Desert Eagle Suletan Khan

"Clatter clatter clatter~" On the plank road from Samara to Saratov, the deputy commander of the guard, Ghent, led seven hundred cavalrymen at full gallop.

"Chase them! Make those Tatar bandits pay the price!" Colonel Bogdanovich of the Samara Shooting Corps of the Russian Empire angrily spurred his warhorse, commanding more than 2,300 riders to give chase.

Samara was once a peaceful city, but not long ago a group of guards raided it, looting and plundering the property and food of the Russian people outside the city. Anyone who resisted was killed and the village burned. The people rushed into the city to plead with Bogdanovich for help, "Sir, for the sake of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, please help us!" As the magistrate of Samara Fortress, seeing the people outside the city being tormented by the Tatar bandits, how could he not take action? So the colonel ordered Lieutenant Colonel Pavel to defend the city and personally led 2,300 cavalrymen out of the city to pursue them, determined to save face and give the people who had suffered so much to an end.

Unbeknownst to him, not only Samara was plundered by the Guards, but Kazan, Tula, Voronezh, and other cities near the front lines were also harassed by the Guards' cavalry. Even Smolensk, located behind Tula and Voronezh, saw Tatar cavalry appear. Like locusts, they ravaged everything in their path. Whenever the Russian troops in the city came out to fight them, the Tatars ignored them and rode away. They couldn't catch up, and the Tatars would return, leaving the Russians truly helpless. This was actually a new tactic adopted by King Lobsang and Shuoqi of Han, on the advice of Tuyebai, the governor of Agunkhba. The aim was not to conquer enemy cities, but to harass them; looting not only replenished the army's supplies but also effectively demoralized the defenders.

A cloud of dust billowed up behind them as the Russians closed in. Ghent quickly ordered, "Discard your valuables and ride light."

Military orders are absolute. The subordinates threw down whatever they had looted from their horses. There was gold, silver, jewelry, silk, and all sorts of things. Some even threw down the tableware from the homes of Russian civilians.

Upon seeing the scattered valuables, Bogdanovich coldly ordered, "Anyone who dismounts to collect them shall be executed!"

Although the wealth was tempting, it was not worth risking one's life for. No Russian soldier dared to dismount, turning their greed into hatred for the Guards and closing in.

Reaching a grove of trees, Ghent stopped fleeing and calmly directed his troops to form ranks and fight. "Manchu warriors, fight for our families!" he shouted to his men. This guard was entirely composed of surrendered Eight Banner soldiers who, after surrendering, fought with extraordinary valor in order to establish themselves in the new dynasty and provide a better life for their wives and children.

"Kill them!" Bogdanovich grinned maliciously as he led his men to surround the group, determined to slaughter the Tatar bandits.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!" Suddenly, a group of men rushed out from the trees and plunged into the Russian ranks, hacking and slashing at them indiscriminately.

General Hilgen, the commander of the garrison, had been lying in ambush with three thousand cavalrymen for some time. With lightning speed, Bogdanovich was caught off guard and felled by Hilgen's blade.

"Brothers! Follow me to Ufa!" After cleaning up the battlefield, Hilgen laughed to his men and ran towards another Russian town.

On the Tula front, Tsar Alexei I stared silently at the military report delivered by Lieutenant Colonel Paul of Samara. The Guards had plundered seven more villages outside Samara and ambushed and killed Colonel Bogdanovich. Even more frustrating was the lack of effective countermeasures against this hit-and-run harassment tactic; it was extremely difficult to track down enemy cavalry.

"Your Majesty, urgent military intelligence!" Just as he was getting annoyed, the royal attendant Rydishev and the secretary Bashmakov rushed into the tent.

Alexei I's eyebrows twitched slightly; something important must have caused his two trusted confidants to lose their composure like this. He tried to maintain his monarchical composure as he opened the military report. The so-called military report was actually a letter of complaint written by Voyekov, the governor of Mangazeya, accusing Sulgin, the governor of Tobolsk, of being cowardly and abandoning Tobolsk, Ob, and Berezov, thus leaving him vulnerable to attack from both sides and forced to abandon Mangazeya.

"I want to kill that coward Sulkin!" Alexei I roared. "Your Majesty, please calm down. Sulkin holds military power. If we push him too hard and he surrenders, the Ural defenses will be in danger," Bashmakov hurriedly tried to dissuade him.

Upon hearing this, the Tsar's expression hardened. His prestige had been severely damaged by a series of defeats, and it was not impossible for some generals to lead troops to surrender to the enemy. He couldn't help but furrow his brow.

“I believe that Sulkin is also worried about Your Majesty’s punishment at this time. You might as well send an envoy to severely reprimand him, and then order him to guard the Ural Mountains with Voyekov to atone for his crime and make amends, so as to put his mind at ease,” Bashmakov suggested.

"That's the only way," Alexei I reluctantly agreed.

“I believe the Guards are exhausted from the long battle and they actually want to negotiate peace,” Rydishev suddenly said.

"Hmm, you will represent me and go to Saratov again to negotiate with that prince of the Wei State. We can lower the conditions a bit. On the eastern front, the Ural Mountains will be the boundary, and on the western front, at least Saratov and Kharkiv must be recovered," the Tsar said.

Rydishev arrived at the garrison camp again. This time, King Lobsang Khoshuk did not send executioners to intimidate him, but treated him with utmost courtesy and respect. However, when it came to territorial negotiations, the prince became extremely stubborn, refusing to concede an inch of land.

After a prolonged standoff, the two sides finally reached a consensus on the eastern front: the Ural Mountains would serve as the boundary, with the land east belonging to the Vladivostok and the land west to Russia. However, a stalemate ensued on the western front. Lobzang and Shuoqi advocated for a boundary along the line of actual control, while Rytishev insisted on the Novochelkask-Novorossisk line. This envoy consistently defended Russian interests, demanding the return of far more land than Alexei I had hoped for.

"As you demand, our army must relinquish many towns such as Saratov, Kharkiv, Tsaritsyn, and Azov. These places were won by the brave warriors of David in a bloody battle. If you want our army to return them, go and ask those fallen warriors if they agree!" Narisong, the deputy envoy of the National Defense and governor of Ejil, fiercely drew his scimitar and threatened.

“Those places have always been Russian land. Our ancestors have lived there for generations. Just because you have come, are we supposed to give up our ancestral lands?” the Russian deputy envoy, Kondrati, retorted angrily.

Lobsang, Shuoqi, and Rydishev remained silent, patiently observing each other's reactions.

“Your country has a saying, ‘How can one tolerate another’s snoring beside one’s bed?’ Saratov, Kharkiv, and Tsaritsyn are all too close to Moscow. If it were you, would you be willing to give up these places?” Rytishev said casually, intentionally or unintentionally ignoring Azov.

Hearing this, Lobsang and Shuoqi were somewhat moved. These three places were indeed not far from the capital of Tsarist Russia. If they insisted on not returning them, the war would not end. Their army seemed to have the advantage, but after a long battle, the soldiers were exhausted, and supplies were scarce. It was not advisable to continue fighting! Thinking of this, he smiled and said, "Since these places are so important to your country, out of goodwill, they can be returned. However, your country must also show some appreciation to the brave warriors of our country who died in the battle to capture these places. I will make the decision: one million taels of silver, not a tael less!"

On December 8th, 1674 (the 31st year of the Qianyuan era), Russia and David reached a peace agreement: the two sides formed a brotherly alliance, with the Ural Mountains as the eastern border and the Novochelkask-Azov border as the western border, and Tsarist Russia paying David one million taels of silver in reparations. (End of Chapter)