Munitions Empire

Chapter 667: 626 Silent and Soundless

A somewhat new Number 4 assault gun was rolling over the corpse of a Shen Country soldier on the frontline. It was doing its best to get as close as possible to the enemy positions to take out those recklessly firing Shen Country gun emplacements.

Thanks to its low profile, the assault gun could use the uneven terrain to seek excellent protection for itself. It was advancing cautiously, doing everything possible to avoid exposing its flanks to enemy fire.

“Be careful! Careful! Circle around that little mound!” the commander shouted through the observation window, directing his combat vehicle to keep moving forward.

This armored vehicle, belonging to the infantry division’s artillery, was twisting its not-so-massive body, surprisingly agile.

After circling around some obstructions that blocked their view, they spotted a machine gun emplacement that was firing and suppressing the advancing Tang Army infantry.

So, the commander anxiously yelled, reminding his gunner of the direction to aim, “Ahead! Gun emplacement!”

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In the somewhat cramped space, they were crammed together with ammunition and fuel tanks, which really seemed very secure and reliable.

“I see it! I’m aiming!” the gunner, his face pressed to the rear of the sighting scope, answered loudly.

The loader had already stuffed a shell into the breech before, so now they could fire directly. The commander then loudly gave the command to fire, “Shoot!”

“Boom!” the gunner stepped on the firing pedal, and a 75mm caliber shell flew out of the barrel with a loud noise, striking the distant target.

Immediately after, a column of smoke rose near the distant gun emplacement, and then the machine gun emplacement, which had been spitting out flames non-stop, fell completely silent.

The gunner shouted excitedly, “Hit the target!”

Together with his shout, the Tang Army soldiers who had been suppressed by the machine gun fire rose from their hiding holes, carrying hand grenades and submachine guns, and once again began to charge forward.

Upon seeing the rising smoke and hearing the gunner’s shout, the commander also yelled excitedly, “Well done! Get over there! Cover the infantry as they move forward! Help them get closer to the trenches! Watch out for the enemy’s hand grenades!”

“Turn! Turn!” Circling around the mound, the assault gun was now exposed within the enemy’s line of fire.

Bullets began to pound on the tank’s steel armor like raindrops and were bounced off, leaving only a spray of sparkling sparks.

Through the observation window, the commander could see Shen Country soldiers moving in the trenches, so he complained anxiously over the intercom, “I think we should install a machine gun on top of our vehicle! Damn it, turning is too much of a hassle!”

The driver could also see outside and felt the environment, filled with enemies, to be unfriendly, “I think so too! They are attacking us! The bullets haven’t stopped.”

“I bet the spare track links hanging outside are all smashed… Damn it!” Remembering that his tank had two track links hanging in an external storage recess, the commander said with a look of distress on his face.

Carrying those things was primarily to alleviate the pressure on logistics, and they could also provide a degree of armor protection in critical moments.

However, facing such a barrage of gunfire, the rubber on the rims of the track links was likely doomed, and it was hard to ensure they would not be scarred by bullets.

Although it did not affect the emergency replacement, damaged rubber would ultimately deteriorate faster, reducing its lifespan, which could not be denied as a loss.

“Watch out ahead! There may be new gun emplacements emerging!” However, they were still on the battlefield, so the commander quickly refocused his attention on the dangerous areas.

Tang Army soldiers on the side of the tank were swarming up, getting closer to the Shen Country’s defenses, and both sides kept firing at each other, with the intense gun battle continuing.

Under such circumstances, the losses of the Tang Army soldiers were actually quite significant; even with blind luck, Shen Country soldiers could achieve some limited success.

In the brief exchange of fire just now, at least two Tang Army soldiers had been hit by bullets, their fate unknown.

“I’m watching!” The gunner, still observing directly ahead through the sight, responded loudly after hearing the commander’s order.

“Forward! Move forward!” Hearing the response, the commander continued to issue orders, ready to draw nearer to the enemy trenches and roll over to keep advancing.

The tank’s tracks kept rolling, stirring up the loose soil, and the drivewheel in front kept turning, its gear-like edges biting into the tracks, moving them segment by segment.

“Just hope there are no enemy cannons here! They always set up direct-fire cannons in their positions to counter us!” the electrician warned a little worriedly, “Watch for cover, don’t be too reckless!”

“I know!” the commander continued to scan the surroundings through the observation windows, also trying to spot those lethal threats ahead of time through these narrow gaps.

Those direct-fire guns were extremely dangerous, often being the small-caliber howitzers of the enemy military, with calibers varying widely.

Some were of 75mm caliber, others 76mm, and there were also 80mm ones, even heavy guns with a caliber of 100mm.

If hit directly by these artillery pieces, both Tank No. 4 and Assault Gun No. 4 would be in grave danger, with a real possibility of being penetrated and destroyed.

In fact, in the past half-month, several tanks and an assault gun had been ambushed by these weapons and damaged on the battlefield.

The emergence of these weapons also made it extremely dangerous for the armored corps to break through the enemy lines, causing all the tank commanders to become tense.

Although these temporarily converted anti-tank guns didn’t have as low a profile, and neither did they possess the immense penetrating power, they were still very troublesome opponents.

Under normal circumstances, these makeshift anti-tank guns wouldn’t fire on infantry and would have some cover and camouflage upfront, making them quite difficult to detect.

When these guns started firing, it often meant that Tang Army’s tanks and vehicles were in a very dangerous exposed position, so they were extremely hard to defend against.

However, it wasn’t all bad news: these makeshift anti-tank guns didn’t have professional scopes nor did they have the capability for lateral adjustment in their field of fire, so their performance was very ordinary.

Compared to specialized tank destroyers, or anti-tank guns, their combat efficiency was low, which is why, so far, Tang Army’s tanks and assault guns hadn’t suffered massive losses.

Of course, it would be entirely incorrect to say that Tang Country’s higher-ups weren’t concerned with this gradually increasing anti-tank firepower.

At the very least, all the newly manufactured Tank No. 4s and Assault Gun No. 4s were being upgraded with enhanced armor on both sides and the front, to the best of their ability.

The thickness of the frontal armor, in particular, had been increased from the initial 40 to 50 millimeters to about 80 millimeters in one go.

Compared to the earliest model of Tank No. 4, the armor had nearly doubled, and with the addition of side skirts, this was essentially top-tier protection.

Compared to the various composite armors of later days that easily reached one meter in thickness, the sheer weight of today’s homogeneous steel armor was astonishing and reaching 80 millimeters wasn’t an easy feat.

Moreover, to prevent losses of the precious armored corps, Tang Army had already pulled back the four early-entry main force armored divisions for rest and reconditioning at the secondary line. For the Battle of Beiyuan City, whether it was Tang Mo, Tagg, or Redman, none intended to continue using armored troops in combat anymore.

“Ahead! Ahead! See that mound? Keep an eye on that one! I sense something off there!” the tank commander cautioned his gunner as they moved forward.

The gunner saw the suspicious mound and immediately became fully alert, peering through the scope that allowed for a clearer, farther view, hoping to detect something.

As he concentrated on observing the mound, an uncontrollable tremor suddenly shook the ground beneath his feet.

“Boom!” A thunderous explosion knocked the advancing Tang Army soldiers to the ground. Some got up covered in dust and looked towards the direction of the explosion, just as a billowing cloud of smoke obscured the sky.

Everyone’s ears rang with the buzzing noise, the explosive disorder momentarily silencing the cacophony of battle.

“Damn it! What was that?!” A Tang Army platoon leader, holding his helmet, shouted from the edge of a crater to the soldiers beside him.

“I don’t know! Sir! It nearly scared me to death,” a soldier replaced his magazine and pointed towards the distant black smoke: “Our assault gun is done for!”

“Hell!” The platoon leader cursed, then looked in the direction of the enemy troops, changed position, and looked toward the No. 4 Assault Gun, which was mostly obscured by smoke: “Damn it, its tracks are broken off!”

“The crew’s probably done for!” the soldier said as he loaded a new magazine, pulling a grenade from his pack: “Should I cover you while you check?”

“Won’t the ammunition inside explode?” The platoon leader ducked his head back, unwilling to take the risk: “How about I cover you, and you take a look?”

After a jest, the two men took cover for a few seconds. The platoon leader poked his head out again, peering through the still-settling dust at the No. 4 Assault Gun destroyed by a landmine: “Can’t see anyone coming out, nor any fire. Seems safe enough. Cover me, I’ll check it out!”

“Careful, sir!” The soldier pulled the pin on the grenade, released the safety, and with a strong swing of his arm, hurled it as far as possible into the enemy’s defensive position.

“Boom!” Amid the sound of the explosion, the platoon leader leaped from the crater, hunched over, and hurried toward the woebegone No. 4 Assault Gun.

Just half a minute before, this assault gun had dominated the battlefield, boldly covering the Tang soldiers as they advanced.

This second, it lay silent and crippled.

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