Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

Located at the confluence of the Yenisei and Lower Tunguska rivers, Turuhansk, with its convenient transportation, became an important fur trading and military stronghold for Tsarist Russia in the 17th century. After the maritime prohibition and three major fires that occurred in Mangazeya to the northwest, leading to a large-scale migration of residents to Turuhansk, the city's commerce flourished, becoming Tsarist Russia's second largest commercial, religious, and administrative center in Siberia after Yeniseisk. However, this once-prosperous city was now a ghost town. Fyodor Voyekov, the governor of Mangazeya, relocated all the troops and civilians of Turuhansk to Mangazeya in the northwest, setting a fire before leaving and leaving no useful supplies for the guards.

The armies of King Baoyin of Chu and Wangchuk, the Second-Class Zasaktu Duke, successfully joined forces at Turuhansk, bringing together nearly 20,000 troops. This should have been a cause for celebration, but Baoyin, gazing at the charred city walls and the dilapidated warehouses devoid of supplies, felt no joy whatsoever. The Russians had exploited his weakness—his long march and the difficulty of supplying provisions—intending to forcibly force him to retreat once his provisions ran out. This tactic, seemingly simple, was extremely difficult to counter. Without the much-needed provisions at Turuhansk, what would the army eat and drink?
"Your Highness, the commander of the thousand households, Qiwangzhal, has returned from Yakutsk with enough grain to last us for more than three months," Governor Orros of Nuningi reported just as I was worrying.

Bao Yin was overjoyed and personally inspected the grain brought by Qiwang Zhal. He discovered that the so-called "food enough for more than three months" consisted only of a small portion of grain; the majority was fish and a large herd of tamed reindeer. Although it was not quite the grain he had imagined, it had at least solved his immediate crisis. He immediately rewarded Qiwang Zhal handsomely and led his troops in a fierce attack on Mangazeya.

Voyekov assembled all the troops in Mangazeya, even conscripting able-bodied women, but still managed to muster fewer than five thousand soldiers. Fortunately, the lieutenant colonel of the shooting corps who remained in Mangazeya, and his son Andrei, were responsible soldiers. During his stay, they organized the soldiers and civilians to rebuild the city of Mangazeya, and with their strong fortifications, they managed to withstand several attacks from the garrison.

"Father, the Imperial Guard is numerous and well-equipped. Every siege inflicts heavy casualties on our army. If this continues, Mangazeya will fall sooner or later. It would be better to abandon Mangazeya, cross the Ob River, and retreat to the Ural Mountains to defend the terrain," Andrei suggested in the face of the crisis.

“The Trema, the Lena, the Yenisei—one great river after another has been lost from our hands. Are we to abandon the Ob River as well?” Voyekov shook his head firmly. “It’s easy to retreat to the Ural Mountains, but it’s difficult to come back after retreating! We must not retreat unless absolutely necessary!”

"Boom! Boom! Boom!" Huge and muffled cannon shots rang out one after another on the walls of Tobolsk.

Located at the confluence of the Tobol and Irtysh rivers, this city has now replaced Iskel, the former capital of the Khanate of Siberia, as the administrative center of Tsarist Russia in Siberia. It boasts not only complete city walls but also the only Kremlin complex in Siberia, a blend of Orthodox churches and fortifications that further enhances the city's defenses. Ordinary artillery shells could hardly penetrate it, but the Kazakh Tumentu Hurchoktu's Guard possessed twenty heavy cannons transported from the Kazakh Myriarchy. Initially insufficient to breach the walls, these powerful weapons began to prove their worth over time, repeatedly creating breaches that were then repeatedly plugged by the defenders.

With a crash, another section of the city wall collapsed. Commander Taipeng led several hundred guards through the breach, but they were blocked by the Cossack captain Yugin and his troops. The Russian soldiers on the city wall also raised their guns and fired. Seeing that they could not gain the upper hand, the guards turned their horses and retreated.

Looking at the repelled enemy, Tobolsk Governor Paul Sulkin showed no joy, but rather a grave expression. His intuition told him that Tobolsk wouldn't hold out much longer! After a long silence, he spoke: "Order all units to prepare for a retreat to Ob tonight."

On July 19th, 1674 (the 31st year of the Qianyuan era), the Russian army at Tobolsk retreated northwards towards Ob under the cover of darkness. However, all of this was within the calculations of the Kazakh Tumentu Hurchoktu. "They're here!" A hundred miles south of Ob, Saihan, the commander of the Northern Desert, was lying in ambush. Seeing that the enemy had indeed arrived, he excitedly gave the order to attack.

"Haorui~ Haorui~ Haorui~" The guards charged out from all directions. Cossack captain Yu Jingang drew his sword but was killed by the guard general Songjin Sengge with an axe.

Blood stained the frozen plains. A panicked Sulkin dared not even enter Ob, fleeing directly to Berezov, further north. This allowed the Guards to easily capture the strategically important city of Ob. Tuhurchoktu and Saikhan, seizing the opportunity, pursued their advantage, advancing towards Berezov. Sulkin, unwilling to fight, abandoned Berezov and retreated to the Ural Mountains. The towering Ural Mountains became the Russian army's lifeline. He finally remembered to inform his allies, sending a messenger to Voyekov, who was fighting fiercely in Mangazeya: "I regret to inform you, my old friend, that due to the dire situation, our army has no choice but to retreat to the Ural Mountains."

"Bang!" Upon receiving Sulkin's letter, the usually composed Voyekov slammed his fist on the table in anger and cursed, "That coward! Giving up Tobolsk is one thing, but he didn't even defend Ob and Berezov! He's exposing my back to the Tatars!"

“Father, once the Guards retake Obidorsk, our retreat will be completely cut off,” Andrei anxiously reminded his father.

“Of course I know,” Voyekov said, frowning. “Pass down the order: the entire army will retreat by boat across the Kara Sea to the Ural Mountains at dawn tomorrow.”

"Escape by ship from the Kara Sea?" Andrei exclaimed in alarm. Located in northern Siberia, the Kara Sea connects to the Barents Sea to the west, the Laptev Sea to the east, and the Arctic Ocean to the north. While seemingly easily accessible, it is one of the most turbulent, or rather, most dangerous, bodies of water on Earth. Strong storms and blizzards are commonplace in this sea; even in summer, snowfall or fog is frequent, and the surface is covered with large amounts of ice floes. A single misstep can lead to shipwreck and loss of life!
“Exactly! Is there any safer route to retreat than from the Kara Sea?” Voyekov said decisively.

The following morning, he insisted on sailing at the forefront to clear the way for the entire army. This courage inspired his men, who followed him by boat. Except for a few boats that unfortunately sank, most of them successfully reached the port west of the Ural Mountains and built a new defensive line along the Ural Mountains.

"Hoo-hoo-hoo," Voyekov let out a low whistle as he landed, completely unaware that this daring adventure had saved the entire army. The Tuhurchoktu garrison had already captured Obidorsk and laid an ambush for him. (End of Chapter)