News of the encounter is transmitted upwards as quickly as possible. At the same time that the headquarters of the 25th Division learned of the enemy's engagement, Deputy Commander-in-Chief Xiong Xun, who was following the operation of the 9th Army Headquarters, had already received a direct report from the 73rd Regiment.

Xiong Xun is still the commander of the 9th Army. But he didn't pass the news that the battle had begun any further, there was no need. Even if Ye Yanbing, who remained in Russia, learned that Bucharest had fallen, what instructions could he give him? It's nothing more than taking measures according to the actual situation. I came with the 9th Army to fight, not to travel, and since the enemy has appeared, let's fight.

Hit whom? How to fight? This is something that Xiong Xun and the main officers of the 9th Army must consider. According to the hastily drawn up plan, they were to occupy Bucharest before the German-Austrian army, and use it as a base to assist the Romanian army in meeting the 9th Army under the command of Falkingham from the southeast. According to the intelligence provided by the Russians, the enemy attacking Romania came from three directions, the Austrian 1st Army in the west, the German 9th Army in the southwest, and the combined "Danube" Army Group, which launched an offensive from Bulgaria.

Now the 9th Army of the Russian Southwestern Front has been deployed south of Bucharest and has become the main force in the fight against the Danube Army under the command of Mackensen. The Luo army in the southwest and west has at least 250,000 troops, and occupies a favorable position, and the steep terrain of the Alps is conducive to defense and not conducive to attack. So the greatest danger comes from the south and not from the other two directions. As long as Mackensen could not cross the Danube, it was possible for Bucharest to hold out until the arrival of the Chinese expeditionary force. In this campaign, the Chinese army was not the main factor. It's reinforcements, not the forces of the decisive battle. At present, only four divisions have been invested, and even if the other two divisions of the 5th Army rush over, it will not be enough to take charge on their own.

Xiong Xun was a little dissatisfied with Ye Yanbing's acceptance of Brusilov's mission. It is said that we will wait until the expeditionary force is all assembled before fighting, in that case, there will be five corps, an artillery division, and an air force, which will be enough to play a combat role. What is the matter of throwing two armies into Romania one after the other? What Romania can't afford to lose, in Xiong Xun's opinion, it's all nonsense. Even if Ukraine is completely lost, it is not the business of the expeditionary force. The task of the expeditionary force was not to defend the capital for the Romanians.

But the order must be executed. In Xiong Xun's view, the actions of the 9th Army and the 14th Division of the 5th Army were swift, and the road conditions were so bad, but they still maintained a daily advance speed of 35~40 kilometers. This depends on the large number of trucks and the strength of the sappers. Xiong Xun hoped to find a better foothold for the two armies of the expeditionary force, such as Bucharest, to solve the problems of food and the placement of the wounded. And then calmly respond to the battle according to the shape shì. The dual inadaptability of climate and water and soil has led to an increasing number of sick people. Exposing troops to the field is certainly problematic. However, in the past two days, he has continuously received news from the forward troops about the collapse of the Luo army, which made Xiong Xun mentally prepared for the loss of Bucharest. Now it was now certain that Bucharest had been lost, and that the enemy had previously gone north of Bucharest. And there was an exchange of fire with the avant-garde division......

"Order the 73rd Regiment to build fortifications on the spot to block the enemy's northward advance. Buy time for the whole army to assemble. and ascertain the enemy's situation, and must not take the initiative to attack. He began to dictate the order, "Order the main forces of the 25th Division to catch up as quickly as possible." ”

The operational staff officer waited fifteen seconds for the deputy commander. Seeing that he didn't add anything, he immediately went to send a report.

"I suspect that Zhao Xin did not encounter Austrians...... Shi Niankui, the chief of staff, said softly.

"Damn the Russians, damn Romania," Xiong Xun scolded, "this kind of unclear enemy battle is really damned!" Let Zhao Xin do his best to figure out the situation. ”

"I don't rest, and the night march catches up. The key is to find a foothold to spread the troops first," Shi Niankui said as he stared at the map, "In terms of location, there is only Buzeu. The 27th Division is already there, and we," he gestured with his fingers, "we still have 30 kilometers to go." ”

The headquarters of the 9th Army moved with the 26th Division, followed by the 5th Army and the 14th Division. The other two divisions of the 5th Army and the units directly under the army headquarters are still on the Russian border and have not yet completed their assembly.

"Yes. Give the order, you must feel Bouzou tonight. Xiong Xun slapped the map that was spread out, "Ploiesti is lost, what kind of battle are you fighting?" ”

Zhao Xin, who was at the forefront of the front, did not wait to accept the order of the military headquarters, and several reconnaissance teams had already been sent out. The disadvantages of foreign warfare have appeared, and the language barrier is a big problem, so the set learned in China cannot be used, and it has been tossed for half the night, and even the road situation has not been accurate. Romania is mountainous, and troops enter from Ukraine, all the way through the mountains. Such terrain is dangerous because you don't know where the enemy might come from. It was even more annoying for the 9 Army, which was equipped with a large number of trucks.

Several Russian liaison officers were reluctant to follow the reconnaissance team to attack at night, saying a whole bunch of impermissible reasons, preferring to go to the locals to find out the situation. Colonel Zhao Xin was also helpless against these Russians. The telephone between the regimental headquarters and the avant-garde battalion had been connected, and the enemy had not been seen since that brief skirmish. Zhao Xin personally rushed to the 1st Battalion to inquire about the situation, it was already dark, the terrain was not clear at all, and everything was so strange and unpredictable. After consulting with several officers, Zhao Xin decided that the regimental headquarters, logistics and the 3rd Battalion would occupy the town, and the 2nd Battalion would also be sent out after dawn, and the 1st Battalion would be used as horns to build fortifications as a barrier for the main force, and then advance in the direction of Ploiesti after the order was clear.

At eleven o'clock that night, Qin Feng, the commander of the 25th Division, took the 75th Regiment into the town called Alonda, which was guarded by the 73rd Regiment, and this small town immediately became a world of soldiers. Although there were many empty houses, they could not even fit the 73rd Regiment, and the 75th Regiment could only stay on the street overnight. Qin Feng listened to Zhao Xin's report at the headquarters of the 73rd Regiment and affirmed Zhao Xin's deployment. Several reconnaissance teams sent out found nothing, and no trace of the enemy was found. A qiē needs to wait until after dawn.

"I expect Commander Bear to be determined to retake Ploiesti. Otherwise, we will have to withdraw to Buzeu. Brigadier General Qin Feng pointed to the map and said to Zhao Xin, "What we hate is that we don't know the enemy's strength, and we don't know where the friendly troops are." What's even more annoying is that the road conditions in this area are unfamiliar. If you just look at the map, the enemy can only come along this main road. That's easy...... The devil believes the map of the Russians. Beware of the enemy's intersperse, they are more familiar with the situation than we are. Ask a few locals about the road conditions, have you arranged it? ”

"It's been implemented. It is only 30 kilometers from Ploiesti and there is only one main road. I ask to attack south along the main road in the early hours of tomorrow morning. Perhaps it would have been the enemy's cavalry that had occupied Ploiesti, and that would have been easier. ”

"Yes. Oil in Ploiesti is important. ”

Nothing was said all night. In the early morning of the next day (September 18), the 2nd Battalion, which had started dinner in advance, had already set off, and the breakfast at the regimental headquarters had not yet started, Zhao Xin received a report from the cavalry scouts that the Austrian army was rushing along the road from Bucharest to Ploiesti! The strength of the troops is unknown, but there are certainly artillery.

Qin Feng quickly discussed it with several major officers around him. It was decided to go on the defensive first. The main road was guarded with the 73rd regiment. The 75th Regiment secured the left flank, and the 74th Regiment, which arrived in the early morning, was in reserve. The artillery regiment set up a position behind the 73rd Regiment and first touched the reality of the Austrian army.

The first real battle of the expeditionary force in Europe began at 9:30 a.m. on the 18th. Several divisional and regimental officers who remained in the town first heard the explosion, which should have been the sound of 75-caliber howitzers based on experience. And then a series of machine-gun fires. Zhao Xin couldn't sit still. Leaving the division commander behind, he ran to the front. Brigadier General Qin Feng did not send a report to Lieutenant General Xiong Xun. He needs to wait for the outcome of the battle.

The battle was soon reported. The 1st Battalion, deployed 6 miles from the town, repelled the Austrian tentative attack. The 2nd Battalion, which drove up along the main road, took advantage of the situation to launch a counterattack, and according to Zhao Xin, the Austrian army was like that, and the whole regiment attacked.

Qin Feng hadn't had time to report to Deputy Commander Xiong yet. Xiong Xun's telegram has arrived, of course, to inquire about the situation. Qin Feng reported the situation as Zhao Xin said and requested to launch an attack on Ploiesti. The 25th Regiment is in hand, and it is estimated that the artillery regiment and the last infantry regiment of the division will also come up in half a day at most, and the terrain here is too cramped, and it should be rushed forward.

"Hold on to the spot and find out the enemy's situation." In only ten minutes, the call back from the superior arrived. Lieutenant General Xiong Xun, who was already serious, remembered the instructions of "a cautious first battle" that Admiral Ye Yanbing repeatedly emphasized, and did not agree with Qin Feng's proposal.

Zhao Xin could only take back the counterattacking troops. The counterattack captured three prisoners, one of whom was seriously wounded. This was the first time that the expeditionary force had captured prisoners on the battlefield, regardless of its significance. The point is that part of the enemy can be discerned from the captives' mouths.

The news of the resistance of the Romanian army at Alonda was a slight surprise to the Austrian Major General Briviscu. His division was the only Austrian division attached to the German 9th Army, and after a series of dazzling movement battles, the outnumbered Van Kinghain Army defeated the Romanian 1st Army, crossed the Alps, and occupied the almost undefended Bucharest with great speed without waiting for the main force of the Romanian 2nd Army, which was confronting the Austrian 1st Army, to retreat. Subsequently, General Van Kinhan commanded the main force of the army group to quickly insert to the northeast, cut off the retreat of the Russian 9th Army east of Bucharest, and cooperate with Mackensen's Danube Army to encircle and annihilate the Russian army that was retreating north. The other two divisions (one each from Germany and Austria) were ordered to attack northward, and cooperate with the Austro-Hungarian 1st Army to cut off the retreat of the 2nd Army of the Romanian Army from west to east. These two moves are successful, and the situation in Romania is decided. Its grain and oil would fall into German hands.

Major General Briviscu volunteered to take the lead. In his opinion, the Luo army that fought against Van Kingham's Army (German 9th Army) had been basically annihilated by Van Kingham, and the rest had become stragglers, and it was difficult to organize effective resistance. The capture of Ploiesti by Shun lì is proof that Brivescu's division suffered minor casualties. After resting in Ploiestillo, Briviscu immediately ordered to continue northward, but the cavalry reconnaissance team in front of him was ambushed near Alonda, and because it was getting late, Major General Briviscu decided to fight again tomorrow. The slight resistance did not arouse the alarm of the Austrian general. The battle of the next morning was a blow to the Austrian major-general, and the attack was repulsed, and the point was the appearance of a completely unfamiliar opponent. The legendary Chinese Expeditionary Force has appeared!

You can't go wrong. Not to mention the uniforms that are completely different from those of the Romanian and Russian armies, nor the machine guns with completely different sounds, the disgusting yellow face alone will not be wrong.

The presence of a Chinese expeditionary force near the town of Alonda reported as quickly as possible to Van Kingham, who remained in Bucharest. Falkingham had already received the news that the Chinese expeditionary force had gone to Russia to participate in the war, so it was not surprising that there were Chinese on the battlefield. To Fan Kingham's surprise, the Chinese actually arrived in Romania! Approaching Ploiesti! All the intelligence failed to detect this! Van Kinghan cursed and lashed out at the command post. After all, he was the chief of the general staff and the minister of war, and although he was "reduced" to the position of commander of an army group (and also a temporary patchwork of weak army groups), Yu Wei was still there, and the staff officers were silent in the face of Falkingham's anger. Scolding the Air Force will not help, they must have mistaken the Chinese for Russians. The most important thing now is to find out how many Chinese are coming. How effective are they? After thinking for half an hour, he first informed the Austrian 1st Army and the Danube Army, and then ordered his two divisions in Ploiesti (one each from Germany and Austria) to attack northward, making sure to find out the reality of the Chinese. (To be continued......)

PS: I just came back from visiting my parents, and I sent out the only manuscript in my hand.