The main battlefield selected by the Duke of Croix is ​​located on the north bank of the Kolocha River, next to the New Ryazan Avenue, where the Kolocha River and another small river, the Vojna River converge here.

The far right wing of the Russian military position is deployed in a circular area between the Kolocha River and the Moscow River, and the left wing is stationed in the jungle around Ryazan Avenue.

The Moscow River is a tributary of the Oka River near Ryazan, while the Kolocha River flows northward into the surging Moscow River. The three rivers intersect and cross, the angle is a low ridge, and the northern end is a small mound, which is very suitable for combat.

The Russian army built fortifications here and named it Croix Castle after the commander Duke of Croix. To the south of the bastion are mainly flat land and swamps, some places have jungles, and some small villages that are easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Of course, these small villages are destined to be destroyed by the Ming army, and their function is to serve as a buffer zone to drag the Ming army forward.

But there is a bastion composed of three other small fortifications nearby, forming the central hub of the left wing, which is called the central bastion.

The far left-wing position located in the jungle area is another highland. There is also a bastion two miles west of the center of the main defensive position. The Duke of Croix sent a legion of 30,000 people to defend and received support from cavalry and artillery.

In short, Duke Croix's deployment this time was very meticulous, almost blocking all the roads to Moscow, and vowing to block the Ming army outside the Moscow River!

The Tsar was very satisfied and highly praised the Duke of Croix's deployment and announced that he would continue to be the commander of the Russian army, responsible for dispatching major legions to carry out strategic defense, assisting former Field Marshal Golovin.

The last time the Five-Nation Alliance attacked Ming was commanded by Golovin. He was convicted after his defeat and was dismissed from the rank of Field Marshal and Earl.

Because he was also the earliest team of Tsar Alexei, he was re-activated several years later and served in the army with the rank of general.

"Martei" first started with the French army, while "General" first started with the Russian army (historically, it was established by Peter I, son of Alexey, and this book was advanced)

The Russian general served as commander-in-chief, with a rank equivalent to that of a marshal and had the power to lead the general's "military meeting", which shows that the Tsar still had feelings for Golovin.

This time Golowen followed the Tsar in person to fight, and he also made every effort to defeat the Ming army and avenge his previous shame!

Just as the Russian army was busy building defensive positions, the Ming army was slowly gathering troops along the gravel road leading to Moscow, preparing to launch a large-scale attack on the Russian army's Moscow defense line.

If Moscow is not taken early, the Ming army will consider setting up camp here and fighting again next year.

Because the winter in northern Russia is too cold and difficult to pass, this will not only cause major difficulties in military support, but also affect the morale of the army.

The truce for the winter will bring many benefits to the Ming army.

However, Zhu Ciyang had long set a strategic goal of spending the winter in Moscow. The goal had not been achieved yet, and Russia had many recruited militias, which was beneficial to Russia.

So, Zhu Cixuan decided to take a risky battle and take Moscow as soon as possible!

When he drove his horse to observe the terrain, he could see the weakness of the Russian military's defense line at a glance.

At the following Imperial Military Conference, after fierce discussions, the generals of the Ming army also discovered the problems in the Russian military defense line.

Shenjihou Zhao Jinglin pointed to the sand table and smiled: "The mafia thought we would continue to advance along Liangzan Avenue, and deployed heavy troops in this area. What's ridiculous is that they actually ignored the central and left-wing positions!"

Zhao Jinglin was a sniper and was very sensitive to terrain and environment. From the intelligence fragments that Long Xiangye did not collect, he roughly learned about the deployment of the Russian army and was the first to see the clues.

After discussion, the generals agreed that before the Ming army launched an attack on the main position of the Russian army, they must first destroy the left wing bastion!

Tsar Alexei's combat attempt was to kill the enemy as much as possible with active defense, change the strength of our enemy and us, and preserve strength for the subsequent battles and annihilation of the Ming army.

Zhu Cixuan's strategic proposal is to smash the Russian army with a decisive battle!

Faced with the Russian army's narrow defense line, it was difficult for the Ming army to surround the two wings. Zhu Ciyang decided to take a frontal assault in the Battle of Moscow in order to break through the Russian defense line in a narrow area, rush into the rear of the Russian army, and force the Russian army to the Moscow River to annihilate it, thus opening the door to Moscow!

He handed over this task to the founding Duke Xu Qingshan, and sent Cao Minghao to lead two cavalrymen of the Dragon Martial Army to provide support.

On the ninth day of November, before sunset in the evening, the battle began. The two sides fought fiercely until midnight before they stopped. The Russian army lost about 6,000 people, and the Ming army suffered few casualties.

Although the Russian army fought bravely under Golovin's command, Golovin did not agree with the strategic plan of Duke Croix to defend the bastion.

He felt that this thing had no strategic value, especially in front of the Ming army with strong firepower, what role could a small bastion composed of several fortifications play?

Golowen had seen Ming army artillery in the Ili River Valley, and its power was simply too much!

The Russian left wing mainly relies on Croix Castle, but this thing did not change the situation of the left wing being vulnerable. How should the Ming army attack or how should it attack.

After this battle, the Russian army lost many elite soldiers and some artillery, and began to do their best to consolidate their positions.

On November 11, Zhu Cilang moved the imperial camp to a flat area south of Croix Castle and conducted reconnaissance on Russian positions many times.

At that time, Zhu Cilang was suffering from a severe cold and his dragon body was poor. The Ming army's state of war also made him quite dissatisfied.

In the harsh environment, the Ming army, in addition to having the advantage of the quality of generals and soldiers, did not have much advantage over the local Russian army in many aspects.

The situation of the Ming cavalry was particularly unfavorable, with a large number of horses lost and the remaining horses were also weak.

On the contrary, the Russian army was strong and strong. In addition, the Russian army also had a steady stream of militias joining as cannon fodder.

The dissatisfied Golovin did not occupy the Ticha Heights as agreed, but ordered the defenders to fight a large-scale ambush in the far left.

He made many deductions in this ambush battle based on the combat style of the Ming army. Once implemented, the success rate is extremely high, and at least thousands of Ming army will be killed!

Unfortunately, a general under Golovin issued a counter-order to his subordinates when inspecting the position, exposing his troops to the wilderness, and instead being attacked by the Ming army, losing thousands of people.

Afterwards, the angry Tsar ordered the arrest of the general and severe punishment, but no one expected that the guy would disappear out of thin air!

Everyone understood that that guy was probably the Ming army bribed the detailed work of the Russian army early!

The unlucky Golovin was ordered to be arrested by the Tsar before he could show his skills. He was arrested before he could succeed.
Chapter completed!