Tan Shaoguang finally saw the King of the West again, and in eight years, the weak-crowned young man of the year has now become the commander of the powerful side, and the King of the West is one step closer, and he is about to become the emperor of a country.

"Ah, our Tan Yutou is here." Seeing the smiling appearance of the West King, calling out his nickname back then, he felt very cordial in his heart, and recalled in his mind the scene when he took 3,000 young guards to board the British and French warships to the north, and the West King said goodbye at the dock.

"Your Highness, I, I'm ......" Tan Shaoguang choked up in his throat, his eyes were red, and he almost wanted to cry, and he didn't know where to start with a thousand words, as if he had been traveling for many years and returned to his relatives.

King Xi smiled and stepped forward and patted Tan Shaoguang's shoulder fiercely and said, "The man doesn't flick when he has tears, it looks like your little fish head has grown up and grown much stronger." Tan Shaoguang put away his tears, calmed down, smiled and nodded, and the two chatted a few words of gossip as if they were chatting about home. Tan Shaoguang then told the king of the west his carefully prepared work report, and gave a detailed introduction to the situation in the northeast from the military, economy, people's livelihood, commerce, industry and commerce, and so on.

After listening, King Xi said earnestly: "Shaoguang, you have done a good job, you have worked hard all these years, you have done a good job in the north, and this king intends to promote you to a first-class duke." Tan Shaoguang said: "Your Highness, your subordinates are not hard, in the north these years, Your Royal Highness has given your subordinates the greatest trust, and the subordinates of the northern frontier are the feudal officials who represent the kingdom of heaven, and their subordinates are already very content." ”

King Xi smiled and said, "This king knows that your reputation outside is very powerful, and the Koreans and Japanese all call you the governor of the northern part of the heavenly kingdom." There are also those who call you Tan Beishuai, but this time the heavenly kingdom conferred on you the title of duke, but it is the Duke of Nebuchu! ”

Tan Shaoguang was slightly taken aback when he heard this. He said with some anticipation: "Your Highness, Nebuchu is the land of the Russians. ”

King Xi laughed. Pulling Tan Shaoguang to the huge world map of the Qianqing Palace, he pointed to the northern Xinjiang and said: "Now that the border is calm, we will take the initiative to deal with the expeditions of Britain, France and Russia. There is a winged king in Xinjiang, more than 100,000 winged palace soldiers are fighting in Xinjiang, and the winged king is in Xinjiang, I am very relieved over there. Mongolia has Chen Yucheng going, and the Manchu Qingfeng and others who have surrendered to us are assisted. The Mongols also hated the Russians, and when the two sides joined forces, the Russians could not please the Mongols. And in the northeast, all this king can think of is you. ”

Speaking of this, King Xi poured a cup of hot tea for Tan Shaoguang, Tan Shaoguang hurriedly got up and took it, only to hear King Xi continue: "You have fought with the Russians in Northern Xinjiang for many years, you have rich experience, and you are famous in Northern Xinjiang, so this king wants you to continue to lead troops against the Russians in Northern Xinjiang." ”

After Tan Shaoguang heard this. immediately put down the teacup, got up and said loudly: "Your Highness has an order, and your subordinates will not hesitate to go to the soup and fire." Please let go of Your Highness, and I, Tan Shaoguang, will stay in the northern frontier and guard the northeastern territory for the kingdom of heaven. I vow not to lose an inch of my territory! Later, Tan Shaoguang really fulfilled his oath and guarded the northeastern territory of the kingdom of heaven all his life. Until his death decades later, he remained at the place.

King Xi nodded and said, "This king knows your determination. That's good, but it's no joke to make you Duke Nebuchu. The king of the West pointed to the long border between China and Russia and said: "Britain, France and Russia are at war with me, but Russia is the only one that borders my long territory. In the past, when they deduced the battle situation with the General Staff, they always said that to defend such a long border, at least a million soldiers and horses were needed, because the Russian Cossack cavalry came and went like the wind, and it was difficult to defend. ”

Speaking of this, Tan Shaoguang's brows furrowed, and he couldn't help but say, "Your Highness, why does the General Staff blindly think about how to defend?" We can also use offense instead of defense. ”

King Xi patted his thigh and said: "That's right, I'll just say that Tan Shaoguang is suitable to continue to lead troops to the north, you see what you think is the same as this king." Speaking of this, the king of the west pointed to the northeast Nebuchu, Chita and other places: "It is really unwise to passively defend such a long territory, why don't we take the initiative to attack the land that the Russians will take, so as to force the Russians to concentrate their forces on a decisive battle with us?" This king had felt that Nebuchu was a good target for attack, and listening to your account of the Northeast just now strengthened this determination. ”

Tan Shaoguang nodded and said: "What Your Highness said is very true, in the land of Nebuchu, when I was in the northern Xinjiang, I also sent many people to investigate and understand the local situation. This place has a very large silver mine......"

Tan Shaoguang's meticulous work has already investigated the situation of Nebuchu, which is rich in products and mines, and the local silver reserves are still among the best in Russia as of January 2009. Beginning in 1704, the Nebuchu Silver Mine was the only mine in Tsarist Russia to produce silver, and the first silver produced was used in silver galleons dedicated to Peter the Great. To this day, silver from Nebuchu is still an important national industry in Russia, and after the construction of silver mines, many factories have been built in the vicinity of Nebuchu. Each factory was equipped with a penal prison filled with hard laborers from all over the country. Although the natural conditions are very cold, the people of Nebuchu do not worry about eating and drinking, according to Tan Shaoguang's dispatch of detailed work, a settlement of 50 villagers there can catch 4,000 wild sheep a day, and fishing is even easier, which is an example of the abundance of natural resources in Nebuchu.

In 1689, the Qing Dynasty and Tsarist Russia signed the Treaty of Nebuchu here, which later became one of the trade centers between China and Russia. On the other hand, the influx of immigrants, mainly exiles, and the discovery of minerals made it the main town of Transbaikalia. It was not until the completion of the Trans-Siberian Railway in Russia that Chita replaced Nebuchu.

After Tan Shaoguang said the importance of Nebuchu, he continued: "Your Highness wants our Northeast Front Army to go out to attack Nebuchu? ”

King Xi nodded and said: "It is better to take the initiative than to sit and defend, now the Russian Cossack cavalry is still afraid to carry out some attacks, they are waiting for the clarity of their domestic situation, and at the same time waiting for the British and French to start a war in the south of our country, but the Russians want to wait, we don't want him to wait." We take the initiative. Attack Nebuchu and force the Russians to concentrate all their Siberian forces and come to Nebuchu to fight us in a decisive battle. This king is going to settle the war here and completely eliminate the Russian threat to our north. Then you can concentrate on dealing with the upcoming main forces of the Anglo-French alliance in the south! ”

Tan Shaoguang immediately got up and said loudly: "Guarantee to complete the task!" King Xi nodded with satisfaction, waved his hand to signal him to sit down, and said: "The Northeast Front Army has fought very hard in recent years, and this king knows it, but you have to go back and tell everyone that although the Qing army outside the pass has surrendered, it is not yet the time for swords and guns to be put into storage and horses to be put in Nanshan, and we have a more powerful enemy than the Manchu Qing in the north." The Rakshasas are ferocious and encroach on our territory. Constantly building settlements in northern Xinjiang, if we want northern Xinjiang to be stable, we can only fight with them! Taking advantage of the fact that the Manchus have just been defeated, the Northeast Front can rest and prepare for a few days, and then you will immediately lead the army directly to Nebuchu, concentrate the 130,000 troops of the Northeast Front, give the Russians a general battle, and completely destroy their military presence in Siberia! ”

Tan Shaoguang nodded in agreement, and King Xi continued: "The Koreans and Japanese in your army can continue to use it." Nebuchu is a huge treasure trove, and you can promise them that after defeating Nebuchu, you can give them a 30% reward for the silver ore hoarded there. The king hopes that the mercenaries in these places will also be able to use their maximum combat effectiveness! ”

Tan Shaoguang said: "Your Highness, among the armies surrendered by the Manchu Qing Dynasty, I have already ordered people to start the reorganization. Although the Qing army outside the pass is not as elite as our soldiers and horses, it is much stronger than the Qing army inside the pass. Is it possible to mobilize them for war as well? ”

King Xi said with a smile: "Let's discuss this with the leaders of your Northeast Front Army, and the Qing army and the Rakshasa people outside the Guanxi will not deal with each other." The Rakshasas have also killed their people, and there is no problem in mobilizing them for war. You can also tell these Qing soldiers that as long as they have military merits, they will be rewarded in accordance with the laws of the Kingdom of Heaven, and the Kingdom of Heaven will treat those who have meritorious service equally. ”

Then the king of the west said: "Now that it is almost autumn, if this battle is fought well, try to end the battle before winter, otherwise it will be difficult to continue the battle when the cold comes." ”

Tan Shaoguang said: "Your Highness, our Northeast Army has been fighting in northern Xinjiang all year round, and has also launched many winter campaigns, so fighting in winter is not a problem. The Russian governor Muravyov is a cunning fox, and I am afraid that even if Nebuchu is surrounded, he is unlikely to immediately concentrate his forces to come to the rescue, and I suspect that after he learns the news of Nebuchu's siege, he will definitely hold his troops for the first time, hoping to delay until winter, so that we will not be defeated, and we still have to prepare for winter battles. ”

King Xi nodded and said: "You are indeed the most suitable person to go to the northern frontier, and even the thoughts of the Russian commander are clear. Shaoguang, the situation in the Northeast is changing rapidly, this king gives you all the power to deal with the opportunity, I hope you can fight this battle well, as long as you defeat the Russian land troops, even if the British and French troops are in the south in the future, we will not be afraid. But if the Northeast doesn't play well, we won't be able to concentrate on dealing with Britain and France, you must remember! ”

Tan Shaoguang received the order loudly, and finally the king of the west said: "At the same time, the Chen Yucheng department of Mongolia and the Yiwang department of Xinjiang will also respond to your action this time, the Yiwang department will send troops and horses to attack Hohan and other places in Russia, Chen Yucheng will send troops to attack Chukubaixing, Wudi Baixing and other places, and will also send troops to threaten Chita and other places, their actions are all in response to you, you don't need to worry about the threat of the Russian army in the west, just concentrate on fighting the Russian army in Eastern Siberia." After this battle, the Russians will make peace with us alone, and at the same time, the king will want Nebuchu to return to our territory! ”

Tan Shaoguang only felt that his blood was boiling, and he took the order loudly, and before leaving, the king of the West suddenly said: "I heard that in this Jinzhou Campaign, it was an officer named Li Zhong under Rong Lu who took the lead in opening the city gate, so your Jinzhou Campaign can be carried out smoothly?" ”

Tan Shaoguang nodded and said: "Yes, Your Highness, this Li Chong heard him say that he had been captured by our Taiping Army before, and later let him back, seeing that the Manchu Dynasty was gone, and at the same time he was very dissatisfied with Rong Lu and others joining forces with foreigners, so he defected." ”

King Xi bowed slightly: "This person, you can go out with a team, if he makes a contribution, this king will not be stingy with the reward......" (To be continued......)