Dmitri's gift undoubtedly gave Butin a boost. Naturally, Igorevich suffered from bad blood for eight lifetimes, and it was a tragedy to be punished.
Until the moment he escaped and was shot to death, he couldn't figure out why Butining had to fight against him.
But it doesn't matter. When he gets to heaven, no, he should go to hell. He will have plenty of time to think about this problem. I believe that his soul will definitely figure this out in endless suffering.
In this battle, Dmitri not only recaptured Nizhin but also eliminated the Igorevich gang, killing more than 2,000 people and capturing more than 4,000 people. The rest were either missing or escaped.
But this is not a big problem. The most important thing is that the harvest from this battle is so rich.
Butnin's surrender brought the number of surrender troops under Dmitri to more than 60,000. Coupled with the mobile troops in his hands, his total military strength finally reached 100,000.
Although he is still at an absolute disadvantage compared to the remaining 300,000 rebels in Kiev, it is already a world of difference from when he first arrived in Ukraine.
In addition, he also recaptured Ichnia and Priluki without any bloodshed, leaving only 60 or 70 kilometers away from Kiev. Even if Kozelets could not be taken, he still gained a road leading to Kiev.
New route.
In short, Dmitri was still very happy. The only thing that worried him a little was why there was no news from Kozelets.
Logically speaking, the battle over there should be over. Did the surprise attack fail?
The surprise attack did not fail, but there were some complicated changes. At least when Li Xiao arrived at Kozelets with the main follow-up force, the city had been basically captured, and only a few enemies relied on the bridge over the Ostel River to resist.
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"The enemy's firepower was very fierce. They deployed twelve 18-pound cannons on the other side of the river. My cavalry attacked twice and was repulsed."
The person who said this was Major General Ogelinin, commander of the 12th Cossack Cavalry Brigade, who was also the commander in charge of the surprise attack on Kozelets.
After nightfall the day before, he led the cavalry and marched 40 kilometers straight into Kozelets.
There was actually nothing to say about the battle. Orginio never expected that the Russian army would suddenly arrive at his door. During the day, he was joking with his men and waiting to see Igorevich's jokes.
Who would have thought that he would become a melon to be eaten at night? Tell me what this is!
Of course, he himself didn't actually think so much. When he was attacked, he immediately chose to run away, because the whole city was filled with shouts of killing, and he had no idea how many Russian troops were coming.
And according to his experience, the Russian army has always been strict in fighting, and the one who came to fight him must be the main force of the Russian army. He only had a few men under his command, and he was not prepared at all in a hurry. There was no match for the main force of the Russian army, so he did not
Are you waiting to be put in a cage with Igorevich and sent to St. Petersburg?
Orginio ran so neatly, which also caused the rebel army in the city of Kozelets to lose their command and become chaotic. With the chaos added to the chaos, how could they be the opponent of the sturdy Cossacks? They were defeated in minutes.
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At this time, Major General Ojelinen was also a little distracted. The hard battle he expected did not exist at all. The enemy on the opposite side was worse than tofu. If he didn't dare to go in and do some fun, why are he waiting?
So he ordered his cavalry to pursue the entire front immediately. He must chase the remaining bandits bravely and drive away Orginio completely.
However, Orginio still had some skills. He actually set up an artillery position on the south bank of the Ostel River. His artillery firmly blocked the only channel on the river and successfully covered the retreat of his remaining troops to Ostel.
South bank of the Jer River.
Ojelinen did not take the artillery on the other side of the river seriously at first, and only organized a company and platoon-level charge, thinking that these half-baked artillerymen would flee in confusion as soon as his blade reached them.
But he underestimated the rebels, and soon a platoon of cavalry disappeared without a trace under the enemy's bullets. Unwilling to give up, he organized two more charges, but each time he did not wait for his cavalry to arrive.
The bridge was instantly reduced to rubble by ruthless shotguns.
Let's put it this way, Ojelinen lost a total of more than 400 people in last night's night attack, but nearly 200 casualties were paid on this bridge alone.
The most important thing is not the issue of casualties, but that Orginio suddenly came to his senses. He saw from the impact of the Russian cavalry that the Russian army did not seem to have many people, otherwise the charge would not be more than ten.
A wave of several twenty cavalrymen, in the Cossack style, is usually one or two hundred at least, and more than one or two thousand is normal.
In other words, the one who came to mess with him should not be the main force of the Russian army. Damn it, a false alarm is too shameful!
After reacting, he immediately began to gather his troops to organize a counterattack, and once he returned to the north bank of the Oster River, if the main reinforcements led by Li Xiao hadn't arrived, Ojelinen might not have been able to withstand it and gave away the fruits of victory again.
go back.
From this point of view, there is indeed a big problem with the quality of the Russian commanders. Li Xiao remembers clearly that Dmitri repeatedly told Odelinin that after capturing Kozelets, the position must be consolidated as soon as possible and precautions must be taken.
The enemy's counterattack also specifically stated that if the sneak attack to seize the city goes smoothly, the main force in the rear must be notified as soon as possible.
It's just that he didn't do these two things at all. You don't have to guess that he must have been careless when he saw the sneak attack to seize the city smoothly, thinking that the rebels were vulnerable. He didn't think about defense and counterattack at all. He just wanted to beat the drowned dog and get more credit.
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If Li Xiao hadn't arrived in time, I'm afraid the duck would have flown away.
Fortunately, the problem was not big now. After Li Xiao led the main force to Kozelets, he immediately deployed troops to fight back Orginio's counterattack. He was not in a hurry to seize the bridge, but ordered his troops to consolidate the defense line immediately.
Of course, Li Xiao didn't do nothing. He gave Ojelinen's cavalry a new task and ordered them to immediately go to the upper and lower reaches of the Ostel River to find bridges that could cross the river.
If it can be found, lead the cavalry across the river immediately, and then attack the remaining troops of Orginio guarding the bridge from the flank.
If there is no bridge available, let the engineers see if there is a suitable location for building a pontoon bridge, and build a pontoon bridge across the river as soon as possible.
In short, the goal is to get the cavalry across the river as soon as possible, and then cooperate with Kozelets' main force to flank Orginio's remaining troops and defeat or annihilate them in one fell swoop.
For Li Xiao, this battle would only be meaningful if he captured the Kozelets Bridge. Fortunately, Orginio had not thought of destroying the bridge, otherwise he would have been in big trouble.
Just because he didn't think about it now doesn't mean he won't think about it in the future. He must seize the bridge as soon as possible while the iron is hot!