Back to the Republic of China as a commander

The same tragic battle was still taking place on Verdun's fourth line of defense. Admiral Nivelle, commander of the French Army Group Verdun, began to fall into a state of despair.The German attack at all costs reduced the number of troops in his hands. The ten-kilometer-long front, 20 unprepared troops, and the loss of a large number of heavy weapons.The entire line of defense was almost breached by the Germans yesterday, and today's situation can only be worse, and reinforcements are still on their way.And Marshal Pétain, the commander-in-chief of the French army, has personally arrived at Verdun. According to his latest order, all reinforcements heading towards Verdun are required to slow down, otherwise, once the defense line is breached, dozens of soldiers exposed in the wilderness will be killed. The Wanfa Army is about to become a meal for the Germans.

Neville felt that he was about to become a sinner of the French Third Republic, and he would end up just like Napoleon III.This feeling is really torturous, and all this is caused by those dishonest Chinese liars, God, let these damn Chinese go to hell with me!

At this time, the supreme commander of the French army is not thinking about how to save the situation, but is wholeheartedly praying to God to send himself and the Chinese to hell.

The French soldiers tried their best, "Behind us is our motherland and relatives. Paris is the enemy stepping on our corpses. Don't leave shame to future generations. Brave French soldiers, even if they die, they will not let us die." The enemy has set foot within our sacred homeland and capital."

The high-spirited Marseillaise was sung again on the positions of the French army. The French soldiers bravely fought the final death battle with the German soldiers. Facing the German soldiers who were getting closer and closer, they were fearless. What they are afraid of, they will use their lives and blood to defend the French Third Republic. . .

Marshal Hindenburg, the chief of the German general staff, came to the front line stepping on the muddy ground, because General Ludendorff, who was in charge of this offensive, had just assured himself that he would break through the Verdun defense line within today.This is something that the Second German Reich failed to achieve in 1916 after paying 50 lives and a large amount of supplies, but it was about to come true in the summer of 1917.

"Ludendorff, I want to know where your confidence comes from?" Marshal Hindenburg asked without getting angry.

General Ludendorff, who came from the lower ranks of the empire, reported confidently: "Please rest assured, Marshal, this line of defense can be breached at any time, because the French army has no reinforcements and has lost their heavy weapons. Now all they can rely on is that little bit." Poor spirit."

Speaking of the formation of a good relationship between Ludendorff and Hindenburg, there are still certain historical reasons.Due to Ludendorff's lower-middle-class origin and the strict hierarchical concept of the German Imperial Army (he was not a nobleman at this time), he could not be appointed as a commander.But this arrangement resulted in the brilliant Hindenburg-Ludendorff pairing, which had a major impact on the whole of Germany.

But now, whether it is Hindenburg or Ludendorff is waiting, waiting for the moment when the German army breaks through the last line of defense of the French army, and now both sides know that this moment is not far away. . .

At 5 o'clock in the afternoon on May 16, on the left side of the Verdun line of defense, the German army captured three positions in a row, tearing a 5-meter-long opening in the entire flank of the French army.The combat determination of the French Army Command was finally completely shaken. Although the combat troops below were still trying to mobilize the last soldier to launch a counterattack at this opening, everyone knew that it was futile.Seeing the hope of victory, the German army launched the last and most ferocious attack, and the fourth line of defense of Verdun was finally completely defeated. 300+ French troops fled toward the Fortress of Verdun like loose sand, and the Germans did not continue to pursue them. According to General Ludendorff's plan, about 10,000 German troops will lose their equipment and supplies and morale The depressed French army besieged the Fortress of Verdun and forced it to surrender. At the same time, about 30 German troops will bypass the Fortress of Verdun and build a new line of defense behind it. Press it down aggressively, I believe that there is not much power in France that can stop the victory of the empire.

Just as the entire German command was cheering for the German army to successfully break through the last line of defense at Verdun, Marshal Hindenburg suddenly asked a very unpleasant question: "Has the Warburg area not been taken yet? Those damn Chinese Where are people still resisting?"

General Ludendorff was not responsible for this matter, but the general in charge of the offensive in this area did not know how to answer.This is really embarrassing. Here, General Ludendorff easily defeated 35 French troops with 20 troops, while he himself attacked more than 2 squadrons with [-] troops, causing more than [-] casualties. There is no progress, so I am really sorry to say it!

When everyone was silent, a young staff officer suddenly ran in and said: "Report, the Metz Regional Police Command urgently called, the Chinese squadron appeared in the Metz area, and took advantage of the false attack to enter the urban area. The strength is estimated The number is more than [-], and now the army of the empire is relying on the city defenses to carry out the final resistance, and I request your Excellency the Marshal for reinforcements."

What, the Chinese actually appeared in Metz!Everyone, including Field Marshal Hindenburg and General Ludendorff, was stunned to hear the news. . .

At this moment, Bai Chongxi and de Gaulle were standing less than three kilometers away from Metz. The vanguard of the entire expedition was Xia Wei's third division. They almost rushed into the undefended city of Metz at the fastest speed. city ​​of.For the guards, or strictly speaking, the German troops stationed in the city of Metz, May 5 can be regarded as a disastrous day.Some German soldiers who had just finished their Chinese meal and were about to take advantage of the short clear weather to take a stroll on the street suddenly saw a large group of Asian soldiers in French uniforms but with German helmets running away from them with weapons But what a surprise this is.At least these German soldiers were stunned at the time. They had no weapons to resist them, and they had no sense of responsibility to surrender.So they could only stand on the side of the road stupidly, motionless, until someone pointed a black muzzle at them, and they would remember to put their hands on their heads, which is an act permitted by His Majesty the German Emperor.

Also extremely surprising are the residents of Metz. It is said that they are all French, but they have existed as German citizens for nearly 50 years.But only 50 years can't change their perception of their nationality. Just yesterday they got a very sad news. The German army's raid in Verdun achieved unprecedented success, and France may be about to perish.But just after lunch today, they were surprised to find that the troops of the Allied Powers appeared beside them. Although they were Asians, they were not important.The important thing is that the Germans seem to have lied, and perhaps they are the ones who will lose.

With the help of the French soldiers assigned to the Chinese Expeditionary Force, the residents of Metz quickly stood up and led the soldiers of the Expeditionary Army. The key departments of the German army stationed in the Metz area were quickly shot down. It was occupied with weapons, and the Germans inside didn't even have time to resist. They didn't even know what happened?Is today April Fool's Day?

In addition to being resisted by the German army near the garrison headquarters, almost 94 out of the [-] German soldiers in the entire Metz area were captured without having experienced combat and were confused about the situation. For these Germans, being captured may not be a bad thing, at least for them the war is over.

At 5:16 pm on May [-], after half an hour of resistance, the [-] German troops in the garrison headquarters were all wiped out. A large number of grenades caused heavy casualties to the German army.

At three o'clock in the afternoon, the German army in Metz had already sent a report to the German army on the Verdun front, but due to the forward movement of the command post, it was already five o'clock in the afternoon when the telegram was sent to Hindenburg. left and right.God still took care of the Germans at the last moment, because at this time the German army had already defeated the French army commanded by Nivelle. . .

The news of the fall of Metz is really terrible for the German army that just won the victory in Verdun. You must know that about 50.00% of the materials prepared for this battle are still piled up in the warehouse of Metz. In addition, there are more than 100 The heavy artillery transferred from the navy was also placed in Metz.To make matters worse, due to being far away from the front line, Metz has no trenches and fortifications, and most of the guarding forces are supply troops that have never been on the battlefield.

"Now we're in big trouble, Ludendorff," Marshal Hindenburg said nervously. "How did those damned Chinese get there?"

Ludendorff immediately pulled out a military map, looked at it for a few minutes, and said: "Your Excellency, Marshal, I think we may have to give up the victory that is already at our fingertips. Once these cunning Chinese capture the Lorraine area, they can Entering the confidant of the empire through Luxembourg, and this is exactly what His Majesty the Emperor cannot tolerate. What's worse, if we don't give up this victory, we will not be able to persist because of insufficient follow-up materials. What we can do now It can only be a quick return to help, to recover Metz before the Chinese, and at the same time to return to Luxembourg first to defend the gate of the empire."

"What, isn't that the same as opening the door to Verdun and giving up the Lorraine and Alsace regions to the French?" Marshal Hindenburg couldn't help shouting.

Ludendorff didn't speak, he just looked at Your Excellency the Marshal with a painful face, secretly cursing the cunning of the Chinese, but he still insisted with a clear mind: "Your Excellency Marshal, we have already severely damaged the French army. Both we and the Chinese have obtained what we need. What we have to do now is to go back to Metz and wipe out or drive the Chinese away. In short, we can't continue to attack. I believe that a large number of French troops are heading towards Verdun Hurry up. No matter what the final result is, the Allied Powers in the western section of the entire western front will no longer have enough troops to fight. Our strategic goal has been achieved. Now what we have to do is to maintain stability in the eastern section, so that our glorious Only peace is possible. . . ”