A cacophony of gunshots rang out.
Caught off guard, the soldiers of the King's Guard were shot and fell to the ground.
"Your Excellency, you are utterly despicable and shameless."
“We did nothing to offend you, yet you killed us.”
"We are sworn enemies with you."
Even after being shot and falling to the ground, many people still drew their muskets and fired at those around the cardinal.
A cacophony of gunfire erupted.
To Zheng He's surprise, these people from the French Empire were actually killing each other.
Zheng He looked at the large warships on the Seine.
"These white pigs dared to fire on our warships! Destroy them all! I'll kill every single one of them!"
At Zheng He's command, the dozen or so ironclad warships in front opened fire instantly.
Although these ironclad warships only had a displacement of a few hundred tons, the guns mounted on them were all large cannons.
These cannons were all rapid-fire cannons improved by Song Yingxing, and their caliber reached 150 mm.
These Europeans also had artillery, but their artillery was worlds apart from the rapid-fire cannon developed by Song Yingxing.
The cannons equipped by the Europeans could only fire one or two shells per minute.
The cannon equipped by Song Yingxing could fire more than a dozen shells per minute, and a skilled gunner could fire 30 shells per minute.
This means that a shell can be fired every two seconds.
Besides the rapid firing rate of these cannons, what surprised these Europeans the most was that these cannons had a range of up to 10 kilometers.
The power of the explosion was beyond what these Europeans could imagine.
A series of thunderous explosions rang out, followed by a salvo.
The leading French sailing warship was instantly destroyed.
Deafening explosions rang out continuously, and the warship was blown to pieces.
Frankish soldiers in red uniforms on the warship were blown to pieces, with limbs and fragments scattered everywhere.
Although this sailing warship has a layer of iron armor, its protective capabilities are simply insufficient compared to those of an ironclad warship.
The wooden boat quickly and completely disintegrated. Although it wouldn't sink, it couldn't withstand the ironclad ships for even a minute.
At the same time, all the cannons on both sides of the ironclad ship opened fire on the Frankish soldiers on the shore.
A series of deafening explosions rang out as shells rained down. The Cardinal and the Frankish King's soldiers flew over, followed by a barrage of deafening explosions amidst their ranks.
The explosion sent flames soaring into the sky.
Shrapnel from the explosion scattered like petals from a fairy's shower, sending soldiers flying and leaving limbs and fragments strewn everywhere.
The cannons equipped by Frankish soldiers could only fire one type of iron bullet.
This iron ball is not very powerful.
In contrast, Zheng He's ironclad warships fired cannonballs, which could explode violently, making them many times more powerful than the iron balls.
The cardinal's army and the Frankish king's army, which had been attacking each other just moments before, were now in complete disarray.
They never expected that Zheng He's army's cannons would be so powerful.
"Your Excellency, I don't think it's appropriate for us to attack each other right now."
"We kill each other and let others reap the benefits."
“They could kill us with ease.”
"The other side is far too powerful. Just who are they?"
"I have never seen such a ferocious person."
Just then, another round of shells came flying in.
The shells not only shattered the sailing warships on the Seine, but also devastated the people on the shore.
The cardinal turned pale; he was so frightened that he didn't know what to do.
"Retreat! Retreat quickly! Their forces are far too powerful!" The cardinal slammed his legs against his horse's belly and rode away swiftly into the distance.
Every single one of the cardinal's soldiers rode their warhorses away into the distance.
Zheng He didn't give them any chance.
"All soldiers, listen to my command! Do everything in your power to blow them all up! Even if you can't kill them, make sure they're crippled!"
Then the booming sound of cannons rang out again.
The cannonballs whistled as they flew toward the Frankish army and the cardinal's army, and deafening explosions rang out one after another.
These guys were instantly blown to pieces.
These ironclad warships advanced rapidly along the Seine, leaving behind a trail of wreckage.
The wounded soldiers were in terrible condition; they lay sprawled on the deck, some dragging their bloodied bodies as they swam quickly toward the shore.
Just then, gunshots rang out.
These guns are all automatic weapons, capable of firing dozens of bullets at a time.
Zheng He watched as the bullets pierced the bodies of the wounded Frankish soldiers. These men were swimming in the water when they were hit by the bullets, their bodies stiffened instantly, and then they floated motionless on the surface of the water.
“Kill them all one by one.”
"Our lord has already said that this place should be reserved for land, but not for people."
"We need to make them understand that their land belongs to us, but we don't care about their people."
Everyone understood what Jiang Tian meant.
They kept firing into the water and onto the shore.
A hail of bullets rained down on the Frankish soldiers.
These Frankish soldiers fell into the water in droves, like wheat caught by the Grim Reaper.
The Seine has been dyed red.
The water was littered with corpses and the wreckage of sailing warships.
Zheng He's ironclad warships were not afraid of these at all. Their ironclad warships charged ahead of the procession, clearing the way for the treasure ships that followed.
...
The cardinal fled for his life when, with a whoosh, a cannonball flew over.
Immediately afterwards, with a loud bang, the shell exploded violently less than 20 meters away from the cardinal. The shockwave from the explosion threw the cardinal off his horse, sending him flying seven or eight meters before he crashed heavily to the ground.
The guy screamed and then instantly lost consciousness.
The cardinal's men had scattered like birds and beasts; all they did now was desperately try to escape, and dared not do anything else.
The group of guys vanished without a trace on the open plains, just as a carriage came from afar.
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