I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 598 Respect
The disadvantage of a country with a small area is that it has no depth at all, and the opponent can threaten its core area with just a few attacks.

With the defeat in the Battle of the Marne, Germany had lost the possibility of ending the war quickly. The colonial vassal troops recruited by Britain from all over the world were arriving in France in an endless stream. In order to break the deadlock, Germany had to make a breakthrough on the Eastern Front.

Falkenhayn and Hindenburg disagreed on how to break the deadlock.

Falkenhayn hoped that Hindenburg would send the newly formed 9th Army to Transylvania to join forces with the Austro-Hungarian Fifth Army to repel the Russian coalition forces.

At the same time, Hindenburg should lead the 8th Army to launch an attack in the direction of Warsaw and Ivangorod, forcing Ivanov to return to support and relieve the pressure of the Austro-Hungarian army in the direction of the Vienna industrial area.

Hindenburg admitted that with the troops he had, he could not take care of both Warsaw and Vienna at the same time. The Russian army had 200 million troops in the three directions of the front, while Hindenburg had less than 50 troops.

Hindenburg hoped to concentrate the Eighth and Ninth Armies and take Warsaw directly according to the plan designated before the war, which would increase the chances of success.

Ruzynski was transferred to be the commander-in-chief of the Northern Front. The First and Second Armies had just been reorganized and had not yet formed combat effectiveness.

Hindenburg's chances of success were indeed greater if he attacked at this time.

But doing so would mean that Germany had abandoned the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which would leave Germany isolated and helpless.

Hindenburg and Falkenhayn were at a stalemate due to differences of opinion.

In the end, it was German Emperor Wilhelm II who made the final decision and implemented Falkenhayn's plan.

Falkenhayn has just become the Chief of the General Staff. If he can't even start this first fire, he will probably resign.

When the combat order reached Hindenburg's headquarters, Andrei arrived safely in Orbe and reunited with Vasily.

Vasily took the initiative to propose to Andrei that the campaign goal should be adjusted to occupy Budapest, the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary.

The combined strength of the 25th and 40th Armies was nearly , and with the vassal armies of the Kingdom of Romania and the Kingdom of Greece, the total strength was about .

The total strength of the Austrian Fifth Army was only 10 men, who were nothing more than a bunch of losers in Vasily's eyes.

"Are you crazy? If we capture Budapest we'll be a prime target for the Germans—"

Andrei was calm. George launched the Transylvanian Campaign to cooperate with the Russian army's operations in Galicia.

Now that the Battle of Galicia is over, the Russian army has won a great victory, and the campaign objectives have been achieved, there is no need to create any more complications.

"Andy, if we capture Budapest, we'll be heroes of the Empire, don't you think?"

Vasily was like a devil, trying hard to seduce Andrei.

Neither Vasily nor Andrei participated in the Balkan Campaign, so when they saw Brusinov become famous through the Balkan Campaign, Andrei was fine, but Vasily beat his chest and stamped his feet, saying, "The Grand Duke has made a mistake!"

"I do - but not in this way."

Andrei was not tempted. George's mission to him was to occupy Transylvania, which had nothing to do with Budapest.

Although Budapest is less than 200 kilometers away from Orbe.

The road repair work cannot be completed in a day or two. Winter is coming. Although Transylvania is not as cold as Petrograd, it is not much colder. We will be thankful if the road can be repaired next spring.

So even if we want to play in Budapest, it will be next year.

"Andy, you are so unmotivated!"

Vasily was heartbroken. How could he ever reproduce the glory of his ancestors by working with such stupid teammates?

There was no throne to inherit in Andrei's family. After the Russo-Japanese War, St. Petersburg conferred the title of baron on Andrei, which was not a big deal.

When George found out, he sent a telegram to Nicholas, and Andrei's title of baron became count.

Therefore, if you want to get promoted and make money, you don’t have to work hard to perform well. As long as you complete the tasks assigned by the Grand Duke, you will have the title and the honor.

No matter how George tried to get along with Vasily and Andrei, winter was coming, and George began to distribute the winter supplies stockpiled in Constantinople to various places.

So the question is, will the Kingdom of Serbia give it?
In name, the Kingdom of Serbia is also a Balkan League country, but the Serbian army does not accept the command of the Balkan Theater Command.

What use is there for such an ally?

Therefore, the name of the Kingdom of Serbia was not included in the material supply list of Constantinople.

Peter was very angry and went to George's headquarters and made a big fuss, thinking that George did not give the Kingdom of Serbia the attention it deserved.

After the Austrian army retreated, Peter was full of confidence, believing that the Kingdom of Serbia had grown into the main force against the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He not only hoped to get winter clothes from George, but also airplanes and armored vehicles.

George ignored it.

If Peter was sensible and understood that everyone should carry the sedan chair, he would have been able to buy a cotton-padded jacket for the winter.

Planes and tanks are a waste. Even if they are given to Serbia, the Serbs will not use them.

Peter was still a little smart. If George didn't give in, he would go to Petrograd to complain to Nicholas.

Nicholas was trying to smooth things over. No matter how wrong it was, it was always the Austrians' fault. Anyway, his uncle Yuriev could not be wrong.

Peter had no choice but to leave Petrograd and head straight for London.

The most annoying troublemaker in history has finally extended his hand to the Balkans.

George had the Balkan Peninsula well managed, and the British were worried that they would not have a chance to intervene. Peter came to them, which was exactly what the British wanted.

So when Peter returned to Constantinople from London, he brought back 3000 rifles.

What made George feel sick was that it was Nicholas who sold these rifles to the British.

3000 rifles are actually not a lot, and are just a drop in the bucket for an army of hundreds of thousands of people.

But in Peter's mouth, it became evidence of Serbia's military achievements and recognition from the British Empire.

Anyone with a discerning eye knew that the reason the Austrian army retreated was because the Russian Empire's wars in Galicia and Transylvania forced Conrad to repeatedly withdraw troops from Serbia, causing Potiorek to be forced to retreat.

Peter never mentioned the role of the Russian Empire and praised the Kingdom of Serbia to the sky. Not only George was annoyed by him, but everyone was annoyed by him, even the British.

If the British liked Peter, they wouldn't have given so little.

The British are really good at disgusting people.

Peter went to London for a tour, and no matter how much stuff he brought, it was not a wasted trip.

What if Georgi also went for a walk?

Anyway, it’s a free gift, so don’t refuse it.

After George took over as theater commander, the theater headquarters never held a reception.

The liaison officers sent to the theater headquarters by various countries were either princes or princes' brothers, and they had frequent private exchanges.

So when Peter was bragging at Nikola of Montenegro's banquet, Nikola of Romania couldn't help but criticize him.

"You should pursue the victory. The weak Austrian army will not be able to stop the invincible Prince Alexander."

Peter's face suddenly darkened, he knew very well how capable his son was.

"That's right. You should launch an attack on Berlin. I believe that when this news reaches Berlin, the Germans will not dare to fight you and will surrender directly."

Prince Sto's dissatisfaction with the Kingdom of Serbia had risen to hatred. After the Battle of Mir, the Kingdom of Serbia sent more than 1000 Montenegrin soldiers who were unable to continue fighting due to injuries back to Montenegro, and continued to detain about 2000 soldiers who could still continue to fight in Serbia.

After the war broke out, the Montenegrin army that went to the Kingdom of Serbia numbered as many as 20000 people.

The treatment of the Montenegrin army in the Kingdom of Serbia was even worse than that of the vassal army of the Russian Empire. The injured soldiers received no medical treatment, and many soldiers who could have survived eventually died tragically.

The Kingdom of Montenegro did not have the ability to treat the wounded and had to send them to Constantinople for treatment.

More than 300 people died in the process.

Now these wounded soldiers have finally received effective treatment, but because they missed the best time for treatment, many of their injuries have become more serious, and the physical and psychological damage caused is irreversible.

"You are so jealous!"

Peter was angry that he was not getting the respect he wanted.

"Yes, we envy you the favor of London."

The liaison officer for the Kingdom of Greece was Georgy's younger brother, Prince Nicholas, whose wife was Grand Duchess Yelena Vladimirovna of the Russian Empire.

The only person who did not participate in the discussion was August, the former Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Bulgaria.

Augustus's official identity is archbishop, and his role as prime minister is a part-time job.

After the Bulgarian Kingdom moved its capital, Augustus resolutely resigned from the post of prime minister despite Polis's repeated attempts to retain him.

August was succeeded as Prime Minister by Alexander Stamboliysky, leader of the Bulgarian Peasant Party.

During the reign of Valdemar, Alexander often quarreled with Valdemar in order to protect the interests of the peasants, so he was not liked by Valdemar.

After Polis became king, he rested and recuperated and distributed land to farmers, which coincided with Alexander's idea.

Although Alexander had studied in Germany in his early years, he opposed the complete Germanization of Bulgaria, so he gained the trust of Polis.

At present, the first batch of mobilization of the Kingdom of Bulgaria has been basically completed, and 25 Bulgarians have joined the army.

These soldiers are undergoing rigorous training under the supervision of Russian instructors, and in the future they will cooperate with the 11th Army led by Brusinov in combat.

Since the Bulgarian Kingdom did not receive enough weapons from George, many Bulgarian soldiers were still training with wooden sticks.

This is why, except Serbia, other Balkan countries respect George.

In George's eyes, there is really more than just his son.

While some Bulgarian soldiers were still training with sticks, George was working to prepare more weapons for the Balkan League.

The weapons shortage should be alleviated soon.

On September 9, the first batch of rifles ordered by George from the United States arrived in Constantinople, quantity is 21.

(End of this chapter)