Chapter 122 Shoot down the enemy plane?
A drizzle fell again in Ypres. Although this drizzle seemed insignificant, it was everywhere and pervasive, like a trace of trouble that constantly eroded the patience of Lieutenant General von Cross of the German 6th Army.
The Ypres Plain is so endless that you can almost see the end without a telescope.
But all this is an illusion. If you use a telescope, you will find that what you can see is limited to this, because it is not the distance but the rain and fog that blocks the view.
"How much time do we have left?" Cross asked the staff officer in a deep voice.
The staff officer replied: "I'm not sure, General! But I'm sure they will be here tomorrow morning!"
This almost tells Cross that he must launch an attack before dark, otherwise he will have to watch helplessly as enemy reinforcements arrive.
However, even though the German army maintained a 2 to 1 advantage in manpower and its quality and equipment were far superior to the enemy in front, Cross still maintained a cautious attitude.
The reason was that the enemy controlled the Nieuwpoort Gate. Once the Belgians were forced to open the gate, sea water would flow back into this open area and turn it into a swamp where they could not move forward.
Just as Cross was hesitating, cheers suddenly broke out from the direction of Belgium. Cross raised his telescope in confusion and looked, and found that some people on the opposite side were even holding up rifles and shouting.
Cross's face darkened and he ordered his staff officer: "Go and scout to see which reinforcements have arrived and how many troops they have at what location!"
"Yes, General!" The staff officer responded and went down to make arrangements.
The staff would send out a small detachment, who would make a small attack with the support of the artillery, return with a few Belgian prisoners, and would soon learn what had happened.
Sure enough, half an hour later, Cross received a message: "General, I heard that Charles is coming to Ypres!"
Cross, who was staring at the map in deep thought, was startled by this information. He suddenly raised his head and looked at the staff officer: "Charles? Charles from Antwerp?"
Charles was already well known to the German army because of the Battle of Antwerp, especially his aircraft and cannons that destroyed airships and "Big Bertha", which was deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Of course, Cross had also heard of him.
"Yes!" The staff officer nodded. "This is the reason why the morale of the Belgian army is so high. They said that the king gave up the idea of opening the sluice gates because he believed that Charles could stop our attack!"
Cross said "hmm" softly. This might be good news. At least during this period of time, he could launch an attack without worrying about being trapped in the middle area.
Thinking of this, Cross immediately ordered: "Order the 27th Reserve Army to prepare for the attack. The breakthrough point is on the left wing of the Bolegon Forest!"
"Yes, General!" The staff officer was stunned for a moment after answering. He stopped and reminded: "General, the Borgon Forest is the British defense line!"
The staff expressed doubts about this because shouldn’t the breakthrough point be chosen from the Belgian army with weak combat effectiveness?
"I know!" Cross responded coldly.
"Yes, General!" The staff officer did not dare to ask any more questions and turned around to pass on the order.
Cross stared at the Polegon Forest on the map. He planned to catch his opponent off guard here.
Just as the staff thought, the enemy would also think that the German army would attack the defense line held by the Belgian army.
The enemy would therefore direct their few artillery pieces towards the front of the Belgian defensive positions, which meant that the British line would have little artillery support.
Even if the British requested reinforcements, there would be difficulties due to communication and language problems.
More importantly, Cross believed that the British army's supplies had not kept up. They had only arrived two hours ago and could not have carried much ammunition.
The terrifying thing about the British army is that they can fire the most bullets in a short period of time with their high-rate rifles.
Without sufficient ammunition support, this advantage will instantly turn into a disadvantage.
The British would habitually empty their magazines first, and then they could only use bayonets to face the German army's overwhelming charge!
Cross's order was quickly carried out.
When the reconnaissance balloons rose into the sky, the soldiers on both sides became nervous, for they knew that this was a sign that the Germans were preparing to bombard.
Soon planes were also released into the air to protect the balloons and to keep track of the troops' offensive movements in a timely manner.
The battlefield fell into a depressing silence, with only the sound of raindrops hitting the ground. The soldiers breathed in the air greedily, as if they were using the last bit of time to linger on the beauty of this world.
“Boom boom!”
“Boom boom boom!”
…
The sound of artillery fire rang out like thunder, and shells exploded near the Belgian defense line, stirring up a radiating cloud of mud and water. Steam and smoke mixed together and spread, and then were pressed down by the drizzle to cover the entire open area.
Amidst the whistles, a group of figures suddenly emerged from the originally dark and seemingly flat open area. They were covered in mud, and if they hadn't stood up, they would have been invisible.
"Forward!" the commander ordered loudly in a hoarse voice.
The soldiers grabbed their rifles and shouted as they charged towards the enemy lines.
Several shells exploded in the crowd with a whistling sound. In an instant, dozens of people were lifted into the air and then fell to the ground. Blood and mud splattered everywhere, making it impossible to tell who was who.
But the charging soldiers acted as if nothing had happened. They continued to march forward in the mud with difficulty, occasionally raising their rifles to fire bullets at the suspected targets ahead, and then continued to rush towards the enemy...
The battle situation was just as Cross had expected. Everyone thought that the British army was stronger, but it was precisely where the British army was stationed that was the weakest point in the defense line. The German army easily defeated the British army with just one charge, and then chased them forward like driving ducks.
"Keep going!" Cross ordered sharply, "Get through the defense line as fast as possible!"
The 27th Reserve Army is his main force. As long as this army can break through the enemy's defense line and get behind the enemy, even if the enemy opens the sluice gates, it will be too late!
…
The Belgian commander, Albert I, was also aware of the danger.
He could never have imagined that there was a problem with the British army's defense line. They were the army that the Belgian army had to look up to, but they were vulnerable to the German attack.
"Your Majesty, give the order!" General Charles looked at Albert I in horror: "If we don't open the sluice gates, we will be divided and surrounded by the enemy!"
Albert I gritted his teeth. He knew that now was not the time to hesitate. If he continued like this, he would only lose Ypres.
However, there was suddenly a fierce sound of machine gun fire in the sky, followed by the shrill and hoarse roar of the engine, and finally ended with an explosion.
Just as Albert I and General Charles were confused by this, a signalman appeared at the door. His eyes were full of shock, and he reported breathlessly: "Your Majesty, it's the French planes. They are shooting down the enemy's planes!"
"Shoot down enemy planes?"
Albert I and Charles looked at each other, and they had the same question in their minds: How can they shoot down the enemy's planes?
(End of this chapter)
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