#1401 - A sharp turn for the worse

“Another day, another stew with potato pancakes. Life here is nowhere near as good as enjoying fine food and drinks in the city.”

Time flew by, and it was soon time for lunch. The sun had been hanging in the sky for quite a while when the requisition team finally crawled out of bed.

This group had a very irregular schedule and clearly lacked the discipline of a regular army. They were extremely lax; some were still rubbing their sleepy eyes, yawning, and hadn't even bothered to put on their clothes properly.

Of course, the reason for their laxity was that they had been living too comfortably and peacefully for too long. With the support of the Polish government and Germany, they found it hard to find any organization other than the Labor Party that could sufficiently deter them.

However, the Labor Party entered the Belarusian region relatively late. Unlike eastern Ukraine, where industry was relatively developed, the Labor Party had been quite active in the Donbas region since the Tsarist era.

Belarus, on the other hand, had always been a backward agricultural area with hardly any large-scale industry, so the Labor Party's penetration there was relatively slow.

Generally speaking, the Russian Labor Party preferred to seize cities with relatively developed industries first, and then use these cities, which concentrated major resources, as a base to control and occupy other areas.

This also led to the Russian Labor Party's armed forces carrying out grain requisition activities in the countryside during the Russian Civil War, a policy known as the highly controversial “Surplus Grain Appropriation”.

It is no wonder that Soviet agriculture later had persistent problems. Neglecting agriculture too much easily leads to such results.

In Belarus, a region with a weak industrial base that still maintained the agricultural society of the Tsarist era, the old Russian method of cities “encircling” the countryside was difficult to implement.

In the Tsarist era, Russia, as the heartland of Russia, at least had an industrial base that was overwhelmingly superior to the agricultural areas, so the traditional methods of the Russian Labor Party could quickly succeed.

This was effectively proven in eastern Ukraine last year. After seizing the major cities, other areas basically surrendered.

However, in Belarus, not only was there no large working class to support the Labor Party's actions, but even in the very few cities with some industry, it was impossible to carry out a successful “seizure of power,” because Polish and German troops were stationed in almost every city in Belarus. The Poles and Germans were unlikely to empathize with the Labor Party, as they were also part of the “elite” in Belarus.

These factors led to one result: the Russian Labor Party's war in Ukraine was unstoppable, but in Belarus, which is now part of Poland, it was quite difficult.

This also proves that the growth of the working class is positively correlated with the expansion of the capitalist class, and Belarus is clearly not a region favored by capital.

The setbacks in Belarus made the Russian leader Vladimir realize that the activities of the Russian Labor Party in Belarus should not be the same as in Ukraine and Russia in the past, but should fully mobilize the local peasants.

Therefore, since the beginning of this year, the activities of the Russian Labor Party in Belarus have begun to focus on attracting local farmers, which to some extent proves Vladimir's flexibility.

However, it takes time to readjust the policy and rearrange the layout. It has been less than half a year since the Russian Labor Party infiltrated the countryside in Belarus, which is why the White bandit grain requisition team is so careless.

“Kalan Mazov, having something to eat is good enough. This time, the grain requisition in the countryside is not about eating, drinking, and having fun. After all, the countryside is inherently short of supplies, so the key is to get some filial piety from the landlords and gentry. As long as our pockets are bulging, we can do whatever we want when we return to the city!” said Mov Kaski, a member of the White bandit grain requisition team.

Their conversation happened to be overheard by Cherflad, the head of the grain requisition team, who said to Mov Kaski with great appreciation: “Not bad, Mov Kaski, you're a smart kid. It is indeed a bit hard for us to run around in the countryside, but it's not without profit.”

“The gentry in the countryside are very wealthy. Now that we are risking our lives for them on the front lines, they should at least show some appreciation. After the grain requisition is completed, I will take you to the most famous Radvilovich Manor nearby. Count Radvilovich, the owner of Radvilovich Manor, should at least give us some face.”

“Plus the little bit we get from the peasants, this trip won't be in vain.”

Cherflad was obviously taking from both sides. Of course, he did not dare to offend the gentry in the countryside too much, but overall, he still decided who to bully based on their power. For example, several second-rate wealthy households in Luninets Village were “ransacked.”

Cherflad continued: “Let's not worry about these issues for now. The most important thing right now is to fill our stomachs, and then today we will rush to Lyuban Village. After the grain requisition task is completely completed, we will borrow some money from Count Radvilovich.”

Although Cherflad said it easily, some people still asked with insufficient confidence: “Boss, Count Radvilovich's identity is not simple. If we are too rude, that old guy might sue us.”

Cherflad was very dismissive of his subordinate's concerns: “What are you afraid of? Do you still think it's the time of Tsarist rule? I heard that Nicholas II was shot by the Russians. Radvilovich, that old guy, is just a remnant of the old era.”

“Now the Polish and German masters have the most say, followed by the weapons in our hands. In times of war, these remnants of the old era must also restrain themselves.”

“Besides, we are just borrowing some money from them. Compared to the wealth they plunder from the countryside, are we being too excessive?”

“Everyone is ‘grabbing,’ but we are grabbing openly, while they are grabbing secretly by relying on their land and status. When I was farming, I had to pay them a lot of rent.”

Hearing Cherflad's shameless words, his subordinates slandered him in their hearts. After all, Cherflad's past was not a secret. This guy had been idle since he was a child. When he was a little older, he joined a gang, and later he put on a “dog skin” uniform. How could such a person have honestly farmed the land.

If Cherflad said that he had been a thug for the nobles and gentry, it would be more convincing than him saying that he had farmed the land.

Rovta Shenko, who was preparing the food, cursed in his heart: “This Cherflad and Radvilovich are not good people.”

As Cherflad said, he and Radvilovich are essentially the same kind of people, except that Radvilovich's identity and social status are more presentable.

Afterwards, the White bandit grain requisition team began to eat heartily. Although they complained about the poor food, it was still much better than what the real poor people ate. The chicken in the stew was not something ordinary people could eat in this war-torn, resource-scarce era.

Seeing Cherflad and his group begin to eat, Rovta Shenko quietly came to the back kitchen.

He whispered to the three villagers in the back kitchen: “You must leave here immediately as usual. After leaving the courtyard, hurry home and hide, don't go out!”

The three did not know about Rovta Shenko's plan with the guerrillas, so they asked: “What's wrong, Village Chief?”

Rovta Shenko did not explain, but said: “If you don't want to die, do as I say. I will go out with you later, don't ask questions, I'm doing this for your own good.”

However, at this moment, they couldn't worry about what that old guy had done. They could only grit their teeth and do as Rofta Shenko said, because if they stayed here, they wouldn't be able to escape when the truth came out.

So, the four of them pretended to stroll casually through the yard. At this time, the grain requisition team members were enjoying their meal, so no one paid attention to Rofta Shenko's group's small movements.

After passing through the yard without incident and reaching the gate, Rofta Shenko signaled with his eyes. The other three understood and immediately left this place of trouble.

Rofta Shenko also rushed home and knocked on the door rhythmically: one, two, three, one, two, three.

Then, the door was opened, and Rofta Shenko immediately walked in. Rofta Shenko's house was not large, but at this time, it housed more than thirty people.

The entire guerrilla team led by Popov consisted of only these thirty-odd people. This was also why Popov did not support a strong attack on the grain requisition team. Although Popov was confident that he could wipe out the enemy with this small force, his own team would likely suffer heavy losses.

Popov asked, "Village Chief Rofta Shenko, what's the situation with the enemy now?"

Rofta Shenko: "When I left, they were eating. I estimate the drug has already taken effect."

Hearing this, Popov didn't hesitate and said, "Village Chief Rofta Shenko, quickly take us there. This drug is made from a local plant, and its effect is not enough to be fatal. If they scatter into the village, I'm afraid something big will happen."

Being behind enemy lines, Popov's resources were limited, so he had to use local materials.

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So Rofta Shenko quickly led the guerrillas towards the yard where the grain requisition team was located.

When they arrived, the White bandits in the yard were clutching their stomachs, convulsing all over. At this time, they already knew that they had been ambushed, but the pain in their abdomen caused muscle spasms, making it impossible for them to exert any strength.

Therefore, they could only watch helplessly as the guerrillas disarmed them. Secretary Popov said, "The timing is just right. If we were a few tens of minutes late, they might have recovered."

After the drug's effect weakened, although they wouldn't immediately regain their fighting ability, they could still perform small movements such as firing a gun. This was also why Popov rushed to get here, as the drug's potency would continuously weaken over time.

......

With the White bandit grain requisition team's selfless "assistance", the Liuban Village guerrilla team successfully expanded to the surrounding villages such as Luni Nici Village.

Under Popov's leadership, with Luni Nici Village as the center, the "Rural Workers' Party Government" was established. To prevent the encirclement and suppression by the Polish government army of Bilarus City, Popov immediately decided to attack the Radevitch Manor after initially consolidating the regime.

The reason for attacking Radevitch Manor first was that the owner of this manor, Radevitch, had a guard team of more than fifty people under his command. If they were taken down, the guerrilla team could be expanded to nearly two hundred people.

Popov's method of attracting local farmers to join the base area was also very simple: land distribution and rent exemption. To protect the fruits of victory, these farmers would inevitably stand with Popov's rural government.

Subsequently, Popov led his men and horses to engage in a fierce battle with the Radevitch Manor guard team. Unlike the grain requisition team in Chelvrad, the grain requisition team's foundation was in Bilarus City, and they had no base in the countryside.

However, Duke Radevitch was a local tyrant, so although his private armed forces were not large, they still caused trouble for the guerrillas by relying on the terrain advantage. However, in the end, they were outnumbered, and Radevitch himself was wiped out by the guerrillas.

Popov then used Radevitch Manor, which had certain defensive fortifications, as the new office location for the rural government.

At the same time, in Radevitch Manor, the guerrillas seized a large amount of grain and rubles, and even a certain amount of gold, which was the wealth accumulated and plundered by the Radevitch family for generations.

Based on this, Popov's team further expanded, and thus, in the Bilarus region, a rear base area led by the Workers' Party quickly formed.

This was also the first rural base area established by the Workers' Party in Belarus, which had great reference significance for the Russian Workers' Party's activities in Belarus.

Popov's success was quickly noticed by the high-level officials of the Workers' Party in Belarus. Soon after, the Workers' Party began to establish a large number of rural base areas in the Belarusian region.

In less than three months, rural base areas blossomed everywhere in Belarus. During this process, the high-level Belarusian Workers' Party officials were surprised to find that by controlling the rural areas, they inadvertently divided and surrounded the reactionary forces in the cities.

Therefore, in October 1923, the Belarusian Workers' Party decisively reacted, using these base areas as the center and began to frequently attack the enemy's highways, railways, and strongholds. This further shook the already difficult Polish government's rule in Belarus.

In addition to the attraction of the Workers' Party, the Poles' rule was already unpopular. With the leadership of the Workers' Party, the Belarusians were very active in overthrowing the Poles' rule and driving them out of the Belarusian region.

Since October, the situation of Poland and Germany in Belarus began to deteriorate sharply. The Red Army on the front line seized the opportunity and launched a large-scale offensive.

In November, under the circumstances of being attacked from both sides, the Polish and German armies had no choice but to start planning to withdraw from the Belarusian region. Due to limited forces, Germany planned to withdraw its main force back to Poland to confront Russia.

In addition to the Workers' Party's actions in Belarus, an important reason for this situation was that Germany itself could not deploy most of its forces to support the Eastern European battlefield.

Therefore, after eastern Ukraine, the Russian Workers' Party successfully recovered most of the Belarusian region.

For a time, Russia, the evil empire in the eyes of the Western world, once again became the focus of the world. France gloated over Germany's setbacks in Eastern Europe, while its fear of the Russian Workers' Party further increased.

Britain was happy to see the conflict between Germany and Russia, after all, this was the situation that Britain wanted to see when the armistice was signed. The reason for making concessions to Germany was to let Germany and Russia fight each other, so that Germany and Russia would be trapped in the Eastern European region, and they would not be able to pose a threat to Britain. Britain could then more calmly respond to challenges outside of Europe.

After all, both Germany and Russia were land power countries, and the United States and East Africa, the two sea power countries, were Britain's real hidden dangers. Of course, as a member of Europe, the British did not allow a superpower to emerge on the Eurasian continent. Now that Germany and Russia were deadlocked, it was exactly what Britain wanted to see.