第 27 节
作者:你妹找1      更新:2024-12-10 17:43      字数:9322
  〃He is assuring the people;〃 said our interpreter; 〃that they must do here what the Chinese have done in Kobdo and must secure from the Commissioner the assurance of an order to his guard not to prevent the carrying out of their plans。  Also that the Chinese Commissioner must demand from the Russians all their weapons。 'Then we shall take vengeance on the Russians for their Blagoveschensk crime when they drowned three thousand Chinese in 1900。  You remain here while I go to the Commissioner and talk with him。'〃
  He jumped down from the well and quickly made his way to the gate toward the town。  At once I saw the man who was lying with his head under the fence draw back out of his hole; take his white horse from the ditch and then run over to untie the other horse and lead them both back to our side; which was away from the city。  He left the second horse there and hid himself around the corner of the hushun。  The spokesman went out of the gate and; seeing his horse over on the other side of the enclosure; slung his rifle across his back and started for his mount。  He had gone about half way when the stranger behind the corner of the fence suddenly galloped out and in a flash literally swung the man clear from the ground up across the pommel of his saddle; where we saw him tie the mouth of the semi…strangled Chinese with a cloth and dash off with him toward the west away from the town。
  〃Who do you suppose he is?〃 I asked of my friend; who answered up at once:  〃It must be Tushegoun Lama。 。 。 。〃
  His whole appearance did strongly remind me of this mysterious Lama avenger and his manner of addressing himself to his enemy was a strict replica of that of Tushegoun。  Late in the night we learned that some time after their orator had gone to seek the Commissioner's cooperation in their venture; his head had been flung over the fence into the midst of the waiting audience and that eight gamins had disappeared on their way from the hushun to the town without leaving trace or trail。  This event terrorized the Chinese mob and calmed their heated spirits。
  The next day we received very unexpected aid。  A young Mongol galloped in from Urga; his overcoat torn; his hair all dishevelled and fallen to his shoulders and a revolver prominent beneath his girdle。  Proceeding directly to the market where the Mongols are always gathered; without leaving his saddle he cried out:
  〃Urga is captured by our Mongols and Chiang Chun Baron Ungern! Bogdo Hutuktu is once more our Khan!  Mongols; kill the Chinese and pillage their shops!  Our patience is exhausted!〃
  Through the crowd rose the roar of excitement。  The rider was surrounded with a mob of insistent questioners。  The old Mongol Sait; Chultun Beyli; who had been dismissed by the Chinese; was at once informed of this news and asked to have the messenger brought to him。  After questioning the man he arrested him for inciting the people to riot; but he refused to turn him over to the Chinese authorities。  I was personally with the Sait at the time and heard his decision in the matter。  When the Chinese Commissioner; Wang Tsao…tsun; threatened the Sait for disobedience to his authority; the old man simply fingered his rosary and said:
  〃I believe the story of this Mongol in its every word and I apprehend that you and I shall soon have to reverse our relationship。〃
  I felt that Wang Tsao…tsun also accepted the correctness of the Mongol's story; because he did not insist further。  From this moment the Chinese disappeared from the streets of Uliassutai as though they never had been; and synchronously the patrols of the Russian officers and of our foreign colony took their places。  The panic among the Chinese was heightened by the receipt of a letter containing the news that the Mongols and Altai Tartars under the leadership of the Tartar officer Kaigorodoff pursued the Chinese who were making off with their booty from the sack of Kobdo and overtook and annihilated them on the borders of Sinkiang。  Another part of the letter told how General Bakitch and the six thousand men who had been interned with him by the Chinese authorities on the River Amyl had received arms and started to join with Ataman Annenkoff; who had been interned in Kuldja; with the ultimate intention of linking up with Baron Ungern。  This rumour proved to be wrong because neither Bakitch nor Annenkoff entertained this intention; because Annenkoff had been transported by the Chinese into the Depths of Turkestan。  However; the news produced veritable stupefaction among the Chinese。
  Just at this time there arrived at the house of the Bolshevist Russian colonist Bourdukoff three Bolshevik agents from Irkutsk named Saltikoff; Freimann and Novak; who started an agitation among the Chinese authorities to get them to disarm the Russian officers and hand them over to the Reds。  They persuaded the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to petition the Irkutsk Soviet to send a detachment of Reds to Uliassutai for the protection of the Chinese against the White detachments。  Freimann brought with him communistic pamphlets in Mongolian and instructions to begin the reconstruction of the telegraph line to Irkutsk。  Bourdukoff also received some messages from the Bolsheviki。  This quartette developed their policy very successfully and soon saw Wang Tsao…tsun fall in with their schemes。  Once more the days of expecting a pogrom in Uliassutai returned to us。  The Russian officers anticipated attempts to arrest them。  The representative of one of the American firms went with me to the Commissioner for a parley。  We pointed out to him the illegality of his acts; inasmuch as he was not authorized by his Government to treat with the Bolsheviki when the Soviet Government had not been recognized by Peking。  Wang Tsao…tsun and his advisor Fu Hsiang were palpably confused at finding we knew of his secret meetings with the Bolshevik agents。  He assured us that his guard was sufficient to prevent any such pogrom。  It was quite true that his guard was very capable; as it consisted of well trained and disciplined soldiers under the command of a serious… minded and well educated officer; but; what could eighty soldiers do against a mob of three thousand coolies; one thousand armed merchants and two hundred gamins?  We strongly registered our apprehensions and urged him to avoid any bloodshed; pointing out that the foreign and Russian population were determined to defend themselves to the last moment。  Wang at once ordered the establishment of strong guards on the streets and thus made a very interesting picture with all the Russian; foreign and Chinese patrols moving up and down throughout the whole town。  Then we did not know there were three hundred more sentinels on duty; the men of Tushegoun Lama hidden nearby in the mountains。
  Once more the picture changed very sharply and suddenly。  The Mongolian Sait received news through the Lamas of the nearest monastery that Colonel Kazagrandi; after fighting with the Chinese irregulars; had captured Van Kure and had formed there Russian… Mongolian brigades of cavalry; mobilizing the Mongols by the order of the Living Buddha and the Russians by order of Baron Ungern。  A few hours later it became known that in the large monastery of Dzain the Chinese soldiers had killed the Russian Captain Barsky and as a result some of the troops of Kazagrandi attacked and swept the Chinese out of the place。  At the taking of Van Kure the Russians arrested a Korean Communist who was on his way from Moscow with gold and propaganda to work in Korea and America。  Colonel Kazagrandi sent this Korean with his freight of gold to Baron Ungern。  After receiving this news the chief of the Russian detachment in Uliassutai arrested all the Bolsheviki agents and passed judgment upon them and upon the murderers of the Bobroffs。 Kanine; Madame Pouzikoff and Freimann were shot。  Regarding Saltikoff and Novak some doubt sprang up and; moreover; Saltikoff escaped and hid; while Novak; under advice from Lieutenant Colonel Michailoff; left for the west。  The chief of the Russian detachment gave out orders for the mobilization of the Russian colonists and openly took Uliassutai under his protection with the tacit agreement of the Mongolian authorities。  The Mongol Sait; Chultun Beyli; convened a council of the neighboring Mongolian Princes; the soul of which was the noted Mongolian patriot; Hun Jap Lama。  The Princes quickly formulated their demands upon the Chinese for the complete evacuation of the territory subject to the Sait Chultun Beyli。  Out of it grew parleys; threats and friction between the various Chinese and Mongolian elements。  Wang Tsao…tsun proposed his scheme of settlement; which some of the Mongolian Princes accepted; but Jap Lama at the decisive moment threw the Chinese document to the ground; drew his knife and swore that he would die by his own hand rather than set it as a seal upon this treacherous agreement。  As a result the Chinese proposals were rejected and the antagonists began to prepare themselves for the struggle。  All the armed Mongols were summoned from Jassaktu Khan; Sain…Noion Khan and the dominion of Jahantsi Lama。  The Chinese authorities placed their four machine guns and prepared to defend the fortress。 Continuous delibe