open sea

Chapter 1377 Allied Forces
The Yermak Cossacks who first appeared in the Siberian Khanate were a group of poor peasants and water bandits.

It was at this time that the serfdom of the Principality of Moscow began. In the past, their peasants were tenant farmers, and they had two weeks a year to find new landlords to work for.

However, since Ivan the Terrible, the peasants were deprived of the opportunity to find landlords, and the unbearable peasants went to the unmanaged land. These people gathered together and became Cossacks.

Cossacks have no skills, but the Stroganov family has skills.

This family does not have a long history, nor is it aristocratic, it is just a family of merchants who opened a salt mine in Solivichetsk.

After the tsar conquered the Kazan Khanate, he assigned to Grigory Stroganov a large tract of land in the upper reaches of the Kama and Chusovaya rivers, which was almost a wild land, where they developed iron-salt mines, timber and fur trade.

It also obtained the power from the Tsar to recruit volunteers to protect the settlements. The so-called volunteers are actually Cossacks who fled from other places.

In the Ming Dynasty, Yermak was between the King of the Mountain and the leader of the Peasant Rebel Army. He was robbing merchants and foreign envoys passing by the Volga River. Two years ago, he angered the Tsar and was defeated.

And here is the leader of the gang recruited by Stroganov. The big landlord values ​​him and is wanted by the tsar.

This is not such a brave and invincible force. They were defeated by the regular Moscow army in thousands of people.

These people are poorly equipped, poorly trained, undisciplined, and overwhelmed.

But they also have a wealth of experience in field combat and escape, good ability to survive in the wild, ignorant of righteousness and shame, no identity and no restraints, fierce and cunning and good at spreading fear.

The most important thing is to get used to stuffing everything that can be stuffed into your belly, and to be able to move quickly by rowing a boat on the river.

At least for the Stroganov family, it is cheap and affordable to hire such a force as a vanguard to march into Siberia, and they don't have to worry about their supplies like hiring a regular army at a high price.

The first batch of troops to enter Siberia consisted of 840 people, of which 540 were the only surviving water bandit veterans after Yermak was defeated by the army.

The remaining 300 people were the Stroganov family who were worried about the Cossacks' combat capabilities, and the Livonian war prisoners stuffed in were mostly Germans and Lithuanians.

No one can guarantee their loyalty, but at least they are regular army veterans, and they will pay for their lives.

In fact, Ivan the Terrible didn't care much about Siberia. Even though everyone knew that Siberia was the origin of mink fur, he could only trade with England forever if he didn't have access to the sea, and all the oil and water went into Elizabeth's stomach.

What can he get?Guns, artillery, these things are useless, they can only make him continue to wage war.

What Moscow needs is an outlet to the sea, and it needs to control its own trade, instead of taking three melons and two dates from the hands of the English, and eating what others give it.

At this juncture, Ivan the Terrible is having a hard time.

His reforms in his youth led the Principality of Moscow to become stronger, but in his later years, he was beaten dizzy by the partnership of Poland, Lithuania and the Crimean Khanate, and he went crazy and killed his heir.

Life is at a low point, and I feel powerless about Siberia.

But in this trough of life, a tribute team passing through the south was like a shot in the arm, almost causing Ivan the Terrible, who was greatly sad and happy, to have a stroke.

This is a Siberian expedition envoy from the south, headed by Yermak's confidant Ivan Korizo.

This Ivan reported victory to the Tsar with the report and spoils of Yermak—a gift consisting of [-] ermine furs, [-] fox furs, and [-] beaver skins.

Overjoyed, Ivan IV didn't care why the fleet of the Moscow company that was supposed to come this year didn't come, and he was so shocked by the arrival of Hengfu that he didn't care about those trivial things.

How important is this shipment?
It was so important that Ivan IV immediately ordered alms to the poor in Moscow, a prayer of thanksgiving in the Moscow Cathedral, and the ringing of bells throughout the city for blessings.

Most importantly, this "auspicious" good news swept away the haze of Livonia's defeat in the war.

The Stroganov family once again received a large amount of land. The tsar pardoned all the crimes of the Cossacks in Yermak, and used money, silk, and woolen fabrics to commend their great achievements. The utensils are rewarded.

Among the rewards was the armor of Uncle Yiski, a military nobleman who died in the Livonian War, which almost meant that Yermak, a little-known bandit on the river, was only one step away from becoming a military nobleman.

Even Ivan Corrizo, who came back to report the news, enjoyed state banquets every day, telling the nobles of the court and the Senate about their difficult battles in Siberia.

When they had enjoyed enough, the Tsar ordered Ivan Corrizo to go back first, and then Earl Balkhovsky led [-] imperial elite shooting troops to Siberia, officially starting the war of complete conquest of Siberia.

During their march, the Yermak offensive continued.

In February of the 11th year of Wanli, Bakhta, a minor aristocrat of the khanate who surrendered, betrayed Kuchu Khan and informed Yermak of the news that Mamai Xiaohan of the Tekur Department was hunting in Kural Lake.

In the ensuing raid, Kuchu Khan's confidant general Mamai Xiaohan was captured alive and sent to Moscow. Ivan IV was even happier and awarded him a commander.

Kuchu Khan, on the other hand, was busy planning a major counterattack to recapture the capital, and even sent people to the Kazakh Khanate for help.

While the Khanty, Vogul, and Bashkirs were hurriedly gathering in all directions, his emissary for help saw Tavukal Khan of the Kazakh Khanate, and through the mouth of Yasmubadur, passed on Into Qi Jiguang's ears.

Strictly speaking, Qi Jiguang's Ming army and the Kazakh Khanate are still on the verge of war.

But You Yu Tawu Kal Khan did not want to face the enemy, and tried his best to avoid the war; the effect of Kangli Halberd made Qi Jiguang not have to worry about food and grass in a short time, so the battle did not start.

The matter of sending envoys to pay tribute and handing over the leader of the Tuqishi tribe was temporarily put on hold, and both families were more interested in another matter: organizing coalition forces to aid the Siberian Khanate.

Since Emperor Wanli had the desire to monopolize the fur market, Qi Jiguang was not in a hurry to march westward when food and grass were sufficient. More intelligence.

And Tavukele Khan needs to take this opportunity to observe the power from the distant Eastern Ming Empire before making further plans.

For him, it is better to use other people's blood to test the military capabilities of this distant empire than to use the blood of his own people.

Because of this, the two hit it off.

A coalition of the Long Live Army of the Zhejiang Army of the Ming Dynasty, the Mongolian Qingqi Cavalry of the Ming Dynasty, and the Kazakh cavalry assembled on the shore of Lake Balkhash and marched into the territory of the Siberian Khanate.

　Good morning!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)