Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The Guards' cannonballs exploded on the walls of Astrakhan, shaking the heavens and the earth. The entire city was shrouded in smoke, yet it remained as solid as a rock.

"What a formidable city! The artillery has been bombarding it day and night for half a month, but they still can't breach its walls!" King Han, Luo Buzang, and Shuoqi put down their telescopes and sighed deeply.

"This city was originally the capital of the Astrakhan Khanate, so it was naturally more fortified than other cities. After the Russians destroyed the Astrakhan Khanate, they further strengthened the city's defenses. Our cannons are too small, so they can't possibly breach it. The Great Khan has already ordered fifty heavy cannons to be transferred to us from the Oirat and the Western Regions. Once the heavy cannons arrive, taking this city will be a piece of cake," said Governor Ejil Narisong, full of confidence, seeing that the commander-in-chief was somewhat discouraged.

Lobsang Khoshuk instantly realized that as the commander-in-chief, his every word and action affected the entire army. If even he lacked confidence, how could his subordinates have the belief in victory? Ejile's words were meant to boost his morale! Thinking of this, he glanced gratefully at this veteran minister of the Great Wei Kingdom, who had followed his father Khan into battle since childhood and had experienced countless battles, large and small.

“The heavy artillery is extremely heavy. Transporting it from the four Oirat tribes and the Western Regions to Astrakhan is not only a long journey, but also involves bad weather and transportation. I’m afraid it won’t arrive for a while,” the outspoken Kazakh chieftain Teguschoktu chimed in, completely unaware of Narisong’s good intentions.

Lobsang Heshuoqi glanced at Tegus Chaoketu with slight dissatisfaction, and said firmly, "Father Khan issued an edict to allocate heavy artillery to me more than half a year ago. However, at that time, the Russian devils were attacking Agungheba, and I was worried that waiting for the heavy artillery to arrive would take too long, so I led 5,000 elite cavalry ahead. Now, judging by the time, these heavy artillery pieces should have arrived by now. However, the battlefield situation is ever-changing, and we cannot place all our hopes for victory on heavy artillery. Tell me, what good ideas do you have for winning this battle?"

Hearing that their heavy artillery was about to arrive, the generals around King Han were greatly encouraged. However, when asked to offer their advice, they all fell silent, like gourds with their mouths sawed off.

"Taking this city will not be difficult," a hunchbacked figure riding a dappled horse suddenly broke the silence; it was Tuyebai, the governor of Agonhaba.

Lobsang and Shuoqi were overjoyed, "What good idea do you have? Tell me quickly."

"According to our reconnaissance, Astrakhan's Russian army numbers about 20,000, with over 10,000 infantrymen defending the city and more than 9,000 cavalrymen constantly harassing our forces. The city is difficult to capture not only because of its strong fortifications but also because of the enemy's cavalry raids. Once we defeat the enemy's cavalry, the destruction of this isolated city is only a matter of time," Tuyebai said calmly and confidently.

Lobsang and Shuoqi were somewhat disappointed. "I understand that principle, but as you just said, the enemy's cavalry are elusive. How can I find and defeat them?"

“To the north, east, and west of Astrakhan are vast deserts, with only the Volga River bringing cool water that flows from the southeast into the Caspian Sea to the south, forming steppes. Warhorses need to graze, so their cavalry can only hide in the southeast or south of Astrakhan,” Tuyebai smiled slightly. “Besides, we don’t need to search for them at all; we just need to let them find us.”

"Creak...creak...creak..." A large supply convoy of the Imperial Guard was driving horse-drawn wagons from the west bank of the Ural River to the city of Astrakhan near the Volga River. Over a thousand wagons trudged across the uneven steppe, creating a continuous creaking sound. In the nearby woods, a cavalry unit lay in ambush, silently observing the convoy's every move.

"Have you investigated everything? Are the carts loaded with grain?" Hitrovo asked the cavalry captain who had returned from reconnaissance with a fierce look.

"Their ruts were very deep, and we also found spilled rice grains on the road, which must have come from the broken grain sacks," the cavalry captain said confidently.

"Hmm," Hitrovo nodded in satisfaction after listening. As a courtier of His Majesty the Tsar, he commanded more than 9,000 of Russia's most elite Boyer cavalry. The enemy's supply convoy in front of him numbered only 3,000, and eliminating them would be a piece of cake.

"Attack!" he coldly issued the order. "Hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah!" More than nine thousand Boye cavalrymen charged out of the dense forest, like more than nine thousand vicious wolves ready to devour their prey.

Upon seeing the ambush, General Bayar of Samarkand, who was in charge of escorting the grain supplies, was not alarmed but delighted, and ordered his troops to form a circular formation to resist.

Arrows rained down, and the Russian army relentlessly fired muskets and flintlock pistols around the guards' circular formation. Just as things were getting critical, the sound of the ocean waves suddenly came—no, not the sound of the ocean waves, but the thunderous hoofbeats of ten thousand horses.

"Da da da~ da da da~" The Kazakh chieftain Teguschoktu, the Bukhara chieftain Sonom Tsering, the Agankhba chieftain Ilden Noyan, and General Shirgen each led 5,000 cavalrymen to attack from all directions, and the Bayar tribe, which was surrounded in the formation, also took the opportunity to counterattack.

"Oh no! We've fallen into a trap! Retreat!" Hitrovo was shocked and led his men in a desperate breakout attempt, but they were trapped like fish in a net, and escape was impossible.

"Bang!" A large iron fork viciously plunged into Hitrovo's abdomen. Bukhara chieftain Sonom Tsering twisted the iron fork in his hand, instantly killing him.

In this battle, the Guards suffered approximately two thousand casualties while annihilating six thousand of Russia's most elite Boye cavalry, a resounding victory. Following Tuyebai's plan, Lobsang and Shuoqi ordered the corpses of the dead Russian soldiers to be piled up south of Astrakhan, forming a small hill. They then feigned compassion by sending messengers into the city to allow the garrison to collect the bodies. This seemingly benevolent act was actually a ploy to demoralize the enemy.

Grand Duke Miloslavsky climbed the bell tower of the main gate of the Astrakhan Kremlin, held up his telescope and looked south. The "mountain" made of corpses came into view, and he couldn't help but make the sign of the cross. "Lord! These infidels are truly cruel!"

"Sir, when should we send men out of the city to collect the bodies? Ignoring the bodies outside the city might affect the morale of the garrison," said Colonel Ivashka of the Shooting Army.

Grand Duke Miloslavsky sighed. "Don't you understand? Whether we send men out of the city to collect the bodies or not, the morale of the garrison will drop!"

"But what should we do now, Your Excellency?" Ivashka asked helplessly.

"Get ready quickly, and break out tonight before morale completely collapses!" This time, Grand Duke Miloslavsky's attitude was resolute, without the slightest hesitation.

On the night of April 1, 1674 (the 31st year of the Qianyuan era), the garrison of Astrakhan secretly opened the north gate and attempted to break out to the north, but this was exactly what the garrison had anticipated. They first allowed the Russian army to abandon the fortified city and break out, and then relentlessly pursued and intercepted them after they were far away from the city, routing the Russian army.

Grand Prince Miloslavsky led his remaining army to Saratov, where, after a headcount, only about five thousand men remained. (End of Chapter)