For the general Wang Fuchen, it actually didn't matter whether those Cossacks could be eliminated or not.
It is very simple to deal with the Cossacks, at least in the Xing'an Mountains area. That is to capture the Cossacks' riverside castles, station troops in the castles, and push forward step by step.
This approach can not only reduce the living space of the Cossacks, but also provide a stronghold for Han immigrants.
As for Nerchinsk, no one wants to fight it.
It's too far away, and the Datong army doesn't want to eat people, so the logistics pressure will be too great to defeat them.
Keep the Cossacks in Nerchinsk and continue to harm the Buryat people. No matter how many people die, it will have nothing to do with the Datong Army.
The Yaksa area was already the limit of the Central Plains dynasty's force projection. Historically, the Manchu and Qing Dynasties could only attack here and then sign the "Treaty of Nerchinsk" with Tsarist Russia.
It is better to attack Nerchinsk from Yaksa than to send troops from Hulunbuir. Of course, it is best to send troops from both directions at the same time.
The plan formulated by the Ministry of War and the Governor's Office is as follows:
The Anton Protectorate sent partial troops, that is, Wang Fuchen and others, to first seize Yaksa as a stronghold, immigrate to open up wasteland, and manage the indigenous people. The Raole Protectorate also consolidated the Horqin Grassland and Xilin Gol Grassland. About three years later, from Xilingol
Le sent troops to capture the Hulunbuir grassland where the Khalkha Mongols were entrenched. Then, they advanced in two directions to attack Nerchinsk. Then they captured Chita as a bridgehead for the recovery of Lake Baikal.
In addition, before attacking Nerchinsk, we have to send troops from Hailanpao, go north along the Jinqili River, enter the Lena River and go straight to Yakutsk. As long as we pull out Yakutsk, we can go from Lake Baikal to Bering
The Cossacks no longer have strongholds in the Straits, and the entire north of the Xing'an Mountains and up to the Arctic Circle is Chinese territory.
If Wang Fuchen rashly captured Nerchinsk, he would only be able to station a small number of troops due to logistical supply difficulties, and would inevitably suffer endless harassment from the Cossacks.
Therefore, the moment the Cossacks abandoned the city and fled, Wang Fuchen had already achieved his strategic goal.
The only thing left is to kill as few people as possible. There is too little soldiers here. We would rather let the Cossacks run away than fight in the reed swamps, let alone fight in the mountains and forests. If Zhang Tingxun's wait-and-see approach fails, then he will withdraw his troops directly.
Come back and let the Rakshasa ghosts escape back to Nerchinsk.
Unexpectedly, the Rakshasa ghost actually crashed into the door.
But it is also reasonable. If those guys want to go back, they must find a village to grab food, and the largest village nearby is there.
"I'm coming!"
Zhang Tingxun hid behind the house and observed the situation with a telescope.
This telescope was brought by him from Nanjing, and it would definitely not be issued to him at his level.
The first time he went to the battlefield, Zhang Tingxun was not afraid, but his blood was boiling all over. He kept in mind the rules he learned in the military academy and kept looking at his immediate commander (the sentry commander). The sentry commander Peng Chunlin was looking at the battalion commander.
Order flag.
The flag was waved, and Peng Chunlin also raised his hand...
"kill!"
At this moment, the Daur warriors hiding in the village, who did not know which tribe they came from, could not help but shoot arrows outside in advance.
Officers at all levels of the Datong Army were instantly speechless.
I have been told a thousand times to obey orders, but at the critical moment I still messed up.
"Bang bang bang bang!"
The Datong Army could only follow up and fire, although the enemy had not yet entered the best position.
"There's an ambush!"
When Zinoviev heard the gunfire, he turned around and ran away in fright.
The remaining Cossacks and Siberian archers were tired, sleepy and hungry at this time. They thought they would be able to grab food immediately, but unexpectedly they were met with a barrage of bullets and arrows. How could they still have fighting spirit? They even ignored the boat.
He turned around in panic and ran away.
Without ships, even if all these people escape, there is no way they can return to Nerchinsk alive. They will most likely die of illness and starvation on the way.
At this point in the war, it doesn't matter whether we chase or not.
Zhang Tingxun prided himself on being a marksman in the military academy, but the shot failed to hit the enemy at all. He didn't have time to reload, so he asked Peng Chunlin: "Commander, do you want..."
"Chase the enemy!"
Peng Chunlin drew his sword and rushed out.
Upon hearing this, Zhang Tingxun immediately shut up, put down the flintlock gun in his hand, drew his sword and rushed out of the village.
This guy is as strong as a calf and can run very fast when chasing the enemy.
Although the Datong army wore cotton armor and carried far more weight than the Cossacks, those Cossacks were physically exhausted. They could still burst their potential when they first ran for their lives, but their speed became slower and slower as they ran.
"kill!"
In the woods to the northwest, another hundred Datong troops rushed out with more than two hundred indigenous warriors.
Facing a flanking attack from both sides, the Cossacks were so frightened that they subconsciously ran towards the direction they came from, completely losing their will to fight.
At this time, there is no need to worry about the organization and formation.
Zhang Tingxun chased for about four minutes and finally caught up with a Siberian hunter. This kind of native was recruited by the Cossacks. They could only shoot cold arrows and fight with the wind, and their combat effectiveness was not as good as those Daur warriors.
"Bah!"
Zhang Tingxun shouted low and slashed the enemy's back with his knife.
Then he ignored it and continued to charge forward with his knife. The Siberian hunter who was chopped down by him struggled and tried to crawl forward, but was killed by the Daur warrior who caught up with him.
After another two minutes, Zhang Tingxun caught up with a Cossack.
This Cossack was wearing leather armor. When he heard the footsteps behind him, he turned around and raised his gun to shoot.
Zhang Tingxun immediately threw the sword and flew towards the enemy in a spin. Unfortunately, although he had good accuracy, he had not practiced the flying knife technique. In the end, the handle of the knife hit the enemy's arm, and the sword continued to fly out and brushed past the ear.
The Cossack subconsciously avoided and did not fire immediately.
Zhang Tingxun had already pounced on him, deflecting the enemy's blunderbuss with his left hand, and hitting the enemy's face with his right fist. After knocking the Cossack down, Zhang Tingxun quickly grabbed the gun, used the matchlock as a fire stick, and punched the enemy in the head.
, one guy would be knocked unconscious by the other guy.
Not to mention the difference in body shape between the two sides, one side is recharging his energy and waiting for work, while the other side has traveled a long distance and is tired and hungry. What suspense would there be in a fight?
Picking up his waist knife again, Zhang Tingxun wiped the enemy's throat. When he saw blood pouring out of the wound, he stepped forward and continued to pursue him.
Soon, he caught up with another Cossack. This guy didn't even have a matchlock gun. He probably belonged to the lowest level among the Cossacks. Seeing that he couldn't escape, he turned around and knelt down to beg for mercy. He kowtowed to Zhang Tingxun while trembling all over.
brush!
The sword flashed and the head flew up.
Zhang Tingxun's sword skills can change his job to become an executioner.
The general has an order that no prisoners will be taken in this battle. Rakshasa ghosts are full of evil. From now on, if you encounter them, kill them and leave no one alive.
After chasing him to the river, the Cossacks jumped into the river to escape, and Zhang Tingxun also began to take off his cotton armor.
After taking off the armor for a while, more and more friendly troops followed, and they even started chatting while taking off the armor.
"How many brothers have you killed?" asked the comrade next to him.
Zhang Tingxun smiled and said: "Three."
The soldier said: "You are awesome. You chased him so fast. I only killed one."
"You take off your clothes slowly, I'll chase you first." Zhang Tingxun held up his waist knife and plunged into the river.
After Zinoviev swam across the river, he was so tired that he lay on the ground panting. When he saw someone chasing him across the river, he quickly got up and continued to run away. His weapons were lost while swimming.
This noble man had not eaten for a whole day. After escaping for more than ten meters, he really had no strength. He turned around and said: "I am a boyar noble. I surrender and my family will pay a ransom..."
Zhang Tingxun couldn't understand the birdsong at all, so even if he did, he would kill him.
The knife struck, and Zinoviev subconsciously raised his hand to block. Four fingers were cut off on the spot, and he rolled on the ground in pain.
The Daur warriors did not wear armor and did not need to spend time taking off their armor. At this time, one of them was chasing him. Zhang Tingxun didn't care about the nobles. He just wanted to kill more enemies and ran away with just one sentence: "Leave this to you!"
The Daur warrior swung his sword and struck him in the thigh. Zinoviev hurriedly crawled, but was caught up and slashed in the back.
After cutting more than ten knives in a row, the Daur warrior finally stopped, looked at the corpse of the Rakshasa ghost, howled loudly, and shouted hysterically: "I have revenge, I have revenge!"
Zhang Tingxun had already chased into the mountains and forests. There was a Datong army in front of him who was killing the enemy. He was surprised and said: "How can you be so fast?"
The Datong army put away its sword and said: "We are ambushing in the northwest, and the boat is also hidden there. We are a team, and we all cross the river by boat and circumambulate, and the Rakshasa ghost is blocked. Hehe, this is a Rakshasa officer."
Stepanov fell there, eyes wide open, having ended his life of sin.
Zhang Tingxun continued to chase into the mountains and forests. Three Datong Army soldiers captured more than ten Rakshasa ghosts.
These enemies could no longer run and did not want to run anymore. They all laid down their weapons and surrendered.
Seeing Zhang Tingxun chasing after him, the Datong soldiers said to him: "Don't take action yet. Kill them when there are too many people, otherwise they will disperse again."
The Rakshasa ghost couldn't understand Chinese and thought he could survive, so he foolishly knelt there to rest.
When the Datong army increased to five people, they shouted: "Kill!"
Zhang Tingxun immediately slashed out with his sword, killing one with one sword and seriously injuring the other with the second sword. Seriously injured, he didn't bother to care and rushed to the next target. The Cossacks who were not attacked were frightened and fled for their lives.
Zhang Tingxun continued to chase and killed another person a few minutes later.
After the war, the corpses were collected, and 572 Cossacks and Siberian hunters were hunted down and killed.
There are definitely some who have escaped, but they are very few.
In the continuous outer Xing'an Mountains, people were either eaten by wild animals, starved to death due to lack of food, or died at the hands of the natives in the mountains.
Let’s take Beketov, the fortress expert. He ran very fast all the way and actually escaped pursuit. But he was tired and hungry, and had difficulty walking. That night he encountered a Siberian tiger...
Yaksa.
Wang Fuchen received the news and said to Hou Rusong: "This victory is too quick. We have more than enough food and grass. Why not fight another battle?"
Hou Rusong said: "We can't attack Chita. The governor's orders are to attack as far west as Yaksa."
Nerchinsk was a castle built last year. Neither the imperial court nor the Anton Governorate knew about it. They thought that the nearest Tsarist Russian stronghold to the west was Chita.
But both Nerchinsk and Chita are too far away, and they are close to the fortresses around Lake Baikal. It is easy to conquer, but difficult to defend and difficult to maintain logistics.
"Then go back to Hailanpao first and go north to fight Yakutsk!" Wang Fuchen said.
Yakutsk is now Tsarist Russia’s only stronghold in the Far East.
As long as we capture that area, approximately 4.6 million square kilometers of land will be inhabited only by the local indigenous people.
Hou Rusong said: "When attacking Yakutsk, we can't be like this time and be discovered by the enemy in advance. I heard that Khabarov said that there is very little food in Yakutsk, there are very few Rakshasa ghosts there, and the city walls are not well built.
It’s very crude. Blow through the city wall and attack the city immediately. Don’t let the enemy break out, and kill no one there!”