 The new siege lasted for 10 months, and the victory seemed not a long way off, when king Wladyslaw IV with a small force fought off the Russians from the walls of Smolensk and captured their provisions in Dorogobuzh.Shein's foreign subordinates feuded with each other, their troops being decimated by epidemics, while a large portion of Russian soldiers deserted to their home villages.The position of Shein became very perilous, as the long-awaited reinforcement dallied in Mozhaysk.