Eagle’s Glory

Under the watchful eye of Aegron, his artillery began to bombard the fortress of Methorongion, and this meant that his offensive had officially begun.

Amidst the deafening bombardment, a large number of solid shells were accelerated by the gunpowder and gun barrels, and rushed into the air with a screeching sound, then fell rapidly, and finally fell into the opposite fortress in a perfect parabola.

The cannonballs like raindrops fell on the outer walls and open spaces of the fortress, and then stirred up a burst of mud that floated into the air, and fell like raindrops. There were also some dazzling red stains among the black mud dust— Obviously, some unfortunate enemy soldiers became the victims of this round of shelling.

However, the continuous artillery bombardment did not bring a particularly heavy blow to the fortress, because on the one hand Aegron did not have heavy artillery, and the power was not enough to directly destroy the fortress; on the other hand, the carefully designed bastion, its walls are not high , and the masonry structure is inclined, so the shells are difficult to penetrate.

With the help of a telescope, Aegron observed the results of the bombardment—except for the smoke and dust scattered all over the front, the shells only left some large and small craters on the city wall.

Obviously, the effect is slight.

Although he was very disappointed, Aigron was not surprised. He knew in his heart that if Methorongion was not such a strong fortress, the Turks wouldn't have to besiege it for so long before taking it.

In essence, he was experiencing the mood of the Turks at that time.

After the shelling continued for a while, it gradually subsided, and it was time for a frontal charge.

Standing on the high ground, Aigron watched his soldiers lie in front of the trenches approaching the bastion, waiting for the final order.

Although he couldn't see the faces of the soldiers, he could clearly feel the chill that permeated the entire front-that was the atmosphere before the death of the **** of death.

They were destined for a **** fight.

Although he knew that the next attack would definitely not have any significant results and would definitely bring heavy sacrifices, he still didn't say a word, just silently watching the battle ahead.

As long as there is a war, there will be sacrifices, and he is used to making sacrifices for his soldiers - all he can do is make the sacrifices as worthwhile as possible.

With a few sharp whistles, there was a deafening roar in the trench, and then a group of soldiers with rifles jumped out of the trench under the order of the officer, and then collectively rushed towards the multi-faceted fort ahead.

In this case, the soldiers had no formation to speak of. A group of soldiers in black uniforms charged forward in a scattered manner. In order to strengthen themselves, many of them also let out a sharp howl, as if they were on the grassland. The same as the herd of bison on the Mercedes-Benz.

In the midst of their roars, their distance is getting closer and closer to the bastion. For a time, in some people's minds, victory seems to be close at hand...

However, just when they had approached the front of the bastion, the fortress, which had been silent for a long time during the previous confrontation and bombardment, suddenly made a dense sound.

Like awakened giants, these bastions poured fire on the rushing enemy troops in their anger. In an instant, the shooting holes in the bastions and the soldiers on the city walls began to fire, while hiding behind the city walls. The artillery also began to fire back.

Artillery fire and bullets danced wildly in the open space in an instant, reaping life like a scythe of the **** of death. The soldiers who charged forward heard the muffled sound of bullets hitting and passing through the human body, as if some terrifying demon was on the way. Play the piano and celebrate.

People continued to fall, but because of military discipline, the remaining people were still charging forward. They crossed the open space full of stones, and then rushed into the trench in front of the bastion wall.

There wasn't much water in the ditch, so they jumped in easily, but then they found it was a problem to get out of the ditch on the other side.

Some tried to climb up with guns under their arms, while others held guns and fired back at the distant city walls.

Because the walls of the bastions have a star-shaped structure, the soldiers in these trenches inevitably have to withstand the fire from the other two angles, and bullets are continuously poured down from the city walls, hitting back at the attackers. .

The lucky soldiers were swept by the bullets at low altitude or hit the stones under their feet, while the unfortunate ones had to bear the kinetic energy of the bullets with their own bodies.

Blood light burst out in the ditch, and screams echoed in it. After a while, the ditch was filled with **** corpses, and the blood from their wounds instantly covered the bottom of the ditch. , like a carpet laid out to welcome death.

In the midst of this horrific sight, some soldiers began to break down. They either stood there, not knowing what to do, and were knocked down by merciless bullets, or they simply let out a howl of beasts, trying to move back.

But even so, there were some soldiers who still maintained their courage. They tried their best to climb up from the ditch, and then climbed up the sloping city wall, while covering themselves with the gap created by the bombardment just now.

But after the bravest soldiers climbed to the wall, they were greeted by bullets and bayonets of the defenders.

Unable to support them alone, they were pushed down with a scream, and then fell heavily into the ditch, facing their own death with their eyes open.

The mass death turned the attack into a one-sided slaughter, and even the most determined warriors could not help being dominated by fear at the sight of the constant sacrifice of their comrades.

Then, the surviving soldiers began to retreat involuntarily, first one step or two, and then quickly ran. No one paid attention to the wounded soldiers who were still mourning in the battlefield. They only ran for their lives and ran back to their own start The trenches during the attack.

As a result, this anticlimactic attack seemed to be unable to sustain at the beginning, and the attackers returned to the starting point, as if everything had never happened - but the corpses left in the open space and the trenches under the bastion were enough to prove that The brutal killings that happened before.

This was the first time Aegron's army had retreated in front of the enemy.

Seeing the cowardice of his subordinates, the commander-in-chief Michelle Ney, who was watching the battle in the artillery position, jumped with anger.

In his opinion, the subordinates are humiliating themselves and making themselves ashamed of their surnames.

"Go! Order them not to retreat! Officers are obliged to maintain order and continue to attack! Anyone who dares to retreat without authorization will be shot!" He shouted angrily to the messengers.

Then, he couldn't hold it any longer, and walked out of the position directly, and then prepared to launch a charge with the orderly beside him.

However, Aigron, who was standing on the high ground watching the battle, also observed Michel Ney's actions.

"Tell Michelle, leave me where I am, I don't need him to charge!" He hurriedly ordered his guards.

The guards quickly led the way, finally holding on to Michelle Ney, who was already furious.

At this time, the soldiers who had retreated to the original position tried to continue to retreat to the camp, which was about to turn into chaos that spread throughout the army.

Aigron and Michel hurriedly ordered the officers and guards to suppress, and after a while of confusion, they finally let

At this time, everyone knew that the attack could no longer continue.

So, Aigron ordered to suspend the attack and let all the troops return to their starting positions-the first attack on Methorongion was defeated within an hour.

Aigron let his officers and soldiers rest for a noon to recover their wounded spirit, and then he reconvened his chief officers.

These officers quickly came, and they were a little dejected at the moment, and it could be seen that they were no longer in high spirits.

Aegron was not surprised by this.

Since he led his subordinates to land in Greece and put them into battle, every battle they fought ended in victory. Although the scale of these victories was not large, it was enough to make his subordinates develop a kind of "victory is so easy to come by". romantic ideas.

So, they are not tested by real setbacks, so they are not mentally prepared for temporary difficulties.

In this sense, the current setback in the offensive is also a necessary supplementary lesson - after all, no army in history has ever achieved victory in every battle, so how to maintain cohesion in the face of setbacks is extremely important. important issues.

Compared to the calm Aigron, Michel Ney seemed to suffer too much.

He walked in front of Aegron, tears almost came out of his eyes, his face twitched with shame, and he was almost speechless.

"Your Majesty, I'm sorry... I let you down. I never imagined that my subordinates would retreat on their own in such a humiliating manner... I have lost my name! Please punish me!"

"No, I won't punish you, Michelle." Aigron shook his head, "From the beginning, we knew that this was definitely not an easy fortress to take down, and you have already explained to me, So - it's not surprising that the first offense failed, I've been very pleased with how you all played. If you're shamed, the most you need is to get back on your feet and continue to perform for me with the same performance as before Serve."

"Your Majesty..." Seeing that Aegron was so reasonable, Michelle Ney was even more grateful, "Even if the conditions are difficult, it is intolerable to retreat without authorization before receiving an order to retreat. This is a serious shame! Ordinary soldiers, we You can no longer be held accountable, but officers should remember demerits and deprive them of their medals, and they must remember their shame! Let them show their due sacrifice in future battles and set an example for all their subordinates.”

"They are your subordinates, you decide." Aegron was noncommittal.

Although he understands the difficulties of his subordinates, in any case, retreating without an order is intolerable, and he also agrees with punishment and shock.

For the military, discipline is always an inviolable truth, no matter how many objective reasons there are.

After the conversation between the two ended, Aigron's eyes fell on the faces of the other officers present.

And he soon discovered that almost everyone had a very ugly expression.

Obviously, the failure of today's attack was a heavy blow to their psychology.

At the last collective meeting, everyone had lost confidence in attacking Methorongion head-on, but because they had not practiced it, some people felt lucky in their hearts. The fact is in front of everyone - although their troops have an advantage over the defenders, it is very unlikely that they want to take the fortress by storm.

How is this not to be depressing?

"Get up, everyone!" Aigron increased his voice, trying to cheer them up. "Although we did encounter setbacks today, my determination has not changed. I must take Methorongion!"

His words did not arouse everyone's response, but made them look at each other in dismay.

After staring at each other for a moment, Prince Charles, his cousin, finally whispered, "Your Majesty... I'm blunt, we suffered huge casualties today, but it's still within an acceptable range. But if we keep attacking here If so, the soldiers in our hands may not be enough to consume. You have seen that the fortress is very strong, so I ask you to think about it again, don't spend our most precious strength here and get nothing..."

Although no one should talk to him, it is obvious that others are also nodding secretly, obviously this is what everyone is thinking.

Seeing this scene, Aegron also sighed in his heart.

He didn't blame his cousin for disturbing the morale of the army, because in this environment, anyone with normal logical thinking ability would come to the same judgment, but Charlie dared to tell him face to face because he was his cousin.

Obviously, if they don't boost their morale, maybe their army will start to disintegrate from the top - a commander who is reckless and wastes the lives of his subordinates is not worthy of respect.

So, it's time for a showdown with them,

"You are right, attacking Methorongion from the front has little chance of winning, and today's attack also proves this." Aigron nodded and admitted the reality.

Then, he immediately changed the conversation, "But that's not to say we can't try something else."

Then, Aigron took out the sketch of Edmund Dantès from his arms, and began to explain his plan to the sketch.

Everyone listened to his plans in silence, and they didn't talk to each other until Aegron had finished speaking.

"What do you think?" Agron looked at Michelle Ney.

"Your Majesty, I think there is a certain possibility, but the variables are too large." Michelle Ney replied, "First of all, we do not know the internal defense of the enemy army, and secondly, it is too difficult to navigate between the sandbars. , It's hard not to alert the enemy... So, I'm a little suspicious."

Although he said that, his spirit was obviously lifted a lot - just like a person who saw a little hope in the despair.

"Yes, I admit that it is very difficult, but I choose to take the risk, because we have no other way." Aigron replied loudly. "The Count of Monte Cristo is the first nobleman I canonize. I have great trust in him. I believe he can do it for me!"

"Then...what if he fails?" Prince Charles whispered.

"I promise you, if the future action of the Count of Monte Cristo fails, then I will take you to retreat and never fight again." Aigron looked at everyone and made a promise, "Anyone else have a problem?"