African Entrepreneurship Record

Chapter 1312: Chapter 321: The Kazan Treasury Heist

This was naturally not because Russia’s Provisional Government had a sudden pang of conscience; after all, Russian nobility and capitalists were essentially one family, not clearly divided, especially in local regions. They wouldn’t go for complete extermination but rather would resort to massive bribery to stabilize the situation.

Therefore, Russian local powers such as Kazan are currently observing the Labor Party regime, with rumors swirling in Saint Petersburg, making it difficult to distinguish truth from falsehood; even the upper echelons of Russia find it hard to know the real situation.

However, Beliazovka, this bandit leader, actually knows about the state of affairs thousands of miles away and within Russia, which indeed seems miraculous to Chubalov.

Of course, upon thinking that Beliazovka could obtain weapons for the army through fixed channels, Chubalov was no longer surprised.

He conversely said with some excitement, ”Does the general mean that the domestic situation is chaotic now, and whatever we do, the Central Government won’t have the energy to deal with us?”

Beliazovka nodded and said, ”Not only that, but the current situation is such that whoever has guns will gain control of a large region. If we can take Kazan, sealing you as a governor in the future isn’t impossible.”

”Has the situation... deteriorated to such an extent?” Chubalov asked, somewhat unsure.

Beliazovka affirmed, ”Naturally, the rebels in Saint Petersburg are different from before. They’re organized by workers and soldiers from Saint Petersburg, and the entire Russian government sees them as deadly enemies.”

”Once we take Kazan City, as long as we win over the nobles in the city, we could dominate the region in the future.”

Beliazovka tried to convince his subordinates as much as possible, though the Russian Labor Party in Saint Petersburg wasn’t as weak as he portrayed.

After all, they dared to seize power in Saint Petersburg, meaning they were well-prepared, especially in confronting domestic reactionary forces.

The Labor Party’s strength lies in grassroots organization, through which their influence isn’t limited to Saint Petersburg.

In the army and local areas, their infiltration is quite successful; with a call to arms, many regions centered around Saint Petersburg could quickly change flags, especially in cities where the Labor Party is active.

Actually, in big Russian cities like Kazan City, there surely are Labor Party organizational activities, though they’ve not mobilized workers and soldiers yet, as the city is somewhat distant from Russia’s core, and transformation requires time to propagate.

Beliazovka plans to exploit this time gap to seize control of Kazan.

Beliazovka disregarded his subordinates’ opinions and ordered Chubalov, ”Pass my order to advance towards Kazan.”

Beliazovka’s army consisted mainly of local bandits, and they were all cavalrymen, a typical characteristic of Russia’s ”horse bandits.”

Over ten thousand cavalry galloped towards Kazan, leaving large hoof prints in the snow, with mud being mixed with snow turning into black water.

Under these conditions, Kazan’s garrison was unaware of the impending disaster, thinking who would gather such a large band of ”bandits” outside Kazan City amidst snowy weather?

Even though the snowfall made marching difficult, Beliazovka’s gang arrived in Kazan before noon.

At this time, Kazan City’s defenses were extremely weak, underestimating such a bandit force daring to attack Kazan City and even mistaking Beliazovka’s army as reinforcements from the East supporting the Siberian front.

This was not unprecedented; during the most intense battles on the eastern front, the Tsar government frequently transferred troops from the East, including the Siberian region, and Kazan was an actual transportation hub city.

Thus, many Russian troops supporting the frontlines shuffled through Kazan, plus Beliazovka’s troop’s typical Cossack army attire made things even harder to discern.

By the time the Defense Army reacted, it was too late; after a short, urgent battle, Beliazovka’s gang easily controlled the eastern part of Kazan City.

However, Kazan was a big city, with several thousand troops stationed inside and possessing advantageous terrain, making it not easy for Beliazovka’s team to take Kazan.

...

Inside Kazan City.

”It started, it’s probably the ’Pelican’ operation; ’Nightingale’, how’s your preparation?” said an ordinary-looking middle-aged man in a base within Kazan City.

’Pelican’ was a codename, referring to Beliazovka, and evidently, Beliazovka was a fake name. His real identity was a National Defense Security Bureau agent.

The man referred to as Nightingale replied, ”Everything is ready, sir.”

”According to our intelligence, since the war began, a lot of Russian precious metals, currency, etc., have flowed into Kazan through various channels.”

”According to insider information, this huge sum could be involved in transactions between Russia, Japan, and the United States, though specific figures are unclear. However, Kazan’s treasury has extraordinarily stringent security measures.”

”The guards at the treasury number about a thousand, with only a contingent of three hundred armed Russian security personnel being formidable, while others are hardly worth fearing.”

From Nightingale’s account, East Africa’s National Defense Security Bureau’s plan in Kazan was revealed; the operation was bold beyond belief.

That plan was to rob Kazan’s Russian treasury, with Beliazovka’s so-called ”Kazan Army” naturally being a gang supported by East Africa’s National Defense Security Bureau.

The attack and occupation of Kazan were a facade, with the real goal being the looting of Russia’s treasury in Kazan, while it’s obvious why the National Defense Security Bureau knew of the treasury here.

This is easy to explain since East Africa’s National Defense Security Bureau is the world’s largest and most professional intelligence agency with the most personnel.

Solely within Russia, East Africa’s National Defense Security Bureau personnel numbered in the tens of thousands, indicating the seriousness of East Africa’s infiltration in recent years.

Confronted with such a large intelligence network infiltrating its nation, Russia remained unaware, as the war consumed its attention.

Hence, East Africa’s National Defense Security Bureau’s operations in Russia have been straightforward in recent years. Aside from the Labor Party, most Russian government organizations, agencies, and important enterprises have East Africa’s National Defense Security Bureau personnel.

This allowed the National Defense Security Bureau to secure vast amounts of useful information, including funds flow within many Russian enterprises or government sectors, leading to Kazan’s treasury being identified since the Tsar Era, with an abnormal influx of foreign currency and precious metals into Kazan.

However, the National Defense Security Bureau previously chose not to act, accumulating relevant intelligence for this day, waiting for Russia’s total collapse, amidst chaos, an opportunity to fish in troubled waters.

Of course, East Africa’s National Defense Security Bureau was aware of Kazan’s strong Russian government forces, hence supporting the ”Kazan Army” to utilize war as a deceit.

Beliazovka’s forces are now engaged with Kazan’s garrison, drawing the city’s attention, residents hiding homes afraid to venture out.

This provided East Africa’s National Defense Security Bureau personnel within Kazan City with the opportunity.

Thus, Kazan’s National Defense Security Bureau’s highest commander, Gold, ordered, ”Proceed with our previous deployment; assault Kazan’s treasury!”

Thereafter, over two thousand National Defense Security Bureau elites within Kazan, alongside some deceived Russian bandit gang members, approximately over four thousand strong, launched aggressively towards the treasury.

They drove trucks loaded with weapons and explosives boldly towards the treasury, having long determined Kazan treasury’s detailed information, with only minor discrepancies.

Yet, these details no longer mattered, as the National Defense Security Bureau planned a direct assault from the start rather than recruiting internal personnel, which wasn’t feasible anyway.

Thus, at the end of 1917, while Beliazovka’s gang attacked Kazan City, an event comparable to a major military conflict, a heist occurred inside Kazan City.

Russia’s treasury in Kazan was forcibly exploded, with reports indicating approximately a hundred tons of gold and other valuables vanished mysteriously.

Posterity mostly assumed the treasures were taken by Beliazovka’s gang after seizing Kazan, though no one knew where Beliazovka’s gang hid the gold.