Chapter 864 Countdown to War

In St. Petersburg, Alexander III was directly furious when he received the news that Minister White had been killed in London.

The biggest political scandal of the century would have happened had it not been for the last shred of reason to refrain from revenge for killing the British minister.

"This is the explanation of the British, clearly treating us as fools!"

After speaking, Alexander III directly tore up the document and proved that he was really angry with practical actions.

There is no way not to be angry. According to the British, the main responsibility is that Minister White's open mouth angered the British people, and the accident happened.

The dead can't speak, all the parties involved are controlled by the British, and it is impossible to distinguish the true from the false.

Regardless of whether others believe it or not, Alexander III will not believe it anyway. Minister White was personally appointed by him. He may have many faults, but he is definitely not a fool.

If it is sent to some small countries, it may really be arrogant. But as the minister in the UK, where did White get his arrogance?

In particular, it is nonsense to admit that the Russians attacked the British troops stationed in Afghanistan.

Don't say that this is a non-existent thing, even if it really happened, under the circumstance that the tsarist government firmly denied it, it is impossible for the foreign minister to admit it.

Marshal Ivanov, the Minister of War, persuaded: "Your Majesty, calm down. There is no need to break down for the goddamn British popularity.

When the Central Asian War is over, we will settle with them slowly. "

Having become the boss of the main battle faction, Marshal Ivanov has not changed his usual steady style.

Retaliation against the British is a must, and that has to wait until the fight is over.

Turning face with the British in advance, apart from shouting a few times, has no effect at all, and may even increase the difficulty of the war.

The systems of Britain and Russia are different. The tsarist government controls all state rights and can prepare for war at any time; however, the British government must be subject to parliament.

Before the war, the government could not step past the parliament and directly order the mobilization of the country. Even if it is to prepare for battle, it can only be carried out in a small area.

If you don't take advantage of the advantages in front of you, you're an idiot.

After a pause for a while, Alexander III nodded: "Since the British want to fight, let them do it.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will do a good job in the work of France and Austria, and cooperate with the Ministry of Finance to raise more funds as much as possible. This war will not end in a short time. "

After the decision was made, Alexander III was still at a loss. There is a lesson from the Russian-Prussian War, that Alexander III was unwilling to go to war with any great power.

However, the general trend cannot be controlled by personal will. The repeated provocations of the British have touched the bottom line of the Russian Empire.

...

On the battlefield in Afghanistan, the outside harassment has not yet spread, and Lieutenant General Patrick did not know that a telegram that he shied away from responsibility could be another turning point in the relationship between Britain and Russia.

At this moment, Lieutenant General Patrick is still worried about the increasing number of casualties.

Especially two nights ago, after the guerrillas attacked the headquarters of the 7th Indian Colonial Division, there was a battalion roar.

"Hurst, what about that idiot, why didn't you use it for the meeting?"

This meeting was originally meant to be held accountable, but Lieutenant General Patrick was understandably angry because the parties did not come.

A young officer nearby replied: "Your Excellency Commander, Major General Hearst was hit by a bomb on his way to the headquarters and is currently being rescued."

This answer made Patrick's heart a bit colder.

During the mutiny two days ago, many high-ranking officers of the Seventh Colonial Division went to see God. If the major general and division commander Hearst also saw God, things would be bad.

Generally speaking, the dead are not responsible. During the meeting, he was attacked and met with God, which was also killed in the line of duty.

The officers who can take responsibility are dead, and the officers below are not qualified to take responsibility. This black pot can only be shouldered by the commander-in-chief, Patrick.

You must know that in the British foreign war, there have been no major-general-level officers killed in action for many years.

Even the officers of the Indian Colonial Division are one notch lower than the regular army, and the major general is still a major general.

The life and death of the parties are unknown, and Lieutenant General Patrick has no intention of continuing to be held accountable.

"Understood, read the casualty report of the seventh division."

The young officer with the document behind him immediately replied, "Yes!"

"After the camp roar, 786 people were killed, 565 casualties, and 1,218 missing in the 7th Division, including 76 officers killed and 94 wounded.

Seven other material warehouses were burned by fire, and an ammunition warehouse also exploded..."

Listening to the casualty report, Lieutenant General Patrick's heart seemed to be dripping blood, the shadow of the enemy was not touched, and the strength of a regiment was so tossed away.

Even if it fails, it doesn't matter. Anyway, this is a colonial division, and soldiers can be recruited after they die. The most important thing in India is people.

The loss of officers was different, and the top management of the 7th Colonial Division was almost taken care of. You must know that the middle and senior officers of the colonial division were also British, and they were lost on the battlefield, but there was no way to replenish them immediately.

Once reported to China, it will be another fatal stain on Lieutenant General Patrick's military career.

As for the missing soldiers, because there are so many Indian colonies, this kind of cannon fodder is worthless, and was directly ignored by Lieutenant General Patrick.

"I heard it all, it happened in the seventh division

It's a wake-up call for all of us.

No one knows better than you yourself what kind of soldiers you bring. They all gave me a good view of the army, and I don't want similar things to happen again.

Now the seventh division suffered heavy losses and had to withdraw to rest. In the next encirclement and suppression battle, it is up to you to mobilize troops to fill this part of the gap. "

Hearing that the troops were going to be divided, everyone's expressions suddenly became tense.

Afghanistan is not a small area. In this encirclement and suppression plan, each unit's defense area is very large, and it is inevitable that there will be some shortage of troops. If you divide the troops, the pressure will be even greater.

A slightly older officer persuaded: "Your Excellency Commander, our Eleventh Division's defense area is more than 100 Londons, and if we divide our troops, it may be difficult to complete the task of containing the guerrillas.

It is said that not only the area of ​​the 11th Division's defense area is large, but the situation faced by each unit is similar.

The war has broken out for so long, and no one has rested, and the morale of the military has dropped to the lowest point since the war.

Now it is not suitable to continue encircling and suppressing the guerrillas in the mountains. It is better to withdraw the troops for a period of time and wait for reinforcements to arrive before encircling and suppressing them. "

The facts are in front of us. Since the outbreak of the war, these troops have not had a good rest.

The roaring of the 7th Colonial Division was not unrelated to the fact that the military morale dropped and the soldiers were highly nervous after the battles over the past few days.

"Your Excellency Commander, Major General Winston is right. The troops really need to rest. If we keep fighting like this, the troops will mutiny."

"Your Excellency Commander, the troops really need to rest..."

...

As Lieutenant General Patrick said, only you know what the soldiers you bring are the best.

The sound of persuasion sounded in twos and threes, causing Lieutenant General Patrick to wake up, and now the troops are really tired.

You must know that these troops are not elite divisions, and they have been able to fight for several months, which is already a super-level performance.

No, the use of "continuous combat" seems to be a bit of an exaggeration. However, on average, there are still some combat missions once every ten days and a half a month, and most of them are to encircle and suppress guerrillas.

For elite troops, it might not be much different than an outing. But for the Indian colonial division, this has approached the limit.

But just giving up like this, Lieutenant General Patrick was a little unwilling. It took a long time to surround the main force of the guerrillas. At this time, when they stopped, all the previous efforts were completely lost.

The next chance, now that I have retreated, I am afraid there will be no next chance.

The London government is already very dissatisfied with the poor performance of the British army on the battlefield.

Lieutenant General Patrick didn't want to go back in despair, and now he must hand in a passing answer sheet to let the country recognize his ability.

"The reinforcements will arrive next week, you have worked hard for so long, I believe you don't want to return without success!

Hold on for another week and someone will replace you. Everyone work hard, I believe you can overcome the difficulties..."

Receiving the good news of the arrival of reinforcements, everyone reluctantly accepted the result. After all, the arm can't bend the thigh, and it can't be disobedient on the battlefield!