Wild North America 1846

Chapter 323 The Vanishing Northern Army
Just as London was in deep trouble, new changes took place in the North American war.

The battlefield on the Eastern Front is still heavily populated by the north and the south, competing for this 150-kilometer narrow area. The victory or failure of each battle only means advancing or retreating a few miles, truly demonstrating the bloody cruelty of not giving up.

It was as if two naked strong men were fighting hand-to-hand, and what was swayed was not sweat but countless lives.

On the vast western front

The Colorado Corps of the Tang Kingdom Army and the Southern Corps, which attacked swiftly, won the Battle of Kansas and the Battle of Xuefeng Mountain successively, and wiped out more than 14 enemies in total.

There were more than 11 U.S. remnants led by General Hillman, forming a wide encirclement of more than 800 kilometers from north to south and 130 kilometers long, and the situation was fully dominant.

The Southern Corps united with more than 5 relatively elite troops from the Confederate States of America (South), and slowly oppressed from south to north. After more than 20 days, they advanced to the Nixar area, more than 310 kilometers south of Kansas, and still did not find the remnant of General Sherman.

The total strength of the Colorado Corps, which was waiting in the north, was 21 (1 troops were added in January, plus more than 2.2 troops from the Southern Army General Hill's troops). It received the great attention of the General Staff Headquarters of the Datang Kingdom.

Could it be... General Sherman's troops actually slipped away?
This possibility does not exist. After the Battle of Xuefeng Mountain, the U.S. military, which was originally extremely bloated, suffered a disastrous defeat and abandoned a large number of carriages and fled. Only the forward army of more than 7.5 people was relatively complete. There are about three to four thousand carriages of weapons, ammunition and food supplies.

In this way, it is tantamount to reducing the burden on the US military in disguise.

If the U.S. military abandons their carriages and supplies, leaves the main road and walks into the wilderness, and crosses the vast eastern wilderness with people and horses on their backs, there is a certain possibility of bypassing the huge trap of Kansas City.

While the possibility exists, it is very difficult to do.

Because the amount of materials that people or horses can carry is limited, the minimum food requirement that can last for 10 days is exhausted, and if you want to bypass the huge trap of Kansas City, you must walk at least 400 kilometers or even longer in the wilderness.

This is because the front of the defense network opened by the Colorado Legion in Kansas is as wide as 137 kilometers, and there are sentry cavalry patrolling the surrounding areas, going east as far as hundreds of kilometers.

If the remnants of the Northern Army do not want to be discovered, it will take more than 400 kilometers to surround the traps set up by the Tang Kingdom, and this requires extremely accurate intelligence support.

Leave a little safety margin, then the hiking mileage will reach more than 500 kilometers.

is it possible?
Rayville
This is a city more than 120 kilometers south of Kansas City that is mainly based on agriculture and animal husbandry. There are about 1.7 residents living in it. Lord, there are now a cavalry division and an infantry division with a total of 1 troops stationed. It is the forefront military presence of the Coronado Corps of the Tang Kingdom in the south.

The city council has now become a military headquarters. Lieutenant General Harry Freche, commander of the corps, major generals Duan Debiao and Fan Pengfei, deputy commanders, and a group of senior generals gathered here, all with deep anxiety in their eyes;
Where the hell are these damn Yankees hiding?
"Things have become very clear. Since Kansas City was besieged, there has been no news for more than a month. Sherman was originally an excellent general in the Northern Army. He also suffered the defeat of Xuefeng Mountain. The worst happened."

"The problem is...our cavalry patrols have spread out 150 kilometers away, and still haven't found any traces of the US military. Could it be possible to fly from the sky?"

"I don't believe they go around. There are countless hilly rivers in this four to five hundred kilometers of wilderness. There are seventy or eighty rivers that can only be counted, not to mention the countless nameless streams. Cavalry can pass, it doesn't mean Infantry can pass too."

"Yeah, the weather is still cold at the end of February. The cavalry sent by the Corps to patrol the wild rivers continuously. Even if they return within a week, 2 to [-]% of the horses will suffer from serious discomfort and injuries. How can the Yankees break through the wilderness? "

"The problem is that there is no trace now!"

"This is an army of 11 people. They didn't carry much logistical supplies. How will they solve the food problem?"

After discussing for a long time, the problem returned to the original point, which made the atmosphere in the headquarters more dignified.

The encirclement encircled by more than 30 troops is like an iron barrel. If the remnant of the US military Sherman is allowed to escape, then the head of the Corps can really find a piece of tofu and smash it to death, so as not to be embarrassing.

However, if General Sherman's troops could not be completely wiped out, the Tang Kingdom's 30 troops would have to be dragged on this lush wilderness in Kansas, unable to go north in time to encircle Chicago and officially start the second phase of the campaign strategy.

Therefore, the officers of the corps were very anxious in their hearts, but they couldn't show it.

Major General Fan Pengfei frowned deeply, and after careful consideration, he clicked on the map with his hands. This is a large piece of wilderness forest nearly [-] kilometers south of Levier. It covers an area of ​​more than [-] hectares. area.

"Comprehensive judgment, I think that the remnants of the US military are hiding in this area, and it is impossible to go east across the wilderness of four to five hundred kilometers and escape back to the north."

Speaking of here
Seeing that everyone's eyes were focused on him, Major General Fan Pengfei calmly stated the basis for his judgment;
"Based on our army's understanding of the US military, General Sherman's troops are an army that has experienced hundreds of battles. It has a tough fighting style, is not afraid of sacrifice and dares to fight. It is one of the more outstanding field troops on the Western Front. one.

Another outstanding field force is the Michigan Corps led by Lieutenant General Samuel Brown with more than [-] troops. The Michigan Corps has returned to Chicago smoothly recently.

And this invisibly increased the difficulty of the northern army's attack, which can be said to be no small regret.

Because of this, we must not let the remnants of General Sherman go, and we must completely wipe them out in the field to avoid future troubles.

With the consistent nature of the U.S. military, there is no shortage of blood and bravery, enough spirit of sacrifice, and sufficient combat experience.

However, the lack of systematic military training of the northern militia has always been a huge weakness, which has led to loose military discipline and poor obedience, which is already an inherent tumor of the US military.

Considering that General Sherman's troops had won consecutive battles before, and the burning, killing and looting went smoothly along the way, it is inevitable that there will be supercilious arrogance.

Such a force, allowing it to overcome all kinds of difficulties and dangers and cross the four to five hundred kilometers long wilderness area, probably broke up halfway.

Our army has iron-like discipline, not to mention 500 kilometers, even if it is several times more, the soldiers can overcome it, but the Yankees can't.

So I judge;

They must be hiding in this forest and swamp area with complex terrain. If there are locals who are familiar with the terrain to lead the way and hunt the local buffalo and other wild animals in a planned way, they can persist for a long time.

So in the next step, the strength of a cavalry division should not be lower than that of a cavalry division, focusing on searching and exploring this area. "

After speaking, Major General Fan Pengfei tapped heavily on the map, showing his strong confidence in his judgment.

As a senior general of the corps, he must be responsible for the strategic decisions he makes, because this may affect the deployment of troops of the entire corps.

The total strength of the Colorado Corps exceeds 18. There are only two authentic cavalry divisions under its command. The rest of the cavalry belong to the cavalry battalion of the division.

The Tang Kingdom has a total of only 6 cavalry divisions, two under the Northern Corps, two under the Colorado Corps, one under the Southern Corps (a cavalry division of the Royal Guards, temporarily strengthened to the Southern Corps), and one guarding the original royal palace of the Dragon Head .

If a cavalry division is sent to search the forest and wilderness areas for nearly [-] kilometers south, there will inevitably be a large blank area including Levier and its surrounding areas, and the main force of the US military may be missed.

Corps Commander Lieutenant General Harry Flech frowned and did not speak, he was still carefully considering the gains and losses.

If the judgment is wrong, the more than 11 people under General Sherman's troops will take advantage of the gap and force a breakthrough in the area east of Kansas City.

Not all the troops gathered along the railway line, which is more than 130 kilometers east of the Kansas City defense line.If the U.S. Northern Army seizes the weak flank and breaks through forcibly, it will cause the overall passivity, and it will be too late to regret.

Even if 11 ducks broke through the big net, it would take a lot of effort to catch them, let alone humans?

Just when Lieutenant General Harry Flech was hesitating, Major General Duan Debiao, the former officer of Major General Fan Pengfei, spoke up. Obviously, he also said after careful consideration;
"I agree with Deputy Chief Fan's point of view. It is an indisputable fact that whether the US military is a veteran or an elite in the field, discipline is always a shortcoming.

It is still possible for a small U.S. army to cross the wilderness of four to five hundred kilometers, but it is really unimaginable for an army of 11 people to abandon all artillery and logistics and enter the wilderness.

To accomplish this arduous task, the military must have a sound training and organizational system, have well-trained officers and soldiers, and have iron-like discipline, and these are elements that the US military cannot possess.

Therefore, I agree with Deputy Chief Fan's opinion that the U.S. military may be hiding in this area, the complex forest swamp area or further away, and should be the focus of the search. "

The two deputy commanders had the same opinion. Lieutenant General Harry Flech had to pay great attention to it. After careful consideration, he finally made up his mind and said;
"You have convinced me that there is less than a tenth chance that Sherman's army will escape across the wilderness to the north without us being aware of it, and it is even more likely that there will be nowhere to hide in the Kansas to Rayville area. They are hiding somewhere south of the Lemuel region, so let's find them."

Speaking of here
Lieutenant General Harry Fritsch paused for a moment, and said in a serious tone; "I ordered as the commander of the corps; the headquarters of the 303 Cavalry Division focused on the southern forest area, launched intensive investigations, and repeatedly sorted out, I must dig out these hiding Yankees for me, and wipe them out thoroughly."

"Of order, sir." Division 303 Commander Lin Feng and his subordinates all stood at attention and saluted, accepting the order solemnly.

(End of this chapter)