“…… The enemy was defenseless, and there were more than thirty artillery carriages in the town...... Just passed to a train with a red cross painted on the carriage, presumably a ...... for the wounded"

"Yes, that's right...... Are the artillery trucks mainly concentrated here......"

The face of the Chinese character, rosacea, the wide forehead and high eyebrows, the cheekbones are high, the thick beard covers the cheeks, the hair is like a needle, the eyes are like copper bells, and the ears are like Buddhas. He is about in his early thirties, and his body is like that of an ox, but unfortunately it lacks hooves, horns, and a gentle and cute tail.

A green uniform, a gray cape, a green military hat inlaid with a gold dragon emblem, a cavalry insignia made of crossed sabers pinned to his left arm, a lieutenant colonel rank with a green background, two red dragon stripes and two golden metal six-pointed stars on his shoulders, a delicate saber with a sharkskin and silver sheath hanging from his waist, and knee-length black riding boots sunk in the thick and fluffy snow.

In this way, the man leaning against a towering cedar tree, holding a colorful map and pointing, his name is Liu Yangbo, the commander of the Fourth Cavalry Regiment of the Second Cavalry Brigade of the Imperial Chinese Army, the hero of the First Sino-Japanese War, and now he is a rampant who gives his boss a headache.

There is no need to cite previous examples, just look at the location of his troops on the map.

It was a dense cedar forest growing on a steep slope, and five or six hundred steps north from Liu Yangbo's position, through a sparse shrub, you could see the east-west Siberian Railway, with its polished tracks, and a small town with two or three hundred wooden houses on the side of the railway—you could see the end at a glance.

The town, whose name is indicated on the map as "Yablonovo", is located at the southern foot of the Yablonov Mountains, 40 kilometers east to Chita City, and 150 kilometers west to Ulan-Ude.

Fifteen days have passed since the Chinese Army and its servants launched the so-called "New Year Offensive" against the Russian Far Eastern Army on the front line of the Onen River on 24 February, and it is now 10 March, and the cold in Siberia has subsided slightly, but the ground is still under the rule of snow in the sparsely populated areas.

Liu Yangbo didn't know what the overall situation was, he just blindly drove his subordinates through the gaps in the enemy's front, constantly moving forward, forward, and forward.

Fighting seldom and not taking strongholds, attacking the scattered enemy forces in retreat would allow them to obtain adequate supplies, and turning off the radio stations under the pretext of lack of batteries to evade the "reasonable" command of their superiors.

Therefore, the whole regiment set out from Aksha in the upper reaches of the Onon River, ran wildly for fifteen days, marched in a circuitous way, and a distance of about 300 kilometers, and now it was finally over, and the goal was ahead.

The town of Yablovono is located in the position of a mountain pass of a branch of the Yablonov Mountains, with steep slopes on the north and south and downhill to the east and west, the terrain is dangerous, easy to defend and difficult to attack, and to seize this place can cut off the railway transportation from Ulan-Ude to Chita in one fell swoop, blocking the most important and convenient supply line and retreat channel for hundreds of thousands of Russian troops on the front line.

Liu Yangbo led his subordinates, taking advantage of the mist of yesterday's whole day, relying on four or five maps obtained from various sources, all dragged their horses and climbed to the southern slope of the town of Yablovono, because the road was too difficult to walk, they had to dismantle and bury all the six 5 or 7 or 7 or 6 rapid-fire guns they had captured from the Russians at the bottom of the mountain, and all the shells of the cavalry guns were also thrown away, and only three 80 mm mortars equipped with more than 100 shells each, and nine machine guns were carried up on war horses.

"The military department called back."

Major Luo Jianqiu, the chief staff officer of the regiment headquarters, came over with a crumpled piece of paper, he was only twenty-seven or eighteen years old, and his appearance was quite normal - compared with Liu Yangbo, he was a high-achieving student who graduated from Lu University, and due to various unexplained reasons, he had now become an accomplice to the violent regiment commander.

"Give it to me."

Liu Yangbo snatched it, omitted the first half of the telegram - this part must have been angrily reprimanded by Major General Qin Feiye, chief of staff of the field army, and only looked at the bottom of the piece of paper.

"Well, we're rushing too fast...... Give me the map—the one I drew one. ”

Liu Yangbo waved his hand, and Luo Jianqiu hurriedly took out a Russian-language map from the satchel hanging on his shoulder, which was captured from the Russian army on the third day of departure, marked with clear contour lines and the location of each reserve defense line, which was one of the magic weapons that the 4th Cavalry Regiment could get here safely.

Before the war, all the command and staff officers of the units scheduled to participate in the war underwent intensive training in Russian, one of the important subjects of which was the proficiency in the use of captured Russian maps, and each regiment was assigned a special interpreter who was fluent in Russian for the interrogation of prisoners and the reading of Russian documents, and this interpreter was also responsible for the training of the Russian language in the regiment and the negotiation of Russian residents.

Liu Yangbo pulled the map, took out a pencil and ruler from his jacket pocket and compared it a few times, then handed the map and telegram to Luo Jianqiu: "How is it?" That's right. ”

After Luo Jianqiu looked at it carefully, his eyebrows jumped: "Leader, let's ...... We advanced too far, and the other two regiments of our brigade were still forty or fifty kilometers away...... The military headquarters is almost a hundred kilometers away from us...... We are surrounded by the enemy, and the enemy is trying to retreat on all fronts, from where at least six corps will retreat to Ulan-Ude - aren't we here to die? ”

Liu Yangbo raised his chin indifferently: "It's not dead yet, what are you shouting, there are more than thirty cannons waiting for us to get them...... It is precisely because the battle line is forty or fifty kilometers away that the following is defenseless, unprepared, and unprepared. ”

"However, even if we can capture those dozens of cannons, how can we, more than a thousand people, be able to stop the hundreds of thousands of troops who are desperately trying to escape?"

Liu Yangbo clapped his hands: "This is enjoyable, this opportunity is a once-in-a-millennium event, people in later generations will be very excited when they see our courage and wisdom, ha......ha Don't think about it, let's talk about it, hurry up, gather your staff officers - Adjutant Jiang, I want you to pass the order to the battalion commanders, except for the sentries, all of them gather here! ”

Luo Jianqiu was completely powerless to resist the crazy rampant clan in front of him, he felt that his spiritual will was not even as good as an ant compared to Liu Yangbo, so he had to obey his fate obediently, and made a meaningless weak resistance in his mouth: "It's no problem to be bold, where is the wisdom......"

A quarter of an hour later, the dense crowd of heads crowded in front of their rampaging leader, thousands of eyes full of anticipation and suspicion intertwined, discharged, and smoked in the air.

Liu Yangbo struck the horsewhip on his gloves and spoke to the officers and soldiers with his head held high: "Brothers! In the past half a month, we hid in the woods during the day, and drove to unpopulated places at night, hiding, not going to fight with their large troops, only to rob their stragglers, and the rear supplies were completely cut off, there were no white flour steamed buns, no rice, and we nibbled on the black bread of the Russians, all the way to such a ghost place. I know that everyone is angry, some people don't understand me, they say that I am blindly commanding, and they say that I actually want to surrender to the Russians, and now I clearly tell you that the reason why I want everyone to suffer these sins is to lead everyone to complete a task that is impossible for other troops! ”

There was a commotion among the cavalrymen, they had already felt something, but before the answer was officially revealed, no one could be sure which premonition was the most correct, and now, the dawn suddenly burst into the mist that had shrouded for a long time, how could it not be exciting?

"Downhill to the north, there is a town three miles away, just over the pass, and the railroad runs past the town, and a large road runs through the town. It was the throat of the enemy, through which supplies for hundreds of thousands of enemies had to be transported to the front, and now, the enemy was preparing to retreat on all fronts, and from there as well. I have been informed by the military headquarters that I should act on camera, and my plan is to occupy the town, to set up defenses at both ends of the pass and on the slopes facing south, and to cut off the enemy's lines of communication, so as to cooperate with the main force to encircle the enemy! I want everyone to be mentally prepared first, according to the intelligence of the military department, at least six armies will retreat westward from here, that is, we are likely to block the retreat of two or three hundred thousand enemies with a single force. ”

There was an even more violent commotion in the crowd.

"Do you want to fight hundreds of times more enemies?"

The first thing that such questions create is fear, and many people's faces immediately flow through a cocktail of shock, trembling and cringe.

Liu Yangbo struck the horsewhip his boots, and the voice of "Peng Long" was low and powerful, and the sound and momentum of the commotion weakened slightly.

"However, this does not mean that we must engage two or three hundred thousand enemies at the same time, remember, our army, including the Korean army, has a total of 900,000 men, and the enemy must resist the fierce offensive of our front-line troops while fleeing for his life in a panic, and the enemy can only devote a small part of his forces to the breakout. On the other hand, the road in front of the pass is very narrow, and it is impossible to rush up many people at one time, as long as our positions are well arranged, the enemy will not be able to kill them for a while and a half. Someone may ask, we only have three small guns, nine machine guns, and the rest are short cavalry guns, how can we stop a few armies from breaking through? Now I'm going to tell you that as luck has come, there happens to be an artillery unit resting in the town below, with more than thirty guns, and if you surrender these guns, the firepower will not be a problem. Now, I would like to ask you if you have the courage to do it with me! ”

The man's instinct exploded, and the cavalrymen roared in unison: "Yes! ”

Liu Yangbo pulled out his saber and raised it to the gray sky between the branches: "Ask again, do you have the confidence to block the enemy outside this mountain pass!" ”

More than a thousand sabers came out of their sheaths: "Yes! ”

Liu Yangbo looked sad and satisfied, nodded vigorously to everyone, and put away the saber with his hand.

"Okay, now ...... assignment"

Chita, the command of the Russian Far Eastern Army, the office of the commander Kuropatkin.

"What? Yablovono is occupied by the enemy! How is this possible! ”

Kuropatkin held his hands on the table and looked viciously at the adjutant who had come to report, as if he was about to pounce on the innocent young lieutenant and bite him.

"Report it to me."

Major General Sobolev, Chief of Staff of the Far Eastern Army, who happened to be sitting at his desk, said kindly, and Deputy * trembled through Kuropat's golden tiger-like gaze, bowed his head and handed the report to Major General Sobolev.

The report, submitted by Major General Kurbaatar, who was in charge of the security of the railway between Chita and Ulan-Ude, reads as follows: The town of Yablovono was attacked by an unknown number of Chinese cavalry at noon on 10 March, losing more than half of a battalion of the garrison guards, the six artillery batteries that had just arrived in the town to prepare for deployment were deprived of all their artillery and shells, and a cavalry regiment sent for reinforcements was repulsed...... The enemy blockaded both sides of the pass, the railway transport between Ulan-Ude and Chita has now been completely interrupted, and the telegraph line laid along the railway has also been cut off.

"How did they get in? The front should still be fifty kilometers away, and aren't the armies already in control of the situation for the time being? How is this possible......"

Kuropatkin shouted that it was impossible, impossible, and lit his pipe.

Sobolev was much calmer and got up to look at the map first.

For half a month, the Nercha-Onen defense line has been completely shattered. The 5th Army in the northern section of the defense line was beaten to pieces by the Chinese Janissary Field Army and the 2nd Field Army in front of it, and the 33rd and 41st Divisions of the 137th Regiment defending the Nerchensk (Nebuchu) salient were surrounded and annihilated by the Chinese Army, and the rest of the divisions also suffered heavy losses and were forced to retreat to Chita, and after receiving the support of the 33rd Army and the 52nd Division of the Reserve Army on the Chita side, they entered the "Kuropatkin" defense line 80 kilometers east of Chita, between the Yablonov Mountains and the Inda River, about 70 kilometers on the front, Eight infantry divisions and three cavalry divisions held on to this defensive line that had been built during the "quiet period" of winter.

The 2nd Army in the middle of the line was pincerly attacked by the 5th Chinese Army and the 1st Korean Army, and the commander, Lieutenant General Bilgyerlinger, defied Kuropatkin's order to "hold his position to the death" and skillfully commanded his battle-hardened army group to quickly withdraw to Akinskoye, and then strengthened the 15th Army of the reserve army, which was responsible for defending the "Kutuzov" line between Aginskoye and Karemskoye on the south bank of the Inda River, which was about 50 kilometers in front, well-fortified, and had favorable terrain, It is located about 100 kilometers southeast of Chita.

The 48th Division under the 48th Division fell into the encirclement of two infantry divisions and one cavalry brigade of the Chinese Army in Ilya, and was completely annihilated on 7 March, and the rest of the divisions were also seriously damaged.

The Russian 3rd Army, located between the 2nd and 4th armies, was initially only attacked by the Korean Second Army, and as the 2nd and 4th armies continued to retreat, the flanks of the 3rd Army were exposed and there was a danger of being surrounded and annihilated. The commander of the army, Lieutenant General Gripinberg, promptly withdrew his troops from his positions and entered the "Suvorov" defensive line, and together with the 4th Army of Lieutenant General Kauribals, plus the 54th Division of the Reserve Army, defended this long line of defense that stretched for more than 100 kilometers with 10 infantry divisions and 5 cavalry divisions. Opposite them were the imposing Chinese First and Fourth Armies and the Korean Second Army.

However, with the Chinese army entering the battlefield as the reserve of the Sixth and Seventh Armies, the situation of the Russian Far Eastern Army is in extreme danger, the "Kuropatkin" defense line in the north and the "Suvorov" defense line in the south are under tremendous pressure, which may be broken through or detoured at any time, and once the two flanks collapse, hundreds of thousands of Russian troops will be encircled - this will mean the end of the war, because the Russian Empire cannot cobble together such an army with valuable combat experience and high-level officers in a short period of time.

In view of the current grim situation, even the commander-in-chief of the Far Eastern Army, Kuropatkin, who "lived all day in the dream of advancing into Manchuria," had to make a painful decision and began to prepare for a retreat, and the new line of defense would be centered on Ulan-Ude, 360 kilometers west of Chita, and the whole army would be divided into three echelons, alternately covering, and gradually retreating to the new line of defense. On the way to retreat, all roads and villages will be destroyed, making it impossible for the Chinese army to launch a pursuit.

When the retreat plan was about to enter the implementation stage, the Chita-Ulan-Ude railway was cut off by the other side, and without the rapid transportation support of the train, the retreat plan was completely a pile of waste paper.

Kuropatkin is understandably angry and crooked.

"Your Excellency, now we should immediately deploy a counterattack and retake Yablovono, believing that the size of the enemy army will not be very large, estimated to be a cavalry detachment of several hundred men, otherwise it will not be possible to penetrate into the inner flank of our line of defense so easily...... Let the 14th Cossack Cavalry Division and the Chita Separate Brigade go, two field artillery batteries and a mortar battery equipped with the garrison of the fortress, plus a mountain artillery battalion and a heavy howitzer battery of the reserve artillery, take a train, drive under the mountain pass in an hour, unload in the field, and then organize the attack...... The commander of the detachment was commanded by the commander of the cavalry of the reserve, General Samsonov. In addition, the Ulan-Ude side should be notified by radio that they should send a considerable number of troops to flank the enemy on the mountain pass with us......"

Kuropatkin, who was in a state of anxiety, didn't think about it, and hurriedly applauded: "Very good, just do it, let Samsonov go, tell him that before noon tomorrow, I want to hear the news of the resumption of railway communication with Ulan-Ude." ”

Sobolev shouted "yes" and went to draw up the order, his face shining with confidence—at least in this matter, he felt that he was entitled to twelve points of confidence.

Oloviyannaya, Forward Command of the Western Front of the Coalition Army.

It was located about 70 kilometers northwest of the original headquarters of the Western Front, Sherlovayagora, and about 190 kilometers northwest of Chita, and had been seized by the 1st Korean Army from the Russian 2nd Army eight days earlier.

In the only building in the town that had not been destroyed by shells, the Oloviana Church, the commander of the Front, General Zhong Xiahuo, rang his human bell and announced with irresistible momentum to the officers and men of the headquarters: "Everyone! I have good news for everyone, it can't be better or worse! We have captured Yablonovo, an important mountain pass on the Chita-Ulan-Ude railway line, which means that we have closed the enemy's main retreat route, and hundreds of thousands of enemies are about to fall into our huge encirclement! ”

The crowd was about to cheer, but Zhong Xiahuo stopped it with a gesture, and then rang the bell: "However, the troops occupying that pass have only one cavalry regiment, and they are fifty kilometers away from the nearest friendly army, and, unfortunately, we have not been able to quickly break the enemy's battle line to join them, that is to say, this regiment has simply killed itself and has fallen into the enemy's encirclement. ”

There was immediately a whisper below, and most of them were discussing questions such as: "Which crazy regiment commander did this?" ”

Zhong Xiahuo's thick arm swung powerfully in the air again, and Hong Zhong's voice became thicker and thicker: "Regardless of whether there is a problem with the head of this regiment commander, I personally think that they are doing a good job, we just need to block that railway line, it is not enough to destroy, blow up a few sections of railroad tracks, the enemy can repair it in two or three bells, and if a unit is stuck there like an iron nail, the enemy's train will not be able to pass at all...... The action of this unit not obeying the command is really of great significance, although it is not worth carrying forward, but that kind of heroic nature cannot but be touched! Therefore, we must support them with all our might, so that they will not be destroyed by the enemy's counterattack......"

The crowd turned their heads to each other again: "What should I do then?" ”

"The troops behind have not yet fully deployed, and it is impossible to break the defensive line in two or three days."

"The defense line on both flanks is too dense, and the depth is not shallow, and I am afraid that a penetrating breakthrough for rescue will not be worth the loss......."

"Far water can't quench the thirst ...... near the near"

"I had to work air support......"

His eyes focused on Brigadier General You Zhuan, chief of staff of the front army's aviation floating cluster.

Of course, You Chu couldn't help but respond, and took the initiative to go forward and said to Zhong Xiahuo: "Commander Zhong, you can organize a capable floating force to support them, and during the day when the weather conditions are right, you can constantly strike at the surrounding enemy assembly areas......

Zhong Xiahuo nodded: "It's good, but their report proposes that the things that are most needed are mortars, machine guns and sniper rifles, can they organize airlifts?" ”

You slowly showed a slight embarrassment: "This ...... It has not been carried out before, in fact, there is no suitable equipment to perform such a task, we do not have specialized cargo planes, and even if there is open space there to land, it can only be transported by bombers in small quantities, but this will affect the effectiveness of air support......"

"And what about the airdrop?"

You slowly pondered for a while, and the light bulb on his head lit up: "Maybe you can use an airship to hang a box with cotton tires and a raft and drop it at a low altitude......"

"Very good, go and organize, I'll ask the chief of staff to write you a note, you can take the note and ask the logistics chief for any materials you need!" Be quick! ”

"Understood!"

Yablovono.

Two kilometers east of the town, in front of and behind the positions of the 1st Battalion of the 4th Cavalry Regiment, the dense sound of gunfire echoed through the valley, shocking the senses of all living beings.

"Put!"

Chinese, Russian artillery, and twenty-four cannons together spewed brilliant fireworks and gray smoke balls, and in the blink of an eye, the shells exploded in clusters of fireworks and scattered countless stones and soil in the midst of the incoming enemy troops.

The gunners stripped off their shirts, bare their lean, sweat-soaked muscles, and underneath were the cavalrymen's breeches and boots, and beside them were the cavalrymen's uniforms, short-barreled rifles, and black-sheathed sabers. Yes, they were cavalrymen, most of whom were originally purely horsemen on horseback, and only a few were once professional gunners of artillery companies belonging to cavalry regiments.

Early that morning, the cavalry stormed the town of Yablovono, taking the defenders by surprise, half of the infantry battalion stationed in the town was knocked out, the other half was scattered, and the six artillery batteries, which had just been unloaded from the train and had not yet had time to be deployed, immediately became the meal of the cavalry. The Russian gunners scattered, leaving behind 24 intact 76-mm mountain guns, 16 76-mm field guns, and 87-mm howitzers, loaded with ammunition, and a hill-like shell box piled up on the platform.

Liu Yangbo, commander of the 4th Cavalry Regiment, immediately ordered the artillery of the whole regiment to be organized, and each professional artilleryman was responsible for one gun, and then Captain Wang Dafeng, commander of the regiment's artillery company, selected the cavalry that was not originally an artillery from each company to form an artillery squad, led by a professional artilleryman, while selecting and building positions, while carrying out education, and soon, two artillery battalions mainly composed of professional cavalry were formed, equipped with 48 cannons, plus three 80-mm mortars and nine machine guns carried by the regiment itself. For this cavalry regiment, which has a total strength of only 1,500 troops, the density of fire is already pervertedly high.

The town of Yablovono was located in the middle of the pass, crossed by the Ulan-Ude-Chita railway, which was flanked on either side by steep rock walls, and the enemy had to attack the pass along the valley through which the railway passed, the narrowest of which was no more than 500 yards.

Liu Yangbo ordered the 1st Cavalry Battalion under his command to hold the east entrance of Yablovono with four machine guns and one mortar, equipped with 16 76-mm mountain guns and eight 76-mm field guns of the 1st Artillery Battalion; The 2nd Cavalry Battalion held the west entrance with three machine guns and one mortar, and was equipped with eight 76-mm mountain guns and eight 76-mm field guns from the 2nd Artillery Battalion; The 1st Company of the 3rd Cavalry Battalion, armed with a machine gun and a mortar, held the steep hill to the south, from which the whole regiment had come up; The 2nd and 3rd companies of the 3rd Cavalry Battalion, armed with a machine gun, plus eight 87-mm howitzers of the 3rd Company of the 2nd Artillery Battalion, served as a regimental reserve.

The cavalry seized the mountain pass in the morning, and without eating lunch, they hurried to dig the infantry trench and build artillery and machine-gun firing bunkers, and the infantry trench was dug waist-high, and the enemy rushed up with the support of powerful artillery fire, and the cavalry squatting in the infantry trench surrounded the cannons and machine guns, and armed with light cavalry guns that were shorter than the enemy's rifles, and began the harsh defensive battle of Yablovono, which would not be ended at any time.

Sixty-four artillery pieces of the Russian army frantically ransacked the positions of the 1st Cavalry Battalion, and General Samsonov, who was sent by Kuropatkin to "solve the traffic problem", had 24 76-mm mountain guns, 16 76-mm field guns, eight 152-mm mortars and eight 152-mm heavy howitzers, and his artillery firepower had an overwhelming advantage over the Chinese cavalry holding the eastern entrance of Yablovono.

With the continuous roar of artillery, Samsonov ordered the first echelon to advance, which included about 700 men from a regiment of the 14th Cossack Cavalry Division, and nearly 2,000 men from three battalions of the Chita Separate Brigade, all of whom dismounted and attacked on foot with the infantry. All the men and horses marched out in formation from the bend in the valley, gradually spreading out into a skirmish line of five hundred yards in front, and approaching the Chinese positions step by step along the railway line and the avenue that had begun to turn muddy.

The twenty-four Chinese artillery pieces deployed on the position at the east entrance and protected by hastily constructed bunkers immediately greeted the first echelon of the Russians with stormy artillery fire, and at a distance of three or four thousand yards, the fierce artillery fire made the Russians cry wolf, and the first echelon only advanced to a place less than two thousand yards from the Chinese position and retreated, leaving dead bodies and wounded soldiers everywhere.

Samsonov trembled with rage, and with his beard pulled, he ordered the mountain and field artillery units to move forward with the support of the sappers in order to engage the Chinese artillery directly at a distance of 3,000 yards, while the heavy artillery units, hidden behind the boulders and jungles at the bend of the valley, carried out uninterrupted suppression of the Chinese artillery by curling fire.

The proud Russian artillerymen began to advance, and the leading officer with a feather ornament on his head, riding on a tall white horse, turning his horse's head from time to time, waving his saber at the horse-drawn gun carriage that followed, the gunners on the horses and on the gun carriage sat gracefully, their horses' hooves trampling over the grass and mud, the wheels of the gun carriage bringing out muddy water, and the muzzles pointing to the rear glittering with metal—all this is like a magnificent oil painting describing the Napoleonic Wars.

Behind the artillery carriages, sappers with shovels, stakes and bags panted to follow, and the cavalry on both flanks of the sappers galloped to cover them.

The Chinese artillery shells fell like hail, the horse-drawn artillery carriage of the Russian army galloped through the smoke of gunpowder, and from time to time the war horse was shot and fell, causing the artillery carriage to overturn, and suddenly a gun carriage was directly shot, detonating the ammunition on the vehicle, and a burst of dazzling fireworks burst into flames in an instant, while the other artillery carriages rushed past from the side as if nothing happened, the scene was picturesque and dreamy.

Captain Wang Dafeng, commander of the artillery company of the 4th Cavalry Regiment, ran on the position of the 1st Artillery Battalion, personally commanded the gunners of the 1st Battalion to adjust the firing range, and continuously strafed the advancing Russian artillery.

Deputy company commander Lieutenant Li Zhun immediately took over Wang Dafeng's command of the 1st Artillery Battalion to fight, but after all, the enemy's heavy artillery was powerful and numerous, and it was far away from its own observation range, so it could not be suppressed at all, and soon dozens of gunners were killed and wounded, and many of the remaining gunners were lying on the ground or running to the rear to dodge, and more than half of the artillery had lost their effectiveness due to damage or no one to control them.

The enemy mountain and field artillery units below took the opportunity to quickly seize positions three thousand yards away and unload the artillery from the artillery carriages. There were about 40 artillery pieces that successfully reached the position, which were staggered in three rows, and before the sappers behind rushed over to build cover, they immediately opened fire on the Chinese position, and the rain of bullets instantly covered the position of only six or seven hundred yards in front, and together with the heavy artillery behind, completely suppressed the fire of the 1st Artillery Battalion.

Samsonov smiled with his beard and ordered the second echelon of nearly 2,000 people composed of three cavalry regiments to launch a surprise attack on horseback and break through the Chinese positions at one time.

2,000 cavalrymen first lined up in several columns from the bend of the valley, and then spread out into a horizontal formation behind their own mountain artillery positions, a burst of military music sounded, and the horses began to move forward slowly, until they passed through their own artillery positions, the cavalry began to accelerate, at a distance of two thousand yards, drew their sabers, and at a distance of fifteen hundred yards, began to charge, shouting and killing and the sound of horses' hooves immediately shook the earth, and the flash of the saber seemed to shake the entire world.

On the position of the 1st Cavalry Battalion, which was being ravaged by Russian artillery fire, some of the braver fighters who were originally in the infantry trench braved the flying shrapnel to poke out their heads, and began to shoot at the Russian cavalry that roared like a boulder rolling, but the scene of being outnumbered was chilling after all, and it seemed that the sparse bullets alone were not enough to destroy the enemy who almost filled the entire field of vision. Some began to throw away their weapons and run backwards, some were swept down by artillery fire as soon as they jumped out of the trenches, and some were shot by more determined officers the moment they discarded their weapons and turned around, but many did run past the artillery positions and stumbled along the railway line in the direction of the town of Yablovono.

It's getting closer, enemies, too many enemies, it's simply infinite - because it's so close.

The position of the officers and men of the 1st Cavalry Battalion, although slightly higher, was not a cliff after all—otherwise it would not have been possible to pass through the train, and this little advantage had long been far offset by the enemy's fierce and dense artillery fire. Now, the 1st Cavalry Battalion was facing collapse, and a large number of Russian cavalry was about to cross this thin line of defense, which was garrisoned by less than 300 "infantrymen".

Suddenly, a burst of deadly shrapnel exploded in the midst of the Russian cavalry who had rushed to the trenches of the 1st Cavalry Battalion less than three hundred yards, and the flying shotguns drilled countless blood holes in the flesh of the horses and men, and the neighing horses fell in various wonderful postures, while their owners also flew in the air and dived to the ground with all kinds of wonderful movements......

The Russian cavalry continued to advance, and at this time, in the two small woods behind the position of the 1st Artillery Battalion, four or five hundred Chinese cavalrymen on horseback suddenly poured out, quickly lined up in a horizontal formation in front of the position of the 1st Artillery Battalion, picked up their cavalry guns, and fired several rounds at the Russian cavalry that had broken through the position of the 1st Cavalry Battalion......

"Kill! Kill! ”

Liu Yangbo's saber was thrown very skillfully, and as soon as he took over the battle, he cut off a Russian officer, then turned the horse's head, took it to the right rear of Lu, and cut off the forearm of a Russian cavalryman who was about to raise his knife to chop, and then returned to the Russian saber that was slashed from the left side, and slashed his backhand like thunder and lightning, pulling the opponent's belly apart......

His face, which was all the more terrifying by his bloodthirsty excitement, was "like a ghost" and "even his own people trembled when they saw it." - "The History of the Battle of the 4th Cavalry Regiment".

The fierce white-knuckle battle lasted only a few minutes, the Russian cavalry turned their horses and retreated, and the Chinese cavalry still had to pursue, Liu Yangbo rode his horse in front of his own line, and ordered the troops to withdraw behind the woods and rocks behind the artillery position, and then hide again.

At the same time, the eight 87-mm howitzers of the artillery reserve, led by Captain Li Xilian, a regimental artillery staff officer, had already formed a position behind a bush on the hillside, firing heavily at the exposed Russian artillery with shrapnel - of course, the burst of shrapnel that had suddenly flew towards the Russian cavalry just now was also the credit of these eight howitzers.

The bullets of the howitzer swept across the Russian artillery positions, and the exposed Russian gunners and the sappers who were digging and building fortifications suffered heavy casualties, and the Russian heavy artillery hiding in the distance did not find the artillery company of Li Xilian, which had just been newly put into the battlefield, but held back enough strength to bombard the position of the 1st Battalion of the Chinese Army Artillery that had been emptied, and in just a quarter of an hour, the six Russian artillery companies that rushed to the front had suffered more than half of the casualties, and the sappers and cavalry units responsible for supporting them also ran away, and the remaining artillery had to shoot a burst of smoke bombs in front, taking advantage of the white smoke, Hung the cannon on the gun carriage and withdrew.

Samsonov was getting angry when he suddenly heard his subordinates shouting: "Enemy aerial weapons!" ”

Sure enough, there was a low buzzing sound in the distance, and soon more than a dozen "big flies" came out of the thin clouds, and it was none other than the 16 "Qingfeng" light bombers of the 2nd Air Bombing Group of the Chinese Army, which were sent by the front headquarters to support the 4th Cavalry Regiment.

"Hidden!"

"Disperse!"

"Lie down!"

Fearful screams came one after another, but there were also more courageous soldiers who consciously mounted the Maxim machine gun on the protruding rock or ammunition box, and several people worked together to turn the machine gun and start firing into the air.

Sixteen bombers circled low over the battlefield, selected the target, lowered their noses one after another, and swooped down on the Russian heavy artillery positions.

Before Samsonov could catch his breath, six "Qingyun" light attack airships of the 4th Floating Attack Group of the Chinese Army arrived again and accurately smashed 48 100-kilogram bombs into the Russian heavy artillery positions without any bunkers or air defense camouflage.

Immediately afterwards, six two-seater reconnaissance planes of the 88th Aerial Reconnaissance Squadron "Fire Wind" came to the place with grenades, and flew over Samsonov's head like mosquitoes, dropping bombs and strafing all the living creatures around the general.

"God...... They came so soon...... Me, am I too careless? I thought I could recapture the mountain pass in one go......"

Before Samsonov could complete his confession, the FTG-3 "Qiangyun" large attack airship, the largest aerial weapon of the Chinese Empire, slowly revealed their massive bodies painted with a gray background golden dragon from the sea of clouds in the south, one, two...... A total of eight aerial monsters over 200 meters in length!

This is the 1st Attack Group of the 1st Floating Group led by Colonel Fang Yongyang of the Chinese Army, and the eight airships under his command are loaded with bombs, passing through the canyon from south to north, and sweeping a section of the valley about two kilometers long and 6,700 meters wide with 640 100-kilogram bombs......

Next up was Army Colonel Han Lin's 2nd Assault Group, whose seven smaller FTG-2 "Purple Cloud" medium attack airships bombarded the unloading sites laden with ammunition and other supplies along the railroad tracks, detonating countless more dazzling clusters of fiery flowers......

At dusk, the weak sunset lingered under the gray clouds.

Samsonov rode on his large, dusty black horse, staring blankly at the valley covered with large and small craters shrouded in dark red light.

Around the crater, the corpses of men and horses were scattered, the wreckage of cannons and carriages was scattered, and the living creatures wandered like ghosts, physically and mentally.

Throughout the afternoon, hundreds of Chinese aerial weapons continued to drop countless bombs on this narrow valley, and the flashes of detonation covered the entire valley again and again...... It's like hell on earth.

In this case, not to mention continuing to attack, it is self-defeating to continue to stay here.

However, even escaping became impossible, and as soon as you ran out of the hiding place, you would be immediately chased and strafed by light planes carrying machine guns.

There were no bunkers, no trenches, just small patches of woods, and scattered boulders.

Many Russian cavalrymen drove their horses into the woods, but the bombs did not automatically avoid the woods, and after the flash, the stumps of the trees were filled with the flesh and blood of the horses, and the scenery was picturesque and beautiful.

Samsonov and his staff team hid between two rocks, and a bomb exploded at one end of the mouth of the rock, killing or wounding all Samsonov's staff officers, except for Samsonov, who was unscathed, probably because all the staff officers stood between him and the bomb.

Now, it's all over, no, it's over for the time being.

Samsonov clamped the horse's belly, and the big black horse slowly moved forward, no, it should be backward - in the direction of Chita.

"General! Where are you going! ”

A young captain approached.

"Who are you?"

"I am the adjutant of General Kuropatkin, and since you have not been reporting to him on the progress of the battle, you have sent me to inquire about the situation."

"You see that, that's the situation."

Samsonov raised his horsewhip and shook it from side to side.

The captain did not look to the left and right, but still faced Samsonov: "General, did you fail to capture the mountain pass?" ”

Samsonov replied coldly: "For several hours, I have been attacked by the enemy's air weapons without stopping, my cavalry division commander was killed, the brigade commander of the Chita Independent Brigade was also blown off in front of me, I lost all my heavy artillery and half of the mountain artillery, the casualties of the troops are very serious, and it is impossible for me to take any meaningful action against the enemy in the mountain pass." ”

"But General Kuropatkin wants you to retake the pass by noon tomorrow......"

"Unless he has a way to take down all the enemy's aerial weapons."

Samsonov said, and was about to ride his horse forward, when the captain pulled the horse's head and crossed in front of him.

"General, there is good news, at ten o'clock this evening, the cavalry unit of General Lian Nian Kampf coming from the direction of Ulan-Ude will attack the mountain pass from the west, and General Kuropatkin orders you to organize troops to attack the mountain pass from the east with all their strength during that time."

"I don't have any troops left, unless I get reinforcements."

"No reinforcements."

"Very well, then I can't do it."

"You can't disobey orders."

The captain said categorically, quickly turning his horse's head and running away.

Samsonov turned his back to the setting sun, his face was immersed in the gloomy realm, and his shiny beard was slightly upturned: "Kampf for years?" Hmph, that shameless person who only makes other people's wives happy, what I can't do, he can do? Hmph, it's still up to me, look at it, tonight I will deal with the enemy on the mountain in one go, and I must not let him steal the credit......"

Samsonov had known Liannian Kampf long before he was promoted to general, and the relationship between the two was not deep, and Lian Niankempf's ability to seduce other people's wives made Samsonov disdain and vigilant - his wife was already coquettish, wouldn't it be dry and angry when he met Liannian Kampf...... So he deliberately alienated Kampf for many years. However, later there was news that Samsonov's wife had a leg with Kampf for many years, and Samsonov almost went to the other party for a duel for this, but fortunately, someone confirmed that the matter was purely a rumor, and the matter was over, although the turmoil has passed, the psychological shadow is not so easy to remove......

Before nightfall, Samsonov rode around on a big black horse and began to regroup his troops.

The 14th Cavalry Division, having lost most of its horses and less than 800 able-bodied combatants, was organized into an assault regiment, all fought on foot, under the command of Colonel Valrieta, the deputy commander of the division. The Chita Separate Brigade lost more than half of its infantry, and the remnants were combined into four battalions of about 3,000 men, commanded by the commander of the 1st Chita Regiment, Colonel Mabirov. The artillery with the heaviest losses was organized into two light mountain artillery batteries, which were personally commanded by Samsonov.

At nine o'clock in the evening, Samsonov's headquarters began to move towards the pass, and four thousand men marched quietly along the sides of the valley in a column, the sky was very dark, the moonlight was very faint, and only the outline of the rocks three or four hundred yards away could be faintly seen.

Forty minutes after departure, Samsonov ordered the troops to spread out into a skirmish, and just as the vanguard battalion was about to deploy, suddenly a gunshot rang out in front, followed by several successive flares pulling bright phosphorescence from the sky, and the dense column of the Russian army was instantly and clearly exposed to the muzzle of the Chinese army that was waiting for it.

A storm of shrapnel swept in, making several deep gaps in the Russian column, followed by more artillery fire, and those that had been dumbed during the day were now fully rejuvenated, firing a deadly rain of bullets at the speed of a rifle at the enemy a thousand yards away......

"Charge! Charge now! ”

Samsonov patted Mabirov on the shoulder and pushed him up, while he slapped his horse backwards and beckoned to the two mountain artillery companies that were following behind.

Mabirov's infantry and Valrieta's foot cavalry began to charge desperately, and soon passed through the curtain of death constructed by the Chinese artillery, expelling or eliminating some of the Chinese cavalry with bayonets and bullets from the shallow skirmish trenches five or six hundred yards away from the main line of defense—it was the sentries in the foxholes that gave the crucial alarm to the artillery behind them.

The machine guns and cavalry guns of the Chinese army opened fire one after another, and groups of Russian soldiers fell like clumps of wheat, while the successors continued to charge forward, and the muzzle fire tongues shining in front of them were stabbing their eyes recklessly under the agitation of the darkness......

"Fire! Fire! ”

Samsonov stood on his own mountain artillery position 1,500 yards away from the Chinese position, and the mountain artillery beside him had just finished being put into lineup, and the gunners had already filled the shells into the breech.

"Boom, boom" a few loud bangs, a row of howitzer shotguns hit behind the artillerymen, sweeping down a large number of gunners, Samsonov was once again lucky to be unscathed, and continued to direct his artillerymen to fire back, more than a dozen mountain guns opened fire one after another, creating a row of monotonous flashes behind the Chinese positions......

Half an hour passed, the resistance of the Chinese army seemed to be getting stronger, Valletta's foot cavalry had broken down, Mabirov's infantry was dragging their guns back, and the two artillery batteries under Samsonov's personal command had lost most of their gunners.

Samsonov glanced at his pocket watch by the light of the cannon burning beside him - it was already a quarter past ten, the appointed time had passed, and had Kampf really begun to attack the west exit for many years? Why can't you see a flare rising on the other side of the pass? Why is the resistance here not loosening at all, but getting stronger and stronger? Could it be that Kuropatkin's promise was deceitful...... Just to force yourself to lead a night attack?

"Hold on! Don't go back! ”

Samsonov drew his pistol and shouted, but none of the deserters would pay attention to him, and after a few minutes, the deserters grew, and finally Mabirov himself retreated.

"General, retreat, the enemy's firepower is too strong......"

"What do you say...... How can it be ......"

Before he could finish speaking, a shell exploded behind Mabirov, who shook twice and suddenly fell into Samsonov's arms.

"Hey...... How are you...... Damn the years Kampf...... Retreat, retreat! ”

After repelling the Samsonov Division, which was attacking the East Entrance, Liu Yangbo, the commander of the 4th Cavalry Regiment, had just breathed a sigh of relief, and suddenly saw flares and signal flares for help rising one after another on the position at the West Entrance, and immediately led two companies of the reserve cavalry and one company of the reserve artillery that had fought on the East Entrance position just now to rush to the West Exit on horseback and plunge into another life-and-death defensive battle......

It was close to four o'clock in the morning that Liu Yangbo, covered in mud, returned to the regimental headquarters in Yablovono, and slept until dawn on the clean bed of a requisitioned house.

As soon as he opened his eyes, in front of him was Luo Jianqiu, the staff officer of the regiment commander whose eyes were bloodshot.

"Counselor Luo, are you here......"

Liu Yangbo rubbed his eyes and said, and saw Luo Jianqiu holding a few pieces of paper in his hand.

"What's that?"

"Many, first of all, casualty statistics, from yesterday morning's raid on the town to this morning's ceased of fighting, in less than twenty-four hours we suffered four hundred and thirty-nine casualties, that is, almost a third of our posts, our staff officers, cooks and baggage soldiers have all been sent to the front, but fortunately, we can use the residents here to cook for us and transport ammunition......"

"And then?"

"It was a telegram from Commander Zhao of the Field Army and Commander Zhong of the Front Army, commending us for our bravery and tenacity, and then saying that the reinforcements would arrive within three days, and the supplies could be received from the air, and we were asked to wait for the reinforcements."

Liu Yangbo rubbed his face tiredly and twisted his neck in confusion: "Can the supplies be sent from the air...... Well, let them send a hundred machine guns and fifty mortars, air support throughout the day, and we will have canned meat of all tastes, painkillers, bandages...... It would be better to throw one or two infantry battalions down from the air. ”

Luo Jianqiu shook his shoulders and said with a wry smile: "Commander, isn't it time for the lion to open his mouth, Commander Zhong has promised to send an airship to send twenty light machine guns, 100,000 rounds of ammunition, ten 80mm mortars, 5,000 shells, and 5,000 grenades today." ”

"Airship?"

"Well, it was airdropped by airship, and before that, a small plane carrying an officer of the aviation float will be sent to land on the mountain pass in order to indicate the direction of the airship."

Liu Yangbo cleared his throat, got up and poured a glass of water himself, and drained it in one gulp.

"Airdrop, it's good, just don't hit me on the head."

Before the words fell, Luo Jianqiu saw that outside the window frame behind Liu Yangbo, a small plane was staggering straight over.

"Little ...... Heart......"

This caution was not very intimate, but it was enough for a cavalry commander to reflexively lie down.

After a disgusting loud clatter of wooden strips breaking and canvas tearing, Liu Yangbo lifted the wooden plank that was pressing on his body, and the silhouette of a two-seater reconnaissance plane with only half of its skeleton left protruding near the ceiling.

In the front seat, a head wrapped in a flight cap and goggles poked out of the broken wood and canvas.

"I'm sorry, the plane is out of order, I am Captain Cai Yi, the squadron leader of the 88th Aviation Reconnaissance Squadron, and I was ordered by Commander Guo of the Front Army Aviation Floating Group to carry out the airdrop instruction mission, and I want to see your regiment commander."

Liu Yangbo looked up at the pilot a little sluggishly, and reached out to wipe the right cheek that could clearly be felt covered by the foreign object.

"I'm the head of the regiment, thank you for your hard work."

The oil from the plane's engine was dripping down Liu Yangbo's right cheek.

"Would you like to do me a favor? My guy in the back seat may have fainted, we better get out of here quickly, the engine could explode at any moment......"

Liu Yangbo nodded dimly: "Did it explode?" yes, hurry up, Staff Officer Luo, let's go help him......"

Five minutes later, the "front" regiment headquarters of the 4th Cavalry Regiment turned into a brilliant sea of fire.

"Well done, it's almost over, is the radio rescued?"

Liu Yangbo finally got rid of his ignorance completely, and asked Luo Jianqiu with a straight face.

"The machine is out, and the spare battery box and spare parts box are still inside."

"......"

Liu Yangbo scolded at the beginning, and suddenly felt very bored, so he turned to order the adjutant to requisition another house as the regiment headquarters.

"Don't worry, the airdrop also includes a brand new radio station and three boxes of spare batteries."

Pilot Cai Yi comforted.

Liu Yangbo glanced at him suspiciously: "Really? ”

"Of course, I saw it with my own eyes, how dare I lie to you."

As he spoke, someone had already reported that three large airships had appeared in the southeast.

"It's coming, it's really fast...... Actually, it was my plane that broke down, so I came late......"

Cai Yi touched his head and smiled.

Liu Yangbo made a numb appearance: "It doesn't matter, it's just late." ”

The implication is: You kid almost hit me! I don't know the way! Reflect on it!

At this time, the backseat pilot who had just been carried out of the house by Liu Yangbo like a sack had already woken up, rubbing the back of his head and looking left and right in confusion: "Squadron leader, squadron leader...... Where is this? ”

"Silly boy, we've landed, now let's get ready for the mission."

Task ......

Cai Ye helped him up: "Army Flight Sergeant Lu Kai, can you still carry out the mission?" ”

Lu Kai blinked and nodded.

Cai Ye turned to Liu Yangbo: "Commander Liu, I need twenty people, and a few carriages, we have to collect some firewood." ”

"Do you want roast horse meat?"

"Yes."

"No problem."

Liu Yangbo instructed the adjutant to give orders to the medical director of the regiment headquarters.

"Tell him to pick twenty people who can move."

Cai Ye stretched out his hand: "Thank you." ”

"You're welcome, we should thank you."

Liu Yangbo pinched Cai Ye hard with his iron tongs.

Cai Yi gritted his teeth and didn't scream.

Soon, with the help of twenty lightly wounded people, Cai and Lu Kai chose a flat grass field on the edge of the town as an airdrop site, and lit eight large fires around it.

The airship slowly approached, lowered its altitude, and dropped one package after another with parachutes in the middle of the fire.

A platoon of cavalry drove hundreds of Russian residents to collect the landed parcels, which were white cotton cloth and had parachutes for personnel—a wasteful appearance—and green wooden boxes containing weapons and ammunition.

After the airship left, the logistics staff officer ran to Liu Yangbo and reported: "The collection is complete, and the number mentioned in the telegram is the same." ”

"What about the radio?"

"There's a radio, but it's broken......"

"Where's the battery?"

"Only one box was found."

Liu Yangbo smiled fiercely: "Okay, that's enough, we really can't ask for too much ......"

Cai Ye and Lu Kai walked over.

"Captain Liu, our task has been completed, and we can't go back for the time being anyway, if there is anything we can do, just ask."

"Well, do you guys fiddle with the radio?"

Cai Ye stepped forward: "I will." ”

"Then please collect the usable parts on the broken radio station and use them as spare parts, it's hard work."

Cai Ye stepped forward and saluted: "Please rest assured, it will be completed soon." ”

Liu Yangbo made a gesture of relief and walked away with a puffed chest.

By noon, a hundred cavalrymen had been transformed into machine gunners and mortarmen.

But the enemy never came up, and everyone knew what it was for.

There were planes and airships hovering over the valley below the east and west entrances, and from time to time dense explosions could be heard in the distance, and it was clear that if the enemy did not make up his mind to make greater sacrifices, it would be impossible for him to launch a further offensive.

Throughout the day, the Russians did not advance further towards the pass.

"I want to attack at night, so that our air superiority cannot be effective."

Liu Yangbo said during dinner.

Dinner consisted of white bread made by local residents from military flour piled up on the platform, accompanied by cheese and wine "bought" from residents' homes, which was not to the taste of the Chinese, but should be satisfied in terms of filling their stomachs.

"Don't worry, commander, we can smash the enemy back just by smashing mortar shells and grenades without fuses."

Li Xilian, an artillery staff officer, said that after making a gesture of smashing a shell, Liu Yangbo laughed, even if some people thought it was not funny, he had to laugh with it.

In the evening, the Russians did attack.