The Soviet offensive was fierce, and with its superiority in artillery and manpower, it soon gained an advantage on the Ufa battlefield. However, in the face of Kolchak's construction of the outer defense line for more than a month, the progress of the Soviet army was not very large.

After all, no matter what, it has also bought a lot of weapons and equipment from China, and it is impossible for the combat effectiveness to remain the same as before.

It's just that anyone can see that Kolchak is completely trapped at the moment, and no matter how hard he struggles, he can't escape the fate of failure.

At this time, Kolchak seemed to have only two choices, one was to immediately find the Chinese to send troops to help. With Chinese forces in the Urals and Kazakhstan, it will definitely help Kolchak to repel this Russian attack. It's just that whether the Chinese will send troops or not is a difficult thing to say.

After all, Kolchak and others knew very well how useful the Soviet Russia's existence was for China. If China was willing to send troops, I am afraid that it would have already sent troops to help, so why wait until now?

It's not that Kolchak didn't think about looking for other reinforcements, but at this time, apart from China, there were no other forces that could help him.

One option was to immediately contact China and arrange a retreat, that is, the route to Vladivostok via Kolchak. It's just that there is another problem in this, that is, the matter of hundreds of tons of gold, if the Chinese know about the deposit of these hundreds of tons of gold, I am afraid that in the blink of an eye, those Chinese will turn their faces, Kolchak is convinced of this, and on the territory of the Chinese, even if he has more people in his hands. It is impossible to fight the Chinese.

Of course, in addition to these two roads, Kolchak has another path to choose from.

That is, neither of the previous two paths is chosen. It is a pity to stay in Ufa and Soviet Russia, but judging from the current situation, it is more likely that if you continue to stay in Ufa, you will be wiped out by Soviet Russia than others.

And this path is clearly not what Kolchak is willing to choose ...

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"Before the weather gets cold..."Looking out the window, the battlefield filled with gunsmoke, the corners of Kolchak's mouth showed a trace of bitterness. I think it was before the fall of this city..."

"Not necessarily...", standing behind Kolchak. One of the generals spoke. "Judging from the current situation, as long as the Chinese are still willing to sell weapons and equipment to us, we can hold out for at least three months." Even half a year is possible. ”

"During this period, we can completely hold back the group of Soviet troops in front of us in Ufa until there is a turning point in several other battlefields..." As the general's voice fell, several other officers and generals standing beside him also nodded.

Even if Ufa's current shape is not very good. But there are a few who don't want to evacuate. And these are the representatives of them.

Hearing his words, Kolchak nodded and did not express his opinion.

But at this time, Pepelyaev, who was standing next to Kolchak, looked at Kolchak and reminded. "But what if there is no turnaround in the other battlefields? According to the information provided by us and the Chinese, the possibility that Denikin, Yudenich and the intervention army will win is not very large, and if several other battlefields cannot win in the end, then it is not Soviet Russia that will be dragged here in the end. It's us..."

"And the weather factor is also something that we need to consider, as I just said. We can hold out in Ufa for at least three months, and if the Chinese are willing to continue to support, it may not be impossible to hold out even for half a year, but when it comes, the weather will become colder. It's not easy to cross the whole of Siberia in the cold of winter, not to mention that we still have so many with us..."Speaking of this, Pepelyaev glanced at the people around him vigilantly, and did not continue.

The matter of those hundreds of tons of gold is a secret in the Kolchak government, although the number of people who know about it is not very small, but it can be safer to let one less person know...

This reason was not the first time Kolchak had heard this, and he had also thought of withdrawing to Siberia as soon as possible. Before the cold winter came, at least he could leave the Chinese control zone as quickly as possible.

It's just that the previous battle was smooth, which gave him some confidence.

Now that the war is going bad again, Kolchak naturally has the idea of retreating.

"Is it winter?" Kolchak looked at Pepelyaev. Send a telegram to Paplov and ask him to contact the Chinese to see if he can get us to withdraw from Siberia to Vladivostok..." At this point, Kolchak was silent before continuing. "Also, count the number of people who might evacuate with us..."

"Understood." Pepelyaev saw that Kolchak had already made up his mind, and nodded. "I'll do it..."

"Hmm..."After bowing slightly towards Pepelyaev, Kolchak looked at the people in the office again. Regardless of the final outcome, before the Chinese nod and promise us to withdraw into Siberia, I ask you to hold Ufa! ”

It's one thing for them to want to withdraw into Siberia, it's another thing whether the Chinese government will allow them to do so. Kolchak obviously knew this very well, so he asked Paplov to contact the Chinese government first, after all, without the permission of the Chinese government, these remnants of their defeated army would probably not be able to step into Siberia even half a step.

Will the Chinese allow them in? I'm afraid even Kolchak himself is not very clear about this.

But no matter what the final result is, at least one thing is clear to him, that is, the Chinese will never allow him and his people to enter Siberia when he has just applied, and there will always be some time to waste during this period, so...

His troops must hold out in Ufa until the Chinese nod their heads and agree.

On the other hand, after hearing Kolchak's order, his subordinates also nodded one after another.

"Understood!"

Looking at his subordinates, whose morale was still quite strong, Kolchak nodded with some relief. At the same time, I was also glad in my heart, glad that I had prepared everything that should be prepared before, otherwise I wanted to complete the evacuation work in a short time. It's not an easy task.

Just now he asked Pepelyaev to count the number of people, so that after the withdrawal into Siberia, it would be convenient for him to buy the materials needed along the way from the Nationalist Government―――――― he did not think that Chinese would supply him with these materials for free.

So first of all, we need to count the number of people who moved into Siberia with them, and as for the rest, it is to find a way to buy the materials they need from the Chinese.

Even if they had left earlier, the weather would have already started to turn cold. If there are not enough supplies along the way, I am afraid that the shape will become very bad, and Kolchak cannot but consider this...

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Just when Kolchak was still worried about whether the Chinese government would allow them to enter Siberia. He didn't know that Yan Shao and Cai Ye had been looking forward to him for a long time.

If you can use what you want, maybe Yan Shao and Cai Ye have already begged him to come to Siberia―――――― there is no way, those hundreds of tons of gold are really too eye-catching.

But it's not too late.

After receiving a telegram from Ufa. Paplov soon understood. Ufa, for its part, has come to terms with reality. Pavlov was also relieved that he had stayed in Yekaterinburg during this time, and his task was to purchase the materials needed by the Ufa government from the Chinese, including weapons and equipment, food and clothing.

It can be said that it was these materials that strongly supported the White Army's operations on the periphery of Ufa, and also made it impossible for Soviet Russia to break through the perimeter defense line after fighting for such a long time. But after all, the advantages of Soviet Russia can be seen by anyone with a discerning eye. Pavlov, naturally, is the same, and he is well aware of it. If Ufa is lost, then there is no second way for them to choose except to retreat into Siberia―――――― if they are shot en masse by Soviet Russia, there may be a second way.

However, in any case, as the foreign minister of the Provisional Government, Paplov's fate was already tied to the Kolchak regime, especially his political life. Now that Kolchak's government is in trouble, he naturally hopes that his government will find a way out.

And for now, the way out is very simple, it is to recognize the reality...

On the other hand, after a period of stay in Yekaterinburg, Pavlov already had a deep impression of the city, and at the same time a very intuitive understanding of the Chinese troops stationed here.

After a long period of hard work, Yekaterinburg has recovered a lot from the fighting, especially after Yekaterinburg captured many Russian prisoners of war, plus Chinese citizens who have moved into Siberia.

On the other hand, with the huge investment of human and material resources, the city began to be built according to the imagination of those engineers. Today, although not yet fully built, the city can proudly claim to be unique in the world...

In the same way, the city is full of forts, etc., which makes the city feel safe.

Especially the huge batteries located in the city, the huge guns with a caliber of more than 300mm, the power is definitely not something that ordinary people can ignore...

As for the army ...

In the Ural and Kazakh provinces, there are about 500,000 national defense troops, of which more than 300,000 are in the Ural provinces alone.

That doesn't seem like a lot? At least not as much as the more than four million troops of Soviet Russia? But in fact, considering the strong city defense of Yekaterinburg and the large number of advanced weapons equipped by the Wehrmacht, even if Soviet Russia sent a million people to attack the city, Pavlov did not think that the other side would be able to capture this 'fortress city'...

That's right, the fortress city, during his time in Yekaterinburg, these four words have been deeply imprinted on Pavlov's heart.

Moreover, during his time in Yekaterinburg, Pavlov also witnessed the training of the Chinese troops stationed here many times. According to the Chinese side, many of these troops are recruits who have just been in the army for more than a year, but in Paplov's view, the vast majority of the White Guards under Kolchak's command are as far apart from each other as the gap between the militia and the regular army compared to the 'recruits' in front of them...

Militia, to the point that you can't fight. But if there is a real fight, sometimes one regiment of the regular army can top ten regiments of the militia...

It's not impossible. After all, the regular army is stronger than the militia in terms of training, equipment, and other aspects. In the final analysis, on the battlefield stage, the militia is not professional after all.

And it was with this understanding that Pavlov was full of confidence in the Chinese troops inside the fortress, convinced that it was impossible for Soviet Russia to cross the fortress.

It's just that after having such an understanding, Paplov's heart became entangled again.

The reason is simple. It is already a fact that Soviet Russia is stronger than the White Army at the moment. Then since even Soviet Russia has nothing to do with Yekaterinburg, then the White Army naturally has no choice.

And if even Yekaterinburg can't take it. And what about the recovery of Siberia and Central Asia...

"Perhaps, Russia is really going to lose these two places..."

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In any case, the most important thing for the Kolchak government at the moment is, after all, the withdrawal into Siberia. So soon Pavlov found Cai Yi.

When Pavlov explained his intentions to Cai Yi. Cai Ye was suddenly overjoyed, after all, they had been looking forward to this matter for a long time.

Fortunately, Cai Ye was still able to hold it, and he did not express his excitement too much, but while trying to suppress his feelings, he said to Pavlov with a relatively indifferent expression. "It's not easy for me to say this, after all, such a big matter is not something that I, the commander of a military region, can decide, but I can help you send a telegram to Beijing to inquire. As for the final result, it depends on the meaning of the president..."

"No problem..."

Pavlov also knew that Cai Ye could not decide this kind of thing at all. will come to him, just to let Cai Ye act as an intermediary.

Seeing that Pavlov's attitude seemed to be good, Cai Yi smiled and then continued. "In addition, I will give you a suggestion, that is, to contact the British, the French and the Americans, and let them come forward to contact the president of our country, basically as long as they come forward, the president may not refuse, and maybe, especially the French, after all, our relationship with France is very good..."

Hearing Cai Ye say this, Pavlov was also overjoyed. "That's what a thank you for."

Speaking of this, Cai Yi smiled and continued. "You're welcome, compared with Soviet Russia, I personally still like you, I believe that Britain and France will not want to see you wiped out by Soviet Russia, so they will definitely support you in this matter, and as long as Britain and France come forward, especially with the face of the French, it should be difficult for the president to refuse, after all, he always has to give the French some face..."

Speaking of this, Cai Yi's face suddenly showed a trace of embarrassment. "But there is one thing that is very difficult, it's just that if you don't say it, it's not very good at all..."

Seeing that Cai Ye's face suddenly changed, Paplov's face also changed slightly, and he was a little apprehensive. "This, please, as long as we can do it, but it doesn't hurt to say it."

"Since you said so, then I'll be blunt...", Cai Ye continued after a deep sigh. Since you are going to withdraw all your men to us, there are some things that must be made clear first, first of all, your troops must have our troops on the way to Siberia to maintain order, and then there is the issue of weapons, since you have entered our territory, then the weapons must be disarmed..."

"This..."Hearing Cai Ye say this, Paplov's face also became a little ugly this time. After all, disarming a weapon or something is no different from disarming. Let the Chinese surrender their weapons, whether those soldiers in the country will agree, Pavlov does not dare to guarantee.

Seeing that Pavlov seemed to be very embarrassed, Cai Ye also said helplessly. "I believe that Mr. Foreign Minister also knows that no country will allow more than 100,000 troops to pass through the territory of their own country with weapons, so this is the only way to do it..."

Speaking of this, Cai Yi comforted again. "Rest assured, the disarming of the weapon is only temporary, and when you arrive in Vladivostok, we will return it to you as it is..."

Pavlov can understand Cai Yi's concerns very well, but after all, this is disarming, and whether those soldiers in China will understand it is another matter. But what Cai Ye said was still very reasonable after all, so Pavlov had no choice but to nod. "I will convey this to Ufa, and I hope that His Excellency the Commander can also convey this news to your government as soon as possible..."

"Rest assured, there will be no problem," Cai assured Pavlov.

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After leaving Cai's room, Pavlov quickly walked in the direction of the communication room, where he needed to send Kolchak the content of the conversation he had just had, and Kolchak would decide the matter.

Just as Cai Ye couldn't make a decision for Yan Shao, Pavlov couldn't make a similar decision for Kolchak.

And in addition to these, Paplov also wrote Cai Yi's mention yì.

On the other hand, although Cai Ye, who was staying in the office, was very excited, he was silent on the surface, and just clenched his fists hard.

More than 100,000 troops entered Siberia, even if Cai Yi solved it, it would be troublesome, and if it was not done well, it would destroy the development of Siberia.

So the first step is to de-arm Kolchak's troops first... (To be continued......)