Mid-May 2014

Li Jianyang has embarked on a journey to the Far East, and he has been appointed as a member of the British Military Observer Mission in the Far East, and will go to the three northeastern provinces to observe the performance of the Japanese and Russian armies in the bloody battle up close.

The dispatch of military observers to both sides of the war is a common practice in our time.

Planned

Li Jianyang will disembark in Humen City, meet his wife and family for a few days of rest, and then take his wife and family on a journey to the Far East.

Today's Japan and Russia are fighting like a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, all of them are fighting red-eyed, and the war cannot end during this time, so it can only be discussed in the long run.

During his time away from London, he lent his "Crown-Royal World" car to Churchill for use, and kept the driver Ah Ghost to facilitate Churchill's travel.

With such a high-end and luxurious car, it would be too embarrassing to drive it yourself.

At this moment

Northeast china

On February 6, 1904, the Japanese Combined Fleet attacked the Russian Pacific Fleet in Port Arthur, which triggered the Russo-Japanese War, which lasted for more than three months.

After the Japanese army gained sea supremacy, the Fuso Army landed on March 21 and marched north at the Korean town of Nampo, opening the prelude to the land war.

The early days of the war

After reaching the left bank of the Yalu River, the attacking Japanese army broke through the defense of the "Dongman Detachment" of more than 20,000 people commanded by Lieutenant General Zasulich and advanced to Jiulian City.

After the bloody battle, the Russian army suffered heavy losses and was forced to break through, and the Japanese army further occupied the Phoenix area, thus opening the door to the northeast, and the next big army approached Liaoyang.

meanwhile

The 2nd Army (4 divisions, about 40,000 men, 216 guns, commanded by General Obaogong) landed at Piziwo in the southeast of the Liaodong Peninsula in early May in an attempt to capture Lushun from the north.

At the end of May 1904, the 2nd Army entered Golden State.

Defending the area was the Russian 4th Infantry Division, a 18,000-man division (131 guns, commanded by General Fokk), which was responsible for covering the area north of Arthur.

After a bloody battle, the 4th Infantry Division under the command of General Fokker suffered heavy losses, and the commander of the Russian army on the Liaodong Peninsula, Stepel, ordered the Falk Division to abandon Dalian and retreat straight in the direction of Lushun.

The Japanese then occupied Jinzhou and Dalian and advanced towards Lushun.

At this point, the unprecedented bloody battle for Arthur is about to begin.

Port Arthur is the main port of the Tsarist Pacific Fleet, and its strategic significance is very important, as long as Arthur continues to be in the hands of Russia, the Great Flat Ocean Fleet can threaten the sea lines of communication of the Japanese troops landing in "South Manchuria" at any time.

Without the occupation of Arthur, the Japanese army would not be able to conduct large-scale ground operations in the northeast, and the logistics fleet would always be seriously threatened.

Any warship of the Tsarist Pacific Fleet would inflict unacceptably heavy losses on the slow cargo fleet, which was a one-sided killing, so the Japanese had to take Port Arthur.

The Japanese Second Army then attacked Lushun in battle, but was stubbornly resisted by the Russian army, and the two sides launched a tragic white-knuckle bloody battle, and the attacking Japanese army was counterattacked several times and suffered heavy losses.

The corpses of the attacking soldiers were strewn all over the hills, artillery fire and blood enveloped the land, and the Second Army had to pause and wait for reinforcements after the attack was frustrated.

After the landing of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th armies of the Fuso Army, the "General Headquarters of the Manchurian Army" was established on June 20, 1904, with Marshal Dashanyan as the director

Commander-in-Chief, unified command of the ministries.

For nearly one month, the Japanese side actively prepared for the second attack on Lushun, specially organized the 3rd Army to carry out this task (the 2nd Army had been ordered to go north), and appointed Nogi Noshinori as the commander.

This man served as a brigade commander during the First Sino-Japanese War, conquered Lushun in one fell swoop, and was familiar with the area, and this was the second time he set foot on this land.

Most of the artillery of the 3rd Army was siege artillery, ready to open the way with heavy artillery fire, forcefully tear a hole, and open the door to victory for the Japanese army.

When the Japanese army was preparing for the Battle of Artshun, the Russian army was not idle, and began to gather heavy troops to approach Arthur, preparing to defend this fateful strategic location, no matter what the cost.

Tsar Nicholas II paid close attention to the situation in the Far East and instructed the commander-in-chief of the Russian army in the Far East, Kuropatkin, to launch an offensive, instructing him to "take responsibility for the fate of Arthur."

He warned Kuropatkin saying:

The loss of Arthur would be a new and heaviest blow, which would damage Russia's political and military prestige not only in the Far East, but also in the Near East, Central Asia, and Europe.

Undoubtedly, Russia's enemies will take advantage of this to embarrass us as much as possible, and friends will abandon Russia as a weak ally.

Under the strict orders of the Tsar, Kuropatkin sent 1 corps (the 1st Siberian Army under the command of Stackerburg) to the south to support Arthur.

On June 14~15, 1904, the army encountered the Japanese 2nd Army in the area of Deli Temple and Wafangdian, and the Russian army was defeated and retreated in disarray.

Since then, Lushun has been completely cut off from the main forces of the Russian army in the northeast and has become an isolated city.

In order to attack Lushun, the Japanese army had to ensure the security of the rear so that it would not be attacked by the heavy Russian army grouping in the area south of Liaoyang.

Therefore, in late June 1904, the 3st Army, the 2nd Army, and the 4th Army (landing from Dagushan) began to move in the direction of Liaoyang, in an attempt to contain the Russian army in this place and create conditions for the Third Army to attack Lushun.

That's when it happened

Lieutenant Li Jianyang, who came all the way from Britain, took his wife and beautiful relatives to Dalian, which had just been hit by the war, settled down in a still intact private house, and then went to the British Military Observation Mission to report.

At this time, Dalian is a small city with a population of only tens of thousands, and as far as the eye can see, there are wooden buildings of the Ming and Qing dynasties everywhere, and the central street is a paved stone road, because of the age, it is trampled on smooth and concave.

The British Military Observer Corps was set up in a wealthy merchant's house, which was a traditional Chinese courtyard layout, and there were gun-wielding Baotou Asan soldiers guarding the door.

Facing is a photo wall, and turning around is the main hall.

In addition to the soldiers wearing the uniforms of the British and Japanese troops, there were also officers from Germany, the United States, the United States, the United States, France, Italy, and other countries.

"Oh, Mr. Lieutenant, please come here."

He was greeted by Captain George, the liaison officer, who enthusiastically introduced Li Jianyang to the head of the British Military Observer Corps, Major General Fox, who was a very tall Scotsman with a stern expression and a non-inhibited smile.

After a few brief pleasantries

Major General Fox left with a wine glass, and walked to the side to chat with Lieutenant General Duan Qirui, the head of the Military Observation Mission of the Ocean Empire, in his mind;

A small lieutenant, even if he is of aristocratic origin, is not worth paying attention to.

"Ignore him, Mr. Major General is a very rigid soldier, as long as he doesn't violate military discipline, he is still a good person." Captain George, the liaison officer, had a lot of potential to chatter, and he didn't need Li Jianyang to ask, so he took the initiative to introduce him and help him get to know the members of the military observation missions of various countries.

The other side

Major General Fox was chatting with Lieutenant General Duan Qirui, and after a few brief words about the weather, he went straight to the point;

"Your Excellency, as far as I know, your army has been reorganized, focusing on strengthening the artillery equipment, and has equipped the baggage regiment with a large number of mules, horses, and animal power, is this to prepare for the high-intensity ground war?"

"Yes, Your Excellency, you also saw the aggressive momentum of the Fuso people in the offensive, and we should be prepared for this."

"Hehehe...... Indeed, these short men are like a pack of bloodthirsty wolves, and the frenzy with which they fight is astonishing, and the fearless Russians in the white-edged charge are really puzzling, what sustains them in a fight that sacrifices their lives to the death, even if they are stabbed in the stomach, to inflict damage on the enemy? ”

"There is a proverb in the East; It is called the poor mountains and bad waters. Lieutenant General Duan Qirui's very personable hands spread out and made a helpless expression; These Fuso people are poor and have nothing, only a wild dog-like cheap life, a rice ball with a little pickles can drive them to sell their lives, which can't be done in the UK, and it can't be done in the Ocean Empire, so we have to prepare more firepower to strike, this is the original intention of the reorganized army. ”

"Bingo, I very much agree with you, Your Excellency Lieutenant General." Major General Fox nodded approvingly, and turned his head to look at the Fuso officers who were only up to his chest, and the haughty and contemptuous look in his eyes was not concealed at all.

Fusang is a dog that the British let out to bite, and the owner does not need to respect the dog.

"Out of goodwill Your Excellency, Lieutenant General, I have to remind you of the existence of the Anglo-Japanese alliance, and for the foreseeable future, the British and Japanese will always maintain an alliance relationship, and I don't think it is possible for the Fuso people to cross the ocean to the Australian mainland, and perhaps your army has overreacted."

"Dogs may not bite, but a dog-beating stick is necessary, isn't it?"

"The analogy is very apt, I understand."

"Mr. General, from the previous battles, I can see the strong aggressiveness of the Japanese army, maybe with the accumulation of one victory after another, they may swell to the extent that they are empty-eyed, and it is also possible to attack the master, so I have to guard against it!"

"Thank you for your kind advice, the British Empire still has full confidence in this, if Fuso is a continental military power, maybe London is still more tricky about this, but he is a barren island country......"

Speaking of which

Major General Fox smiled meaningfully, and it was all in it.

Duan Churui was originally a very smart person, and he also laughed when he heard the song and knew the elegance.

Fuso has indeed shown great military power, so how can this be?

How can your army be able to arm millions of soldiers in the same way that the Tsarist army in Europe has changed?

The loan that should be repaid cannot be less than a penny, so that you are not allowed to go east and not west, and you must bite whoever you bite, and you must have the consciousness of being a lackey.

Otherwise, the British Empire could teach Fusang to be a man in minutes, and he would not even be able to eat a rice ball.

In front of the Royal Navy of the British Empire, which crisscrossed the seven seas, he could block the island country of Fuso into an isolated island at any time, and he himself collapsed without fighting.

This is the power of a strong navy, a soldier who surrenders without a fight.

In the back of your head, take a look at the mighty fleet anchored in the Portsmouth Strait of England, and think about what you did wrong. It should be sober.