After the report of the military observation group, Li Jianyang was assigned the task of observing the offensive and defensive battles of Lushun nearby, and his wife and family were placed in the city of Dalian, enjoying the calm of the war.

In Surrey, there are often some drinking parties between officers from various countries, but they do not feel lonely.

Whenever the Japanese army had a major offensive operation, it would notify the observers of various countries in advance and gather to go to the front line, and in this regard, the Japanese army did a very good job.

On June 26, 1904, the Japanese army resumed military operations on the Liaodong Peninsula, during which more than 10 battles were carried out, and more or less encountered stubborn resistance from the Russian army.

One month later, the 3rd Army resumed its offensive against Arthur.

At this time, the 44th and 7th divisions of the Russian army, defending the passes on the periphery of Arthur, had 40,000 troops, 646 artillery pieces, and 62 machine guns, and could be supported by the artillery of warships in Port Arthur, and their strength was quite not weak.

General Stessel, who was in charge of the defense of Arthur, from the beginning of the fall of Golden State, advocated abandoning all important places on the periphery of Arthur, retreating into the fortress, and waiting for reinforcements.

Now, the Japanese army is besieging on a large scale, and General Stessel has no way to retreat, so he can only hold on to the fortress and live and die with Lushun.

If he really lost this strategic place, Tsar Nicholas II would never spare him, and even the family would be affected by this, and there was only one way to resist desperately.

The Japanese army besieging Lushun amounted to 60,000 troops, 400 artillery pieces, and 72 machine guns, and at the same time, the Japanese blocked the port with a combined fleet in order to capture the fortified positions of Lushun in one fell swoop.

Judging from the comparison of troops, the Japanese army has an advantage of one and a half times, but in terms of heavy weapons and equipment such as artillery and machine guns, it is basically equal to the defenders, and the strength advantage is not obvious.

The longer the time is delayed, the more disadvantageous it will be for the Japanese army.

In the face of the difficult hard bone of the Lushun Fortress, which had been operated by the Russian army for a long time, the Japanese army could only rise to the challenge due to the situation.

On August 7, 1904, the Japanese launched a major attack.

The primary goal is to capture the commanding heights of the frontier on the periphery of the Lushun Fortress ~ Dagushan and Xiaogushan.

The Japanese army fought 12 battalions against 3 battalions of the Russian army, and the two sides fought fiercely for 4 days for these two tactical points, and finally most of the Russian troops were killed in battle, and the high ground fell into the hands of the Japanese army.

Due to the unfavorable position of attacking from the back, the fortress on Dagu Mountain was densely packed, and it was very difficult to attack, and the Japanese army also paid a heavy price of more than 3,000 casualties.

On August 10, 1904, the Russian fleet, on the orders of General Alekseev, tried to break through the blockade and fled to Vladivostok.

However, due to Witheft's poor preparation and improper command, the fleet came out of the port and encountered the Fuso Combined Fleet head-on, thus breaking out the Sino-Japanese naval battle in the Yellow Sea.

In the artillery battle, General Witheft was killed on the spot, the rest of the ships were forced to retract to their bases, and only a few of them fled to neutral ports and were disarmed.

On August 12, 1904, the Vladivostok Squadron was destroyed by the Second Fleet led by the Japanese General Hikonosei Uemura in the Battle of Ulsan.

On August 19, 1904, the Japanese army launched a strong attack on the Lushun Fortress, attacking day and night, with shells flying on the battlefield, and the battle was extremely tragic.

The two sides fought fiercely until August 24, although the Japanese captured some forward fortifications, but suffered about 20,000 casualties (13 of the total strength), the fierce offensive momentum suffered a heavy setback, the morale of the officers and men was low, and a sense of despair permeated from top to bottom.

The fortress of Arthur Fortress, which the Russian army had operated for a long time, was strong, and the Japanese soldiers were almost facing the enemy's machine gun strafing and artillery fire.

Some infantry brigades fought until all their members were exhausted, and only a few wounded and sick of more than 800 people survived, and the rest died on the way to the charge, and the sky and earth were bloody.

In view of this, the Japanese army had to abandon its plan to quickly capture Lushun and instead resort to a long-term siege.

At the same time as the Japanese army stormed Lushun, they were preparing for the Battle of Liaoyang.

The South Manchurian General Headquarters originally planned to draw the 3rd Army for the Liaoyang direction after conquering Lushun. However, the plan could not keep up with the changes, the 3rd Army's offensive was seriously frustrated, and it was unable to extract from the Lushun battle situation, and the postponement of the battle of Liaoyang was unfavorable to the entire battle situation.

As time passed, Russian reinforcements would arrive from the hinterland.

To this end, the South Manchurian General Headquarters of Fuso must seize the opportunity to use the existing strength of the 1st, 2nd, and 4th armies, totaling 135,000 troops, to concentrate 474 artillery pieces to annihilate the main force of the Russian army assembled in the Liaoyang area in one fell swoop.

The main force of the Russian army assembled in the Liaoyang area totaled 160,000 people, and the strength was superior, but it was in a state of blind defense, and the front-line generals did not seek merit, but did not seek fault. In the face of the Japanese army, there was no plan to attack decisively.

After more than half a year of brutal war, the Tsarist Russian army saw the bravery of the Japanese army regardless of sacrifice, the original arrogance turned into psychological fear, and the balance of victory quietly changed.

Dalian City

In a private house

Li Jianyang has lived in this small city for more than three months, during which time he has traveled back and forth to the front line of Lushun many times, witnessing the cruelty of the war with his own eyes.

"Come on, Brother Zhong, Brother Baoli, please taste the delicious food of the world today, this can't be eaten anywhere else!" Li Jianyang warmly greeted the two brothers to take their seats.

The copper hot pot on the dining table has an enticing aroma, the pieces of meat tumbling in the broth, and the meat and vegetable shabu-shabu are placed next to it, which makes people salivate when they see it.

Entering September

The strong cold air from northern Siberia dominated the northeast, and the temperature plummeted by more than ten degrees overnight.

Colonel Li Zhong and Colonel Wu Baoli opened the cotton curtain one after the other and stepped into the main room, and were immediately surrounded by warmth, and two pots of coals were burning in the main room to keep the room at a suitable temperature.

"Yo he, I can smell the smell of anything delicious today." Colonel Wu Baoli took off his woolen coat, handed it to the maid beside him, and couldn't wait to come forward to inspect it; "Dog meat pot...... Right? ”

"Brother Poly is as wise as a torch, and he can't hide anything from you." Captain Li Jianyang replied with a smile.

Colonel Li Zhong also took off his woolen coat, walked over to look at Colonel Wu Baoli, and said teasingly; "Where is his discernment, but he is just a gluttonous cat with a sharp nose."

"Brother Zhong, you still understand me, hahahaha......"

In this cold season

Sitting around the table and enjoying delicious dog meat hot pot is undoubtedly one of life's great joys, which is not available in Australia, because sheepdogs are the most beloved companions of ranchers, and it is impossible to slaughter and eat meat.

Not in Somalia, where African hyenas and dingoes are scavengers, and meat is not edible, with a lot of germs and an unpleasant smell.

The wine has passed three rounds, and the dishes have passed five flavors.

During the banquet, several people ate steaming, their faces were full of red light, and they couldn't help but talk about the current war when they put down their chopsticks.

Colonel Wu Baoli asked; "Brother Jianyang, the Battle of Liaoyang is about to begin, are you going to take a look?"

"I don't want to go, there are too many dead people every day during this time, so much that they are greasy, the war has been going on for more than half a year, the Japanese and Russian armies have killed and wounded more than 100,000 people, and Lushun at the end of August is going to be in the offensive and defensive battle, and several wings of the Japanese army have been wiped out, and no one has survived, and a strong smell of blood can be smelled from a few kilometers away, which is really cruel."

Speaking of which

Li Jianyang sighed deeply and said in a vicissitudes of life that did not match his age; "I'd rather be a peace dog than a troubled world, the small city of Dalian, half of the city is full of wounded soldiers, and the common people are forced to serve the Japanese army, which makes me feel that this city has no other color except killing, and I am really a little tired."

What he said resonated with Colonel Li Zhong, who took the wine glass in front of him and drank it all and said; "It's really nothing to see, the Tsarist Russian team's housekeeping skill is a white-edged charge, and the Japanese army's specialty is also a pig rush charge, this war is like a wild boar colliding together, there is no big reference significance. Compared to the Boer War, which has just ended, it is more like the old tactics of 100 years ago. ”

"Yes, in this war, you can't see the interspersed detours in great depth, you can't see the flexible tactics, the Tsarist Russian army is defending to the death, there is no eye-catching defensive counterattack at all, the Fuso army is attacking to the death, if you can't attack the front, you will attack on the side, and if you can't attack on the side, you will turn to the front and then attack hard, and what you hear is the sound of fists to the flesh."

What Brother Poly said is exactly, seeing this scene, I can't help but think of the Qing court's famous general Zeng Guofan's tactics of "hardening the village and fighting a dumb battle", maybe our position is not high enough, and this kind of large-scale battle is more secure step by step. Debatable...... The level of artillery use by both Japan and Russia is too low, and this is the crux of the situation that neither side can open. ”

Although Captain Li Jianyang is not very old, he has a lot of combat experience, and he is a professional officer who graduated from the artillery department of the Royal Sandhurst Military University in the United Kingdom.

Several of his military observation reports were highly praised by the upper peak.

In view of the difficulties of the Japanese army in conquering the Lushun fortress, it was difficult for ordinary artillery to pry open the heavy defensive fortress, and it was necessary to use large-caliber mortars to smash the thick turtle shell of the Lushun fortress.

However, the Japanese commander's one-sided emphasis on the spiritual role of bravely killing the enemy, blindly attacking and suffering heavy casualties in the rain of bullets formed by the heavy machine guns and artillery of the Tsarist Russian defenders, has to be said to be a great failure.

From a purely military point of view, such a sacrifice is completely meaningless.

Colonel Wu Baoli thought for a moment, knocked lightly on the table, and after arousing the ideas of the two people, he said; "It seems to me that it is military common sense that the Japanese generals could not have imagined the role of large-caliber mortars in the capture of such a fortified target as the Arthur fortress.

There are two reasons why it has not been adopted;

First, the Japanese front generals underestimated the resistance of the Tsarist Russian troops, underestimated the difficulties of the battle, and were not well prepared before the war, and there were no large-caliber mortars that could be used together.

Second, Fusang has a custom of "not bothering people", and it is especially face-saving, preferring to drive soldiers to fill the bottomless flesh and blood mill of Lushun Fortress than to open their mouths to ask for help.

A typical "death to save face and live to suffer".

As a result, the battle turned into a war of attrition, and the veteran soldiers of the division were tired and had to switch to long-term siege tactics, which was really a last resort. ”

"It makes sense to think about it, I agree with you." Colonel Li Zhong nodded and said with great feeling; "These Japanese soldiers are well-trained and very tenacious in combat, but unfortunately they are consumed as cannon fodder in vain, and it is really not worth it."

"Then Brother Zhong, who do you think will win the battle of Liaoyang?"

"I am more inclined to the Japanese army, the Russian army occupies the advantage of manpower and firepower, but General Kuropatkin put on a stubborn posture and gave up the initiative in the campaign, and on the 75-kilometer-long defensive line, the Japanese army has the opportunity to form an advantage by gathering heavy troops locally, and if there is a breakthrough, the whole line will be defeated."

The Tsarist Russian army in the Liaoyang area was heavily assembled, and the defense formed three positions.

The first forward position is 75 kilometers long, located about 30 kilometers south and southeast of Liaoyang, in a semi-circular shape, and the wing protects the rear security.

22 kilometers behind the forward position, a second line of positions was set up, which was only 8 kilometers away from Liaoyang City, and consisted of trenches, pillboxes and barbed wire, which seemed to be heavily defended.

The third position was on the outskirts of Liaoyang, and the Russian army divided its troops to guard the above three positions, killed the idea of not taking the lead, and passively waited for the defense.

The originally superior forces and firepower were scattered on the three positions, and it became a situation where they had to defend everywhere and were not strong everywhere, leaving the Japanese army with an opportunity to take advantage of.

This situation

Colonel Wu Baoli felt that it was necessary to make a frontal feint to contain the Russian army, and the main force should carry out a large-depth roundabout maneuver and break through the weak defense in the north of Liaoyang in one fell swoop.

At that time, the main forces of the Tsarist Russian army were scattered in the field positions, and the troops and feints that occupied Liaoyang City carried out a flanking attack, which blossomed inside and outside, and since it was able to achieve a complete victory.

As a matter of fact

The South Manchurian General Headquarters of the Japanese Army still has the same set of frontal attack tactics, the main purpose of which is to select the weak points of the Russian army's defense to carry out frontal attacks, and if the battle situation is unfavorable, it will attack from the side.

Therefore, several people did not have a high evaluation of the tactical literacy of the Japanese commanders, and even even lower their evaluations of the commanders of the Tsarist Russian army, and they directly failed.

The generals of the military observation missions of various countries will not stay on the front line for a long time, and Major General Fox only stayed in Dalian for more than ten days, and then left here by boat for Shanghai.

Lieutenant General Duan Qirui stayed for more than a month, and then went to the Luzon Islands by boat to inspect the troops, and no one knew when he would return, and no one dared to ask, and it was estimated that he would definitely come back at the end of the year, and he might be able to catch up with the Liaoyang Campaign.

The main force of the military observation missions of various countries is these colonels, lieutenant colonels, and major officers, and Colonel Li Zhong and Colonel Wu Baoli can go later, but they will certainly not miss the Liaoyang Campaign.

On the contrary, Captain Li Jianyang can be lazy and inspect the Japanese army's battlefield to rescue the wounded, replenish the reserve force, adjust the recovery system, replenish logistics, and provide military medical forces, which are also the duties of military observers.

These measures, some of which are plus points and some are minus points in the sand table deduction, have a non-negligible impact on the final result, and are also one of the components of combat effectiveness.

Overall

Several military observers had a low opinion of the Japanese and Russian commanders, and a very high evaluation of the Japanese and Russian soldiers.

As long as the soldiers of Fusang have a rice ball, they can sacrifice their lives to fight, and the soldiers of Tsarist Russia only need a piece of black bread to hang their lives, and they can fight without ambiguity.

What was lacking was that the Tsarist commanders were greedy for life and afraid of death, their tactics were rigid and rigid, and their level was outrageously low, full of mistakes and omissions, and they were blind to the hard-working Russian soldiers like mules.