C3398 Called for help in Xinjiang

Xinjiang is very large, with three mountains and two basins, Tianshan, Altai, Kunlun Mountains and then formed the Quasi-Ge and Tarim basins.

All of the Tarim Basin had fallen into Yaqub's hands, and the northern border, which was the Quasi-Ge Basin, was still holding its ground in the hands of the Qing Government.

Just the Jaeger Basin alone was 400,000 square kilometers, and this was not even considering the surrounding deserts and mountains!

Such a vast expanse of land had a total of five thousand cavalrymen guarding it? Gordon was shocked.

Rong Quan looked at Gordon with an expression of vigilance. He had been sent to the border since the age of Xian Feng, so he did not participate in the entire war to stabilize the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom.

Gordon had never seen it either!

Guan Lu quickly introduced him, "This is the general of the imperial government, the general of the Chang Sheng Jun, Gordon. This time, the His Majesty has hired someone to help train the new army!

"Oh? Was it the Chang Sheng Jun who first evolved in the Gun? "My apologies, my apologies …" Rong Quan quickly cupped his fists and bowed.

He had never seen it before but Rong Quan had read about it in the imperial government's residence before. He had also heard from his colleagues that Gordon also performed the usual martial general's salute when he entered the country.

"Master Gordon, right? Let's walk and chat. It's not that I, Rong Quan, do not want to train more, it's just that I am unable to do it.

From Rong Quan's words, Gordon found out that when he wasn't in China, the Manchu dynasty's internal department had erupted into an extremely serious but relatively low-key dispute over strategy and tactics.

At the end of the Qing Empire, it could be said that the broken houses were leaking air everywhere, and both internal and external problems were surging up, yet they still encountered major change, which had never been seen in three thousand years.

The human society's Industrial Revolution was getting deeper and deeper, and the strong warriors' fighting abilities were getting fiercer and fiercer. They simply did not give the people behind them any opportunity to catch their breath.

There were powerful countries like the English and French in the sea and the greedy Sha Russia outside the border along with Xinjiang. It was simply impossible for the empire's finances to sustain a two-line war … No no no, it should be called two line of defense.

The Qing Empire no longer had the strength and courage to attack. To be able to protect the territory left behind by the Old Ancestor was already burning incense!

Since the empire's finances could not maintain a double line of defense or even multiple lines of defense, they could only give up on a portion of it. At this time, the important officials of the imperial court were divided into two factions.

The Huai Army, led by Li Hongzhang, was also Bei Yang's previous self. They wanted to give up Xinjiang and concentrate on marine defense, building up a fleet and turret to develop the oceanic navigation business.

Zuo Zongtang, on the other hand, represented the other faction and did not give up on Xinjiang, which was an inherent territory. Of course, it was not because they did not want to protect the sea, but they wanted to develop their navy under the condition of protecting Xinjiang.

These two thoughts were in fact what the Qing Empire had to do after it fell into desolation. It was because the Empire had lost its power. Without money, there was no way it could be made into something like that.

It was originally a policy debate on the strategic direction of the country, but after being infected by the bad atmosphere in the Qing Dynasty, it became a strange party conflict.

Those close to Li Hongzhang, no matter what reason they had, would always support the sea defense. They probably did not know that the boat was made of steel.

Meanwhile, the officials who had their own interests in Zuo Zongtang refused to give up on Xinjiang, even though he had never been there in his entire life.

Once the discussion turned into a dispute between the parties, this matter would be troublesome. This was forcing the officials of the imperial court to stand on their side!

Both sides disliked each other. As long as they were not in the same faction, they would do their best to impeach the other!

The little emperor had not yet come to power, and the treasury was empty. The foreigners had surrounded him from all sides, and the internal unrest could not be quelled for a while.

This created an extreme emptiness in Xinjiang's defense!

Rong Quan recalled his own experiences in Xinjiang, from the very beginning till the very end, he had been cold-hearted.

At that time, there was no way for them to spend all of their money on Chang Mao and Twisted Army!

Without money and Arms and ammunition, the situation in Xinjiang could only depend on the locals to persevere. There were many times when the Qing Army had to fight with Yaqub's musket team with their big swords and spears.

Gordon said that these five thousand cavalrymen were few in number, but had spent a full five years of hard work to train these five thousand cavalrymen!

"General Tidor! The court has no money to give me, not even rights and policies... Until now, I am also an acting general, and I have no right to mobilize even the Komarran garrison in Urijasu in the north! "

"I can only use the small amount of power in my hands to collect taxes, train my troops, amass food... To be able to raise these five thousand cavalrymen, that is already the limit! "

"The main passes of the Tian Shan Mountains are still under our control. They are dangerous places that cannot be opened even if there are thousands of them. If we guard these passes, the enemy won't be able to come back for a while!"

"However, if you want me to attack, it will be extremely difficult … It's really impossible to not have reinforcements! "

Gordon and his group finally entered the small tower city. After Xing Yi sat down, he continued to ask, "You haven't received any assistance here, nor have you received any rights to increase your power …"

"Does this mean that Li Hongzhang's strategy of marine defense has become a national policy?"

When Duo Luo heard this, he sneered and said, "Bullsh * t!" I still don't know about the morals of the great masters of Beijing. "They want it, and they want it too …"

"The East Sea is currently being tightly controlled by Xiao Letian. Does Li Hongzhang still want to do marine defense? That's right, that's right. In other words, his defense is already gone. What else can he do other than defend? "

"I'm just afraid that by the end, there will be no marine defense and Xinjiang will be lost as well …"

Everyone in the room sighed. At this time, two brazier burning charcoal pots were brought in and a fire was raised in the yard. Fresh lambs bought from the herdsmen outside the city were already being roasted.

"The life here in Ta City is simple, there's nothing to entertain. There's only dried lamb dishes to entertain guests …" We'll talk while we eat! "

Rong Quan picked up his wine bowl and gulped down the alcohol. Satisfied, I never thought that I would be able to meet the relatives of Beijing this year, I will do it as a form of respect! "

"My brothers, my old brother is begging you …" Upon meeting Master Zuo, after meeting His Majesty, please send a message for me! "

"Although the bandits from Xinjiang are powerful, they are not invincible... We beg the imperial government to send our army to the frontlines as soon as possible, we will definitely win this battle! "

"In my opinion, the struggle between the imperial government's defense of the seas and the land is purely a matter of course …" "In fact, it's not hard to fight in Xinjiang. It's not like we can't defend it!"

"Let's see what we can do!"

Guan Lu and Duo Luo's eyes lit up as they drank the wine. His Majesty sent us here to hear the truth, to see the truth! "

"God knows how much personal wealth is contained in those ministers' reports!"