The next morning, Prince Alexei returned to the camp surrounded by guards and generals.


    At this time, the Cossacks led by Chechen had already withdrawn to konotopu fort, but the traces left by the battle last night did not dissipate.


    The camp was full of corpses, burnt tents and unquenched campfires. Some corpses were burned beyond recognition and posed in all kinds of strange postures; Others were scattered by swords. And being shot with a gun is the happiest way to die.


    Prince Alexei called an officer who was cleaning the battlefield and asked about the losses last night.


    The officer looked at Vassily selemedev in embarrassment because he was Vassily''s subordinate.


    Vasily selemedev knew that the casualties last night must have been extremely heavy, otherwise his officers would not have asked himself so clearly.


    Vasili selemedev blinked, which means he was telling his subordinates to go to Xiaoli.


    Suddenly, Vasili selemedev was frightened out of his wits by a sudden explosion of thunder - the voice of Prince Alexei.


    "Speak frankly!" Prince Alexei shouted to the officer.


    The officer instinctively stood up straight. He said quickly, "Your Highness, we have killed 400 people and injured 3000 soldiers. Five guns have been nailed by the enemy. Some prominent nobles have died in the battle..."


    With a series of names in the mouth of the officers, the Russian generals began to sweat one by one, and their faces became more and more sad.


    Each name represents the loss of their children by a prominent Russian aristocratic family. Many of these noble youths are related to their families, and some are even their own children. They had come to gild on the battlefield, but they left their young lives here. We can imagine how sad and angry the families behind them will be when the news of the death of these noble youths spread to Moscow.


    After giving 23 names, the officer stopped.


    Everyone looked at Prince Alexei one after another, and everyone showed an uneasy expression. Because they don''t know what kind of thunder fire the prince will send down and who will it burn.


    But Prince Alexei was not angry. He just squeezed out a few words from between his teeth: "good, good, good."


    Then the prince turned and waved his cloak and rode on his horse.


    "Withdraw," he said.


    If there is anything more shocking than anger, it is that Prince Alexei trubetzkoy, who never conceded defeat, withdrew because of this small setback.


    After more than six months of preparation, the troops sent from Pskov last autumn gathered 60000 of the most elite troops of Czar Russia, and even brought huge unparalleled stone guns from Moscow. But less than ten days later, the prince was going to withdraw his troops?


    Yes, there were more than 3400 casualties, which was indeed a great loss, but for the Russian army with a total number of 60000, it was far from breaking the muscles and bones; Those families who lost their children would indeed slander the prince in front of the Czar and accuse him of unfavorable fighting, but czar Mikhail trusted the prince. Such a degree of loss is not enough to shake the Czar''s trust in the prince.


    Just as everyone looked at each other and was at a loss, Vassily selemedev stood up.


    "Alexei trubetskoy, you are a coward!" Vassily selemedev shouted at the prince by his name.


    After roaring, he came forward and took the reins of Prince Alexei''s mount.


    "What kind of commander and man are you? If you fail, you want to run away. Where is your unyielding spirit of the Ross nation? Coward and traitor!"


    Everyone was sweating for Vassily selemedev, because no one had ever dared to scold the prince like this.


    With a slap, Prince Alexei''s whip fell on Vasily selemedev''s face, marking his left face with blood.


    "I am the commander in chief. You only need to obey my orders," the prince said to Vassily selemedev without expression.


    But Vasily selemedev''s stubbornness came up. He glared at the prince and didn''t let go of his hand holding the reins.


    "Pull him away," the prince shouted.


    They came forward one after another to hold Vasili selemedev''s arms and feet, and some people broke his fingers.


    "Put Vasili slemedev in the prison car."


    After Vasili selemedev was forcibly pulled away, the prince ordered.


    Then he left without looking back.


    "Coward, coward."


    Behind him, Vasily selemedev''s curses were heard.


    The Czar''s Russian army left, and the defenders in konotopu castle were clear. The defenders cheered again and again to celebrate their victory.


    In a tower of the castle, looking out through the shooting hole of the tower, commander hwadeki withdrew his eyes. He said respectfully to Cherchen standing behind him: "Captain, Congratulations, you defeated Prince Alexei of Czar Russia and 60000 Russian troops."


    Yelishei, Fatima and Pedro, who stood behind Chechen, cheered one after another. Pedro even happily ignored the presence of outsiders and hugged Chechen and let his toes off the ground.


    Pedro, that joy. How many people in this world can defeat such a famous general as Prince Alexei with few enemies. With today''s achievements alone, Cherchen''s reputation will spread all over Europe. He will be proud of Pedro.


    "Uncle, put me down."


    Compared with the excited Pedro, Chechen is full of incredible and doubt. After Pedro put himself down, Chechen went to the shooting hole and looked out again.


    The Russian troops outside the city are indeed pulling out, and some Russian cavalry have even moved towards the horizon.


    "Everyone, from today on, we will strengthen our vigilance and assign two more people to all posts." the first sentence Chechen said after taking back his eyes was to ask everyone to be vigilant.


    "Captain, do you suspect that Prince Alexei''s departure is false and that it''s true to sneak attack when we relax our vigilance?" yelishei asked.


    Cherchen nodded.


    He knew very well that although the sneak attack last night was a heavy blow to the Russian army, according to the statistics of the results of the war afterwards, the casualties of the Russians would not exceed 2000 (this figure is underestimated because the Cossacks could not clean the battlefield), but for the Russian army with a total number of 60000, it was far from breaking bones and muscles. With this loss, Prince Alexei withdrew, and Cherchen couldn''t believe it anyway.


    After listening to Chechen''s analysis, Pedro and others also think it makes sense. The joy that had been ignited by the withdrawal of the Russians dissipated now.


    "These Russians are so crafty that they make me happy in vain." Pedro said angrily.


    But on the fourth day, the news brought by a Cossack deserter made Chechen doubt his judgment.


    The Cossack was a subordinate of Ivan hilko. According to him, Ivan hilko was extremely dissatisfied with Prince Alexei''s withdrawal. He threatened to go to Moscow to report on the prince. As a result, Ivan hilko suffered the same fate as Vasili selemedev and was put in a prison car.


    "Cossacks and Cossacks are brothers. There is no hope to follow the Russians. So I chose to abandon the secret and return to the embrace of Cossack brothers." the Cossack deserter stated his motivation.


    Commander hwadeki was so excited that he came forward and hugged the Cossack and kissed him again and again.


    "Welcome back, boy," said the company commander passionately.


    Then company commander hwadeki released his hand and looked at Chechen.


    "Captain, the news can be confirmed that you did defeat Prince Alexei."


    "Let''s drink to the victory and celebrate," cried Pedro. He untied the kettle at his waist. As we all know, Pedro''s kettle never contained water, but wine.


    The suggestion of Pedro''s celebration was unanimously agreed by all the people present. They looked forward to Cherchen and waited for his decision.


    Che Chen looked at the eager eyes of the people. He opened his mouth and finally said, "OK."


    But immediately, he added, "except for the guards on duty at night."


    At night, the night over konotopu fort was illuminated by fire. From a distance, it was like a burning torch.


    At the bottom of the torch, two thin lines crept in the direction of konotopu castle like poisonous snakes.


    One of them was faster. They slipped into the ditch in front of the fortress and approached the triangle fort.


    The leader raised his head and listened.


    At this time, the fortress was full of cheers and shouts. The man picked up a stone and threw it onto the triangle castle.


    The stone fell to the ground with a crisp sound. But no one shouted the password to ask, and no one fired from behind the breast wall.


    So the man became bold. He took off his green shirt, bit his saber in his mouth, and climbed up.


    As soon as he emerged, he saw a soldier lying quietly on the breast wall, looking as if he were asleep. With the torch beside him, he saw a wine bottle lying on the ground, and the wine in it was scattered all over the ground. Obviously, he was drunk.


    According to Chechen''s request, the soldiers on duty at night in the triangle fort can''t drink. But in the atmosphere of Russian withdrawal, this provision was not strictly implemented. Besides, Cossacks are good at drinking. It''s worse than killing them to watch others drink and not drink at all. So they did everything they could to get yellow soup to satisfy their greed.


    The man looked around again, and there was no one on the city wall as far as he could see.


    So the man climbed up and threw down a thick hemp rope.


    The shadows below climbed up with hemp rope.


    At this time, another team of shadows also arrived. The team carried the ladder. They crawled forward and secretly climbed over the breast wall.


    When dozens of people climbed up the triangle fort, they roared and rushed into the depth of the triangle fort. They quickly knocked down the first batch of enemies they met with pistols.


    The other defenders were surprised that they wanted to resist, but at this time, most people were either drunk or half drunk and half awake. After a weak resistance, they either died under the enemy''s knife or ran away.


    In a hurry, the defeated soldiers did not even pull up the suspension bridge to the main castle.


    Chechen''s previous worries have become a reality.


    Prince Alexei''s withdrawal was just a trick to confuse Chechen. His real purpose was to win the most important support of konotopu fort - Triangle fort with a surprise attack.


    Vasili selemedev, who boarded the triangle fort, showed a ferocious smile. In the light of the fire, the wound on his face that was whipped out by Prince Alexei''s whip was particularly blood red.


    Because the smile affected the facial muscles, Vasili selemedev''s face was aching, but the pain made him more excited.


    "Kill, kill everyone," shouted Vasily selemedev.


    He walked to the drawbridge of the main castle with a knife. A dying Cossack fell to the ground and stood in front of him. Vasili selemedev cut off the head of the Cossack with a knife, then threw it violently and threw it at konotopu.


    The defenders in the city finally realized that they had been attacked after the gunfire in the triangle fort. The first to react, Chechen hurried to the triangle fort with the only team of soldiers who didn''t drink and had combat effectiveness.


    But just in front of the suspension bridge of the main castle, the triangle castle has been lost. As it happens, Cherchen and Vasili selemedev standing opposite the suspension bridge face each other.


    Cherchen has never seen Vasily selemedev. When Chechen dueled with Yakov in Pskov, he happened not to be in the city; Vasili selemedev has never seen Cherchen. Although Cherchen planned the tragic defeat he suffered in the lower residential area of konotopu City, Cherchen did not directly participate in the battle.


    But as soon as they met, they almost immediately realized who the other party was.


    "Vasily selemedev!"


    "Aleval Chechen!"


    They shouted each other''s names at the same time.


    Then, the men and horses of both sides shot at each other at the same time, and the bullets flew sideways for a time.


    Their respective guards put their bodies in front of their respective officers to cover their retreat.


    In this round of gun battle, three people fell on Cherchen''s side, and two of Vasili sheremej were also hit.


    Several Russian soldiers stepped on the suspension bridge. Just then, the suspension bridge began to move - the defenders finally realized that they were going to put it away.


    When the suspension bridge was put away, the people could not stand stably on the inclined bridge deck, fell on the bridge one by one, and then slid into konotopu fort. They were disarmed and taken prisoner by the defenders.


    After a while, the suspension bridge fell again. A small group of soldiers, including German double handed swordsmen and Cossack sailors, rushed out firmly and launched the first counterattack, but they were hit back by the enemy''s fire.


    But immediately, the garrison launched three brave counterattacks to drive the invaders out of the triangle fort; On one occasion, the counterattack was about to succeed, but the Russian soldiers moved the artillery in the triangle fort to direct the counterattack troops, and the defenders had to retreat.


    Between the two attacks, the Russians quickly consolidated their position in the triangle fort. They moved sandbags, soil and firewood from the other side of the triangle fort and built a small barrier facing konotopu fort to prevent the defenders from launching a counterattack from konotopu fort.


    At dawn, the flag of Prince Alexei was flying on the temporary fortifications, which was a key symbol of military occupation.