Amur estuary, Nikolaevsk fortress.

"Your Excellency the Governor, the Ming Emperor has arrived in Tianjin, and is staying at the Far Eastern Hotel in Tianjin, which is owned by his mistress, Madame Duran. He was followed by about 2,000 guards and thousands of officials, and Zuo Zongtang, the prime minister of Zuo, also went north. It seems that Zhu Jishi is preparing to move his court to Beijing temporarily. According to his speech at the Tientsin docks, he would personally direct the war against the remnants of the Manchus in Beijing, and he would fight to the end if the Empire intervened. ”

Gennady. Ivanovich. Colonel Nevelskoy respectfully reported to Governor Muravyov, who was writing, on Zhu Jishi's movements, and in order to keep abreast of the latest developments in the Ming Dynasty, Muravyov had been rushing from Irkutsk to the small port city that the Chinese called Temple Street since this summer. There is a direct trade route to Vladivostok, which can bring first-hand news to Muravyov.

Hearing Zhu Jishi's "declaration of battle", Muravyov snorted, put down the pen in his hand, and got up and walked out of his office. Colonel Nevelskoy followed behind him, just continuing his debriefing.

Colonel Nevelskoy was also a great Russian naval officer, and it was the adventures and radicalism of both him and Muravyov who historically took away more than a million square kilometers of land from China in the Primorsky region of the Far East and the lower reaches of the Heilongjiang River – in fact, the Russian tsar and the tsarist government at that time had absolutely no interest in the lower Amur and the Far Eastern Primorsky region. Nicholas I also once wrote a personal criticism: "It is a pity that the Amur River is useless, and the Amur River issue will be put aside." ”

Subsequently, the special commission chaired by Russian Foreign Minister Nesserrody also made such a resolution: the southern border between Russia and China is based on the information provided by Academician A.Ф. Middendov. It should be along the Stanov Mountains and the southern slopes of the Khingan Mountains (several pyramid-shaped boulders were seen here in Middendorf. mistaken for a Chinese boundary marker) to the Sea of Okhotsk and the Gulf of Tugur. And the entire Amur Basin will be ...... forever Surrender to China.

It can be said that if Muravyov and Nevelskoy had been bureaucrats who had eaten and waited for death, and had honestly acted according to the orders of the Tsar and the Russian government, China's territory would have increased by at least several hundred thousand square kilometers in the future. In other words, the Manchu officials at that time could have one-tenth of the two of them in charge, and China could also keep hundreds of thousands of square kilometers! Just like the Ming Dynasty today, although more than 600,000 square kilometers of the north bank of the Amur River and Sakhalin Island were occupied by Tsarist Russia, nearly 400,000 square kilometers of the coastal area were firmly controlled by the Ming Dynasty. And the Crown Prince of Tsarist Russia, Alexander, had already made a decision before returning to Petersburg: in the event of a threat of war. The entire Amur Basin and Sakhalin can be returned to China in exchange for peace!

But what makes Muravyov unsure now is whether the ambitions of the Ming Dynasty are limited to the Sino-Russian border line stipulated in the Treaty of Nebuchu!

Colonel Nevelskoy also followed behind Muravyov with a solemn expression: "At present, it is certain that once the empire is hostile to Britain and France in the west and there is a war with Turkey, the Chinese will definitely launch an attack north of the Amur River, and they have deployed a large number of troops south of the Amur River, and the amount of force that can be mobilized may be as high as hundreds of thousands!" ”

Listening to Nevelskoy's words, Muravyov simply remained silent. The region north of the Amur River and Sakhalin is unstoppable! The current deployment is only a gesture, and once war breaks out, it must be quickly abandoned, and the limited forces will be reduced to the city of Yaksa, Irkutsk, and Petropavlovsk. As long as these three places are not lost, Russia will always be able to keep most of East Siberia.

However, Russia is not without cards to play. Yixin's Mongolia and Yixin's Western Qing Dynasty, as well as Xinjiang under the control of the Kokand Khanate, were all bargaining chips in the hands of Russia. As long as they can drag on for a few years under the attack of Daming. Russia will be able to free up its hands from the west. If it really doesn't work, we have to prepare for a battle with the Ming army in Xinjiang. Russia must have such determination! Invest at least 50,000 Russian troops in Xinjiang. Although the number of the Ming army is as high as seven or eight hundred thousand, Xinjiang is far from the hinterland of the Ming Dynasty, and it is a miracle that they can maintain 50,000 troops to fight in Xinjiang. And the Russian army, with the cooperation of the Western Qing Dynasty, Mongolia and the Kokand Khanate, should have a chance to win, as long as Xinjiang can win, Russia will have bargaining chips with the Ming at the negotiating table.

In short, the situation in the East does not seem to be too bad now......

A comprehensive plan had taken shape in Muravyov's mind, and Russia's strategy in Eastern Siberia should be to drag it out as much as possible, taking advantage of the vast terrain and cold weather to delay it...... For this reason, the war between Russia and Turkey should break out in the autumn, so that by the time the news reaches China, it will already be the spring of the following year, by the time the Chinese are ready for war it will be summer, and by the time they seize the north bank of the Amur River, it should be autumn, and the winter in Siberia is unlikely to be a war. This won more than half a year for the defense of the cities of Yaksa, Irkutsk and Petropavlovsk.

And in western China, Russia's strategy should be active defense. We must not watch the Chinese take full control of the northwest – so that Russia will not have enough leverage in diplomatic negotiations in the future. If the Chinese seize the cities of Yaxa, Irkutsk and Petropavlovsk, Russia will have to swallow a huge bitter fruit!

Thinking of this, Muravyov stopped and stared blankly at the Amur River outside the window at the end of the corridor. It took him a while to come to his senses and say to Nevelskoy: "Gennady. Ivanovich, it seems necessary to submit to Petersburg a comprehensive and detailed report on the Eastern question. ”

"But what we have is still very inadequate." Nevelskoy said, "What constructive advice can we put forward to Petersburg without sufficient investigation? ”

Muravyov looked back at Nevelskoy: "I also know that the information we have is not enough, but our embassy in Daming has done its best to collect information, you must know that it is not easy." Did you know that the Chinese have a huge secret police agency called Jinyiwei, and every Russian who enters China is closely monitored by Jinyiwei. In addition, there are so many military exclusion zones in China that in many places it is difficult for diplomats from their allies, Britain and France, to get close. ”

In fact, the counter-espionage work of the Ming Dynasty was not rigorous, but the state espionage organs of the great powers in this era were also in their infancy. Relying mainly on diplomats and amateur spies to gather intelligence, Muravyov now has no Cheka fighters in his hands to use!

"Your Excellency the Governor, I heard that the Ming Emperor is going to invite the Khan of Monan Mongolia to Chengde for a meeting, and it is very likely that some military issues will be discussed, and military exercises and military parades will be held, which is a good opportunity to observe the military strength of the Ming Dynasty nearby."

Muravyov smiled bitterly: "I know, but our Russian diplomats were not invited to Chengde, and I think the embassy should have bribed some Mongolian princes to get some information." ”

"What do those Mongols know? Do they know what a strong soldier is and what a weak brigade is? Your Excellency the Governor, I would like to visit Chengde for myself. ”

"You want to be a spy?" Muravyov frowned, "No, I won't allow it, because I don't want to lose a good naval officer like you." ”

"There will be no danger, Your Excellency the Governor, and I believe I will find a way."

"The way? You mean......"

"General Churchill, the British ambassador to China, I met him in Shanghai."

"He won't help ......" Muravyov patted his forehead, "God, I didn't expect that the fat man would definitely help!" If the military strength of the Chinese is indeed very strong, they British must hope that we Russian soldiers can witness this fact up close! Gennady. Ivanovich, I approve your plan and allocate another 2,000 gold rubles to you. (To be continued......)