Chapter 851: Advancing to Another Level

"Recover all the territory".

Whether it was the ruling party or the opposition party, whether it was supporters or opponents, everyone's eyes lit up.

"Do you mean to retake Lorraine and Alsace?" someone asked.

"Yes." Charles nodded affirmatively.

"But we are still chasing the Germans in the Le Francois area." It was Gallieni who asked this question.

He couldn't wait to know what plan Charles had to "recover all the land". This was his dream for many years, but it was so sad that it was ruined by the British when it was about to come true.

"That's what I wanted to say." Charles nodded to Colonel Laurent who had followed him.

Lieutenant Colonel Laurent understood and handed a large stack of documents to the guard, who distributed the documents.

The document was nothing special, just a map of northeastern France including the Alsace region of Lorraine.

Charles talked freely:

"Look at the map, gentlemen."

"The German 17th Army rushed to Reims overnight to reinforce, and now it is in a state of disarray along with the 18th Army."

"Their retreat route must be to Le Francois first and then to Toul, and then to consolidate the Nancy defense line or return to Metz."

(The red line in the above picture is the retreat route of the two German army groups, the blue circle is the main force of the British army that was repelled by the German army, and the black circle is the French Eastern Army Group that was repelled by the German army.)

Gallieni, who was familiar with the battlefield situation, immediately understood Charles's idea. He said excitedly, "What the lieutenant general means is that as long as the British and the French Eastern Army Group launch a counterattack, the Germans will be completely defeated?"

Charles nodded affirmatively:

"Yes, Your Excellency."

"The main force of the British Expeditionary Force is in the Fort Dulevon area, where they have more than 200,000 troops."

"The main force of the French Eastern Army Group is in Miercourt, with more than 200,000 troops and more than 200 tanks from the 2nd Special Artillery Division."

"The German Nancy defense line is very empty. If we can launch an attack at this time..."

There was a burst of noise in the conference room.

Although the British Expeditionary Force and Army Group East were not strong enough, the main force of the German army was being hunted down by Charles's troops in the Le Francois area.

The Nancy Defense Line only had the German 2nd Army, which had to defend not only the Nancy Defense Line but also the Meuse River Defense Line.

It can almost be said that as long as the British and French armies are willing to attack, the German army will undoubtedly be defeated.

Gallieni immediately gave his support: "This is a very good plan. Once we successfully organize these two forces and launch a counterattack, it is very likely that we can drive the Germans out of the country in one fell swoop and recover all the territory including Lorraine and Alsace!"

Gallieni is different from other politicians. He does not take sides with any party, but considers issues from the perspective of France's interests. He supports anything that is beneficial to France, otherwise he opposes it.

The battle plan proposed by Charles at this time was undoubtedly beneficial to France, very beneficial.

Therefore, Charles didn't even need to "communicate" with Gallieni in advance.

Clemenceau stood by and said nothing. He still didn't understand what Charles was doing.

At this time, shouldn't Charles fight the Germans as long as possible, so as to continuously erode the power and assets controlled by parliamentarians and capitalists?

Could it be that Charles already had enough power and acquired enough assets that he no longer needed the external threat of the Germans?

Suddenly, Clemenceau understood what Charles was thinking.

He was stunned, God, this guy was taking it to another level!

After thinking for a while, Clemenceau decided to lend a helping hand to Charles, because standing on Charles' side was undoubtedly the best choice.

"Gentlemen!" Clemenceau shouted to the deputies:

"Things may not be as simple as you think, nor as simple as Vice Admiral Charles said."

"Do you know why our army, including the British Expeditionary Force, is so vulnerable?"

"They clearly had far more troops than the Germans, with a combined strength of nearly one million, but they were completely defeated by a German army of more than 200,000 men."

The congressmen nodded one after another. This was the reality that happened on the battlefield not long ago, and no one could refute it.

"I think it was because there was no unified command," Clemenceau continued. "The British and French armies fought separately. At the same time, there were many internal conflicts in the British Expeditionary Force, and there was even a large-scale mutiny in the colonial army. This gave the Germans an opportunity to take advantage of it."

Members agreed that this was a well-known fact.

But at this time, the faces of some opposition members had changed. They understood Charles' intention and the purpose of Clemenceau's words.

Sure enough, Clemenceau's voice gradually became louder and louder, and he even raised his hands to call on everyone:

"So, if we want to win this battle, if we want to retake all our territory, counterattack alone is not enough. It is far from enough!"

"We should have a unified command, a complete battle plan, and we should be able to make all colonial troops willing to fight for us."

"Otherwise, how could we defeat the well-organized and combat-experienced Germans?"

"We will be blocked by the Germans at the Nancy Line just like before, unable to advance an inch. The British colonial army won't even take a step forward!"

"Let us unite together, only in this way can we have a great victory!"

The atmosphere in the meeting room was heated, the blood of the members was aroused, and even some opposition members shouted:

"Unite and retake Lorraine and Alsace!"

"Drive the Germans out once and for all."

"It's time to let the Germans know how powerful we are!"

…

Gallieni now understood Charles's intention.

Unite and unify command to make the colonial army willing to fight for us.

Who has the ability to unite the British and French forces?

Who is capable of commanding such a large army and achieving victory?

Who can make the colonial troops willing to fight for the Allies?

The answer to all the questions points to one person: Charles.

This guy wants to take control of the Eastern Army Group, the British Colonial Army, and even the British Expeditionary Force!

Gallieni, who was standing in the audience, glanced at Charles who was standing on the podium. He saw Charles standing there as if nothing had happened, with a blank expression on his face, as if everything that happened in the conference room had nothing to do with him.

Sly fellow, Gallieri thought.

Later, when someone suggested that Charles lead this "hunt and kill campaign", he would definitely pretend to refuse:

"No, no, no, I'm just the commander of the Heavy Armored Army Group. I'm not really suitable for this."

"A battle of this magnitude should be commanded by General Foch, after all, he is the commander-in-chief."

"I will resolutely obey the command of General Foch. I believe that under his command we will surely achieve victory!"

…

However, the main demand of the colonial army during the mutiny was that Charles command the battle.

Does Foch dare to take on this hot potato?

Can he take it?

(End of this chapter)