Chapter 477: Poison Smoke Shells

The "Mountain-Piercing Earth-Shattering Fire-Thunder Cannon" was simply a majestic name for mortars in the Great Ming; of course, some people also called them mortars directly.

Like the red-barbarian cannons, mortars also used four-wheeled carriages, but because the recoil went downward, they did not need to be staked and fixed in place.

The heavy red-barbarian cannons needed staking because recoil ropes had to be connected between the stakes and the cannon body; with ropes linking them, the cannon would not recoil too far and was easier to return to position. The drawback was that they could basically only fire forward and backward, making it difficult to traverse left or right.

Mortars did not need staking, but because the recoil went downward, the wheels had to be even sturdier and more durable.

Of course, the cannon body could also be dismounted and set up on open ground, but that took far more effort, since large-caliber mortars were just as extremely heavy.

Mortars could fire solid shot and also fire "bursting shells." Wang Dou paid close attention to the bursting shells of this era; he also wanted to know how effective Ming-period "bursting shells" were. In later ages, bursting shells were used exclusively — the fragments and shockwaves produced after the shell exploded were lethal weapons against the enemy.

Like Wang Dou, Hong Chengchou and the others were equally attentive. In the Great Ming, bursting shells were far more mysterious than solid shot, and practically no artillery battalions used them.

Under the watchful eyes of Wang Dou and the others, the gunners of the Divine Machine Battalion set the mortar range and adjusted the elevation — this was basically different from the red-barbarian cannons, though the mortar's elevation angle was higher. Then the ammunition handlers took out a type of propellant charge and placed it into the bore. The subsequent process differed in many ways from that of the red-barbarian cannons.

Because after adding the propellant charge, some earth still had to be packed in, roughly one or two inches thick. Only then was the bursting shell inserted.

And this shell…

It required a fuse. The fuse had to match the shell's flight time so that it would explode at the designated spot — this was a severe test of the arsenal's fuse technology.

At this time, the bursting shells of the Great Ming used a hollow reed tube as the detonating fuse, with a powder train placed inside. Before loading, the fuse was cut to the corresponding length based on the target distance. This created a problem: depending on variations in shell quality and fuse quality, the shell could easily explode early or late.

Moreover, under Wang Dou's gaze, after the Divine Machine Battalion gunners placed the bursting shell, they added another layer of damp earth and finally sealed the muzzle with wax, leaving only the shell's fuse exposed outside.

Wang Dou guessed that this was to prevent the flame and force generated by the propellant charge from causing the shell to explode inside the bore or prematurely — after all, unlike a solid iron ball, the outer casing of a bursting shell was only a thin layer of iron.

Wang Dou pondered. It seemed that the bursting shells of this time were indeed immature: troublesome and dangerous to operate, and the shells themselves took more time and materials to produce. No wonder bursting shells were not widespread, and artillery battalions everywhere generally used solid cannonballs.

Zhao Xuan was also deep in thought. The powder train was the key.

Under everyone's gaze, the Divine Machine Battalion's first wave of Mountain-Piercing Earth-Shattering Fire-Thunder Cannons was ready. They were firing poison shells, containing wolf's bane, pitch, arsenic, and other substances that produced poison smoke upon explosion. Poison shell technology was quite mature in the Ming army; many rockets also fired poison arrows.

For firing mortar shells, the artillery battalion did not use the swan-call volley fire. Fu Yingchong, Vice General of the Divine Machine Battalion's Forward Camp, took a deep breath and shouted to the artillery battalion's commanding officer: "Fire!"

That commanding officer bellowed at the gunners: "Poison smoke shells — fire!"

At once, from left to right, two gunners at each mortar stepped forward nervously. One first lit the poison smoke shell's fuse at the muzzle, and the other swiftly lit the powder train at the touchhole.

Ssssss!

Everyone watched the two sparking fuses on each cannon. The gunners of the Divine Machine Battalion in particular were even more worried that the poison smoke shell's fuse would burn through too early.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!

Amid muffled booms, at last, the muzzles of each large-caliber mortar spewed great billowing clouds of dense smoke and flame. The cannon bodies themselves barely shook. One after another, the poison smoke shells flew out of the barrels and hurtled at extreme speed toward the Qing army's positions.

In the great Ming formation, everyone watched the shells fly through the air. With several booming crashes, huge bursts of flame erupted in the sky. Several shells had exploded prematurely in midair, and in those patches of sky, eerie wisps of green smoke spread and diffused.

"Ah…" From the common soldiers to the officers and generals in the Ming position, everyone sighed involuntarily.

"Aiyo!"

Fu Yingchong also slapped his thigh in frustration and roared at the gunners: "Next time you fire, leave the poison smoke shell fuses longer!"

Wang Dou also nodded. For bursting shell fuses, better too long than too short. After all, people of this era all had a dread of cannon shells; the idea of a fired shell being thrown back was impossible. Of course, it was possible that defending troops might run far away before the shell exploded.

But that also depended on the position. If the position was small, or if they were fighting in formation, the enemy troops could not run or move about recklessly — otherwise, the result would be a rout.

…

At that moment, in the Qing army's positions, along the first defensive line, many sections of earthen wall and stone wall had collapsed. Taking advantage of the lull in the Ming cannon fire, the Qing armored soldiers roared orders at their followers and bondservants, directing them to carry earth and haul stones, hurriedly repairing the collapsed defenses everywhere, or busying themselves with rescuing and tending to the wounded in every sector.

The ant-like crowds began toiling without pause. As they worked, their hearts pounded with fear, worried that the Ming army would open fire again.

Fortunately, there was no movement from the Ming positions for a long while, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

Suddenly, the booming thunder of cannon fire came again from the Ming positions. People cried out in alarm: "The Ming army is firing again!"

For a moment, like ants on a hot pan, the Qing slaves stirred in panic. Ignoring the shouts and curses of the armored soldiers, they screamed and ran back and forth, all trying to find a somewhat safer place.

The shells came howling in. The Divine Machine Battalion's fifty large-caliber mortars were divided into several artillery arrays and multiple waves. This was the first wave of shells, hurtling fiercely toward the Qing positions.

Aside from some shells that exploded prematurely in the air, many huge, round bursting shells came crashing down with a rumble, slamming violently into the ground in front of and behind the Qing defensive line, some even landing squarely atop the trench walls by chance.

Within the defensive line, whether Eight Banners Manchu, Eight Banners Han, or Korean soldiers, all screamed. But then everyone realized that this wave of shells lacked the fearsome momentum of the earlier cannonballs. Though they fell from a great height, they could hardly smash anything, and they barely rolled, because they lacked sufficient weight.

Looking at those shells, many were curious; some even wanted to step forward for a closer look.

Suddenly, someone noticed the fuse on a shell was burning. Those with broader experience cried out in terror: "Ah! It's a Heaven-Shaking Thunder!"

"It's a poison smoke shell!"

"It's a dust shell! Everybody run!"

Amid thunderous booms, those shells exploded. At once, streams of acrid, choking dense smoke spread and diffused. Some Qing soldiers who happened to inhale it immediately began coughing uncontrollably, each one screaming and fleeing.

Those unlucky Qing soldiers who inhaled more of the dense smoke felt their vision swim and their heads split with pain, then were horrified to feel their breathing grow rapid, a sensation of suffocation overtaking them.

They stretched out their hands desperately, wanting to seek help from others, then tried to open their mouths, only to find they could not utter a word — only a rasping sound came from their throats. Their whole bodies began to convulse violently.

Others, after inhaling the poison smoke, found their eyesight failing. They fled in terror, howling and running wildly, vomiting profusely as they ran until they were covered head to toe in filth. Still others, as they ran, had dark blood streaming from their noses and mouths from time to time, adding to their terror.

Thud, thud, thud, thud, thud!

Amid the tremendous noise, the Divine Machine Battalion's large-caliber mortars fired without pause, shells howling continuously and falling in front of and behind the Qing positions.

Great billows of poison smoke, after bursting open, spread everywhere across the position. Combined with the increasingly scorching sunlight rising overhead, it made people feel unbearably miserable.

Although the firing of poison smoke was not as bloody and gruesome as the solid iron balls of the red-barbarian cannons, the chaos it caused was even greater.

Much of the poison smoke settled in front of the main trench walls. Because the wind happened to be blowing up toward the mountain ridge, large patches of toxic dense smoke drifted continuously toward the stockade walls and toward the rear of the ridge.

Violent coughing, as if people were about to cough up their hearts and lungs, continued without end. The mass of Qing soldiers, like ants on a hot pan, fled in utter terror from the drifting clouds of smoke.

As a result, the defensive line on the stockade walls vanished completely. Manchu, Han, and Korean commanding officers kept shouting fiercely: "No fleeing! Anyone who disobeys will be executed on the spot! No fleeing — cough, cough…"

"Do not panic! Quickly cover your mouths and faces with wet cloth…"

Amid the chaos, a poison smoke shell shot toward the Tower of the Temple of the Goddess. On this tower platform, four Qing three-pound red-barbarian cannons were positioned, and at the battlements, many Qing gunners, archers, and arquebusiers were gathered.

Watching a huge shell come hurtling straight down toward the platform, the eyes of all the Qing soldiers froze.

"Ah!" They let out a great cry and scattered in all directions.

With a thunderous boom, the shell exploded when it was half a zhang from the tower platform. Dense flames and smoke billowed up, and then the choking poison smoke spread across the platform. In an instant, every defender at the battlements fled clean away, each one shouting wildly, scrambling over one another to escape down from the tower platform.

This tower platform was relatively simple; the upper level had no tower rooms or doors to block the spreading poison smoke. To remain gathered on the platform was a dead end.

Inside the tower, Jalanggin Zhangjing Yanzha stared dumbfounded into the near distance, where wave after wave of smoke was drifting steadily with the wind toward their arrow slits, pressing closer and closer.

Standing beside him, the Jalanggin Zhangjing of the Han Army Plain White Banner, along with that Korean Army Colonel and several Niru Zhangjing from various banners, were also swallowing hard, mouths wide open. Though they had all covered their mouths and noses with damp cloths, they still felt extreme dread toward the poisonous smoke drifting ever nearer.

The Korean Army Colonel trembled and stammered, "The poison smoke is coming—what do we do? What do we do?"

The veins on Yanzha's forehead throbbed violently. He wanted to leave the Goddess Temple tower for a while, but for the moment he could not bring himself to lose face.

Just then, a crowd came shouting and scrambling down from the upper floor, every face drained of color as they yelled, "Poison smoke! Poison smoke!"

Everyone started in alarm and raised their heads to look. They saw streams of eerily colored smoke on the staircase, drifting steadily down the stairwell toward them.

Watching the people beside him stare at him in terror, Yanzha's heart trembled without pause. He could hold out no longer.

Compared to fighting with real blades and spears, he feared this kind of poison smoke and poison shells far more — dying from them was utterly inglorious.

He made a sudden, fierce decision and shouted, "Go! Down to the ridge below! The Ming army hasn't come up anyway!"

In a swarming rush, every Qing soldier in the tower surged out.

They had just fled the tower when they heard another whistling of cannonballs. Several huge, round cannonballs came crashing down, and one happened to explode right above their heads.

Amid the fiery flash and dark smoke, a peculiarly different choking odor spread, and a vast cloud of white powder rained down.

Several Qing soldiers enveloped by the white powder instantly clutched their eyes and shrieked in agony: "My eyes — it's lime shells…" (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, welcome to come to (.) and cast recommendation votes and monthly votes. Your support is my greatest motivation.)