Fearing being killed for his overwhelming merits, the empress decided to marry him.

The concept of indiscriminate fire coverage was not something Zhang Dingbian had before.

But when they saw rows of houses in front of them reduced to ruins by the bombardment of individual mortars, they suddenly felt a sense of relief.

"No wonder the instructor said that as long as you're willing to spend money, there's no battle you can't win. Just this round of firepower alone, how many people can withstand it?"

So he took out the communication jade slip again and continued to notify the first artillery battalion: "First artillery battalion, attention! First artillery battalion, attention!"

A large number of enemy archers have been spotted 310 meters to the northwest. We urgently need fire support. Please respond.

Soon, the communication document responded: "Artillery Battalion 1 received. They are adjusting the cannons. The cannons will fire in thirty breaths. Please take cover."

Thirty breaths later, accompanied by a sharp whistling sound in the air, another twenty-five grenades covered a 200-meter area in front of the Guards.

Although the 50mm man-portable mortar is far less powerful than a towed long-barreled artillery, the sheer power it generates when concentrated over a wide area should not be underestimated.

Boom boom boom——

slam-la-

After an explosion, the figures of seven or eight Western Xia soldiers in front were instantly engulfed, and several mud-brick houses collapsed completely.

"Hahaha, cool!"

Upon seeing this, Zhang Dingbian was overjoyed and immediately ordered: "Continue forward! First and second platoons, you are responsible for clearing out any remaining enemies from inside the houses. The rest of you, continue forward!"

After a pause of more than ten minutes, the shield vehicle slowly started moving again.

Wu Jie and Ye Hui immediately entered the house on the left to search for any remaining survivors.

After gunshots rang out from various houses, the street, which had been reduced to ruins, was finally cleared of all danger.

At this time, the main generals of the Western Xia army stood in the governor's mansion, constantly complaining to Helian Qianjun.

"General, the enemy is too ruthless. Our warriors simply can't break through. My main force has over two thousand men."

"Yesterday, we lost more than half our men in less than fifteen minutes. If we keep fighting like this, all our warriors will be wiped out."

"General Helian, we really can't fight this battle any longer. Luoyang is short of food and supplies. Our warriors have been fighting all day and haven't even had a bite to eat yet. Let's retreat first."

"General Helian, you should make a statement. Luoyang is too narrow, and our Western Xia cavalry has no place to fight. We should retreat first."

As everyone continued to complain, Helian Qianjun's face darkened considerably.

We finally captured Luoyang, and now we're going to give up?

He was truly unwilling to accept it.

The Confucian scholar standing nearby noticed Helian Qianjun's unwillingness and could only stand up and advise, "General, the fate of the Great Chu is not yet over, and it cannot be reversed by human power. The best course of action now is to retreat to Hangu Pass."

Upon hearing what the Confucian scholar said, the other Western Xia generals couldn't wait to echo his sentiments.

“Strategist Sima is right. It is easy for the warriors of our Great Xia to conquer the world, but difficult to govern it. Since the fate of Great Chu has not yet run out, it is best to retreat first.”

“Yes, General Helian, even if we use our lives to overwhelm these bandits, we will likely lose many warriors. It would be better to break up into smaller groups, retreat from Luoyang, and make further plans after returning to Chang'an.”

"General Helian, we really can't wait any longer. Those slave sons of bitches in the army, seeing our Great Xia warriors suffer a setback, are no longer as obedient as before."

If we continue fighting, I'm afraid they'll rebel too. We should retreat quickly. Luoyang is right here; we'll definitely have a chance to take it later!

Helian Qianjun sighed deeply: "After fifteen years of planning, we finally captured Luoyang in one fell swoop..."

"To think we've failed like this! When will our Great Xia be able to take over the Great Chu and truly replace it?"

Sima Wang: "General, man proposes, God disposes. We can still leave now, but if the enemy sends reinforcements, we'll be in real trouble."

"Alright, let's withdraw the troops then. The situation is urgent. Order all troops from headquarters to assemble at the West Gate."

Gather as many troops as you can, and retreat to Hangu Pass (Luoshen Pass) two hours later.

"Yes!"

Upon hearing Helian Qianjun's order, all the Western Xia generals breathed a sigh of relief.

……

As night fell, Zhang Dingbian's troops, relying on five shield carts and under the cover of mortar fire, had advanced more than ten miles.

Along the way, the officers and soldiers of the two artillery battalions responsible for artillery support were so angry that they just wanted to curse.

In just over ten miles, crossfire was continuously unleashed for a full twelve rounds, successfully transforming individual gunners from beginners into professional gunners.

After the initial few raids by the Western Xia troops, they encountered no further attacks and successfully occupied a wide area.

"All troops halt and establish defensive positions!"

After confirming that the surrounding area was safe, Zhang Dingbian immediately announced the establishment of defensive fortifications on the spot and sent a message to Lü Meng.

As a result, Lü Meng, leading a squad of personal guards, arrived at Zhang Dingbian's side just after Zhang had finished setting up the fortifications.

Before Zhang Dingbian could boast about his great achievements, Lü Meng grabbed him by the collar and asked, "Old Zhang, you've gone too far. In just ten miles, you've had two artillery battalions provide support more than a dozen times. What exactly are you doing?"

Zhang Dingbian immediately shook off his hand: "What's the big deal? Shells are meant to be used for bombing, aren't they? Are you suggesting we keep them to breed?"

"But you don't need to fire every time you encounter a problem, do you? Do you know how much ammunition you've used up on such a short distance?"

"So what? It's better than our soldiers being ambushed. I don't know who said we shouldn't care about ammunition consumption, but why are they so agitated now?"

"You... never mind..."

Lu Meng was too lazy to argue with him. Since the mission had been successfully completed, there was no need to continue to argue with Zhang Dingbian about the ammunition consumption.

"What are the casualties?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dingbian's expression immediately turned serious.

"Seven people died and forty-six were injured. The dead were all shot in the face and didn't even get a chance to be treated. The injured are being treated now; they are all minor injuries and there are no serious problems."

The casualties in this raid were 53, mainly due to the lack of experience among the new recruits, poor coordination, and lack of awareness of protection against melee weapons, which led to heavy losses in urban warfare.

After being brainwashed by Shen Lang's propaganda, the idea that human life is more important than weapons has long been deeply ingrained in people's minds.

If the old army could achieve such great results with such low casualties, they would probably be boasting about it a long time ago.

The only exception was the officers of the new army; they would only start reflecting on and summarizing their mistakes.

"It's all my fault for not thinking things through. I'll write a self-criticism and send it to the chief instructor later."

"Sigh, let's wait for the chief instructor to arrive. Blocking all the key roads now is enough to hold out until the chief instructor leads the main force to join us."

However, what they did not know was that after suffering such heavy casualties, Helian Qianjun had already led the remaining 40,000 soldiers of Western Xia to flee towards Hangu Pass overnight.

……

In the dead of night, the Western Xia army galloped more than thirty miles in one go.

After confirming that there were no pursuers behind them, they ordered the troops to rest on the spot.

But they were unaware that their every move had already been thoroughly observed by the Jingwei Division, who were secretly watching them.

Helian Qianjun and Sima Wang sat in front of the newly lit campfire, neither of them speaking first.

"Crack..."

The crackling sound of burning branches echoed in the air, and the flames, like wild horses, kept leaping higher and higher.

"General, do not be discouraged. Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war. Next year, we will regroup and fight again. We will surely be able to take Luoyang in one fell swoop."

"Hehe, 200,000 iron cavalry (actually 70,000) is almost all of the main force of our Great Xia. Now that we have suffered such great losses, I'm afraid that for the next ten years or so, our Great Xia will be unable to launch an eastern expedition."

"General, there's no need to worry. The Empress of Chu has only been on the throne for two years."

Its foundation is not yet secure, and there will certainly be discontented individuals in the court hindering its progress.

I will then bribe the opposing forces in the court to get the Chu Kingdom to send large quantities of supplies to the Great Xia.

"In this way, within five years, the military might of the Great Xia will surely be restored to its peak."

As soon as Sima Wang finished speaking, the horses behind him suddenly began to neigh restlessly.

"Are these beasts also laughing at me?"

Helian Qianjun roared and grabbed his whip, charging towards the herd of horses.

leave--

boom--

Just as he raised his whip, a rapid-fire grenade landed directly in front of him.

In the instant the explosion occurred, the three leading warhorses were torn to pieces.

As for Helian Qianjun...

His head fell into Sima Wang's arms.

"Mom——"

Even the most composed Sima Wang was startled at this moment, throwing his head aside and scrambling to his feet, shouting in alarm.

What famous general?

Faced with overwhelming military technology, they are as insignificant as ants.

"Oh no, enemy attack! There's—"

Boom boom boom——

Without his prompting, a series of explosions erupted from the Western Xia army camp.

In an instant, both men and horses were torn apart.

The frightened warhorse galloped wildly, crashing into one of its former owners.

Many Western Xia soldiers were thrown high into the air by the blast wave and it is unknown where they landed.

Howitzers, which were provided free of charge, began to appear everywhere in the Western Xia army camps, creating a magnificent spectacle under the night sky.