This residence is named Altai.

It looks like a small town, but in fact, there are almost no residents.

In addition to the fur merchants along the way, there were the Tsarist soldiers stationed here, as well as some natives who were collected.

It's just a thousand people.

But in this place, thousands of people are already on a huge scale.

At least within a radius of thousands of miles, this place is the most important fortress.

In fact, a few days ago, they had already received news of the enemy's appearance nearby, and a supply outpost in front had been broken.

The one guarding here was a Tsarist Russian nobleman who immediately realized something was wrong...

Because over the past year, Oriental people have entered the Siberian region in large numbers and have eliminated the last remnants of the Siberian Khanate, which has also led to the realization that they have a new opponent here.

Therefore, in order to maintain the interests of the East, Tsarist Russia sent some reinforcements one after another.

Unexpectedly, the Orientals came indeed.

But... what the people in Altai City never expected was that they thought that the supply outpost was completely breached and the military and civilians inside would not be spared.

But I never thought that these military and civilians actually appeared outside the city.

There were more than 200 people, but they didn't seem to be treated much, and they all looked in good spirits.

The person who was in charge of the door was an officer named Shanenov.

This officer was once familiar with the garrison general Romonsov. At first, General Romonsov thought that this was the plan of the Easterners, and perhaps he deliberately deceived the city gate, so the nearby Orientals lie in ambush nearby and attacked a large-scale attack.

However, after repeated confirmation, he found that it was empty and it was impossible to ambush people.

Moreover, almost all the people who followed Shanenov were military and civilians stationed here by Tsarist Russia.

Suddenly...Romensov became difficult to make a decision.

Releasing people into the city can certainly increase the military strength in the city, but... the supply in the city is insufficient.

This is a problem for almost the entire Siberian region, because it is sparsely populated and difficult to grow food in the snow and ice. Because it is vast and uninhabited, and thousands of miles away from the core area of ​​Tsarist Russia, it is very difficult to replenish.

The food rations were limited. If His Majesty the Tsar had not been for his ambitions, it would have been impossible to maintain such an army to guard such a barren land.

Therefore, the most precious thing here is not manpower, but supply.

Often, the food rations of one person in Altai mean that at least thirty farmers need to work to obtain them.

Now, two or three hundred people have suddenly increased in the city, and they have encountered wartime situations. They cannot leave the city to hunt for a living. Whether it is the food rations of the military and civilians or the supply of the forage of the war horses, problems may arise.

In other words, he originally expected that once an enemy appeared, he could hold on for at least one month, and wait for the food team in the rear to transport it to replenish supplies during this month.

Once a group of new forces appear, the time may be greatly shortened.

However... he could not refuse the request of prisoners such as Shanenov to enter the city. This would not only make Shanenov and others feel disappointed, but also as the defenders, his morale would be greatly affected.

So, Lomonsov finally chose to open the city gate.

Immediately, he called Shanenov to himself and asked about the situation of these Orientals.

Shanenov answered very honestly. These people were well-armed, hard-working and brave, and their supplies were very luxurious.

How can I be extravagant? Often, a formation of 1,000 people will have two war horses, most of which are Mongolian horse breeds. Mongolian horses are hard-working and endurance. Although their explosive power is not as good as other horse breeds, they can eat less and have strong endurance.

This leads to the fact that each of them often has a horse to carry supplies.

Not only that, their weapons are very good, and everyone's cold-proof objects are also very sufficient. This is definitely not comparable to many khanates that were scattered all over the world.

And I heard that there was a transportation team behind them... I was willing to send a steady stream of supplies to the front line.

To put it bluntly, it’s money!

Of course, Shanenov did not speak ill of Li Zicheng, Zhang Xianzhong and others: "They are not ordinary Khitan barbarians. Although they are very determined in the fight, they treat the prisoners, regardless of the officers and soldiers, and they even care about the sick prisoners and take good care of them. One of my adjutants is still ill. They have been asking the doctors who follow the army to take care of them. They did not let him go to the city with us because their doctor believes that treatment is not suitable for interruption, so he is still in the military camp of the Eastern people. They say that when the condition improves completely, they will find a way to send him home."

Romonsov's brows became deeper and deeper, and he noticed a trace of abnormality, so he said, "It is best not to talk to others about these situations."

Shanenov smiled bitterly and said, "General, I think it's too late. We have more than 200 people..."

Yes, you can't control more than two hundred mouths.

And outside the city.

The siege began quickly.

The siege cars were made locally, and after a few days, they had already made large-scale production, and then they began to launch attacks on Chencheng.

Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, one was responsible for siege, while the other was leading the old camp soldiers. A large group of cavalry began to set off, searching and advancing nearby to find the opponent's grain team.

This move is very effective when surrounding the points and attacking the support.

Especially for those who were born in bandits like Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong, the biggest weakness of bandits is that they have no sharp weapons to siege the city, but they are not afraid of officers and soldiers in the wild. Therefore, they often tempt nearby officers and soldiers and supply teams to attack while siegeing them.

Li Zicheng and Zhang Xianzhong are so familiar with this set that they are no longer familiar with.

These two people not only have talented talents, but most importantly, they are also handsome.

Therefore, they are not just playing siege battles, but also a siege battle.

Sure enough, another grain team was attacked soon.

And under the tense guarding of the city, the food soon became insufficient.

In this case, you can actually stick to it.

The defenders can kill horses, eat rats, and eat everything they can eat.

As long as some cities have a firm attitude, although they only have one month of food, they may not be impossible to hold on for three months, and hold these Orientals tightly and wait for reinforcements.

But the problem now is that siege caused them casualties, and hunger and cold also caused their will to weaken.

Not only that, a large number of rumors in the army began to spread.

Many news about the fact that Orientals would not kill prisoners and were given preferential treatment has long been spread.

Many people even say that the treatment of defending the city here is not as good as when he is a prisoner.

This kind of rumor with a nose and eyes is extremely terrifying for the defenders in despair.

Because he brought hope to the desperate people.

As food becomes less and less sufficient.

The situation in the city has also become worse.

Because many people swear that even if they surrender, the Orientals will send them home.

go home……

Looking up at this cold world full of snow, the more at this time, many people dream of going home and going west of Urals, where they can roast a stove, wear sheepskin coats, drink the fragrant hot soup, and snuggle with their families.

So everyone's willpower inevitably began to lose.

General Romonsov immediately realized something was wrong, and he was an absolutely loyal man, so he personally ordered an officer who thought he should surrender.

"This is the trick of the Eastern people!" Romonsov exposed Li Zicheng's lie.

But what's the use?

That night.

Dozens of officers, surrounded by soldiers, seized General Romonsov's guards overnight and then entered General Romonsov's residence.

Lomonsov was awakened and looked angrily at the raging oil lamps. Outside, the north wind was yelling. In the dim room, there were familiar figures. Their faces were actually not clear under the dim light.

A military officer in charge said: "General..."

Romonsov widened his eyes and said coldly: "You have betrayed the Tsar..."

"We follow the will of the soldiers."

"Orients are full of tricks..."

“Orients will take us home.”

"This is also our home, it has been already."

“It’s not!”

Finally, Romonsov said, "You kill me."

The officers did not take action, but were silent.

Romonsov angrily grabbed one of the collars of the man, and the man opposite appeared in front of him, making him even more angry because this man was his confidant adjutant, and even such a man was in the same group as them.

Romonsov shouted: "You can do your business by killing me."

The officers remained silent.

The adjutant said dejectedly: "General, someone has already gone to open the city gate."

Romonsov's eyes were stunned, then he looked desperate.

He was hunched over at this time, like an old man in his twilight years. His anger had dissipated like smoke at this moment, and he just said tiredly: "I understand."

The officers hesitated for a moment, and finally everyone left silently.
To be continued...