Chapter 667 The Most Anxious Person

Gallieni discussed the details with Charles for a while, and suddenly thought of something. He looked up and asked Charles: "If this is the case, how should I refuse Haig? Tell him the whole battle plan?"

Gallieni believed that this would not only help Haig eliminate his doubts about France and Charles, but also allow the British army to prepare in advance to cooperate with the French counterattack.

But Charles shook his head: "This is not a good idea, General."

"We can consider doing this, Charles." Gallieni insisted: "After all, it is a matter of life and death for the British army. Haig will not be stupid enough to reveal the intelligence to the Germans. It will not do him any good."

"Really?" Charles asked back, his tone calm.

"Is there any problem?" Gallieni looked at Charles puzzledly.

The French system does not allow military personnel to engage in business or politics, and Gallieni firmly adhered to this point, so he had almost no knowledge of these two areas and had no idea how terrible and unscrupulous the political and business fields were.

"It's like this." Charles drew a line in the Ardennes Mountains with his finger. "The difficulty for the armored forces to pass through the Ardennes Mountains is not just a matter of roads and supplies. Once our plan is known to the enemy in advance, even if the Germans only get a little wind of it, it is likely to lead to the annihilation of our army."

Gallieni nodded his assent.

If the Germans knew in advance that Charles's troops would infiltrate from the Ardennes Mountains, they only needed to send a detachment of infantry to ambush in the forest and wait for the opportunity.

In the jungle warfare in the mountains, the armored forces that are highly dependent on roads and terrain are useless. Charles' elite armored forces will be surrounded by German infantry and fall into desperate situations.

"I am not used to leaving my fate in the hands of others, General," said Charles, "especially those who are my competitors in military, political and business affairs."

Gallieni was stunned: "There is competition between politics and business?"

He could understand that there was competition in the military. Charles' victory formed a sharp contrast with Haig's "record", which made Haig and even the British army a laughing stock in the world, and also shook the colonial army's confidence in Britain's number one position in the world.

But in politics and business, Haig was a British soldier. How could he compete with Charles, a French lieutenant general?

Charles answered calmly:

"My military success will affect Haig's political development, General."

"As for the business community, because I controlled the materials and built insurance and shipping companies in the UK, I offended almost all British businessmen."

"They now hate me to the core, and I believe that the King, Kitchener and Haig all wish me bad luck."

Gallieni suddenly realized.

This is the case that a big tree attracts the wind. The rapid growth of the Shire has infringed the interests of many people, including the British.

If the information was revealed to Haig, Haig might really take this opportunity to get rid of Charles.

Or, at least pull Charles down from the throne of the undefeated god of war, so as to at least break the colonial army's admiration and fantasy about Charles' command ability.

As for the life and death of the British army, that is a matter of the country and the people. There are also many colonial troops among them. How can it be more important than their personal interests?

Thinking of this, Gallieni nodded heavily: "You are right, I will take care of this!"

Then, he turned his gaze to the map on the table, and after hesitating for a moment, he analyzed it seriously:

"We have reason to believe that the First Panzer Army and the Sixth Army are the backbone of Belgium."

"Once we get them out of Belgium, the Germans will use the Liege fortress as a base for their counterattack."

"This will put the Allies in a difficult position and is obviously not a wise choice."

Charles said: "Haig may not believe this..."

"It doesn't matter." Gallieni interrupted Charles: "Albert I also has the right to know about this matter. I believe he will agree with my idea."

Charles was speechless for a moment.

He found out that he was wrong, Gallieni was a man who understood politics.

Albert I was the last person to want Charles's troops to leave Belgium, and once he knew this, Gallieni might not need to do anything.

…

Hasselt, the capital of Limburg province.

Under the starry night sky, Albert I held a dinner with a dozen politicians at the City Hall.

Everything at the banquet was kept simple. The buffet table was filled with some common cakes and fruits. The lights were replaced by candles. The violinist was a local who was temporarily invited. One could even clearly hear a few discordant noises during his performance.

But these did not affect Albert I's interest. He knocked on the cup to attract everyone's attention, climbed two steps and stood on a high place, his voice loud and passionate:

"Ladies and gentlemen!"

"I am happy to emphasize once again that we are in Hasselt! We are already standing on the border between Belgium and the Netherlands."

"What I need to worry about more now is how to maintain the supply of more than 500,000 German prisoners!"

The politicians cooperated and laughed easily.

Albert I then continued:

"We are only one step away from retaking all of Belgium."

"The Liege Fortress is only a dozen kilometers away from us. It is the entrance for the Germans to invade Belgium. As long as we can capture it, we will lock all the invaders in our territory with nowhere to escape."

"And I firmly believe that under Charles' leadership, our brave Belgian people will be able to accomplish this great mission!"

"Long live Belgium, glory to us all!"

The politicians loudly repeated Albert I's call, and uttered exclamations and cheers.

At this time, in the corner near the aisle, a signalman quietly pushed the door open. He looked around nervously at the crowd, and when he saw Major General Eden, he hurried forward, whispered a few words and handed over a telegram.

Major General Eden's face changed. He took the telegram, nodded, and ordered the signalman not to make it public. Then he walked towards Albert I as if nothing had happened.

At this time, Charles was enough to decide the fate of Belgium. His transfer might instantly make the Belgian military and civilians lose their fighting spirit, and all the previous achievements of Belgium might be wiped out.

Major General Eden believed that no amount of caution could be too great in this matter.

As he approached, Major General Eden leaned over and whispered a few words to Albert I.

Albert I, who was originally excited, suddenly looked gloomy. He looked coldly at Major General Eden and asked in a low voice: "Is this true?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." Major General Eden secretly put the telegram into Albert I's hand: "A telegram from General Gallieni."

Albert I did not read it carefully. He simply folded the telegram and stuffed it into his pocket. He put on a friendly smile and nodded frequently to both sides. After saying sorry, he hurriedly left with Major General Eden.

(End of this chapter)