Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 689 Proactive Counterattack Forces Russian Army to Retreat
The severely damaged natives refused to continue the siege, and no matter how much Korolev and Romanov threatened them, they were unwilling to attack again.

Because of their resolute stance, the Russian army dared not take a hard line and made some compromises, agreeing not to attack the city but to adopt a retreat and encirclement tactic.

The Russian military leadership has a deeper understanding of the casualty ratio and unanimously believes that even if Russian soldiers were to personally engage in combat, they might not be able to perform as well as the natives in the face of such high-rate-of-fire.

Natives, waving white flags, reappeared outside the city to collect the bodies, but the mixed brigade inside still did not launch an attack. They allowed them to collect the bodies and then calmly withdrew.

Many officers expressed their dissatisfaction, with opinions such as "barbarians fear power but do not appreciate virtue" frequently emerging.

Jiang Ping patiently explained: "The mixed brigade has more than 10,000 men, and the Anxi army is not cooperating. If we want to establish a foothold in the long term, we must win the hearts and minds of the local people."

One sentence silenced his subordinates. Everyone knew that the Anxi army was not only alienated from the court, but the long-term separatist regime was already showing signs of becoming like a regional warlord.

Anxi is still too far away, and the roads are difficult to traverse, so the imperial court can hardly devote much resources to it. As long as the Anxi army does not become independent, we will let it be.

The closer one is to the front lines, the more fully one understands the pressure brought by Tsarist Russia's expansion. The most pressing issue is how to bind the local inhabitants to the war machine.

Judging from the current situation, the Anxi army has not performed well so far. Holding Bishkek is the top priority; how to deal with the Anxi army and the local indigenous people is something to plan ahead for.

Judging from the results, the Anxi army achieved its goal of putting the mixed brigade at the forefront, which reminded Jia Shi of Liu Bei in Xinye.

Nevertheless, the purpose of the mixed brigade's visit here was to train troops on the front line, and in that sense, it achieved its goal.

After collecting the bodies, the natives began to break camp and retreat ten miles away. The next day, they began to dig trenches and build fortifications.

Jiang Ping convened a meeting of officers and announced that the existing food supplies would be rationed, and that preparations would be made for a long-term siege if the Anxi army could not come to reinforce.

Of course, simply holding the line is not an option. We need to conduct thorough reconnaissance to find the enemy's weaknesses and launch a decisive counterattack, preventing the enemy from successfully constructing an encirclement.

That night, scouts went out to find out the situation of the various native camps.

For three days nothing happened, and the Russian army and the natives inevitably became complacent. Under the cover of night, two infantry battalions of the Mixed Brigade quietly left the city and moved to within about one kilometer of the native camp.

The operation began in the latter half of the night. When the attacking force approached the enemy camp at a distance of about 500 meters, all mortars were concentrated and a fierce artillery barrage was launched against the enemy camp.

The intense artillery fire caused great chaos in the north and east directions. After five minutes of artillery preparation, the infantry launched an attack.

The awakened Russian troops discovered that the attack came from the north and east. They immediately judged that the northern attack was a diversionary tactic, while the eastern attack was the main force. The enemy's goal was to break the encirclement and retreat to Dushanbe.

As a result of discussions among the Russian high command, they decided to retreat and then move eastward, hoping to catch the retreating mixed brigade off guard on the way.

The idea was wonderful, but reality was very cruel.

In reality, the mixed brigade had no intention of retreating. They were betting that the natives were not good at night fighting and that the tribes would not support each other. The troops advancing eastward were just a feint; the main force was heading north, aiming to inflict heavy casualties on the northern natives, who had the strongest forces, and force them to withdraw from the battlefield.

Another point is that reconnaissance indicates the northern natives are from the border region and were among the first to follow the Russian army south. There is significant conflict between them and the local natives, who will not come to their aid if attacked. If Russian reinforcements arrive, then the camp can be used to engage the Russian Guards Cavalry in battle; the existing fortifications can fully utilize their firepower advantage.

The Kazakh tribe to the north had a force of at least 30,000, making them the largest indigenous tribe besieging the city.

After a fierce artillery barrage, the camp descended into chaos. The mixed infantry broke through an opening and quickly expanded their gains to both sides.

The attacking officers and soldiers fired rifles from a distance and bombarded the area with grenades at close range, setting tents on fire everywhere. Without tents, these nomadic natives would not be able to survive the winter. Without the cooperation of the natives, the Mixed Brigade was confident that it could confront the Russian Guards Cavalry Corps head-on and win.

The Kazakh tribesmen, caught in the chaos, were unable to organize an effective defense. After six or seven camps were breached in succession, the Kazakh tribe completely collapsed. Under the increasingly loud shouts of battle, the tribal chief chose to take his personal guards and flee first.

Jiang Ping, standing on the city wall, watched the flames igniting the sky to the north and couldn't help but worry that those bastards were blinded by rage and wouldn't retreat. Turning to look to the east, he saw that although their forces were small, consisting of only one battalion, they had also stormed into the native camp, setting fires everywhere and causing chaos.

"It's almost dawn, cavalrymen, prepare to provide support," Jiang Ping decisively gave the order.

An hour later, as dawn broke, the shouts of battle in the distance gradually ceased.

After the two infantry units on the north side achieved their goal of completely destroying the Kazakh camp, they began to withdraw from the battle one after another, taking turns to cover each other and retreating quickly.

The expected Russian reinforcements were nowhere to be seen. The cavalry battalion responsible for receiving and protecting the western flank, however, reaped a small but significant victory. Three groups of local cavalry, each over a hundred men, were out on reconnaissance. The cavalry battalion didn't hold back and charged straight in, accepting this unexpected gift with a smile.

After the first and second infantry regiments withdrew and found no pursuers, they calmly led back a number of horses, cattle and sheep.

The exact number of enemy casualties in this battle is impossible to determine, but the number of casualties suffered by the Chinese side was negligible, only a dozen or so, and all of them were minor injuries.

When the entire army withdrew back into the city after daybreak, the Russian army did not appear.

The Kazakh tribe, having suffered heavy losses, simply fled, leaving a huge gap in the north.

By the time the Russian army realized that the mixed brigade had not broken out, it was too late. After decisively withdrawing to the northern defense line, more bad news followed.

The indigenous tribes, who had been coerced and lured by the Russian army, began packing their bags and fleeing after seeing the Kazakh tribe leave without saying goodbye.

By the time the Russian army discovered the situation and intervened, the remaining natives who had been too slow to escape were only about 30,000, belonging to three local tribes.

Continuing with a prolonged siege was no longer feasible, so the Russian army decisively withdrew, again without informing the local indigenous tribes.

The mixed brigade, which was always vigilant and quick to conduct reconnaissance, had a much more acute sense of the battlefield situation. After discovering the Russian army's retreat, it did not pursue them but instead chose to attack local tribes.

Unexpectedly, three local tribes sent envoys to the mixed brigade, expressing their willingness to submit and claiming to be descendants of Li Ling.

This left the senior officers of the mixed brigade completely bewildered. What was going on here?

In any case, from the perspective of long-term stationing, if the natives were willing to submit, a positive response was necessary. The Mixed Association had no choice but to abandon its attack, and as contact deepened, you know what, you really have to admit, the native envoy's words were reasonable and well-founded.

As descendants of Li Ling, their claim was not self-proclaimed, but rather endorsed by Emperor Taizong of Tang.

After formal negotiations, Jiang Ping and the others chose to accept the other party's submission, stating that they would convey their wishes to His Majesty the Emperor and see what His Majesty's attitude would determine their status.

Of course, these tribes could not be let off so easily. They were required to dismantle the surrounding fortifications and restore the area to its original state before they could leave.

The Russian Guards Cavalry corps withdrew very thoroughly, not even remaining in Kazakhstan. This was related to their mission: to teach Zhou's army a lesson, not to launch a full-scale war. Now that their mission was barely accomplished, retreat became inevitable.

The mixed brigade, however, dared not be careless at all. It was not until just before winter arrived that they realized that the Russian troops had withdrawn far away, and even the indigenous tribes that had been active in the border area had also withdrawn far away.

Even knowing the Russian troops had withdrawn, the mixed brigade dared not pursue them; they had more important tasks to complete. First, they needed to eliminate some local indigenous tribes, identifying the ones who had contributed the most and pinpointing their hiding places. Then, on a winter morning, the mixed brigade launched an attack. The battle lasted three days, beginning with artillery bombardment, followed by infantry assaults. When the enemy was routed and fled, cavalry pursued them.

After this battle, the local tribe, which numbered nearly 50,000, lost its tents, iron pots, and other necessities, as well as most of its cattle, sheep, and other food. The tribe was expelled from the tribal community.

The mixed brigade captured over 100,000 head of cattle and sheep and took over 10,000 prisoners, who were responsible for herding the cattle and sheep back.

After the situation around Bishkek was basically stabilized, Jiang Ping and the other high-ranking officials were finally able to send people to contact the King of Anxi.

They finally figured out what had happened in Anxi Royal City: the result of the three princes' fight, with the crown prince emerging victorious and the two brothers fleeing to the new province with their remaining troops.

Jiang Ping and the others were stunned by the truth!

In the capital, Grand Secretary Jia Lian took Jia Quan's letter seriously, but he still wanted to see the battle report of the Global Fleet first. The Grand Secretary sneered repeatedly.

The Anssa people have never treated other races as human beings, and the crimes they committed during their colonial history are too numerous to count.

Navy personnel impersonating pirates—that's a minor issue.

What truly concerned Jia Lian was the design issue of the new cruiser mentioned in Jia Quan's letter. He pointed out the drawbacks of having guns mounted on the fore and aft decks during pursuits, and expressed his hope that gun emplacements could be placed there. Jia Lian was deeply gratified. Even more gratifying was that Jia Quan hadn't forgotten to write to his mother at home and had brought back many gifts.

It can only be said that as the eldest son of the Grand Secretary, Jia Quan still had quite a few privileges.

Since it concerned diplomacy, Jia Lian and Fang Song discussed it and then went to see Emperor Li Yuan together.

How to respond to the British actions still requires the Emperor's permission.

Li Yuan was furious after hearing the report. The British Royal Navy's act of posing as pirates to rob Chinese merchant ships was absolutely intolerable and a response was necessary.

Jia Lian stated that the British side would definitely not admit it, even if they captured a large number of prisoners and a warship, they would insist that it was a military action, not a state action.

In response to this action, we first condemn it from a moral standpoint, and secondly, we will regularly dispatch warships to the Strait of Malacca to escort our merchant ships. We also stated that if the British Navy intervenes to obstruct us, we will resolutely strike back.

Fang Song also echoed this sentiment, stating that the British government lacked the courage to wage war against the Empire, and their focus remained on Europe and the encirclement of France. Given the previous strength of the British Navy, some minor skirmishes between the two navies were likely, and to avoid losses, the escort fleet could not be too small.

When the military was mentioned, Li Yuan said casually, "Prime Minister Yue has been ill for more than a month. I wonder when he will recover."

Jia Lian replied, "Your humble servant also hopes that Brother Yue will recover soon."

Li Yuandao said, "The Prime Minister, please take care of the military matters for now."

Jia Lian replied that he would obey the imperial decree.

It's clear that Li Yuan's patience with Yue Qi is dwindling. After his military reform proposals were repeatedly rejected, Yue Qi seems to be giving up and refusing to contribute.

The reason the military reform plan failed to pass was that Yue Qi refused to relinquish the benefits he was providing to veteran officers. For example, the troop numbers in Datong, Shanhaiguan, Lanzhou, and along the Great Wall remained unchanged on paper in the reform plan. Li Yuan had patiently hinted that the troop numbers and benefits in these areas might need adjustment as the situation changed, but Yue Qi stubbornly pretended not to hear.

Jia Lian was well aware that these troops in the Northwest were Yue Qi's core territory, and of course they couldn't be touched. To this end, Yue Qi even went so far as to reduce the size of the troops stationed in each province to the regimental level.

Having no interest in Yue Qi's outcome, Jia Lian left the negotiations with the British minister to Fang Song and went to the Tianjin Shipyard the next day.

There were some achievements here; after the 500-ton steamship, an 800-ton steamship was built.

As for when a steam turbine could be built, Jia Lian could only accept that it might happen in his lifetime.

When the drawbacks of the new cruiser design were brought up, the shipyard's technical officials were very enthusiastic. After a heated discussion, they thought the idea of ​​placing two gun emplacements on the fore and aft decks was excellent.

However, 75mm cannons are no longer suitable; their power is insufficient. New 105mm cannons can be installed, but a displacement of 1,000 tons is not enough; an additional 300-500 tons are needed.

What, reduce the number of cannons on the two-string line? That won't do, absolutely not. A total of twenty cannons on the two-string line is already the maximum compromise made for the sake of speed.

The shipyard's technical fanatics would absolutely not accept a design that reduced the number of artillery pieces; they could only add or subtract, not reduce them.

Jia Lian did not force them to accept Jia Quan's suggestion. After all, he was not an expert himself, so he allowed them to continue spending money and build one to see how it went.

We also went to see the new 105mm naval gun, which has greatly increased power and has a range of 6,000 meters.

The downside is that it also increases in weight significantly. When tested on land with the gun mounted on a carriage, it weighed over three tons. For infantry, this thing is a nightmare; it has virtually no mobility. It can be mounted on a train for transport, but what happens after it's unloaded at the destination?

The new cruiser brings a new problem: how to deal with the recoil caused by installing such a thing on the fore and aft decks?

Jia Lian watched a group of designers arguing, and his head ached terribly. He missed the era of ironclad warships.

(End of this chapter)