Order the artillery squad to adjust their distance and continue firing!"

"boom……"

"Boom...boom..."

The artillery platoon probably knew they had made a huge fool of themselves, but after receiving the order, they gritted their teeth and continued firing, shell after shell. Finally, after firing five shells, the sixth shell hit the target.

Seeing this, Su Yaoyang finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"I knew it. Even a blind cat can catch a dead mouse one day. The same principle applies to sex; it's just a matter of probability."

"Order the artillery squad to immediately begin artillery barrage!"

"Yes!"

The principle behind artillery firing is the same: test firing is conducted. Once a precise target is identified, all artillery pieces are adjusted to the same height and range. After the sights are set, artillery fire can be applied to cover the target.

Upon receiving the order, the gunners quickly grabbed the shells with the fuses already attached and stuffed them into the cannon barrel.

"Boom... boom..."

On the lawn in front of the church, sunlight filtered through the thin mist, casting a faint glow that reflected a chaotic yet tense scene.

Six M2 60mm mortars were lined up neatly in a row, their barrels pointing skyward and continuously spraying white smoke.

M2 Mortar

The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder, the pungent and acrid odor lingering in the air, accompanied by a deep, resonant sound as each shell was fired.

The more than twenty gunners were extremely busy, frantically carrying shells and stuffing them into the gun barrels.

With a deafening roar, shells rained down from the mortar muzzle, arcing through the air before crashing down onto the ruins. Each explosion sent dirt and rubble flying high into the air, turning them into dust once more.

This rhythm seems endless, with dozens of shots per minute, wave after wave, without stopping.

On the Japanese position, Hasegawa stared wide-eyed at the shells falling from the ruins less than two hundred meters away.

Hasegawa was startled when the first shell landed, but he was relieved when he saw that the shell had landed on an empty street.

Later, when he saw shells falling aimlessly around him, he felt both angry and amused, and his opinion of the Chinese army stationed at the church dropped even lower:

"Baka! If I were the Chinese army commander at the church across the street, I would definitely drag those artillerymen over and give them twenty lashes."

The company commander chimed in, "The colonel is right. The Chinese are the lowest of the low. Even if we give them the best weapons, they won't be able to use them properly. Now that we've even taken over their capital, it seems that it's only a matter of time before their country is destroyed."

"Yoshi..."

Hasegawa nodded, about to speak, when he saw a shell land squarely on the ruined house where the squad was gathered. Thick smoke and dust billowed everywhere, and a scream seemed to be faintly heard.

"what……"

Hasegawa's smile froze instantly, and then he blurted out.

"Oh no... the Chinese artillery on the other side is about to fire a salvo!"

No sooner had he finished speaking than a sharp whistling sound came from the sky, followed by six shells landing on the ruins almost simultaneously, instantly covering the area in a cloud of dust...

(End of this chapter)