Chapter 786 Flames Burning the City

Rat eradication is a traditional technology that appeared in human civilization thousands of years ago, and the earliest rat poison can be traced back to the pre-Qin era.

The Classic of Mountains and Seas. It is recorded in the "Xi Shan Jing" that "there is a white stone on the mountain of Gao Tu, whose name is Ju, which can poison rats. There is grass, whose shape is like a longan, its leaves are like sunflower and red back, and its name is Wu Tiao, which can poison rats. ".

At first, it was the use of plant toxins or mineral toxins, but in the 19th century, there were many kinds of rat poisons, and there were hundreds of different rat poisons.

The reputation of the "Black Death" was too great. After receiving a note from the Vienna government, European governments expressed their support in a daze.

A mess of rodenticides were sent ship after ship to the Asia Minor peninsula. All kinds of strange usages caused the heartbreak of the Austrian army who carried out the rat eradication work.

The eyes of the European world have all come together, and various countries have sent medical experts to come to check on the spot.

Of course, this kind of hot news will never be without reporters. After visiting the tragic situation of the Russian military camp, all doubts disappeared.

No matter how much the anti-Turkish alliance played, it would be impossible to use the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers to play a bitter game. The name of the "Black Death" was justified.

During the hundreds of years that the Black Death ravaged Europe, it also broke out in stages and regions, which lasted until the 18th century.

The most powerful from 1347 to 1353, starting from Sicily, then Italy, Austria, France, England, Central Europe, Northern Europe...

The plague of Italy from 1629 to 1631, the plague of London from 1665 to 1666, the plague of Vienna in 1679, the plague of Marseilles from 1720 to 1722, and the plague of Moscow in 1771.

Although considered the Black Death, there are still differences. Whether the plague virus has mutated or is a new virus is still an unsolved mystery.

The plague in the Near East has just begun to exert its force, and it has already exploded with amazing lethality. It is normal to boil it down to it.

...

Since the plague spread in the army, Marshal Ivanov, as the supreme commander, has not been in a better mood. Others can make excuses to sneak back to China, but he can't run away.

It's not easy to be the leader of the military. In addition to his outstanding military exploits, he must also have a character that convinces everyone.

The conservative Marshal Ivanov is undoubtedly a qualified soldier. After receiving the news of the outbreak of the plague, he rushed over from St. Petersburg non-stop and assumed the responsibility of the supreme commander.

Ivanov asked with concern: "Have the medicines promised by the Austrians been delivered?"

For this batch of medicines, he sacrificed himself. In St. Petersburg, he also had a big fight with the high-level government, the main purpose was to keep the tsarist government from taking over.

Goose plucking is an old problem of the tsarist government.

In the period of Alexander II, by means of iron and blood, he was able to deter the bureaucrats; in the period of Alexander III, the concept of governance became relaxed, and the bureaucrats became more courageous.

Originally, the number of medicines was insufficient, and if the domestic gang peeled a layer of skin, even less would be obtained.

These medicines are all in short supply on the market, and it’s okay to deduct a part of them. If you encounter a daring person and directly exchange them, you will be killed.

Marshal Ivanov never had any confidence in the integrity of the domestic bureaucrats.

Lieutenant General Ozgul replied: "Only 5,318 pieces have been received, and the rest will have to wait for the next week at the earliest before they can arrive."

Hearing this answer, Marshal Ivanov's heart became even heavier.

There are now more than 50,000 Russian soldiers who have fallen ill, with only one tenth of the medicine. Who to use it for and who not to use it is a headache.

"To generate electricity for the country, let the government find a way to purchase it. Without medicine, it is a big deal!"

Now what Ivanov regrets most is returning to the country to participate in the celebration banquet, so that the best reaction time is wasted.

In theory, the war is over, and as a victorious country, the Russian army can withdraw at any time, but reality does not allow it.

Not to mention the deal reached between Russia and Austria, the key point is that there are so many infected soldiers now. If they go back at this time, wouldn’t the mainland be affected as well?

Moreover, if you stay in the Asia Minor peninsula, you can also ask your allies for help, and once you return to the country, you don't have to count on it.

Even the medicines with assistance will be divided up by the powerful and powerful in the country, and these ordinary soldiers who really need it will never get their turn.

Lieutenant General Ozgul reminded: "Marshal, I'm afraid this is difficult to do. These medicines are produced in laboratories and have always been in short supply.

Even if the government is willing to spend money to buy it, it can only buy a small part from the black market at a high price, which still cannot meet the demand. "

...

Ankara, the city has been completely deserted since the withdrawal of the Russian troops.

As the birthplace of the epidemic, this place has become the top priority of rodent control work. The Austrian airship unit has dropped dozens of tons of rodenticide from the sky.

The former anti-Turkish alliance coalition headquarters has now become the epidemic prevention work headquarters. Albrecht, the commander-in-chief of the demise of the Ottoman Empire, became the commander-in-chief of rat extermination.

This is an inevitable result. The soldiers are all on the peninsula. If the high-level officers run away, the morale of the army will be scattered.

Albrecht: "The current eradication efficiency is too low, and it is winter that the mice have enough food and come out less frequently.

In order to maximize the eradication of rats before the end of winter, we must

Take more aggressive measures.

No one knows how many basements the Ottomans have prepared for raising rats. The current situation is not suitable for sending soldiers into the city to search. I propose to directly burn the city with fuel oil. "

It is impossible to oppose nature. Now these places are all Austrian territory. In order to prevent and control the epidemic, Albrecht wants to burn his own city, and everyone will naturally have no opinion.

If it is an uninformed person, it may be very moved, thinking that Austria has made a great sacrifice.

After all, the burning cities are their own industries. Even if it was damaged in the war, the general framework is still good, and it has been repaired and resurrected with full blood.

Albrecht was an insider and knew early on that the Vienna government's Near East development plan did not include a restoration plan for the old city.

Either re-select the area to build a new city, or carry out large-scale reconstruction, anyway, it will be completely unrecognizable in the end, and it will not hurt to add a fire.

Russian Marshal Ivanov: "Your proposal is very good. The Russian Empire is willing to provide 200,000 tons of kerosene."

British representative Cheryl Aberley: "Britain is willing to provide 300,000 tons of kerosene to eliminate hidden dangers."

...

This is not a matter of one family and one country. For their own safety, it is rare for European countries to not demolish each other this time. Regardless of ability, everyone has contributed more or less.

Countries provide a lot of fuel, but those are theoretical values. When it can be in place depends on the integrity of the bureaucrats.

As the host, Austria had to take responsibility. Fortunately, electricity has been popularized in most cities in China, otherwise people would not be able to buy lamp oil.

Since the epidemic prevention headquarters made the decision to burn the source of the disease, Austria has been running out of oil.

There is no way, Austria does have a lot of oil, but the problem is that it is buried in the ground, and it is impossible to dig it out for a while.

The production capacity provided by the few oil fields in Romania alone cannot meet Austria's demand at all.

Starting five years ago and continuing to the present, Austria has been the world's largest oil importer.

Prime Minister Felix: "The government has done its best, and all the fuel that can be raised in the country is sent to the Near East.

We have also swept away the international spot goods, and even the international fuel prices have risen sharply.

But this is still a drop in the bucket. European countries have promised to provide a lot of fuel, but unfortunately their efficiency is too low.

By the time their supplies are in place, it is estimated that it will be almost summer, and the epidemic in the Near East cannot be delayed. "

After hesitating for a while, Franz said slowly: "Then use our strategic reserves to destroy the source of Ankara first."

If you change the time point, Franz will never give up the national strategic oil reserve so easily.

Today, oil is an important energy source in Austria. The internal combustion engine industry that emerged in the second industrial revolution is entirely driven by oil.

Without sufficient oil supply, half of the industrial advantages that Austria had built up in the second revolution would be lost.

But things are different now. With the easing of the international situation, there will be no war on the European continent for a while.

Especially after the annexation of the Ottoman Empire, Austria's strategic security has been guaranteed, and the government can safely and boldly develop oil in the Middle East.

It only needs to survive the most difficult period of time, and the oil in the Middle East will be extracted later, so there is no need to worry about the lack of oil.

...

Ankara became the first city to be burned by fire. Thick smoke rose, and endless sin was reduced to ashes in the flames.

This is just the beginning. In any area where a large-scale epidemic occurs, nearby cities have become the target of purification.

Throughout 1884, the work of the Epidemic Prevention Headquarters consisted of setting fires and dropping rat poison. As of the end of the epidemic, 23 cities have been baptized by fire.

...