The War Court and Lap Pillow, Austria's Mandate of Heaven

Chapter 1697 Deserter
However, it now appears that Franz's plan has had an unexpected effect.

As for these naval expertise, they are unlikely to be applied to the Austrian Empire in the future, and the Austrian Empire itself has relatively mature countermeasures.

Less than a kilometer from Topkapi Palace, the Ottomans and Russians were engaged in a brutal battle.

The practice of firing squads in formation has been replaced by artillery barrages, vividly demonstrating the brutality of street fighting.

Both sides treated the artillery like large shotguns, and even pointed them at each other's faces.

As gunpowder charges and solid shot were loaded into the breech, the gunners began firing without even calibrating the guns.

As the fuse burned out, a deafening roar erupted, and the solid iron ball pierced the air, hurtling towards the enemy's position. Splinters flew everywhere, and screams filled the air.

Neither the Russians nor the Ottomans showed any weakness, firing shell after shell. By this time, both sides had almost exhausted their professional artillery and were relying entirely on sheer manpower.

Not only were the artillery pieces exhausted, but the cannons themselves were also nearly depleted. Half of the cannons brought by the Russian army had exploded, while the Ottoman army's cannons had an even higher rate of exploding.

But in this hellish tug-of-war, no one dared to give up first, as they all knew the consequences of doing so.

Infantry are also expendable; they are occasionally assigned near-certain-death missions, such as launching mass assaults on narrow streets.

It was also torture for the reserves huddled behind the barricades, huddled behind bunkers that might be hit by the next shell, praying they wouldn't be the next unlucky ones, or that they could die a quick death.

Indeed, at this moment, even a quick death had become a luxury. The artillery fire from both sides rarely hit the soldiers' vital organs directly; aside from glancing blows, the main damage came from splash damage.

Those bunkers and houses are the source of splash damage; broken bricks, wood chips, nails, and even severed limbs can cause harm.

Behind an Ottoman barricade, an Ottoman soldier had his heart pierced by a sharp bone spur from his comrade's severed arm.

Besides, many people were cut or blinded by debris, and some even went insane after their faces were covered in blood and entrails.

Under this relentless and ineffective artillery bombardment, morale on both sides had plummeted to rock bottom.

Even the elite Russian troops were mostly trembling with fear at this time, and some even rushed out of the barricades like madmen, only to die blankly on the roadside.

However, not everyone chose to wage a war of attrition like Shturkobai. Many hot-blooded Ottoman commanders, relying on their numerical superiority, wanted to end the battle quickly, and even wanted to drive the Russians back to sea as originally planned.

"God is with you! The gates of Paradise will open wide for the brave!"

"Listen! Kill all the Russians! We'll give you whatever you want—money, women, everything!"

"Your promotion and fortune are today! Kill!"

"kill!"

Different officers shouted different slogans, and the incited Ottoman soldiers, dreaming of a bright future, launched a charge.

However, in such narrow streets, a massed charge is tantamount to suicide. Especially when facing grapeshot, a single shell can wipe out an entire layer of soldiers.

Solid shot was equally devastating in this terrain, often killing a dozen or even dozens of people with a single shot. Limbs, torn limbs, blood, and internal organs were scattered everywhere.

Some Russian troops also carried naval artillery and grapeshot.

These shells, designed to target ships, proved equally effective against soldiers. Those capable of felling masts had a devastating impact on human bodies. The surging crowd was instantly routed, and the stench of blood filled the streets. Survivors either crawled on the ground, dragging their spilled entrails, or lay motionless, groaning weakly.

But no matter which one it is, they all ultimately cannot escape death.

The Ottoman New Army suffered heavy losses. In addition to a large number of ordinary soldiers who died in battle, many commanders also perished, and the organization was no longer able to be maintained.

The war went poorly, the organization was destroyed, and after fear and oppression came a large-scale rout.

The first deserter often appears silently.

Zoba was no coward; he fought for the Ottoman Empire for decades. But it was precisely because of his experience that Zoba was more desperate than others.

He didn't scream and run away, nor did he throw away his weapons or military cap. He simply slipped quietly into the alley while the officers and supervising officers weren't looking.

However, Zorba's actions set a precedent, and those experienced veterans who had faced life and death alongside Zorba began to desert the ranks amidst the chaos.

They didn't throw away their weapons like those cowards, nor did they discard their hats and tear off their epaulets like those angry young men. They simply left this place of trouble quietly.

Soon people noticed the veterans' behavior, and those who were smart also longed to survive, so they began to flee as well.

However, due to their lack of experience, they were easily discovered. Afterwards, they inevitably received a beating, and some were even executed as exemplary cases to boost morale.

Initially, the method of executing deserters was quite effective in boosting morale, but as the battles became increasingly brutal, executions could no longer completely deter them.

Some soldiers had already broken down, and when a group of deserters was discovered, they simply opened fire on the arriving supervisory team.

After shooting and killing the military judge, a soldier then stabbed the judge's soldier several times with his bayonet, shouting as he did so.

"If you won't let me live, I'll kill you first! You die!"

The soldiers' almost obsessive behavior was like opening Pandora's box, and the pent-up resentment in their hearts burst forth.

"The military judge is dead! Run for your lives!"

"Anyone who dares to stop me, I'll kill them!"

The rout spread like a plague. The deserters no longer concealed themselves or hid; they simply wanted to escape from here, escape Istanbul, and return home.

The large number of deserters was a major headache for the Ottoman high command, but they did learn some good news from Russian prisoners of war: the total strength of the Russian army was only 1.5 men, far fewer than the total Ottoman forces in Istanbul.

However, the losses at the front also surprised Murad V and the Grand Vizier. At this time, the losses of the various units of the Ottoman New Army generally exceeded one-third. Although some reserves had not yet been put into battle, some units had been completely wiped out or scattered.

"This can't go on! Your Majesty, let the Imperial Guards go! Only in this way can we deter the enemy and buy them time."

Grand Vizier Olma suggested.

But Murad V shook his head.

“My Imperial Guard is a reserve force, not a fire brigade.”

Napoleon once said that the sole purpose of the reserves is to be deployed to key locations at crucial moments in a battle, to deliver a fatal blow to the enemy with overwhelming force, thereby securing victory in the entire campaign.