The 24-pounder guns in the bow of the Expedition roared, and the heavy shells burst out of the chamber at a muzzle velocity of 450 m/s, smashing a large hole in a gray-colored masonry building on the shore with the flag of the King of South Vietnam. (Baidu search update is the fastest and most stable dìng) - Of course, this is not the ship's artillery without a target, 'shooting' and 'shooting', in fact, Qian Tiandun had already determined this target when he came to reconnoiter last time -- the sailor's ya' on the wharf outside Hoi An City.

It is said to be a "ya'men", but in fact, it is a place where sailors go ashore to rest and officers drink tea and chat. Of course, from a military point of view, it also played the role of a command organization -- and this is the main reason why it was the first target of the Haihan warships and was forcibly demolished by artillery fire.

I have to say that the efficiency of artillery demolition is very high, by the time of the third gun, the shell hit a load-bearing beam in the house after penetrating the wall, and then the building immediately collapsed in half, and when the smoke and dust cleared, there was no one in the area, and it is estimated that as long as the people who were not buried in the house had fled into Hoi An City. Although only one ship, the "Exploration", was attacking with artillery, the defenders of Hoi An obviously did not have the consciousness to stand up as cannon fodder, and did not organize a formed defense force on the pier, which did not cause any trouble for the landing of the Haihan militia.

"Black Earth Port Special Combat Team, prepare to land!" Qian Tiandun saw that there was a mess on the dock, shook his head slightly, and gave an order to his team. As the vanguard, the Black Soil Harbor Special Operations Company will establish positions on the riverbank dock and cover the subsequent landing of troops and supplies.

Compared with the harsh natural environment during the previous landing operation near the Zhengjiang River, the landing difficulty index of Hoi An Port is simply surprisingly low. Hoi An has been the most prosperous seaport in South Vietnam in recent decades, with neat docks and trestles built on the banks of the river banks, making it easy for attacking fleets to land. In the process, there is no need to build pontoon bridges and other facilities, and the materials can be lifted directly from the boat to the river bank, which greatly saves labor and time. The only thing that made the military feel a little regretful was that the artillery demolition just now scared all the people near the pier away, so that now there is no way to temporarily recruit some people.

Of course, not all of them have fled back to Hoi An, in fact the Portuguese have set up a local chamber of commerce outside Hoi An. Eduardo de Oliveira, the president of the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce in the region, thought it was some kind of delusion when the first cannon rang out in the Thubon River, and Eduardo, who was eating, thought it was some kind of delusion: "Bento, go out and see if it's going to rain." ”

The servant Bento walked to the 'door' and looked at the sky, then turned back and reported: "Sir, the weather is fine and it doesn't look like it's going to rain. ”

At this moment there was a second cannon shot, and Eduardo threw down the lamb chops in his hand, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and said, "You idiot, don't you hear thunder in the sky? Are you blind or deaf?"

Bento turned his head to look outside the house again, then turned back with a look of horror and said, "Master, it's not thunder, it's a 'cannon'!"

"Cannons, where did they come from? Our two armed merchant ships only left Hoi An for Manraka two days ago, is there anyone else in this place who has artillery?" Eduardo threw down his napkin and stood up: "What the hell are you talking nonsense, you damn idiot!"

Eduardo went out onto the balcony and looked out at the river, only to see the third shell of the Explorer crashing through the sailor's gate on the shore at a distance of fifty meters.

"Oh my God, it's the enemy! there's an enemy attacking Hoi An!" Eduardo turned and rushed into the house in a way that didn't match his 'fat' body: "Damn Bento, go gather your men!

When the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce was jumping with chickens and dogs, the Haihan militia was unhurriedly landing in order. As a compulsory course for the militia regiment, amphibious landing can almost be regarded as the specialty of the Haihan militia, not to mention that the battlefield in front of them did not even show up the opponent, which was simply a barrier-free landing for the soldiers. (Baidu search update is the fastest and most stable)

"Won't we fight a little too easily?" Qian Tiandun asked with some confusion as he looked at the troops marching to the shore in an orderly manner.

"It seems to be...... The South Vietnamese side didn't react at all! Could it be that they just huddled in the city and waited for us to fight?" Wang Tom was also the first time to participate in this kind of siege warfare, and he had no corresponding experience to refer to.

When drawing up the battle plan in advance, the officers had already given full consideration to the difficulties that might arise in various aspects, such as the obstruction of the landing, the stubborn resistance of the enemy troops, and so on, but they did not consider that they did not encounter resistance at all during the landing. As for the defenders retreating into the city for defense, the officers were not at all worried—motionless targets were easier to deal with for the superior attackers.

"Then do you want to clear out the targets outside the city one by one first?" Qian Tiandun continued to ask.

In the original plan, the first target of the militia after landing was the enemy army, but now it seems that the possibility of the enemy army showing up on their own is not 'very likely', so Qian Tiandun considered whether to clear some targets outside the city first -- on the mile-long riverbank wharf, there are various chambers of commerce, trading houses, and warehouses, many of which have been included in the looting list this time.

"Don't worry, let's fight the main city first!" Wang Tom thought for a while, shook his head and said: "If we go to clean up such a place outside the city now, we will definitely encounter a certain amount of resistance, it is better to take down the main city first, and then clean up the outside of the city again, maybe it can play a better deterrent effect, and there will be less resistance." ”

"Sounds like it makes sense. Qian Tiandun was not stubborn, nodded and also landed to command the troops to assemble.

Hoi An Castle is located on the north bank of the Thu Bon River, and the southern wall is only about a mile from the riverbank, and at this distance even the naval guns on the Expedition can hit the city wall at an adjustable angle. However, Wang Tom did not intend to let the naval artillery undertake the task of attacking the city, and this time they brought a special siege weapon developed by the Ministry of Military Industry - mortar artillery.

Large-caliber mortar cannons are not uncommon in the combat of this era, in fact, mortars that 'shoot' stone shells have appeared on the battlefield as early as the 13th century, and many of the general cannons used by the army in the Ming and Qing dynasties belong to the category of mortar cannons. Compared to long-barreled guns, short-barreled mortars are much less difficult to cast, and the barrel is much lighter than conventional guns of the same caliber. Of course, due to the constraints of its cannon body, the 'precision' and 'firing' range cannot be compared with traditional artillery, but to deal with a target as large as the city wall, the mortar cannon is enough.

This time, the Haihan militia brought ten 'guns' of 48-pounder mortars, each of which weighed more than 700 catties, and the 'firing' range could reach more than 1,000 meters, which was enough for the South Vietnamese defending the city to appreciate the power of heavy artillery siege.

Of course, in order to achieve a better 'shooting' effect, the closer the distance is, the better, and ordinary army artillery must assume the role of fire cover at this time. In addition, this time Wang Tom also brought ten imitation Whitworth rifles - although the final model has not yet been finalized, the "door" of the Ministry of Military Industry has decided to call it the "Type 28 sniper rifle". However, due to the limited number of trial supplies, the ordinary militia will definitely not be able to take their turn this time, and only a few officers can try this powerful old rifle with their own hands. If any of the hapless ghosts poke their heads out of the walls, it is likely that this head will be hit by several sniper rifles.

The siege troops 'spent' nearly two hours to unload personnel and supplies, set up a defensive position on the riverbank, and set up a guard on the river, and then drove into the outside of Hoi An in a hurry. Although the officers did not mean to rush to the task, they did not intend to 'waste' time playing any tricks to persuade them to surrender -- if the South Vietnamese officials defending the city really surrendered directly, it would not be very fun.

The infantry began to dig pits and set up gun emplacements about 300 meters from the city walls, and by this time, the defenders of the city still did not seem to have any intention of opening the 'door' to go out of the city. By the time the gun emplacements were erected and the artillery began to enter the field, it was already noon. However, the artillerymen had already enjoyed lunch in advance, and it was a good time to move their bodies.

At one o'clock in the afternoon, under the order of King Tom, more than 20 'gates' of large and small artillery on the position began to attack Hoi An City. In an instant, smoke and dust rose from the city, and it was not difficult for the South Vietnamese soldiers hiding behind the wall to feel the impact of the huge mortar shells hitting the city walls. Although the officers tried to drive the soldiers to the head of the city for defense, when a few unlucky ghosts were torn to pieces by the cannonballs flying in the air, the most warlike people also silently shut their mouths.

Although Hoi An City has an army of 1,000 men, its strength is not quite in line with the status of this seaport city. Not to mention artillery, this unit was not even equipped with arquebuses in a structured manner. Due to their limited financial resources, the South Vietnamese had only one or two thousand troops that could be armed according to Portuguese standards, and these new troops were deployed near the defense line of the Truong Trung Son in the north in case the North Vietnamese army could attack at any time. The long-range weapons in the hands of the Hoi An defenders were only a few dozen bows, but with the kind of firepower suppression they were currently subjected to, they had no strength to resist at all.

"Oh God......" muttered Eduardo, who was watching the battle from the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce two miles away, his hand holding the arquebus trembling slightly. Although the people of the Chamber of Commerce quickly gathered and formed an armed defense force of 130 men, it was obviously a pipe dream to use these people to defeat the terrible force outside Hoi An City.

The Portuguese Chamber of Commerce is a two-storey masonry building with a hollow-shaped structure, which was designed to function as a fortress, and if necessary, as long as the large 'door' is opened, the entire chamber can be immediately transformed into a fortress, and the musketeers can carry out condescending 'shooting' through various windows on the second floor of guò, enough to defeat the attack of thousands of cold weapons troops.

But no matter how strong the house is, it can't be compared with the wall of Hoi An City, seeing the wall of Hoi An crumbling under the bombardment of artillery, Eduardo is very keenly aware that if the other party wants to attack the Chamber of Commerce, then it is estimated that one blow can tear down the house into rubble, which made his courage to resist almost instantly dissipate.

Eduardo slowly lowered the arquebus in his hand, and beckoned the servant Bento to his side with a covert movement: "Listen to Bento, I want you to prepare the horses, and put away the box of silver coins in my house, we have to get out of here!"

Bento bowed and asked, "Master, how many horses do you need to prepare?"

"If you can keep up with the speed of the horse with the silver chest, you only need one!" Eduardo was angry and anxious, but he did not dare to shout or curse for fear of being heard.

Although the battlefield in Hoi An City is in full swing, there have been no major casualties so far. The officers of the defending army in the city secretly rejoiced that they did not impulsively lead their troops to attack, otherwise they would have turned into 'meat' scum under this intensive artillery bombardment. Only a handful of unlucky ghosts fell victim to this seemingly endless bombardment.

Another thing that made the defenders feel fortunate was that the besieging side did not seem to have arranged a 'chaos' in the city in advance, and so far there has been no major 'chaos' or 'chaos' in the city. With the exception of military personnel, most of the people returned to their homes and closed their doors, secretly praying that the disaster would soon pass.

Although the defenders of the city had already sent messengers asking for help at the beginning of the enemy landing, they did not give much hope for reinforcements. The nearest large garrison to Hoi An is in Hue Province, 200 miles away, and half of the distance is rugged mountain, even if the envoys and reinforcements have flying 'hair' and 'legs', it will take at least four or five days to come and go. And if the opponent bombards Hoi An City for several days in a row, I am afraid that the entire city will be bombarded into slag.

Moreover, it is also very fatal that although the defenders sent people to ask for help, they did not know the origin, purpose, and strength of the opponent, so they ran out to ask for reinforcements, and the possibility of the envoy being beheaded as a liar is estimated to be greater than the possibility of inviting reinforcements. The defenders of the city, who were already active, began to wonder if they should try to go to the other side of Hoi An City, because the opponent did not surround the city, and when the city was broken, at least there was a chance to get out from the other direction.

After an hour and a half of intermittent bombardment, the southern gate of Hoi An collapsed along with the gate tower, forming a large gap about 20 meters wide in the south of the city, while the rest of the southern city wall also collapsed and cracked, and the defenders could not even climb the city wall to defend themselves. At this point, the defense of the south of the city has basically been broken for the militia group.

In fact, if it wants to break through the city wall of Hoi An, the Military Commission can come up with at least five or six more time-saving and labor-saving methods -- such as planting explosives at night to directly blow up the city wall. But after weighing up, the final option was to win by brute force. This is done in order to test the use of mortars in actual combat, and at the same time to summarize a set of mortar siege battle plans. After all, the consumption of this branch of the army is too great, and it is impossible to use live ammunition all the time in peacetime training, and the battlefield is a rare opportunity for practice. Of course, the most important thing is that the South Vietnamese opponent is too weak to cause trouble for the militias, and all branches of the armed forces can safely conduct 'drills' on the battlefield in South Vietnam.

"Let's go infantry!" Seeing that the wall of Hoi An finally collapsed as expected, Wang Tom gave an order with a calm face: "After controlling the city defense, don't kill casually, and allow the surrendered prisoners to be accepted." ”

The one who led the team to rush to the forefront was still Takahashi Minami, and he had even become the image spokesperson for the militia charge. Takahashi's own legendary experience also gave him a group of imitators and followers within the militia - especially those young Annan nationals who joined the army in order to obtain naturalized civilian origin, and Takahashi Minami used it as a model for success. After all, from a prisoner counterattack to an officer, this kind of expression is not something that everyone can do, coupled with the bravery and courage shown by Takahashi Minami on the battlefield, it makes the young people of the militia surging with enthusiasm and competing to follow suit.

After the city wall was blown down, the defenders of the city finally organized a 'wave' of resistance in the face of the influx of enemies, but unfortunately after being swept by the shotgun of the flintlock pistol, the South Vietnamese soldiers quickly lost the courage to resist and began to flee all over the city.

Gao Qiao Nan had received Qian Tiandun's advice in advance, but he did not rush to chase and kill the defeated army, but first led his troops to control the gap in the city wall and wait for the arrival of the follow-up troops. After fighting more battles, Takahashi Minami also began to gradually understand the combat philosophy of his superiors - the Haihan people did not aim to kill in battle, but to strive to achieve tactical goals with minimum losses and maximum efficiency. For example, in the plan to attack Hoi An City, there were no clear requirements for killing the enemy, but rather a lot of detailed arrangements were made on how to control the situation after the attack on Hoi An City.

The implementation of this battle plan requires the division of labor and cooperation of various companies, which may be a little complicated, but it is actually very simple to say - the people in the city can let them escape, but the materials in the city cannot be let go lightly. After the Haihan militia entered the city, the strategic targets to be controlled were the government institutions of the city, the granary, the location of various chambers of commerce and large trading houses, and finally the city to eliminate the remnants of the South Vietnamese military personnel. Most of the Chinese businessmen who took root in Hoi An were already inextricably linked to the local area, and even a considerable number of them supported the South Vietnamese regime and conflicted with the crossing group in terms of their fundamental interests. However, their Chinese identity makes the militia have to be afraid in their actions, after all, the crossing group is still under the banner of Han descendants, and if these people are dealt with too harshly, it is difficult to guarantee that they will not be burdened with black pots such as "mutilating compatriots" after it is spread.