"What? Vladivostok fortress down? ”

In the imperial study, Wang Chenhao, the emperor of the Chinese Empire, was simply surprised when he heard the news of the capture of the fortress of Vladivostok.

"Your Majesty, it's true, this is the report of the First War Zone, which was sent by the General Staff overnight."

Wang Shizhen handed the battle report to Wang Chenhao, Wang Chenhao took it and read it, and couldn't help but praise it.

"I am also going to go to the front line early tomorrow morning to supervise the battle, and strive to take Vladivostok in one go, but I didn't expect them to fight it! It's so good! ”

Being able to take the Vladivostok Fortress, the boulder hanging in Wang Chenhao's heart finally fell, which made him breathe a sigh of relief.

Wang Shizhen said: "I don't know what tactics Duan Qirui and Liang Huadian used, they captured the second river fortress heavily defended by the Russian army overnight, thus opening the defensive gap of the Vladivostok fortress, and forcing more than 90,000 Russian troops to surrender the next day, and the captured materials alone exceeded 200 million dragon coins, which is really a big victory." ”

Wang Chenhao couldn't hide his joy and said: "The amount of materials is still secondary, in addition to the huge material losses of the Russian army, the greater blow to the Russian army is a heavy mental blow, and the failure of the Russian army's entire spring counteroffensive plan." ”

The so-called spring counteroffensive plan of the Russian army is a judgment made by the General Staff of the Chinese Empire based on the military movements of the Russian army. They believed that the Russian army planned to use the two fortresses of Vladivostok and Boli to contain the main force of the Chinese Emperor [***], and took the opportunity to gather a large army on the front line of Nebuchu and prepare to completely annihilate the Chinese Empire under the fortresses of Boli and Vladivostok.

The General Staff saw through the operational deployment of the Russian army, so it made two plans: First, to capture the fortress of Vladivostok in a short period of time, so that it could rely on the fortress to fight a decisive battle with the Russian army. Second, Vladivostok could not be captured in a short period of time, so it took the initiative to retreat and retreat to the country. The former is strategically active, the latter is strategically passive, and Wang Chenhao plans to go to the front line in Vladivostok to supervise the war because he wants to continue to occupy the strategic initiative.

Now that Vladivostok has been captured, the Chinese Emperor [***] can continue to occupy the strategic initiative, and the Russian army's vain attempt to completely annihilate the Chinese Emperor [***] under the fortress city has failed.

Wang Shizhen agreed: "Yes, the capture of Vladivostok Fortress by our army is equivalent to a blow to Tsarist Russia, which will improve the morale of the emperor's [***] team and deal a huge blow to the morale of the enemy." ”

Wang Chenhao nodded and said: "Duan Qirui and Liang Huadian have made great contributions, and they have issued a decree to commend them, awarding the two of them the first-class Jiahe Medal, and the more than 10,000 soldiers of the Second Front Army and the Third Front Army who died in battle will be given generous burials and pensions, the wounded and sick will be awarded the Medal of Warriors, and other meritorious soldiers will be rewarded for their meritorious deeds." ”

"Your Majesty Shengming, Weichen obeys the order!" Wang Shizhen received the order, and then said: "The Vladivostok fortress was quickly taken this time, thanks to the spur of His Majesty. If it weren't for His Majesty's personal conquest, I'm afraid Duan Qirui and Liang Huadian wouldn't have the determination to fight. ”

Wang Chenhao smiled and said, "My encouragement may have a certain effect, but the real credit is due to the soldiers' lives. ”

Then, Wang Chenhao said very happily: "I will go there tomorrow morning, I want to see what method they use to capture the first fortress in the Far East so quickly." ”

Wang Shizhen paused and said, "Your Majesty, in the opinion of Wei Chen, since Vladivostok has been breached, Your Majesty should not go again." ”

Wang Chenhao said: "Since I have already said that I will go to the front line of Vladivostok, I can't break my word. ”

Wang Shizhen said: "Your Majesty, the most important thing at the moment is no longer the Vladivostok front, but the offensive of the Russian army in the direction of Mongolia. ”

Wang Chenhao asked: "How is the war situation in Mongolia recently?" ”

Wang Shizhen replied: "Your Majesty, the troops of the Fourth Theater have withdrawn to Inner Mongolia, and the Russian army has occupied almost the entire Outer Mongolia. ”

In charge of the war against Russia in the Mongolian direction were the four armies of the Fourth Theater of the Chinese Empire, with a total strength of more than 120,000 troops. Originally, the Fourth Theater was planned to conduct a decisive battle with the Russian army in the Kulen and Uriya Sutai areas of Outer Mongolia. But in the end the General Staff changed the battle plan.

In order to ensure that the main forces of the Chinese Empire were to pacify the military strength of the Russian army on the Korean Peninsula and the Far East as soon as possible, the General Staff formulated a strategic plan to first clear out the worries of the future and then turn around and come back to deal with the main forces of the Russian army.

Of course, there are many unknown secrets about the abandonment of Outer Mongolia by the General Staff. First, the princes and ministers of Outer Mongolia such as Jebzundan had already taken refuge in Russia, and the Chinese Emperor [***] was in a passive situation in the war in Outer Mongolia. Second, compared with Inner Mongolia, the economic model of Outer Mongolia is purely feudal serfdom, and the Mongolian princes enjoy higher benefits than the mainland, which will hinder the future economic and political development of the empire. Third, the Mongolian region entered winter, and the desert snow field was conducive to the operation of the Russian Cossack cavalry regiment, but not to the Chinese emperor. Fourth, the Chinese Emperor [***] retreated from Outer Mongolia one after another, which was nothing more than exchanging space for time and winning time for the Korean Peninsula Campaign and the Far East Campaign.

In short, from the very beginning, the General Staff made a layout in line with the strategy of killing three birds with one stone, trying to avoid the sharp edge of the elite units of the Russian army in Central Asia, luring the enemy to go deeper, so that the enemy would stretch the battle line and disperse the troops, and finally carry out a full-scale counteroffensive after the main force of the Chinese Emperor [***] returned to the division.

Now, the battle on the Korean Peninsula has ended, the two decisive towns of the Russian army in the Far East have fallen, and the defense capability of the other fortress is far inferior to that of Vladivostok.

It can be said that the Chinese Empire has basically won victory in the Far East, and now it is a critical moment to mobilize troops to meet the million-strong army of Russia reinforced from Europe. And the General Staff put the battlefield in Mongolia.

"At present, in the Mongolian desert operation, the Cossack cavalry regiments of the Russian army have the advantage, and the imperial cavalry units are small in number, and they are mostly not opponents. In addition, although the various departments of Inner Mongolia sent troops to assist the empire in the war, they were limited to defending Inner Mongolia, and their fighting enthusiasm was not high. ”

Wang Chenhao frowned and said: "In the Mongolian battle, the cavalry is the main force, and it can deal with the Cossack cavalry regiment that comes and goes, so you have to use the Mongolian cavalry to fight." ”

Wang Chenhao thought for a while, so he said: "In this case, how about ordering the Ministry of Finance to give some benefits to the princes and ministers of Inner Mongolia, and then double the salary for the Mongolian cavalry to fight?" ”

Wang Shizhen said: "This can have some effect, but it is not enough!" ”

Wang Chenhao asked, "What do you mean?" ”

Wang Shizhen then said: "Your Majesty, the minister thinks that the departments of Inner Mongolia have always been closely linked with the Central Plains, and they are different from the departments of Outer Mongolia. However, the empire is now ruled by the Han Chinese, and the Han class, which has turned over to become the masters, still has a deep prejudice against the Mongolian Eight Banners, no less than the anger against the Manchurian Eight Banners. ”

Wang Chenhao nodded and said, "I also know this, but the resentment caused by this kind of hierarchical oppression left over by the Manchu Qing Dynasty for two or three hundred years cannot be diluted in a year or two. It takes time to get the Han Chinese to accept them. ”

Wang Shizhen agreed: "The minister also knows this, but at present, although the emperor's [***] team is brave and good, it is limited to the inconvenient transportation conditions of the Mongolian desert, and if the imperial infantry fights in this area, it is inseparable from the protection of cavalry." In addition, the Russian Cossack cavalry regiment was extremely ferocious, and the slightest carelessness would lead to a fiasco. ”

Wang Chenhao asked, "Where is the railway repaired?" ”

Wang Shizhen replied: "The railway to Mongolia can only be built to Guisui, Chahar, Horqin and other places, and can basically control the central and eastern regions of Inner Mongolia. ”

Wang Chenhao frowned and said: "The railway has not been able to enter Outer Mongolia, and the vast desert is a huge challenge to the logistics of the emperor's [***] team. ”

Wang Shizhen nodded and said, "What Your Majesty said is very true!" The reason why the Emperor [***] team is extremely brave is that the logistical firepower advantage is one of the key factors. During the attack on the Vladivostok fortress, the General Logistics Department felt that the transportation was inconvenient when it arrived in Heilongjiang and then delivered the supplies to the Vladivostok front, and the imperial [***] team consumed too much ammunition and was somewhat unbearable. In Outer Mongolia, the impact is even greater. ”

Wang Chenhao knew in his heart that his military thinking in the 21st century would seriously affect the Chinese emperor's [***] team. At this time, the combat thinking of the Chinese Imperial Brigade was the same as that of the US military in the 21st century, using the overwhelming superiority of equipment to destroy and break the enemy's will.

Wang Chenhao smiled bitterly, secretly discussing that there are pros and cons in everything, and prematurely bringing advanced tactical ideas to the Chinese Emperor [***] team will inevitably cause negative effects in this regard.

Thinking of this, Wang Chenhao said: "Since it is not suitable for a decisive battle in Mongolia, then we will change direction and advance westward along the Russians' Trans-Siberian Railway from the northeast and the Far East, and we will use the Russians' railways to transport soldiers and supplies, and the effect should be very good." ”

Wang Shizhen asked: "However, the Russian army will give full play to their strengths, they may not be able to put the battlefield in the Siberian mountains, and the Russian Cossack cavalry regiment can easily break from Outer Mongolia to Inner Mongolia, and even launch a broken battle and send cavalry to raid the Central Plains." ”

Wang Chenhao frowned and said: "But if we put the main force in Mongolia, the logistics will fall into a passive situation if we can't keep up." ”

Wang Shizhen thought for a while and said: "For today's plan, the minister thinks that he has to rely on the Mongolian cavalry, and he does not want the Mongolian cavalry to repel the Cossack cavalry, as long as he can entangle them so that they cannot attack the infantry artillery that disturbs the empire." ”

Wang Chenhao said: "But you also said that these Mongols may not try their best. If they suddenly turned against each other, wouldn't it have caused the Emperor [***] team to fall into a place of no return? ”

Wang Shizhen said: "Is there a way for the minister to make the Mongolian cavalry available to His Majesty?" ”

Wang Chenhao said: "Do you have a way?" Let's talk about it! ”

Wang Shizhen received the order, so he said: "In fact, this is also what the General Staff has been planning for a long time, and the ministers hope that Your Majesty can marry Mongolia." ”

Wang Chenhao smiled bitterly: "Can marriage solve the problem?" Then wouldn't I just marry the Russian princess back so that I wouldn't have to fight? ”

Wang Shizhen retorted: "Your Majesty's words are wrong! Since ancient times, marriage has been the fastest way to form an alliance, and the Manchus relied on marriage to gain the loyalty of the Mongol tribes, even in modern times, there are people like Zeng Lingqin. The ministers thought that the rebellion in Outer Mongolia was mainly caused by their rejection by the Han Chinese, and if His Majesty could marry the Mongols, this problem could be resolved immediately. Even if it can't solve the problem at all, at least the Mongol tribes can be appeased in the short term, and after the empire defeats Russia, it is not too late to think about it in the long run. ”

"A delaying tactic?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, so to speak!"

Wang Shizhen then said: "If the marriage is successful, 300,000 cavalry can be obtained to participate in the war." ”

Wang Chenhao said curiously: "Where did the 300,000 cavalry come from?" ”

Wang Shizhen smiled mysteriously and said: "Your Majesty, if Your Majesty agrees to the marriage, the Shao Wuda Korqin League will send 120,000 troops, the Zhelimu League will send 40,000 troops, the Alxa League Erut will send 80,000 troops, the Xilin Gol League Uzhumuqin will send 40,000 troops, and the Yikezhao League Ordos will send 20,000 troops. This is 300,000 people, and with the influence of the five major alliances, other Mongol tribes will also send troops to fight, so 300,000 is only a conservative estimate. ”

Wang Chenhao was immediately overjoyed and said: "There are 300,000 Mongolian cavalry enough to contain the Russian Cossack cavalry regiment!" ”

Then, Wang Chenhao came back to his senses, suddenly stared at Wang Shizhen, and asked, "Your General Staff has really been planning for a long time, and I have already been calculated by you?" ”

Wang Shizhen hurriedly bowed and said, "Your Majesty forgives the sin, the ministers don't dare, the ministers are just thinking about the empire." ”

Wang Chenhao smiled helplessly and said, "You are not wrong! Sitting in my position, many things are already out of my own hands! ”

Wang Shizhen bowed and said, "Your Majesty Shengming!" Sacrificing the small self to complete the big self, the subjects of the empire are grateful for His Majesty's dedication. ”

"That's it! Less sycophants! Wang Chenhao smiled bitterly and said, "Let's be straight, what marriages have you arranged for me?" The five major alliances are willing to send troops, and there are quite a few of them, so you won't arrange five concubines for me, right? ”

Wang Shizhen smiled shyly at this time and said, "Not much, only two." One is the princess of Shao Wuda Korqin League, and the other is Princess Erlut of Alxa League. ”

Wang Chenhao knew that just now he knew from listening to the figures of these Mongolian tribes that Horqin and Alxa sent the most troops, which obviously had the most to do with marriage.

Wang Chenhao sighed and said, "It's okay now, the harem will be lively for a while!" ”

Wang Shizhen said with a smile: "Actually, Your Majesty Princess Horqin, you know that it is Borzigit Shalina, who is the commander of the palace Yulin Army. ”

It turned out to be her!

Wang Chenhao felt a little better in his heart, but his relationship with this Shalina is not bad now, and he will still have feelings after slowly cultivating it.

Seeing Wang Chenhao nodding, Wang Shizhen said again: "Another minister also heard about it, called Ulan Qiqige, a gorgeous flower in Mongolian, I heard that she is also a beauty, and she can attract butterflies to dance when she dances." ”

Wang Chenhao smiled: "Is it possible that Concubine Xiang is still alive?" ”

Wang Shizhen didn't know who Concubine Xiang was, and was stunned. Wang Chenhao immediately stopped talking about her, turned to business, and asked, "If I agree to marry, do I dare to guarantee that they will fulfill their promise?" ”

Wang Shizhen nodded affirmatively and said: "Your Majesty, rest assured, Weichen dares to use a head to guarantee!" ”

Wang Chenhao nodded and asked, "Then what conditions do they have?" ”

Wang Shizhen said: "Your Majesty, the Five Leagues only proposed that when Your Majesty wants to reform Mongolia in the future, it is necessary to protect their interests. ”

Wang Chenhao smiled: "Their eyes are clear and tight!" ”

Wang Chenhao thought about it in his heart, and secretly criticized him not only for earning two beauties, but also for their marriage of 300,000 cavalry, which is simply a great thing like an upside down door.

Thinking of this, Wang Chenhao nodded and said, "Since this is the case, then you should go and discuss with Zhang Feng and promote this matter as soon as possible." ”

"Wechen obeys!"

Wang Shizhen received the order and gave the right to leave the imperial study.

(To be continued)