While the Imperial Army and the Ural Front, the main force of the Russian Red Army, were engaged in a decisive battle on the Western Siberian Plain, the battle between the Imperial Army and the Caucasian Front of the Russian Red Army fell silent. The 9th, 7th, and 13th armies of the Imperial Army were all assembled in the South Caucasus. Three armies, 450,000 men. In terms of troops, it is no less than the Caucasian Front of the Soviet Russian Red Army. In terms of combat effectiveness, the Imperial Army was far above the Soviet Russian Red Army.

The only thing that constrained the offensive of the Imperial Army was undoubtedly the terrain of the Caucasus. Although the tall Caucasus Mountains were the moat of the Imperial Army's 9th Army to block the Russian Red Army at the beginning of the war, they also became an obstacle to the Imperial Army when the Imperial Army carried out a large-scale counterattack. The task of the Imperial Army in the Western Siberian Plain was to completely annihilate the Ural Front of the Soviet Russian Red Army. And the task of the Imperial Army in the Caucasus was also to completely annihilate the Caucasian Front of the Soviet Russian Red Army and advance the front to the line of the Don and Volga rivers. Turn the entire fertile land south of the Don River into an occupation zone for the Imperial Army.

In order to be able to achieve this strategic goal in one fell swoop, the Imperial Army prepared for a long time in the South Caucasus. Not only have field airfields been built, and fighter planes of the Imperial Air Force have been stationed, but even the Imperial Navy is rushing to support.

On May 9, 4618 (20) of the Yellow Emperor Era, on the eve of a large-scale counterattack by the Imperial Army on the West Siberian Plain, Emperor Wu Haoxuan summoned the Chief of the General Staff, Marshal Shi Tianhan, to learn about the progress of the Imperial Army in the Caucasus.

"Your Majesty, according to the preliminary preparations of the Imperial Army, the 9th Army, the 7th Army and the 13th Army have completed their preparations. The fighters of the Air Force and the transport fleet covered by the Navy have already arrived in the predetermined sea area. Tomorrow. The Imperial Army would then be able to launch a counterattack in the Caucasus. Marshal Shi Tianhan said.

The Caucasus Mountains prevented the Imperial Army from using troops on a large scale, so this time the Imperial Army found a different way to transport the main force of the Imperial Army to the north of the Caucasus Mountains by other means. In this way, you will be able to avoid the difficulties and dangers of the Caucasus Mountains.

The escort formation of two 'Longyao-class' battlecruisers and several light cruisers and destroyers of the Imperial Navy's Nanyang Fleet. A large convoy of convoys was already escorted through the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, and then through Turkey, into the Black Sea, directly to the western part of the Caucasus Mountains. A fleet of hundreds of transport ships and merchant ships was able to transport nearly one army group at a time. In this way, the Imperial Army was able to bypass the Caucasus Mountains.

The plan of the Imperial General Staff was to transport the 7th and 12th armies by sea to Rostov-on-Don, the mouth of the Don River, and then move up the Don River after capturing it. Attack Tsaritsyn. After that, with Tsaritsyn as the node and the Don and Volga rivers as the support, the Caucasian Front of the Soviet Russian Red Army was blocked to the south of the Don and Volga rivers. The 9th Army, after the main force of the Caucasian Front of the Russian Red Army withdrew northward, attacked northward, compressing the living space of the Caucasian Front from the south until this front was completely wiped out.

After the Ural Front and the Caucasian Front of the Russian Red Army were annihilated successively, the Russian Red Army lost more than half of its troops. Next. The Russian government had no other way but to beg for peace with the Empire.

Of course. With the current strength of the Imperial Army, it is indeed difficult to destroy Soviet Russia. However, it is not impossible. However, there was a Soviet Russia to attract the attention of the Western world for the empire. That's for the best. Before the strength of the empire really became stronger, it needed a shield like Soviet Russia.

After this war, the empire should be able to completely hurt Soviet Russia. It also let Soviet Russia know that the empire is not easy to mess with. It's better not to provoke the Empire, otherwise. The Empire will make them pay a heavy price.

Wu Haoxuan was aware of this plan of the General Staff Headquarters, and he himself was very optimistic about this plan. At the same time, he also believes that the probability of success of this plan is high. If it goes well, then the war in the Caucasus will soon be over. After losing two main fronts in succession, the Russian government and the Bolshevik Party, as long as they did not get their heads caught in the door, knew that the empire was not something they could provoke.

"Now that we've done the preparations, let's follow the plan. I have only one request, and that is to completely annihilate the Caucasian Front of the Soviet Russian Red Army at the minimum cost. Ensure imperial control over this fertile land south of the Don and the Volga River! Wu Haoxuan said.

The Don River valley is arguably the most fertile place in Russia, and the land here is as black as Northeast China. China's Northeast Plain, although not small. However, compared to the Don River basin, it is undoubtedly much smaller. If this territory can be controlled in the hands of the empire, not only can the empire obtain a stable grain production area, but also allow the empire to have a base in Europe. In the future, the empire could use this as a springboard to expand the empire's influence in Europe.

"Yes, Your Majesty." Marshal Shi Tianhan nodded.

The commander of the Caucasian Front, the commander of the Caucasian Front, the commander of the Caucasian Front, the commander of the Caucasian Front, has been somewhat restless lately. The Chinese Army's balanced defense line in Siazan caused the Caucasian Front to fail in many attacks, and finally had to abandon the offensive and turn to the defensive. Fortunately, Moscow's attention was drawn to the fierce fighting in the West Siberian Plain and not to pay much attention to the fighting in the Caucasus, which put Tukhachevsky under much less pressure.

These days, though, Tukhachevsky always had a bad premonition, as if a catastrophe was coming.

"Is there any change in the Chinese on the other side?" Tukhachevsky asked.

"Comrade commander, the Chinese on the opposite side are still in a defensive posture, and from the current point of view, they seem to have no signs of attacking." A staff officer reported.

"That's weird. The Chinese have amassed more than 400,000 troops in the South Caucasus, and they are all elite troops, and there is no reason why they should not attack all the time? Tukhachevsky said secretly.

You know, for this reason, he specially ordered his troops to strengthen the defense, hoping to take advantage of the dangerous terrain in the Caucasus region to resist the possible attack of the Chinese* army. However, the Chinese* army showed no signs of attacking, which made him wonder a little.

"Could it be that the Chinese have some conspiracy?" Tukhachevsky really couldn't think of a reason. The only thing he could do was probably to order the entire Caucasian Front of the Russian Red Army to enter the highest state of combat readiness.

At present, the Caucasian Front has under its jurisdiction 4 armies, namely the 1st, 5th, 16th and 19th armies. However, the 1st Army and the 5th Army were both armies that had gone through a fierce battle in the early stage and suffered heavy losses, especially the 1st Army, which had already lost more than 50 percent of its troops. The two infantry corps of the 5th Army also suffered heavy losses. Even the 16th Army, which later arrived in the theater of operations, suffered considerable losses. So, nominally the Caucasian Front had a whole 4 army groups, but in reality, the remaining forces were only as many as three army groups. In addition, the 19th Army, as a newly formed unit, had extremely limited combat effectiveness.

This made Tukhachevsky well aware that if he wanted to fight a decisive battle with the Chinese * army with such an army, the chances of victory were not good. Therefore, he is ready to learn the tactics of the previous Chinese army and take a defensive position. In this way, you can avoid your own disadvantages to the greatest extent.

It's a pity that Tukhachevsky didn't know that the Imperial Army did not intend to fill it with human lives at all this time. Rather, it directly bypassed the line of defense of the Soviet Russian Red Army in the Caucasus Mountains and attacked their empty rear.

In the early hours of May 10, the convoy of the Imperial Navy docked at Poti on the eastern shore of the Black Sea. The 7th Army of the Imperial Army, which had been waiting here for a long time, began to board the ship. They will, under the escort of the Navy, go directly to Rostov-on-Don, where they will land. After that, the convoy returned to transport the 13th Army. With only two trips, it was possible to transport nearly 300,000 men of the two armies to the plains of the northern Caucasus Mountains.

You must know that in order to keep secrets and hide the whereabouts of the two army groups, both the Imperial Army and the Military Intelligence Bureau took great pains. Not only were a lot of empty barracks created in the South Caucasus, but the troops of the 9th Army were dispersed, dressed in the uniforms of the 7th and 12th armies, posing as them. It was precisely for this reason that the Soviet Russian Red Army was not at all aware of the movements of the Imperial Army.

Before the sun rose, the 7th Army of the Imperial Army, escorted by the Navy, was already on its way to Rostov-on-Don. Throughout the Black Sea, there were no enemies in the Imperial Navy. Therefore, the transport fleet of the Imperial Navy can move forward boldly with confidence.

On the morning of May 11, the Imperial Navy escorted the 7th Army of the Imperial Army to the mouth of the Don River. Two 'Longyao-class' battlecruisers, led by several light cruisers, took the lead and launched a heavy artillery bombardment of Rostov-on-Don.

The Russian Red Army did not expect the Chinese* army to attack here at all, so naturally it was defenseless. In Rostov-on-Don, there are only a few police officers in charge of law and order. In the face of heavy shelling from the warships of the Imperial Navy, the policemen fled at once, and did not put up any resistance at all.

The 7th Army of the Imperial Army easily landed in Rostov-on-Don. (To be continued.) )

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