Flowers, Swords and France

Under the oppressive sky, the once bustling Kalamita Bay suddenly returned to its old tranquility.

At this time, thick black clouds covered the sky. Although it was only afternoon, it was as gloomy as evening.

No one would doubt that another rainstorm was about to come.

With such awareness, the originally busy transport ships began to collect their sampans and began to prepare for the rainstorm, and the soldiers in the camp on the shore also returned to their simple camps with curses.

"Boom!"

Soon, in the sudden roar, clear white silk threads wove warps and wefts in the dark clouds. The heavy rain, accompanied by thunder, fell mercilessly on the wilderness of the Crimean Peninsula again. The rumble of thunder was like the roar of cannons, and the sound of rainstorms hitting the ground was like drum beats and gunshots. The music played by nature in the storm was almost more fierce than the momentum of humans in the war.

This kind of rainstorm is enough to put an end to all human activities. People huddle helplessly in their homes, waiting for the storm to pass - even if the most powerful military alliance in the world at this time is staying here, they can only succumb to the power of nature.

"Damn it! How long will this rain last!"

In a marching tent, looking at the rain that keeps seeping in and the mud on the ground, a French officer in a hussar uniform couldn't help cursing again.

He is Major Samuel, the commander of the cavalry battalion, belonging to the Second Division. He had landed in Varna with the French army before, and marched with the large army all the way to the Silistra Fortress, and participated in the battle to rescue the fortress and repel the Russians.

After the Russians retreated to their original starting position, they stood by at the fortress, and after a period of repair, they received an order from the French headquarters, so they retreated back to the port of Varna, boarded the transport ship again, and finally came to the land of the Crimean Peninsula.

This young officer, who was only in his early thirties, was tall and strong, with long hair and a beautiful golden mustache, and was very energetic. Like most cavalry officers, he liked to wear dazzling clothes and ride a tall horse to flaunt in the city, and talked about love with girls from all over the place, leaving behind a romantic history in several garrisons.

He was optimistic by nature and spent money like water, so that he was in debt for many years, and he never worried about the future. After the war between the empire and Russia broke out, this ambitious cavalry officer was overjoyed and took the initiative to apply to his superiors to join the front line as soon as possible. Luck did not let him down. His division became one of the main forces of the first expeditionary force and was the first to set foot on the battlefield with the Russians.

He bravely participated in the battle and was proud of his and his men's performance. He was eager to perform more, not so much for making achievements, but to find a kind of excitement that was impossible in peaceful life. He was the kind of person who truly enjoyed war and the feeling of brushing shoulders with death. Such people were born warriors.

However, today, this natural warrior was not as optimistic as usual. His face was as gloomy as the weather. He walked around the tent anxiously, and conveyed his anxiety to everyone present.

"I think it will take several days." Colonel Lucien Leflair answered in the silence of others. "It is the rainy season in Crimea now."

"If it rains for a few more days, we will be finished without the enemy attacking!" Major Samuel answered anxiously, "Many of our horses have died. If it continues like this, we will have to charge the enemy on foot."

"If we still have the strength to charge on foot at that time, that would be great..." An infantry officer next to him sighed with a frown, "I am afraid that the disease and heavy rain will have destroyed us before."

His words were also agreed by some other officers. For a while, the tent was filled with gloom and mist, and these French officers were no longer as high-spirited as before.

This is not surprising.

Since the coalition forces began to land on the Crimean Peninsula, the situation was very smooth at the beginning. The Russians gave the coalition forces the greatest convenience. Their landing operations have not been harassed by the Russian army. Soon, tens of thousands of coalition soldiers landed smoothly in the harbor and established simple camps and fortifications here.

However, unfortunately, after the initial success, trouble came.

Since last week, the rain has been pouring down near the camp almost non-stop, continuously attacking the coalition camp, causing the small number of camps that had only been built to be immediately surrounded by mud.

Even the coalition troops with the highest morale, after encountering such terrible weather and spending a long period of miserable days in the mud, could not help but complain and blame others, and no longer have the high morale before, even this army that had already made meritorious contributions.

What is even more terrifying is that under the attack of rain and mosquitoes, the disease that was originally slightly controlled has begun to spread again among the coalition. Although the army immediately isolated the disease with extremely high efficiency and burned the bodies of the dead on the spot, the disease is still spreading uncontrollably.

Moreover, heavy rains have also brought difficulties to the transportation of supplies. During frequent heavy rains, the supply of supplies to troops on the shore has been greatly reduced. Soldiers and horses can only eat the reserve rations they brought before, and there is little fuel. They were asked to boil water, which only increased the suffering faced by the troops.

The only good news is that in such heavy rain, the Russians' movements are also restricted, so even if the morale of the coalition forces is so low, they have not lost hope of winning.

All kinds of difficulties have brought a strong blow to the coalition forces. Although the officers worked hard to maintain the morale and order in the army, they also felt miserable in their hearts. At today's gathering of officers, several people could not help but complain. got up.

"Instead of us soaking in the water and rotting, we might as well find an opportunity to fight the Russians as soon as possible." After complaining together for a while, Major Samuel couldn't help but suggested, "Now we at least still have some strength. , if you wait a little longer, there will be nothing..."

"Sevastopol is not that easy to fight." Another officer shook his head, "Didn't the commander-in-chief take the fleet over there to conduct a reconnaissance? He said we have to stay here for several months."

"Rather than dying of illness or being choked with mud, I think it would be better to be shot to death." Major Samuel said bitterly, "At least that would have some value!"

"If you are willing to lead your cavalry to charge against the bastion, we would be happy to support you. I heard that during the expedition to Russia, Prince Murat and his men stormed the Russian bastion." The officer said. Shrugging, "But if you want us to follow you, then forget it."

His words caused a burst of laughter, and made the young and energetic Major Samuel's neck turn red with anger.

"Is this what a French officer should say?!" he asked the other party loudly, "What? Are you afraid? If you are afraid, you can go back now!"

His irritated words caused the officer's expression to change suddenly. Seeing that the two officers were quarreling and had the intention of starting a fight, Lucien couldn't help but speak.

"That's enough! Stop arguing." He raised his hand to stop their quarrel.

As a colonel, Lucien had the highest military rank among the people present and had a profound background, so when he spoke, others did not dare to answer and could only listen to his instructions.

"The current environment is very bad. I can understand everyone's restlessness. To be honest, I am also a little emotional." Lucien sighed at first, but then became serious again, "But the more this happens, the more we should calm down. We can't Feel free to vent your emotions, because we are officers and the people below are watching us. If we are discouraged, what will the soldiers think? "

Under his implicit accusation, the quarreling and grumbling officers lowered their heads. Although they may not be convinced, they must show due discipline.

"When to launch an attack and how to launch an attack are matters that can only be decided by the Commander-in-Chief. We have no right to interfere with the Commander-in-Chief's decision." After controlling the atmosphere, Lucien slowed down his tone, "Right now we can only wait. The Commander-in-Chief’s order, before that, our obligation is to set an example for our subordinates with an unswerving attitude, and to maintain the minimum combat effectiveness of the army, otherwise we will be derelict in our duties!”

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The few silent officers just nodded in agreement. Apparently Lucien said what they were thinking, and even those who originally complained could only reluctantly agree, because there was indeed nothing wrong with Lucien's words.

"How is the commander-in-chief's health now?" After a long silence, an officer asked in a low voice. "Can he still give orders fluently now?"

This question suddenly made the air in the tent feel a little colder. Everyone fell silent and looked at Lucien with deliberately evasive eyes.

This is indeed an issue that people have to pay attention to. As the marshal of the empire and the commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force, Marshal Treville has a very high prestige, and his health has become the most concerning thing within the entire army. One of the questions.

Lucien hesitated for a moment, knowing that every word he said might cause a commotion in the army.

But after thinking about it, he felt that lying was even more meaningless, because the lie would eventually be exposed, and then it would bring a greater blow to the entire army.

"I visited the Marshal a few days ago. He is indeed in poor health and has been lying beside the bed." He said slowly, trying not to contain any emotion, so that everyone could hear clearly. , "However, he is in good spirits and is very conscious. He can give us orders fluently. I think he can still take on the important task of commanding the entire army."

It can be seen that many people secretly breathed a sigh of relief. In this difficult situation, of course they all hope that the commander-in-chief can be safe and sound, so as not to cause a more serious blow to the army.

"The Commander-in-Chief has reached this age and is in this hellish place. It is normal for him to have some physical problems." Major Samuel whispered, "But I believe God will bless him. He deserves the best." Merit as a reward.”

As a cavalry officer, he had more affection for the cavalry-born marshal than other officers, so he said this sincerely.

"Please rest assured, our voices have been heard at home, and many more military doctors have been sent to the front line. The marshal will be taken care of in the best way." Lucien spoke again, "and these military doctors should help us get rid of the plague as soon as possible..."

"Let those damn doctors come earlier!" Major Samuel spread his hands, looking relieved, "otherwise we won't be able to fight!"

"Boom!" At this moment, there was another thunder in the sky, and the raindrops, which had already begun to be sparse, suddenly became violent again. The sound of the rain made everyone's heart sink.

Just when Lucien wanted to say a few relaxing words to relieve everyone's pressure, the curtain of the tent was suddenly lifted.

The visitor was wearing a thick raincoat outside his military uniform. As soon as he came in, he saluted Lucien.

Lucien immediately saw that this was his brother-in-law, George, who served as an adjutant beside the marshal.

He still had a gloomy face, and then saluted the other party seriously.

"The Marshal asks you to come over, Colonel." George said to him in a businesslike tone.

"Okay, I understand." Lucien nodded and ordered his orderly to bring him a raincoat.