The Heroic Age of the Late Qing Dynasty

Xiao Hualong knew at this time that it was too late to wait for the doctor to arrive. He also knew that the lives of two people in his family were in critical condition, and now he could only rely on himself.

Seeing the villagers coming in to stop him, Xiao Hualong's eyes were red as he stared at them and said word by word: "Get out now! Don't bring any bacteria or viruses in. I'm mentally normal now. Don't worry about me. I know what I'm doing. You have to believe in science. Get out! I'll get angry with anyone who dares to mess with me!"

At this time, Xiao Hualong's comrades had guessed what he was going to do, and immediately drove the villagers out. Then they said to Zhao Hualong: "I have learned it too. I will help you."

Xiao Hualong nodded, and asked the midwife to stay and help. The three of them immediately disinfected their hands with alcohol and then disinfected Anna's lower abdomen...

Xiao Hualong knew that cutting the belly with a knife wouldn't hurt at first, but it would be excruciating afterwards. So, he had his wife bite a rag, and after his comrades held Anna down, Xiao Hualong took the knife and slashed at her belly. This is a man's love. Even if he's never done it before, he still dares to do it. This knife might save someone, or it might kill someone...

If Anna died because of this, Xiao Hualong might have to bear the reputation of killing his wife for the rest of his life, and he himself might never get over this hurdle, but he still did it without hesitation.

The midwife had never seen a cesarean section performed before, but she had seen many women die in childbirth, so she was quite brave. Drawing on her years of experience, she quickly pulled the baby out from the incision. Anna groaned in agony and fainted.

Here, Xiao Hualong called out loudly: "Anna, wake up, wake up!..." while clearing out the placenta and other debris in the uterus!

"It's okay, Anna just fainted!"

After hearing what his comrade said, Xiao Hualong immediately began to suture his wife's wound.

The midwife saw the child, whose face had been suffocated and purple, clearly dead. She held the child upside down, pinched its feet with one hand, and slapped its bottom with the other, once, twice...slapping it repeatedly, but there was no response. Just as the midwife was about to give up on the child, Xiao Hualong's comrade ran over, grabbed the child, and began artificial respiration. Just as the midwife was about to persuade her, she heard a clear, crisp cry, and the child finally came to life. The comrade quickly handed the child to the midwife and prepared to help Xiao Hualong.

Soon, Anna faintly heard the baby crying, and she woke up with a cry of "Ah!" The midwife hurriedly carried the wrapped baby to Anna and said, "Congratulations, Anna, you have a daughter."

Anna looked at the cute little baby and the old man with a frown on his face, and smiled with relief.

When Xiao Hualong saw that Anna and her child were finally safe and sound and had sutured the wound, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. After experiencing the shock just now, Xiao Hualong felt that he had no strength left in his body and actually sat down on the ground.

Not long after, the eldest brother arrived with a doctor, and gave Anna an anti-inflammatory drip in time. He also helped Anna to deal with the cesarean section incision again. He was very impressed that Xiao Hualong dared to perform surgery on his wife.

As for the midwife, she was in a state of confusion and self-blame at this time, because she knew that if there was someone who could help pregnant women perform cesarean sections like Xiao Hualong, how many pregnant women could be saved! Therefore, she made up her mind to learn medical skills and eventually succeeded, saving one woman and child after another.

Afterwards, Xiao Hualong recalled this thrilling and extremely dangerous scene, holding up the hand that was bitten by Anna and said: "Look at how hard you used that day, you almost bit my hand off."

Anna lay in Xiao Hualong's arms and said quietly, "You have to remember that in order to give birth to this child for you, you stabbed me. I already died once."

Later, in order to commemorate this difficult-to-birth child, the two people gave her a special name, Xiao Ping'an, which means peace throughout life and no major setbacks and hardships.

After Xiao Hualong experienced this, two words suddenly became deeply ingrained in his mind: science. It was as if he had received an epiphany. He was aware of these two words in everything he did, and he kept them on his lips.

Thanks to his dedication, the quality of their tiles and bricks improved. He then organized the commune members to start building new houses. Within a few months, every household in the village had a bright, spacious new home.

Chapter 596:

If someone asks Xiao Hualong what the secret to his success is, he can name a lot of things. If someone asks Zhang Yinghao what the secret to his success is, he can also give a lot of answers. But if you ask him what the key or decisive factor is, he can only give one answer: belief.

Throughout history, the key to success for all those who have achieved great things is absolute belief. Why did Zhang Yinghao, such an insignificant figure in his previous life, achieve such tremendous success today? It's because Zhang Yinghao truly experienced and witnessed it firsthand. He has complete faith in China's ability to become self-reliant and strong, complete faith that he is on the right path, and complete faith that he can lead the Forward Party to build a new China...

In past lives, many people studied the reasons for others' success. It's like growing high-quality grapes and producing fine wine in the Gansu desert—they simply believed. Just like Jack Ma believed e-commerce represented the future, and Cao Dewang, upon hearing that imported glass was high-quality but expensive, decided to develop automotive glass himself. He believed he could achieve it, and thus, Fuyao Glass was born.

When General Lin was confused, he asked Taizu how long the red flag could be held. Taizu's response was to keep it going as long as he wanted. The reason all successful people succeed is that they always believe. Why are some able to seize the opportunity while others cannot, even when things are still in their infancy? It's because those who can seize the opportunity already see the outcome, and they have complete faith in it.

The reason Zhang Yinghao was able to lead so many heroes on the road to success was that he always believed that China could be liberated, that it could embark on an independent path to prosperity and strength, that the Qing Dynasty could be overthrown, and that the foreign powers could be driven out. No one believed this more than Zhang Yinghao, and no one knew how to do it better than him, so Zhang Yinghao became a leader.

Zhang Yinghao knew the importance of liberating Northeast China to the entire country, so he always kept his eyes on the Northeast. Influenced by his past life, Zhang Yinghao always felt a thorn in his heart and was very uncomfortable because he had not completely liberated the entire Northeast.

In fact, after the Fifth Field Army drove out the Japanese, or rather, the campaign to eliminate the Qing forces, never ceased. The entire Jilin Prefecture consisted of only a little over 10,000 patrol battalions, and Jilin General Fushun controlled less than 5,000. Furthermore, during the Russo-Japanese War, a vast amount of supplies had been plundered by the Japanese and Russians. How could the patrol battalions under Fushun's control have any fighting spirit? The Fifth Field Army swept through the Qing forces in Jilin with overwhelming force.

In fact, if the Russo-Japanese War had not happened, it would not have been a simple matter for the Fifth Field Army to capture Jilin. After all, Fushun had been operating in Jilin for many years. If he relied on his prestige to confront the Fifth Field Army, then the Fifth Field Army would have to at least destroy Jilin before it could completely liberate Jilin. The longer it dragged on, the more disadvantageous it would be for the field army. Because the Northeast was not only under constant pressure from Japan, but also the Tsarist Russian army that had not been driven away was also eyeing it covetously, and could attack the field army at any time to prevent the field army from continuing to move north. Moreover, many of the patrol battalions were fence-sitters. If Fushun, the leader, was not dealt with first, then these patrol battalions scattered everywhere would be a big trouble.

The patrol battalion's combat effectiveness was originally low, and while they might be good at bullying men and women, they were far inferior to the current powerful field army. This was also the reason why Fushun hadn't dared to resist the Russian army's entry into the city. If the Russian army had entered Jilin City through an offensive, then large-scale slaughter would have been inevitable.

"The Fifth Field Army will soon attack Jilin."

This news spread like wildfire throughout the patrol camps of Jilin City, and the patrol camps immediately erupted. Without proper supervision, they soon began to wreak havoc within the city. Many young women and wives suffered. Fushun had naturally intended to ban these practices, after all, this was the place he had been managing for a long time. But his men stopped him. Jilin City was about to become a battlefield, so he let the brothers have some fun. Everyone would surely fight even harder once they were on the battlefield.

Fushun thought about it and it seemed to make sense. So fortunately, he no longer paid attention to it. In his heart, these people were just cows and livestock that the Qing Dynasty could take whatever they wanted. Now that they were useful, they would naturally be used. The generals below also

He was a very good person and gave a beautiful girl to Fushun, who then went to "share the joy with the people".

Little could they have anticipated that the Field Army would quickly launch a military operation northward soon after driving out the Japanese, completely disregarding the possibility of a Russian attack. Seeing the dire state of Jilin City, the Field Army comrades hesitated and immediately launched an attack. The patrol battalions were still enjoying their final revelry, unconcerned with the numerous guards standing guard. The Field Army easily captured the city wall, then followed the wall to capture all of Jilin's gates, ultimately sealing off the entire city.

Jilin City, which had been attacked by the Russians a few years ago, was now being ravaged again by Fu Shun's patrol battalion. When they learned that the field army had surrounded Jilin City, some of the patrol battalion soldiers began to look for ways to escape, while others became hysterical and even more crazy, burning, killing, looting, and committing all kinds of atrocities.

The Field Army, of course, showed no mercy. All soldiers attacked and arrested people along the streets. Anyone caught committing a crime, whether a patrolman or a local thug, was shot immediately. It took the Field Army a full day to suppress the Jilin patrol and disarm all the patrolmen in Jilin City. Then came a massive parade and public trial.

These patrol battalions usually bullied the people and did not protect them, but they tolerated it. However, this time they bullied the people so much that the anger of the people in Jilin City finally erupted. During the parade, these patrol battalion soldiers were beaten all over their bodies. After arriving at the place of public trial, they immediately began to let the masses identify and testify against each other. All those who committed crimes were brought out, and in the end, they were all shot. As for Jilin General Fushun, he was naturally fed a peanut to taste.

After dealing with the patrol battalion in Jilin, the patrol battalions in other places immediately became fence-sitters, switching sides and siding with the field army. At this time, the Fifth Field Army also immediately began to deal with the local patrol battalions. Those who were willing to surrender could choose to farm and immediately distribute the land. Those who refused to surrender were immediately eliminated by the field army. Even if a few people resisted, they were now leaderless and had no chance of success. Soon, the field army had become a major force in the Northeast, controlling two provinces.

Northeast China was vast and sparsely populated, so the Fifth Field Army's land reform there was relatively mild. Those who hadn't committed serious crimes or betrayed foreign countries were rarely executed. Because the Northeast was desperate for labor, they opted for labor reform. However, there was no longer any mention of tenant farmers; after all land was distributed, everyone immediately began their new lives.

The Fifth Field Army liberated Jilin and confiscated a large number of real estate such as land deeds and shops from the home of Jilin General Fu Shun. In addition, the gold, silver and treasures alone were worth several million taels, which shows how rich Jilin's resources are.

After the field army entered Jilin, it immediately began to do its utmost to integrate Jilin and Liaoning provinces.

The PLA first began to crack down on bandits. Building on their previous friendships with the Japanese, bandits willing to leave the mountains were given options. If they preferred to farm, they were given land. If not, they could join the army or even become police officers after training. Of course, they could also work as railway workers. With so much work to do in Northeast China, they had no trouble finding a job.

However, the PLA did not immediately strike those who still wanted to occupy the mountains and rule as kings, but only appeased them temporarily. Because Heilongjiang was still in the hands of the Qing Dynasty and the Russians, a hasty attack on the bandits would force these people to oppose the field army. If they defected to the Russians or the Qing Dynasty, it would also be a big problem. So, for the time being, they were kept.

At this point, the Fifth Field Army had simply cleared out all Japanese and Russian mines in Liaoning, rescuing numerous miners. These were excellent personnel, and naturally, they could not be wasted. Because Changchun and other places in Jilin were still in Russian hands, it was not advisable to escalate the conflict. For the Fifth Field Army at this time, if Tsarist Russia did not actively attack them, then the Qing Dynasty would become their primary contradiction. After overthrowing the Qing Dynasty, the contradiction with Tsarist Russia would naturally rise to become the primary contradiction, which was not difficult to predict.

In terms of government affairs, few people in the Northeast had their ancestors permanently living there; most had come from the Northeast. Therefore, they were free from the decadent atmosphere of the landlord class in the interior. After the most harmful landlords were eliminated, the area was immediately cleansed, and many talented people who had been neglected immediately emerged. Of course, the field army had already trained a lot of talents, so it was natural to boldly use them at this time.

By this time, the Russians in Changchun and other places finally understood what the Japanese had felt. They were surrounded by enemies on all sides, with the enemy everywhere. The People's Liberation Army pressed hard against the Russian troops, recklessly attacking the mines they occupied in Liaoning. However, the Russians could not find any strong evidence of the Fifth Field Army's offensive, and ultimately were forced to retreat further.

The Fifth Field Army was constantly training, having never stopped even during the previous Lunar New Year holiday, and it would not stop now. The military academy had also reviewed all the battles and campaigns since the Field Army's sudden attack on the Japanese, summarizing the lessons learned. Within the army, emergency training was also being conducted for junior officers who had performed well, striving to acquire more knowledge and skills for the next war.

Liu Wenxiu and Hu Songhui were both teachers at the training class, with Liu Wenxiu currently lecturing there. They had all received direct training from Zhang Yinghao, and after so much time working and practicing, they had developed their own perspectives on many of the issues Zhang Yinghao had previously addressed. New comrades sent from the liberated areas also brought many of Zhang Yinghao's articles to Northeast China for their study. Although Liu Wenxiu had memorized most of Zhang Yinghao's writings, each time she studied them during her free time during the war, she would gain new insights.

In particular, he often read articles such as "On Practice", "On Contradiction", "Dialectical Materialism and Historical Materialism", "The Connection between the Change of Dynasties in China and the Productive Forces and Production Relations", "What to Do", and "A Single Spark Can Start a Prairie Fire". Later, new comrades brought articles such as "The Communist Manifesto" and "Nation and State", which surprised Liu Wenxiu, Lian Chengjue and others.

"For China to escape its current crisis, overthrowing the Qing dynasty is only a small step. Building a truly industrialized nation is the direction we must continue to move forward. As soldiers, we are here to protect the country. The army is the backbone of this country and nation, and it must support an independent and self-reliant sky for the entire country and nation.

Our Chairman has said that China's rise can only be achieved through a path of blood and iron. Iron refers to steel and industry. Only by producing more steel and building a strong industry can we become a strong nation. Blood, first and foremost, represents the military, war, and sacrifice. The military's responsibility is to fight and sacrifice for the liberation of our country and nation, using the blood of our troops to secure greater benefits for our country and nation.

China has long been impoverished and weak, and countless people of noble character have sought to save the country. However, no effective solution has emerged. From the Qing Dynasty's initial policy of "learning from the barbarians to control them," to the Taiping Rebellion, and later to the Westernization Movement and the Boxer Rebellion, these approaches failed to lead the country to prosperity, and therefore, these solutions were ineffective.

Fellow students, our Chairman Zhang Yinghao has found a way to save this country: industrialization. Our mission now is to safeguard this industrialization. We must not allow any force to hinder our industrialization. The prosperity of our nation and its people requires our unwavering commitment. It is no exaggeration to say that the military is the hope of our nation's rise.

So what kind of army are we? We are a new type of people's army, led by the Forward Party, based on the worker-peasant alliance, and armed with Marxism and the ideas of Zhang Yinghao. We are a brave and disciplined army dedicated to the people. We are the people's soldiers, forever connected by blood with the people, and share the fate of the Chinese nation. We defend the country and the people's property from foreign aggression. No matter when or where, we are always ready to fight for our country and our nation...

After the field army rested and regrouped, it immediately took action. After the field army took control of Jilin Prefecture, Heilongjiang General Cheng Dequan was already fully prepared to prevent the Fifth Field Army's next move and had begun colluding with the Russians. The Russians were truly filled with regret at this point. They should not have let the Japanese die and instead kicked them when they were down. Otherwise, they would not be facing the pressure of the Fifth Field Army alone in the Northeast.

Jilin was a vast region in the late Qing Dynasty, bordering the Ussuri River to the north and the Heilongjiang River. After annihilating the Fuchun patrol camp, the Fifth Field Army, taking advantage of good weather, deployed as many cavalry units as possible to capture Shuangchengting, Ningguta, Yanji, Huichun, and other places.

As for places like Mishan Prefecture and Linjiang Prefecture, the field army almost just carried out an armed parade. Now Heilongjiang is almost surrounded by the field army.

At this time, a map of the area outside Binjiang City had been hung in Liu Wenxiu's temporary command center, with the troop strength of the Fifth Field Army and the Heilongjiang Patrol Battalion marked in red and blue on the map.

"Commander-in-Chief, the Heilongjiang Patrol Battalion in Binjiang currently has 10,000 men standing in opposition to our Shuangchengzi troops. Furthermore, Cheng Dequan's home base in Longjiang still has over 5,000 men. The entire Heilongjiang Patrol Battalion has a total of approximately 10,000 men. However, many of the men in the Patrol Battalion are conscripted men, and they don't have much combat effectiveness. Furthermore, many of our comrades have already infiltrated the Patrol Battalion."

"It seems Cheng Dequan has been very busy. He's been expanding the army quite aggressively, but doesn't he know that this is actually diluting their strength? And can a poor place like Heilongjiang really afford to support so many soldiers?"

"I think it's probably the Russians who support him. Otherwise, they wouldn't have enough firearms. But the latest news is that they've almost completely replaced their weapons. Maybe they made some kind of deal with the Russians."

"Never mind what deals Cheng Dequan made. The more deals he made, the better. The more loot we'd get. He actually spread his forces across so many locations? Doesn't he have any military common sense?"

"What I'm worried about is that when we reach a critical moment with the Qing Dynasty, the Russians will stab us in the back, so we have to be on guard."

"That's right, but we'll fight this battle the way it should be fought. We won't fire the first shot, but if the enemy does, we can fire back immediately."

"So how do we fight this battle now?"

"Since Cheng Dequan has placed his main force in Bincheng, we should destroy his patrol battalion there. We should destroy the enemy wherever we encounter them. Ideally, this single battle would eliminate all the main Qing forces in Heilongjiang, which would be of great benefit to us in launching our troops into Heilongjiang and completely liberating it."

“What if the Russians won’t let us use the railway?”

"We're attacking the Qing Dynasty on Chinese soil and overthrowing the government. What can the Russians say? Even if we can't use their railways, we won't use them for the time being. The army will march north on foot, a distance of dozens of kilometers, to wipe out the Qing troops in Bincheng first."

Liu Wenxiu thought for a moment and said, "For the time being, we have an absolute advantage over the patrol battalion. Apart from guarding against the Russian troops, we can fight the rest of the army according to the plan."

"yes."

The army marched forth in a mighty force. As expected, upon seeing the PLA march north, the Russians immediately intervened, forbidding the field army from engaging the Qing on either side of the Chinese Eastern Railway and forbidding the use of the railway for transporting troops. Liu Wenxiu quickly relented, declaring that while the railway was temporarily withheld, the field army could still attack the patrol battalions at Heilongjiang. Once Heilongjiang was captured, the Russians on the Chinese Eastern Railway would be ready for slaughter.

Since there was still a long time until the freezing weather, there was no need to rush. Liu Wenxiu immediately dispatched a small unit to contact the comrades who had previously developed in Heilongjiang. This was a good opportunity to train these small units in outdoor survival skills. He allowed the comrades in Heilongjiang to first expand the PLA's mass base. Furthermore, Liu Wenxiu fully believed that even if they relied on the comrades who had developed in Heilongjiang Province, they would still be able to liberate Heilongjiang if they were given enough time.

Liu Wenxiu treated the large army's northward movement as a training exercise, which was a good opportunity to train the field troops in marching, fighting, eating, camping, hiding troops, supplying, managing, communicating, repairing, and rescuing under various conditions...

Chapter 597:

This was indeed the case. After the Fifth Field Army liberated Jilin, without Jilin as a buffer zone, Cheng Dequan immediately lost his sense of security when he felt that the Russians could not be relied upon for the time being. In order to confront the Fifth Field Army, he frantically pulled troops from various locations of the Heilongjiang Patrol Battalion in an attempt to block the Fifth Field Army's northward advance.

The comrades of the Forward Party who had previously been scattered throughout Heilongjiang took the opportunity to take action and smashed the Qing Dynasty's local government and tax collection system in Heilongjiang.

The more frantically Cheng Dequan mobilized troops, the more difficult it became. Heilongjiang wasn't like the more affluent provinces of Liaoning or Jiangsu and Zhejiang. The Heilongjiang army wasn't self-sufficient, and all its routes had been blocked by the field army. They were now isolated and helpless, surrounded by enemies and fighting alone. If it weren't for the support of the Russians, they might have already begun to collapse from within.

The Heilongjiang Patrol Battalion had only a few artillery pieces. Even with Russian support, the battalion lacked the manpower and manpower to properly operate them. The current problem was that Harbin was completely controlled by the Russians. Liu Wenxiu and his men knew that if the Russians attacked from behind, the field army would suffer countless casualties.

Zhang Yinghao was on a field trip when he received the telegram from Northeast China. Whenever he arrived in a place, the first question he asked was what local products were available. Land reform alone was not enough to boost the economy and ensure a prosperous life for the people. Scrabbling for food in the soil could only keep the people from starving, and that only happened during good weather; even in times of disaster, food was still a problem. In an era without numerous factories, cash crops were needed to make money.

Only when there are goods to trade can the people make money. Although Zhang Yinghao didn't know what local specialties were, as long as he heard about something he had heard about in the future, the government could organize the masses to plant large quantities of it, forming a scale effect, and naturally there would be goods to sell in the future, making the people rich.

What Zhang Yinghao wants now is to accommodate as many people as possible to participate in this overall social trading system, allowing them to actively produce and grow more products for sale. As long as people join this system, the entire social cycle will become larger and more powerful.

In a previous life, Zhang Yinghao encountered a question on a high school exam. It described a place where the government was promoting the planting of garlic. An old man chose to plant onions, and when the price of garlic dropped that year, he was able to fetch a good price. When the government was promoting the planting of onions, he chose to plant garlic, and the price of onions dropped, allowing him to fetch a good price. When a reporter asked him about his secret, he replied that he simply planted the opposite of what the government recommended. There was no real secret.

In his previous life, Zhang Yinghao truly approved of the old man's approach, believing it was unique and profitable. But now, Zhang Yinghao realized that while the old man's approach wasn't wrong, and in fact, from a small-scale peasant perspective, it was perfectly acceptable, if it weren't scaled up and industrialized, then everyone else would only earn a pittance. This was precisely why China's soybeans suffered such a crushing defeat in the trade war. They were at a significant disadvantage.

Similarly, just as apples are grown in Shaanxi and tobacco is grown in Yunnan and Guizhou, tea is a highly sought-after commodity in places like Hunan. Now that roads are open, businesses are even purchasing tea directly and shipping it to places like Wuhan and Jiujiang for sale. Trade volumes are indeed strong, and profits are plentiful.

In fact, at this time in China, the Qing court's smugglers were the ones trading most heavily with the Liberated Areas. Having enjoyed a life of luxury for over two hundred years, it was always easier to transition from frugality to extravagance than from extravagance to frugality. The Qing court naturally did not want its rule to be seized by the Progressive Party, and naturally fought back with all its might.

But before troops move, food and fodder must be sent first. Xiliang and other important Qing officials naturally understood this principle. They could only force the Qing's Minister of Revenue to obtain food. The Minister of Revenue was the highest official in the Six Ministries, equivalent to the Minister of Finance in the Progressive Party. Procuring food was naturally the Minister of Revenue's job. But what could the Manchu royal family, who did not engage in production, do?

Looking at the dying Empress Dowager Cixi lying on the bed, she was already an old woman in her twilight years. After experiencing this series of blows, the Empress Dowager's health had completely collapsed. Especially after hearing that the Fifth Field Army in the Northeast was actually led by the Sichuan Red Bandits, she immediately fainted. The place where the dragon's birthplace was occupied by the enemy was a huge blow. If the palace had not purchased a lot of fast-acting heart-saving pills and other medicines produced in the liberated areas, and had not given the Empress Dowager an IV drip produced in the liberated areas, she might have died.

The news was unexpected: the Fifth Field Army seemed to be about to start a fight with the Russians in the Northeast. Although I had long known that the Fifth Field Army would inevitably clash with the Russians in the Northeast, I did not expect that they would start fighting so soon.

Tieliang almost crawled into the palace and reported the good news to Cixi.

"Master Buddha, these red bandits are so belligerent, they will surely perish in the near future."

After hearing this, Cixi actually had the strength to get up from the bed and immediately said, "Okay, okay, okay, what are the foreigners' reactions now?"

"My Lord, I came to tell you the news as soon as I heard it, but I haven't gone to see those foreigners yet."

Hearing that the war had broken out in the Northeast again, Ciqi's illness seemed to have almost healed instantly. He immediately sat up and said anxiously: "Go and find out the attitudes of the great powers immediately. This may be the best time for us to eliminate the red bandits. Go and find out quickly and see if we can unite with the foreigners to eliminate the red bandits..."

"twitter."

After the Fifth Field Army arrived outside Harbin, they didn't rush to attack. Instead, they immediately began building fortifications, digging trenches and anti-artillery holes. The Field Army naturally had the necessary skills for sieges. However, they were confident that the Qing troops didn't understand how to defend a city. Learning new tactics wasn't easy for an illiterate army.

After the field army built its fortifications, it immediately notified the Russians to leave Harbin as soon as possible. By this time, Liu Wenxiu and his men had almost reached the point of exposing the Russians.

By this time, the field army had cut off the railway to Harbin, but the field army was not in a hurry to attack. Instead, it slowly tightened the noose around the necks of Lao Maozi and Cheng Dequan.

Shortly after the Fifth Field Army completely severed the Chinese Eastern Railway, Russian Minister to China, Pukhodi, received the news. Furious, he immediately reported the news back to Russia. He also summoned envoys from various countries for a meeting of the diplomatic corps, where he urged all nations to express support for Russia and put pressure on the Fifth Field Army, which had dared to sever the Chinese Eastern Railway.

The great powers actually have a common interest in the railway. After all, they don't build railways in other countries for good, but naturally they need to gain benefits. If the locals cut off the railways at will, this is what they fear most. How can the great powers gain benefits in this case? Therefore, there is no problem in putting pressure on the Fifth Field Army!

The great powers were also deeply concerned about developments in Northeast China. A single move could have far-reaching consequences, and the entire world's balance of power was at stake. British Minister to Russia, Sir John Sedgwick, and French Minister to Russia, Sir Anthony Lupin, were also extremely anxious. If the conflict between the Fifth Field Army and Russia escalated rapidly, war might erupt. They knew the Russians' nature all too well. If war broke out, Russia would be forced to withdraw more troops from the Western Front to the Far East, a move that was completely contrary to the interests of both Britain and France.

However, contradictions are everywhere and are complex and ever-changing. Facing the pressure from the Southern Liberation Army, the British and French have another hidden expectation in their hearts, that is, they hope that Russia, the European steamroller, can teach these ignorant Chinese a good lesson and let them know what a great power is!

Obviously, many still believe that the Field Army's victory over Japan was due to a preemptive, sneak attack, and that in a head-on confrontation, the Field Army would have been no match for the Japanese and Russian armies. Of course, the Ottoman Empire and Germany were naturally delighted by this news. For them, every time Tsarist Russia deployed an army to the Far East, it would have required more supplies to the region, significantly easing their pressure. They also suddenly realized that having such a partner in the Far East was truly beneficial—not just a small benefit, but a significant one—and as a result, both countries increased their support for the liberated areas.

However, more countries and people thought that the Fifth Field Army in Northeast China was too arrogant. They had driven out the Japanese not long ago, which was a great blessing. Now they were provoking the giant Russia was unwise. In fact, these powers also knew that the field army had achieved success by taking advantage of Japan's exhaustion. But now, how long has it been since the Fifth Field Army started to provoke the Russians again? What's the difference between this and seeking death?

Everyone now knew that Russia was a giant. Although it had suffered a major setback after being driven out of South Manchuria by Japan during the Russo-Japanese War, it had not been seriously damaged. The giant remained a giant. Therefore, for the great powers, although both Japan and Russia were the weakest among them, Russia was definitely not a force that the Fifth Field Army could afford to provoke.

Take the Russo-Japanese War, for example. The Japanese were able to win thanks to the support of countries like Britain and the United States. Without the intervention of these powers, Japan would have been no match for the Russians, and the Russians might not have been defeated. If the war had continued, no one knows whether Japan could have held out. For example, Russia's steel production was dozens of times that of Japan. Japan had carefully prepared for the war for several years, and with the support of Britain and the United States, it would have been impossible for Japan to have won the war.

During the Russo-Japanese War, Russia spent 2 billion rubles on military spending, which was equivalent to a year's worth of revenue. Japan, on the other hand, spent 1.8 billion yen on military spending, while its revenue was only 500 million yen. The rest came from loans of over 10 billion yen secured by people like Takahashi Korekiyo. Without them, the Japanese would have simply collapsed.

The reason why the Fifth Field Army was able to drive out the Japanese was that various countries also conducted in-depth analysis of the Fifth Field Army. All countries agreed that it could only be said that the Fifth Field Army suddenly launched an attack at the time when the Japanese were at their weakest. Otherwise, the Fifth Field Army would not have been a match for Japan at all.

The Japanese army naturally refused to admit defeat, and it was normal for them to exalt themselves and belittle the field army. It was also normal for them to mislead many countries and powers with their random propaganda. How could China's weak inertial thinking be so easily reversed?

Although the Fifth Field Army had superficially defeated Japan, no country believed it could truly defeat the Japanese. Russia was even more powerful than Japan, and the gap was even greater. Russia had lost the opportunity to launch a sudden attack against the Japanese. If war broke out, almost no major power believed the Fifth Field Army could achieve final victory.

From the perspective of the great powers, while Russia still needed to suppress the uprising at home, it could easily crush the Fifth Field Army in Northeast China if it stepped in. The Fifth Field Army had no industry in the north, and the outcome was already decided. Although the Fifth Field Army was controlled by the Forward Party, which controlled most of the country, its steel bases were all in the south, and the gap in steel production between them and Tsarist Russia was at least a hundred times greater. This was an insurmountable fact.

Although the Russians had a certain population advantage over the Tsarist Russia, everyone knew that this manpower advantage could not be converted into real combat power. If it could not be turned into an advantage, it would still be a burden if not handled with care. As for the army, the Tsarist Russia had a standing army of several million. If mobilized, the Tsar's gray beasts could easily expand the army to millions.

While the Great Powers didn't know the exact number of troops the Fifth Field Army had in the north, it was definitely not as numerous as Tsarist Russia. Even if they were fully mobilized, their combat effectiveness, regardless of their numbers, would be no more than a few hundred thousand. Otherwise, their finances would collapse, as they simply couldn't afford to pay the soldiers, and thus, the army. Compared to the Russian Army, their disadvantage was enormous.

As for the navy, although the Fifth Field Army had several gunboats, Russia suffered heavy losses after the Russo-Japanese War and temporarily did not have the ability to carry out an expedition. Even if it had this ability, whether the Tsar would dare to send warships on an expedition was a huge question. This comparison can be ignored.

Even so, no matter from which perspective, the great powers did not believe that the Fifth Field Army could win the battle against Tsarist Russia. Just because the Fifth Field Army accidentally rose up and drove away the Japanese army, did it think it was invincible? It actually began to actively provoke the Russian Empire. It was too arrogant.

The great powers all agreed that the Fifth Field Army was too far behind Russia and that a war would be like an egg against a rock, overestimating its own capabilities. Furthermore, while many of the great powers were doing good business with the Liberated Areas, they were eager to dampen the Fifth Field Army's arrogance, lest they misjudge their own strength and assume they could stand on equal footing with the great powers.

The great powers now deeply disliked the Forward Party. Like a hedgehog, the Forward Party maintained a completely independent and proactive stance, ignoring the great powers. While their business was flourishing, the great powers naturally found it less satisfying than inflicting losses on the Qing dynasty. Now that the Fifth Field Army was provoking the Russian giant, the steamroller of Europe, besides a modicum of concern, they also naturally wanted to see if the Fifth Field Army could be disciplined by Tsarist Russia.