While the Ming army was in full swing to conquer Papua and the southwest Pacific region, military operations against the northwest were also being carried out in an orderly manner.

The Anxi Army, which was formed in Lanzhou, has been stationed in Kazakhstan and Abakan, with a total of four infantry divisions, including orderly personnel, about 80,000 horses.

Because of the poor road conditions, the two field heavy artillery brigades that were originally assigned to them basically stayed in Lanzhou in the end, and each infantry division only brought a few 144mm howitzers, which everyone felt was enough.

The Imperial Court had been closely monitoring the situation in these places for several months, and the agents of the Intelligence Department of the Governor's Office and the commissioners of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Ministry of Rites analyzed the various separatist forces and military leaders in the area, and made tentative contacts to finally select suitable candidates.

Some of these separatist forces have their own evil intentions, some want to strive for the establishment of an independent country, some want to be protected by the Ming Dynasty, and some simply want to be the king and dominate the king.

According to the order of the imperial court commissioner, it was necessary to knock on the mountain and shock the tiger, and the 15th Infantry Division, which belonged to the Anxi Army, went straight to Tashkent as soon as it left the country, where the hostile separatist forces were defeated at the first blow and crushed after a reattack.

In general, the armed intervention of the Ming army in the Kazakh and Abakan regions was very smooth, and even if there were many locals who were hostile and dissatisfied, few dared to translate it into practical action.

People are afraid of settling accounts after the autumn.

In the Siberian direction, the Lingbei Army also arrived at the first line of the Trans-Siberian Railway after a long march, and then went all the way to the west, stationed in Irkutsk, Novosibirsk, Yekaterinburg and other important cities.

Although they can catch the train, these barren mountains and mountains are really not suitable for human activities, and the whole army can be described as embarrassed for more than a month.

Now, in the vast wilderness east of the Ural Mountains, all the generals of the garrison finally declared their allegiance to Lieutenant General Ilya's Siberian Defense Committee.

Lieutenant General Ilya Egorov, on the other hand, had a good conversation with the Ming side on both big and small matters, which was undoubtedly a good thing for the local military and civilians, at least to avoid the disaster of the army.

According to the summary of various sources, the Ming court believed that this Lieutenant General Ilya was a conservative who was content in a corner, did not have much ambition, and only wanted to enjoy the superiority above 10,000 people in the local area.

This kind of person is relatively easy to handle and is a good object of support.

After a short rest, the Lingbei Army quickly organized an expeditionary force, with an infantry division and a field heavy artillery brigade as the core, supplemented by six regiments of servant troops.

Trains came and went, and the 30,000-strong force marched westward, crossing the Eurasian dividing line and heading straight for Izhevsk.

Last time, the troops sent by the Siberian Defense Forces also tried to plunder Izhevsk, but in the end, due to the enemy's brutality and insufficient preparation, the troops were defeated and had to retreat.

It's not what it used to be, if the last time it was just a few thousand people who were looking for hardship, then this time it's serious.

The Siberian Defense Army was on the thigh, and the officers who had suffered the defeat were gearing up, clamoring to defeat the National Republican Army there.

"I hope they can return victorious, it's a big military industrial city, if they can successfully capture it, it will be just a small matter to move back thousands of machines and equipment."

In the duty room of the Staff Office of the Metropolitan Governor's Mansion, Cheng Han poured himself a cup of tea, and then raised his eyes to look at Zhou Changfeng a few steps away.

The latter crossed his waist and stared at the several maps hanging from several pylons, looking thoughtful.

He asked, "Do you have any consideration for the Army's thoughts?" ”

It is not wrong to pick a soft pinch of persimmons, but Zhou Changfeng feels that Indu's human resources are too abundant, with a population of 380 million, and about 2.5 million people have been mobilized to fight during the Great War in history, and it is not the limit.

The Ming army was able to play a good exchange ratio against the British and Indian armies, but considering that the British rule in Indu was relatively strong, it was much stronger than that of the Dutch East Indu.

The opponent has countless soldiers, and even if he wins many battles, it will be difficult to catch pigs.

Cheng Han took a sip of tea and muttered: "At least 20 divisions and 500,000 troops are required to send troops to India, and the Siam-Burma Railway can basically be guaranteed after it is completed, but this is also the upper limit." ”

"If you can invest in such a heavy army group at one time, it will be a play, but if you increase the troops one by one, you will not be able to form an advantage in a short period of time, and you will definitely fall into a stalemate in the end." Zhou Changfeng said very firmly.

"Yes, that's the problem." Cheng Han stood up from his chair and stretched out his index finger to circle the map, "If it can't be solved in a short time, it will be a stalemate, a large number of troops of the national dynasty are contained in the South Asian subcontinent, and the consumption is really too great." ”

"It is necessary to avoid fighting on two fronts." Zhou Changfeng's tone was firm, "The resources of the mainland plus the South Seas are already sufficient, and now we must concentrate on putting the Americans at the negotiating table." ”

Cheng Han, who looked indifferent, said leisurely: "But the ocean is the stage of the navy and the air force after all, and the army can only be subordinate to them...... It's hard to do. ”

The guys in the upper echelons of the Ming Army are not fuel-efficient lamps, and it is really embarrassing for them to honestly follow the strategy and behavior of the Navy and Air Force.

And they feel like they're in control and confident.

Now that more and more troops have been expanded, how can we just recruit troops and not send troops, and if we are idle, we will be idle.

The strategy of Indu is mainly based on land warfare, and there is no need to occupy much naval strength, the Ming Navy can send a detachment fleet to help out, and the rest will be handed over to the army and air force!

"Uh......" Zhou Changfeng rolled his eyes, covered his forehead and said, "This ...... I can't say. ”

Both within the Ming Army and among the people are actually changing in a more positive and enterprising direction.

Most of the officers and men have the expectation of making meritorious contributions, and so many of them are waiting to fight in the war, receive meritorious service, be promoted to official positions, and make a fortune, and if they don't find a place to fight, will it be difficult to go to the Pacific Island to catch crabs and count sand?

And the folk are the same, regardless of the literati and ink writers sprinkled poetry as endowments, in fact, the vast rural areas of the Ming Dynasty have gradually become popular to send Ding as a soldier.

As we all know, rural people are often realistic and utilitarian, and when they bring some good things back to their families during the New Year, the whole family has a light on their faces, and every family in the village should take a high look.

And a series of battles to pacify the South Seas captured a lot, and even ordinary soldiers could get some oil and water.

A typical Ming army infantryman usually came from the countryside, and there was no shortage of labor for several siblings, so one of the male (often the youngest adult son) was sent to the army.

For example, if Li Si was part of an infantry division in the South Seas, he would probably be able to send home trophies such as watches, pocket watches, pens, and even cameras.

Imagine what kind of scene it will be - the postman just entered the village and greeted loudly from afar, and suddenly the whole village knew that the youngest son of the Li family in the west of the village was promising, and the news became more and more exaggerated......

As a result, while complimenting, other people in the village will inevitably envy them, and naturally they will also wonder whether they should let their men join the army.

To put it nicely, this is the gradual recovery of the martial arts of the Qin and Han dynasties.

To put it mildly, this is the intensification of aggression and plunder.

Zhou Changfeng also felt that the people's customs were uncontrollable, and it was a waste to let the million-strong army have nothing to do on the Pacific islands.

Cheng Han, who is a colleague of the General Staff Office, has an ambiguous attitude and does not seem to plan to express his intention to interfere with the army's ideas.

After going home and resting for the night, Zhou Changfeng entered the palace to meet him.

Yellow jacket skirt, white shawl, Zhu Lingjing's warm colors today look very gentle, and she leans on the back of the chair very casually as a thought.

"See Your Majesty."

"Coming? You're not sick yet, are you? ”

"It's almost, it's not serious, it should be okay in the next two days."

"Take care of yourself." Zhu Lingjing's right hand supported her cheek, and she asked with a smile: "Do you want to go to the Tai Hospital to have a look?" Or I'll give you a pulse check. ”

Zhou Changfeng didn't have the slightest intention of chatting and laughing now, he hurriedly waved his hand, and took half a step back, "Don't don't, don't be blessed, no blessed." ”

"Okay, whatever you want, what do you want to say today?"

"Hmm...... Mainly for Australia and Indo, I think we should finalize the general direction of the strategy, and we can't change it at will. ”

Daming can't be called a hammer in the east and a mallet in the west, and the original strategic plan is actually very clear-

In the early days, it was mainly on the defensive in the Central Pacific region, and mainly offensive in the southwest Pacific region, encircling Australia and sending reinforcements, trying to annihilate the main force of the US Pacific Fleet; Later, it turned to the offensive in the Central Pacific, trying to attack Hawaii and capture Oahu.

But now that the situation has exceeded expectations, many have asked to change their original strategy, abandon the attack on Australia, or attack Indu instead.

Zhu Lingjing also smiled, and said nonchalantly: "Attacking Macao is a key player in the big chess game, and it can't be stopped." ”

There is a military alternative to luring the U.S. fleet by attacking Australia, such as Wake Island or Midway, but politically it is the only option.

She continued: "As for the war against Britain and India, it is feasible, but it will have to wait until the situation in Australia settles." ”

Zhou Changfeng pondered for a few seconds, and then hesitated: "Your Majesty, is this the emperor's opinion?" ”

Zhu Lingjing glanced at him obliquely, noncommittal, which was equivalent to acquiescence.

After a long while, she spoke: "Father is still too steady, if it is according to my thoughts, it is time to encourage and encourage those people in the Rush Society, and then pardon a few people out of prison, and pick a few more things to publicize." ”

The disaster not only led to the arrest and destruction of the two radical ultra-right factions of the Endeavor Society and the Youth Yongyue Society, but even the relatively rational and normal Pioneer Rapid Advancement Association was also suppressed.

In Zhu Lingjing's view, it is time to do everything possible to arouse the fighting spirit and spirit of the people, encourage the ultra-right faction, and release some of the arrested guys.

However, Zhu Shiyan was still wary of these people, so he refused to use this method - that couldn't be helped, the emperor didn't agree, and the emperor didn't have a problem.

The stroke left Zhu Shiyan with a lot of sequelae, and his physical condition was good and bad, and it was even worse since a few months ago, but it was obviously impossible for him to hand over the core decision-making power to others while he was still alive.

At this time, Zhu Lingjing changed her words and talked about the situation in Europe.

"The battle for Moscow is over, and it seems that it will not be settled for a while. Well, good thing. ”

▇▇▇ The troops (red) have launched a large-scale offensive against the National Republican Army in the past month and a half, smashing several of the latter's defensive lines one after another.

At the beginning of the campaign, 11 divisional units of the National Republican Army were completely annihilated or severely damaged, and the battle line was retreated from Smolensk to the Moscow line.

After that, the ▇▇▇ troops (red) stormed the city of Moscow, and fierce street fighting broke out between the two sides. The bloody battle lasted for half a month, but the follow-up was weak, and the end of the strong crossbow was finally defeated, and the army was defeated under the city of Moscow.

In this battle, the troops (red) lost a large amount of weapons and equipment, and had to send three groups of commissioners to Berlin in succession to seek support.

The National Republican Army received support from the United States, and the first merchant fleet from Seattle passed through the Bering Strait before the end of its navigation period, and made its way west to Arkhangelsk via the harsh Arctic Ocean route.

The Americans gave 120 M2A2 light tanks, 27 M2 medium tanks, 66 P-36 fighters, 350 M2 105mm howitzers, and 400 trucks in one go.

Again, this is due to the rush of time, which must be crossed before the beginning of the Bering Strait ice period, and it is too late to mobilize more weapons and equipment, otherwise it will at least double.

At the same time, in the Caucasus direction, the Red Eagle Regiment also fought a major battle with the British Expeditionary Force from afar.

In order to prevent the German Society from taking advantage of the Baku oil fields, London's Zhengmi banner masters can be described as unscrupulous.

The 44th, 84th, and 158th squadrons of the Royal Air Force took off from mainland China and moved to colonial Jordan and finally to the French colony of Beirut.

Dozens of Wheatley MkII medium bombers carried out numerous strategic bombings of Baku, destroying a considerable number of production wells and refineries.

The British 50th Infantry Division, which had been stationed in Cairo, and the 1st South African Infantry Division, which had arrived later, formed an expeditionary force and marched through Turkish territory to Baku.

The Red Eagle Regiment was on high alert, and the 4th Mountain Division and the 33rd Infantry Division, to which it belonged, took up positions in time, and fighting broke out in and around Shirvan.

In the middle of the battle, the commander of the 4th Mountain Division was wounded by British artillery fire, and Chief of Staff Ferdinand Schellner took command and struck the head of the British 50th Infantry Division with subtle tactics.

In a battle that broke out on December 9, the Edelweiss disassembled two GebG36 mountain guns into parts, carried them onto the cliff, and bombarded the British supply depot and field canteen on the top of the mountain, creating a miraculous example of killing and wounding more than 220 British soldiers at the cost of one person falling off the cliff.

Today, the declining British forces had to retreat, and London's plan to occupy Baku with ground forces was declared bankrupt.

Zhu Lingjing picked up a piece of pastry and said calmly: "According to the estimates of the Intelligence Department of the Governor's Office, despite repeated air raids, the whole city of Baku depends on oil for a living, and the output of crude oil should still reach 20 million tons. ”

Two million tons! If someone on the original plane hears it, he will probably be able to die of happiness.

After a few more conversations, Zhou Changfeng felt that the situation in Europe was unremarkable, so he still pulled the topic back.

"Your Majesty, although the Navy has not yet decided on a draft for fleet expansion, we can dig up the dock first."

New Year's Eve! See you in 2023!

(End of chapter)