Twentieth Century Chronicle

Page 132

So the Russian troops blocking the way for Commander Lan are clearly not very well organized; otherwise, Commander Lan would not have been able to repel the Russian army with less than a regiment of infantry, hold Kyakhta, and move the battlefield to Novoselenkinsk.

Although the Russian army can continuously increase its troop strength in Verkhovna Udinsk via the railway, its organizational capacity will not develop so quickly. We do not need to organize a division before launching an offensive; our most important objective at present is to cut off the railway line from Europe.

Once the Trans-Siberian Railway is cut off and European troops cannot be transported to Verkhovna Udinsk, then it will be a test of organizational skills. Now, we must race against time. Only by cutting off European aid before Verkhovna Udinsk receives sufficient reinforcements can we possibly take it…”

Although Wang Rong felt that this method of combat was somewhat risky, since they had already captured Kyakhta and were less than 200 kilometers away from Verkhovna Udinsk, such a risk was indeed worth taking.

After exchanging views with Wang Rong, Cai E inspected the troops and logistics in Kulun the following day, and then set off from Kunsule for Kyakhta. At this time, Kunsule had completely become a supply depot for the Chinese army, and the Russians and captured Russian soldiers and civilians in the town had been sent to work in logging camps and gold mines.

On the evening of June 22, Cai E arrived at a village 10 kilometers south of Novoselenginsk, near the left bank of the Chuku River. This was Lan Tianwei's headquarters. Lan Tianwei was surprised by Cai E's rapid arrival, as he had only been there for less than five days.

Lan Tianwei ordered his subordinates to prepare a meal to entertain Cai E, and then invited him into his headquarters, a Russian-style wooden house. He introduced him to his operations over the past few days and concluded: "The geographical location of Novoselenginsk is excellent. The rivers here are different from those in the interior. Most rivers in the interior only have one main stream, and even if there are tributaries, they are not too dense."

However, at this location, where the Chuku River flows into the Selenge River, there are many islands in the middle of the two rivers. In some places, they can even be seen as two separate rivers, but in reality, they are still one river...

Although Novoselenginsk was built on the left bank of the Selenga River, there were still fortresses left by the Russians on the corresponding island in the river. The city and the fortresses on the island provided mutual cover, and with the crisscrossing waterways, it was difficult for us to launch a military attack.

In addition, Verkhovna Udinsk has been continuously sending troops to Novoselenginsk; at least five or six thousand men have been sent there in the last five days. Now the city has over ten thousand troops, almost the same number as our own.

We attacked the city three times before, and although we killed many people, the Russian army ultimately forced us out of the city with its superior numbers. I think we should wait until at least the First Division arrives, and then attack with the combined strength of two divisions to capture the city…”

Cai E did not immediately respond to Lan Tianwei's suggestion. Instead, he summoned Chen Xiyi, Mi Zhenbiao, and others, repeatedly inquired about the surrounding situation, and studied the map for half the night. Early the next morning, accompanied by Lan Tianwei, he inspected the front-line troops and observed the deployment of Novoselenginsk.

Around noon, the last regiment of the 7th Division arrived at the front line. Lan Tianwei and the officers of the 7th Division were quite excited, so they suggested to Cai E that they launch another attack, which might shake the morale of the Russian troops in the city.

However, Cai E looked at everyone and said, "The morale of the Russian troops in Novoselenginsk does not depend on how much strength we have, but on whether Verkhovna Udinsk behind them can continue to provide support."

Verkhovinsk is like the heart of Novoselenginsk; as long as this heart keeps beating, a constant flow of new blood will be pumped into Novoselenginsk. Trying to demoralize the Russian army with one or two battles—no, as long as we can't take Novoselenginsk, every successful defense will boost the Russian army's confidence. This war cannot be fought like this…”

As he spoke, Cai E walked to the map, sketched a few lines on it, and said, “Less than 20 kilometers west of Novoselenginsk is Lake Gusinoye. There is a village at the northeast end of the lake, and to the west of the lake are the mountains and forests of Lake Baikal. According to the current intelligence, there are far fewer villages near the mountains and forests than along the Selenga River.”

At the end of this mountain forest is the exit of the Selen River Valley into Lake Baikal. The Trans-Siberian Railway also enters the Selen River Valley through this entrance. There is a city called Turuntayevo here, and 35 kilometers southeast of it is Verkhovna Udinsk.

Therefore, we should first send a capable army northward from Lake Gusinoye, along the western mountains and forests, to attack Turuntayevo, disrupt the Trans-Siberian Railway, render Verkhovna Udinsk unable to support Novoselenginsk, frighten the Russian army out of the city, and then annihilate them in the field…”

Chapter 470 Judgment

For the German military, their enemies have always been France and Russia, never Britain. Therefore, many courses at the Berlin Military Academy are analyses of the French and Russian armies. Lan Tianwei had never studied in Germany, so he couldn't help but think of the Russian army as very powerful. Before making any decisions, he would first ensure the safety of his own side.

However, Cai E was different. During his studies in Germany, he gained some understanding of the organization and structure of the French and Russian armies. Although the German army was wary of the Russian army, they had also conducted in-depth research on it. Therefore, he was quite clear that while the Russian army was not lacking in outstanding junior and middle-ranking officers, the quality of its high-ranking officers was rather uneven.

The Russian army has both renowned generals like Skobelev and incompetent figures like Kuropatkin, with the latter clearly outnumbering the former, because for a monarchical regime, incompetent ministers are more conducive to the continuation of the monarchy.

This can also be seen from Russia's war against China. After General Mishinko was killed in Heishigou near Zhangjiakou, the Cossack troops in Manchuria became obscure because the Russian army in Manchuria could not find another general like Mishinko who could command the Cossacks to carry out bold offensive tactics.

In Europe, generals were not all the same and were not necessarily highly regarded. A true general was one who could command armies and fight against European nations. Those who rose to prominence through colonial wars were generally not considered to possess genuine military capabilities. This is because colonial wars did not involve fighting armies, but rather civilians armed with outdated weapons. How could an army with cannons and rifles slaughtering barbarians prove any military command ability?

There were relatively few colonial generals in the German army, but there were more in the Russian and British armies. Cai E did not think this was just discrimination; he believed that this assessment actually had some merit. Dealing with colonial resistance did not actually require much effort, because no matter how many people were armed with bows and arrows and swords, they could not possibly fight against an army armed with rifles and cannons.

The British conquest of India, the Russian conquest of Central Asia, and the French conquest of North Africa all prove this point. With the invention of the machine gun, the gap between European and colonial wars widened even further. Lin Xinyi was able to enter India with a small army and defeat an Indian army many times his size, not because his weapons were superior, but because he understood how to use the most advanced European technology in warfare. The defeats of the British and Indian armies were largely due to the outdated tactics of those British generals.

With the war having progressed to this point, Cai E believed that the capable generals of the Russian army were either left in Europe to defend against the Germans and Austria-Hungary, or had been sent to Manchuria to command operations on the battlefield. At this time, there should not be any outstanding generals stationed in Verkhovna Udinsk. Therefore, when the Red Army appeared and destroyed the Trans-Siberian Railway, the enemy might make a wrong judgment, such as withdrawing the troops from Novoselenginsk to defend it. In that case, the Russian army in Novoselenginsk would soon collapse.

However, the situation in Verkhovna Udinsk was even worse than Cai E had predicted. It wasn't just that there was an incompetent general; there wasn't even a general who could nominally command the Russian forces within Verkhovna Udinsk.

General Mazyevsky of the Chita Military District obviously couldn't abandon his military duties to go to Verkhovna Udinsk to oversee operations against the Chinese army, so he couldn't expect anyone else in the Chita Military District to provide logistical support. The transfer of a general required St. Petersburg's approval, and it was only in the ten days after the Chinese army captured Kyakhta that St. Petersburg barely grasped the situation in Verkhovna Udinsk—that the Chinese offensive was aimed at cutting off the railway line.

Therefore, St. Petersburg became anxious and decided to directly transfer a general from St. Petersburg to Verkhovna Udinsk to take unified command of the Russian troops there in order to repel the Chinese army's attack. Before this, Verkhovna Udinsk only had two colonels assisting Verkhovna Udinsk Governor Kharchenko in organizing the troops that had arrived there. These two colonels came from different places, one from the Chita Military District and the other from Irkutsk.

However, Kharchenko trusted Colonel Krochaev, who was stationed in Novoselenginsk, more. After all, they had worked together for a long time and knew each other's abilities and personalities well. Therefore, on matters concerning military affairs, Kharchenko preferred to send telegrams to Colonel Krochaev for inquiries rather than seek help from the two newly arrived colonels.

Colonel Krochaev actually had little experience in major battles; his past service consisted only of leading a few companies to suppress resistance by Siberian indigenous peoples. Fate had thrust him into this position not as an opportunity, but as a disaster for the Russian army. After Colonel Hitrov, Captain Bershanov, and Lieutenant Colonel Avnika suffered successive defeats at the hands of the Chinese army, he believed that the Chinese army he faced was a well-trained force, far beyond the capabilities of his hastily assembled troops.

Therefore, after receiving news of the defeat from Lieutenant Colonel Avnika, he decided that he would never engage the Chinese army in open battle, but should instead hold Novoselenkinsk until the Chinese army withdrew on its own.

This was a common tactic used by the Cossacks during the Siberian pioneering period. Because there was little agriculture in Siberia, logistical pressure was considerable. By holding a fortress with a small army, they could organize attacks from thousands of Mongol or Qing troops. Logistics and weather would help the Russian army defeat the superior numbers of the Mongols or Qing troops.

As the crisis loomed, Colonel Krochaev swiftly adopted this historically proven defensive tactic. However, he forgot the impact of technology on warfare, and this rigid tactic was becoming increasingly ineffective. Historically, Siberia consisted of desolate primeval forests and swamps, so rivers were the only effective routes for transportation, meaning that fortified defenses could cut off enemy offensive routes.

The advent of railways and automobiles transformed transportation in Siberia, especially in the Selenga Valley, which, after nearly a century of development by the Russians, was no longer a desolate land. Vast tracts of farmland were cleared along the banks of the Selenga, and even where some grasslands remained, Buryat villages were established. Simply put, the Selenga was no longer the only transportation route through the valley.

Colonel Krochaev's constant redeployment of troops from Verkhovdinsk to Novoselenginsk did indeed block the Chinese army's advance, but his excessive efforts prevented other areas outside Novoselenginsk from receiving reinforced defenses.

On the afternoon of June 25, Kharkhenko, the governor of Verkhovna Udinsk, received devastating news: Tulentayevo in the northwest had been attacked by the Chinese. He immediately ordered the army to go to the rescue. Tulentayevo is the exit of the Selenga River Valley and the place where the Trans-Siberian Railway crosses the Selenga River. If the Chinese cut off this point, it would be equivalent to cutting off the Trans-Siberian Railway line.

Two weeks had passed since the intelligence of the fall of Kyakhta was received. Nearly 40,000 troops had been gathered in Verkhovna Udinsk, of which 16,000 were sent to Novoselenginsk, 6,000 were stationed on the banks of the Selenga River between Novoselenginsk and Verkhovna Udinsk and in the surrounding villages, and the garrison in Verkhovna Udinsk exceeded 20,000.

If the military and political officials in Verkhovna Udinsk had been given more time, the framework for two Russian military divisions could have been established. But right now, the combat-ready troops in Novoselenginsk and Verkhovna Udinsk consist of only a group of Russian officers and soldiers. Some soldiers haven't even been incorporated into any unit and are still building barracks near the train station so they can have a place to stay at night.

Although Verkhovdinsk is the capital of the Selenga Valley, it is just a small town of tens of thousands of people compared to other parts of Europe. The opening of the Trans-Siberian Railway has brought a lot of people to the town, but it is still not enough to accommodate so many troops.

Kharchenko's orders did not ignite the soldiers' belligerence; instead, they instilled great fear in them. While Russia's conscription system effectively utilized its human resources—St. Petersburg boasted that Russia could muster an army of five million, thus greatly intimidating European nations—it was a far cry from Russia's own military strength.

However, turning civilians conscripted through the military into soldiers requires organizational management and a sufficient supply of materials. Otherwise, they are just a group of civilians in military uniforms, and civilians cannot tolerate the threat of death, especially under the current chaotic management. Whether they go to the battlefield or not depends entirely on luck, rather than being forced to face war by strict military discipline.

The management was chaotic because the officers and soldiers were completely unfamiliar with each other, and some didn't even recognize all their subordinates. Some of them received weapons, while others didn't even have a place to stay. They were simply driven off the military train and then trapped in Verkhovna Udinsk. The unluckiest people didn't even have a hot meal for three days because even the station managers didn't know who had arrived first and who had arrived later.

Frankly, the troops who were assigned to Novoselenkinsk were lucky, because they were already organized and had someone to take care of their food and sleep. In contrast, there were at least several thousand unattended people near the station in Verkhovdinsk.

Aside from begging for hot water from the surrounding civilians, these soldiers would sit together and spread the news they had gathered, much of which was exaggerated. It seemed that Chinese troops were everywhere, and that they had been pulled off the trains so that some high-ranking officials could escape. Of course, the news wasn't entirely false; after all, some relatives of the powerful did indeed board trains and head to Irkutsk, something the soldiers sitting around the station at least witnessed.

Kharchenko drove this group of demoralized and discontented soldiers onto the battlefield, attempting to use them to retake Tulentayevo. Frankly, only Lin Yi's 800 infantrymen and Chen Xiyi's 1st Cavalry Division captured Tulentayevo. Although they easily seized the town—which contained only five or six hundred Russian troops—its location was extremely important. Lin Yi and Chen Xiyi both believed they might not be able to hold Tulentayevo, so they decided to destroy the bridge, briefly delay the Russian advance, and then retreat.

Chapter 471 Panic

On the morning of June 26, Colonel Moisev, who had come from Irkutsk, led his assembled troops from Verkhovdinsk toward Turuntayevo. His forces were divided into two parts: the vanguard consisted of 400 infantrymen and 500 cavalrymen led by Captain Ulfert, who also carried two cannons; he himself led 1200 infantrymen and four cannons at the rear.

Colonel Moisev wasn't really confident, because apart from the two Cossack companies under Captain Ulifelt, the rest of the troops were newly organized. Looking at the soldiers around him marching along the railway line in a slow and sluggish manner, even a layman would know that this army was unreliable.

But what could he do? Kharchenko only believed Colonel Krochaev's proposal and was determined to keep the Chinese south of Novoselenginsk, not allowing them to threaten the railway line in the slightest. Colonel Ivanov from Chita, on the other hand, had no opinions of his own and completely obeyed General Mazyevsky's orders, regarding the protection of the railway as his top priority.

As a result, Colonel Moisev, who advocated concentrating forces to launch a counterattack against the Chinese and disrupt their offensive, became a minority in the upper echelons of the Verkhovdinsk military and political leadership. Although he represented the Governor-General of Irkutsk, he could not bypass the Governor of Verkhovdinsk, Kharchenko, and General Mazyevsky of the Chita Military District to gain full command of the Verkhovdinsk Regional Army.

Thus, although Verkhovna Udinsk acquired sufficient troops for defense within half a month, no one was able to fully assume supreme military command of the city. The three colonels and Commander Kharchenko all had the authority to issue orders to the troops, and were also subject to remote command from Chita from time to time.

Since arriving in Verkhovna Udinsk, Colonel Moisev had gradually come to understand why the Russian army had suffered repeated defeats on the Manchurian front. If everyone with military command had their own set of ideas, and logistics weren't under their control, how could the war be fought?

For example, upon learning of the presence of Chinese troops near Tuluntayevo, he immediately ordered the already organized troops to be concentrated and reinforce Tuluntayevo. However, Kharchenko and Colonel Ivanov believed that the Chinese would not launch a large-scale attack on Tuluntayevo, because Colonel Krochaev had already blocked the Chinese at Novoselenginsk. They believed that only a small number of troops needed to be sent to strengthen the defenses of Tuluntayevo.

Colonel Moisev was unable to persuade the two, so yesterday morning only 400 infantrymen and 100 cavalrymen were sent to Tuluntayevo by train, which was clearly a misjudgment. The Chinese forces exceeded Colonel Kharchenko and Colonel Ivanov's assessment, and Tuluntayevo not only fell to the Chinese, but they also lost a force and a train.

When news of the fall of Tulentayevo reached them, Colonel Moisev advocated for reorganizing the troops first and not launching a blind attack on Tulentayevo. However, Colonels Kharchenko and Ivanov rejected him again, believing that Tulentayevo should be recaptured as soon as possible, at least before St. Petersburg issued an order to reprimand them.

Therefore, Colonel Moisev was pushed forward by the two men to lead the army to recapture Tulentayevo. He knew very well that the two men were preparing to make him take the blame for losing Tulentayevo if he failed to recapture it.

The colonel was filled with resentment towards his colleagues, but for the sake of the overall situation, he had no choice but to lead his troops into battle. However, the soldiers below him did not share the colonel's magnanimity. They were unhappy about being selected to capture Tulentayevo, feeling it was completely unfair.

The soldiers' complaints were not without reason, as at least a third of them had been hastily assembled the night before. They felt they shouldn't be on the battlefield so soon, and that the assembled units should be sent first, but those units were left in Verkhovna Udinsk to take on defensive duties.

June is already summer in Verkhovna Udinsk, and the daytime temperature is already quite hot, though this heat is relative to the high latitude of Russians. Walking across the Siberian river valleys and plains in a light jacket is actually quite comfortable for this time of year. The problem is that these Russian soldiers, who came from Europe, left home in sub-zero temperatures, and they are wearing winter uniforms.

Just like the Russian troops in Manchuria who fought in summer uniforms last winter, which led to war-weariness, these same Russian troops are now marching under the sun in winter uniforms. After marching for most of the day, they are also hot and tired, and some are even suffering from heatstroke.

When Captain Ulfert's vanguard of the Russian army continued its march after the midday rest, the infantry and cavalry soon separated. The infantry slowed down, while the cavalry, although maintaining a constant speed, widened the distance between themselves and the infantry behind them, from less than half a verst to two or three versts.

About ten versts from Tuluntayevo, when Captain Ulifelt attempted to halt his troops to rest and regroup, the Chinese army, which had been lying in ambush nearby, launched the first attack on Captain Ulifelt's forces.

Captain Ulfelt had considered the possibility that the Chinese army might abandon its defenses and launch a surprise attack, so he placed his cavalry at the front of the column. In this terrain, marching between the Selenga River and the railway, the drainage ditches along the river and railway prevented flank attacks by the cavalry, forcing the Chinese to attack from the front. How could the Cossacks possibly be defeated by the relatively unknown Chinese cavalry?

If the Cossacks could withstand the frontal assault of the Chinese cavalry, he could then deploy his infantry and call for reinforcements from Colonel Moisev in the rear. It is actually very difficult for cavalry to charge a small, well-fortified infantry formation because cavalry has a wider operational area than infantry. This means that when infantry are closely packed together, three or four infantrymen only need to deal with one cavalryman.

The tactic of concentrated cavalry charges is currently only achievable by the British and French, requiring the selection of superior horse breeds and extensive training. Even the Russians themselves cannot train such cavalry; the Chinese would be even less likely to succeed.

However, when Captain Uriffelt summoned the infantry to form ranks, the Cossacks at the front had already retreated, their retreat so rapid that they seemed unable to hold out even for a single exchange. Although these Cossacks avoided their infantry comrades, they still managed to shatter the already low morale of the Russian infantry.

It's unclear who it was, but upon seeing the Chinese cavalrymen with sabers chasing after the Cossacks, the first to shout "We've failed!" and begin to lead the retreat. Soon, the Russian infantry abandoned their ranks and fled to the rear. Since Captain Urifeld could not stop the Cossacks from slipping away, he was naturally powerless to force the infantry to stay and continue their formation.

The retreat of the Russian vanguard quickly sparked unrest in the rear. Although Colonel Moisev desperately tried to quell his men, warning them, "...This is flat ground. Entrusting your backs to the cavalry is suicide. Stop! Everyone, get back to your positions immediately! Only by forming ranks and repelling the cavalry can we retreat safely..."

Colonel Moisev's efforts yielded some results; some soldiers eventually obeyed their officers' orders and attempted to form a hollow square to counter the cavalry charge. However, the colonel soon realized why the vanguard had been so quickly broken up: the Chinese had not relied on the cavalry's charge to defeat their vanguard, but rather had first used machine guns mounted on wagons to break down the dense Russian formation before launching a cavalry pursuit.

Colonel Moisev, Captain Ulfert, and thousands of Russian soldiers were forced to lay down their arms and surrender to the Chinese. Only the Cossacks and the infantry who fled across the railway line escaped. The Chinese defeated three thousand Russian soldiers with only 600 cavalry and eight machine guns. Even Chen Xiyi himself was very surprised by this victory, as he had never fought such a battle when he was in the Yi Army.

Watching the Russian prisoners walk past them dejectedly, the former Yi Army veterans couldn't help but sigh, "How are we supposed to fight this battle? Whoever has the machine guns is guaranteed to win. Especially the infantry, isn't forming ranks just like providing targets for machine guns?"

An officer from Wuhan countered, "To deal with machine guns, you obviously need artillery. Today's battle was just a clever maneuver. If the Russians had set up their positions properly, how could we have possibly launched a surprise attack on them..."

When Chen Xiyi brought the prisoners back to Tuluntayevo, he thought they could hold out for another two days, and the Russians shouldn't be able to organize a second army to attack Tuluntayevo so quickly. However, the Russian troops fleeing back to Verkhovna Udinsk had already caused panic within the city. These Russian soldiers, of course, wouldn't tell Kharchenko and his men the truth: they had only been defeated by a few hundred cavalrymen, and everyone was saying that the Chinese had sent tens of thousands of cavalrymen, and they simply couldn't withstand them and had fled.

Although Kharchenko and other military and political officials in Udinsk were skeptical, the civilians in the city truly believed the news brought back by the retreating Russian soldiers. That very night, civilians began leaving the city and heading towards Chita. The next morning, the streets were suddenly overflowing with civilians trying to escape the city, so much so that Kharchenko had to order a ban on anyone leaving the city.

Amidst this panic, Verkhovdinsk was no longer able to send troops to retake Tulentayevo. Even high-ranking military and political officials like Kharchenko began to suspect that the Chinese army had bypassed Novoselenginsk and was planning a direct attack on Verkhovdinsk. Because of this suspicion, Kharchenko telegraphed Colonel Krochaev, ordering him to return a portion of his troops to Verkhovdinsk. The city's military and civilians were now gripped by panic, and the situation was out of control.

Kharchenko's telegram quickly triggered panic among the Russian troops in Novoselenginsk, who were holding out to protect Verkhovna Udinsk and the Trans-Siberian Railway. If Verkhovna Udinsk fell, what would be the point of their defense? Wouldn't they become an isolated city surrounded by the Chinese? Wouldn't everyone be doomed?

Chapter 472 Changes in Situation

Before the telegram arrived from Verkhovdinsk, Colonel Krochaev had already received news that Chinese troops had attacked Gusino-Ozelsk, northwest of Novoselenginsk. However, he initially thought that the Chinese occupied the area to attack the transport route between Novoselenginsk and Verkhovdinsk. He did not expect that the Chinese would be so bold as to launch an attack on Tulentayevo, which is more than 100 kilometers away, and that the troops sent by Verkhovdinsk would be defeated by the Chinese.

As Lieutenant Colonel Avnika angrily complained upon seeing the telegram: "Colonel Moisev and Colonel Ivanov are utterly useless. How could the Chinese army possibly have several thousand men attacking Tuluntayevo? They'd have to have some kind of magic to fly there. They're just making excuses for their incompetence. There are clearly over 2 troops in Verkhovna Udinsk; how could they possibly lack the manpower to defend the railway line…"

Colonel Krochaev agreed with the lieutenant colonel, but he wouldn't show it. After all, he and Kharchenko were now in the same boat; if something happened to Upper Udinsk, Novoselenginsk would become an isolated city.

Therefore, he spoke up to stop his colleagues and subordinates from complaining about Upper Udinsk, and explained to Kharchenko and others: "Didn't some Cossacks who escaped say that the Chinese have a kind of self-propelled vehicle that doesn't need to be pulled by animals? I think the Chinese were able to move their troops to Tuluntayevo so quickly because they used this kind of self-propelled vehicle."

While the Chinese army that captured Tuluntayevo was probably not as many as the few thousand mentioned in the telegram, it was likely not as small as we guessed either. Too many of our cavalry had been redeployed, and we suffered heavy losses in previous battles with the Chinese army; now the Chinese actually have far more cavalry than we do.

Although Verkhovinsk has over 2 troops, they are all reservists recently conscripted from their homes, making it difficult to form a combat-ready force in such a short time. It's understandable that Colonel Moisev failed to grasp the situation of the Chinese troops attacking Tuluntayevo and was instead ambushed by the Chinese.

However, as long as we organize the soldiers in Verkhovna Udinsk, we will definitely be able to retake Tulentayevo, and Irkutsk will not stand idly by while the railway line is cut off.”

Although the colonel's words calmed the officers around him somewhat, Lieutenant Colonel Avnika quickly asked a substantive question, "So what should we do now? Should we obey the orders in the telegram to withdraw to Verkhovdinsk, or continue to hold our ground here?"

Without hesitation, the colonel replied, “Of course we cannot abandon Novoselenginsk, otherwise a large number of Chinese troops could sail down the river. In that case, even if we withdraw to Verkhovna Udinsk, we will be unable to attack Tuluntayevo, and the Chinese will have achieved their goal of cutting off the railway line.”

Looking at the well-established Chinese army camp to the south of the city, the colonel paused for a few seconds before continuing, "We only need to take a small force back to Verkhovna Udinsk to help Commander Kharchenko and Colonel Ivanov reorganize the army, and we can restore order to Verkhovna Udinsk. The main force should remain here to block the advance of the large Chinese force..."

While Colonel Krochaev and his men were discussing how to respond to the orders in the telegram, Chinese generals such as Cai E and Lan Tianwei were also studying the upcoming battle in their camp on the right bank of the Selenga River. Because the weather was very good, the group put tables and chairs under an open-air wooden shed, enjoying the early summer sun and breeze of Siberia while expressing their views on the battle situation.

Before Chen Xiyi and Lin Yi captured Tuluntayevo, most officers, including Lan Tianwei, felt it was a risky move. After all, they were now thousands of kilometers away from the rear, and losing any unit here would damage the morale of the army. If the victorious advance turned into a retreat, it could easily trigger a rout of the entire army.

Frankly speaking, it's not uncommon for the Chinese army to experience routs during wartime; it's become a tradition since the Opium Wars. However, what's truly rare is advancing thousands of kilometers and still managing to achieve continuous victories. Therefore, soldiers like Lan Tianwei are trying to preserve the victory until the end of the war, rather than risk ruining such a good start.

In the view of Lan Tianwei and others, it wouldn't be unacceptable for this battle to end here, because they had already recovered most of the lost territory of Outer Mongolia and invaded Russian territory. From this result, their achievements far exceeded those of any other force in the country. Even if Manchuria could not be completely taken back later, the people could not blame Wuhan.

This sense of constraint, stemming from some initial successes, led to a conservative mentality among the frontline troops led by Lan Tianwei, who sought to avoid any major mistakes. Furthermore, Cai E's insistence on advancing towards and cutting off the Trans-Siberian Railway was not widely supported by officers at the mid-to-high ranks, aside from the rank-and-file soldiers.

However, Cai E was a member of the Military Commission of the Workers' Party, and his proposals received full support from the Party Committee of the Army. In the internal meeting of the Party Committee, Cai E prevailed over Lan Tianwei and thus carried out his orders.

The assault detachment has now not only captured Tulentayevo, but also repelled reinforcements sent by Verkhovna Udinsk at a very low cost. This has exposed the weakness of the Russian army in the region, and officers who were previously conservative are now inclined to prioritize securing the gains of cutting off the Trans-Siberian Railway line over attacking Novoselenkinsk.

As Lan Tianwei said, "Our original primary objective was to cut off the Trans-Siberian Railway. We captured Verkhovna Udinsk because it would allow us to better defend the Selenga Valley. However, now that we have cut off the Trans-Siberian Railway, our top priority should be to strengthen the defenses of Tulentayevo. Once we occupy this location, the Russian army in Manchuria will be unable to continue the war."

Our current attack on Novoseleninsk and Verkhovna Udinsk, where Russian troops are stationed, only further strengthens our control over the Selenga Valley and has no decisive impact on the overall war. However, if we attack cities with comparable Russian troop strength with our current forces, the sacrifices we make will be too great…”

The military conference ended with the withdrawal of Russian troops stationed at Novoselenginsk at noon on the 27th. The Russians did not abandon Novoselenginsk, but instead sent two to three thousand men back north to Verkhovna Udinsk along the right bank of the Selenga River. This arrangement prevented the Northern Army from quickly capturing Novoselenginsk, nor from diverting troops to bypass Novoselenginsk and intercept the Russian forces, as the Russian troops, having abandoned their supplies, moved quite swiftly.

Cai E therefore considered everyone's opinions and decided to use one force to contain the garrison at Novoselenginsk, while another force would advance to Gusino-Ozelsk as a base. This would support Tulentayevo's assault detachment on the one hand, and seek to control the river valley plains north of Novoselenginsk, west of the Selenga River, and east of the mountains and forests on the southern shore of Lake Baikal on the other.

Once they control this plain, even if the Russian army recaptures Tulentayevo, they can block the railway line near the right bank by setting up artillery on the left bank. After all, the railway line from Tulentayevo to Verkhovna Udinsk runs parallel to the Selenga River. In this way, the strategic objective of blocking the Trans-Siberian Railway will be achieved.

While Cai E and Lan Tianwei were redeploying troops and reorganizing the war effort, Irkutsk and St. Petersburg were now truly in a state of panic. The general sent by St. Petersburg to Verkhovna Udinsk to command the Russian army was still in Omsk, which meant that after Tuluntayevo was captured by the Chinese, St. Petersburg had lost control of the battle situation in Verkhovna Udinsk.

Now, St. Petersburg must communicate with Kuropatkin and the Far Eastern military districts through France and Germany, as both land and sea routes between the Russian forces in the Far East and St. Petersburg have been cut off. After Japan and China expelled Russian diplomats, Russia can no longer issue orders to Russian generals and officials in the Far East through official channels.

St. Petersburg immediately ordered the Governor-General of Irkutsk to recapture Tulentayevo as soon as possible and reopen the Trans-Siberian Railway. However, Governor-General Morelius and Major General Kutnevich, the commander of the military district, soon reported frankly to St. Petersburg that they were temporarily unable to launch an attack on Tulentayevo because Irkutsk's main forces had been transferred away, and Irkutsk now only had a small number of military and police forces maintaining local security.

In fact, Irkutsk is not suitable for assembling a large army because there is no plain terrain suitable for developing agriculture and animal husbandry in the surrounding area. The city developed through industry and commerce, and the food it needs has always been imported from the West Siberian Plain, Verkhovna Udinsk, and Outer Mongolia.

Due to the outbreak of war, Irkutsk's industry and commerce have become extremely depressed. Because military supplies transport has occupied all railway capacity, Irkutsk can now barely supply the needs of the city's population. Due to food shortages, when St. Petersburg issued the mobilization order, the Irkutsk Governorate even exempted nearby areas from military service, because Irkutsk could not afford to feed these conscripted soldiers.

Therefore, military trains traveling from Europe to Manchuria generally did not have hot meals in Irkutsk. Instead, hot meals were prepared for soldiers at stations east of Irkutsk or on the eastern shore of Lake Baikal. This was done to alleviate the food shortage in Irkutsk.

Transporting troops from Irkutsk to Upper Udinsk was not a problem, but organizing troops from Irkutsk to launch an attack on Tuluntayevo was problematic. Irkutsk had previously organized an attack with over a thousand men, but it was quickly repelled by Chinese troops guarding the Selenga River railway bridge. To organize a larger-scale attack, Irkutsk could only tell St. Petersburg that it was unable to supply the logistics for such an army.

In fact, the only city along the western railway line capable of organizing an army and launching an attack against the Chinese was Omsk. However, Omsk was clearly too far from Tulentayevo; if the Russian army were to regroup and launch an attack from Omsk, it would take at least two weeks. By then, the war in Manchuria would have been over long ago. In fact, the war in Manchuria ended much faster than St. Petersburg had anticipated. On June 23, rumors were already circulating wildly among the Russian troops in Fengtian that the Trans-Siberian Railway had been cut off by the Chinese. On June 25, Kuropatkin finally ordered a full withdrawal of the army from Fengtian.

Chapter 473 The Army's Trouble

The Northern Army Group headquarters only informed Yuan Shikai on June 20 that their objective was not to recapture Kulun but to cut off the Trans-Siberian Railway. On the evening of June 25, they informed Yuan Shikai again that the Northern Army Group had crossed the Kyakhta River and captured Tuluntayevo, thus completing the strategic objective of cutting off the Trans-Siberian Railway.

When Yuan Shikai received Cai E's telegram on June 20, he was not particularly surprised. He was worried that Cai E's Northern Army Group was too ambitious and would try to attack the Trans-Siberian Railway after recapturing Kulun. If they were repelled by the Russian army, wouldn't it be a waste of this opportunity for a surprise attack?

Although Yuan Shikai was pleased to see the Wuhan forces suffer a setback, he did not want to hear this news at this time. The reason the Beiyang Army could still negotiate with Japan about the division of post-war spoils was that both the Wuhan and Beiyang military groups had performed admirably throughout the war. If they had collapsed on the battlefield as easily as they had during the First Sino-Japanese War or the Boxer Rebellion, what would be the point of discussing the distribution of post-war spoils with Japan? Wouldn't it have been better for Japan to simply take over all of Russia's interests in the Far East with its military might?

The current situation is that Wuhan's forces are mainly distributed in the south and Shanxi and Inner Mongolia, while the northern coastal areas are under the control of the Beiyang Army. The southern coastal areas are also the areas that Yuan Shikai is trying to bring under his control. This means that after Japan repelled the Russian forces in the Far East, the Beiyang Army is the first to face pressure from Japan.

Yuan Shikai could not allow Wuhan to develop without pressure while hiding behind the Beiyang government, and he also wanted to use Wuhan's strength to suppress Japan's greed for Manchuria and the coastal areas. While Wuhan's raising of the banner of defending the homeland in this war won the support of many Chinese people, it was also tantamount to putting shackles around his own neck.

For example, when the Russian army advanced towards Beijing along the Liaoxi Corridor, the Wuhan Group, which could have stood by and watched, was forced to send its own forces to hold off the Russian attack for the Beiyang Army. In Yuan Shikai's view, if Wuhan hadn't poured so many resources into this war, they could have simply watched the Russian army enter the pass and then marched on Beijing to seize power.

Since the Beiyang Army could not withstand the Russian offensive, and the Manchus were powerless to protect the north, it was perfectly justifiable for Wuhan to send troops to attack Beijing after the court had lost its sovereignty and suffered national humiliation. Although such inaction would arouse the resentment of the people in the north, it was still understandable that Wuhan would enter Beijing and establish its rule over the country.

However, Wuhan chose the most difficult path, sending troops to help the Beiyang Army resist the Russian invasion while refusing the imperial court's offer of amnesty, thus gaining the court's legitimacy for nothing. Although the world praised Wuhan's actions, because the country was not on the verge of extinction, some members of the gentry class, despite receiving Wuhan's protection, did not agree with the laborism advocated by the Wuhan Workers' Party.

It was precisely Wuhan's attempt to uphold justice that allowed these enlightened gentry to choose between the Beiyang government and constitutionalism. Had Yuan Shikai possessed the power of Wuhan, he felt he would never have given these so-called enlightened gentry any choice. Faced with the Manchus' forceful suppression, these enlightened gentry would only grovel; why should they show them respect when he held power?

Yuan Shikai felt that the young people in the Workers' Party were ultimately too young, always trying to be idealistic, and completely unaware that in this world, things can only be accomplished through unspoken rules and interpersonal relationships.