"Order, the 4th Cossack Legion and the 7th Cossack Legion set out immediately to defeat the Chinese cavalry and recapture the Meget Bridge!" Grand Duke Nicholas ordered. He did not order the Russian army to blow up the Megot Bridge, because Megot was also very important to the Russian army. The Trans-Siberian Railway passes through Meget. If possible, Grand Duke Nicholas would still keep Meget in the hands of the Russian army. In this case, Irkutsk will be able to receive a continuous supply of soldiers and supplies. Although Irkutsk has stored a large amount of supplies during this period, it will not last long if it wants to support the consumption of more than 500,000 troops.
"Your Excellency, the two Cossack regiments are probably not enough! In Ulan-Ude, the two Cossack regiments were also severely defeated by a Chinese cavalry corps!" the adjutant reminded. During the Battle of Ulan-Ude, the Russian 2nd Cossack Corps and the 5th Cossack Corps were almost completely annihilated by the Chinese Army's 3rd Cavalry Corps!
"Ask the 145th Infantry Division, 146th Infantry Division, 147th Infantry Division and 148th Infantry Division to rush as well. If possible, hold Megett. If not, blow up the bridge and withdraw to Irkutsk. !" Grand Duke Nicholas hesitated for a moment, and then said. If you can't hold Meget, you can only hold on to Irkutsk. There is no need to spend limited troops outside Irkutsk. After all, Irkutsk, which has been transformed into a battle fortress, has stronger defenses.
"Yes, Your Excellency the Grand Duke!" The adjutant immediately went to deliver the order.
At 8:30 in the morning, the Russian 4th Cossack Legion and 7th Cossack Legion, as well as four infantry divisions, with a total of more than 80,000 people, set off from Irkutsk and rushed toward Meget. Irkutsk is only 20 kilometers away from Meget, and for the cavalry, it can be reached in an hour. However, the Russian cavalry has suffered enough losses at the hands of the Chinese cavalry. Under the same strength conditions, they no longer dare to fight with the Chinese cavalry. Therefore, these two Cossack regiments very carefully chose to act together with the infantry. However, if this were the case, they would probably have to wait until noon or even the afternoon to reach Megget.
There are two railway bridges crossing the Angara River in Irkutsk. They are the railway bridge connecting Irkutsk and Burwell in the south and the railway bridge connecting Irkutsk and Novorosika in the west. This is the main transportation artery for Irkutsk¡¯s external connections. The 80,000 Russian troops passed through the railway bridge to the west and attacked Megt directly.
At this time, the soldiers of the Third Cavalry Corps of the Chinese Army who captured Megget were already very tired even though they had traveled all night. But at this time, they did not care about rest. On the one hand, they urgently built fortifications, and on the other hand, they demolished the Trans-Siberian Railway. Preventing trains from passing through Megget.
Soldiers of the Third Cavalry Corps buried bombs directly under the railroad tracks. Megget's railway was blown into several pieces along the way. In this case, the Trans-Siberian Railway will be completely interrupted here. The Russian army can no longer send reinforcements to Irkutsk via the Trans-Siberian Railway. However, this also caused the Third Cavalry Corps to be attacked by the Russian army from two directions at the same time. This was also a fierce battle for the Third Cavalry Corps. They had to hold on until the 1st Army arrived before they could breathe a sigh of relief.
On the morning of June 6, the Chinese Army¡¯s Third Group Army and Fourth Group Army also launched an attack northward from Kultuk. However, the Russian troops deployed south of the Angara River began to shrink northward yesterday afternoon. This allowed the Chinese army to easily break through the Russian defense line and go all the way north. The attack of the two armies was as if they were on an outing. After the Russian army retreats on its own initiative, they can quickly advance towards Irkutsk. However, the main battlefield at this time was no longer south of the Angara River, but in Megt to the west.
It was not until noon that the soldiers of the Third Cavalry Corps who captured Megget completed the construction of the fortifications. After a hasty lunch, most of the soldiers took a nap in twos and threes. They all knew that they were going to face a fierce battle next. So, if possible, take a break now and regain your strength. After discovering that the Russian army was launching an attack from the south of the Angara River, the two brigades south of the Meget Bridge were ready for a hard fight.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, the Russian army arrived late. After arriving at Meget, the Russian army did not start the attack immediately. Instead, it first brought the artillery of several infantry divisions to the front. Now, the Russian army is already a little wary of the powerful firepower of the Chinese army's equipment. Although the two Cossack regiments of the Russian army are very brave, it is simply impossible for them to face the intensive firepower charge of the Chinese army.
The four Russian infantry divisions have hundreds of cannons, most of which are small-caliber cannons. There are only a dozen cannons with a caliber of 105 mm or more. However, it was these dozen cannons that put great pressure on the Chinese army. The Chinese cavalry equipment is allThe most powerful firepower of ?-caliber artillery is only the infantry cannon and the 120mm heavy mortar, whose range is far inferior to the Russian 105mm howitzer. In this regard, it is very disadvantageous.
The commander of these more than 80,000 Russian troops was Lieutenant General Augusta Cavalry, commander of the Russian 4th Cossack Regiment, and one of the senior officers of the Russian army in Irkutsk. In the Russian army, the status of cavalry generals is much higher than that of infantry generals. Therefore, no one had any objection to him commanding these armies.
"His Excellency Grand Duke Nicholas ordered that we must recapture Megget before sunset. The Chinese army is rushing here quickly at this moment. We must end the battle before the Chinese arrive!" Ogu! Lieutenant General Star ordered.
"Yes, general!" several major generals replied one after another. They have more than 80,000 people. Logically speaking, they should be completely enough to deal with a Chinese cavalry army. So, they have a lot of confidence.
At 2:30 in the afternoon, the attack began. Hundreds of artillery pieces violently bombarded the position of the 11th Cavalry Brigade of the Third Cavalry Corps. The 11th Cavalry Brigade and the 12th Cavalry Brigade are currently guarding Megget. The artillery battalion of the 11th Cavalry Brigade is a two-company artillery battalion with twelve Type 85 75mm infantry guns and 12 120mm heavy mortars. However, these cannons have a limited range and are very powerful against infantry or cavalry. But to start an artillery battle with the Russian army, it seems slightly insufficient. In particular, the more than ten 105mm howitzers of the Russian army fired at a range of 4 kilometers, making it impossible for the artillery of the 11th Cavalry Brigade to reach the enemy. The Russian army and the Chinese Army have been fighting for so long, and they know the equipment of the Chinese Army very well.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" Shells exploded on the position of the 11th Cavalry Brigade, destroying the trenches they dug. The soldiers, holding their heads, huddled at the bottom of the trenches, or hid in shell-proof holes. For Chinese soldiers, they have not experienced this kind of passive beating for a long time. And this time, they finally got a taste of it again.
China¡¯s cavalry can not only engage in mounted combat, but can also be used as infantry after dismounting. All the horses of the 11th Cavalry Brigade were concentrated in the town, and the cavalry were now completely treated as infantry.
"Boom!" A shell exploded in the trench, and the two unlucky soldiers were blown to pieces. Blood stained the soil at the bottom of the trench red. Scenes like this were staged in many places on the battlefield. The soldiers of the 11th Cavalry Brigade suffered considerable losses during the Russian shelling.
"What the hell, these Russians, you will be better off when our infantry arrives!" Most of the soldiers of the 11th Cavalry Brigade thought through gritted teeth. The infantry division has a large number of heavy artillery. Although its maneuverability is very poor, its attack power is indeed very fierce!
"Attack! Defeat the Chinese in one fell swoop and capture Megget!" In the afternoon, after half an hour of firepower preparation, Lieutenant General Augusta ordered the attack. Tens of thousands of Russian infantrymen rushed towards the position of the 11th Cavalry Brigade.
"Get ready to fight and let these Russians know how powerful we are!" After enduring the Russian artillery fire for half an hour, the soldiers of the 11th Cavalry Brigade were already holding a bad breath in their stomachs.
"Fire!" When the Russian army was less than two kilometers away from the 11th Cavalry Brigade's position, the frontline commander issued an order for artillery fire. All the artillery of the 11th Brigade opened fire. Not only the artillery of the brigade artillery battalion, but also the artillery of the battalions and companies below also opened fire. For a time, a large number of artillery shells poured towards the Russian army. The intensity of the artillery fire was even more powerful than the previous shelling by the Russian army.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The dense artillery shells fell among the Russian troops who were just charging. The shells exploded and Russian troops were constantly being thrown out. Shrapnel flew across the battlefield, killing Russian soldiers.
The Russian soldiers were stunned. The Chinese ** team suffered a long period of shelling, but they were still able to have such firepower, which was somewhat beyond their expectations. For a time, many people ran back directly. The power of example is infinite. Soon, the tens of thousands of attacking Russian troops ran back more than a kilometer away from the 11th Cavalry Brigade's position.
"Fire! Fire! Destroy all the Chinese artillery!" Lieutenant General Augusta ordered angrily.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!" The Russian artillery fired again. A large number of artillery shells flew towards the artillery position of the 11th Cavalry Brigade. Although the artillery of the 11th Cavalry Brigade began to move their positions after the Russian army was repulsed, several cannons were still unable to move in time and were blown up. Under such circumstances, the 11th Cavalry Brigade suffered a great disadvantage. (To be continued. Please search Piaotian Literature, the novels will be better and updated faster!)