Chapter 519 Double Attack
"But the Namur Fortress is not suitable for armored attack." Tijani was a little anxious: "In fact, it is not suitable for our troops to attack, including mechanized troops."
This has been discussed before, after all, the Namur Fortress is right in front of the Antwerp Line of Defense.
Charles and Tijani even performed deductions based on the map, more than once.
The terrain in this area is complex. It is located at the confluence of the Meuse River and the Sambre River. The river makes a magical bend here, creating an open space where artillery can be deployed.
The Germans cleverly used the terrain here to build a defense line.
To attack here, one must either cross the river or go around the river and be bombarded by German artillery all the way, and also pass through a narrow passage formed by the river and the forest.
(The picture above is a topographic map of Namur. The confluence of the two rivers in the lower right is the Namur Castle.)
It was OK for the infantry to attack this place because they had the cover of the forest.
But armored forces that are highly dependent on roads and terrain would be tantamount to seeking death here.
Tijani flipped through the battle plan again, frowning more and more, and finally threw the document on the table: "No, I must tell the British that there is something wrong with this plan."
Then he turned and walked towards the telecommunications room.
They must not understand the combat attributes of armored forces, Tijani thought, so they formulated such a inexplicable offensive plan.
Charles stopped him and said, "Do you think the British don't know?"
"What?" Tijani looked back at Charles, and after a moment's pause he replied, "Of course, Major General, they certainly don't know. Otherwise, how could they do that!"
"No, General," said Charles calmly, "they did it precisely because they knew that."
“You mean…” Tijani’s face gradually lost color: “Did they do this on purpose?!”
Ciel nodded confidently: "We are a bait, General. They used us as bait."
"Bait?" Tijani didn't understand.
“The Germans copied this plan from their frequent maneuvers and feints at Belfort before the attack on Verdun,” Charles explained.
Tijani understood immediately: "Can we launch an attack in Namur to attract the attention and manpower of the Germans?"
"Yes." Charles replied: "We have successfully penetrated to Antwerp before. If we penetrate to Liege from Namur, we can directly cut off the German supply line, which is something the Germans don't want to see."
"Therefore," Tijani continued Charles' words, "the Germans will definitely take it seriously and have to take it seriously, and the British can attack in other directions and easily win!"
This is what Charles wanted to say.
Both Charles and Tijani had been wrong.
They thought the British would lead Shire's troops to victory and then take the credit for their success.
Unexpectedly, the British were too disdainful to do such petty tricks to gain such small credit. They directly threw Charles and his troops into the fire pit, hoping that Charles would be defeated or even encounter an accident.
Then the British won a great victory on the other side, and the contrast highlighted the greatness of the British army.
Perfect, it doesn't get any better than this!
"They are trying to get me," said Charles, feeling that he had implicated others.
"No, Major General." Tijani stared at Charles seriously. He understood what was going on: "They are not targeting you, but you, your troops, and France!"
Tijani wasn't trying to comfort Charles, that was exactly what he thought.
"Don't think this is just your business." Tijani said firmly: "What they want to defeat is not Charles, but Mars of France, the hope of France, and the confidence of the citizens!"
Charles was silent.
What Tijani said made sense. The ultimate goal of the British was to defeat the French army, and Charles just happened to lead the French army to victory.
"Now." Tijani took the document and placed it in front of Charles. "If we can't refuse, how are we going to fight this battle?"
Charles did not answer. He was wondering who had come up with this brilliant idea of killing two birds with one stone.
Nivelle?
Impossible. He only emphasized artillery and believed that artillery could defeat everything. He didn't even have tanks in his eyes.
Haig?
That's impossible. This guy doesn't even believe in machine guns, let alone tanks.
These people who don't understand tanks certainly don't know where the tank quagmire is, so they can't set the trap.
Then Charles thought of someone.
Kitchener, the Secretary of State for War, who was mentioned by the "Secretary of the Navy" and is now in power and dares to openly defy the resolutions of the House of Commons.
It's him.
He had a motive to bring the British Army into the spotlight and to use victory to pave the way for his future as prime minister.
He also has the ability to do so, and is not as paranoid as Nivelle or Haig.
"Major General?" Tijani interrupted Charles' thoughts: "What should we do?"
Charles thought for a while and replied without thinking: "Spread the news."
"What?" Tijani looked confused.
"We have been ordered to attack Namur," said Charles. "Let it be known to all."
Tijani was even more confused and looked at Charles in shock:
"If we do that, the Germans will immediately know where we are going to attack, Major General."
"Everyone is keeping it secret, worried that the enemy will know the direction of our attack, but you took the initiative to release the news?"
What is this operation?
Charles asked back: "Do you think the Germans don't know?"
Tijani suddenly realized that if all this was arranged by the British, they hoped that the Germans would be attracted to Namur by Charles' attack, and they would definitely "warn" the Germans through some channel.
Then Tijani seemed to understand Charles’ intention: “If we spread the news to the world, the Germans will know that this may be a bait, because no one will reveal their main attack direction.”
"It's not just that." Charles replied: "The key point is the British people's intentions."
Tijani said "Oh" and finally understood. Then he became excited:
"Good idea! The French people will be outraged by this, Major General."
"The British used this despicable means to influence the outcome of the war. They tried to drive the French elite troops into a quagmire."
"This is clearly a case of using a knife to kill someone for personal gain. In this way, they use the Germans to destroy the victorious French army and even Charles."
"God, I can't wait to see people take to the streets to denounce the British, especially Nivelle!"
Charles snorted in his heart:
If you think I'm easy to deal with, you're wrong. The Shire today is no longer the Shire of a year ago.
If you want to deal with me, try the wrath of the French people first.
Finally, if I still win this battle under these circumstances and the British are defeated, you will get a double blow!
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
