As the two largest land-based empires on the Eurasian continent, the total length of the border between China and Russia is as high as 5,000 kilometers. It is a veritable frontier of thousands of miles.
In this remote northern borderland, the two sides divide their territories according to the provisional boundary demarcation agreement signed more than 20 years ago, but there are countless differences and disputes.
In the early morning two days later, in accordance with the practice of patrolling once every three days, the 93rd Border Guard Battalion stationed nearby organized a platoon-level patrol as always.
Two infantry squads were equipped with a heavy machine gun, and the team of 28 people set off in the early morning and trekked through the rugged northern Xinjiang.
Climbing mountains, ridges, and streams... they discovered these uninvited guests that afternoon.
"When did these guys sneak in?"
"They must have found the right opportunity and crossed the border during the break between patrols."
"The last time was last winter, right? I was betting on when these guys would come. Now I can make a lot of money."
The border troops have long been accustomed to this. They encounter it at least once or twice a year, and sometimes they even cross the border eight times in seven months.
The soldiers were chatting as if nothing had happened, and the second lieutenant leading the team said casually: "Send a few people to report, 'There are old Maozi who have crossed the border at the 089 heights of Ya'erling. There are about dozens of them. It seems that they want to take over.'"
After saying that, he pointed to the east and ordered: "The rest of us will camp on the spot and move the heavy machine guns to the slope."
"Okay!"
The officers and soldiers of the Border Patrol immediately found a suitable slope nearby, and deployed the Type 20 heavy machine gun they carried on the slope. Then everyone rested at the bottom of the slope, boiling water, cooking, and setting up camp.
It makes sense not to take the initiative to expel them. If the other party dares to open fire suddenly, the game will be over.
In the past few decades, similar things have happened countless times along the long border. Both sides have done it many times. Today, there is no longer any trust, but only deep vigilance.
The three soldiers who were sent to send the message were lucky today. Before they set off, they happened to encounter a liaison plane flying from the southwest.
It flew low and slowly along the border, apparently on a routine patrol.
So everyone fired several flares to signal the plane to land. After circling twice, the pilot found a fairly flat place and immediately landed the plane.
This small, high-winged plane can only carry two to three people, but it can take off and land on only fifty meters of flat ground. It can be said to be a panacea, and it can carry out news, transport officers, transport the wounded and other chores. .
In this way, the armed crossing of the Tsarist Russian army was quickly reported back to the battalion headquarters. While uploading the information level by level, the 93rd Border Defense Battalion sent a team to reinforce.
After arriving, more than a hundred Ming troops set up their positions step by step. Heavy machine guns were stationed at the commanding heights, mortars were deployed on the reverse slope of the soil slope, and the infantrymen each looked for cover.
After such arrangements were made, the captain who led the team sent personnel to negotiate.
According to past experience, the two sides will confront each other for a long period of time, maybe several hours, or maybe several days. If there is no quarrel and a firefight, it will usually end with the Russian army leaving in anger.
But this time it was beyond everyone's expectation - before the six or seven people who went to negotiate reached the hill where the Tsarist Russian soldiers were entrenched, the latter fired a warning shot into the air.
The situation was so abnormal that the captain, who did not dare to make his own decisions, sent a message to his superiors for instructions.
That night, dozens more Russian troops crossed the border and joined the detachment here. As a result, the number of Tsarist Russian troops entrenched in Ming Dynasty increased to nearly a hundred.
The next day, September 29, the unusual movements in the Beihai Lake border area were reported to the court step by step.
Originally there was no regular cabinet meeting today, but due to this sudden and strange incident, some cabinet ministers had to temporarily suspend their affairs and hold an impromptu meeting to discuss.
At 7:46 in the morning, in the elegantly decorated No. 2 Assembly Hall of Wenhua Hall, several people from the Zhongshu House came and went in a hurry, distributing documents and serving tea to the "central nervous system" of the Ming Empire.
"It's strange. The Russians have too much time to take care of themselves. The country is in a mess. How can they be so bold?" Civil Affairs Minister Xie Qinrui said doubtfully.
Li Guangyuan, who was always straightforward, didn't think much and replied casually: "Perhaps he wants to divert some attention, right? But it cannot be ruled out that there are British people causing trouble."
Yu Shenhua raised his head and looked at the huge map hanging in front of him, and said with a smile: "Mingyin, you can be sure, why do you need to speculate? This is obviously a double plan, to show goodwill and to test."
Next to him, Lin Xi was wiping his glasses with a small silk handkerchief. Hearing this, he said, "Have you forgotten the news from the past few days? The British gave me a lot of stuff, and Lao Maozi is honest and sincere in his actions." Come on, I thought it would take another month."
"What did the British give?" Xie Qinrui's thoughts and responsibilities are not in this area. He has been very busy this month with the implementation of the War Preparedness Act.
"The low-interest loans of 20 million pounds were all used to purchase machinery in Britain, Canada, and the United States." Lin Xi spoke quickly as always, "It is known that the Russians purchased 4,000 high-end cutting machine tools, 1,000 Five hundred tons of aluminum, two hundred locomotives, the main equipment of a chemical plant, and several miscellaneous items."
The British pound is extremely valuable these days. The exchange rate with the U.S. dollar is one to five, and one pound is equal to about five U.S. dollars.
Before the war even started, the British generously granted such a loan, which was not a small amount. It can be said that they were sincere.
"It's quite a feat. No wonder the Russians are so obedient." Xie Qinrui nodded, and then asked: "He Zhong, so...resolutely rush back?"
"That's natural." Lin Xi's tone was very determined.
Soon after, the Forbidden City, East Nuan Pavilion of Qianqing Palace.
If they rest after working hard for days, many people can sleep for more than ten hours in one breath in order to make up for the missing rest.
Since inheriting the throne, Zhu Lingjing has been busy for a full month, working around the clock.
At first, she was a little suspicious of life - I am not lazy, why am I always busy from morning to night? How did our ancestors do it in ancient times?
But she immediately figured out that compared to agricultural society, industrial society had a leap-forward increase in information transmission speed and transaction processing efficiency, but the complexity of industrial society was unmatched by agricultural society.
There are more and more affairs in agriculture, industry, commerce, transportation, water conservancy, political affairs, military, diplomacy and so on, and they also have an explosive growth.
Finally, on the 28th, yesterday, she finished all the backlog of political affairs before and after her succession, and gained an extra half-day of rest for today.
"I'm convinced, why do I always have to do the hard work!"
The military plane waiting for an edict was equivalent to the emperor's military adviser, so Zhou Changfeng had to explain the cabinet's decision to the emperor - to organize manpower to drive away these cross-border Russian troops as soon as possible.
The anxious Zhou Changfeng stopped in the main hall of Qianqing Palace, pacing back and forth, but did not dare to wake up the emperor who had not yet gotten up.
Su Yiyi, who was passing by, saw him, so she stepped forward and asked, "Is Zhou Taizhao in a hurry to see the emperor?"
Zhou Zhang replied in an extraordinarily tangled manner: "Well... it's not very urgent, but... it's a bit urgent."
Su Yiyi was a little speechless and hesitated to speak. After a few seconds, she replied: "Then you might as well wait here? His Majesty told her last night that non-military matters should not disturb her, and she needs to have a good night's rest."
So Zhou Changfeng went to the waiting room next to him, drank tea and ate snacks, read three newspapers, and went to the toilet twice. No one came to tell him that the emperor was up until nine o'clock.
Tsk! Why is this woman still sleeping?
At this time, the cabinet called again to inquire. The helpless Zhou Changfeng had to answer truthfully, and then asked: "Mr. Lin Ge, do you think it is necessary to wake up His Majesty now? What she told us is that non-military matters are not allowed to be disturbed."
Lin Xi on the other end of the phone was obviously startled for a moment, and then said with a smile: "That's not necessary, it won't take more than a few hours to do this."
So, everyone can only wait patiently and wait...
It was not until nearly eleven o'clock that Zhou Changfeng, who was bored, learned that the emperor had finished washing.
Since I woke up very late, there was no need to take breakfast seriously. A small bowl of rice wine dumplings was enough.
"...According to the latest aerial reconnaissance today and yesterday, about two regiments of the Russian army are marching, and the route can be determined to be at Ya'erling. The cabinet decided to drive them out by force as soon as possible, and the military recommended that the nearby 47th Division Go and provide reinforcements in case of any eventuality.”
After finishing his explanation, Zhou Changfeng took a deep breath and then stared at Zhu Lingjing in front of him.
"Well, that really doesn't allow them to take advantage. It's hard for these guys to deal with the Germans, and they still have to cause trouble and ask for trouble." She took a sip of warm rice wine and continued to order: "That's right, start immediately Bar."
Immediately, an attendant handed over a smaller seal, Zhu Lingjing knocked it casually, and the attendant quickly left.
Zhou Changfeng looked at the window and thought for a while, then hesitated and said: "The British didn't dare to do it themselves, so they drove the Russians to attack and harass... They tried every possible means."
"It's useless. Even if the Russians are obedient, they won't be able to distract the imperial court." Zhu Lingjing slowly stood up with an indifferent expression. "The railway supply in northern Xinjiang cannot support large army operations. Our army has a natural advantage in waiting for work."
"After this lesson, they should be able to settle down for a few years."
Due to the capacity limitations of the Trans-Siberian Railway, the Russian army cannot satisfy both "large scale" and "short time" at the same time.
To organize a large-scale military operation of more than a few divisions, you have to wait for a period of time to accumulate supplies; on the contrary, you can only organize an attack at the regiment or brigade level at most.
In a field situation, it is difficult to say whether the Russian army and the Ming army can retreat unscathed in a head-to-head confrontation, and taking the initiative to attack with inferior forces is almost in vain.
If supplies are slowly accumulated, then this period of time will be enough for the Ming army to conduct reconnaissance, reinforcements, and deployment.
"Then you have to be more ruthless." Zhu Lingjing walked past Zhou Changfeng slowly, preparing to leave Qianqing Palace and go to Zhaoren Palace next to it.
"You can consider luring the enemy into the country, gathering two or three regiments, and quickly annihilating one of them with a fierce multi-channel attack..." The latter followed her closely, and suddenly clenched his fists as he spoke, "Don't ask for total annihilation. There are many enemies, but we must be quick and ruthless.”
Zhu Lingjing nodded lightly and said calmly: "Then let's do it this way."
She looked up at the sun and said easily: "The tone of this battle has almost been set. Just be calm and take your time. We are not in a hurry, only others are anxious."
the next day.
The 47th Infantry Division of the Army stationed in Fuyuan Prefecture followed the direct order of the Metropolitan Governor and began to mobilize troops and generals to Beihai Lake.
The location of Fuyuan Prefecture is actually Chita in later generations, and the two locations are very close.
Beihai Lake, later known as Lake Baikal, is not only the deepest lake in the world, but also the largest freshwater lake in Eurasia, with an area of more than 30,000 square kilometers and an average water depth of 700 meters.
In China, the clear record of it is the "Book of Han - Su Wu Biography", and the story is also very interesting - it is said that Su Wu was forced by the Huns to take him to the deserted Beihai Lake. The Huns gave him a group of rams and promised to wait until he gave birth to lambs. Only then did he let him go back, and after many years of suffering, he was able to return to the country.
After many years of chaos in the late Ming Dynasty, the rebuilt Ming Dynasty worked hard to recuperate and recuperate for a long time.
At the same time, it is well known that after the fall of the Yuan Dynasty, the situation of the Mongols, who had been targeted by the Ming Dynasty for decades, went from bad to worse, and their lives were miserable.
There was a severe shortage of iron weapons. The fierce heavy cavalry that swept across the Eurasian continent no longer existed, and only light cavalry equipped with leather armor remained. Food had also become a big problem, so that when raiding south, iron pots were often given priority.
This also made Mongolia in the late Ming Dynasty completely unable to compete with the Hou Jin Dynasty. After the rise of Junggar in the west, the Khalkha Mongols also suffered successive defeats.
At that time, the Cossacks sent by Tsarist Russia to explore the east had successively invaded this vast area, including the Heilongjiang River Basin.
The Cossacks obviously had nothing to do with "military discipline". In order to raise food, they exterminated the Khalkha Mongols and Daur people.
The centuries-old feud between the two sides was forged from that time on. When attacking an earthen city like Yaksa where hundreds of Cossacks were stationed, compared to the Qing army's long-term siege strategy, the Ming army's approach was much simpler and cruder - using shield cars as cover, burying tens of thousands of kilograms of gunpowder, and directly attacking Half of the city was destroyed.
However, limited by the transportation and productivity of that era, there were not many conflicts between the two sides. In the end, after the boundaries were clarified, most of them lived in peace.
It was not until the 18th century that the Torgut tribe, which had been ennobled by Emperor Yongle, could no longer bear the deliberate hardships imposed by Catherine II, and decided to risk leaving Tsarist Russia and return eastward to their homeland hundreds of years ago.
In history, this legendary story has been widely circulated. In fact, how could the Torgut tribe have such a heart for boxing? They originally planned to seize the Ili area directly from the Qing Dynasty. However, when they arrived exhausted and ragged, they found that the Qing army was waiting in full formation.
So, all I could do was change my attitude and obey.
The Tsarist Russian army following in pursuit refused to give up. The proud Ye Er took this as a threat and declared that if the Qing Dynasty did not return the Turgut tribe, it would take the initiative to attack.
However, Qianlong's refusal was so strong that Ye Er gave up his war plan.
However, in this plane, facing the same situation, the Ming emperors and ministers were struggling with "whether the seal of Turgut was given by Emperor Taizong of the Ming Dynasty", and showed some indifference and indifference to Ye Er's threat.
This only angered Ekaterina even more and made her think she had an opportunity.
then……
(End of chapter)
