Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

"I intend to make this island my command post!" King Baoyin of Chu put down his telescope and muttered to himself. Upon entering the Yaksa region, this battle-hardened prince immediately recognized the importance of the island in the middle of the river (Gucheng Island).

"Your Highness, please allow me to lead my troops to reclaim this island and avenge the fallen Daur people," Second-Class Daur Earl Kenzhe Wule passionately volunteered. The area near Jiangxin Island was originally the territory of Beiler, a Daur leader and friend of Kenzhe Wule. After the Cossacks occupied the area, they massacred the Daur inhabitants and relocated Russian residents. Now, the island is devoid of Daur tents, replaced by rows of Russian-style log cabins. The Russian army has also built earthen walls and artillery emplacements, transforming the island into a military fortress. How could such a deep-seated hatred go unavenged?

"Granted! Tomorrow morning, I will have Narbu's navy escort you to the island, while the rest of the troops will follow me to attack Nangai Mountain in the southeast of the island. You must take Jiangxin Island and Nangai Mountain within ten days to cut off Yaksa's external support," Baoyin solemnly ordered.

On June 11, 1673 (the 30th year of the Qianyuan era), the Wei army launched a two-pronged attack on Jiangxin Island and Nangai Mountain by land and water.

Narbu's naval forces bravely landed on the island's fortifications, braving gunfire from the river's walls. Cossack leader Ivan Voilosnikov, with eight boats and over a hundred Cossacks, attempted to stop them, but was completely annihilated by the guards in the river.

After annihilating the Russian warships, Second-Class Daur Bokenzhe Wule led over a thousand Daur warriors to the island in the middle of the river. "Warriors, the Rakshasa devils have seized our land and killed our people. Heroes, follow me to reclaim our ancestral land!" he shouted excitedly to his men as soon as he landed on the island.

"Haorui~ Haorui~ Haorui~" The Daur warriors, inspired by their leader, charged forward fearlessly.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The Wei army's warships also spewed fire, firing cannons to cover the landing infantry.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" Bullets flew like lightning as the warriors advanced through the hail of bullets. People fell one after another, but others continued to move forward, placing long ladders atop the earthen city wall.

With a rattan shield in his left hand and a knife in his right, the Daur chieftain Wumubuledai nimbly climbed the ladder and leaped onto the city wall. As a renowned warrior in the tribe, he always charged ahead.

"Bang!" A Russian soldier thrust at him with an iron fork, but he blocked it with a shield in one hand and swung his knife with the other.

"Bang!" Umubuledai's body shuddered violently, and a large hole appeared in his chest. He felt his soul being ripped away, and with his last bit of strength, he threw the knife in his hand at a Russian soldier, piercing the man's chest.

Leaders such as Kenzhe Wule and Anggacha, leading their Daur warriors, attacked day and night regardless of casualties, and captured the earthen city in just three days. Seeing the situation was dire, the Cossack leader Baidun led a hundred or so remaining soldiers and fled back to Yaksa City in a small boat.

Meanwhile, the battle at Nangai Mountain was nearing its end. The Russian leader, Yeniseyev, led four hundred Cossacks, using the mountain's terrain to repel wave after wave of attacks from the Imperial Guard. However, the Imperial Guard soldiers seemed oblivious to the horrors of death; one unit would be repelled, another would follow, especially the warriors from the Oroqen, Yakut, and Bargut tribes, who, fueled by hatred for the invaders, fought with unwavering ferocity. Samakir, the leader of the Oroqen Jiqin Aba tribe and a centurion, was struck by a musket during the attack; his intestines spilled out, but he remained unfazed, clutching his wound and continuing his advance, dying on the mountaintop. By the fourth day, the Russian army had completely collapsed, and the Cossack captain, Yeniseyev, was hacked to death by the Oroqen warriors who had charged up the mountain.

King Baoyin of Chu set up his central command tent on an island in the middle of the river, only six miles from Yaksa City, using the island as his command post and bridgehead for the attack on Yaksa. He was satisfied with the results. Although he had lost more than a thousand men, most of them were tribal warriors, and his main force had not suffered heavy casualties. Most importantly, the loss of the island and Nangai Mountain meant that the Wei army had completely cut off Yaksa City's connection with the outside world and seized the initiative in the war.

Under the prince's command, the guards surrounded Yaksa from the east, north, and west. Seeing that Yaksa's defenses were extremely strong, Baoyin ordered all troops not to venture out easily, but to dig trenches, set up cannons, and prepare camouflage.

He smiled and said to his generals, “Yaksa is like a tortoise shell, very hard. A direct assault will result in heavy casualties. The Russian army is unpopular and has difficulty with supplies. We arrived suddenly, and the city probably doesn’t have much food left. Let’s surround it first. When the enemy runs out of food, it will surely fall without a fight. This is a treasure trove. The governor in Nerchinsk will definitely send reinforcements. We must monitor the Russian reinforcements by both land and water, especially by water. We must firmly control the north and south channels of the Amur River, and deploy our warships separately, setting up cannons. We must ensure that we can fire as soon as the enemy ships arrive.”    
While the fighting raged in Yaksa, a handover ceremony was taking place at the Nerchinsk governor's mansion, marking the transition between the old and new governors. The Chernigovian Christians, who had dedicated their lives to Tsarist Russia's colonial endeavors in the East, grew old and frail, and requested retirement from Tsar Alexei I, which was granted. His Majesty appointed the ambitious Vlasov as governor of Nerchinsk and gave the new governor strong support.

"Your Excellency, do you have any advice for me regarding the current situation in Nerchinsk and Yaksa?" Vlasov asked Chernigovsky respectfully.

"Cough...cough..." Chernigovsky tried to suppress his cough. Born into Polish nobility, he was naturally reserved and would never speak unless asked. Hearing this, he thought for a moment and replied, "If the garrison attacks, we must hold the city to the death and hold out until winter when the enemy's food supply becomes difficult to transport before concentrating our forces for a decisive battle. If necessary, we can abandon the city of Yaksa."

"Thank you for your guidance, I will keep it in mind," Vlasov said outwardly, but after the old governor left, he shrugged and laughed, "Chernigovsky is really getting old! He actually wants to give up the land we finally gained in the East."

On June 17, 1673, the ambitious Nerchinsk governor Vlasov learned of the garrison's attack on Yaksa and immediately ordered Frolov to lead 600 Cossacks and 1,000 soldiers of the Mazda tribe who were allied with Tsarist Russia to reinforce Yaksa by land; Mokroshubov was ordered to lead 400 Cossacks and 15 warships to reinforce Yaksa by land and water.

However, both reinforcements failed against the well-prepared Imperial Guard. When Frolov's army was 120 li from Yaksa, it was ambushed by 5,000 cavalrymen personally led by Bao Yin. Frolov was completely unprepared for an ambush at such a distance and was caught off guard, suffering a crushing defeat and fleeing with more than 700 men lost.

Mokroshubov's navy fared even worse. Near the island in the middle of the river (Gucheng Island), it was bombarded by two layers of guard ships and the island's fortifications. Nine warships were sunk, and Mokroshubov himself was killed by cannon fire.

“There’s no need to rush to take Yaksa. We can use this city as bait to lure the enemy from Nerchinsk to our aid, and annihilate as many enemies as possible outside the fortified city.” Looking at the imperial edict sent by his father from Dadu with urgent dispatches, Baoyin smiled. This time, he and his father had reached a consensus! He picked up his pen to report: “Your son has obeyed your orders, Father. We have dug trenches on three sides of Yaksa and built fortifications. Wooden stakes and deer antlers have been placed outside the trenches, and sentries are being taken in shifts for defense. We have already defeated the Nerchinsk reinforcements by land and sea, ambushed them more than a hundred miles west of the city, and annihilated more than seven hundred enemies. We have also set up a naval battle on the island in the middle of the river, sinking nine enemy ships. The island can be used to hide ships. We have added Mongolian horses to the army, and the sick and weak horses that accompanied the expedition have been sent to Aigun and Mergen for feeding. I have roughly prepared winter clothing, tents, stoves, rations, and other supplies.”

Although the strategy of using Yaksa as bait was adopted, the prince did not intend to make things easy for the defenders of Yaksa. He ordered his guards to bombard the Russian troops in the trenches surrounding Yaksa. Under the cover of the artillery fire, the guards' guerrilla commander, Abkai, led 500 elite soldiers to quietly approach the trenches, leaped in, and engaged the Russians in close combat. They preemptively fired arrows, swords, and firearms, annihilating more than 100 Russian soldiers and quickly breaking through the Russian defenses. The remaining enemy fled in disarray into the city.

After securing the trenches outside the city, the garrison's twenty heavy cannons were able to approach the city walls. The intense artillery fire collapsed towers and castles, sending flames soaring into the sky. Dozens of Russian soldiers were killed or wounded, and the Russian troops were terrified and took refuge in their fortified gun emplacements. Bao Yin ordered his men to launch probing attacks on the city, but all were repelled by the Russian army. He then ordered his men to cut off all access to Yaksa, dig deep trenches, and build earthen mounds to guard against Russian reinforcements and surprise attacks from the Russian troops within the city. He also ordered officials in Aigun and Mergen to expedite the production of cotton clothing, tents, and heating stoves to be transported to the front lines for long-term planning.

Food supplies within the city were dwindling, and Tolbuzin was terrified upon seeing the garrison's intention to employ a prolonged siege. He ordered Chapunin to lead 300 men to break out of the city and fetch reinforcements, passing through the defense zone of the garrison's commander, Chivanzhal. Chivanzhal's Dzungar warriors, the main force of the garrison, were extremely elite. They first bombarded the city with artillery, then shot arrows, followed by a counter-charge that killed or wounded nearly a hundred Russian soldiers. The Tsarist Russian army organized five suicide squads to break out, but each attempt was repelled by the garrison.

On June 28, Nerchinsk sent another thirteen ships to reinforce Yaksa, but six were sunk and ninety men were lost, forcing them to flee in disarray.

On July 1, seeing no hope of reinforcements, Tolbuzin personally led four hundred Cossacks in a counterattack against the Guards. They were met with fierce resistance and suffered heavy losses, with Tolbuzin himself being killed by artillery fire.

On July 11, food supplies in the city ran out, and people were dying every day. In desperation, Deputy Commander Baidon and Commander of Fifty, Gavrilov, led the remaining troops to surrender.

Watching Baidon emerge from the city leaning on his cane, Bao Yin was filled with emotion. Instead of mistreating the Russians, he sent a physician to treat them and released ten Cossacks to Nerchinsk to persuade them to surrender. (End of Chapter)