Chapter 330: Escape

As the East African army approached step by step, the distance between the two armies was only about 500 meters.

Wiggins was still waiting for the East African to come into range, but the East African army would not give him this opportunity, because this distance was already within the firing range of the Dreiser rifle.

The maximum range of the Dreiser rifle is about 600 meters, while the rifles equipped by the Ndebele can only reach a maximum range of 300 meters. At a distance of 500 meters, the Dreiser rifle can already exert about 60% of its power, which is enough.

"Open fire!" Following the order from the East African commanders.

The East African Army suddenly launched an attack, and the sound of Dreiser's rifles broke the oppressive silence between the two sides.

“Bang… bang… bang…”

Wiggins was caught off guard by the sudden firing of the East Africans. "What's going on? These East Africans..."

Before he could finish his words, some of the Ndebele soldiers in the front row were shot and fell down. At this time, the Ndebele warriors were also stunned by the sudden opening fire from the East Africans. Some of them instinctively began firing at the East African army without any orders. This was a stress response that broke out in the face of danger warning.

However, the East African army's early firing and the fall of their teammates caused the Ndebele warriors, who had only briefly received Boer training, to panic and make frequent mistakes. The soldiers in the second row even shot directly at their surviving comrades in front of them out of nervousness.

"you……"

The Ndebele warrior who was shot by his own people fell unwillingly in a pool of blood with his eyes wide open.

The entire Ndebele camp fell into chaos, with shouting, wailing and gunfire mixed together.

Wiggins was stunned for a moment, then immediately reacted, "Assholes, who told you to shoot? Stop shooting!"

If the Ndebele people open fire now, it will not hurt the East Africans at all. At most, it will just make the East African Army hear a noise.

Amid the noise of gunfire, Wiggins shouted to Lobengula: "Your Majesty, there is something wrong with the East Africans' equipment! Their rifles have a longer range. We must change our tactics immediately."

Lobengula was so angry that his face turned blue. He shouted angrily, "Didn't you say that as long as we wait for the East Africans to come to us, we can defeat them with our muskets? Why did they open fire in advance before they even reached the designated area? How could they cause harm to us?"

Wiggins: "Your Majesty, there is something wrong with the East Africans' equipment. They must have ordered more advanced weapons from Europe. I didn't figure this out. The responsibility lies with me, but now is not the time to pursue responsibility. We must respond to the enemy's attack."

Lobengula said in a panic: "What should we do now? Retreat?"

Lobengula was really desperate. Even a fool knew that the weapons of the East Africans were different from the "scrap iron" he bought with gold. How could he fight when he couldn't even reach the corner of the enemy's clothes?

Wiggins: "No, Your Majesty, let our men charge forward with muskets. Our numbers are definitely greater than the East Africans. It doesn't matter if some of them die. As long as we rush to half the distance, the muskets in our hands can counterattack the East Africans. We will fight the East Africans in close combat!"

Retreat is impossible. Once they retreat, the morale of the army will be unstable. Then it will not be a retreat but a defeat. Wiggins is sure that as long as he gives the order to retreat, these natives will run faster than anyone else. Even the command will collapse. Now try to break into the East Africans. Maybe you can turn defeat into victory with the advantage of numbers.

What do you mean it doesn't matter if some people die! Although he was very angry, Lobengula had no better solution. He could only try Wiggins' method, "All troops attack! Warriors of the kingdom, follow my steps and defeat these East Africans."

Lobengula led the charge, boosted morale, and temporarily stabilized the Ndebele people's will. Now they can only fight with their backs against the wall.

"Kill!"

Lobengula raised the Arab scimitar in his hand and led the charge towards the East African army, followed closely by the Ndebele warriors.

But the East African army had seen through the Ndebele's plans.

"Ready artillery! Fire!"

“Boom…Boom…Boom…”

The bombardment of the Ndebele camp greatly weakened the Ndebele people's desire to fight. However, as a "fighting" nation among the indigenous people, the Ndebele people did not collapse. With Lobengula setting an example and leading the charge, it was effective in boosting morale. Since the king did not value his life, why not die with him?

Seeing that the Ndebele were still able to attack normally, Thwaites gave the order: "Cavalry, prepare!"

The East African cavalry, who had been waiting for a long time, drew their sabers and stepped forward to prepare for battle.

The South Salzburg Border Force is equipped with two cavalry companies. Although it is not large in scale, it makes the South Salzburg Border almost fully equipped with the three army branches: infantry, artillery, and cavalry.

The weapons of the East African cavalry were not exactly the same as those in Europe. In addition to the Dreyse carbine, which was the same model as the Prussian cavalry's, the cold weapons equipped by the East African cavalry were the East African straight swords.

The East African straight sword is an improved version of the Han Dynasty ring-handled sword. Its basic functions are similar to those of the Han sword. It has a single-sided blade, a thick spine, and a certain curvature, but it looks relatively straight overall. It is mainly used for chopping and stabbing.

The blade is 1.12 meters long, and the handle is wrapped with sisal braid, which makes it easy to hold. The diameter of the blade ring is equal to the width of the handle. At the same time, a metal buckle is added to the scabbard, which is convenient for hanging around the waist.

The design of the East African straight knife was entirely due to Ernst's personal preference. He himself had a gold-inlaid cold jade Han knife that he had specially made at a high price as his private collection.

Although the use of straight swords by East African cavalry was influenced by Ernst's personal subjective thinking, it was indeed unexpectedly accepted and loved by the East African cavalry. The main reason was that the enemies faced by East Africa had almost no cavalry of the same size, so there was no need to use weapons such as lances.

More practical examples of East African cavalry were charging into the fleeing natives with straight knives in hand to capture young and strong laborers. The Dreyse carbine was only used when it was necessary to annihilate the enemy and conduct medium- and long-range shooting.

The East African straight knife is light and easy to control the strength, which can ensure the safety of the slave. If it is disabled, the slave will be of no use.

Siwei Te: "Cavalry attack!"

The cavalry kicked their horses with spurs, and as the East African cavalry moved out, a cloud of dust was immediately raised on the battlefield, and the sound of horses' hooves rumbled.

"kill!"

The sharp East African straight sword sparkled in the sun, and the warhorse ran for a distance before colliding with the Ndebele people who were rushing in the front.

The seven or eight hundred kilograms of force passed right past the Ndebele warrior, but was followed closely by the shining East African straight knife.

With a wave of his hand and a drop of the knife, blood spurted out from the Ndebele man's body and splashed all over the ground.

Lobengula was not hit by the East African cavalry's straight sword, but his death was even more horrific. A warhorse knocked him to the ground and then trampled on him mercilessly with its hooves.

Lobengula, a nearly 200-pound Ndebele strongman, was unable to catch his breath, felt a heat in his chest, and then passed out. It was not known whether it was due to the collision or the trampling.

Two cavalry companies rushed into the Ndebele camp, directly and completely disrupting the Ndebele attack.

With the help of their war horses, the East African cavalrymen slashed through the crowd with their swords, killing people indiscriminately. The Ndebele people completely lost their command, and the peripheral soldiers had begun to disintegrate.

At this time, Siwei Te also ordered: "Everyone, attack on all fronts!"

All the East African Army pressed forward and joined the battlefield, which turned into a slaughterhouse. The smell of blood mixed with smoke and dust filled the battlefield. On the outskirts of Bulawayo, the number of Ndebele corpses increased.

No one knew when, but Wiggins and several Boer instructors secretly went around to the rear of the battlefield while the Ndebele people were not paying attention.

"It's over! It's all over!" At this time, Wiggins said to several Boer instructors: "We must evacuate immediately. The Ndebele people are doomed to fail. We can't fall into the hands of the East Africans."

“What about the Ndebele people? Should we call them?”

"It's death if it's death, but now we have to run away. We should leave quickly while they can still hold off the East Africans for a while!" Wiggins urged.

Rather than letting a friend die, I would rather die. Wiggins chose to betray the Ndebele people.

"Let's get the horses first, go straight west, then go around to the southwest, and finally turn back to Transvaal." Wiggins commanded.

So they hurried to their residence in Bulawayo, where they kept the horses they had brought from Transvaal.

(End of this chapter)