New Shun 1730

In the camp by the Heilongjiang River, Liu Yu was staring at the captured Russians with burning eyes.

In order to gain more credit in this war, he had exhausted all his efforts. He had to use some skills, and a frontal attack would definitely not work.

The memorial sent back vaguely indicated that he was ready to do something big, which was also a precautionary measure for the emperor in advance. Whether it would work or not, we would know after trying.

The grass stems he was chewing in his mouth no longer had any grass flavor. He spat out saliva mixed with grass and green water, pointed at a Russian boy beside a fire in the distance and asked the old master beside him: "What's the name of the guy with chicken poop-colored hair?"

"Mikhail, or Michael, Michael... the name of the archangel. He is an intern who followed Bering. Why did you ask him?"

"Nothing. Ask him to borrow something."

The old master turned his head to look at Mikhail and asked curiously: "What can he lend you? Maps and other things have all been taken away by you."

Liu Yu stretched out a finger, scratched his neck, and smiled: "Isn't there still a head on my head? You can borrow it. Go and call the deputy captain of the expedition team, not the first mate, but the deputy captain of Luosha."

The old master responded and left, not knowing why.

All along the way, Liu Yu was observing these captured Russians. It was discovered that this young man named Mikhail seemed to have a good relationship with the deputy captain named Alexei Cherikov. The two of them often whispered to each other.

The composition of this expedition team was very interesting.

The captain and the first mate on the ship were both foreigners, and the deputy captain was a Russian. Half of them were experienced explorers and cartographers; half of them were young men who were interns.

Deputy Captain Cherikov was by the fire at this time, eagerly looking forward to the water in the teapot in front of him boiling quickly.

In Cherikov's eyes, the Khitan officer opposite was still very generous. The copper kettle produced by the Tula Arsenal that he used to boil water was not confiscated by the Khitan officer, but continued to let them use it.

The tea cakes that could only be drunk in the upper class of Russia were just rations after meals in this Khitan expedition team. Cherikov and others also got some.

The summer on the banks of the Heilongjiang River was not warm either. The grass leaves were always wet at night. Drinking a pot of tea at this time was simply a kind of enjoyment.

Life as a captive was not as bad as imagined, but Cherikov kept trying to escape.

The Danes, Swedes, and Khitans offered them a high price and promised to send them back to the south on a Dutch ship if they had the chance.

The attitude of the Khitan expedition leader was unclear for the Russians. Cherikov wondered if the Khitans had declared war on Russia.

There were many rumors in the team.

Some people suspected that the Khitan Khan wanted to learn from the Byzantines and form a Varangian Guard, so they should not think about returning to Russia in this life. They would definitely be sent to their capital, wearing silk clothes and serving as the Varangian Guard of the Khitan Khan.

Others said with certainty that in the Mongolian era, the Mongolian Khan also had a Russian guard stationed in Beijing.

The Russians in the team were mixed about this speculation.

Some people thought that if the Khitan Khan allowed them to continue to believe in their Orthodox religion, then it would be good to stay in Khitan as a Varangian Guard. If there were really silk clothes to wear and tea to drink every day...

Some people thought that they might be captured by the Khitans and taken back to the capital, stripped naked, and paraded in the capital with feathers stuck on their buttocks. Or they might be castrated like the Ottoman Sultan and used as eunuchs in the palace. Most people were quite afraid of this possibility, but there were one or two people who thought it was okay. They were believers of the castration faction, believing that childbirth itself was the original sin, and castration could end the sin and go to heaven after death.

For the vast and legendary China, these Russians could only use the Ottomans and Mongols they had come into contact with to guess their future lives.

Cherikov was skeptical about these rumors and was always looking for an opportunity to escape. Every day when he was shitting, he would observe the situation nearby. The guards only allowed collective action. If he wanted to escape, he had to wait for a suitable opportunity.

The people in the team could not be trusted. In this captive environment, everyone hid their true thoughts.

The only person who could see through Cherikov's thoughts was the brown-haired naval trainee named Mikhail.

This was a very good young man, very energetic.

He was very diligent on the ship at ordinary times, and would seize every opportunity to learn various mathematical skills at night, and was able to master the use of the sextant proficiently.

Even after being captured, the young man still faced life with a smile every day.

He said that a person who could not laugh must not be a qualified explorer, and a dejected person would not dare to face the vast sea and the endless sea journey.

The young man believed that the Pythagorean theorem was correct in the school in St. Petersburg, and it must be correct for the Khitans. These Khitans were not barbarians. They could use muskets and knew how to survey and map. They were not barbarians, and they would be released when the war was over.

This young man would pester Cherikov every day and ask some questions about cartography. He was sure that one day after returning, Her Majesty would organize new expeditions, and then he could become a formal draftsman.

This is an optimist who always brings warm hope amidst the panic of endless rumors, just like the sun after the polar night in Arkhangelsk.

He is the youngest and everyone in the team likes him. Sometimes when everyone is dejected and thinks they are about to be castrated, the young man will sing some Cossack songs to cheer up everyone's spirits, or tell some legends in Petersburg's upper class society: Emperor Peter was raped by his peer Romodano in the Youth Army. The story of the rebuke of Prince Vishni. It's like he is the illegitimate son of a big shot and knows many stories that others don't know.

Today, as usual, Cherikov is here waiting for the water to boil, and Mikhail is telling some interesting stories about Petersburg. After a while, the young man will come to ask him for some details about the Mercator projection.

As soon as the assigned tea cakes were thrown into the kettle, Cherikov was called out by a voice. After hearing the interpreter's words, he reluctantly put down the tea kettle and followed the interpreter into the tent.

In the tent, Liu Yu prepared a pot of wine and a few pickles. Cherikov smelled the smell of alcohol in the tent and swallowed uncontrollably, but in his heart he warned himself to be careful of the devil-like young man in front of him.

Liu Yu made a gesture of invitation. After two glasses of wine, Cherikov's mind was still clear. Liu Yu also asked some questions. These questions were no secret. Cherikov believed that these questions would be worth it if they could be exchanged for some alcohol.

For a period of time after that, Cherikov would be invited to the tent to drink every day. The questions asked were also about adventures in Siberia or Okhotsk.

One day soon after crossing the Ussuri River, when Cherikov was about to continue drinking in the tent as usual, several guarding soldiers suddenly rushed into the group of captured people and took the young brown-haired man Mikhail was captured.

Liu Yu said a few words in Chinese that Cherikov could not understand, and the translator followed behind and translated loudly: "Mikhail Petrovich Telekin. Because someone reported that you were planning to flee, And he is guilty of inciting others to escape, so we have decided to execute him."

Before Mikhail, who was holding a copy of "The Art of Surveying" compiled by Peter I, had time to shout, two soldiers dragged him away.

Near the camp, a soldier holding a captured Tula flintlock pointed it at his head, and then there was a gunshot.

All the captured Russians in the team looked at the twitching and twisting body in the distance in shock, and then all turned their attention to Cherikov.

Liu Yu was very satisfied with this look. He pretended to make a cross on his chest with his left hand and told the captured Russians seriously.

"You are criminals who were caught carrying weapons into the border without customs clearance documents. The crime is not serious and you can be released in the future. However, this is close to your fortress and escaping privately is absolutely not allowed. If someone escapes, There is an option to report, which can result in some reduction in sentence and even alcohol as a reward.”

After saying that, he left without looking back, leaving a few soldiers to guard the prisoners. They dug a hole in the ground and buried Mikhail's body in it.

While digging the hole, a Russian prisoner approached Cherikov. Suddenly he shook his shoulder and hit Cherikov hard in the stomach with his elbow.

"Judas!"

"Pooh!"

"Nasty as maggots."

"Save the wine the Khitans gave you for your mother to wash down her vagina. Your mother contracted syphilis in a brothel in Petersburg."

I don't know who cursed first, and several people who were digging a hole rushed over in turn. The guarding soldier spent a lot of effort to pull these people away.

Cherikov squatted on the ground with his mouth twitching while holding his painful stomach. Mikhail looked at the pit where his head was blurred by the lead bullet, listened to the curses in his ears, and clenched his fists.

That night, Cherikov was not with the other Russian prisoners, but alone in a small tent.

There was no guard in the tent, so Liu Yu left three things for him.

A skin of wine.

A duel pistol produced by Tula Factory and captured by Liu Yu. It was full of gunpowder and contained only one lead bullet.

And, a hairpin to tie your hair.

Cherikov didn't sleep all night.

After drinking all the wine, his hand kept wandering between the hairpin and the pistol.

When daylight was about to break, Cherikov finally reached out and untied the hussar-style braid on his head.

He didn't know how to tie his hair, but he still followed the example of the guarding soldiers, tying the unbraided hair around his head randomly, and tore off a piece of fabric from his clothes with his teeth to tie it up.

After a final hesitation, he finally inserted the hairpin into his randomly pulled up hair.