"You stay here and command the attack, I'm going to check on the Colonel."

Song Heping crawled out from under the car and looked around to see thick smoke everywhere.

Caught off guard by the turn of events.

This time, Song Heping truly experienced the combat power of the Mexican drug lords.

These desperadoes were cornered, and they were really playing for keeps with his team.

Donning night vision goggles, Song Heping crouched and hurried towards the direction where the Colonel was last seen.

Occasionally, the sound of artillery shells falling could still be heard, along with the shouts of the Mexican Marines and the ping-pong of gunshots.

The command sequence of the Marines seemed to be in disarray, the scene somewhat chaotic, as if they were headless dragons.

However, there probably weren't too many mortars inside the villa, so the attack wasn't too intense.

Soon, he made it to the Colonel's side.

One look at the situation here, and he immediately understood the root of the chaos.

On the battlefield, luck does play a role.

It seems the Colonel did not check the almanac today, as an artillery shell landed less than five meters away from him, and before he could react, he and several officers were killed instantly.

After squatting down next to the Colonel for a look, Song Heping knew this guy was beyond saving.

A shrapnel had pierced directly through the left side of his head, a wound the size of a baby's mouth was spewing blood, and brain matter was visible.

"Damn it!"

Song Heping quickly called for Wilson.

"The Colonel's dead! Damn it!"

"What?!"

Wilson was shocked.

"Dead?!"

"Yes! The Marines here are in total chaos; someone needs to take command. Tap into their frequency, declare your command, have them follow your orders. First, secure the front gate to prevent any breaches, and the Marines on other sides just need to hold the defensive perimeter to prevent escape. I'm going to check the artillery positions."

"Okay, I'll organize things. You find the artillery position as soon as possible and organize a counterattack. We can't keep taking hits like this!"

Wilson, a veteran of the battlefield, remained calm despite the surprise attack.

He immediately broadcasted a message on the channel.

"I am Wilson, the commander of this operation. Your Colonel is injured, and I am now taking command. From now on, everyone listens to me! All guard troops on the north, west, and east sides, hold your defensive lines. Do not engage in offensive operations. Troops near the south gate, take cover on-site for now, organize your firepower to block the gate, and do not attack until my orders!"

"Yes, Sir!"

"No problem, Sir!"

One after another, the responses came through the channel.

Wilson quickly stabilized the situation.

In battle, morale is key.

The loss of a commander can easily damage morale, leading to chaos.

Having someone with a high rank take command is like a dose of reassurance for everyone.

After all, these Mexican Marines were also rigorously trained and not a disorganized mob, so Wilson's calm commands quickly stabilized the force.

While Wilson took over command, Song Heping was racing through the forest.

He quickly found the artillery position the Marines had just established at the foot of the hill, more than ten mortars were set up on a relatively flat patch of grass.

But there were no soldiers in sight.

After scanning the area, he noticed it had just been bombed, with two mortars laying on the ground and two bodies beside them.

Apparently, they had been hit by the drug traffickers' mortar fire from the villa.

"Where are the people!?"

Song Heping shouted loudly, "Come out!"

Sure enough, as he shouted, people emerged from behind the nearby trees.

"Are you from the artillery unit?"

Thankfully, he had learned some Spanish from Dominic, which came in handy at this moment.

The soldiers nodded, "Yes, we're from the artillery unit."

"Where's your commander?" Seeing that they didn't look like officers, Song Heping quickly inquired about their commanding officer.

Artillery units require unified command.

Each gun has a gun commander, above them a platoon commander, and above them a battalion commander.

Salvo fire must be commanded in unison, and the same goes for sequential shooting which requires a unified command for firing position adjustments.

No wonder they all ran without a commander.

"The platoon leader is there—"

One of them pointed to the two bodies not far away.

Seeing this, Song Heping couldn't help but laugh and cry at the same time.

The Mexican Marines really had bad luck today.

The drug traffickers in the manor blasted away with mortars and even killed a Colonel and a Lieutenant...

This is just...

These Marines really brought bad luck down on themselves.

"Just the few of you?! Where are the others?!"

"We're all here."

Quickly, a large number of soldiers emerged from the nearby woods.

Seeing this, Song Heping didn't have time to chat with them.

It was a matter of utmost urgency.

He decided to take personal command!

He immediately contacted Wilson: "Wilson, the mortar platoon leader here is down! I'll direct the artillery fire personally. After I extend the barrage, I'll let you know the distance of extension. Then you launch the attack. I'm going to test-fire now; you watch for the point of impact, then report the deviation and direction."

"No problem, directing artillery fire is my expertise!"

Wilson wasn't boasting.

People from their special unit often had to guide on the ground, not just artillery, but also missiles, bombings, and guided bombs, all of which were their forte.

Song Heping yelled at the group of Marine artillerymen: "Gunners, take your positions!"

Though his command wasn't in Mexican military terms, the commands across the world's militaries are similar enough.

The Marine soldiers understood and took their positions accordingly.

Song Heping pointed to the middle mortar and asked: "Are you the reference gun?!"

"Yes." The gun chief nodded.

Song Heping said, "Reference gun on my command, target: extend 10 meters north from the manor's main gate, "elevation xx, direction xx, charge number 1, load one shell, fire!"

The Marine soldiers quickly set the elevation and direction. As the distance wasn't far, charge number 1 was more than sufficient.

The shell slid into the barrel with a hiss, the air compressed inside the barrel was pushed out, and the projectile slid to the bottom of the barrel. Upon striking the primer, it was fiercely fired out.

Boom—

The unique firing sound of the mortar wasn't jarring.

After a while, an explosion was heard in the distance.

Then, Wilson started providing impact information over the headset.

"Short 20, left 10, adjust."

"Reference gun, turn direction right 002, elevation increase by 2, charge remains the same, load single fire!"

Song Heping again commanded the reference gun to begin loading.

But just as the second gunner was about to load the shell, a shell fired from the manor landed about thirty meters away in the forest.

Boom—

A small tree was directly blasted apart.

The Marines on the artillery position were so frightened they all threw themselves to the ground.

"You bunch of cowards! What are you scared of?!"

Song Heping said, "The more you fear death, the more likely you'll meet it! If you want safety, blow up the mortars in their manor! Offense is the best defense! Stop hiding like cowards!"

After finishing, he drew his pistol and fired a shot into the sky.

"Anyone who cowers or tries to run gets a peanut from me!"

As he spoke, another mortar shell landed nearby.

This time, the Marines again wanted to duck for cover, but seeing Song Heping standing erect and looking at the gun in his hand, they immediately dared not get down and instead firmly maintained their firing positions.

"Reference gun, load one shell! Fire!"

Boom—

This time, the shell was successfully fired.

Shortly afterward, an explosion was heard. Wilson quickly responded: "Hit the front yard of the manor, five off the impact point!"

"All guns ready, on my command, elevation xx, direction xx, charge number 1, fire five rounds in rapid succession, fire!"

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com