War Palace and Knee Pillow, Austria’s Destiny

What’s unbearable is that the enemy, honor and dream are right in front of you, but everything is blocked by a small ditch.

What is worrying is that if Austria and Greece are making great progress while Russia is standing still, what if its allies and enemies make peace first?

So Nicholas I summoned all his generals.

"The opportunity to revive the Third Roman Empire is right before our eyes! The Russian Empire should not be left to others. We must act and hold victory firmly in our hands!"

After an impassioned speech, Nicholas I got down to business.

"What do you think of the Ottomans on the other side of the river?"

This was a fatal question for the Russian generals, because if the Ottomans on the other side were vulnerable, they would probably be sent to the battlefield.

But if you dare to say that the Ottomans on the other side have the upper hand, or that attacking the Ottomans now will not be worth the cost, you will probably be exiled to Siberia. After all, if you dare to defeat His Majesty the Tsar at this time, you simply don't want to live.

As a result, a strange silence fell in the Russian military command. There was no doubt that no one wanted to be the first to stand out.

This made Nicholas I very unhappy. He also knew that the Ottomans had the advantage by defending the river, but now he was really anxious and he needed someone to step forward to take on this difficult task.

However, none of the Russian elites understood the Tsar's painstaking efforts, but Nicholas I would not give up so easily.

"Cowards! Stupid! You guys have no sense of military honor! Give me a plan to take Dobruja before the sun sets tomorrow!"

After saying this, Nicholas I left angrily, and now it was the turn of the Russian generals to be troubled.

They really didn't want to fight the Ottomans at this time. Not to mention that the Ottomans occupied the advantageous terrain, the breastwork built by the Ottomans alone was enough to give them a headache.

In this era, having a breastwork and not having a breastwork are two completely different concepts, and the Ottoman army had no fewer troops than the Russian army.

"Damn the British! They must be behind the Ottomans' backs!"

The Russian generals were all silent. Although they did not have to rush to the front line, if they really accepted a mission to die, they would probably be shot by others when they returned.

Those who fired the black guns were not the low-level soldiers, but the well-educated officers. Especially after the December Revolution, the senior generals of the Russian army gradually became friendly to the lower-level officers.

Russia's military discipline has always been poor, especially among some lower-ranking officers and soldiers.

The next day, Nicholas I received several complete offensive plans. However, none of the plans were original and could be summed up in eight words: "multi-stage attack, dispersed defense."

The only difference was the chosen location. Nicholas I finally picked the most pleasing attack plan.

"Let the Ottomans know how powerful we are! I'm waiting for your good news!"

"As you command, Your Majesty."

On the third day, the Ottoman sentry was patrolling as usual and discovered something unusual about the Russian army and immediately informed Orma Pasha.

Olma Pasha quickly arrived at the front line with his officers. After careful observation, they did not find any difference between the Russian army and usual.

The Russians replaced their garrison troops every once in a while, and the Ottomans were already accustomed to this.

Moreover, after the arrival of the Austrians, Orma Pasha had already deployed many outposts along the river, and once he discovered that the Russian army was crossing the river, news would be sent immediately.

The most important thing is that the Danube is wide enough, and the only way to cross the river is by boat or pontoon bridge. The Russian army shows no signs of large-scale shipbuilding.

However, the ships they collected were not enough to break through the defense line. In addition, the British had gained control of the Black Sea at that time, so Olma Pasha became fearless.

On the seventh day, nothing happened for several days and the Ottomans got used to the presence of the Russians.

At night, a few sentries sat bored by the campfire, smoking hookah and eating baked naan.

"Isn't this bad of us?"

A young man who had just arrived said.

"What's wrong with that? There's fire to roast and cigarettes to smoke, isn't that good?"

An old soldier said unhappily.

"But just in case"

"There's no need to worry. There's not even a boat on the river. How can they get here? Swim? It'll be strange if they don't freeze to death in such cold weather!"

Although it is already spring, the river water is still freezing cold at night. You will shiver after drinking a few sips, let alone swimming in it.

The new recruits also sat down to warm themselves by the fire and smoke.

Although hookah does not have a hallucinogenic effect, the toxins in it can paralyze the nerves and make people feel euphoric.

At two o'clock in the morning, a sharp knife pierced the throat of the Ottoman recruit. Blood gushed out and his eyes soon lost their luster.

The Russian vanguard that had just landed threw the corpses next to the fire and started roasting them.

"Idiot, change your clothes first and then warm yourself by the fire."

"How many people are left?"

A man who looked like an officer asked.

"Eight."

"Hurry up and change your clothes, and send a signal to the brothers behind to cross the river."

"yes"

Overnight, several outposts set up by Orma Pasha on the front line were breached, and thousands of Russian troops had landed at different locations and were building pontoon bridges.

Orma Pasha, who was awakened from his sleep, could hardly believe his ears, and he overturned the sand table in front of him.

"That's impossible! Did Russia fly over here?"

“Maybe Russia used hot air balloons.”

A staff officer whispered.

"Then why don't they fly over here and give you a shot!"

Olma Pasha kicked the whispering staff officer to the ground, but he became more and more unsure. After all, if the Russians could sneak attack the checkpoints in a hot air balloon, why couldn't they sneak attack his headquarters?

"Starting tonight, the guards will be doubled! No! Tripled!"

Orma Pasha shouted at the guards.

"Yes, sir!"

"Ahmad Yilmaz! Take your men back to the beachhead right now and drive all the Russians back!"

"Yes, sir!"

Ahmed Yilmaz had long wanted to meet these Russians, but like many young Ottoman new army officers, he did not think the Russians were anything special.

The previous failures were entirely due to the incompetence of the old bureaucrats. This time he wanted to vindicate the new Ottoman army.

However, Ahmed Yilmaz soon discovered that the Russians before him were completely different from the rebellious Bulgarians and were more tenacious than he had imagined.

However, what really gave him a headache was that there were too many loopholes and the troops he had were totally insufficient.

Ahmed Yilmaz had to keep going back to ask for reinforcements until the tenth day when the main force of the Russian army launched a frontal attack from the direction of Wallachia.