Astana fell into the hands of the Wehrmacht unprepared.

When a large number of Wehrmacht troops rushed into the city from the railway station, the garrison in the city put up only a slight resistance before choosing to abandon their weapons and surrender.

For them, it was also a helpless choice.

Before the so-called 'Chinese bandits' were resolved, a large number of Chinese troops suddenly appeared outside, estimated to be about one division of Cheng Dù, and there seemed to be more troops coming, in which case they seemed to have no choice but to surrender.

Naturally, as the commander of the garrison stationed in Astana, although he was only a small infantry regiment commander, this regiment commander still planned to carry out his responsibilities before choosing to surrender.

It's just that just when he was about to spread the news and make Kazakhstan and other regions, including Soviet Russia in St. Petersburg, more vigilant, he found that he seemed to have nothing to do?

The wireless telegraphy owned by the garrison itself has been completely destroyed, and it has not yet been found out what is going on, and the telegraph of the telegraph office is still under the control of those Chinese. Although the regimental commander found some merchants in the city with telegraphs, the news from his subordinates later made him a little desperate―――――― the telegrams were destroyed...

It was only at this moment that the commander of the garrison finally understood that this qiē was a conspiracy of the Chinese.

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By the time Cai's train entered Astana, the city had been occupied by seven or eight divisions. A large number of soldiers were stationed within the city. There were soldiers patrolling every street, and the original Russian troops were disarmed and guarded in the original barracks...

The mayor of the city of Astana and other officials are anxiously trying to meet with the upper echelons of the IDF to protest against the IDF's military action. and the need for the National Defence Force to ensure the safety of life and property of the people in the city.

As for the original citizens of the city, at this moment they are hiding in their 'safe' homes, watching the officers and soldiers patrolling the streets with fear and curiosity through the glass.

"How's it going?" After getting off the train, Cai asked in the first sentence.

"Please rest assured, commander...", one of the generals who came to greet him hurriedly said. We took control of the city soon after arriving in Astana, and according to the Special Service, they took control of the telegraph office at the beginning of the operation, and later through traitors who had been bribed from within the Russian army. Destroyed several radios in the garrison, so at the beginning of the operation the Russians simply had no way to get the news out, as for the Russian city government. It seems that they thought that their actions were just ordinary looting, and that their city was unscrupulous by a group of 'robbers', and it was a shameful thing to spread it after all, and the mayor of this city planned to deal with it after it was dealt with. It's getting the word out. By the time they reacted, the few remaining commercial radio stations in the city had also been destroyed, and they couldn't get the word out at all, so until now, the outside world shouldn't have known about it..."

"That's fine..."Hearing this answer, Cai Ye felt a lot more relieved.

The only requirement for this military operation is to be quick, to occupy all the places that need to be occupied before the Russians have time to react. Of course. Cai Ye himself knows that this kind of thing is not perfect, and nothing is foolproof. So it is very likely that the Russians will perceive it, but for the sake of the smooth operation, he can only find a way to minimize this accident.

And after being relieved, Cai Ye quickly talked about the next stage of the problem, and he didn't even go to the city, but was just on this train station...

"How about the troops, can they directly carry out the next stage of operations?"

"The long-distance march, although it is in the train, the soldiers are still very tired, but it is still no problem to persevere..."Hearing Cai Yi's words, the other general hesitated for a moment, and then replied.

As soon as his words fell, several other generals also agreed.

There are thousands of kilometers of distance from Xinjiang to Astana, and even by train, such a long journey is very tiring. In particular, the population density in Kazakhstan is very low, and in many places you may not see any people after walking 100 kilometers, and in order to pursue speed, the train must go at full speed and cannot stop at will, and the result is that there are usually many strange smells in the carriages...

After a few days, the officers and men of the unit felt very tired.

But as the general said just now, despite the exhaustion, it is okay to hold on. What's more, they are also very aware of the importance of this operation, if there are some changes at this time, they are trying to redeem it in the future, and they are afraid that they will have to pay more price...

"Since that's the case..."Nodding, Cai Ye groaned for a while and then spoke. Then, according to the original plan, the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Corps continued northward, and the 3rd Corps went south, occupying all the cities along the railway line, and advancing westward, at least to the Caspian coast, and building defensive lines along the way, while the 4th Corps remained in Astana and deployed its forces in regimental size in all the villages, towns, and cities along the railway line, to prevent the possible resistance groups from sabotaging the railway..."

Within the First Army Group, the 1st and 2nd Army Corps were the strongest, the 3rd was second, the 4th again, and the 5th was the second.

Considering that after going north, it is very likely that there will be a conflict with the Russian army led by Kolchak and the Soviet Russian Red Army of the Soviet Russian regime, so the first and second corps with the strongest combat effectiveness must go north, and the strength of the two corps alone is obviously not enough, after all, the length of the Ural Mountains itself can be called a spectacle, so Cai Ye will be counted in the fifth corps.

As for the Third Army, the combat effectiveness is somewhat, but relatively worse.

However, considering the emptiness of the Russian army in Kazakhstan now, let alone a corps, even an army can easily occupy the entire territory, but they also have another special task. That's why Cai Ye will send a legion.

As for the Fourth Army ...

Their combat effectiveness is only slightly stronger than that of the Fifth Legion within the five legions...

Although they are only responsible for the safety of the railway line along the route, their task is very important because the railway line represents the smooth flow of logistics. Logistics represents whether the operation can be successful, and if there is any logistical problem―――――― the 600,000 Wehrmacht troops that have entered Russia this time are even at risk of being completely annihilated.

Such an important combat mission was somewhat uneasy to hand over to the Fifth Legion, so it would be handed over to the Fourth Legion.

The combat capability of the corps is mainly divided according to the strength and training of troops, especially the number of main forces.

The 1st and 2nd Legions were the most combat-ready because they were the best equipped. And the main forces of the interior itself are also the most numerous.

The 3rd and 4th Corps were secondary, and as for the 5th Corps...

The number of B divisions in the Fifth Army is the largest...

However, this campaign to the north was mainly carried out by the 1st and 2nd Army Corps. The Fifth Army is mainly responsible for the defense line and the replenishment of troops, which is why Cai Ye will bring the Fifth Army with him.

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Seeing that everyone had already understood, Cai Ye and the others came to a building near the train station. Then Cai Ye said to his adjutant. "Send a telegram to the commander of the Third Legion. Let him after arriving in Astana. Immediately advance to the Caspian Sea with the troops, and after arriving at the Caspian Sea, remember to let the engineering troops build some roads out, at the moment it is unrealistic to build railways in Central Asia, after they arrive in the Caspian Sea, logistics can only rely on roads to support..."

After saying that, seeing that the adjutant had almost recorded it, Cai Ye continued. "In addition, send a telegram to the rear and ask the central government to bring all the cars over. A thousand of them were reserved for the Third Army Corps, which were used exclusively to transport logistical supplies ...

At this time, the troops that arrived in Astana consisted of only a few divisions. They are all from each legion, the large army is still in the rear, and most of the commanders of each legion are also like this, so in addition to the telegrams from the Third Legion, Cai Ye also sent some telegrams to the commanders of other legions.

These telegrams mainly gave some explanations of the next battle plan, he will soon follow the troops to continue north, it is impossible to stay in Astana all the time, so I can only explain first...

Soon, the commanders of the various legions replied to Cai Yi's orders, and in addition to obeying the orders, the commanders of the fourth legions even mentioned yì. "Can we get the central government to bring some mines up and lay mines on both sides of the railway line..."

Such an idea made Cai Ye think deeply.

Because strictly speaking, it's a really good idea.

What are they most worried about right now? That is, the railway line will be destroyed, and if the railway line is damaged, then there will be difficulties in the logistics and materials of the First Army Group, and if Yan zhòng, it may even lead to the annihilation of the entire army group of 600,000 people.

And relying on the Fourth Legion alone, to be honest, even Cai Ye did not dare to guarantee that there would be no accidents. Considering the length of the entire railway line, sabotage would certainly be a very frequent thing, and the task of the Fourth Army Corps, in addition to being responsible for protecting the railway, I am afraid that there would be a railway or something...

But...

If a large number of mines were planted on both sides of the railway, this problem might really be solved.

The cost of mines is very low, considering that only a thin layer needs to be arranged on both sides of the railway, the domestic industry can fully afford such a plan, and some mines are needed to effectively block the sabotage actions of the resistance, although it seems that this 'some' is probably not a small amount, but in order to complete the strategic task, it is also worth it...

The crux of the matter is how to prevent civilian casualties.

After all, in this era, it is very common for people to cross the railway, and if a large number of mines are laid, it will definitely cause many casualties, and even...

Even they themselves may not be able to access the Guò railway line, in this case, the railway line is indeed preserved, but nothing else...

Cai explained his concerns to the Fourth Legion, which was soon supplemented by a telegram.

"Landmine icons can be planted along the road to warn the locals, and temporary bridges can be built over the railroad for the locals and troops, and the bridges themselves are guarded by the troops. If someone triggers a mine, they can rush to the scene of the incident in time and attack the local population or resistance elements..."

There is no need to say the rest of the words, because Cai Ye has already understood the meaning.

This building is actually very simple. It is to place a large number of mines on both sides of the railway, so that even if there are resistance elements, the mines can properly protect the safety of the railway.

Of course, these resistance elements can also perform mine clearance, the problem is that mine clearing is a very boring and time-consuming task, and the Wehrmacht is clearly not stupid and blind and simply cannot allow the resistance to clear mines.

Even these resistance elements really think of the Wehrmacht as blind. Before they could clear a road that would allow them to tear down the railroad safely, the Wehrmacht was already on the scene...

Then there is the answer to Cai Yi's question, which is indeed very convenient to bury. But how will the local population and even the Wehrmacht get through the Guò railway? After all, crossing the railway, which was a very common thing in the early days, should have had this kind of experience, in Yan Shao's time. Many people have walked along the railroad tracks. Even if you step on it, if you don't think of a proper way, no matter how barren Kazakhstan is, I'm afraid many people will die.

Moreover, in order to stabilize the situation in Central Asia in the future, the Nationalist Government will inevitably move a large number of inhabitants into Central Asia, as it did in the Outer Northeast, so as to ensure the rule of the Nationalist Government in Central Asia. At that point, what to do?

It's okay to say anything else. Those Russians and even locals in Central Asia have nothing to do with China in the first place, and even if they die more, they will not feel distressed. This is a new occupation zone, and it can be done casually, rather than being a lot of concern like the Outer Northeast.

But after the people of China moved into the Outer Northeast...

If you accidentally hurt some of your own people, then the fun will be great...

And the solution of the Fourth Army to this is also very simple, that is, to build a bridge over the railway, to build a bridge that allows the train to pass guò and the common people to pass guò. The number of these bridges can also be higher, anyway, just crossing a railway line, such bridges will not be very expensive.

However, it is also necessary to consider whether the resistance will destroy the bridge and let the bridge collapse and smash on the railway, so as to achieve the purpose of destruction, so the Fourth Army will be built and sent troops to garrison.

Moreover, railway lines cannot be protected by mines alone, and there is always a need for troops to defend them, and these forces can also undertake such tasks. At the same time, when the people from the mainland move in, they can also take charge of other work and so on...

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"That's a good idea..."After hearing about the Fourth Legion's Jian Yì, Cai Yi touched his chin and groaned.

Although this seems absurd and costly, if we don't think of a proper way, even if we send more troops to guard the railway, it will be difficult to prevent the resistance from sabotaging the railway.

The more famous railway guerrillas in the history of the Anti-Japanese War in later generations, not to mention a lot of related TV series in Yan Shao's era for the time being, you must know that they have been with the Japanese for 5 years, and the Japanese have nothing to do with these people from beginning to end, which can be seen...

In some ways, this type of resistance is even more troublesome than the regular army.

After all, regular armies usually fight head-on, and as long as you can defeat the other side, there seems to be nothing left. But what about such guerrillas? The most troublesome thing for you is not how to annihilate him, but how to find him, as long as you can't solve him in a day, he will keep destroying you, and the damage caused by it will be for a long time...

And this kind of resistance can often easily drag down a country―――――― in terms of economy.

Was Soviet Russia strong in the Cold War? When he was in Afghanistan, he was killed by the local resistance elements in partnership with China, the United States, Britain and France. Is the United States strong after the Cold War? The only superpower, however, in Afghanistan and Iraq, has never been able to solve the local resistance, and for 10 years, the two places are still resisting, and what about the United States? Its economy is about to be crushed by these resistances...

Of course, Cai Ye didn't know this, but Yan Shao did, so Yan Shao didn't underestimate these seemingly innocuous guerrillas at all...

When Cai Yi handed over the Fourth Army's proposal, it immediately caused a stir in the upper echelons of the government, and many high-ranking generals and government officials expressed their opposition, after all, laying mines along a thousand-kilometer-long railway......... That kind of behavior sounds like too much...

In fact, it's not just them, even Yan Shao thinks so.

Laying mines along the railway line. Such a move is definitely very two-fold in later generations.

However, after thinking about it for a while, he decided that it was feasible to do so, the same. Considering the importance of the railway line for Army Group I, it would not be too much to do ...

Therefore, after thinking about it for a long time, and at the same time discussing it with Duan Qirui, Feng Guozhang and others, Yan Shao decided to adopt Cai Yi and the Fourth Army's proposal. At the same time, it is supplemented by a steel wire on both sides of the railway line, that is, on the periphery of the minefield, so as to prevent ordinary people or officers and soldiers of the army from straying into the minefield―――――― anyway, they are coming to the ninety-nine worshippers. It's not bad for the last one, and there is the work of planting mines, and it is very simple to get some barbed wire.

The so-called minefield. The purpose of his existence was not to kill the guerrillas who came to destroy, but to make them understand that there were mines here, so that they would not dare to come in lightly...

After formally agreeing, Yan Shao ordered the logistics department to take half of the mines from the inventory and supply them to the front. In addition, a considerable number of mines were ordered at domestic arsenals. Avoid not enough...

Soon, hundreds of thousands of mines were transported to the front line, and the Fourth Army Corps, which was responsible for protecting the railway, received the largest mine-laying mission in history...

At the same time, Cai also led the troops that had arrived in advance and began to move north, followed by the follow-up troops of the 1st, 2nd, and 5th Army Corps. The Third Army Corps went all the way south under the order of Cai Ye and went along the railway line to the Caspian Sea, but the Central Asian Railway was not built to the Caspian Sea. Therefore, the subsequent journey must be walked by legs.

The problem is that if we say that there is a distance of a thousand kilometers from Xinjiang to Astana. Then there is a distance of 1,000 kilometers from Astana to the Caspian Sea, and there are any roads or relatively large-scale roads in this 1,000 kilometers―――――― Russia's infrastructure is terrible both today and later in the Soviet Union, and Hitler's German army was severely pitted by Russia's infrastructure.

Thankfully, Central Asia is dominated by plain terrain, otherwise...

At this time, the 1,000 trucks promised by Cai Ye played a great role. However, the distance of 1,000 kilometers is not short after all, and it is only 1,200 kilometers from Nanjing to Chongqing...

If it weren't for the fact that there wasn't much resistance along the way, I'm afraid Cai Ye wouldn't have given such an order at all, and now, it can only depend on the ability of the Third Army itself...

Cai Ye will choose the Third Legion, also because the strength of the Third Legion is second only to the first and second legions, if it is replaced by the Fourth and Fifth Legions, Cai Ye will not be at ease. Although Russia's forces in Kazakhstan can be swept by only a regular army, the distance of thousands of kilometers is a bigger trouble than that of the Russian army...

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After handing over the task to the Fourth Army, Cai immediately led the troops that arrived in Astana in the lead to continue northward, but he did not go north to Omsk or Tyumen, but went north directly to Chelyabinsk by Guò railway...

On the other hand, although the secret service bureau along the way has tried to ensure the secrecy of the news as much as possible, it is impossible to keep such a big thing hidden all the time, not to mention that now the Wehrmacht has also entered the hinterland of Central Asia...

So just when Cai Yi led his troops north, the Russians in the north had already gotten the news...

When he learned the news, Kolchak, who was commanding troops on the front line to fight against the Soviet Russian Red Army, was stunned, obviously unable to believe that the Chinese 'friend' who had been doing his best to help him before had actually stabbed him in the back―――――― if his inner thoughts were known by Lenin and others in St. Petersburg at this moment, Lenin would definitely pat him on the shoulder and sue him, in fact, you are not the only one who has been fooled...

And just when Kolchak still couldn't believe it, the early troops led by Cai Ye were only a short distance away from Chelyabinsk...

Although the news of China's invasion of Central Asia had already been learned by the Russians, Cai was not worried about the reaction of the Russians at all, because according to the information he received, the Russians did not know about his northward journey, and Chelyabinsk was not much prepared...

With mental arithmetic or unintentional, coupled with the advantages of troops, equipment, training, etc., Cai Ye can be said to be a sure winner.

On the contrary, it was the attitude of the British and American powers that made Cai Ye a little worried...

After all, what they are plotting this time is not just an outer Northeast... (To be continued......)