Chapter 611: No Trouble as Long as You Don't Pay Attention
I have something to do today, so there is only one chapter, sorry!
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At 4:30 in the morning, Charles' troops arrived in Hasselt ahead of schedule.
Originally, Charles planned to rest for two hours and then launch the attack at daybreak. After all, fighting street battles in the dark was very disadvantageous for tanks. Bundles of cluster grenades could be thrown out from buildings and ruins at any time to paralyze the tanks.
However, when Ciel arrived, he realized that this was unnecessary.
Before the army entered the city, Hasselt was already in chaos with gunfire everywhere.
Many buildings were set on fire. The whole city was like a burning torch. Belgians were running around and cheering everywhere. In the firelight, one could vaguely see a few lone German soldiers being beaten by Belgian civilians.
When the French army arrived, the Belgians lined the streets to welcome them. They were holding various weapons, including rifles, sticks, farm tools and kitchen knives.
Tijani was cautious enough. He sent his staff to inquire about the situation, but he got different answers from more than a dozen people:
"Hurry up, friends, the Germans are about to escape."
"They have a line of defense in the city that we can't break through."
"I heard that the Germans have sent reinforcements to counterattack, you better be careful!"
…
Then Tijani gave up asking, because he realized that if he continued asking, he might get a hundred different answers, and he dared not act rashly without understanding the situation clearly.
It was not until half an hour later that a militia leader who had infiltrated the city was found.
To be precise, it was not "found", but the leader took the initiative to find him after knowing that Charles' troops had arrived.
He was an officer wearing a civilian uniform but a military cap and a pistol on his waist. When he was brought to Charles, he excitedly reported to Charles:
"It's an honor to meet you, General."
"We captured part of the railway station and armed the people with the weapons we had captured."
"Most of the area has been occupied by our army. Only the train station and the city government are still holding out."
Tijani spread the map in front of him and asked, "Can you point out where the enemy is and how many people there are?"
The leader hesitated for a long time looking at the map but couldn't explain it clearly.
"The situation is very confusing, General," the leader replied. "Some buildings are uncertain whether they are in German or friendly hands."
Tijani shrugged helplessly and turned his gaze to Charles.
This means that the information obtained is very limited and the troops still don't know where to attack.
Charles expressed his understanding of the situation. In street fighting and night battles, sometimes even the regular army could not figure out the situation, let alone the guerrillas, militia, and civilians with weapons.
It was good that they didn't fight each other, or that had happened, more than once.
But they don't care because they can blame it on the Germans.
"Send the tanks," Charles ordered.
"General," Tijani said hurriedly, "This may cause unnecessary casualties. I think we should wait until daybreak."
Tanks cannot play a big role in the dark, but they will become targets for the German army.
But Charles insisted on his point of view:
"We need to end the battle as soon as possible to avoid further trouble."
"If the Germans were holding out in buildings, the tanks would have been effective."
"We did not attack as a military unit, but dispersed the tanks among the militia groups and let the militia guide the tanks to attack those fire points that could not be conquered."
The militiamen may not be able to clearly explain the situation on the map, but in every specific direction and position, the fighting militiamen know where they are encountering resistance and cannot move forward.
The battle situation did develop as Charles had imagined. After the tanks were deployed, the advance speed was much faster than before. As soon as dawn broke, Hasselt was completely under the control of the French army amid cheers.
The seized supplies were much more than expected.
There are a total of twenty-three large underground warehouses in the train station, which are filled with supplies, including countless foods, guns, and ammunition.
Five of the warehouses contained fuel for both tanks and aircraft.
These were scarce supplies for the French army, and the fuel pressure of the 1st Armored Army was gone in an instant.
Then Charles dispatched a group of fighter jets, which cooperated with the Brussels and Namur airports to form an air defense network against the German Air Force to prevent the withdrawal of German aircraft.
…
Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, was a small fishing village in the 12th century, but has now become the most important port and largest city in the Netherlands.
After finishing her morning duties, Queen Wilhelmina stood at the office window, looking out at the snow scene downstairs, gently shaking a glass of wine in her hand.
Her mentality is like the heavy snow, covering up all the ugly things, so that only the beautiful can be seen.
(The picture above shows Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands)
The war had entered its third year, and Queen Wilhelmina had no idea of the war's development. Even Charles, who was now famous all over the world, had only heard of it vaguely.
The Netherlands is a neutral country. It will not participate in this war that has nothing to do with itself, so there is no need to pay attention to it.
Or perhaps it could be said that the queen is afraid of attention, because if she gets attention she might be unconsciously involved.
At this time, the crisp footsteps of the secretary's high heels sounded behind him, and she seemed a little anxious.
The queen did not look back. She believed that as long as she did not participate in the war, there would be no trouble that could not be solved.
However, trouble eventually struck.
"Your Majesty," Secretary Louise reported, "The German Ambassador wishes to speak to you."
The Queen frowned slightly and asked, "About what?"
"I think the Germans might want to go through Holland," Louise replied.
The queen turned around suddenly and looked at the secretary in shock.
Louise handed the Queen a document and introduced it as the Queen took it and flipped through it: "Last night, Charles led the First Armored Army to encircle more than 200,000 German troops. The Germans have only two options to escape the encirclement. One is to break through the defense line built by Charles, and the other is..."
"Through the Netherlands?" The Queen saw the situation map and it was clear that the Germans had no way out.
"Yes, sire!"
The queen felt a chill on her face, as if a cold wind was blowing across her face.
Damn Charles, he shouldn't have used the Dutch border to encircle the Germans. He should have known that this would bring disaster to the Netherlands.
What to do now?
"Your Majesty," Louise reminded, "The German ambassador is still waiting outside the door."
After a moment's hesitation, the Queen replied: "Tell him to come back later, I'm busy!"
Louise shook her head helplessly: "I already said that, but he said he would wait outside."
"Let him in!" the queen sighed inwardly.
The Queen was a little annoyed that she should have gone abroad for a few days. She should have known the war situation in advance, especially when the battlefield was approaching the Netherlands.
(End of this chapter)
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