From Corsica to the Fourth Rome.

Chapter 374: An Old Friend Three Years Ago
“It’s amazing.”

Chief of Staff Berthier gently put down the telescope and was speechless for a long time. After a while, he came to his senses:

"The power of this gun is far beyond my imagination. I'm afraid our exchange ratio is more than one to five!"

Lawrence's expression remained serious, and he was not too excited. This outcome was within his expectations.

"One battle doesn't prove anything. The Genoese army was not a strong enemy. Their morale collapsed too quickly."

Lawrence, who had been paying close attention to the situation on the battlefield, could see that the defeat of the Genoese army was due to a complete collapse of morale. Many soldiers even joined the fleeing team without firing a shot in this battle.

However, if they were facing a powerful army like the Prussian Iron Army that could sustain a 40% casualty rate and still fight, even the Corsican Chasseurs equipped with rifles would probably have to pay a heavy price to win.

In addition, Lawrence also deeply understood that even with a huge equipment advantage, the Corsican Chasseurs might not be able to win every battle and be invincible on the European battlefield.

Compared with traditional line infantry, the biggest disadvantage of the chasseur troops adopting skirmish formation is that they are extremely vulnerable to the attack of enemy cavalry and are completely defeated. This is why the armies of European countries still retained a large number of line corps in the late 19th century.

It was not until the invention of the Maxim machine gun and the bolt-action rifle that the firepower of the infantry was greatly enhanced, and the cavalry units withdrew from the battlefield, that line tactics were basically completely eliminated.

Therefore, guarding against enemy cavalry attacks is undoubtedly a major tactical point for the Corsican Chasseurs. When necessary, they even have to retain a considerable proportion of line infantry to protect the left and right wings of the Chasseurs.

Fortunately, the Republic of Genoa was very stingy in its investment in the army, and naturally would not maintain a large and expensive cavalry unit. Therefore, the Corsican army was able to fully deploy its formation with confidence and perfectly utilize the firepower advantage of the chasseur unit.

Berthier nodded slightly in agreement. He also understood that there was still a long way to go to develop corresponding reasonable tactics for this epoch-making weapon, and only actual combat was the best place to test theoretical tactics.

Looking at the Genoese soldiers fleeing in all directions on the battlefield, Berthier asked:

"It seems pointless to pursue the enemy. Perhaps we should hurry up and enter Genoa City?"

In Berthier's view, the defeated Genoese army no longer posed any threat. Instead of wasting time capturing prisoners of war, it would be better to enter the city of Genoa as soon as possible. After all, the Corsican army's time was very precious, and no one knew how long Andre Davout could hold back Liguria.

"No, keep chasing."

Lawrence shook his head slowly. Although his tone was very calm, his words made Berthier shudder:

"And we will not take any prisoners of war. All Genoese soldiers will be killed without mercy."

"Shoot to kill?"

Berthier's pupils trembled slightly. He had not expected this order at all.

He had never thought that the Charles Bernabat he knew was a bloodthirsty man, and the execution of the surrendered prisoners was in any case a dishonorable thing.

Lawrence nodded slightly, confirming his order once again.

Naturally, Lawrence had special considerations for issuing this abnormal order.

The most important point is that the Corsican army needs to bypass the city of Genoa and march north to Turin. Once the Corsican army falls into a disadvantage in the battle on the Po River Plain, it will inevitably need to retreat south through the city of Genoa.

If these enemy soldiers were allowed to return to Genoa, they would be able to quickly recover their combat effectiveness after regrouping, because not many Genoese soldiers were killed in this battle, and most of the enemy troops fled the battlefield directly after their morale collapsed.

At that time, if the Corsican army retreating southward was obstructed by the Genoese army while avoiding the pursuit of the Sardinian army, it would very likely be in danger of being annihilated.

Lawrence was fully confident that he could capture Turin directly and force peace with the Kingdom of Sardinia, but as a qualified leader, he also had to keep a backup plan for all possibilities.

Therefore, Lawrence had to inflict as many casualties on the Genoese army as possible here, weaken its manpower, and thus make the Republic of Genoa pose no military threat for a certain period of time, so as to eliminate future troubles.

Another important factor was the Corsicans' hatred of the Genoese.

What these Corsican soldiers dreamed of was to visit Genoa one day and let those once arrogant colonists taste the bitter fruit of their own deeds. This obsession with revenge has been suppressed in their hearts for thirty years.

Carrying with them thirty years of national hatred and family feuds, and thirty years of blood and tears, if this revenge army from Corsica entered Genoa without any restraint, anyone could imagine what a hell on earth the once prosperous city of Genoa would become overnight.

Naturally, Lawrence would not allow his soldiers to burn, kill, loot, and act recklessly in the city of Genoa, venting their anger on the civilians; this was not because Lawrence was kind-hearted, but because the scorched earth city of Genoa could not bring enough benefits to Corsica.

But even with Prime Minister Bonaparte's prestige in the army, if he completely banned Corsican soldiers from taking revenge on Genoa, the soldiers would certainly obey this order, but they would inevitably feel resentful and indignant about it.

In this way, in order to boost the morale of the army, to maintain their own prestige and control in the army, and to protect the civilians of Genoa from being slaughtered, after weighing the pros and cons, someone must sacrifice their lives.

Lawrence Bonaparte's orders were quickly passed on to all parts of the Corsican army.

The soldiers accepted the order expressionlessly and began to perform their duties. In the hearts of many of them, they had been waiting for this moment for too long. Many Corsicans even did not think that there would be a day when they could take revenge on the Genoese with their own hands.

No one wants to have blood on their hands, but if it is the blood of a mortal enemy, it is a different matter.

The sounds of wailing and begging for mercy echoed in the outskirts of Genoa. When these Genoese soldiers boasted in the tavern about how they would break the bones of the Corsicans, they never imagined this moment today.

If you can look down at this land from the perspective of an eagle, you can see countless red footprints extending from the blood pool in the center of the battlefield. Those are the bloodstains left by the wounded soldiers fleeing on this land. Lawrence watched this one-sided massacre with cold eyes. He has never been a saint who can't bear to kill. On the road to supreme power, morality and kindness are just tools, and only interests are the only criterion.

He also believed that if the roles of the two sides were reversed today, the Genoese would not show even the slightest mercy.

After more than two hours, this unsuspenseful chase was coming to an end.

If someone stood in the middle of the pool of blood and looked up at the sky, even the scorching sun hanging high in the sky at noon seemed to be covered with a blood-colored veil.

There was no such thing as an orderly retreat for the completely collapsed Republican Guard, especially when the Genoese soldiers discovered that the Corsicans would not accept prisoners of war at all. The Genoese, surrounded by fear, had lost all their organizational ability and everyone was only concerned about their own lives.

Although there are no exact figures, according to estimates by the Genoese soldiers who managed to escape, three-quarters of the entire Republican Guard had died tragically at the hands of the Corsicans, not counting those who managed to escape but were seriously injured.

In other words, the most elite standing army force of the Republic of Genoa has been completely destroyed today, leaving only an empty shell of the organization.

After simply cleaning up the battlefield, the Corsican army also discovered an unexpected gain:
"Are you General Tiro Belland?"

Lawrence looked at the dying, blood-soaked general in front of him with some surprise. He had been captured by the pursuing Corsican soldiers when he tried to retreat at the edge of the battlefield.

Although they had received the order to kill without mercy, the soldiers immediately escorted the Genoese army's supreme commander to Lawrence after they discovered that they had captured him.

The extremely weak General Berlan spat out a mouthful of blood and staggered to his knees. When he looked up and saw Lawrence's face clearly, his pale face showed an indescribable complex emotion:

"It is you, Lawrence Bonaparte, the young officer at the Horn that day."

Three years ago, when General Tiro Berlan was inspecting the Gulf of Clyde in northern Corsica, he was accidentally captured by a Corsican troop that had infiltrated behind enemy lines.

The Corsican troop then used their prisoner to successfully escape from the encirclement of the Genoese Legion, which had ten times the strength of their own.

Despite their mutual enmity, General Berlain was deeply impressed by the commander of that unit, the young Major Lawrence Bonaparte of the Corsican Defense Forces.

It was fate that played tricks on him. General Berlant himself could never have imagined that three years later, he would once again fall into the hands of Lawrence Bonaparte as a prisoner.

The only difference is that three years ago, General Berlant could chat and laugh with the young major officer in a condescending manner even though he was a prisoner; but today, three years later, still a prisoner, General Berlant can only kneel on the ground, anxiously waiting for Prime Minister Bonaparte's decision.

Time is really the most wonderful thing in this world. Three years, just three years. This period of time has not even left any trace on the face of the young man in front of him, but he has already stood at a height that is untouchable and can only be looked up to.

The dying General Belran thought so, and a cruel smile broke out uncontrollably from the corner of his mouth:
"Has the Corsican's revenge finally come? Will the city of Genoa be turned into a sea of ​​fire today?"

Lawrence looked down at the gunshot wounds on the other person's body. Although no direct hits were made on the vital points, General Berlan had no less than five gunshot wounds on his body. He probably also suffered serious fractures when he fell from his horse. Such injuries were beyond saving for an already weak old man.

However, for Lawrence, the dying old general still had his use.

"If we can borrow something from the general, the anger of the Corsicans might not spread to the people in the city." Lawrence suddenly said.

General Berlant raised his head with difficulty. He knew that Lawrence Bonaparte would not make fun of an old man with one foot in the grave, so he smiled bitterly:

"I am a dying man, and you can take whatever you want from me, Monsieur Bonaparte."

When General Berlant said the word "Mr. Bonaparte", his tone was very strange. Three years ago, he could openly call the young man in front of him a kid.

Lawrence looked down at General Berlan. Although they had only met once in Sheep Horn Bay three years ago, General Berlan did help him a lot at that time - he forged a letter between him and Ciro Russell, so that he could successfully get rid of Ciro Russell, the biggest threat, with the help of Paulie.

However, now that the two have stood on opposite sides, Lawrence has only one way to deal with General Berlan - squeeze out the last bit of value from him and then throw him away like a rag.

Lawrence turned his eyes away from General Berlan and ordered the guards on his left and right:
"Immediately behead General Tiro Berlan and display his head to the public. Inform the entire army that Tiro Berlan, the former commander of the Corsica Army of the Republic of Genoa, has been executed. All units should reorganize immediately and march towards the city of Genoa."

The dying General Belran heard this order but said nothing, and the smile on his lips became even more tragic.

He was well aware of how he, the former commander of the Corsican Legion of the Republic of Genoa, was perceived by the Corsican soldiers.

I'm afraid that before, within the entire Corsican Defense Force, from Governor Pasquale Paoli to the newly enlisted privates, everyone was looking forward to the day when they would be sent to the guillotine with their own hands.

Especially the Corsican soldiers of the former Northern Legion. As the front line in direct confrontation with the Genoese, the soldiers there were looking forward to the day when they could push all the Genoese Legion stationed in the north into the sea and drown them.

Because only after that day, the Genoese were completely expelled from the land of Corsica, and only then did Corsica gain complete independence and liberation.

Although Corsica is no longer afraid of the threat from Genoa, in the hearts of the soldiers, the name Tiro Berlan is still the number one enemy of the entire Kingdom of Corsica.

At this moment, General Berlant could also guess that the reason why Lawrence Bonaparte sent himself to the guillotine for execution when he was dying was just to use his head to appease the hatred in the hearts of the Corsican soldiers.

Thinking of this, General Belran's face showed a bit more relief.

If the anger of the Corsican soldiers could be calmed down, at least the people of Genoa would not have to suffer a disaster, and his death would be a worthy one.