4342 (AD 1645), July 8th.
The commander of the 9th Cavalry Division, Gao Dasheng, looked at the huge fortress ahead, directly blocking the largest pass in the Ural Mountains.
The fortress and nearby mountains are covered with forts built by the Russian army.
These batteries used old muzzle-loading guns, but they were high up.
Even if it fires less powerful artillery shells such as shotgun shells, it will cause huge casualties.
In particular, their cavalry has more important tasks and should not be used as cannon fodder.
This is an extremely critical location. Beyond the Ural Mountains, there is the undefensible Eastern European plain.
The Russian army will definitely defend the Ural Mountains desperately.
The 9th Cavalry Division and the 10th Cavalry Division, during the Battle of Kuznetsk, were only responsible for chasing down the fleeing Russian troops.
The cavalry division encircled and suppressed these remaining troops and achieved great results.
Except for a small part that escaped to the Ural Fortress, most were captured by the cavalry division.
This is just a trivial achievement. The larger task of the cavalry division is to take advantage of the vacuum of Russian power in Siberia to completely eliminate Russian power.
This area is the Siberian Plain, and the cavalry division is more suitable for galloping in this area.
The 9th Cavalry Division and the 10th Cavalry Division used regiments as units to seize strategic points throughout Siberia.
The Cavalry Division also has an important task, which is to escort the logistics supply lines of the 19th Army.
The large-scale entry of Russian forces into Siberia has only a few decades of history.
Their rule in various places is unstable. With the emergence of powerful cavalry divisions, local indigenous tribes will choose to submit to the Dahua Empire.
The survival wisdom of the small and medium-sized nomadic tribes in Siberia is to surrender to powerful forces.
What's more, winters in Siberia are extremely cold and there is not much rainfall, making it impossible to grow crops.
It is difficult for livestock such as cattle and sheep to survive the winter.
Environmental factors have resulted in Siberia being a vast and sparsely populated area. The various populations in this area are not as large as the population of Xi'an, which makes it easy to rule.
Gao Dasheng took a look at the Ural Fortress. He led a small number of cavalry divisions to wander near the fortress.
His purpose is to monitor the situation in the Ural Fortress.
At the same time, the connection between the Ural Fortress and Siberia was cut off.
In this way, the Russian troops in Siberia fought independently and lost their unified command.
The cavalry division is organized into regiments and can easily destroy the Russian troops entrenched in a certain place.
Commander Gao Dasheng looked at the Ural Fortress ahead and fired at the cavalry division.
He led the cavalry to wander at the foot of the mountain. The range of the artillery on the fortress was not that far at all.
The Russian army chose to do this just to provoke the cavalry division.
Gao Dasheng felt that the Russian troops in the fortress were more likely to be emboldened for him.
In the Battle of Kuznetsk, the Russian army was defeated miserably.
Of the 150,000 to 60,000 Russian troops, only more than 10,000 fled back.
The Russian army in the Ural Fortress, when the cavalry division first arrived, was prepared to bully the smaller ones.
They were taught a harsh lesson by Gao Dasheng, who led the cavalry division.
The Russian troops in the fortress, after knowing their own strength, they only dared to huddle in the fortress.
Gao Dasheng wanted to teach the Russian troops in the fortress a lesson, but he was powerless.
"We are all cavalry, and there are no servants following us, and there is no internal response in the fortress.
With only our troops, the Russian army can teach them a lesson when they come out of the fortress.
These Russian troops are huddled in the fortress. The Russian troops have nothing to do against us, and we have nothing to do against the Russian troops.
It’s been almost half a month since I wrote to Ma Xianglin. Is there still no movement from the 19th Army? "
A staff officer standing next to Gao Dasheng and responsible for liaising with friendly forces responded: "Commander Gao, the 19th Army is infantry, and they also carry heavy artillery.
The marching speed must be slow, and it will probably take another one or two days to reach here.
I contacted the 19th Army yesterday and they are less than fifty kilometers away from our army. "
Gao Dasheng already knew about this situation when the communications soldier who was in charge of liaison came back yesterday.
He just asked out of habit. He had waited too long and wished that the 19th Army would arrive immediately.
However, the areas that the 19th Army needed to ensure control of had been cleared of all Russian troops.
With the Ural Fortress blocking the most important Ural Pass, 155mm heavy artillery must be used to assist in the siege.
The powerful firepower of the Russian Ural Fortress, without the assistance of heavy artillery, would not be able to capture this important military town, even at the cost of tens of thousands of people.
Gao Dasheng is fortunate that the area from Kuznetsk to the west is a large plain.
In areas where roads are not built, heavy artillery cannot be transported in mountainous areas.
Gao Dasheng looked at the fortress in the distance and felt helpless against them.
The sun in the sky makes those who have been exposed to it feel burning pain on their skin.
At this time, it was time for them to finish their patrol and return to the camp for lunch.
The longitude here in the Ural Mountains is too far from the capital.
At twelve o'clock in the evening, the sun is still high.
At the original time, there were no instructions for me to use here.
Every day's work and rest are no longer based on time, but based on the rising and setting of the sun.
Some people in the military joked that the traditional corona method to determine time is much more accurate than the clock.
As soon as Gao Dasheng returned to the camp, he heard the wounded soldiers left behind in the camp cheering.
Looking forward, he understood that the forward of the 19th Army was already here.
These injured soldiers can finally wait for military doctors with better medical skills to treat them, and their lives are likely to be guaranteed.
…………………………
Marquis Oleg Ivanov was in the stone room of the Ural Fortress when he heard that the main force of the Chinese army had arrived at the foot of the mountain.
He recalled the scene of the artillery attack on Kuznetsk by the Chinese army, with a look of panic on his face.
He was worried that the Russian army in the Ural Fortress would not be able to block the attack of the Dahua army.
If the Ural Fortress cannot be defended, he has no reason to stay in the Ural Fortress and must return to Moscow.
Marquis Oleg Ivanov knew that he was returning to Moscow at this time.
He must bear the responsibility for the defeat, and the end will be very miserable.
He stayed in the Ural Fortress just to wait for a turn in Moscow.
The old tsar was in poor health and the new tsar came to power. He still had the opportunity to mediate and survive by committing crimes and meritorious services.
If Margrave Oleg Ivanov dares to return to Moscow before the old tsar returns to the embrace of God.
As the person who led this attack on the Great China Empire, he must bear most of the responsibility.
Russia's tradition is that once there is a major defeat on the front line.
The Tsar must take responsibility, and the person responsible for directing this war will not end well.
Marquis Oleg Ivanov knew he could not sit still and wait for death.
He went to the residence of Count Korbin Rodevsky.
This is the top general of the Ural Fortress and is responsible for everything inside and outside the fortress.
Marquis Oleg Ivanov has a higher title, but his direct lineage is almost dead and he is guilty.
He has a good relationship with Count Corbin Rodevsky.
When he met Count Corbin Rodevsky, his tone was not the arrogance of a superior to a subordinate.
Out of a friend, he suggested: "My old friend, you must be wary of the Dahua army, they have extremely powerful artillery.
When I was in Kuznetsk, I couldn't bear the power of this kind of artillery, so I escaped in despair.
The Ural Fortress is very strong, but if the Dahua army dares to attack here, they must be confident of breaking the fortress. "
Count Corbin Rodevsky has also learned about the arrival of the main force of the Dahua army.
He asked in a puzzled tone: "Are the artillery pieces of the Dahua Army really that scary?
Ural Fortress, this is a powerful fortress that the empire spent decades building.
A fortress of this size cannot be conquered from within by a traitor.
I can't even imagine what kind of intensity it could be that could break the defense of the Ural Fortress. "
Count Korbin Rodevsky considered the Ural Fortress to be extremely well defended.
Many of the structures in the fortress are from the Ural Mountains.
He did not believe that the artillery shells of the Dahua army could directly flatten the Ural Mountains.
It's already July, and by September the temperatures will get cooler here in the Ural Mountains.
After winter came, the Dahua Empire wanted to continue its offensive. Because of the severe cold and heavy snow in the mountains, their logistics supplies could not keep up.
Count Corbin Rodevsky believes that as long as it can be delayed for two months, it is equivalent to delaying for more than half a year.
After such a long time, the country will inevitably mobilize heavy troops to support the Ural Fortress.
The empire simply cannot afford to lose the Ural Mountains to enemy control.
Beyond the Ural Mountains, ahead lies the undefensible plains of Eastern Europe.
As long as the enemy sends an elite army, they can fight directly from the Ural Mountains to the banks of the Danube River.
The cavalry of the Mongol Empire achieved this feat back then.
Count Corbin Rodevsky looked at the still frightened Marquis Oleg Ivanov.
He believed that Marquis Oleg Ivanov was intimidated by the Great China Empire after experiencing a disastrous defeat.
His current words have lost their objectivity.
Count Korbin Rodevsky consoled him: "Mr. Ivanov, you can rest assured and wait for Moscow's reply in the fortress.
The army I led was able to defend the fortress for two years, which was quite difficult.
But I don't believe that an army of more than 50,000 people can't defend it for even two months.
The Dahua army only has less than 50,000 people. For an army of the same size, we occupy favorable terrain.
We will definitely be able to keep the Dahua army out of the Ural Mountains. "
Marquis Oleg Ivanov looked at the confident look of Count Corbin Rodevsky.
He wanted to persuade him, but he didn't know what to say?
He recalled seeing the horrific scene of a volley of artillery fire from the Chinese army in Kuznetsk.
Marquis Oleg Ivanov opened his mouth, but he did not say anything.
In this situation, no matter what other people say, they won't believe it.
Only after experiencing it yourself can you understand this terrible scene.
…………………………
Division Commander Gao Dasheng accompanied Army Commander Ma Xianglin and Chief of Staff Su Cheng to inspect the Ural Fortress ahead.
He told the two of them all the information he knew about the Ural Fortress.
If the 19th Army takes over this battlefield, the 9th Cavalry Division will have a much easier time.
Gao Dasheng only needs to ensure the safety of the 19th Army's logistics supply line, and he can earn several military honors in this battle.
Chief of Staff Su Cheng said with emotion: “The Ural Fortress is located on the narrow Ural Pass.
Our army only needs to capture this fortress and control the Ural Mountains.
The Empire will take the initiative in the war.
If the empire wants to attack, it can send highly mobile troops at any time to capture large areas of the enemy's territory before the enemy can react.
If the empire wants to be on the defensive, the Ural Mountains are easy to defend and difficult to attack. They are also an important barrier.
To describe the fortress in front of you in one sentence, one man can block it and no one can open it.
Our army will fight a hard battle next.
We are lucky to get it, and don't be too depressed if we fail. "
Commander Ma Xianglin nodded and agreed with Chief of Staff Su Cheng's statement.
There was a reason why he said that. His Majesty the Emperor sent a telegram to commend the 19th Army and at the same time issued a decree regarding this war.
Focus on stability and take this opportunity to seize strategic points.
When the military encounters setbacks, it can take advantage of the situation and consolidate its previous achievements.
When Commander Ma Xianglin saw this telegram, he knew the emperor's opinion.
The Great China Empire is no longer prepared to invest more resources in the Western Front battlefield.
If you think about it, you will know that Central Asia is a vast area of desert and grassland.
The weather in Siberia is very cold and the winter time is too long, making it inappropriate to do all kinds of things.
The Great China Empire conducted this war mainly for the strategic security of the empire.
It would take at least forty or fifty years to harvest the new lands captured to make up for the cost of this war.
Some clues can be seen from His Majesty the Emperor's decree to occupy strategic points.
Commander Ma Xianglin knew that the Ural Mountains in front of him was already the last battle of the 19th Army.
After this war is over, he predicts that there will be some low-intensity wars, but it will be difficult for a nationwide mobilization war to happen again.
Commander Ma Xianglin wanted to fight this war beautifully and end it with a perfect ending.
He looked at the artillery regiment being prepared and said happily: "How is this war going? It still depends on the performance of the artillery regiment.
The artillery regiment did not destroy the large number of forts and fortifications in the Ural Fortress.
With the level of defense of the Ural Fortress, our 19th Army simply cannot capture the fortress. "
Chief of Staff Su Cheng said with emotion: "I hope the artillery regiment can be more powerful.
We captured the city of Kuznetsk, and the heavy artillery shells shipped by the imperial court had just arrived at the front line.
I heard that the special bombs newly developed by the Weapons Research Institute were brought to the front line for us to test.
Fortunately, the resistance of the Russian army in Kuznetsk was not strong, and only less than half of the original shells were consumed.
Coupled with the artillery shells brought by the imperial court, the artillery regiment's heavy artillery can be used to its fullest.
I hope that special ammunition will not be used. I saw the fear of special ammunition in the eyes of the scholars who followed. "
They were discussing a plan to attack the Ural Fortress.
Liu Song, the commander of the artillery regiment, sent a messenger to come over and informed the artillery regiment that it was ready.
Commander Ma Xianglin looked at the Ural Fortress, which was waiting in full formation.
He issued an order: "Instruct the artillery regiment to fire and blast me hard with cannons.
At least destroy the forts around the fortress one by one. "
Commander Ma Xianglin's order was issued, and the artillery regiment began to attack the Ural Fortress.
The 19th Army launched the Ural Campaign.
(End of chapter)
