Ch.17The Bulldog and the Princess

# Northern Manchuria

When the Russian Civil War broke out and Russians began fleeing to Northern Manchuria with occasional military presence, Zhang Zuolin, the warlord of Fengtian who controlled the Three Northeastern Provinces, deployed troops to Northern Manchuria along the Russian border.

The Fengtian Army stationed there had been watching Russian troops almost daily.

It wasn’t surprising since the White Army was receiving support through Manchuria for the civil war, but recently they seemed to be openly reconnoitering the area.

“Haven’t Russian troops been appearing more frequently lately?”

“They’re getting supplies from the Americans. That must be why.”

“Hehe. Then we should take a cut too. As a toll fee.”

“That sounds good.”

While the Fengtian Army, unable to hide their bandit origins, was thinking about profiting from the situation…

A mounted army was approaching from the distance.

“What are those? A cavalry division?”

“Which side are they from? Wait, why aren’t they stopping?”

These Russian troops were unusual.

There were white people speaking languages they didn’t understand, but also Asians who spoke Chinese or Manchurian like themselves.

“Eliminate the Chinese bandit groups and protect the Russians in Northern Manchuria!”

An army speaking various languages not commonly heard in China. Their flags confirmed they were Russian forces, but the Fengtian soldiers never imagined Russian troops would advance southward.

Actually, Ungern’s forces were somewhat ambiguous as regular White Russian troops. It was his Asian Cavalry Division that had entered Northern Manchuria.

“We must send a messenger to the Marshal!”

“Hold them back for now!”

“How dare you defy Greater Russia, heir to the Mongol Empire! Manchuria is Mongol territory and rightfully Russian domain!”

“What nonsense—”

At this time, despite Zhang Zuolin’s Fengtian Army having participated in the Zhili-Fengtian War and wielding influence in Manchuria, their limitations were clear.

They had only experienced banditry and small-scale battles in the Northeast, making their combat effectiveness inferior.

Though Ungern’s cavalry division wasn’t large in numbers, it consisted of Poles, Russians, Buryats, Tatars, Bashkirs, Mongolians, some Chinese, Manchus, and various other ethnicities. Under Ungern’s command, they utilized superior horsemanship to quickly defeat the Fengtian Army.

Zhang Zuolin’s Fengtian forces stationed at the Chinese-Russian border were thoroughly defeated, like having their wallets stolen by thieves.

Though Zhang hadn’t stationed his main forces there due to confrontations with other warlords, tens of thousands of troops still suffered a devastating defeat against Ungern’s few thousand, either dying or fleeing.

Ungern dismissed this as merely a conflict.

Northern Manchuria fell into Ungern’s hands, but Zhang Zuolin, Marshal of the Three Northeastern Provinces, couldn’t reclaim it.

“Those bastards!”

Though Ungern’s forces were numerically inferior to the Fengtian Army, Zhang Zuolin hesitated to commit troops due to the significant difference in combat effectiveness.

If he defeated Ungern, the White Russian forces gaining advantage in the civil war might use that as a pretext to advance into Manchuria.

Moreover, Russia had the backing of the great powers.

Zhang Zuolin contacted Japan requesting support, but Japan, planning to divide Manchuria with Russia rather than military intervention, had no intention of helping the Fengtian warlord over Northern Manchuria, which the great powers had tacitly approved.

In actual history, Zhang Zuolin would have been planning to oust Zhang Zuoling, the Jilin Military Governor, but this incident made that impossible.

For Zhang Zuolin, based in Fengtian, the territory seized by Ungern’s surprise attack was practically his front yard.

At this time, Zhang Zuolin hadn’t yet ousted Zhang Zuoling, the Jilin Military Governor, so he wasn’t fully dominant in the Three Northeastern Provinces.

Ungern’s southward advance was a significant blow to Zhang Zuolin, who had been making great strides in the Zhili-Fengtian War.

“Zhang Zuolin got what he deserved!”

Meanwhile, Zhang Zuoling, the Jilin Military Governor who was declining under Zhang Zuolin’s pressure, was greatly impressed by the White Russian Army after this incident. Unlike the original history where he would have been ousted by Zhang Zuolin, he instead aligned himself with the White Russian Army.

***

Northern Manchuria had fallen into our hands.

“How is this possible? How did this happen?”

According to Ungern, he had eliminated Zhang Zuolin’s bandit groups and planted the imperial tricolor flag in Northern Manchuria.

Now he was reportedly crushing the Reds in Harbin.

Zhang Zuolin had retreated to Southern Manchuria and was regrouping there, but there was also good news.

Zhang Zuoling, the Jilin Military Governor, wanted to join our side.

Somehow, we had gained influence in Jilin Province as well.

And so another year passed.

I introduced a planned economy under the pretext of rebuilding the Russian economy, making it slightly socialist-flavored just to make our revolutionary idol Lenin have a fit.

Of course, it was a planned economy in name only. It was really just a controlled economic policy with strengthened government intervention in the market economy.

These policies, pushed through before even ending the civil war, had a slight socialist flavor, but the important point was that we attempted them before the Soviet Union did.

Things that would originally become known as representative Red policies because the Soviet Union implemented them were now being reborn in Anastasia’s hands.

This might even minimize damage during the Great Depression.

What could Lenin do in response?

He would have to find something new that didn’t overlap with me. Whatever policy he came up with would likely be based on their ideology of prohibiting private property.

The Soviet Union was currently unable to do anything properly.

All they had left was the task of eliminating White Russia.

Focusing solely on military buildup would only earn the resentment of Soviet citizens.

Eventually, people would say “The Tsarist era was better!” and more would defect to our side.

They would just repeat that vicious cycle.

Of course, we weren’t in perfect shape either during the civil war, so our policies couldn’t be implemented properly.

But isn’t it better to at least try to do something rather than being unable to say anything?

The response from Russians in White forces, whether in the United States or elsewhere, wasn’t bad either.

“Doesn’t this taste a bit Red?”

“How dare you! What’s Red about the policies our Grand Duchess is implementing! Are the Reds implementing policies like our Grand Duchess? At most, they’re just copying her.”

“That’s true.”

“Then that settles it! How can you compare those incompetent Bolsheviks to us?”

The Bolsheviks were Satan’s horde and incompetent.

The Bolsheviks were dirty cockroaches who only knew how to seduce with honeyed words.

The recent infamy attached to the Bolsheviks was clear.

Bolsheviks were absolutely evil. Filthy vermin that shouldn’t be dealt with.

Idiots who only knew how to conscript soldiers. That was about it.

While Trotsky was rebuilding the shattered army and gathering millions of soldiers, here they would have to be more mindful of the people.

They do nothing but conscript soldiers.

People would eventually say the Tsarist era was better.

The brain-dead Bolsheviks.

A Grand Duchess who survived alone and was struggling to win back the hearts of her subjects.

Of course, given our circumstances, not all reforms were being implemented effectively. But clearly, with the civil war having created distinct factions and no established powers to oppose us now, my Russia was slowly beginning to benefit from reforms.

Naturally, people would eventually come to White Russia, where I, the last Romanov Grand Duchess, resided.

It didn’t seem like the Whites would lose this civil war.

No matter what they did, they couldn’t match me.

Or they might collapse on their own.

Well, that was settled.

I looked up at the Anglophile standing before me.

This British bulldog who had been irritated that I was ignoring him and just reading reports.

Winston Churchill.

The man known as “Mr. Gallipoli” for sacrificing countless Commonwealth young men at Gallipoli.

This man, who had received plenty of criticism and looked like an obscure general, had come here personally as a special envoy.

He certainly came at a good time, after the recapture of Southern Russia.

“So what will you do about Northern Manchuria?”

“Before that, let me ask you something, Grand Duchess.”

“Yes.”

“Do you really have no intention of going into exile elsewhere? If you wish to maintain your position, we could tear apart the Ottomans and establish a Grand Duchy in Constantinople as your domain. The Grand Duchy of Rome, the Grand Duchy of Constantinople. How does that sound?”

Didn’t the Great War end in a draw?

Ah, so the Ottoman Empire is to be sacrificed.

Austria also took responsibility and became “what was once the Dual Monarchy,” but Germany, the main axis power, remained quite intact.

Among the Entente powers, France probably foamed at the mouth the most.

Britain would have been fine since the Kaiser begged and handed over all the colonies.

But those wouldn’t have gone entirely to France. So they’re tearing apart the Ottoman Empire to show off? “We won. Look at us.”

How badly do they want to tear apart the Ottoman Empire?

That’s beyond dissolution.

More importantly, Constantinople? Are they suggesting I become the ruler of the Grand Duchy of Constantinople, from the Ottoman’s Constantinople?

Considering Anastasia’s title as Grand Duchess, a Grand Duchy would be appropriate, but is it really mine to take?

I have no intention of going there anyway.

Of course, for Russia, which calls itself the Third Rome, it would be territory that should naturally be taken.

This might just be a test.

I should at least pay lip service.

“If I had Constantinople as my domain, the late Tsar would be pleased that the glory of Eastern Rome had been restored.”

What good is gaining Constantinople after losing all of mainland Russia?

Is that even possible?

Even if they just handed it over, without support, a Grand Duchy would be meaningless. It would survive pitifully like Luxembourg.

This is practically mockery.

This damn Gallipoli bastard.

Bald since youth, yet he treats me like I know nothing.

“Are you mocking me right now?”

“Pardon?”

“You can’t even tolerate Northern Manchuria. Isn’t that what you’re saying? Your loyal dog Japan sank the entire Russian fleet. Are you worried we’ll advance into the Pacific? Or are you dismissing us because of our current state?”

This Gallipoli bastard.

He should be grateful I’m not calling him “Mr. Gallipoli” to his face. Yet he speaks so irritatingly.

At my words, this balding bulldog finally started in surprise and waved both hands.

“That was absolutely not my intention. Please don’t misunderstand. It seems I misspoke and upset you, Grand Duchess. Northern Manchuria is not difficult at all. The Grand Duchy of Rome was merely a strategic contingency plan.”

“Then?”

“If after the civil war, you guarantee the independence of Ukraine, Poland, the Baltic states, Belarus, and Finland, which became independent under the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk, then the Caucasus, Mongolia, and Northern Manchuria will all become your jewels.”

The Caucasus? Ah, that place too.

Originally, after Germany’s collapse, British forces were stationed there, but has that changed in this history?

Even Britain would find it difficult to station troops in areas Germany had to relinquish. They couldn’t remain in the Caucasus.

Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan.

They’re acting like they’re giving away their own land.

They should give us what belongs to us.

If we are to successfully defeat the Reds, we need to gather as much strength as possible.

The Caucasus is no exception.

“Hmm, is that so.”

After taking all the sweet lands Germany seized.

Poland, the Baltic states, Belarus, Ukraine.

Among these, Ukraine is responsible for Russia’s food supply, but later we’d need to increase free trade or Russia’s own production.

However, within the White forces, there are those who dislike losing Ukraine.

Even Pyotr Wrangel, present here, looks displeased.

Getting Ukraine back is something I’d like but is difficult.

It’s realistically impossible.

They don’t have the capacity to manage these areas directly, so it seems they want to establish pro-British governments and extract guarantees of independence from Russia.

Well, fine.

I don’t know how long I’ll be here anyway, and if the Anglophiles stop their support because I refuse to accept this, it would become troublesome.

Yes. If that’s the case, there’s no choice.

“I appreciate your directness. Then the great powers must recognize our White Russia as the legitimate government of Russia.”

“Of course. How could we recognize and engage with those Satan-worshippers as a government? The Reds must be crushed. His Majesty the King of the British Empire has approved this.”

Seeing how smoothly things are progressing, they must be quite afraid of the Red plague.