In the northeast corner of the East Asian continent and around the Bohai Bay, the situation evolved like a storm.

On 22 August, the army landed in Dalian Bay.

On 22 August, the 3rd Division of the Chinese Army landed at Wonsan.

On 23 August, more than 10 battalions of troops were assembled at the Jinzhou frontier in southern Liaoning, and under the attack of a vanguard of the 2nd Division of the Army, a vanguard of the 2nd Division, but only 3,400 infantry and 2,300 cavalry. The ten battalions trained the army, and they were defeated one after another, and they never saw a battle, so they gave up the danger all the way and retreated straight to Jinzhou.

Jingbian training army, Yi army, Gong Wei army...... Seeing that there was no battle, he collapsed when he heard the wind. Hundreds of pioneers of the army approached Jinzhou. In front of the Qing army, those who were afraid of the law of the imperial court retreated to Jinzhou, trying to defend the Lushun portal. Those who are more courageous retreat to Fuzhou Avenue, simply run north, and retreat towards the hinterland of central Liao, where it is estimated that he will not be able to catch up.

The seven general soldiers who garrisoned the Lushun area in southern Liaoning, plus Gong Zhaoyu, the general office of the literati who drove ducks to the shelves, went to the imperial court one after another, saying that the Japanese army was like a thunderstorm rushing in the wind, with foreign guns and foreign artillery, and it was difficult to be sophisticated. More than 10,000 Qing troops in southern Liaoning faced the superiority of the people, and after bloody battles, although they repeatedly defeated the enemy, they still had to surrender to Jinzhou. They all asked for help from the imperial court and Beiyang. If the naval division is to go to the aid of Lushun, a large number of cutting-edge training troops must be transferred to reinforce the Lushun area. Gong Zhaoyu was even more pessimistic and asked the imperial court to revoke his title, and he was willing to go to Yanjing to deal with his crimes.

Gong Shi and the Seventh General Army were even more alarmist: "If there are no reinforcements, Lushun will not be guaranteed, whether it can last until September, it is still undecided, Lushun falls, then Bohai Bay will become the world, they can't afford this responsibility!" ”

The world is shaking, the court is shaking, and the scholars are shaking!

A few days ago, everyone thought that the holy monarch was on top, and the power was in one place, and countless righteous men and gentlemen were listed in the court. The atmosphere has changed, there is no problem in the Heavenly Empire, but it has been damaged by other people, and now the top is cheered up, and I am afraid that I will not be able to take a small book?

Xu Yifan's good news from North Korea brought everyone hope, thinking that Beiyang was really incompetent. Guangxu also entered the stream from goodness, and when he was preparing for defense in southern Liaoning, he entrusted Song Yi, a resolute army that did not completely belong to Beiyang, and Xu Bangdao, who was definitely not a faction with Beiyang, to take on important tasks. Everyone thought that from now on, Liaonan was solid and Haikou was safe, and as long as Xu Yifan in North Korea won a few more battles, Xiao Yue would have asked for peace.

Who knew that such news was coming! The elite main force of Beiyang, such as the Sheng Army, can't fight, and the others entrusted by Guangxu can't fight either!

What is wrong with the country? Even a little man who has been curled up at the foot of the Celestial Empire is no longer an opponent?

Many scholars picked up the Qing Times, which had been scolded by them, and read a series of articles written by Tan Sitong on the Meiji Restoration. Let's see why people have become strong in a leap, and the Celestial Empire has declined like this, and the Westerners have been self-reliant for decades, all of which are a cake.

There was a lot of commotion in the world, and the scholars made noises almost at the same time.

"Punish Li Hongzhang to thank the world!"

"Transfer Xu Yifan to enter the capital and master the king of Qin!"

"The affairs of the Korean army must be decided quickly, Xu Yifan's Praetorian Guard is already one of the most sharp divisions in the world, and it must not be thrown in the territory of the remote feudal country, and it must be returned to the place of the heart!"

"The training army is not available, the newly recruited army is not available, and the only available division in the world is the Praetorian Guard!"

It is very easy to speak like this, but these scholars are clear, and no one has a deep concept, after losing the sea power, how Xu Yifan's Praetorian Guards will help southern Liaoning by land, how to provide logistical support for the Janissaries of about 20,000 along the way, how to transfer materials, and how to cooperate with time. They thought that as long as Guangxu was flying, Xu Yifan should descend from the sky. No one would have thought that Xu Yifan still had the remnants of the Fifth Division in front of him, and he had to carry out arduous attacks to clear them, and there was also the Third Division on the side, and this Janissary Army, which was alone in North Korea, was facing the biggest crisis!

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"Nie Junmen, the outpost of the Third Division of the Army has about more than 200 infantry and dozens of cavalry, and it has passed through Chengchuan and is attacking Cishan!"

"Nie Junmen, my front battalion has been fired by the army infantry team, the projectiles on both sides are raining, my front battalion is in a fierce battle, please transfer the military gate to the apse!"

One by one, the cavalry rode their horses and hurriedly reported the military situation. Nie Shicheng sat on the big mazar outside his military tent, and in front of him was a large scale map of northern Korea drawn by the staff officers of the Praetorian Guard under the guidance of German advisers in the past two years. The contour line above was dizzy for a while when the officers above and below the Huai Army were dizzy, and it was only by relying on the guidance and explanation of several staff officers stationed in Nie Shicheng's department that they could understand the general situation.

On 24 August, the cavalry mark directly under the Praetorian Guard, which had opened a powerful search curtain in the vicinity of Yuanshan, had already spread the news of the landing of the Yue army to the Nie Shicheng Central Army in Cishan, but unexpectedly, only one day later, on 25 August, the outpost of the Yue army had already made contact with Nie Shicheng's headquarters in Chengchuan, and Nie Shicheng had put several hundred Sheng troops in the Chengchuan area as a guard. They retreated with a little resistance—Nie Shicheng didn't expect them to defend to the end in a bloody battle in Chengchuan. He was counting on his headquarters of 2,000 men.

These 2,000 people are divided into five battalions, which have been supplemented by Xu Yifan, and under his command, they are ready to fight to the end. The officers and men of these five battalions were all placed on the Cishan line, which belonged to the pivotal position of the eastern front, and the two flanks were the broken and prosperous army of twenty battalions. As long as Cishan is held, there will be a barrier on the eastern front, and you can wait for Xu Yifan's main force to return to the division.

The sound of gunfire was already faintly audible, echoing in the hills and mountains in the distance, and the cavalry returned in return. Everyone's minds are not very focused on the map, and the situation is very clear anyway. Just stick to it, Nie Shicheng doesn't have any freedom to advance or retreat. To protect the Eastern Front, he slapped Xu Yifan on the chest.

Everyone has only one feeling, this army is coming so fast!

It was only three days after landing, and he approached the area of Cishan, and he did not stop to tidy up, and launched an attack brazenly! This kind of quality made all Nie Shicheng's henchmen present, even him, look ugly.

Nie Shicheng looked into the distance, listened to the gunshots, looked at the map again, and shook his head slightly: "It's too fast......"

He asked in a low voice, "What's going on today?" ”

One of his officers replied loudly: "Military Gate, it's twenty-five!" ”

Nie Shicheng's face turned a little blue: "Even if Lord Xu returns to the division today, he won't be able to catch up with Cishan in three or five days, even if it is good in five days, we will defend until August 30, just rely on my 2,000 soldiers......"

Everyone was silent, the terrain of Cishan is also very dangerous, and the surrounding mountains are about a kilometer high. An official road leads directly, and after passing Cisan, it is divided into two roads, one to Anju and one to Pyongyang. Strangling Cishan is a bit like Xu Yifan choking the main position of Dongxian Ridge at that time. There is no doubt that the main offensive and defensive battle is taking place here, and even if the two wings are full of troops, even if they can no longer fight, there should be no problem in blocking those small groups of troops who are half exhausted from climbing the mountain and cannot carry many weapons and ammunition.

The problem is that at the beginning of Ashan, the morale of Nie Shicheng's department was still high, and he also defended according to the danger, and he did not block the attack of one of his detachments for a few days!

This army came unexpectedly quickly, Xu Yifan didn't know if it was too late to return to the division, if he lost the Cishan line, then the overall situation of North Korea may be unbearable. Everyone knows that in order to defeat the Fifth Division, Xu Yifan has already taken out the strength to eat milk and transferred all the soldiers who can fight!

A Praetorian Guard liaison staff officer stationed in Nie Shicheng's headquarters stood up abruptly and straightened his military hat: "Lord Nie! There's nothing to discuss, let's die and defend the back road for Lord Xu! There is no need to contact and plan here, and a few subordinates are willing to take rifles to the front line and add one more combatable soldier to the trenches! Lord Nie, a few subordinates and others are invited! ”

Before the words fell, several liaison staff officers all stood up and saluted solemnly.

Nie Shicheng gritted his teeth and slowly glanced at the officers under his command, some gritted their teeth, some of them turned pale, and some of them looked hesitantly, obviously afraid.

"Fuck it! I can't let Zuo Guantingbai save us once! He was buried in Seoul, and I was buried in Tssan! All go to the front, each commander has a battalion, and no one is allowed to retreat! We're all five-foot men, shall we run away again? ”

Nie Shicheng's face turned red, and the gazes of the Praetorian Guard officers just now made him feel pain all over his body. The Beiyang Navy Division is finished, Zuo Guanting is dead, Ye Zhichao and they are defeated, some people are worthy of their ancestors, and some people are sorry. He doesn't want to be poked in the back even if he lives! Xu Yifan gave him a chance to redeem, he didn't want to be like Ye Zhichao and them, go back in disgrace and bear the infamy of the world, that would really be better than death!

He threw off the cloak on his body and held down the waist knife: "Go!" All on the front line! Remember, I, Nie Gongting, are behind you, who dares to take a step back, I recognize you, this knife can't recognize you! ”

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The sound of gunfire echoed through the valley, and the rain of bullets whistled by. A continuous whistling sound was streaked through the air.

Kawakami held a telescope with his back against a big tree, and looked at the offensive and defensive situation on the opposite side.

In front of Cishan, the mountain that chokes the official road, civil fortifications have been constructed. Under the guidance of the staff officers of the Praetorian Guard, Nie Shicheng's headquarters also dug trenches and set up obstacles. Although it is far less complete and strong than the fortifications in Dongxian Mountain, it is quite good. At least it was much stronger than the Huai army's previous conventional defense system of wooden fences and moats. The light troops of the two wings attacked far away, and they did not carry many heavy weapons, and the ammunition was the base number of their carrying, so it was very difficult to attack.

One outpost after another, the tired and hungry soldiers desperately climbed up, and those who remained on the hillside were the dead and wounded. But as soon as they approached the fortifications, most of the Huai soldiers who could shoot firmly in the position retreated one after another and retreated to a mountain behind.

On the anticline of the hill where Kawakami Yoroku is located, the troops of the brigade are repairing on the ground, preparing to take over the attack. The three days of the forcible march made these officers and men in tattered clothes and colorless. Some people dig up the roots of the grass and chew it in their mouths. Kawakami Yoroku's order at that time was to bring more bullets and less dry food, and by now, these two wings, which were not accompanied by a baggage column, have almost run out of food!

A bullet swept past him, hitting the tree he was leaning on, and after flying so far that the bullet was weak, it only made a soft noise on the trunk, causing a few bits of bark to splash down.

Kawakami didn't move, and several officers behind him had already pounced on him, trying to press him down. Kawakami shook them off with a smile: "What is this for?" ”

"Your Excellency, danger!"

Several loyal officers with staff officers are all colorful. Kawakami, with the respect of a lieutenant general, attacked with them on foot, starved together, and followed their 3rd Division to attack without avoiding arrows, and had won the greatest love of these officers.

Kawakami smiled: "What's the danger?" The Qing [***] team still only has the courage to shoot, and the shooting discipline has not improved, so they let go of the guns from afar...... However, these Nie Shicheng's troops can still shoot to the end until we approach them...... How is the 68th Wing repaired? This mountain was captured and arranged for them to replace the Sixth Wing...... They are all the most loyal officers and soldiers of the Empire! ”

Listening to Kawakami Ryoroku praising the Nagoya Corps, these staff officers all had a look on their faces. Some people nodded respectfully.

There was a sudden sound of cheering on the opposite hill, and then I saw a chapter flag raised, and after a day of attack, the outer positions in front of Cishan were almost half captured by the Sixth Wing! At this rate, within three days, he may be able to break through Nie Shicheng's department in front of him and clear the way for Xu Yifan's department to be completely cut off!

Kawakami Yoroku smiled and beckoned those staff officers over, and said with a smile: "Celebrate, I still have some good things!" ”

He had a lunch box hanging from his waist like a soldier, and when he opened it, there was still a little sugar in it, and several staff officers were embarrassed to reach out. Kawakami pulled them over one by one, poured a little on each of them, and licked them into their stomachs almost immediately. The white sugar made these young officers feel a little more energetic, and they all looked more high-spirited.

Kawakami smiled: "We have no way back, gentlemen, only forward!" For this victory, the Nagoya Corps made efforts to surpass the limits of the human body, and the empire will be recorded in the annals of history! ”

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On the road from Pyongyang to Tsesan Mountain, dozens of fast horses were galloping, and dozens of knights were on horseback, all sweating and heavily clothed, and their faces were covered with dust. The first person was Yuan Shikai, his face was as heavy as water, and he didn't have any expression, he just gritted his teeth and hurried, constantly whipping the healthy horse under his crotch.

The road in front of me is a fork, all the way to the east, all the way to the north. At the intersection, Yuan Shikai took the lead in reining in the horse, and the knights behind also stopped, and their eyes were on Yuan Shikai. It takes two or three days to travel from Pyongyang to Cishan on a fast horse, and many places have to lead horses over the hills and mountains.

He jumped off his horse, his mount panting, his belly heaving violently, sweating and soaking wet. If we continue to drive like this, it is estimated that the horse will have to die.

Without waiting for him to greet him, the knights dismounted, loosened their belts, and walked with their horses, hanging their bags and water bags on their ears, so that the mounts could slow down. Several knights approached Yuan Shikai and asked silently.

"Lord Yuan, is it to the north or to the east?"

Yuan Shikai's eyes only looked eastward, and finally he just shook his head slowly and said in a low voice: "Rest for a while, let's go north!" ”

"My lord, aren't you going to Cishan?"

"It's too late...... Nie Shicheng has 2,000 troops, and the other Huai troops have 8,000, dozens of us, and there are no soldiers in our hands, in case there is a change, we are powerless to suppress it! If there is no change, the Huai army is fighting hard, and we will go in vain, we can only go to Anzhou and defend this rear road general base! As long as Anzhou is in hand, Lord Xu can always take care of us...... Lost Anzhou, got the supplies there, and with Anzhou to defend it, our back road was really broken......"

Yuan Shikai explained in a low voice. These officers were all brought out by Xu Yifan, not his henchmen back then, he didn't dare to take it, and everything had to be explained clearly.

Hearing his explanation, everyone's hearts settled, and the speed of cooking the horses also accelerated a lot, and these officers and soldiers silently combed the wool of the horses, hoping that these speechless comrades-in-arms could recover quickly and lead them to their destinations quickly.

Yuan Shikai looked east: "Nie Gongting, you have to buy me some time!" He silently prayed a few words in his heart, and then turned his head to the south: "Lord Xu, Lord Xu, I, Yuan Shikai, can be regarded as working hard this time, and I will gamble on you with all my achievements, you must not let me Yuan Shikai down!" ”

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The 3rd Division went to Wonsan!

The Huai army may change!

Xu Yifan, who was urging the Praetorian Guard to sort out and was about to return to the division quickly, was hit hard by these two news.

The third division went to Lu Yuanshan, which was expected, but the Huai army might change, but everyone was surprised! But this news came from Li Hongzhang's son-in-law Zhang Peilun in person, which makes people can't help but believe it!

Inside the makeshift tent of the staff headquarters, there was a dead silence.

Tang Shaoyi was so tired that he was already paralyzed, so he paused on top of Ma Za, straightened his neck and poured all the cold water into a large tea jar. Then he looked at Xu Yifan deadly. He also arrived from Pyongyang sleeplessly, just waiting for Xu Yifan to come up with an idea!

Everyone's eyes were focused, and Xu Yifan had already walked quickly to the large map hanging up, looking at it carefully with a calm face.

Hearing this, the muscles on his face didn't even twitch, and that kind of calmness calmed everyone down from the initial panic.

No one knows, in fact, Xu Yifan's heart has become a mess, but he can't show it at all, and now he is just smiling bitterly.

"This way...... It's really hard to walk...... Savior...... It's really not that easy to do! ”

If it happened within his reach, he would probably be thunderous and pressed, and if he caught Yang Shixiang and Ye Zhichao, they would be light. Now that I can't reach out, I can only hurry back to the teacher, so what's so angry, let's go back!

A hand next to him stretched out and gently pressed it on the place in Anzhou, it was Chu Wanli. Xu Yifan glanced back at him, both of them nodded slowly, and then looked at the other officers, whether they were German foreigners or their own staff officers, their eyes were focused there.

"From here, how long will it take for the whole army to return to Anzhou?"

"The whole army marched forward, carrying heavy artillery, seven days."

"What about a light march?"

"It's Zuo Xie alone, they have already been repaired, take them lightly, five days!"

Xu Yifan was silent, and looked at his pocket watch: "Today is already twenty-five days...... Yunzong, take Zuo Xie, follow me with Xuzhou, advance lightly, and return to the Eastern Front! In any case, let's keep Anzhou first! As long as the back road is unharmed and the combat situation on the inner line is complete, how can Lao Tzu clean up this third division! ”

Li Yunzong said yes loudly, looking at Xu Yifan's resolute attitude, the officers were all in good spirits, and even Tang Shaoyi straightened up.

Chu Wanli said coldly: "What if Anzhou is lost?" ”

Xu Yifan was silent for a moment, and suddenly showed a faint smile: "Grab it back, what else?" My life is in heaven! ”

(To be continued)