Hearing Khrulyov say this, Nakhimov finally breathed a sigh of relief. In truth, the latter had another mission: to ensure that the army would persist in fulfilling its duty until the very last moment of its life.
But the current situation was indeed highly favorable to the Russian army. Topkapi Palace had caught fire, and he had personally witnessed large numbers of buildings collapsing.
It seemed that the Ottoman Empire's imperial palace truly stood on the brink of destruction. If not for the insufficient range of his naval guns, Nakhimov would have wanted to blast the entire palace flat.
Nakhimov swept his gaze over the officers around him. Clearly, his subordinates were extremely interested in Khrulyov's proposal; their eyes had practically begun to glow green.
There was nothing to be done about that. Nicholas I had never stopped promoting Constantinople as a land rich with fat and fertile soil.
All Russians believed Constantinople was a city filled with gold. Even those who had visited Constantinople and returned to testify in person could not change their minds.
Such was the power of a first impression.
From a personal standpoint, Nakhimov supported Khrulyov's approach as well. He also agreed with Nicholas I's theories. Russia had waited too long; the Third Rome needed Constantinople.
"Good. Give me half an hour. I need to contact the commanders of every ship."
An hour later, Russian sailors began landing.
Besides a large number of soldiers, they also brought some mobile artillery. As for the heavy guns, although they too had wheeled carriages, they were unsuitable for transport over such a distance.
Meanwhile, Murad V was seized by a powerful sense of unreality. He had only just arrived at the front when he discovered that the Russians were steadily retreating beneath the attacks of his valiant men,