Chapter 1195: Unexpected Harvest (Third update, please subscribe)
Three airships!
No, three torches!
Three huge torches, each dozens of meters long, fell from the sky.
The Russians on the ground were all dumbfounded. They never expected everything to happen so quickly. They didn't even realize what was happening before the three airships were set on fire.
Became a torch!
Faced with this reality, no one thought of taking up arms and shooting into the air - it was the first time for them - or rather - for these Europeans.
Li Zhigui, who completed the attack mission easily, stared at the three burning airships and couldn't help but exclaim in admiration.
“It’s really spectacular!”
However, when the airship turned into a torch and fell, the Russians on the ground were frightened. The airship used a large amount of rubber and silk, which were excellent fuels. When they fell burning, the Russian artillerymen on the ground all fled to the surroundings - because the airship had previously performed an artillery reconnaissance mission and was hovering above the artillery positions. Below them, there were not only cannons, but also ammunition piles with ammunition.
One of the crashed airships landed on the ammunition pile, burning.
"The Russian artillery is silent..."
The cheers of the soldiers in Suihua Fort had not yet ended when they witnessed a scene even more shocking than the shooting down of the previous three airships - suddenly, a huge column of black smoke rose from the rear of the Russian army, and as it rose to mid-air, it continued to expand to the surroundings, and in the black smoke column mixed with dust and smoke, red flames rolled.
The next moment, there was a violent explosion. When the explosion came, huge clouds of smoke and flames grew bigger and bigger. At the same time, new fireworks and clouds of smoke rose up like thunder from the plain. The continuous explosions sounded like thunder from afar...
"Good God!"
Meng Guoren was stunned by the scene before him. He couldn't believe his eyes at all. What...what was going on?
"It must be the falling airship that landed on the ammunition pile!"
That must be the case. When the airship fell, it was a ball of fire. If it had landed on an ammunition dump, it would have definitely detonated the shells in the ammunition dump. Only in this way could it have caused such a violent explosion.
The black smoke column that was hundreds of meters high and the violent explosion shocked everyone. Not only were the people in the fortress shocked, but even Li Zhigui and others on the airship were dumbfounded.
"This, this is a coincidence..."
Li Zhigui said to himself.
This was definitely a coincidence. After the shells in the ammunition dump were detonated, they flew around in the air and then fell around. The shells turned into bombs falling from the sky, directly blowing up nearby cannons. Some shells even fell on another ammunition dump in the rear, causing even more violent explosions.
But in just a blink of an eye, the Russian artillery position was engulfed in flames...
Nikolai Pavlovich Ignatiev turned into a fool. He even blinked several times. He couldn't believe what he saw.
how so?
After a moment's pause, Ignatiev wiped the sweat from his forehead and muttered to himself.
"It's over, we are all finished..."
Yes!
He's finished!
He could imagine that when Constantinople knew that he had suffered such a heavy loss, he would definitely be sent to a military court. Even if he survived by chance, all his glory would vanish into thin air.
"Oh my God, how could this happen!"
Ignatiev prayed painfully, but God certainly did not hear his prayers, because the continuous explosions and the artillery positions engulfed in flames reminded him that his artillery was finished!
How can we attack the city without cannons?
In fact, there is a high possibility that failure awaits them. Now that the airship is coming, how far can their reinforcements be from here?
Soon, the explosions stopped. All the Russian generals were dumbfounded when they saw the devastated artillery positions and the cannons that were blown to pieces. They had never dreamed that the battle would turn out like this.
"General, we have lost almost all our heavy artillery!"
And ammunition...
"General, what do we do now?"
Faced with his subordinates' questions, Nikolai Pavlovich Ignatiev was silent for a moment, then spoke.
"Retreat! Before Shi Dakai's reinforcements arrive..."
It has to be said that as a military general, Ignatiev was extremely competent. He did not stubbornly resist to the end. After losing most of his ammunition and artillery, he decisively chose to retreat, which enabled him to successfully preserve himself and his troops. At the same time, the troops led by Shi Dakai were only a day's journey away from him.
What will be waiting for Ignatiev?
It no longer matters. What is certain is that when the news of the defeat at Suihua Fort reached Constantinople, it immediately caused a sensation in the Roman Empire.
For the Russians who defeated the Turks and fulfilled their dream of reviving the Roman Empire, this news was like a bolt from the blue!
It was basically a loud slap in the face. Not only did the slap make a loud "pa pa" sound, but what was even more terrible was that for the Roman Empire, they needed to make a choice - peace or war.
…
"No matter what choice they make, a rift has been created in their relationship with the Ming Empire!"
At the British Embassy in Constantinople, Thomas, champagne glass in hand, poured Hank a glass of champagne.
"Hank, the moment we have been waiting for has arrived. Just as Prime Minister Bismarck said, the Four Emperors' Alliance came together for profit, and will certainly split up for profit. Profit!"
After taking a sip of champagne and smelling its aroma, Thomas looked out the window at the Bosphorus Strait, the seagulls flying in the strait and the warships of the Roman Empire slowly sailing through the strait. The corners of the lips of this Royal Navy lieutenant colonel slightly raised.
"Interests always come first. Now that their interests have diverged, the collapse of the Imperial Alliance is doomed!"
"But France..."
Hank, holding a champagne glass, spoke in English with a German accent.
"The French have stepped forward to mediate, and the Roman Foreign Minister is also a supporter of the Four Emperors' Alliance. They will definitely reach an agreement. As for the conflict that occurred on the border, I personally think that it will be resolved from a big matter to a small one."
After a pause, Major Hank took a sip of champagne and then spoke.
"Perhaps, in the end, everything will end quietly like this. All we need to do is find one or two scapegoats."
(End of this chapter)
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