Wild North America 1846

Chapter 344 The Dark Future

After holding back for a few days, this fluttering blizzard finally descended on the Detroit area. The heavy snow fell for almost half a day and a night, turning the whole land into a plain white.

Defiance
Defiance, about 150 kilometers south of Detroit, is only 20 kilometers east of the Detroit-Cincinnati defense line, and about 300 kilometers east is Cleveland, and 270 kilometers north is Cincinnati.

The current city of Defiance is occupied by the army of the Kingdom of Tang, and the headquarters of the coalition forces is located here. The army cut off the railway line from Detroit to Cleveland, and also cut off the railway, water and land routes between Detroit and Cincinnati. Traffic has completely turned Detroit into an isolated island. It can only rely on the Great Lakes shipping to replenish blood. The situation is almost the same as that of Chicago before.

"Auspicious snow heralds a good year!" Li Cha was in a good mood looking at the silver-clad plain with great interest.

As soon as he arrived here by train, there was a heavy snowfall. Could it be that he wanted to make the world cleaner?

In the eyes of King Li Cha, the heavy snow is a good omen. He is wearing a white uniform of the Grand Admiral of the Army and Navy of the Tang Dynasty, and the gold-plated national emblem and epaulet accessories on the big-brimmed hat make him look even more heroic.

The snow had stopped now, and it was around [-] o'clock in the morning, and the cavalry of the Royal Guards scattered far away, and the entire area with a radius of [-] to [-] kilometers was strictly guarded.

Li Cha was riding a giant white Perche horse two meters high at the shoulders, surrounded by a large group of generals riding horses, riding the horse slowly on the snow-covered wasteland, breathing the icy air, feeling the power of his body. To the comfort of the heart.

The commander-in-chief of the coalition forces, General Dai Changfu, General Harry Freche, and General Chen Chuan followed closely, and a large number of other high-ranking generals could only be one horse behind, forming a pyramid-like formation to accompany His Majesty Have fun exploring the wilderness.

"Changfu Aiqing, tell me...the Yankees' resistance is still strong, how long can they last?" King Richard rode forward and asked a question casually.

General Dai Changfu didn't dare to answer casually, but thought about it carefully, and replied in a cautious tone;

"Show Your Majesty;
The minister thought that the northern ghosts' national strength, economy and population were not enough to support the war for another year.It should have shown its broken image early, like a tower of sand dunes, it collapsed with a slight push.

However, the northern ghosts are still able to mobilize a large army, stand firm and resist at every step, even though they are defeated, they will not be chaotic.

Why is this?

It is nothing more than the word "spirit" in detail. It has been more than 77 years since the United States became independent. The will of the people condensed from this cannot be underestimated.

People can die in battle, but the national spirit will never die and can be passed down from generation to generation.

In analogy to the decadent and dark slavish rule of the Manchukuo in the land of China, it is like a dilapidated house with air leaks on all sides and rotten foundations. Once the turbulent international situation spreads, it will be crumbling immediately.

Not so in the United States of America, a newly industrialized country on the rise.

Its politics is enlightened, the market is open, the economy is prosperous, the ghosts are highly supported by the people, and the foundation of the country is very solid.

If there is no thorough reform like the earth dragon turning around, the fate of the country cannot be broken.

from this angle

The Tang Kingdom and the Allied Powers were able to defeat the United States of America militarily, but they were unable to destroy and eradicate him. Resistance was everywhere, and this was also a serious headache for the military. "

"Oh, how do you say that?"

"Your Majesty, since the great victory in Chicago, our Northern Legion and Colorado Legion have gone north and south, attacked everywhere, and occupied a large area of ​​the central region, but at the same time they have been continuously attacked by the civil white resistance movement. Not only white men, but even many white women They also took up guns to resist. In the past two months, there have been 3000 to [-] attacks every month, causing no less than [-] casualties of officers and soldiers, and it is quite difficult to solve."

"Is the implementation of the policy of clearing and suppressing villages and towns not effective enough?"

"Qi Zou Your Majesty, it is because the land we occupied this time is too vast, with hundreds of large and small towns and tens of thousands of remote manor farms. The army swept away hundreds of dense ones, while those white rebels shot one shot It's hard to take care of it in another place!"

"The policy of cleaning up and suppressing townships must still be implemented, supplemented by intensifying efforts to "vacate cages and change birds." The army must take on the responsibility of arming and training Chinese-American villages and towns, organize Chinese-American militias to maintain local law and order, and eliminate the scourge of white bandits. The military will give some The support of the cavalry force." King Li Cha's thinking was very clear and careful, and he said while riding his horse;

"Chang Fu Ai Qing and Zhu Ai Qing;
You must understand the significance of the kingdom's expansion, and don't lose confidence in the kingdom's major policies because of temporary setbacks and resistance. This is unacceptable.

With the in-depth implementation of the "bird-changing policy" of vacating the cage, in the next two years, the territory of the expansion of the kingdom will be filled with villages and towns dominated by Chinese descent.
With civilian forces against civilian forces, the army can withdraw, and the appropriate loss of immigrants can be fully tolerated.

The white people's resistance and attack will greatly enhance the cohesion and vigilance of the Chinese community, and will also enhance a sense of crisis, and they will fight back fiercely against the white bandits.

Zhu Aiqing must see that with the support of the Kingdom, the Chinese community is not a weak and helpless little pitiful, but will soon transform into a wild wolf with teeth and teeth, showing the iron-blooded style of the Han and Tang Dynasties.

This change is what we want to see.

How can you see a rainbow without experiencing wind and rain?
Only when the immigrant villages get together and take up guns to fight back, can the immigrant villages quickly form cohesion, move closer to each other for warmth, and become a family.

From this point of view, sporadic attacks by white bandits are not a bad thing, but help the unity of immigrant villages and take root in them for development.

If this goal is achieved, short-term labor pains are completely acceptable.

The government will formulate specific countermeasures, and the military only needs to cooperate. The troops that control the local situation will be dispatched as soon as possible, and the concentrated forces will destroy the enemies on the line from Detroit to Cincinnati. This is the most urgent thing at present. "

"Your Majesty is wise, I'm waiting to be taught." Admiral Dai Changfu and a group of senior generals behind him clasped their fists and bowed to each other immediately, and replied respectfully.

King Richard waved his hand, continued to ride slowly on the snow-covered wasteland, and asked in a chatty manner; "How is the preparation for the Detroit battle?"

Admiral Dai Changfu did not answer this topic, but indicated with his eyes to Admiral Chen Chuan that the Battle of Detroit would be mainly initiated by the Northern Corps, and it would be more appropriate for him to answer His Majesty's question.

As the commander-in-chief of the Northern Corps, Admiral Chen Chuan knew all about the preparations for the battle. Seeing this, he hurriedly stepped forward and replied clearly;
"Show Your Majesty;
Chen Chuan, Commander of the Northern Corps of Weichen, replied to His Majesty that everything was ready for the campaign of our Corps, but suddenly it was hit by wind and snow, so we had to delay the launch of the attack.

Considering the current severe cold weather, especially when the temperature at night has dropped to minus 6-7 degrees, it is difficult for the army to launch military operations in such a severe night and continue to exert pressure on the enemy.

Therefore, the Corps Department is adjusting the battle plan, and is fully mobilizing cold-proof materials from the rear, including cotton jackets, cotton socks, cotton boots, gasoline and diesel for heating and other corresponding materials, and the offensive time is postponed to late November.

In view of the current severe cold weather, field tents are not enough to withstand the cold, so the Corps troops are scattered in villages and towns, and by the way, they have intensified their efforts to clear and suppress towns and villages.

The current difficulty is mainly due to the lack of field heavy artillery. Detroit is a fortified city. Although the city area is much smaller, it is a good thing from a defensive point of view, and it is easier to concentrate troops for defense.

Our army's face-to-face enemy is Lieutenant General Samuel Brown. This man is a veteran of the Civil War. His combat style is tough and sophisticated, and he will do whatever it takes to win.

During the war preparation period

Detroit did not evacuate civilians on a large scale. The urban population remained at about 32, and only 4 to 5 old, young, women, and children were evacuated. They were evacuated to New York State and other places after passing through the Great Lakes inland waterway. The workers and young men almost No one left.

As far as pre-battle reconnaissance knows;
There are no less than 18 black slaves fleeing north in Detroit. They are receiving large-scale military training, and they may join in the follow-up war and become a military force that cannot be ignored.

Combined with the city's garrison of more than 20 people, 32 urban residents and an unknown number of white laborers, this will be a tough nut to crack.

But our Northern Corps has the confidence and ability to break this hard bone, and dedicate this important city of the Great Lakes to His Majesty, with the loyalty and bravery of all the soldiers of our Northern Corps. "

"Your loyal heart is enough to show your sincerity. I am so relieved..." King Li Cha nodded his approval with a gentle expression, then changed the subject and asked, "Is there any shortcoming in conquering this fortified city?"

"Your Majesty, my only concern is the lack of heavy artillery. The number of field artillery of various calibers is sufficient, but the number of 30-pound field heavy artillery and larger caliber mortars is scarce. When encountering a strong fortress, the lack of ability to The heavy firepower that smashed the fortress."

"Well, it's not difficult. I'll send you three M1860 mortars. Any fortress revealed will be a chicken and a dog." King Richard smiled confidently.

The field heavy artillery is limited by the existing conditions. The 30-pound heavy artillery is almost the ultimate. The overall weight of the artillery body is astonishing. It needs to lay special hard roads to pass in the field, and it takes a lot of trouble to reach the front line.

But the mortar is different. The M1860 mortar is a newly equipped coastal heavy artillery. It weighs as much as 1760 kilograms. It has a simple structure similar to a teacup. It can fire 48-pound shells. Kilometers away, the damage capability is extremely astonishing.

Transported by rail, the three M1860 mortars could go directly to the city of Detroit, with a range of about 4 kilometers, which can be described as a disastrous heavy firepower for the defensive side.

Hearing that His Majesty agreed to mobilize three coastal heavy artillery to participate in the battle, Admiral Chen Chuan beamed with joy, and said solemnly; "Please rest assured, Your Majesty, our Northern Legion is confident that we will wipe out the stubborn enemies of Detroit, build honor for the kingdom, and add luster to the army. "

As long as these three heavy artillery are put on the battlefield, Lieutenant General Samuel Brown, a seasoned veteran, will panic and dare not continue to hide in the city to resist, but will have to bite the bullet and go out of the city to start a head-to-head battle big battle.

The truth is simple

If these three M1860-style large-caliber mortars were allowed to bombard indiscriminately, no strong fortress could resist, and all of them would be reduced to rubble under the heavy artillery bombardment.

Therefore, in any case, the three M1860 large-caliber mortars cannot be allowed to approach within 4 kilometers of the fortress, otherwise it will be a complete disaster, and no one can stop the big rout.

In the face of this big killer, Lieutenant General Samuel Brown could only overthrow the original good calculation, bite the bullet and lead the army out of the city to fight head-to-head with the coalition forces in a few field battles, which was in the hands of the Northern Army.

At that time, the large number of 3-pound, 6-pound and 12-pound field guns of the Northern Army can give full play to their firepower and stage an artillery feast.

take a step back

Even if the shells can't be used freely, the casualties in the field battle are much smaller than the hard attack on the strong fortress, which is a good deal no matter how you look at it.

The overall military strategy of the Tang Kingdom today is not eager to defeat the United States of America, but to prolong the war timeline, and through one battle after another, it will greatly consume the young and middle-aged labor force of the Yankees, weaken its national strength, and reduce its post-war economy and population development potential, limiting its development in the next 50 or even 100 years.

Anyway, the Tang Kingdom could afford it. Since the reorganization of the army in June, it absorbed new recruits from the mainland. From July to November, as many as 6 new recruits from the mainland arrived, all gathered in the Salt Lake City area for winter combat and urban combat training.

Playing crowd tactics, Huaxia is ranked second, and no one in this world dares to be number one. This is not bragging at all.

In order to support the huge military expenditures, the always wealthy royal family of the Tang Dynasty has now begun to go into debt, but Richard believes that if the war continues for another 1-2 years, it will further destroy the foundation of the United States of America and its young and middle-aged population, and push it into the abyss of war debt , then all the efforts are worthwhile.

Don't look at the fact that the US dollar has depreciated by 2500 times, but the franc and pound loans that need to be repaid have not depreciated. They are all hard currencies linked to gold, and they are not huge debts that can be repaid by printing money.

in the original historical time and space
The huge debt of more than one billion U.S. dollars that the United States had to bear during the Civil War between the North and the South continued to pile up with interest. It was not until the outbreak of the First World War more than 50 years later that the serfs turned from a heavily indebted debtor country to a Creditor countries with a large number of creditors' rights in their hands have developed their industrial economies to a high degree.

So don't underestimate the billions of dollars (note, the pound and franc war debts are calculated on the same caliber) debt, which is equivalent to the gross national product of the United States in its peak year before the war.

The high interest rate alone is enough to overwhelm the weak fiscal revenue of the United States of America, and plunge it into the abyss of debt with increasing interest rates...

If the population continues to grow and the overall economic scale is expanding rapidly, we can still see the day when the debt will be repaid.

If the territory is greatly divided, the population size shrinks sharply after the war, the overall economic output shrinks sharply, and the financial economy and various industries are kidnapped and infiltrated by foreign capital, then the future of the United States of America will hardly be bright...

(End of this chapter)