Major Karl was a little worried about the safety of Governor Muravyov, who was only four or five hundred meters away from the front line of the fierce battle. He reminded him, "Your Excellency, you better go back to the city to be safe." ”

"Safe, is there still a safe place in Irkutsk?"

As if to confirm Muravyov's words, a cannon shot exploded inside the city, and the rumbling sound came from inside the city, which made people's hearts sink.

"If we don't hold on, we'll lose Irkutsk today."

Major Karl asked a little dejectedly, "What about tomorrow?" ”

Muravyov's brow furrowed slightly, and he replied: "His Majesty the Tsar has sent reinforcements. ”

As soon as his words fell, a dull voice sounded. The sound was not loud, and Muravyov's body paused.

Colonel Carr's heart sank, and he looked in the direction the bullet had come from.

Before he could now mingle with the sharpshooter on the battlefield, the bullets continued to fire, and a slight, sharp sound continued to sound around him.

Major Karl clutched his injured arm and quickly rolled to the ground, hiding in a corner.

Muravyov was not as lucky as him, and the governor, dressed in the uniform of a general, had his chest dyed red. He fell straight to the ground, his Cossack guards dragging his body to the hiding place.

This coincidental blockade allowed Muravyov to bury his life on the battlefield.

Due to the death of the commander-in-chief, the Russian military command began to be disordered.

Stuck with it for a day though. After a fierce battle the next day. Taking advantage of the darkness of the night, the Russians began to retreat, and the retreat began to evolve into a rout, and the Cossack cavalry abandoned the infantry and fled to Krasnoyarsk. The infantrymen left their baggage and fled from Irkutsk desperately, although their direction was still Krasnoyarsk, but much slower.

The Central Route Army discovered the changes in the Russian army in the early hours of the morning, and after confirming the retreat of the Russian army, Shi Dakai decided to send cavalry in pursuit.

Three cavalry divisions of the Central Route Army. Immediately trailed behind the retreating Russian troops. Under Shi Dakai's suggestion, they first made it easy and then made it difficult. Disperse the Russian army, and with the help of the follow-up infantry, they ate several regiments of Russian infantry-

There was a heavy rain last night, and the meandering Ob River has changed from its previous tranquility, and the originally clear river water is also a little turbid, and the air has the smell of aquatic plants.

Along the crooked Ob River is a gray dirt road, and this road connecting Yekaterinburg to Tomsk is dusty on sunny days and rugged and muddy on rainy days. Unfortunately it just rained last night,. Walking on the road, the army was miserable. Wherever it touches the ground, a thick layer of yellow mud sticks to it.

General Kutuzov sat down on the ground and made a leg of dirt on his white horse, which ruined his already bad mood.

The road to Siberia became sparsely populated after leaving the Urals. The occasional pedestrian was either a merchant buying furs or a prisoner exiled to Siberia, and now that the war was raging, even the merchants were almost extinct.

Three days ago Kutuzov had already received information from the front that the squadron was attacking Tomsk.

Kutuzov had planned to speed up the march, but unfortunately it was raining heavily. The loose and sticky roads made it difficult for the gun carriages to walk, and the horses still staggered slowly through the mud with the whipping of the drivers. The soldiers also complained about the difficult march and hoped for rest.

Kutuzov looked at the sky with his eyes narrow, the tall birch trees stood tall, and the sunlight pierced through the green leaves, casting a stream of brilliance.

It seemed that it would only take a few hours for the ground to dry, and Kutuzov decided to rest for two hours before leaving.

The 20,000-strong army stopped on the road, and Kutuzov found a dry plateau to rest. As soon as he dismounted, a herald ran up with a Cossack.

The Cossack cavalryman gasped for breath, his chest heaving violently. A staff officer handed him a water bag, and the man was half-crouched with his hands on his legs, his head covered in sweat, and he had no strength to connect to the water. The man gasped, took the water bag and took a big gulp.

Kutuzov didn't rush him, and when the man wiped the water stains from the corners of his mouth with the oil-stained sleeves, he asked: "Are you from Tomsk?" ”

"Yes, General. I'm here for help. ”

"Tell me about your information?"

"The Chinese army arrived in Tomsk seven days ago, and Colonel Kules had already concentrated the surrounding troops in the Tomsk fortress. We concentrated 90 artillery pieces, 20,000 people. Among them were 7 thousand cavalrymen. The Chinese army does not know how many, Colonel Kules estimated that there were more than 100,000 people, all of them wore green uniforms, used rifles that were somewhat more advanced than ours, and they liked to use grenades when attacking cities. ”

Kutuzov interrupted the cavalry and asked: "How is it now?" ”

"They are like marmots, digging tunnels outside the city to advance into our positions. We took refuge in the tunnel, and as soon as the sound stopped, they dug again. Since yesterday, the attack has begun, and their artillery is especially fierce. Colonel Kures was worried that Tomsk would not be able to hold on, and hoped that the general would come to his aid as soon as possible. ”

"Didn't you use landmines?"

"No, we're buried. But they all dug it out when they were digging the tunnel. Damn groundhogs! ”

"You don't have to go back, take a rest first, and then move with the troops later."

"It is an honor for me to serve under the command of the general."

When the Cossacks who reported the news went down, Kutuzov asked the chief of staff: "What do you think?" ”

"Tomsk is in no hurry to support. Maybe the plan will change a little, and it is better for us to retreat to Omsk. It's almost August, and it's winter when they take Tomsk. At that time, we sent small forces to attack their supplies, and as long as their supplies were cut off, the Chinese would surely follow Napoleon's fate. ”

"And what about Tomsk?"

"We sent someone to tell the defenders of Tomsk that reinforcements had arrived, and we firmly believed that the defenders would defend Tomsk. If the Chinese could not take Tomsk in September, their defeat would have come sooner. ”

Kutuzov walked back and forth on the hillside with his hands behind his back, and after thinking for a long time, he said: "Maybe we can try to attack, first, to find out the strength of the Chinese; Second, to contain the Chinese's attack. And we need Omsk to prepare for them, to strengthen their defenses, to temporarily recruit local residents into the army. ”