Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 694 Brothers Reunited in a Foreign Land
The Ottoman Navy specifically organized a fleet to patrol the Black Sea, and would attack any Russian warships it spotted.

The idea was good, but unfortunately the Russian army didn't engage in combat at all, and not even a single civilian ship left port.

It can only be said that the consequences were still very serious for Tsarist Russia. They had been holding back, waiting for an opportunity to concentrate their forces and attack these three new cruisers.

The key issue is the speed; if you can't catch up, it's all nonsense.

Seeing that a decisive battle was not imminent, the Ottoman Navy, on the advice of its advisors, adopted a new tactic: three new cruisers would take turns attacking, engaging enemy fleets if possible, and retreating if necessary. If they encountered enemy civilian ships, they would sink them. In short, they fully utilized the speed and range advantages of their new cruisers to wage guerrilla warfare in the Black Sea. The Black Sea is not large, and sending three warships out in rotation for guerrilla warfare was far beyond the capabilities of Tsarist Russia's maritime transport system.

Since the new cruisers began guerrilla warfare, they sank six Russian merchant ships and two warships in a span of half a month.

Suddenly, a climate of fear and uncertainty descended, and the Black Sea became a no-go zone for Russian ships. This dealt a heavy blow to the already underdeveloped trade of Tsarist Russia.

For Tsarist Russia, losing at sea was normal, but the key issue was that the French army also gained the upper hand on land, putting them under immense pressure.

We can only adopt a defensive posture against Türkiye now and concentrate our forces on dealing with the French army first.

King Anxi finally met the angel, but did not receive the official document of investiture. The self-proclaimed King Anxi explained to the angel why he had failed to send troops to help the Independent Mixed Brigade, blaming it on his two brothers' rebellion.

The attitude of the imperial envoy was not so friendly. He told the King of Anxi directly that the court supported a united Anxi, not an Anxi that was fighting internally.

He was also explicitly told that the imperial court had sent another elite force that would march north into Anxi and directly attack Almaty, the former territory of Anxi. Since the crown prince only wished to stay in Dushanbe, he could remain there, safeguarding the legacy left by the King of Anxi and simply becoming the Duke of Dushanbe. As for the other two crown princes, who were willing to lead their troops to follow the imperial court north into northern Anxi, their titles would be determined based on their merits.

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince of Anxi felt as if he had been struck by lightning. This imperial edict was not good news; it was an edict of favor.

However, there was nothing they could do. The imperial envoy made it very clear that it was not easy for the court to relocate people to Anxi, so that they would not be used as bloody tools for your brothers to fight for power.

In short, you either accept the imperial edict or kill the imperial envoy and rebel.

The Crown Prince of Anxi naturally dared not rebel, and could only swallow his pride and accept the imperial decree of favor.

After receiving the imperial envoy's reply, the two brothers of the Independent Town contacted the two sons of the King of Anxi. The two brothers were speechless. Although the eldest brother had won, he was demoted to a duke and his fiefdom was reduced to Dushanbe.

The second and third brothers were actually quite happy, and with their respective units, they followed the independent town along the northern route into Anxi.

Because the Russian Imperial Guards Cavalry had already withdrawn to the Caucasus, only some natives remained, and they had been beaten by the Independent Mixed Brigade.

Because of the ruthless killings by Prince Teng back then, Almaty was originally under the jurisdiction of General Dihua.

The advance proceeded relatively smoothly, with the local natives offering almost no resistance and surrendering the cities. However, these cities, being poorly managed by the nomadic people, fell into disrepair.

While advancing on the Independent Town, the imperial envoy went to Bishkek, met with the officers and soldiers of the Independent Mixed Brigade, and found that the situation there was much better than expected.

After ascertaining that the garrison commander of Bishkek had fled without a fight, the imperial envoy immediately ordered the Duke of Dushanbe to behead the fleeing commander and send his head around.

The imperial envoy further clarified another matter: the local tribes initially welcomed the Xining army because they claimed to be descendants of Li Ling of the Han Dynasty, a clan even recognized by Emperor Taizong of Tang, all originating from the Longxi Li family. Sometimes, thinking about it, it makes sense; the surrounding nomadic peoples, lacking their own history, have to consult the historical records of the Central Plains dynasties to trace their origins.

The imperial envoy, representing the emperor, met with the ten tribes (selected by the mixed brigade) who were willing to become vassals. He had them submit petitions, which the imperial envoy then brought back to the emperor. After the emperor approved the petitions, he officially recognized their status.

Of course, this work wasn't done for nothing; each tribe's key figures had to hand over one son to accompany them back to the capital. At the same time, the children of the upper classes from each tribe had to be sent to Bishkek to receive official education.

As Jiang Ping wrote in his memorial to the court, the ten tribes were of equal status. If any major issues arose in the local area that the tribal leaders could not resolve, they would have to come to Bishkek to hold a meeting under the auspices of court officials to discuss and resolve them.

With the Russians gone, the ten tribes were utterly powerless to resist. They couldn't even defeat the Russians, so how could they possibly fight the new army? It wasn't that they hadn't fought back, but rather that they were beaten half to death.

This land operates on the law of might makes right. Currently, the Zhou Empire's army is the strongest, so the local tribes naturally have to kneel. This has been true in the past, and it will be true in the future; who knows what will happen later.

In fact, Jia Shi had an even more radical suggestion: to ban religion and have everyone study Confucianism. However, the area was inhabited by nomadic tribes with no fixed abode, making it difficult to implement. He was also worried that the tribes might rebel if pushed too far, so he had to proceed gradually and leave it at that for the time being.

After establishing connections between Bishkek and Almaty, the former Crown Prince of Anxi was granted the title of Duke of Almaty, becoming both the Left Duke and the Right Duke, and the two brothers ruled together.

After the two armies joined forces, the Independent Town remained to garrison the area, while the Independent Mixed Brigade completed its garrison duty. Following official mobilization, more than half of the officers and soldiers agreed to stay, while the remaining half returned to the capital.

Those who were willing to stay were mainly new recruits from Longxi and cavalrymen recruited from Mobei. Those who stayed were guaranteed to receive land, and most of them already had families in the area.

Jia Shi will definitely have to go back; if he doesn't, Lady You will be devastated.

Because of his excellent performance, Jia Shi's promotion speed after returning to the capital was definitely unmatched by others.

The remaining independent town adopted a strategy of first moving north and then west, planning to concentrate its main force northward to resolve potential threats from the north, bring Lake Balkhash under its control, and then move westward, approaching the Caspian Sea and threatening the Caucasus region from afar. If possible, it intended to engage the Russian army in a direct confrontation. Simultaneously, it aimed to establish land connections with the Ottoman Empire for mutual support.

This strategy was devised after discussions between the cabinet and the emperor. It did not seek a complete break with Tsarist Russia, but rather aimed to tie down a large number of Tsarist Russian troops, forcing them to be unable to concentrate on dealing with Napoleon.

Jia Lian's ulterior motives were this: if Napoleon suffered a defeat at Moscow, he could send troops across the Caspian Sea, approaching the heart of Tsarist Russia, preventing Napoleon from concentrating his forces to pursue the French army. Then, he could even contact the Ottomans to join forces and wage another Russo-Turkish War. After all, those two countries had fought more than ten times.

The biggest problem with the Ottoman Empire was its nomadic foundation. Such a state, despite its temporary strength, couldn't ultimately rival Tsarist Russia in the long run. A military advisory group, acting on orders from the cabinet, was tasked with training an elite army of approximately 100,000 men for the Ottoman Empire. Too many, and the Ottoman Turks might not be able to support them.

The superior combat effectiveness of modern armies is built upon greater attrition.

Completely in accordance with the standards of the new army, the advisory group put forward a plan to reorganize eight armies (equivalent to divisions), each army consisting of three infantry regiments, one artillery regiment, one cavalry regiment, one supply regiment, as well as specialized units such as engineers, communications, and reconnaissance.

The Ottomans fully accepted the plan and set a deadline for reorganization, using Ibrahim's Third Guards Corps as a model.

At the same time, before the start of the census, a comprehensive and formal military reform was launched in China. The Ministry of War was abolished, and the General Staff was established, which was divided into two major ministries: the Army and the Navy. Equipment and logistics were respectively assigned to relevant units under the two major ministries and were not made independent.

The country adopted a military region system, with each province establishing a military region and appointing a commander. Each military region commanded a skeletal brigade (three regiments at full strength: one infantry regiment, one artillery regiment, and one cavalry company on a regular basis). The provincial governor's personal guard was limited to 500 men, as they were funded by local finances, and a larger force would be prone to irregularities. All of these were local troops.

Above the provincial military districts was the Royal Army. The former three garrisons of the Beijing Garrison, the First, Second, and Third Divisions of the Royal Army, had their former names abolished and were directly replaced by modern army, division, and brigade titles. The Shenji Garrison was renamed the Second Royal Guard Division, and the Imperial Horse Administration was renamed the First Royal Guard Division. The three divisions of the Nanyang New Army were the Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Divisions. The Royal Guard Divisions were directly under the Emperor's command, while other units were placed under the command of the Ministry of War.

The Navy Department has three major fleets: the North Sea Fleet, the East Sea Fleet, and the South Sea Fleet.

After the reforms, Li Yuan's goal was largely achieved: to strengthen the branches and weaken the trunk. Former border troops were all downgraded to local forces, with significant reductions in size. The Shanhaiguan garrison was reduced to a single brigade, and the laid-off soldiers were given land per capita—to cultivate the wasteland; the Great Northern Wilderness had plenty of land. The former important border town of Datong was similarly reduced to a single brigade, also becoming a local force.

With the advent of railways, the Royal Army was able to station troops directly in Zhangjiakou, Rehe and other places. With improved transportation and easier rotation, the area no longer needed long-term military garrisoning.

The Xin Province Military Region was unique, comprising one army (two Royal Army Divisions), with its commander holding the same rank as the Minister of War. The Liangjiang Military Region was also unusual, with one Royal Infantry Division and one mixed brigade stationed in Xuzhou, Nanjing, and Suzhou respectively. This arrangement fully demonstrated the imperial court's emphasis on the Jiangnan region.

After the reform, the army was completely freed from the corruption of the nobility, and officers at all levels were graduates of the Royal Military Academy.

The successful completion of this military reform was not only due to cabinet cooperation, but also to the emergence of railways. Because railways allow for the rapid and large-scale mobilization of troops, the number of local military personnel in each province can be significantly reduced. Since the reform is mandatory, military spending on personnel has been greatly reduced, while spending on equipment has significantly increased.

After the military reforms were completed, the industrial and commercial census ended and a new batch of personnel were added, and a nationwide population census began.

With the close cooperation between the emperor and the cabinet, the central authority reached its zenith. Under such circumstances, most local officials in the provinces could see things clearly, which greatly reduced the difficulty of the population census.

The central government's attitude is very tough; those who are uncooperative or disruptive during the census will be resolutely cracked down on.

The census was chosen to begin in the capital to show the world that the imperial court's strength was not just an act.

In Donghua Kingdom, at the new Jinshan Port, the exhausted Global Fleet arrived.

Jia Zhi came all the way from Kaiyuan City to await the arrival of the Global Fleet.

The voyage was far from smooth, especially in South America, which was currently embroiled in a war of independence. Resupplying along the way was extremely difficult, requiring troops to be sent ashore several times for resupply.

Fortunately, there were many docks along the way, so there were no months of uninterrupted sailing; the longest was only one month.

Even so, by the time the fleet arrived at New Gold Mountain, the entire fleet was in very poor condition and required a lengthy period of rest and recuperation.

Cheers erupted from the crowd on the dock. As Jia Quan stepped off the warship, he saw Jia Zhi, who was forcibly trying to remain calm in the crowd.

"Big brother!" Jia Zhi ran forward and stopped three steps away. She smiled, stepped forward and hugged him tightly, using the strange smell on his body to fumigate him.

All officers and soldiers disembarked. People from Xinjinshan City boarded the ship to clean and tidy it up, and also towed the ship to the dock to clean the bottom.

After spending three days in Xinjinshan, the two brothers traveled together to Kaiyuan City.

After the train entered the territory of the northern province, Jia Shi spoke much more easily: "Brother, this is the Jia family's private land in Donghua Province."

Jia Quan looked out the window and asked, "How big is the place?"

Jia Zhi laughed and said, "It's at least twice the size of Henan Province. Since the beginning of this year, the indigenous people we've been supporting have already approached the lake area occupied by the Americans. A war could break out at any time."

Jia Quan knew some inside information, so he lowered his voice and asked, "How is things on the Prince of Donghua's side?"

Jia Zhi paused for a moment, then smiled bitterly and said, "King Donghua is extremely radical. His men have entered two provinces in northern Mexico, and with his support, the locals have declared independence and joined the Donghua Kingdom. Now the relationship between the Donghua Kingdom and Mexico is very strained. He is a typical opportunist. Unfortunately, the Mexican government forces are easy targets. Although the resistance forces have King Donghua's supplies, they will turn against him sooner or later."

Jia Quan thought for a moment before saying, "Don't gloat. To outsiders, the provinces of Donghua are all in cahoots, sharing the same fate. If necessary, we'd rather our own development be slower than not send troops to reinforce King Donghua. Even if we get dragged into this mess, we'll settle accounts after we win the battle."

Jia Zhi didn't argue, but nodded seriously: "I've learned something! My only concern is that the King of Donghua will take advantage of the arrival of the Global Fleet to demand ports in the south. If he succeeds, he will definitely continue to demand silver-producing areas. At that time, I'm worried that the two factions in Mexico will stop fighting among themselves and unite against external forces."

When it comes to Mexican silver mines, Jia Quan is speechless; the allure of these resources is simply too great.

"No, we must write a letter to the fleet commander immediately and tell him not to accept the mission to go south. We just came from the south, and when we stopped there, we didn't rob the local people of a single needle. Father always said that our biggest enemy is the United States in the east; they are the real man-eating jackals."

(End of this chapter)