The Ming Dynasty did not revolutionize

Chapter 364 The final struggle
For ordinary people in this era, it is very troublesome to travel long distances, which is a huge burden in terms of time and cost.

Russia's Foreign Minister Nesserrod set out from Kovrov, Russia's current de facto administrative center, rushed to Sk to negotiate with Ming's Governor Napoleon, and then returned to Kovrov. More than half a month had passed.

In half a month, the Ming army will not stop to wait for the results of the negotiations, but will continue to act according to its own plan.

In particular, the armies in the Arab and Ottoman war zones are still actively launching cross-sea landing operations.

Russian Tsar Alexander, the commander-in-chief of the Moscow garrison Kutuzov, and key members of the Russian court have continued to collect information from all sides these days.

And almost all the news they received during this period was bad news...

Alexander and Kutuzov first confirmed that the Ottoman Sultan was indeed blocked in Constantinople by the Ming Dynasty, and then directly surrendered to the Ming army.

The key was to demand that Ottoman local officials surrender along with the army.

When Alexander looked at the reports handed over by the intelligence personnel, including the surrender order issued by the Ottoman Sultan in Constantinople, he couldn't help but cover his face and wail.

Even though he was concerned about his image, he couldn't utter a word. He just shook his head and showed the intelligence document to others.

When the intelligence documents were circulated among several key officials and generals, everyone at the scene had sad faces.

After reading it, Bagration also had an expression of disbelief on his face:
"The Ottoman Empire... was supposed to be one of the most powerful countries in the world, but it surrendered on the second day of the war? How is this possible?"

Kutuzov smiled wryly and said:
“In fact, we already had preliminary intelligence on this matter, and now we have just received a more accurate and detailed report.

“Perhaps it’s because Constantinople seems much safer than St. Petersburg.

“The Ottomans could never have imagined that the Ming army could forcefully launch a surprise attack through two inland seas and the strait, and the Ottoman Sultan was not prepared to deal with the attack.

“It is said that after the Sultan learned that the Ming Dynasty had launched an attack, he was still packing up and did not leave the city immediately.

"At the same time, the Ming army in the Ottoman theater was much more aggressive in its attack than the Ming army on the western front, instead of slowly advancing forward on the front line..."

When Bagration heard this, he subconsciously glanced at Tsar Alexander:
"Maybe it's just like the saying in Ming Dynasty, 'People are born in trouble but die in comfort'. Dangerous environment can make people stay alert...

"If Your Majesty had not left St. Petersburg immediately, the consequences would have been disastrous..."

Alexander actually realized that if he had hesitated a little bit, he might have been blocked by the Ming army in the city of St. Petersburg.

But Alexander was not very grateful at this time. He even felt a little self-destructive, thinking that if he had been captured alive by the Ming army at that time, he would not have to be so entangled as he is now.

However, such thoughts could not be expressed out loud, as that would dampen the already low morale, so he could only force himself to avoid the issue:
“It’s actually meaningless to say this now, the key is the impact of the Ottoman formal surrender.

“Even if the remaining local Ottoman forces want to continue to resist the Ming army’s attack, they will be charged with openly defying the Sultan’s orders.

"Although the Ming army is still far from occupying all of Ottoman territory, the ally Dusi Osman no longer exists in reality."

Alexander felt that there was no point in saying these words, so he simply suspended the meeting.

Alexander was a little depressed and wanted to stay in the castle arranged for him to be depressed for a few days, but he received more and worse news in the following days.

"The Ming army has officially landed on the Crimean Peninsula, and the Sevastopol defenders are unable to resist..."

"The Ming army landed at the mouth of the Dnieper River, used Sevastopol and the mouth of the Dnieper River as strongholds, and began to occupy the surrounding lands."

"The Ming army occupied Kerch..."

Alexander was a little confused after reading the report. Finally, he couldn't help but call Kutuzov and Bagration over again to ask:
"What's going on? Didn't the Ming army plan to launch a large-scale attack in winter? Why is the scope of operations on the southern front so large? It seems that the Ming army is everywhere around the Black Sea?"

Kutuzov also said with a sad face:
“Indeed, the Ming army on the southern front was much more aggressive in its military actions than the troops we encountered on the western front.

“They should be commanded by different generals, so they have different combat strategies.

“However, the rapid occupation of the Black Sea coastal lands by the Southern Front, especially the mouth of the Dnieper River and the Crimean Peninsula, was also in coordination with the combat operations on the Western Front.

"They could be connected in the future via the Dnieper River..."

Alexander didn't know what to say, so he interrupted Kutuzov:
"All of you should think of ways to stop... at least slightly delay the advance of the Ming army on the southern front.

"Don't wait until our negotiations with Ming Dynasty are over, most of our land has already been occupied by them."

Kutuzov thought to himself, if I had a solution I would have mentioned it long ago, why should I continue to torture you like this?

Bagration had some new thoughts these days, and now he said tentatively:
“Your Majesty, perhaps we can try to drive the serfs who have become refugees to the areas occupied by the Ming army.

“If the Ming army accepts them, they will have to transport a large amount of food to feed them this winter, and they will have to reduce the scale of transporting military supplies.

“This should be able to delay the Ming army’s advance a little.

"If the Ming army does not accept them, or even directly eliminates them as enemies, then these refugees will have no choice.

"They can only cooperate with us and fight the Ming army to the death.

"If the Ming army reduces bombing and destruction of our inland areas in order to reduce the number of disaster victims, it will also reduce our losses.

“Moreover, these refugees are potential risks in themselves. If there is no way to resettle them, riots may break out at any time.

"In short, no matter what the Ming army chooses, it will be slightly beneficial to us."

Alexander's eyes lit up after hearing this, like a drowning man grabbing the last straw, and he suddenly shouted with high spirits:
"Yes, yes, that's great, Bagration, you are really smart.

“Let’s arrange it this way, arrange it right away.

"For the defense of the front and for the negotiations with Ming, we also need to do what we can."

Kutuzov thought about it carefully and felt that this plan seemed to be of little significance. No matter how the Ming Dynasty responded, it would only slightly delay their progress.

But it should be of some use, so I agreed with it directly.

So the two generals gathered their staff and mid-level generals and began to organize a plan to drive out the refugees.

Before the Industrial Age, the pace of actual war operations was usually very slow, and a lot of time was required to organize personnel and supplies and to march.

However, the Ming Dynasty responded to Russia's intention to negotiate very decisively.

Bagration's plan had just begun when Foreign Minister Nesirrod returned to Kovrov.

Alexander was stunned when he received the report, and his heart sank immediately.

Normal negotiations at the national level are usually protracted. Even if they are not measured in years, they will at least be measured in months.

Although repeated haggling is always annoying and tiring, being willing to do so means that both parties care about the negotiation itself, and this care itself is a kind of sincerity.

So sometimes, even if both parties have obtained very suitable conditions, they will continue to bargain on the details to enhance each other's credibility.

But now if we calculate the time, Nesrrod basically ran to Minsk, stayed for a few days and then came back.

This shows that the two sides did not have in-depth discussions and no substantive negotiations. Under such circumstances, it is obviously impossible for the Ming Dynasty to give Russia a condition that is so good that no bargaining is required. The greater probability is that it will directly refuse to negotiate.

Alexander was in an extremely depressed mood. It took him a long time to calm down before he summoned Nesirrod and asked him weakly about the Ming Dynasty's attitude.

Nesirrod was in a sad mood and had no expression on his face. He honestly conveyed the Ming Dynasty's intentions.

After listening to this, Alexander did not feel particularly disappointed, because he had already lost hope before listening:

"At most, I am just an ordinary duke without any land. I can keep my title until next year at most. Then we can negotiate again after next year. Am I just a commoner?"

Nesirrod ignored Alexander's mumbling and brought the topic back to work:

"Your Majesty, how should we respond to Ming's conditions?"

Alexander thought for a moment:
“Since we can wait until next year, let’s wait a little longer before responding.

"It's a good opportunity to use this time to confirm the effectiveness of Bagration's plan.

"If it really works, maybe the Ming Dynasty can improve the conditions a little bit."

Nesirrod still didn't know what was happening in Russia:
"What's the plan? May I know?"

Alexander did not hide it, as diplomats needed to know this kind of key information.

After listening to it, Nesrrod's first reaction was that it should be useful, but he soon began to feel that something was not right.

However, Nesirrod couldn't think of anything wrong at the moment:

"Your Majesty... this plan may be useful, but it may also have serious side effects, right?"

Alexander waved his hand directly:

“Of course I know that it is possible to send the population directly to Ming, but that was originally part of the plan.

“We have no way to rescue these refugees. Keeping them in our homeland will only drag us down. That is Ming’s plan.

“Now we send these refugees to them and let Ming Dynasty bear the pressure.

"As long as the Ming Dynasty chooses to accept these people, it will consume additional resources and manpower, which will definitely delay the pace of the attack."

Nesirrod frowned and nodded slightly:

"That's true, but I always feel uneasy. Maybe I've been thinking too much these days..."

Alexander sighed and said:
"You've worked hard, go back and have a good rest."

Alexander sent Nesirrod away and continued to lie alone, waiting for news from the front and the outcome of his death struggle.

Bagration, carrying the Tsar's order, went to the countryside to gather displaced refugees, and half-deceived and half-forced them to go south to Crimea.

The main purpose of this operation was to delay the south and demonstrate the speed of the Ming army's advance, so the main focus was on the south.

After more than half a month of preparation, when the Ming Dynasty had completely occupied the Crimean Peninsula, the front-line commander Cui Guodong received relevant intelligence from the front.

"What? There are a large number of Russian refugees heading south? They are stopping our troops and demanding their surrender? Someone said they can get food this way?"

Cui Guodong is Cui Er, a former refugee from Heze, Shandong. When Shandong suffered from terrible floods and droughts, he ventured south and crossed the border into the Ming Dynasty.

Cui Guodong had a certain military talent. After his smuggling attempt was discovered by patrol soldiers, he was thrown into the Ming army by accident.

After so many years of hard work, Cui Guodong has now been awarded the title of Marquis of Zhou and has become a military commander of the second rank.

When Cui Guodong faced these refugees from inland Russia, his mentality was different from that of other generals.

After reading the scout's report, Cui Guodong thought carefully:
“It must be the Russian officials and nobles who spread the rumor that we can survive by going south to the Ming-controlled area.

“Driving these refugees out can reduce the consumption of Russian materials and reduce the pressure on the Russian court.

"If we want to create more chaos, we should drive them back, but that will make them hate Ming."

Combining his own experience with the experience of the Northern Expedition to destroy the Qing Dynasty, Cui Guodong made a decision that seemed to meet the Russians' expectations:

"We have already taken Constantinople and now have basic control over the Crimean Peninsula. This year's results are enough.

"Even if we continue to push forward with all our might, we will not be able to reach Moscow before winter.

“So slow down your advance and start consolidating the current occupied areas.

"Store supplies for the winter and for the full-scale offensive next year, gather these refugees from the north and recruit soldiers from among them.

"For the time being, we will not pay them any military salaries. We will only provide them with food and clothes. When the troops return to their hometowns next spring, we will give them land as the final reward.

"Refugees who were not selected were allowed to continue walking south or west, and then take a boat to the Dnieper River to go south to the sea.

"Notify the logistics fleet to load these refugees after unloading the cargo and send them to the vassal states in Europe. They should be happy to get more farmers."

Cui Guodong did not think this was a complicated and difficult problem.

Near the ports, Ming Dynasty's transportation was subject to very few restrictions, far beyond the imagination of conventional countries of that era.

Whether it is a train or a steamship, the amount and speed of transported goods can be increased exponentially compared to traditional mule and horse and sailing cargo ships.

The key point is that whether it is a military train or a transport ship, its original mission is to transport soldiers and military supplies to the front line, and they are basically empty on the return journey.

Carrying these refugees on the return journey now will have very limited impact on the Ming army's supply efficiency.

At the same time, the Ming Dynasty's landing and offensive in Crimea and other southern Russian regions had actually exceeded the command scope of the original Arabian War Zone and the Ottoman War Zone.

Now this place has become a newly developed semi-independent war zone.

Tian Yiming, the governor of the Arabian war zone in Constantinople, is now mainly responsible for continuing to expand the occupied area in the Ottoman Empire.

Cui Guodong is now fully and solely responsible for the offensive operations against southern Russia.

After Cui Guodong's order was issued, the Ming army deployed in southern Russia also completed their current combat tasks one after another, and then began to gather and rest.

In a way, Bagration's plan was successful, because the advance of the Russian Southern Army was about to stop.

The main task of the Southern Army before the New Year this year was to control several important ports along the Black Sea coast.

Then build more temporary airports, docks, warehouses, and military camps as front-line bases for launching a full-scale offensive against Russia's inland areas next year.

Now that we have occupied the entire Crimean Peninsula, we can be considered to have exceeded our mission.

(End of this chapter)