1890 King of Southeast Asia

Talaat's words were very realistic and straightforward, and Enver also fell into hesitation.

The Ottoman Empire was just an agricultural country. Although its size was not small in Europe and its location was not bad, it could not change the fact that its fiscal revenue was not high.

The Ottoman Empire once covered three continents, Asia, Africa and Europe. No matter who wanted to do business, they had to pay a toll. With the toll, the Ottoman Empire could maintain a huge army.

Now, the only important transportation node of the Ottoman Empire is Istanbul, which controls the outlet from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean.

The trouble is that after the war started, this outlet could not make money. The main export product of the Ottoman Empire was raw materials, which are no longer available.

It's not that there is no place to sell. The Germans are willing to buy, but the production capacity of the Ottoman Empire has been greatly reduced.

In 1916, the Ottoman Empire spent $500 million on military expenditures, and in the second half of 1915, it spent $350 million on military expenditures (conscription).

The Ottoman Empire was an agricultural country. Because of the large number of ethnic groups and the relatively poor land (it was relatively poor before oil was discovered), its GDP was only one-tenth of that of the Green Empire at the same time.

Calculated by purchasing power, the Green Empire was 24.1 billion, and the Ottoman Empire was 2.5 billion.

2.5 billion GDP, 500 million to be spent on military expenditures, not to mention other expenses, such as subsidies given by religious countries to imams, subsidies given to tribal leaders, government expenses, etc.

The Ottoman Empire simply could not withstand such consumption. In the previous two wars, the Ottoman Empire was defeated due to financial problems.

In this war, the Ottoman Empire borrowed money from Germany and Austria-Hungary. The loans have been spent and new loans are still under negotiation.

If there is no new source of finance, the army’s salary cannot be paid next month, which is terrible.

Enver, Talaat, and Germa, the three giants of the Young Turks, are also the three giants of the Ottoman Empire.

The three of them came to power through a military coup. The army is their foundation. If the army cannot be controlled, they will face resignation or even death.

To maintain the army and continue the war, everything needs money.

Talat has proposed a solution to Enver - to use the property of Armenians to fight the war.

Of course, this is not so easy to take. The Armenians are indeed carrying out sabotage activities with the support of Tsarist Russia.

After all, they have been third-class citizens for so long, and they also want to try the feeling of deciding their own affairs.

(Arabs are second-class because they believe in the same religion, and Armenians are Christians.)

So Enver made a slight change in the battle plan, allowing the Ottoman Empire's 5th Army, which had just withdrawn from the Romanian front and completed its replenishment, to change its route to the west to "support" the 3rd Army fighting in Armenia.

According to the Ottoman Empire's "Provisional Law on Expropriation and Confiscation", all the property left by those who were expelled or arrested for "threatening the security of the Ottoman Empire" will be directly confiscated.

According to the Tesir Law, the Ottoman government and military have the right to expel those they believe threaten national security.

It is not without reason that this strange bill can be passed and the Ottoman Empire is doomed.

In short, Enver has a source of funds to continue the war, and Talat has an explanation to his supporters and consolidates his position.

The army, especially the 5th Army that carries out expulsion, arrest and killing, can get tangible benefits and high morale.

Well, perfect, isn't it?

...

On December 22, the 59th and 60th Regiments of the 6th Army of the Chinese Empire raided the city of Birejik in the upper reaches of the Euphrates River. Because there was only a small police force here, the 6th Army of the Chinese Empire occupied it effortlessly.

Birejik is an ancient city located in the upper reaches of the Euphrates River. It is a small town with developed agriculture and commerce, with more than 6,000 people living in the city.

In West Asia and Europe, where 1,000 people can be called a big town, 6,000 people are not a small number.

The railway and the river pass through here, making Birejik glorious and becoming the most prosperous city within dozens of kilometers.

However, the flag of the sun, moon and stars is flying in the sky above this city.

However, the flag of the Ottoman Empire is also red with a moon and stars, but it is white, and there is only one star.

If it weren't for the difference in the soldiers' appearance and slightly different skin color, the locals would have thought that the flag style had been changed.

Birejik is not a military town, and there is no army stationed there. Because there is a telegraph line only when the railway passes, the 6th Army of the Chinese Empire came here by train, and the railway station was controlled from the beginning.

In addition, Li Yunfei cut off Birejik's telegraph line for external communication, and sent people to block the dock and the main roads in and out of the city.

"I don't know how long we can delay. The Ottomans should have discovered our actions."

"Find a favorable position to dig trenches and build fortifications."

"Find the government officials here and ask them to cooperate in registering the materials in the whole city. Don't miss any. Implement military control over the whole city. Before the military police arrive, send out a company to manage the city."

"Directly occupy warehouses, docks and other areas to clear hidden dangers."

"Tell those Ottomans that we will not kill them. When their troops arrive, we will let them go."

Li Yunfei stood by the Euphrates River, looking at the lush wheat fields on both sides.

A thin layer of white snow has accumulated in the wheat field, with green, white and yellow mixed together, which is very beautiful.

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"The property of the Ottoman government has been confiscated. Everything else is fine. We have never managed the city before, so we are confused!" Guo Liang took off his hat in annoyance and scratched his bright head.

Snowflakes fell on Guo Liang's head and melted into snow water in an instant, making his forehead brighter.

"Just tell them not to go out. Ten households form a group and elect a representative. If there is anything, let the representative come to discuss it. Others who dare to go out without reason will be arrested and locked up."

"And those who gather privately, those who gather privately with more than 3 people will be shot."

"Tell these to those officials, that's enough." Li Yunfei was dazzled and turned his head quietly.

"Division Commander, why are we making such trouble? Can't the Arab set be used? I think they are dressed and look similar!" Guo Liang smiled bitterly.

"We don't have so much time, and there is no need to kill people. Killing everyone will only make the Ottomans resist to the end. Showing mercy will make the Ottomans have a thought in their hearts."

"Besides, we are far away, and it will take at least two days for logistics to be delivered. There is no need to waste that bullet."

"These are all civilians, not worth the money for bullets."

Li Yunfei shook his head.

The Arab method is to kill a group of disobedient people to deter them, then disrupt the tribes and migrate. These people will either be diluted or disappear in the process.

Another group of immigrants will come from China until a single ethnic group has formed a numerical advantage in the local area.

This method is good and has been used to rule most of Arabia and Mesopotamia, with good results.

However, it takes a long time and consumes a lot of energy. They don't have the time and energy to do it.

...

The Ottomans did not realize that China had entered the Turkish region and was still building trenches under their noses.

On the 2nd, the 5th Army of the Ottoman Empire was halfway there, only more than 100 kilometers away from Birezhik, but they did not go south, but continued to the east.

On the 25th, Christmas, the Armenians were celebrating Christmas, and they did not even continue to resist.

On the same day, the three armies of the 5th Army of the Ottoman Empire arrived in several provinces in the Armenian region and began an organized Tusha.

Together with the local militia forces that cooperated with the operation, the Ottomans mobilized more than 100,000 soldiers in this operation and launched a surprise attack on the Armenian gathering place.

By December 31, in just 7 days, the Ottoman Empire arrested, expelled, and killed a total of 1.8 million Armenians.

Of course, the main purpose was to "expel" the Armenians to "certain specific areas" rather than directly kill them. 3.4 million were directly killed and arrested!

As for specific areas, in nature, they are similar to the Indian reservations in the United States, and the Ottomans' approach is also similar to that of Americans.

By the end of the war, only about 300,000 of these people were left, and the rest were just a small part of the fuel for the huge machine of war.

On January 1, 1917, New Year's Day, due to the war, the Chinese Empire did not have a holiday except for schools.

This was a small matter, but the 6th Army had its own unique way of celebrating. Four 203mm heavy cannons were transported to the outskirts of Damascus, and the huge sound of artillery resounded through the sky. The bombardment lasted for a whole day.

Thousands of buildings in the outer city areas in the south and east of Damascus were destroyed. The Ottoman 4th Army suffered heavy casualties in the southern and eastern outer defense lines, and the fortifications were severely damaged, so they had to abandon the outer positions.

The 4th Army began to send telegrams for help to Istanbul, and one telegram after another was transmitted to Istanbul along the radio waves.

However, Enver Pasha was not in the mood to read the 4th Army's letter for help at this time, because the Ottomans finally found the 14th Division of the Chinese 6th Army in Birecik.

Counting from the 14th Division's arrival in Birecik on the 22nd, nine days had passed, and January 1st was the tenth day.

It took the Ottomans ten days to find out that the town had been lost.

About 100 kilometers west of Birecik is Ain Tab, an important city in the southern part of Turkey. It is the sixth largest city in Asia in the Ottoman Empire and a transportation hub.

There was an army of the Chinese Empire so close to Ain Tab, which the Turks could not tolerate.

Enver immediately ordered the Second Army to attack southward to recapture Ain Tab, and ordered the Fifth Army to assemble immediately and advance towards Ain Tab.