Chapter Ninety-Five: Capture of Tokyo

  Because of the British promise, Ito Hirobumi also let go this time, and all the troops that could be mobilized were transferred to the front line. Regardless of whether it was a new rifle or an old rifle, even a muzzle-loading gun with a ramrod, as long as it was a weapon that could fire bullets, it was issued to the soldiers, who were made to squat in the trenches and wait for a decisive battle with the invaders. Even the loyalist samurai who came to assist with bows and bird guns joined in, and tens of thousands of troops guarded a defense line of over ten kilometers, waiting to deliver a fatal blow to the invaders.

  He also prepared a cavalry unit, with more than 2,000 cavalrymen hiding in the dense forests of the eastern mountains. As soon as the battle began, they would attack the enemy's flank along the Tamo River to the east. He still had high hopes for this unit, after all, cavalry was the most terrifying enemy of infantry, and weren't the Russians still relying on Cossacks to conquer the world?

  However, the artillery is a bit embarrassing. Yesterday, dozens of bronze cannons from the Imperial Guard Corps were directly destroyed by Yang Feng, so now they can only pull out some old antiques to make up for it. The main ones are some old-fashioned four-pound muzzle-loading cannons imitated from France back then. But Prime Minister Ito is not worried about this, because he still has a secret weapon.

  The battle still started with the artillery fire of the Allied Forces, and more than 100 guns of various types continuously spewed flames. The shells brought a deafening roar and poured down on the Japanese defense line, and the explosion quickly submerged that shallow trench, which looked quite spectacular. Yang, who was directing the battle in person, sat behind the artillery with great satisfaction, eating the watermelon fed to his mouth by the little slave girl while watching the Japanese struggle in the artillery fire.

  Including Waldersee, the German commanders were all leisurely gathered around him, watching their own artillery unilaterally pounding the enemy.

  But just at this moment, two strange whistling sounds suddenly came from the sky. Waldsee, a veteran of many battles, instinctively fell to the ground. Before Yang could react, he saw that among the German troops preparing to attack, two huge fireballs exploded, sending nearly an entire platoon of Germans flying into the air. The sudden explosion frightened Caiyi and Mina so much that they screamed and threw themselves into his arms.

  Yang Da Boss almost choked on the watermelon in his mouth, this guy pushed open the two and stood up. Looking at the large crater in the distance, he stared with his mouth agape and roared: "Bastard, where did the Japanese get such a large-caliber heavy artillery?"

  This was Ito Hirobumi's secret weapon, the 280mm bronze mortar that had been dismantled from the coastal defense battery before the Allied landing, because the Osaka artillery factory had been destroyed by Yang Feng. So it could only be disassembled from the coastal defense battery, and this twenty-six-ton behemoth took too much time to assemble or build a gun emplacement, so it was used for the first time until today.

  Waldsee, who had just climbed up, was also stunned. He never thought that there were two more monsters hidden behind the Japanese army. At first glance, it was clear that they were giant fortress howitzers. Fortunately, these big guns fired slowly, and the Allied forces had enough time to react. Yang Feng's artillery observers quickly discovered their positions, although the distance was already beyond the range of the Bofors 75mm gun. However, this problem was not difficult to solve. Letting the artillery move forward one kilometer would be enough, but that would take time.

  However, this also made Yang Feng realize that the 75mm gun was no longer advantageous in terms of firepower and range. Next, they must switch to a larger caliber, such as the 105mm light field gun, which is very good. Moreover, with Bofors' current steel quality, it can be produced.

  The various units preparing for the attack retreated at their fastest speed, while ten 75mm cannons were urgently moved forward, quickly starting to set up amidst the explosion of heavy artillery shells. Fortunately, these large guns were deployed behind the Japanese army and on land that was not an open sea, making it impossible to aim visually, and due to the inconvenience of adjustment, they could only fire at a fixed angle. The range of the shells was limited, but even so, one shell hit the German field artillery position, and three Krupp 75mm cannons were blown away in an instant.

  Waldsee looked at the Japanese artillery with a sullen face, while in the distance, the cheers of the Japanese army could still be heard faintly. At this moment, he also regretted that he didn't have an artillery piece with a longer range.

  In the midst of expectant gazes, the ten 75mm cannons finally completed their deployment. Immediately after, the artillery observer from afar sent back the coordinates of the enemy, and within a minute, the two massive cannons fell silent. Of course, they weren't destroyed - these twenty-six-ton behemoths wouldn't be easily taken out even if a 75mm shell were to directly hit their barrels. But taking out the artillery crew was enough.

  Just as they suppressed the Japanese heavy artillery, the attacking troops launched another charge. This time, the Germans had learned their lesson and no longer formed neat rows to take turns getting shot at. Like Yang's army, they dispersed in units of ten, advancing in a crouched run once within range of the Japanese guns. Meanwhile, the Maxim machine guns and mortars provided suppressive fire from behind. As for poison gas shells, that was still Yang's exclusive specialty. Besides, even if they were given to the Germans, they wouldn't know how to use them - without gas masks, it would be impossible for them to charge onto the battlefield and get gassed by their own poison.

  Just then, Japanese cavalry arrived.

  Two thousand cavalrymen, in standard Western-style tactics, held their sabers high and charged towards the Allied flank like a landslide, causing Waldersee's expression to tense up instantly. He discovered that these cavalrymen were facing the Yang Family Army head-on without even forming an array, and many of them didn't even bother to attach bayonets to their guns.

  "Yang, this is extremely dangerous!" he couldn't help but remind him.

  "Earl, on the contrary, it is the Japanese who are truly in danger." Yang Feng said calmly.

  As soon as he finished speaking, nearly two hundred machine guns turned around almost simultaneously, and the bullets rained down like a storm, instantly shredding the Japanese army's attack like a meat grinder. The tide of men in the distance seemed to have been slapped by a giant divine hand, instantly becoming chaotic with people and horses toppling over, corpses piling up at an alarming rate, and Waldsee's jaw dropped as if he had been stunned silly.

  "Count, machine guns have ended the era of cavalry," Yang Feng said with a hint of pride.

  Two thousand Japanese cavalrymen were mowed down by two hundred machine guns in a matter of minutes, they didn't even get close to the invaders. The frontmost Japanese cavalryman stood up from beside his dead horse, looking back at the nearly one-kilometer-long strip of corpses, seemingly wondering if this was all just a nightmare.

  Then a gunshot rang out, and the guy stumbled and fell to the ground. A Yang family army officer waved his C96 and led his men in a continued charge.

  The little prince Komatsu no Miya's heart was bleeding on the Japanese army's position, to know that for poor Japan, cultivating a cavalryman is not easy at all, and as a result, such a few bullets were scrapped.

  At this time, the invaders across from them began to release poison gas again. This wicked weapon, as soon as it appeared, meant that even the bravest warriors could not avoid defeat, and the result was just so. The soldiers of the Imperial Guard still had the courage to hold on, but those new recruits and Righteous Army soldiers were not so strong. On the front line where Yang's army attacked, with the explosion of poison gas shells, a large number of Japanese defenders crawled out of their trenches without firing a shot and fled in panic, and of course, the result was usually being mowed down by machine guns from behind.

  "Hold the line, fight to the death!" Prince Komatsu no Miya yelled, swinging his sword, but his voice was cut short. The machine gunner in front of him had already taken aim at this guy, and with a swing of his broken sword, he looked like he was begging for death. The muzzle shifted slightly, and dozens of bullets riddled the prince's body, leaving him unrecognizable.

  The death of the highest commander caused the Japanese army's last bit of courage to collapse instantly. If yesterday, due to not knowing the enemy's strength, the Japanese army could still put up some resistance, then today, after those two secret weapons fell silent, the Japanese army, who had already understood the outcome of the battle, completely lost their will to fight. Just as the Yang family soldiers were the first to charge onto the battlefield, the Japanese army's next defeat began, but this time it wasn't a complete collapse, and many people chose to fight the invaders to the end in order to defend their homes, so there were small-scale resistances all over the battlefield, which made the Allied forces' wish to rush into Tokyo's urban area come to nothing.

  But anyway, this war has already been won, the Japanese capital has opened its gates, although they may fight a guerrilla war, but looking at those wooden buildings in the distance, Yang Feng smiled very slyly.

  "Yang, what do you think about making the Japanese Imperial Palace our headquarters?" Waldsee said with a smile, now envisioning himself wearing the laurel wreath of a conqueror of Japan on the front page of newspapers.

  "Earl, this idea is not bad, but before that, shouldn't we decide on a way to reward the warriors? I think letting them roam freely in the conquered land for three days should be a reasonable idea." Yang Feng said with a smile.

  "It's better for us to determine our respective activity areas first," said Waldez seriously.

  "Your Majesty, we have failed. The invaders will enter Tokyo." Just as the two robbers began to divide their spoils, several kilometers away in the Japanese Imperial Palace, Ito Hirobumi stood pale-faced before Emperor Meiji.

  The Emperor looked at the Prime Minister in front of him, who had devoted his life to revitalizing the Japanese Empire, and couldn't help but sigh. Things had already reached this point, and there was no use saying anything else. Just as the two were facing each other in silence, a chamberlain suddenly rushed in and handed a telegram to the Grand Chamberlain, Tokudaiji, who stood beside the Emperor. Tokudaiji's face changed as he read it, his hands shaking with rage.

  "What has happened?" Emperor Meiji asked with a sense of foreboding.

  "Your Majesty, British troops have landed at Nagasaki." The chamberlain said through gritted teeth.

  "What?!" Ito Hirobumi was taken aback.