Eagle’s Glory

Under the sunny and sunny sky, Aegron marched with great might towards Methorongi with his army.

The army was well-organized and invigorated by previous victories, and everyone, from officers to soldiers, believed that the next victory would also be theirs.

After setting off from Nafpaktos, they quickly traveled most of the dozens of kilometers, and after two days, the army was able to see the outline of the frontal fortress of Methoronghion.

On the way of the march, they encountered a small group of enemy troops, but as Major Henchy had expected before, they did not make any resistance at all, but fled directly to the rear.

Obviously, these troops are only used to detect the enemy's situation. Their real intention is to return to the fortress, then rely on the strong city to hold on, and then wait for the arrival of reinforcements.

Although he fully understood the other party's intentions, at this time, Aigron could only act according to the plan.

At noon on this day, they came to the outskirts of Metholonghi, almost without firing a shot.

Under Aigron's orders, the advancing army stopped on a high ground a few kilometers from Methorongion and encamped there. Then he sent people to sweep the surrounding area while peeping at the movement inside the fortress.

At this time, not only him, but in this temporary camp, almost everyone was observing the opposite fortress with binoculars or the naked eye.

Standing on the high ground, Aigron carefully observed the fortress with a telescope.

Metholonghion is strictly a peninsula deep into the bay, conical in shape, with only the solitary east side being the front connecting the landings, which are then blocked off with walls and fortresses.

In other directions, there is an endless sea, with only some sandbars and small islands scattered around the fortress.

Such terrain means that the defensive pressure on the defenders will be greatly reduced, and it is also the biggest support for the Greek rebels to repel the Turkish army many times.

It is indeed a solid fortress... No wonder it has achieved such a prominent reputation before.

But now, this fortress has fallen into the hands of the Turks, and the difficulties they faced at the time became a problem for Aegron to worry about.

However, despite all the difficulties, Aigron was not without confidence.

First of all, the Turks are unpopular in Greece. The slaughter they carried out in Mesolonghi has cut off the possibility of them getting any help from the local people. On the contrary, under the banner of liberating Greece, they can get the sincerity of all the local Greeks. support.

Secondly, he had already severely damaged the defenders in the siege of Nafpaktos before, and the connection with the Turkish army had been cut off. These defenders would inevitably fall into a situation of isolation and helplessness, and their morale would definitely be heavy. The attack will definitely not have the fearless spirit of the Greek rebels who shared the same hatred.

Many battles in history have already proved that no matter how strong the fortress and defense line are, if the defender does not have morale and courage, it will only be reduced to a display.

And the same history has long proved that the Ottoman Turkey at this time was strong in the outside world and cadre in the middle, and it has long been reduced to the sick man of Europe. Its army is as rotten and weak as its politics, and it may be able to show some blood and courage when defending its own homeland. , but when fighting outside the homeland, it can't show any outstanding performance at all.

It is because of this that he is so confident that he must let himself chew on this hard bone.

In any case, now that we have taken this step, we must finish the rest of the road.

Now, what he needs most is a clear plan, and if he wants to formulate such a plan, he must get clear information - and this information cannot come from himself or the people around him, only It can come from those who have fought **** battles here.

And Aigron also believed that in the city of Methorongion, there must be many eyes full of hatred or fear, staring at him and his army. They will also try their best to fight against themselves and make their army come back in vain.

It is conceivable that the fire of war will inevitably burn between the two parties in the near future, but at this moment, everything seems to be that calm.

As dusk approached, he called several of his confidants into his tent and held a small military meeting.

After they were seated one by one, Aegron carefully observed their expressions, and found that everyone looked solemn, no longer as relaxed as they had just started.

Obviously, after seeing the terrain and defensive facilities of the Methorongi Fortress, their originally high enthusiasm has been cooled by reason.

"Everyone, Methorongion is right in front of us." After the personnel arrived, Aigron spoke first, "For us, taking it is of extraordinary significance - I believe that before we set off, you have already Understand this. Now I want to ask you, is there any way for our army to capture it as soon as possible?"

After his words fell, there was another silence in the entire tent, and it was obvious that everyone present had no good ideas now.

Everyone looked at each other, and finally everyone's eyes fell on Supreme Commander Michelle Ney.

Michelle Ney was obviously on pins and needles, but under everyone's attention, he had to speak reluctantly.

"Your Majesty, after seeing it with my own eyes, I have to admit that it is stronger than I thought before. Its terrain is superior and its defense facilities are quite complete, and it is definitely not easy to take down - especially, we are now There is also a lack of heavy artillery to destroy their fortifications..."

The more he spoke, the quieter his voice became, and he obviously lacked confidence.

As the supreme commander of the entire army except for Aigron, Michel Ney knew that he had a huge responsibility on his shoulders, so he was very reluctant to take unnecessary risks and sacrifices, and even more reluctant to ignore casualties and force an attack.

He knows that although his own troops may be more than the defenders in the fortress at this time, such a military advantage cannot overcome the defensive advantages brought by the fortress facilities; in addition, he lacks heavy firepower on his side, and it is difficult to destroy these in front of him. fortifications.

"You lack confidence?" Aegron asked the other party directly.

"Your Majesty, my judgment of the situation comes from objective reality, not from blind fanaticism, so you can't expect me to be full of confidence every time." Michele Ney admitted in a euphemistic way. I really lack confidence.

As if afraid of being accused of cowardice by Aegron, he immediately explained to himself, "Please don't misunderstand, I have already sworn to serve you, and I am absolutely not afraid of charging, but I think our soldiers are your valuable assets, It shouldn't be pointlessly squandered on futile attrition - soldiers will die generously if they know that their death can open your way to victory, but if they know that their death is only for the sake of Add rotting dust to the trenches, and they must lose all enthusiasm—"

From the other party's words, Aegron heard it, and after seeing the situation of the Methorongi Fortress with his own eyes, he doubted whether he could win.

"Like you, I don't want my soldiers to bleed in vain, and that's why I used you guys—your job is to help me win with the fewest casualties." Aegron looked at each other, and then Ask, "Michelle, tell me, how do you feel confident enough to take it?"

Under Aigron's gaze, Michelle Ney hesitated for a moment, and finally replied in a low voice, "If you can give me another ten thousand people, or give me a few more months, I am confident that I will win it for you. ."

"It is impossible for me to recruit another 10,000 people for you in a short period of time. Although I have already asked our Greek allies for help, they will definitely not be able to recruit so many people and can send me one or two thousand people. I'm thankful..." Agron shook his head regretfully, "Besides, I can't give you a few months, the Russians are about to start a war with Turkey, and I can't let the halo of the victor overwhelm me. Move to him again, and within a month I shall see Methorongion in my hands!"

"Since that's the case... then I can only ask you to give me a little more time." Michelle Ney lowered her head, as if she didn't dare to look directly at Aegron. "let me try."

He felt that His Majesty's request was a bit difficult for a strong man, but he didn't dare to say it in person, so his face became a little ugly.

After seeing his face, Aegron probably guessed what he was thinking.

Seeing that his number one general behaved like this, he was a little disappointed, so he turned to look at the others, only to find that everyone no longer responded eagerly to him as usual, but avoided their eyes. Dare to look at yourself.

Now he understood that almost everyone present had the same idea as Michele Ney, and felt that there was little hope of taking Methorongiion by storm in a short period of time.

Seeing them behave like this, Aegron couldn't help but feel a little anxious, but he also knew that this was a normal reaction.

After a moment of silence, he spoke again. "Everyone, since we met on the island of Monte Cristo, you have been following me for a long time. You should all know that I am by no means a person who easily gets hotheaded. All my strategic decisions are made after careful consideration. put it into practice.”

Then, he stood up directly, and then pointed to the map on the table, "You can understand without me saying too much, as long as we hit this place, we can clear a large area of ​​enemies and put it on the In our pockets, it will be our biggest gain since landing, and this victory will surely make us famous!"

After impassionedly stating the great significance, he took the initiative to lower his tone, "Yes, I admit that Metholonghi is a dangerous peak, it is not easy to climb in the past, it is sturdy and tenacious, and has geographical advantages, it There have been brilliant achievements before, and these are the reasons for your difficulties; but you should not forget that at this moment we are fighting for a just cause, we have beaten them all once, it is us Forcing them to dare not fight us again, they can only hide in the tortoise shell and tremble, and it is they who are afraid, not us!"

As if to increase his persuasiveness, he slapped the table heavily, "Methorongion looks solid, but it's just a broken house, as long as we put a hard foot in it, we will definitely be able to make it collapse. !"

Under his hoarse shouts, the atmosphere in the tent finally became a lot more eager, and the officers' original dignified expressions began to loosen.

If others say such words, they may only regard it as meaningless empty talk, but Aigron has built up prestige in their minds because of his victories over and over, so under his mobilization, in a short period of time The guilt was indeed enough to give these men the courage to ignite their desire to win.

Seeing that his battle mobilization had an effect, Aegron finally felt a little more comfortable.

He looked at Michelle Ney again.

"Michelle, you launch a tentative attack as soon as possible. I want to show which Turks our courage and determination."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Since Aegron had already said this, Michelle Ney could only bite the bullet and agree.

"You give me a few days, and I will arrange for the soldiers to dig trenches, wait until they get close, and then launch an attack. At that time, the artillery will also work together to see what the effect is..."

"Okay, then that's it." Aegron nodded, finally agreeing to the other party's arrangement.

Seeing that her proposal had finally passed the test, Michelle Ney was also secretly relieved.

But even so, he was still uneasy, not sure about the effect of the next attack.

For Aegron, although this meeting could not satisfy him, it was enough to at least temporarily unify his thoughts.

He had to find a way to boost the morale of his men, lest they all start to back down; but at the same time he didn't want to push so hard right now that everyone would feel like they were being strong.

He also knows that officers are the backbone of the army and the guarantee of combat effectiveness. If even the highest-level officers under him have doubts, the next battle will be doomed.

And he himself knew that it was absolutely the stupidest way to just keep attacking from the front like the Turks. He simply didn't have that many troops and time to consume.

If Methorongion was taken at a terrible price, then all his plans would be meaningless.

So, he found what better way to open the door to victory.

While he was sitting in the tent pondering, his guards finally reported good news to him--his loyal subordinate, Edmund Dantès, Count of Monte Cristo, asked to see him.