Commander Ma Xianglin stood in front of the sand table and observed the situation of the two armies.
"The Russian army has one day left before they reach the station in front of our army.
We have laid a dragnet and are waiting for the Russian army to dive into it.
I suggest that the airship brigade be withdrawn.
I was worried before that the airship in the sky would suddenly explode, causing the Russian army to realize that they had been exposed.
Thanks to the blessings of our ancestors, the airship fleet has been in good condition, and there have been no sudden explosions of airships recently.
We have reached the final stage, and I don't want any problems to occur at the last moment.
Once the airship explodes, the Russian army will inevitably realize that their traces have been mastered by our army.
No matter how stupid the Russian generals are, they will act cautiously next."
Chief of Staff Su Cheng agreed: "I agree with Lao Ma's suggestion.
The Russian army is about to approach our camp, and we only need to send out scouts to grasp the movements of the Russian army.
The hot air balloon suspended in the camp can also observe the enemy's situation from a distance.
The airship fleet should not be allowed to continue taking risks."
The two went over all the details of the ambush of the Russian army and determined that there were no problems.
Ma Xianglin decided to go to the front camp. This was the first time that the 19th Army engaged in a large-scale war with the Russian army.
He wants to sit at the forefront and solve the problems encountered by the frontline troops.
Chief of Staff Su Cheng stayed with the Chinese Army to provide more support to the frontline troops.
Su Cheng bid farewell to Ma Xianglin and arrived at the camp gate.
"Old Ma, feel free to go!
I am an artilleryman, and with artillery as our backing, it will be difficult to lose this war."
Commander Ma Xianglin mounted his horse and led his men to the front line.
…………………………
It was already dusk, and the Russian army was encamped by the river.
The river water was still bitingly cold, but there was no ice on it, so the soldiers could draw water directly for cooking.
The commander of the Russian army, Count Alexander Onukovych, summoned the Russian army to the camp.
He had a loud voice, slapped the table with his hand, and said in an irrefutable tone: "We have not encountered any obstacles from the Great China Empire's army during our march.
The effect of sending troops unexpectedly this time was obvious.
The Dahua Empire was born in a farming civilization, and they clearly have the characteristics of farming civilization in warfare.
That is, they don’t want to take the initiative to start a war, and they have a heartfelt aversion to war.
By taking advantage of the characteristics of the Great China Empire, we will definitely be able to take it by surprise and break through the Great China Empire's defense line.
With twice the strength of our troops, even in a frontal battlefield assault, we can break the defense of the Great China Empire.
But if we can achieve fewer casualties and achieve greater results, why wouldn't we choose it?
War is an art, and you cannot act like a reckless man.
The firearms of the Dahua army are indeed sharp, and we must make use of our strengths and avoid our weaknesses.
As long as we are in close combat, the advantage of the powerful firearms of the Dahua army will be offset by us.
I decided to march all night and launch a surprise attack on the Dahua army.
Taking advantage of their unpreparedness and relaxed defenses, we wiped out the Dahua army in one fell swoop."
Count Alexander Onukovych finished his decision and glared at the many generals.
The Russian generals all knew Alexander Onukovych's temper.
Anyone who dares to refute at this time is provoking Count Alexander Onukovych's authority and will inevitably be suppressed.
Even if there were a few generals who felt that this plan was inappropriate, they just shook their heads secretly and did not propose it.
Luke, Count Alexander Onukovych’s confidant, immediately flattered him and said: “Your lord, this tactic is really clever.
Under the command of the Earl, our army will surely achieve a great victory.
During the day, the Dahua Army has hot air balloons conducting reconnaissance missions at high altitudes. Their telescopes are sophisticated, and the scouts can also detect traces of our troops at a greater distance.
Our army is hidden in the dark, and most of the Dahua army's detection methods have lost their effect.
With twice the strength of our army, without the Dahua army being aware of it, we will definitely achieve excellent results."
Count Alexander Onukovych's confidants praised the subtlety of this tactic from various angles.
Count Alexander Onukovych listened to the praise of his confidants, and he was very happy.
He slapped his hand heavily on the military map.
"You acted according to the plan I made and broke through the Dahua Army's camp. The credit belongs to everyone.
If the war goes unfavorably, I will fulfill my promise and withdraw from the battlefield immediately."
General Luke said quickly: "Your Majesty, you don't have to say that.
We all gathered around the Earl and worked hard in one direction.
There is absolutely no one who wants to be a deserter."
Count Alexander Onukovych sang along with his confidant Luke, and he observed the performance of other generals.
He was quite satisfied with these people and ordered: "Act according to the plan. I hope that by this time tomorrow, we can have dinner in the camp of the Dahua Army."
After many Russian soldiers finished eating, they were preparing to set up tents to rest.
However, they were informed by the officer that they had to continue their journey at night.
The Russian soldiers reluctantly shouldered their bags and continued on their way with the generals.
Many Russian soldiers were wearing thin clothes, and when the cold night wind blew, they were shaking all over and could not even hold their swords.
This is not the most uncomfortable situation. Many Russian soldiers suffer from severe night blindness due to lack of nutrition.
The Russian army did not dare to light torches at night. The huge firelight was very eye-catching at night and would directly expose the traces of the Russian army.
The Russian army could only choose to have an officer without night blindness lead the way, and let the latter person pull the front person's clothes corner and move in a line.
This way the marching speed is relatively slow, and you can barely move on a normal dirt road.
Once the road is a little rough, there are pits or rocks on it.
If a Russian soldier who cannot see the road clearly stumbles, it will cause a series of stampedes.
From time to time, screams could be heard from the Russian military formation.
Once a soldier screamed, he would be whipped by the officer immediately.
Count Alexander Onukovych saw that the Russian army was moving slowly and in confusion, and he was very angry.
Because his clever plan might not be implemented because of these serf soldiers, he became very angry.
Count Alexander Onukovych immediately called his confidants in the army to discuss what to do next.
General Chris knew the Dahua Empire relatively well, and he suggested: "Your Majesty, I have seen the lanterns of the Dahua Empire.
As long as the firelight is covered with a cover, the firelight can illuminate nearby scenes, but it will not be transmitted too far.
As long as we control the size of the lantern, it will look like a small army from a distance.
The two armies often send scouts to each other, which will not alert the enemy."
General Luke suggested: "Your Majesty, we can select the troops with better eyesight and let them use the moonlight to operate in the front.
Officers and their own soldiers, their eyes are not affected at night because of their rich nutrition."
Count Alexander Onukovych heard the suggestions from his confidants, and he promptly adjusted the arrangements of the Russian army.
Without affecting the command of the army, he ordered officers and soldiers without night blindness to be drawn from the entire army as vanguard troops.
At the same time, make some torches and lanterns and give them to the troops in the middle and rear, so that they can march under the guidance of the firelight.
In this way, even if the Dahua army discovers a large fire, the forwards will have already reached the attacking position.
After the Russian army made adjustments, its marching speed became much faster.
In particular, the vanguard force, which is composed of elite troops from various armies, is temporarily mobilized. All members have matchlocks. It is a pure firearms army.
The Russian forwards have seen a huge camp ahead.
In the camp, lights flickered from time to time.
They have arrived at the camp of the 19th Army of the Great China Empire.
Count Alexander Onukovych wiped the sweat from his head. He listened to the report from the general who led the vanguard and the person sent by his confidant Luke.
After thinking for a while, he issued an order: "The army in the rear is slower and is still some distance away from the Dahua army camp.
Notify General Luke to launch an attack at dawn.
This is the time of day when people are most sleepy. Only by launching an attack at this time can the enemy be caught off guard."
Count Alexander Onukovych informed all the generals of the time for the war and asked them to prepare.
…………………………
The Second Brigade and the Third Regiment of the 19th Army, as the elite of the 19th Army, are responsible for defending the forward camps of the 19th Army.
The regiment leader Ma Zhenfei is urging the soldiers to set up defensive positions. This is the most important part of the dragnet plan.
He looked at the permanent bunkers built with cement near the camp.
With these permanent fortifications, his regiment is confident that it can withstand an attack of 10,000 to 20,000 people.
Ma Zhenfei saw several figures riding horses.
He immediately stepped forward to greet him: "Commander, why are you here at the front line?"
Ma Xianglin looked at the performance of the frontline troops and praised: "You have done a good job, I am very satisfied.
Our division is responsible for blocking the attack of 80,000 Russian troops. This task is too difficult.
More than 10,000 people are blocking more than 80,000 people. Even with the help of artillery and fortifications, I am worried about your situation.
If you, the grassroots officers on the front line, think there are any deficiencies, report them to me immediately."
When Ma Zhenfei heard the commander's concerned words, he immediately patted his chest and said, "Commander, please rest assured, we are ready.
I will never let the enemy cross our defense line, and I am confident that we can defend the enemy's attack."
When Commander Ma Xianglin saw Ma Zhenfei's attitude, he felt relieved. The morale of the army was high and the morale of the army was ready.
He ordered: "You must brace yourself, the army will rest in batches, and at least half of the troops must be left on duty.
The Russian army may launch an attack on our army at any time, and I estimate that the Russian army’s attack time will be from tonight to the morning of the day after tomorrow.”
Commander Ma Xianglin led his troops to continue to inspect the situation of the grassroots troops on the front line. He saw that the morale of the army was very high, and all the soldiers were gearing up to defeat the enemy and make immortal contributions.
When it got dark, he came to the headquarters of the First Division and saw the division commander Song Xinghe and other officers in front of the map, constantly calculating the possible attack path of the Russian army.
After Song Xinghe saw Ma Xianglin arriving.
He immediately came forward and said: "Commander, please don't worry, we will teach our division the task of attracting the enemy's attention.
I will definitely display the style of the imperial army so that the Russian army’s legs will tremble when they see our army in the future.”
Commander Ma Xianglin encouraged: "Commander Song, I believe that your division will be able to complete this mission.
Your task is the heaviest. As long as the first division can hold back the Russian army, the second and third divisions can cooperate with each other and steal the Russian army's retreat.
Coupled with the cavalry division cooperating with our army's actions, we will eat at least half of the more than 80,000 Russian troops.
This will make it easier for us to attack Kuznetsk in the future."
Commander Ma Xianglin was at the headquarters of the 1st Division, eating fried noodles with all the officers of the 1st Division and listening to their defensive plans.
They discussed it until early in the morning, became sleepy and fell asleep directly at the division headquarters.
No one chose to leave. They all expected that the war might start at any time.
Ma Xianglin felt that he was awakened by others not long after he fell asleep.
When he saw it was Song Xinghe, he immediately realized the problem and asked solemnly: "The Russian army launched an attack on our army?"
Master Song Xinghe waved his hand and nodded.
"Commander, the Russian army has not launched an attack on our army yet, but Ma Zhenfei, commander of the Third Regiment, has seen a large number of Russian troops lurking in front of our army's camp.
It seems that the Russian army wants to launch a night attack on our army."
When Ma Xianglin heard Song Xinghe's words, he immediately became energetic.
He walked to the military map in three steps and looked at the direction of Ma Zhenfei's regiment.
"The Russian army launched an attack on our army from here, and they also have capable men in their army.
Ma Zhenfei's regiment is in a dangerous position, and it is not convenient for friendly forces to support it.
But they also had a hard time chewing hard. Ma Zhenfei's regiment had the most concrete bunkers, and the bunkers were all equipped with small-caliber artillery.
If it weren't for the fact that water-cooled heavy machine guns burn too many bullets, our army's logistical supplies would be relatively weak.
I directly placed the water-cooled heavy machine gun, a big killer, on the front line."
Ma Xianglin was also helpless. He couldn't have his cake and eat it too.
The limited transportation space must be reserved for artillery.
On the Siberian battlefield, artillery has the highest status.
The Kuznetsk and Ural Fortresses, such fortress cities heavily defended by the Russian army, cannot be captured without large-caliber artillery.
Commander Ma Xianglin asked: "Have you informed the artillery regiment of the enemy's coordinates?
The Russian army is still a traditional early firearms formation, and artillery is extremely useful against this kind of army."
Song Xinghe replied: "I informed the artillery regiment before waking up the army commander.
Now the artillery regiment should be ready and wait for the artillery support request from the third regiment."
Commander Ma Xianglin took out a cigarette from his pocket and smoked while observing the situation of the two armies on the military map.
"We have prepared everything and discovered the traces of the Russian army in advance. I believe that the strength of the 19th Army will be able to block the Russian attack.
The key to this war is the cooperation between the various military services.
Send reports to all armies in case there is an abnormality in the telegraph lines.
They immediately passed on the news in a timely manner through signal flares, flags, messengers, etc."
Commander Ma Xianglin saw that the 1st Division Headquarters was already busy, and he was waiting for the results on the front line here.
Whether the 19th Army is a dragon or a worm depends on its performance in this war.
…………………………
Count Alexander Onukovych saw the rear army, which was not far from the vanguard army.
He asked his men: "Have the Dahua army found any traces of our army?"
The subordinate immediately replied: "Your Majesty, the latest news from General Luke is that there are no changes in the Dahua army camp.
They should be unprepared for our army's attack."
Count Alexander Onukovych showed a confident smile on his face and issued an order: "The entire army will be lifted from hiding and immediately attack the Dahua army."
After his order was issued, several dazzling red fireworks took off and exploded in the sky, like a red moon coming to the world.
This method of transmitting orders through fireworks is a practice they learned from the Dahua Army, which can convey concise orders to the entire army.
When General Luke saw the fireworks rising, he immediately asked the army to light torches to illuminate the road ahead and launch an attack on the Dahua army camp.
Other Russian troops also lit their torches at the command of their officers. The soldiers held the torches and launched an attack on the Dahua army camp.
It seemed like a huge fire dragon attacking the Dahua army camp.
