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"Support the Qing Dynasty to deal with the Chinese Empire?" Tsar Nicholas I frowned, as if considering the feasibility of the plan of Foreign Minister Nisserrodie... He knew that Nisserrodie would not exaggerate, and the Chinese Empire might really become a great enemy of Russia. However, at this stage, considering these things seems to be a bit far away. Russia's current external expansion is still aimed at the Balkans. If it turns rashly, it requires a lot of investment.

Only enter. In addition, the east is too far away. Even if the road infrastructure is not smooth, even if Russia has a large number of troops, it cannot send too many troops to the east. On the vast East-West Siberian plains, Russia has just deployed an army of more than 10,000 people. If it is mobilized on a maximum scale, it can mobilize about 30,000 to 40,000 people. Such a small number of troops seems to be a large army, but it is far from enough to be an enemy of a huge empire with a population of 200 million.

"Your Majesty, we must seize this opportunity. Once the Chinese Empire is unified, it will be difficult for us to curb them again. For this reason, we must seize the opportunity in front of us. Although the Qing Dynasty was corrupt, after being defeated by the Chinese Empire many times, they had already armed a huge army of millions of people. Although the fighting spirit of this army would not be too high and its combat power could not be compared with the Russian army. However, this is already an extremely huge military force. With the support of Russia, the strength of this army will be even stronger. Maybe we can defeat the Chinese Empire in one fell swoop and completely contact the threat from the East to Russia." Earl Nesserrodied tried his best to persuade.

Tsar Nicholas I nodded. However, he was still hesitant to turn Russia's attention to the East.

"Come. Come and find Alexander and Duke Gorchakov." Tsar Nicholas I ordered. Alexander was the eldest son of Nicholas I and the future heir of the Russian Empire. Duke Gorchakov was the commander-in-chief of the Russian army. Nicholas I trusted soldiers, and the prime minister of the government was almost a puppet, just to assist the Tsar in handling government affairs. Important national affairs were almost decided by Tsar Nicholas I or his military assistants who honored him. This made Tsar Nicholas I very stable in the dominance of the dominance of the Russian army very solidified, but it also made Russia become increasingly corrupt. The speed of industrialization development was getting lower and lower, and Russia gradually became the weakest among the Western powers.

Soon, the Crown Prince Alexander and Duke Gorchakov arrived at the Winter Palace to meet with His Majesty the Tsar. Nicholas I asked the Foreign Minister Earl Nesserrodi to introduce to Alexander and Duke Gorchakov the possible threat to Russia, as well as the Eastern strategy of Count Nesserrodi. After hearing this, Alexander and Duke Gorchakov also had a very serious expression. Obviously, they, like Tsar Nicholas I, both ignored the power of the East.

In other words, they believe that the east is too far from Russia, and even if the Chinese Empire grows up, it cannot threaten Russia's core area. After all, Russia's territory is huge, but the most important part is still concentrated in Europe. Although the Ural Mountains have begun to develop near it, it is still far from comparable to the plains of Europe. Even if the Chinese Empire wants to cross the Siberian Plain and attack Russia's European Plain, it is impossible.

"Hisser Earl. What you mean is that we need to change the empire's external strategy now. Do we give priority to the threat to the empire after the rise of the Chinese Empire?" Prince Alexander asked with a frown.

"Yes, His Royal Highness. I believe that a powerful Chinese Empire will be a nightmare for the empire. They have a strong army and navy, and the largest population in the world, and can mobilize the largest army in the world. Any country is an enemy of this huge empire. In addition, what is even more terrifying is that this country is also very greedy for land. They have now swallowed the entire South Ocean and seized Myanmar and Australia from the hands of the British. Next, the only direction of their expansion is India, Central Asia and Siberia. India is the lifeblood of the British, and the Chinese dare not act rashly. Therefore, the direction of their expansion is likely to be Central Asia and Siberia. We need to curb it before the rise of the Chinese Empire!" said Count Nesserrodi.

Prince Alexander nodded, which was considered to be acknowledging the views of Count Nisserrodi. However, he did not make a clear statement on whether he supports the Eastern strategy. In this matter, it mainly depends on the attitude of Tsar Nicholas I. After all, everyone knows that Tsar Nicholas I was ambitious to completely defeat the Ottoman Turkish Empire and thus gain a southern sea outlet for Russia.

"Hisser Duke, how many troops can we use in the Far East? How many troops do we need to dispatch to help the Qing Dynasty defeat the Chinese Empire?" asked Nicholas I. It is obvious that because of the introduction of Count Nesserrodi, he had already attached importance to the threat from the East.

"Your Majesty, we can use not many troops in East Siberia. Governor Muravyov has only more than 10,000 people. In addition, we only have a population of hundreds of thousands in the Far East, and we can mobilize up to 30,000 to 40,000 people to join the army!" said the Duke of Gorchakov.

"Can such an army defeat the Chinese Empire?" Nicholas I said with a frown. Although he believed that the combat power of the Russian army would be far stronger than that of the Chinese Empire. However, in the case of such a large gap in military strength between the two sides, he did not think that Russia would win.

"Your Majesty, we can have the advantage in Central Asia Turkey and Kazakhstan. In that area, we have more than 100,000 troops and can get support from Europe at any time. We can take the opportunity to attack the Xinjiang region where the Chinese are weak." Duke Gorchakov said. Russia has always had ambitions for China's Xinjiang region and has repeatedly supported the Khanate in Central Asia to invade Xinjiang so that Russia can invade Xinjiang at the right time.

"If we send troops from Siberia and Europe to the Far East, or even enter China to fight, how many troops can we send?" Nicholas I asked. He was already planning to send how many troops to destroy the Chinese Empire. In this way, Russia might have a large-scale expansion in the Far East.

"Your Majesty, if we send troops to the Far East or China to fight, we can only send 100,000 people at most. In addition, the original troops in the Far East are only about 150,000 people." said the Duke of Gorchakov.

"Your Majesty, fifteen people are enough. The Qing Dynasty still has millions of troops, and the Chinese Empire's army only has more than 700,000 troops. If the troops they need to deploy in Southeast Asia and Australia, they can be used for the war's army, at most 400,000. In addition, the cavalry of the Chinese Empire is their weakness. If we can send tens of thousands of Cossack cavalry to the Far East, it will be easier for us to defeat the Chinese Empire." said Earl Nesserrodi, Foreign Minister.

"Cossack cavalry? If we send Cossack cavalry to fight in the East, what should we do if we expand on the Balkans?" asked Prince Alexander. The Cossack cavalry is the most important and powerful branch of the Russian army, and has always been the ace force of the Russian army. In the war to defeat Napoleon the Great, the Cossack cavalry played a very important role.

"Alexander, we have more than 100,000 Cossack cavalry and sending tens of thousands of Cossack cavalry to fight in the Far East, it's no big deal." Nicholas I said.

"Your Majesty, if we want to turn to the East, our expansion on the Balkans will probably have to stop. Russia cannot support the battle on both sides, especially one enemy is a powerful opponent like the Chinese Empire." Duke Gorchakov reminded.

Nicholas I was a little hesitant because the Ottoman Turkish Empire had a great conflict with the four countries of China, Britain, France and France for the sake of the shares of the Canal Company. Especially the Kingdom of France and Spain, they formed a joint naval fleet to put pressure on the Ottoman Turkish Empire, which was an excellent opportunity for Russia. If the war broke out, it was likely that the four countries of China, Britain, France and France would unite to start a war against the Ottoman Turkish Empire. At that time, the Ottoman Turkish Empire would definitely not be able to withstand it. In this way, Russia would be able to take advantage of the situation. This was an opportunity that Nicholas I had waited for for a long time before waiting for!

What is facing Nicholas I now is a multiple-choice question, whether it is to go south or east? From his own perspective, Nicholas I was optimistic about expansion in the Balkans. After all, Siberia is just a barren land with ice and snow. The Balkans are rich lands.

Fortunately, Nicholas I did not struggle for a few days, and things turned around. After the news of the Ottoman Turkish Empire surrendered to St. Petersburg, Tsar Nicholas I made a choice. He issued an order to Governor Muravyov, the Far East Governor Muravyov, asking Governor Muravyov to send people to contact the Qing Dynasty. Russia was willing to assist the Qing Dynasty in fighting with the Chinese Empire, on the condition that the Qing Dynasty needed to ced Xinjiang, Mongolia and Northeast to Russia. At the same time, the Russian army also began to dispatch the Far East. In addition to tens of thousands of infantry, there were three Cossack cavalry troops, with a total of more than 50,000 people.

As for the expansion towards the Balkans, we can only give up temporarily and wait for subsequent opportunities. The Ottoman Turkish Empire has the support of Britain and France, and it is difficult for Russia to defeat each other. Nicholas I also believed that perhaps defeating the Chinese Empire first would be a good choice. (To be continued...)
Chapter completed!