Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

There are some veterans in the Moscow Grenadiers Regiment. Igor is now acting as a grenadier, throwing out these Molotov cocktails. After all, he is a grenadier "selected" according to "tradition". Although throwing grenades is rarely used on the battlefield, it can be used today.

The Molotov cocktail was thrown from a long distance and exploded right among the Turks, instantly setting several Turkish soldiers' coats on fire.

But this will also have miraculous effects. After all, it is made of similar materials as "Greek fire", and the burning effect is basically the same. Moreover, after the formula has been improved, this "cocktail bottle" will definitely be more powerful.

Not to mention that when the Russian army makes Molotov cocktails, they prefer to use vodka bottles and then make a mark on the outside to make them look like they are powerful.

After the fire was set on fire, unlike the situation where they had just been knocked down in rows or bombarded with blood and flesh flying everywhere by artillery fire, the Turkish army actually began to retreat and waver.

Although this was only the front row, and only some Turkish soldiers' coats were set on fire, it was still effective.
Speaking of which, what the Turks fear most is probably "going to hell", not to mention that such things happen on earth.

The blazing fire caught the Turkish soldiers off guard for a moment. After the fire started, many of them began to hide from each other, trying not to get burned. After all, this kind of fire was difficult to put out by rolling on the ground.

To be honest, it’s still a problem of the formula. There is no high-intensity oil tank, otherwise we would have to use this ancient flamethrower here.

But this dealt a heavy blow to the morale of the Turks. Even those who were not affected had to avoid those who were burned. This scene was indeed not very friendly to them.

People in the front were still shouting "Allahu Akbar", but now the Russian army started setting fire. Obviously, some people's faith was not so firm, just like their Sultan and some Bayi masters, who began to waver.

Those who believe in it are actually most afraid of going to hell or being punished in "fire". This is mainly aimed at those who do not believe and those who are false believers. For a time, the effect created by the Russian army that set the fire in front also shook the Turkish army in front to the point of near collapse.

The Turkish army lines on both sides were still launching attacks, especially those who were rushing forward with cold weapons. After a fire broke out in the Turkish army's ranks, they began to flee in panic.

Seeing this situation, Shatilov stood on the top of the trench and continued to urge his grenadiers to throw out these Molotov cocktails that usually seemed very dangerous.

It seemed that the Turkish troops were determined to fight to the death this time, but the strange thing was that they were afraid of fire, especially arson on this scale.

For a moment, everything that could be ignited on the ground in front of the Moscow Grenadiers was on fire, and many people were running around with fire on their bodies.

This thing is still not powerful enough. If it were replaced with something else that can burn, such as napalm, it would be a large-scale barbecue scene in front of us, which would be very scary.

But times have changed. Although the Russian army can find oil now, its technological level is far from enough.

Therefore, it was inevitable that there were Turkish soldiers running around who were burned.

The only way to end these people's suffering is probably to shoot a burning body, but everything may not end immediately.

But the chaos caused by the burning objects eventually disrupted the Turkish troops in the front row, giving the grenadiers a chance to rest.

It wasn't just the Moscow Regiment, the Kiev Regiment and the Little Russia Regiment on both sides also did it. This wall of fire always gave them some breathing time.

Solovyov also saw the wall of fire in front of him through a telescope.

"I never thought that setting fire could have such an effect."

"But they can't fight back. All the pressure is on Trubetskoy now."

"Has his division retreated to the second line?"

“It’s already in place.”

"Well, it looks like we can use the terrain to our advantage. If the Turks advance further on their left wing, we can let Arkady's 9th Division attack. We will change our original approach and push the Turkish army's left wing back first."

Because the road here is so narrow, Solovyov's method is always effective, but the direction of the reserve troops he placed behind must be reversed.

At this time, we still have to concentrate on attacking the enemy's left wing. If the plan changes, the previous plan to cut in and hit the enemy in the middle will definitely be canceled.

But this way, it is safer.

Arkady, who had been waiting for a long time, finally got his chance.

He had been standing in front of the line of his soldiers, waiting for Solovyov's messenger to come. The important mission must have required a specific order.

"Your Excellency, the Commander-in-Chief wants the entire 9th Division to be deployed to the right wing to support Prince Trubetskoy."

"Are you sure this is the order?"

Arkady heard Solovyov's deployment in the pre-war meeting, but the situation had changed somewhat, so the direction of his investment was also reversed.

This is also the role of the reserve team. He also mounted his horse in front of the soldiers, drew out his sword and waved it to signal his soldiers to prepare to advance.

The soldiers of the 9th Division also stood up one after another, dusted themselves off, clamped their rifles on their shoulders, lined up in three rows, and then moved forward.

After waiting for a long time, the 9th Division from top to bottom had actually been holding their breath. They always wanted to do something. They were ready to go before, and now it was finally their turn.

"That's a good idea. If we keep going this way, we should be able to drive the Turks out of this valley today."

"You still need reinforcements. If Peric's five regiments of Serbs arrive, we can win this battle."

Clausewitz did not forget to add that now among them, only the dragoons in the Kunev Cavalry Division had not moved.

Although these dragoons are relatively weak except for the Kazan Regiment, these heavy cavalry will always be used last and deployed where they are most needed in battle.

Two Serbian cavalry regiments had already been put into battle on Uvarov's side at this time, and were used to attack the Turkish infantry, which really worked.

When the Serbs fought the Turks, it was like enemies meeting each other with great jealousy. There was not even any need for pre-war mobilization. The two regiments just rushed through the gaps in the Turkish army and broke through two lines of defense, and even got into the second-line Turkish army behind them.

Considering the Turkish army's combat effectiveness, their infantry was not as tough as the Russian army, and they did not put up a defensive formation in time, so several infantry squads were overwhelmed, and the situation suddenly became chaotic. Aziz Ahmed Pasha just thought he had the upper hand, but after the Russian grenadiers set fire, the Russian army also sent cavalry and reserves into the battlefield one after another, and now the situation is not good again.

He did have reserve troops that he could use at the moment, but with the Turkish army's mobilization capabilities, it was obviously difficult to plug the hole in time.

The Serbs even fought their way through his two front lines and were almost reaching the artillery.

If a group of Delian light cavalry who stayed behind had not launched a counterattack, causing these Serbs, who could not be identified as cavalry, to change direction, they could have continued to charge forward.

If the Serbs come to their side, they probably want to cut off the heads of a few Pashas and Baijis.

Among these cavalrymen, many of their family members were killed in Niš and their heads were used to build the wall. Naturally, there was no doubt about this hatred.

At the same time, these hollow squares of Trubetskoy had been resisting the Turks for a long time, and their Sipahi cavalry's constant harassment also put the Russian army into a tough battle.

Now the Russian hussars joined the battle first. Although they were still at a disadvantage in the cavalry battle, they finally forced the Turkish troops to retreat far enough before choosing to return and fight for a while.

He had a chance to catch his breath and quickly deployed his infantry in the second line, which prevented his formation from collapsing.

Unlike Solovyov, a chamberlain general who was always on the front line, he spent most of his time in the palace. However, these nobles were willing to serve for a long time, and except for deserters like Balashov, few of them were cowards.

He even stood beside the soldiers like a regimental commander to boost morale, at least letting all the soldiers know that their division commander was willing to stand by them through thick and thin.

In this way, the Trubetskoy Division, which had weaker combat effectiveness, actually completed Solovyov's order. It did not retreat a single step and firmly resisted the Turkish attack on its position. Some infantry companies even dared to drive back the Turkish army with bayonets.

In the melee, when Arkady came up, the Turkish army was still trying its best to break through the Russian position.

Aziz Ahmed judged that the Russian troops here seemed weaker, so he wanted to take a gamble and pushed all the available troops forward.

This time, the entire flank of the Turkish army was exposed.

For Arkady, he once again faced the enemy's weak flank and rear, and he knew what to do.

After several regiments under his command approached the Turkish army, he did not rush to launch a bayonet charge. Instead, he took advantage of the fact that the Turkish army was forming an array to attack Trubetskoy's side to maintain a diagonal line for his side, and then gradually engaged in battle and engaged the Turkish army.

And several regimental commanders also knew that if the distance was less than ten Arshin (which is ten steps in Russian standard), they should not rush forward and should shoot at least one round first.

It is already noon in Greece in October, and the climate here is obviously quite hot, after all, given the latitude and climate.

Solovyov was still riding on his horse. He did not relax at all and just watched the battle in front of him.

Only after he saw that the 9th Division had already exchanged fire with the Turkish army did he feel relieved.

The only people who look melancholy are probably the Turks.

"Well done. Shoot a few rounds first to confuse the Turks, then attack. We can drive them into the valley, but this still won't be a complete victory."

Solovyov knew clearly that no matter whether he threw the left hook first or the right hook, because of the battlefield environment and the fact that the enemy's commander was still capable, he would definitely not be able to achieve the same resounding victory as before.

Therefore, he hoped to drive the enemy away from the battlefield, or at least prevent them from returning in the near future, and then use some psychological offensive to undermine the morale of the defenders of Thessaloniki. This would be a relatively good result.

After several rounds of shooting, the 9th Division finally launched an attack. They were going to attack from both sides, which made it impossible for the Turks to resist.

However, the Turkish army did not suffer a crushing defeat, but fought and retreated at the same time. At least, it was not as chaotic as the previous Turkish armies.

It seems that the Turks can still hold on, and in this case, they can only fight in a stalemate in the valley.

If the first day of fighting cannot be ended, it will actually be disadvantageous to the Russian army.

After all, although the enemy is still a group of rubbish soldiers this time, they have formed a group. If the consumption continues like this, the Russian army will be seriously damaged. If they fight with consumption, the rubbish soldiers of the Turkish army can be used to exchange for the elite Russian army.

This doesn't sound like a good deal, and Solovyov knows that the most valuable things for him now are his time and the troops he has. He cannot afford to waste them, and it is not easy to replenish them. After the Russian army arrives here, the reinforcements have to come from Skopje, and it will not be timely.

If he could defeat this Turkish army and directly open up the mountain road on the Sofia side, he could ensure smooth traffic. At the same time, if Kamensky the Younger continued to confront the Turkish army, he could send part of the reserve forces to himself. This time he could be able to build a plank road in the open while secretly attacking Chencang.

No matter how you look at it, I'm doing Deng Ai's work, except that I still look very young, and I'm not in charge of military farms.

"We need to work harder. Alkasha, this can only make the enemy retreat. At most, we can destroy one of their columns. This is not enough. If we can defeat and annihilate part of the enemy, then this battle will be successful."

"Unfortunately, nothing is ever perfect. Mick, the good news is that Peric will be here around 4pm."

"His vanguard?"

"Two regiments are already on the road in the distance, but you can't expect the Serbs to run very fast. They are more capable of fighting on the battlefield and in the mountains."

"Yes, many of them are mountain people, and they are all good soldiers. But isn't this also a mountain?"

He also pointed to both sides with his whip, but it seemed that the terrain was not suitable for rushing down the mountain.

"This place is not quite suitable yet, but we still have a chance to try and end the battle before dark."

"Yeah, if it were summer, we could play for a while longer."

The most crucial person in this battle turned out to be the Serbs who came over, which was not unexpected. (End of this chapter)