Chapter 1044: Evacuation

"The offensive in the north and south is equally smooth; this time, the Western Lands Allied Forces are doomed." Zhao Xu looked toward the Malacca Strait, his gaze cold and stern. "Since that is the case, order the naval warships from both locations to merge into one. Once the forts are cleared, we will strike into the strait."

Having said this, he ordered a scout ship to carry his command to Gong Ying.

Before long, Gong Ying received the order and led the warships toward the northern sea area.

As the fleet converged, the Coalition soldiers on both the south and north sides were all busy fleeing for their lives.

For as long as the army led by Wesley fled, the Azure Dragon Army and Vermilion Bird Army pursued.

Of course, Qin Shan and Guan Tong had not forgotten the mission of clearing the forts.

They each drew out two thousand soldiers, totaling four thousand men, to creep along the coastline toward the entrance of the strait.

These soldiers would move from east to west, pulling out the clusters of forts built by the Coalition one by one.

The other soldiers continued to pursue the Coalition soldiers, killing their way to their second line of fortifications.

Just at this moment, they suddenly saw a burst of fire erupt on the sea, followed immediately by a sound like thunder.

Cannonballs flew over from the sea, falling like rain.

The soldiers of the Azure Dragon Army and Vermilion Bird Army naturally knew what this was.

Just as their own warships bombarded the Coalition, the enemy was clearly also using the artillery on their warships to deal with them.

Seeing this, they stopped their pursuit and immediately withdrew a distance to the north.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

As they retreated, the cannonballs from the Coalition warships fell continuously.

These cannonballs were spherical in shape, with a burning fuse at the head. As the fuses burned out, these cannonballs exploded one after another.

Watching the havoc born from the explosions, the soldiers of the Azure Dragon Army and Vermilion Bird Army broke into a cold sweat.

Fortunately, they had been in small groups of two or three while pursuing, with their personnel dispersed.

If they had launched a charge in a dense formation, this wave of shelling could have caused them no small number of casualties.

"These Westerners still have a few tricks up their sleeves; they can actually use explosive shells, even if the range is insufficient." Qin Shan and Guan Tong had also caught up.

While Guan Tong broke into a cold sweat, he also added a mocking remark.

"One cannot underestimate any enemy." Qin Shan narrowed his eyes.

In fact, in war, both the enemy and one's own side will constantly learn in order to crack the other's tactics.

For example, in the first trench fortification, the Westerners' charge was a typical skirmish line.

Although they had not yet grasped the essence of the three-man team system, they had made a decent attempt.

This was the Westerners synthesizing intelligence from all aspects to change their tactics in a targeted manner.

Besides this, there was the fact that the Westerners were also imitating their muskets and artillery.

The rifled musket was one, and this naval cannon firing explosive shells was the second.

If they could build breech-loading rifles, their tactics would further change with the evolution of their weapons.

This was also the reason why Yan Wang always emphasized not to underestimate the enemy.

Otherwise, with one moment of negligence, they might stumble, like in this pursuit.

"What now? They really are learning and applying it; if we charge, we will suffer heavy casualties," Guan Tong asked again.

"Let the soldiers eat and rest." Qin Shan looked toward the west; the sun was about to set.

After a pause, he continued, "Once our soldiers take the forts on one side of the strait, let the navy handle them."

Guan Tong nodded, then smiled helplessly, "You say our Army and Navy are at odds all day, but sometimes we really do need each other."

"That is only natural; the sea and land are inseparable, neither can do without the other." Qin Shan smiled.

Having said this, he ordered the soldiers to set up a camp for the night.

To prevent sneak attacks, he ordered machine guns to be set up on the perimeter, and also installed bells and other items.

Meanwhile.

Seeing the Great Song Army blocked by artillery fire, the Coalition soldiers who had fled into the fortifications let out a huge cheer.

He finally did not have to worry about being driven directly into the sea by the opponent.

Relying on their warships, they could wait safely in the fortifications until reinforcements arrived.

Wesley and the officers also breathed a sigh of relief.

For Wesley, he finally felt that he had made a correct decision this time.

However, when Maluofu arrived in a rage, he fell into unease again.

"You abandoned the first line of fortifications and cowered in this tiny port fortification; did you not think that the Great Song Army would take the opportunity to seize the fort clusters on the side of the strait!" Maluofu shouted loudly as soon as he saw Wesley.

He was absolutely furious.

Wesley only considered his own Army, but he had to think for the Navy.

Once the forts were lost, the Great Song Navy would very likely charge into the strait, and that would be the moment of true despair.

"Then tell me what I should do; should I let the Coalition soldiers die in the first line of fortifications? Maluofu, I have already been very considerate of your Navy; otherwise, when the Great Song fleet was shelling us, I should have let your Navy go out to fight!" Wesley was equally furious.

He had suffered enough at the hands of the Great Song and did not want to take any more from Ma Fu'er.

"Only God knows what to do? Oh, God, why are we fighting the damned Great Song Army in this damned place." Ma Fu'er pinched his brow in pain.

Immediately, he said: "Gaole'er has also been driven to the edge of the strait by the Great Song Army; you have all failed. Before this, our Navy also failed; this already explains a lot. Wesley, while the forts have not yet been occupied by the Great Song Army, take advantage of the night to retreat to Tianzhu, otherwise, all of you will die here."

"Retreat?" Wesley's eyes were suddenly very dazed.

Ma Fu'er nodded heavily, "Even so, we can only evacuate twenty thousand people at a time; who goes and who stays, you choose yourself."

Wesley fell into silence. After a long time, he said to Ma Fu'er, "Let me think about it."

Ma Fu'er nodded, "You only have this one night to think; tell me the result tomorrow morning. Sometimes, you must make a choice to minimize losses; you must never let the damned Song People eat us all up."

Wesley nodded.

At this time, the sky had already turned completely dark, and the fortifications were filled with the light of torches.

Throughout this night, Wesley never slept; he continuously cursed the Great Song army and pondered what choice to make for his next step.

Ma Fu'er's warning was correct.

They were safe for the moment cowering here, but having lost the protection of the first line of fortifications, their Fort was in danger.

Moreover, the Great Song army's Artillerymen had not yet arrived because their movement was slow.

Once their Artillerymen were in position, they would still be able to bombard their fortifications.

Therefore, whether or not to retreat tomorrow morning truly determined the fate of the Coalition.

Not until the break of dawn did he finally make his decision; he immediately summoned the officers of the various nations and shared his thoughts with them.

The cruel warfare had already left the officers of the various nations in a state of panic, and not a single one of them opposed Wesley.

They merely went back to select the first group of people to evacuate.

Of course, this "first group" to evacuate was merely a comfort to the soldiers left behind, because no one knew if this would be the last evacuation.

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