Looking at the swinging pointer, Gustav was in a dilemma. He turned his head to look at von Palen, who was surrounded by a crowd. He was looking solemnly at the statue of Saint Marin, and below the statue, there were already a lot of salutes.
In a few minutes, the West Bright Bell will ring, and after the bells, all the cannons will be fired, marking the peak of the New Year's celebrations—the most important moment of the night.
"Gustave, you'd better be there when the New Year's bells ring."
"The medal has been missing for a while now. Whether you go back to look for it sooner or later, I think the result will be the same. Besides, there are so many people tonight, so we might not be able to find it."
"I think you shouldn't have too high expectations," Wolfgang said, stroking his chin.
Upon hearing this, Gustav's expression gradually darkened. After pondering for a moment, he finally sighed helplessly.
"I'll go after the bell rings... I have to try to find it."
Wolfgang did not respond, but instead turned to look at the West Bright Clock.
Just then, the guards on duty in the square suddenly shouted in unison: "Silence!"
Gradually, the laughing crowd quieted down, and everyone remained silent, but their smiles did not diminish.
They all looked up at the towering clock tower, waiting for the New Year's bells to ring.
——
Meanwhile, at the port of Bruno.
The scene at sea was too much for Bernhardt to bear; he seemed to have lost all his strength and was unusually haggard.
Only about half an hour has passed since the bombardment began, but the Black Powder Fleet has lost almost half of its forces in the enemy's intense artillery fire.
This was certainly because the Black Powder Fleet was unable to retaliate and was too close to the enemy ships, allowing the Yan Kingdom to bombard them, but the terrible casualties were still hard for Bernhard to accept.
If defenses had been established around the port of Bruno from the beginning, and all troops had been stationed there, the situation would not be so dire now.
If the Black Powder Fleet is completely wiped out in tonight's fierce battle, then all the reinforcements organized earlier will be lost. This loss is definitely due to misjudgment and could have been avoided.
"Sir, the enemy is showing signs of retreating," Dingle said, holding up his binoculars.
Bernhard shook his head, trying to focus his attention on the ongoing battle, and then said:
"The shelling has been effective. The port defenses are strong and secure. Even if they continue their assault, they will pay a heavy price."
"Without reinforcements, the Yan people do not want to lose too many troops in this battle."
Upon hearing this, Dingle nodded and said, "That's what I think too."
"I just received a message from the sentries. They roughly counted the number of Yan Kingdom warships that have arrived. There are about four or five hundred warships."
"But it must be said that their warships are indeed sturdy. Our shells are unlikely to cause them much damage in a short time. Fortunately, we have plenty of ammunition. As long as their soldiers expose their bodies, we can still kill them."
“And if they attempt to land by force, we will be able to inflict heavy casualties on them as soon as they disembark,” Dingle said confidently.
Dingle's confidence at this moment was by no means blind. Earlier, when the sentries saw the Yan Kingdom fleet chasing the Black Powder Fleet and approaching the port of Brulo, the port's garrison immediately took action. In addition to the existing fortifications, they did more defensive work.
Not to mention the existing tactical trenches and the temporary defensive lines made of sandbags, the flat and wide landing beach has now been covered with several iron nets and countless sharp iron spikes. The entire beach is full of obstacles, which can effectively prevent the enemy from advancing with artillery vehicles. Even if the enemy chooses to launch a skirmish, their high-ground artillery emplacements and bunkers can effectively slow down the enemy's advance.
These defenses made full use of the terrain's advantages. Furthermore, since Bruno Port was the most important of the three major ports and was under attack by the enemy, Bernhard had earlier concentrated most of his coastal forces there.
Currently, behind the port's coastal defenses, three urgently deployed infantry divisions are on standby. If the enemy insists on a forced landing despite heavy casualties, the army will continuously reinforce them even if they break through the beach and enter the buildings to fight for control.
Therefore, even if the war becomes protracted, our side will receive more and more reinforcements, while the Yan army, despite having more advanced weapons, will lose one soldier for every one of them they die.
The enemy's retreat now is undoubtedly due to their assessment that continuing the fierce battle would be extremely disadvantageous for them.
But then Bernhardt said:
"No, they won't just leave like that."
They certainly wouldn't just leave like that; Dingle, who had never lowered his binoculars before, realized this too.
"The shelling is still going on, although it has weakened somewhat, but they can still keep firing even as they turn... This is really..." Dingle's lips twitched.
"Edman's fleet was defeated by them, and the Star Islands fell so quickly. These battles were not due to our military's disadvantages, but rather because they... indeed possessed more advanced warships," Bernhardt said with a somber expression.
Dingle was speechless, but his expression grew increasingly grim; an extremely thorny problem was gradually emerging.
“They’re about to get out of our firing range,” a major general standing next to me said stiffly.
"They're going to bomb us from outside the range of our artillery fire."
"It looks like it'll be a long fight tonight."
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