In late April, the Central Cluster also launched a military campaign into the Outer Mongolian steppe. Li Tianxiang, deputy commander of the Central Cluster, led four armies into the Outer Mongolian grassland by two routes. Li Tianxiang's 1st and 3rd armies entered the Outer Mongolian grassland from Baiyun Obo, and the goal was Saiyin Shanda. The 5th and 7th armies entered the Outer Mongolian grassland from Artengol in the north of Yinshan, and the target was Dharamzada in the northwest.

In late April, the grassland has been dressed in thick green, and the fresh grass has grown a palm high, overlooking the rippling blue savannah, which is refreshing. At this time, a large group of men and horses were walking slowly on the grassland, and the war horses stopped from time to time to gnaw a few mouthfuls of delicious grass, which provoked the master to wave his horsewhip and scold, so the march speed was even slower.

Bazar, commander of the Mongolian cavalry division, led a cavalry brigade and followed the 1st Army. At this time, Li Tianxiang was riding on a horse, and on the left and right were the commander of the First Army and the commander of the Mongolian cavalry division, Bazar, followed by the generals and staff officers of the military department. “haha！ The beautiful scenery of the grassland is really intoxicating! "Li Tianxiang is in a very happy mood." Commander, subordinates feel the same way! The commander of the 1st Army chimed in.

"Bazar, the grassland is your hometown, and we can be more comfortable with your guidance, tell me about the situation of Saiyin Shanda?" Li Tianxiang asked. Bazar said in unfamiliar Chinese: "Commander, you ancient Han people once sang about the beauty of the grassland, the sky is gray, the grassland is vast, and the wind blows the grass and the sheep's back is exposed. Everyone couldn't help but laugh when they heard this, Bazar was right, but the mood of the poem was gone.

"Commander, the grasslands are not all green grass. The Sainsan Damon language means good pool. Literally, it must be a place of abundant water and plants. And Sainshanda is the opposite, where is the desert wrapped in the small town. There are large areas of Gobi and desert around. Weishenme Saiyin Sanda can become a market town, mainly because there is an ancient post road passing through this place. ”

Li Tianxiang said: "No wonder the Russian army did not garrison in Saiyin Shanda, it turned out that there were poor mountains and bad waters. Li Tianxiang continued: "Since the natural conditions of Saiyin Shanda are so harsh, so many troops will have problems if there is a lack of water sources. Commander Zhang, I think Jihua will revise it. Since there are no Russian troops in Sainshanda, we simply bypass Sainshanda and go directly to Wenerschiller. The commander of the 1st Army said: "Deputy commander." I agree! "Immediately notify the forward troops, bypass Sainshanda, and advance towards Thermoschel!" Li Tianxiang decisively gave the order.

This kung fu. A team of darts and horses galloped from the northwest, numbering about 30 people. "It's my reconnaissance detachment," Bazar said, flicking the reins and stepping forward. It's all Mongolian conversations, and even if you want to hear it, you can't understand it. Less. Bazar slapped back. "Report to the Commander. The reconnaissance detachment reported that about 10 kilometers to the northwest, a Russian cavalry reconnaissance unit was spotted, and it is estimated that our whereabouts have already been discovered by the Russian army. Bazar was a little anxious.

“haha！ I wish I would be discovered by the Russian army, if the Russian army does not attack, I really have no choice. The Russian army saw that we were infantry units and would definitely attack. Now that the Russian army has discovered us, let's wait patiently. Inform the forward troops. The Russian army has discovered our whereabouts and put them on alert. ”

A regiment of forward troops arrived near the sweet water well. There is a very famous sweet water well here called Sukiza Sweet Water Well. As the forward force, the third regiment had a total of 20 combat vehicles, 60 heavy machine guns, and 50 artillery guns. They received orders to go up to the summit and detour to Sainshanda and head to Wendal Schiller. In order to deal with the Russian cavalry, all the steppe troops on this expedition replaced grenades with grenades.

The grenade, which is about the size of two eggs, does not use a hair to light the fuse, but instead uses a push handle to pull out the safety bolt. When the grenade is thrown, the handle falls off and the firing pin hits the fire, igniting the fuse. Grenades are more time-saving in melee combat, but have the disadvantage of being thrown at a short distance. This grenade was specially made by the Shanghai Special Weapons Factory to deal with the Russian cavalry, and its explosion delay time is 5 seconds. The grenade is oval in shape and has net-like grooves on the outside.

"Battalion commander! The guide said that there is a sweet water well in front of it, and there are about 5 kilometers left. A young ensign platoon leader on the tank said. The second lieutenant's platoon commander's name is Wei Lin, a native of Guangxi. He graduated from the Guangzhou Military Academy at the beginning of the year and was assigned to the First Army of the Central Cluster as a second lieutenant platoon commander. The battalion commander's name is Shao Bo, and he graduated from the 4th class of the Shanghai Military Academy. He was still a platoon commander in the decisive battle of the Central Plains last year, and in just one year, he has been promoted to battalion commander.

The chariot they were sitting in was actually the carriage of the big three, with three horses. This so-called tank is made into a box, in which three heavy machine guns are placed, and the main and secondary shooters are a total of 6 people. There is an extension around the box body, which can sit people. The chariots are distributed on the left and right of the marching team, with a moderate distance between the front and back, and the purpose is to quickly arrange a formation for counterattack when encountering an attack by the Russian cavalry.

The 1 battalion served as a forward battalion and was located in front of the whole regiment. Due to the sudden attack of the Russian cavalry, the longitudinal and lateral distances of the whole regiment are about the same, and if you look at them from the air, they are close to square. Obviously, maintaining this formation was finalized after many exercises. The 1st battalion commander Shao wavelength is white and clean, and his appearance gives people the feeling of Sven. At first glance, he is a southerner. But Wei Lin was the opposite, tall and mighty, with a darker complexion, like a big northern man.

Wei Lin opened the conversation box again and said: "Battalion commander, we have been in the Outer Mongolian grassland for 10 days, and the weather is getting warmer and warmer, but we haven't even seen the shadow of a Russian cavalry, could it be that the Russian cavalry has already fled when they saw us!" Shao Bo shook his head and said: "If the Russian cavalry is easily scared away, why are we bothering so much, maybe there is a Russian cavalry nearby who is secretly peeping, maybe suddenly attacking." ”

Wei Lin was confused: "Battalion commander, the Mongolian cavalry reconnaissance unit, encountered the Russian reconnaissance detachment 5 days ago, and there has been no news since then. Is it difficult for the Russian army to deliberately lure the enemy deeper? Shao Bo said: "Maybe! In short, the Russians will not give up. The Russian garrison infantry in Duolun is proof that they will never abandon the steppe. ”

Shao Bo continued: "Shangfeng ordered us to march slowly, the purpose of which is to attract Russian cavalry to attack. Combat vehicles must be tested in actual combat, and our repeated drills simply cannot meet the requirements of actual combat. Then the two of them began to discuss the firepower of the tank, imagining what adverse factors would happen in battle.

Shao Bo's guess was right, about 20 kilometers away on the west side, there was a Russian army unit, about a regiment, quietly following the vanguard regiment in parallel. This Russian cavalry regiment has been following for three days, and the Kosako cavalry, known as the Wolves, has completely figured out the situation of this Chinese infantry regiment. They couldn't understand that an infantry regiment was 20 kilometers away from the main force behind, and it dared to swagger forward in front, could it be that this was a decoy?

The commander of the Wolves cavalry regiment did not dare to act rashly, so he sent a reconnaissance unit to reconnoiter repeatedly, but did not see any problems. You must know that in the vast steppe, a cavalry regiment against an infantry regiment is simply effortless. The commander of the cavalry of the Russian wolf team repeatedly came to the conclusion that his own sudden attack, taking advantage of the rapid mobility of the cavalry, would soon overwhelm the opponent.

Even if the other side has the killer weapon of barbed wire, the enemy simply does not have time to arrange the barbed wire. Waiting for reinforcements is even more impossible. You must know that the distance of 20 kilometers is infantry again, and if reinforcements come up, the battle will be over long ago. All conditions were met, but the Russian Wolf Cavalry Regiment still did not dare to attack. The Chinese army has always been deceitful, and the commander of the cavalry of the Russian Wolves believes that it is better to be careful.

At this time, Buchrin, the commander of the wolf team, rode on his war horse and leisurely recuperated. Suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves was heard from the northwest, and Buchlin opened his eyes. "Major, the liaison detachment is back!" "Report to the regimental commander, we got in touch with the Grizzly Cavalry Regiment, and they promised to join forces to take out the Chinese infantry regiment and avenge the Xhosako cavalry!" “haha！ God help me, thank God. Immediately inform the Grizzly Regiment Commander that the Chinese army will definitely stop at the sweet water well, and let them attack from the north and we from the west, at the same time, and completely annihilate this Chinese infantry regiment. ”

When the sweet water well arrived, an officer rode a horse and ran in the middle of the formation and shouted: "The regiment commander ordered, the formation remained unchanged, and one person from each squad was sent to the mouth of the sweet water well to fetch water." The formation of the whole regiment just circled the sweet water well in the middle, and many soldiers craned their necks to peek at the wellhead. The so-called sweet water well is a circle of stones enclosed together, which simply forms a wellhead, and there is a pool of clear water in the middle of the wellhead. And one from each chariot shall be served, for they shall fetch water for the horses.

Shao Bo jumped out of the chariot, took off the kettle and walked towards the sweet water well, and the soldiers lined up in a circle to fetch water, leaving only one position, which was specially taken care of by the officers to fetch water. After an officer in front of him finished drawing water, Shao Bo picked up the water and scooped it up, first drank a few big sips and said, "It is worthy of being a sweet water well, it really has a sweet taste." Shao Bo returned to the chariot, and the regimental correspondent came to convey that the regiment commander asked him to go to a meeting.

Shao Bo casually handed the kettle to Wei Lin and said, "I estimate that the regiment commander will camp here, tell you company commander to prepare." "The sun has set in the west, and ten thousand golden rays of light are shining in the eyes. Wei Lin drank half a pot of water into the kettle, wiped his mouth and shouted: "Sure enough, it's good water, and it deserves its reputation!" "Wehrin stood on the chariot and stretched out his arms, feeling very comfortable. Suddenly, he noticed that something was wrong in the depths of the grassland on the west side, and hurriedly took out his binoculars to check.

It didn't matter if he looked at it, Wei Lin's face changed drastically. He quickly pulled out his pistol and fired a shot into the air, and shouted: "Russian cavalry attack!" (To be continued......)

PS: The mid-lane cluster kicked off the march to the steppe.