Chapter 488 Attack! Attack again!
"Belen?" Both Robert and Brady said in surprise. Although, according to Cavenster, Belen is indeed very suitable for their defense. But the two of them think that it is still not very safe to retreat to Belém, and the reason is very simple, Belém is not far from El Salvador. As long as the French army attacked northward and out of the plateau, they could attack Belem along the Tocantins River.
"General, I think we have already retreated to the north. It is best to retreat to the north of the Amazon River. In this way, we can rely on the Amazon River and the vast tropical rainforest to resist the French army's attack. And, now our troops Most of them are concentrated in the north of the Amazon River, which is very beneficial to our rapid combat deployment." Robert said.
"Yes, General. I agree with General Robert." Brady also said.
"I don't think that's necessary. North of the Amazon River, it's hard to find a good port like Belém. Marajo Bay can berth large warships. We are stationed here, and we can get naval support. Besides, As long as I deploy heavy troops in the upper reaches of the Tocantins River, it will be very easy to resist the French army's attack. And the most important point. If we retreat to the north of the Amazon River, we will not only have to face the French army The threat of the 1st Army, and at the same time, it is possible to lose this South American region south of the Amazon River. It will be quite difficult to counterattack in the future. Therefore, I chose Belem. This is not only for us to resist the French army and gain domestic It is an important position for supplies, and it is also a bridgehead for counterattacking the French army in the future." Cavester analyzed.
Robert also said that Brady didn't expect that Cavester was thinking so far, and he hadn't retreated yet, so he thought about counterattacking in the future. Seeing that Cavenster had already made up his mind, Robert and Brady had to give up.
It was less than six o'clock the next morning. As soon as it was dawn, the U.S. military moved into action. Some of the US troops will stay to stop the French army for a period of time, and the others have already packed their bags and are ready to evacuate from this place where they may die at any time.
At 6:30 in the morning, the main force of the US military withdrew from Savinwadou, leaving less than 10,000 people to block the French army. And it was Robert who commanded these 10,000 people. Cavenster told him to persist until 9 casualties. At that time, the U.S. military was truly safe. If the French army pursued the main force of the US military before 9 o'clock, it would be very difficult to say whether the main force of the US military could safely withdraw to Belem.
Robert said he would resolutely implement Cavester's order. Anyway, in his opinion, the French army had to attack at least 8 o'clock or after 8 o'clock, and it was quite easy to resist the French army for an hour. Besides, if things changed, he could leave those soldiers and escape by himself. I believe that if this was the case, Cavester would never blame him. On the contrary, if he successfully completed the task, it would be a great credit. Covering the retreat of the main force, in this case, Washington will definitely reward him heavily. Every time he thinks of this, Robert gets very excited.
After a night of emergency loading and unloading, at this time, the French Iberian 2nd Army had already loaded and unloaded two infantry divisions and some combat materials. According to this speed, there is still one day to one and a half days at most before all loading and unloading can be completed. It is completely possible to vacate the port before the arrival of the French 89th Army.
In this case, half of the mission of the Iberian Second Army was completed. The other half is the capture of Salvador. This task is not a problem at all in the eyes of Field Marshal Otis, commander of the Iberian Second Army. From yesterday's battle, he has fully realized the combat effectiveness of the US military. In his heart, he has already made an evaluation for these American soldiers. He believes that the combat effectiveness of these American soldiers is not even comparable to that of French reserve soldiers. He firmly believes that a reserve infantry division in France can definitely defeat a regular infantry division in the United States, and can even withstand two regular infantry divisions in the United States.
Therefore, Otis decided to win El Salvador early to avoid any variables. In order to be able to take El Salvador with less casualties, Otis decided to put both infantry divisions into the attack. As for the safety of the port, it is enough to leave it to the 1st Marine Division. Moreover, he also requested the French Atlantic Fleet to provide sufficient artillery support for the French army. Admiral Kirkbride, commander of the Atlantic Fleet, agreed to his request without hesitation. After all, the relationship between the French army and navy is very harmonious, unlike the army and navy of other countries, which are completely like life and death enemies.
At 8 o'clock in the morning, the Iberian 2nd Army concentrated nearly two hundred cannons of various calibers and shelled El Salvador. The navy also assembled more than 20 warships to assist the Iberian Second Army in bombarding El Salvador.
A large number of shells began to pour like El Salvador. A huge explosion enveloped the entire city, with gunpowder smoke filling the air and shrapnel flying across, the whole scene was like a **** on earth. According to the information obtained before, the French army bombarded the military targets in El Salvador, and ignored all the ordinary houses. Although there may not be many civilians left in El Salvador, most of them were also killed yesterday Withdrew from El Salvador to escape the war. However, after the French army captured El Salvador and wanted to use the city, they naturally did not want to turn the entire city into ruins. This will waste a lot of energy of the French army on rebuilding the city.
When the French artillery sounded, Robert got into the basement. The basement of the U.S. military headquarters has been specially treated and can fully support the fierce artillery fire of the French army. However, when large-caliber artillery shells, especially French naval artillery shells, exploded in the U.S. military command headquarters, the entire basement was also shaking non-stop. Whenever this time, Robert is always scared to death. Fortunately, there was no cutting corners when building this basement. Although it seemed dangerous, after the French bombardment ended, the entire basement was still intact.
Just as he was feeling emotional, a Brigadier General stumbled over. "General, the French attack has already begun. They have invested tens of thousands of people, and we can't resist it at all. In addition, we have lost a lot of troops in the French bombardment. I think we are afraid Even the French's first attack couldn't resist." The Brigadier General said with a look of embarrassment.
"How many troops are left now?" Robert asked.
"There are probably less than 7,000 people left." The Brigadier General replied.
"What? Lost so many people?" Robert yelled in surprise. It's only half an hour, and so many people have been lost, how can the fight continue.
"General, there is really no way. The French artillery fire is too violent." The brigadier general said helplessly.
"Are you an idiot? The French are under heavy artillery fire. Don't you let the soldiers hide?" Robert scolded angrily.
The brigadier general just kept his head down and said nothing, but his heart was full of resentment. As the general, Robert hid in the strongest basement. And for these people, it is good enough to have a hiding place. It is simply impossible to hide in such a strong bunker like Robert. In this way, it is inevitable to have such a large loss under such fierce artillery fire by the French army.
"Okay! Let's assemble the troops immediately." Robert ordered.
"General? Are you going to fight the French?" the Brigadier General asked with some concern. He was very afraid that if Robert's head became hot, he would let them have less than 7,000 people to force the French army. Wouldn't that be courting death?
However, UU Reading www.uukanshu.com proved that Robert was very clear-headed at this time, and there was no symptom of brain fever at all.
"Asshole! A decisive battle with the French army? Don't you want to live? If you want a decisive battle, you can go on your own. I won't accompany you. Gather my team immediately and prepare to retreat." Robert said very angrily.
"But how did General Cavester explain it? He asked us to stick to it until 9 o'clock." The Brigadier General hesitated and said.
"Hold on until 9 o'clock. I can't hold on for a minute now. I don't want to stay here for a second in this **** place. It's natural for me to talk about General Cavester. The situation is so critical now , I believe General Cavester can understand. Besides, isn't the time almost the same now? There are still more than 20 minutes until 9 o'clock." Robert said very impatiently.
Hearing what Robert said, the brigadier general was immediately relieved. Gathered troops as quickly as possible, and then, together with Robert, quickly withdrew from El Salvador and chased after Cavenster.
After the U.S. troops withdrew, the French occupied El Salvador with little effort. Both missions of the 2nd Iberian Army were completed. Otis immediately sent a telegram to Paris. And Paris' reply was only a few words: attack! Attack again!