Chapter 540 Not Enough Troops

It is conceivable how stunned Duke Mikhail was when he learned of the latest situation and the latest instructions from Nicholas I.

Because he didn't have any luck, and knew what Britain and France's sudden declaration of war meant to Russia. Just one Turkey made him burnt out, and now with two even more powerful and difficult Britain and France, there is no chance of winning, okay?

The only thing that pleased Duke Mikhail was that Nicholas I finally ordered him to withdraw his troops from Bulgaria, only to let him stick to Wallachia, and finally he didn't have to run into a wall in front of the Turks' fortress. This is good news!

It's just that Duke Mikhail was really happy too early, because Nicholas I ordered him to fight a few victories as soon as possible to force Turkey to surrender!

But the question is, how can passive defense fight a war of annihilation, and how can it force Turkey to withdraw from the war? Isn't this bullshit?

You can't let him defend and let him attack at the same time? Isn't this inexplicable?

Therefore, Duke Mikhail ignored Nicholas I's order directly, and simply announced the withdrawal of troops from Bulgaria, and then the whole army turned to defense.

What is more interesting is that the Russian army on the front line of Constanta did not retreat, but stood firm on the spot.

The reason is very simple. This area is really important. Not only is there an important port of Constanta, but the river network is densely covered with swamps everywhere. The Russian army has suffered in this area in previous Russian-Turkish wars. It cannot be easily returned to Turkey, no!

What's more, this time, there is nothing to be gained by laboring and mobilizing. If you don't grasp some cards, you will suffer at the negotiating table later.

Duke Mikhail's plan is to temporarily occupy Constanta for a generation until the end of the war. At that time, he will try to force Turkey to cede this area. Then he will not be without credit for leading the army this time. At least he will have an explanation for the country. no!

It can only be said that Duke Mikhail's small calculation is very good, but it is hard to say whether this calculation will be successful, because this war has completely deviated from the track originally planned by Russia, and now it is like a derailed train. The train rumbled into the unknown abyss!

The bad news for the Russians is more than that. Just after Britain and France declared war on Russia, Nesselrode sent a note to Prussia and Austria in accordance with the order of Nicholas I, hoping that the two countries would fulfill their obligations of the Holy Alliance and stand with Russia. A united front against Britain and France.

But what Nicholas I didn't expect was that both Prussia and Austria rejected his request, expressing clearly that they had no intention of participating in this dispute.

Prussia is still putting on a show,

It is hypocritical to say that it will abide by its neutrality and be willing to mediate. On the other hand, the Austrians had an ugly face. On the surface, they said they would remain neutral, but in a blink of an eye they sent nearly 100,000 troops into Transylvania.

Apparently, the Austrians felt it was profitable to take advantage of the fire and try to recapture the Wallachia gains lost in 1848.

This made Nicholas I so angry that he lost his temper directly in the imperial study, scolded Austria, and even wrote the words "scumbag" directly behind the portrait of Franz Karl I.

But what's the use of being angry? The interests of the international community come first. In 1848, he was able to take advantage of Austria. Now it is normal for the Austrians to follow suit.

Fortunately, Li Xiao and Alexei were prepared for this, and built a solid line of defense at the border between Wallachia and Transylvania. A good tooth will be broken.

This naturally made Duke Mikhail heave a sigh of relief. When he heard about Austria's attitude, he was also taken aback. He almost didn't greet the eight generations of ancestors of Franz Karl I directly.

It was only later that I remembered that Li Xiao and the others had prepared for it, and fortunately they had built a solid line of defense, otherwise he would have been a bit stretched.

Why are you stretched?

It's very simple. Although Duke Mikhail has nearly half a million troops in his hands, the Turks in front of him are no less than him. Since they retreated to the north bank of the Danube, the Turks have been crazy. ah!

Nearly 700,000 troops rushed over in mighty force. Although Wallachia's strong defense line could not be dealt with for the time being, the superiority in numbers was not a joke.

Anyway, it is impossible for Duke Mikhail to ignore this huge force, so he can only confront it patiently.

As a result, his main force was nailed to death on the Danube line by the Turks, and he had no time to take care of the Transylvania line on the flank.

If there were no fortifications and fortresses repaired by Li Xiao and Alexei, how could those 30,000 people challenge the Austrians?

"The situation is serious!"

Li Xiao's face was almost blue. He was not happy because he temporarily blocked the Austrians, but seriously warned his friends and Duke Mikhail:

"Now our forces are all on the cards. Except for the Black Sea Fleet, there are more than 30,000 naval infantry that have not been used, and almost all other forces have been used!"

"But our enemies may still have some strength, and the Turks may struggle a bit, but it shouldn't be a big problem to squeeze another 100,000 people!"

"Although the Austrians only sent 100,000 people to Transylvania, that doesn't mean they only have 100,000 people. With their strength, they can get three to five times more troops!"

"Even if they don't dare to use force, the Chen Bing borderline makes us extremely uncomfortable. At least we have to divide our troops to confront them! Otherwise, you've seen it too, maybe those bastards will really take risks regardless of the covenant!"

When they heard this, the expressions of Alexei Dmitry and Prince Mikhail had become similar to those of Li Xiao, but Li Xiao hadn't finished speaking, and the ugly part was yet to come.

"Gentlemen, please note that this is not all. Britain and France have declared war on us. Although we haven't seen any actions from them yet, they will definitely do something!"

"Once they send troops into the field, things will get worse!"

"So, I think that with the current strength alone, let alone forcing Turkey to withdraw from the war, I am afraid that it will be a little difficult to even hold the line of defense!"

"Duke, you should ask St. Petersburg for help immediately, we need more troops!"

Prince Mikhail's face was darker than the bottom of the pot. Obviously, he also realized the seriousness of the problem. The answer to this extremely simple arithmetic problem is not difficult at all, and the answer is really terrible!