Chapter 425
France went crazy because of Charles' glorious victory. People took to the streets to celebrate. Bars, clubs, restaurants, etc. were crowded with people, but there were still people who continued to gather, even if they didn't order anything and just stood at the door.
Everyone is talking about this exciting and incredible day:
"It was the best Fourth of July ever, and the Shire ended the campaign before the day was over."
"It's unbelievable. Everyone, including military experts, thought that this battle would take at least half a year, but Ciel only took one day. One day!"
“I wasn’t even mentally prepared for it to be over.”
"We thought that if we could win in half a month or a month, we would be 'deifying' the Shire, but it turns out that the Shire is much more magical than we thought!"
…
It wasn't just France that went crazy about it; the whole world was shocked by Charles's masterstroke of victory.
At that time, Italian Chief of General Staff Cadorna was commanding the operations at the front line.
A few days ago, he ordered the Italian 2nd and 3rd Armies (19 divisions and nearly 200,000 people) to attack the Austrian positions on the east bank of the Isonzo River in three directions. At the same time, the Italian Navy blocked Trieste's sea traffic.
Cadorna's idea was that as long as the bombardment and attack on the enemy continued, the enemy would soon collapse due to lack of logistics.
However, he did not expect that his own logistics would also have problems: although Italy's logistics were not blocked, the logistical supplies required for continuous shelling and attack were dozens of times that of the opposite side.
In just a few days, more than a month's supply of artillery shells had been exhausted, and more than 20,000 people were killed or wounded without any progress.
(Note: The First Battle of the Isonzo River lasted only 14 days and ended hastily due to a shortage of artillery shells. The Italian commanders did not even calculate the basic ammunition planning)
Just as Cadorna was sitting at his desk worrying about the map, the staff officer hurriedly ran to Cadorna with a telegram and excitedly reported: "General, Charles liberated Brussels, the capital of Belgium, and he also occupied Antwerp, a fortress in Belgium. This enabled the French army to complete the encirclement of more than 200,000 German troops."
The other people in the command center also heard it. They all looked over here in surprise, and then burst into cheers, as if they had won the battle.
Normally, Cadorna should feel ashamed at this time.
Charles surrounded more than 200,000 enemies with his inferior force in just one day, and he, in turn, used his superior force of more than 200,000 to attack the weaker enemy, but was defeated and even fell into trouble, which also took only a few days.
But Cadorna did not feel that way, nor did the jubilant staff officers around him.
Italians are optimistic by nature and are less likely to consider factors that are disadvantageous or embarrassing to them.
"Very good." Cadorna nodded with a smile and said complacently: "This shows that our decision to join the Allied Powers was correct. With Charles here, victory is only a matter of time for us!"
The command expressed its agreement.
"General." In this self-anesthetization, a calm staff officer reminded: "But the problem in front of us still exists. What should we do now?"
Cadorna replied easily: "Don't worry, Ricardo. The worst case scenario is that we can't move forward at all, but as long as France wins, we win too! So, what do we need to worry about?"
At this time, Cadorna did not expect that the worst situation was far from "not being able to move forward at all"!
…
In London, England, the Secretary of the Navy sat at the window of his villa, looking out at the ships coming and going on the Thames with a lonely face.
He had recently resigned as "Secretary of the Admiralty", withdrew from the core of power in frustration, and only served as a symbolic member of the Dardanelles Commission.
This was because the battle in the Dardanelles was not going as planned.
In fact, it is not just "not satisfactory" but "very bad".
The report from the front line is:
The air was filled with the stench of dead bodies, the meagre water supply was barely enough to quench thirst, and the Gallipoli sun was blazing with heat, with almost no shade to be found. There were giant flies everywhere, and as soon as you opened a can, you would be besieged by them.
The most deadly thing is that the plague is spreading on the front line, and soldiers are dying in large numbers, not from fighting, but from disease.
In the end, the Secretary of the Navy, who was most enthusiastic about promoting this campaign and made guarantees, became the target of public criticism. Under pressure from all sides, the "Secretary of the Navy" had to resign.
Just as the "Secretary of the Navy" was staring out the window with a bitter face, the butler knocked on the door and brought in a telegram: "Sir, General Winter called and said that Charles had won a decisive victory last night..."
The "Secretary of the Navy" was stunned. He thought he had misheard: "I remember that Charles launched the attack only yesterday morning."
The butler was at a loss. He hesitantly handed the telegram to the "Secretary of the Navy": "Do you need me to confirm it?"
"Of course." The "Secretary of the Navy" took the telegram and glanced at it.
When the butler went out, he couldn't help laughing. How was it possible? It had only been one day and the victory had already been achieved before the soldiers had even warmed up their rifles.
Is today April Fools' Day?
Or was this General Winter's way of making fun of himself?
However, the butler soon returned to the "Secretary of the Navy": "It has been confirmed, sir, Charles covered more than 100 kilometers in one day, and his army surrounded more than 200,000 German troops."
The Lord High Lord was astonished beyond measure.
More than a hundred kilometers a day?
Surrounded more than 200,000 German troops?
Is this actually true?
God, he has achieved unprecedented results, it is no exaggeration to say that he has made history!
How did he do it? !
The Minister of the Navy was jealous of this talented young man, a true military strategist.
Then the "Secretary of the Navy" thought of the mess in the Dardanelles. If there was anyone who could save this battle, it must be Charles!
The "Secretary of the Navy" was not thinking about the life and death of the soldiers on the front line, but about his political career and his promise that "if the Battle of the Dardanelles failed, he would go to the battlefield as a soldier with a rifle on his shoulder."
After hesitating for a moment, he rushed to the telegraph room and sent a telegram to General Winter: "Ask Charles if he is willing to return to the Dardanelles to command the battle."
This is shameless.
When the Dardanelles was in trouble, Charles' appearance made the war situation develop in a good direction, and everyone even believed that the Battle of the Dardanelles would be won soon.
At this time, the "Secretary of the Navy" used a trick to force Charles away. It was he who spread the rumor that "the German army knows that Charles is on the battlefield and will kill him at all costs."
Now, when the Dardanelles were once again in trouble, he again proposed that Charles return to the Dardanelles to save the political future of the "Secretary of the Admiralty".
But the word "shameless" does not seem to be in the dictionary of the "Secretary of the Admiralty".
(End of this chapter)
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