The Qing Dynasty

Chapter 621: The Consequences of the Night Raid
The consequences of this crazy night battle were extremely shocking to both Japan and Russia.

First of all, the Japanese Second Division launched a large-scale night attack on the Gongchangling position on the left wing of the Russian Liaoyang Defense Line. This was a desperate and all-out attempt by Nishi Hirojiro.

All the infantry of the 2nd Division participated in the night attack, attempting to capture Gongchangling in one fell swoop through close combat and hand-to-hand combat, thereby mobilizing the Russian troops on the right wing to reinforce in the direction of Gongchangling and creating conditions for the Japanese army to break through on the right wing.

However, due to the appearance and participation of Teng Yuzhao, the Japanese army's attempt was successfully thwarted. In the night attack, not only was the Japanese 2nd Division defeated in one fell swoop, but the Japanese 12th Division was also inflicted with certain heavy damage.

The remnants of the Japanese 2nd Division and the 12th Division were forced to flee across the Luan River in disarray, and hastily deploy defenses along the Jiajiabuzi and Erdaoling lines in an attempt to stabilize their position so as not to affect the entire battle deployment of the Japanese Manchurian Army against Liaoyang.

In order to stabilize the front line and prevent the Japanese army from withdrawing troops from the left wing to reinforce the right wing, Kuroki Tamemasa even strictly ordered the commander of the Imperial Guards Division, Hasegawa Yoshimichi, to launch a fierce attack on Gaofeng Temple immediately after dawn to tie down the Russian troops and the Restoration Army in Gongchangling and prevent them from pursuing the retreating remnants of the Second Division and the Twelfth Division.

After receiving the notification from Wu Peifu that the Zhi Army defeated the 2nd and 12th Divisions of the Japanese Army in a night battle with inferior forces, Bidlin, the commander of the Russian East Manchurian Army, naturally could not believe it.

The Russian troops in eastern Manchuria were defeated repeatedly by the Japanese First Army, and it can even be said that they retreated all the way from the Yalu River to here. Bidlin had experienced the combat effectiveness of the Japanese army.

Even the Battle of Motianling, in which the Russian army suffered heavy losses, is still fresh in Bidlin's memory.

Therefore, Bidlin's soldiers did not immediately respond to Wu Peifu's suggestion that Bidlin and the Zhi army launch a joint attack to strive to completely defeat the Japanese First Army in order to eliminate the threat to the left wing of the Russian Liaoyang defense line. Instead, after daybreak, he sent his adjutant to lead people to Gongchangling to inspect and verify the results of the battle.

This battle wiped out more than 6,800 Japanese soldiers, as evidenced not only by the piles of incomplete corpses of the Japanese soldiers, but also by the large number of shoulder straps and ranks of Japanese officers and soldiers.

Among the Japanese officers killed, there were 28 majors, three lieutenant colonels, and two colonels.

The adjutant's report shocked Bidlin.

Based on the normal casualty ratio, Bidlin estimated that the Japanese army suffered at least 10,000 to 15,000 casualties in this battle.

Bidlin, overjoyed, mobilized his troops and hurriedly asked for instructions from Kuropatkin, who had already arrived in Liaoyang City, to quickly send reinforcements to the Gongchangling area and concentrate his forces to encircle and annihilate the Japanese First Army led by Kuroki Tameaki.

If the Japanese First Army could be eliminated or completely defeated on the left wing, it would mean that the Japanese attack on the Liaoyang defense line would be completely bankrupt, and even the Japanese Second Army of Oku Yasutano and Fourth Army of Nozu Michitsugu would have to retreat to the area south of Dashiqiao, and the battle situation in Manchuria would be completely changed.

However, this sudden victory not only made the Japanese Manchurian Army commanded by Oyama Iwao very passive, but it can even be said that this serious defeat had made Oyama Iwao panic.

But this sudden victory also surprised Kuropatkin and Alexeev!

Despite this, Kuropatkin and Alexeev made a rare unanimous decision to draw 30,000 reserve troops to the battlefield of the East Manchurian Army Group, and at the same time asked Bidlin to defeat Kuroki Weizhen's First Army in one fell swoop.

This great victory gave the two highest commanders of the Russian army and navy in the Far East an excellent opportunity to turn the tide of the war. Such an opportunity could only belong to them, and no one else would be allowed to have a share. The so-called restoration army outside the sequence of the Russian army in the Far East would not be allowed to have a share. They had completed their mission, and the rest was their victory.

After an urgent discussion between the two, they immediately telegraphed the battle report of Gongchangling, which had been confirmed by Bidlin and jointly signed by Alexeev and Kuropatkin, to the Russian envoy in the capital, Bo Lansun.

The next day, Bo Lansun will personally go to the Russian-Chinese Bank in Tianjin Concession, and then transfer a huge amount of francs to a secret account of Citibank in Shanghai French Concession. The relevant transfer procedures will be completed within two days.

At the same time, Kuropatkin also sent a telegram to Bidrin as quickly as possible, saying that the Restoration Army must have suffered heavy casualties after this battle and urgently needed rest and recuperation. He asked Bidrin to immediately take over the front-line positions of Gongchangling and Gaofengsi.

After counting the results of the battle, the Restoration Army immediately withdrew to Qipan Mountain north of Taizi River to build positions and would no longer participate in the subsequent pursuit and annihilation of the Japanese First Army.

Teng Yuzao did not care about the Russians' reluctance for their continued participation in beating the Japanese First Army, which was a "fallen dog". After receiving the news that the funds that the Restoration Army should receive would be deposited into the account of "Aurora Bank" in two days, Teng Yuzao immediately ordered the Restoration Army, which had already prepared to surrender the relevant positions, to retreat from the chessboard.

After all the troops were temporarily handed over to the command of Wang Decheng and Zuo Baotian, Teng Yuzhao, Liu Shijiu and Wu Peifu, under the escort of relevant guard troops, disguised themselves as the "Restoration Army" transport troops and quickly rushed to the military station in Zhangwu.

Teng Yuzhao had to rush back to Tianjin because Wei Jinghai called and said that the Japanese envoy had formally sent a diplomatic note to the court, demanding that the court must stop any form of participation in the war.

After the Japanese envoy submitted the note, the British and American envoys also published statements in newspapers in Beijing and Tianjin Concession yesterday, demanding that the court abide by its commitment to remain neutral in the Russo-Japanese War.

He also revealed that Britain, Germany, the United States, Austria, Italy and other countries are contacting relevant powers and are preparing to launch an initiative not to sell arms to the war zones in the Far East. If the court does not abide by its commitment to neutrality, it will be subject to the embargo.

At the same time, there were rumors in society that the so-called Restoration Army was entirely established at the instigation of Teng Yuzhao, and even tens of thousands of active Zhi army troops participated.

It was even said that senior officers of the Zhi Army were involved in the actual command of the Restoration Army. The court had ordered the Grand Council and the Ministry of the Army to conduct a joint investigation. It was said that personnel would soon go to various Zhi Army units for inspection.

In addition, there are reports that the imperial court will take major actions in the near future, which may involve constitutionalism and further integration of the new domestic army.

The call for a constitution has been going on for some time, with people from both the government and the opposition making appeals. Teng Yuzhao had anticipated this news.

As for the court's intention to further integrate the domestic new army, this was somewhat beyond Teng Yuzhao's expectations.

In view of the above situation, Teng Yuzao had to rush back to deal with it personally.

In order to return to Tianjin as soon as possible, Teng Yuzhao and his party arrived at the Zhangwu military station and immediately boarded the airship that had been waiting there and flew to Tianjin.

(End of this chapter)