Flowers, Swords and France

"Sometimes we have to be a little reckless."

Marshal Treville's words were very plain and simple, but it was impossible for Lucien not to hear the meaning behind them, and this made him even more frightened.

"You mean, in order to stabilize the country, we must win as soon as possible?" he asked in a low voice.

"Even if we cannot win victory as soon as possible, we should still make progress as soon as possible." The marshal replied in a low voice. "The war has been going on for several months now. However, apart from scaring the Russians back, we have not achieved anything to boast about. On the contrary, Trapped in all kinds of difficulties...these news cannot calm people's hearts when they are brought back to China."

Lucien felt a little uncomfortable in his head, so he had to listen quietly.

If it is a purely military issue, he can put forward his own opinions anyway, but when it comes to this kind of issue, he is a complete layman, so he doesn't know what to say.

"Now, we are surrounded by domestic reporters and reporters from the British Times... These military reporters are pouring news from the front line to the rear, so that those in the rear who do not have to go to the front can leisurely enjoy breakfast. Eat breakfast and treat us as people on a stage." There was a hint of sarcasm in Marshal Treville's tone, "People don't like trivial things. They want to see concrete actions and results! They simply don’t understand the dilemma we are facing now. They will only see us hesitating in Crimea; and what about those reporters? They are all born bad people. They will do whatever they can to sell newspapers! They will heighten this atmosphere. Hey, back then we were fighting for the empire and the emperor, but now we are fighting for the journalists who accompany the army!”

Under the marshal's explanation, Lucien finally understood the current situation a little bit.

The empire has only been established for two years. Although it has suppressed the opposition with strong oppression and exiled a large number of dissidents, opposition sentiment among the people and public opinion circles is still very deep, so when the war does not go well, these people will make loud noises , shaken the people's hearts, and caused the empire's rule to begin to waver, which was something the empire could not bear.

What's more, such a thousand-mile expedition consumes huge amounts of wealth every day. No matter what, we must act as soon as possible so that the empire can account for the country.

"I...I understand your political considerations." Lucien replied, "But, Marshal, I want to remind you that failure is more terrible than no progress. If we carry out reckless actions and are defeated, it may It’s a bigger blow.”

"This issue should be considered by me." The marshal interrupted him directly. "Now, your task is to launch an attack, clear the Russian forward position on the river bank, and then try to cross the river and occupy an area on the opposite side."

"If this is your order, I will carry it out." Lucien nodded helplessly. The other party was a marshal and the commander-in-chief, and he was the one who had been supporting him. He could not disobey the other party's orders in any way. . "But... I request you to allow the frontline commander to order a retreat when the situation permits."

The marshal frowned.

Lucien's words were tantamount to showing that he had no confidence at all, and this was not something a subordinate should say to the commander. If it weren't for Lucien being one of his confidants, I'm afraid he would have reprimanded him in person.

Under the stern gaze of the marshal, Lucien lowered his head.

"Your Excellency, please believe that I will faithfully carry out your orders to the end. I will not retreat privately unless I have to. I just want to stop the attack as soon as possible when the situation is not good, so as not to be delayed when asking for your instructions. time."

"Okay." Marshal, "then go back and organize the attack as soon as possible. Don't wait until dark."

"Yes!" Lucien stood up, gave a military salute to the marshal, then turned and left the commander's tent.

It was already approaching dusk, and bonfires had been set up everywhere. The soldiers were either looking for fuel or boiling water around the bonfires. Although they were close to the enemy's position, the atmosphere was quite relaxed. Lucien, on the other hand, was much more nervous. He rushed back to the camp of his troops in a hurry.

After dismounting, he immediately summoned all his officers and announced to them the marshal's order.

As he expected, this order caused an uproar among the officers.

"I emphasize again, this is the marshal's order!" Lucien stopped their whispers, "No matter what you think in your heart, an order is an order, and we must obey it! Now, gather all the soldiers quickly, we must hurry up Time to attack!"

"At least let everyone drink some water," one officer said gloomily.

"Soon, maybe we won't have to drink water in our lives." Another officer replied in a joking tone.

However, no one laughed, and everyone dispersed in a heavy and gloomy manner, heading for the temporary headquarters of their troops.

Because the usual training was very strict, Lucien's subordinates quickly summoned all the soldiers under his command. These officers and soldiers put aside the bonfires they had built and rearranged themselves into the tight formation they had during the previous march.

Lucien rode his horse and patrolled in front of the formation of several battalions of troops.

These square formations were very neat, and the bright bayonets shone brightly in the sunset. The standard military uniforms and almost the same flat-tube military caps, even the officers, only had some decorative feathers on the military caps. The uniform uniforms and weapons made them look exactly the same from a distance. The army seemed to have wiped out the common characteristics of human beings.

However, in Lucien's eyes, everyone's face and height were different. He glanced at the soldiers in the front row. They had been together for a long time. He knew too many people here. He could even read their eyes. He knew that everyone had their own life and dreams.

And perhaps, tonight, many people here will never have the opportunity to realize their dreams.

These nervous or excited eyes all mean incomparable trust. These soldiers did not complain about the hasty attack launched by the marshal and their brigade commander, but were ready to obey their orders at any time.

He opened his mouth, but found that he didn't know what to say. He was never a good talker.

Moreover, this was an attack that he was unwilling to launch.

"Soldiers, the commander-in-chief has entrusted you with the task of firing the first shot. Please repay his trust!" Until the end, he made up his mind and drew his sword on the horse, pointing it forward. "It's time to fight. This is us! Now, please follow us to attack!"

Then, he urged his horse to march forward, and behind him, the drums of the march suddenly sounded. At the shouts of the officers, the soldiers followed the swaying military flags and strode forward.

Under the golden light, their original dark blue uniforms became gray-green, and the red trousers on their feet became more and more bright. In the neat camp of the army, an army suddenly appeared and marched towards the village on the river bank, breaking the original tranquility almost in an instant.

The two artillery companies assigned to the second division also advanced southward with Lucien's troops. Although these cannons were relatively light twelve-pound cannons with a small caliber, they were still heavy because the barrels were made of bronze. The packhorses pulled these cannons slowly forward. It was hard to believe that they were monsters that could easily devour human lives.

The Russians, who were also taking a rest before the battle, obviously did not expect that the coalition forces would launch an attack before they had a firm foothold. Therefore, when the drumbeats of the French army's advance sounded, there was a little commotion on the front line.

However, under the orders of the officers, many soldiers immediately regained their composure, and then raised their guns and began to fight back against the French officers and soldiers who were pressing over.

"Bang!" "Bang!"

The dense gunfire rang out in the villages and vineyards. These bullets seemed to be elusive because they were covered by earth masts, vines, and even some temporary fortifications built in advance. The gunfire everywhere soon turned the village into a smoky place.

However, although the concealment was good, the accuracy of these bullets was not satisfactory. Lucien led his soldiers to approach these villages at a leisurely pace. Although some unlucky soldiers fell to the ground due to stray bullets, the overall casualties were minimal, and the soldiers behind them immediately filled the vacant positions.

In this disruptive shooting, the French column array passed through the front-line open space and came to the front of the village. The road had become very narrow and was divided by cramped houses. They quickly dispersed into small groups of scattered soldiers and then advanced deep into the village.

At this time, the slow-moving field artillery was also pushed to the designated position. After a brief adjustment and calculation, these artillery vehicles began to adjust the angle, and the black muzzles were aimed at the villages in the distance.

"Boom!" The thunderous sound of artillery fire suddenly sounded.

Amidst the sharp whistling, the shells flew into the village. These explosive shells quickly set the wooden houses and dry vines on fire. The fire immediately began to spread everywhere. The village and vineyards, which were already shrouded in smoke, were now more severely damaged. The thick smoke spread everywhere, making people wonder if there were any survivors.

After the fire began to engulf the entire village, the bombardment finally stopped, and this became the most favorable time to attack. Lucien immediately urged his men to attack. He knew that the Russian army would not leave many defenders in the front position. They now had an advantage and it should not be a problem to drive away the defenders.

"Attack!" In the front row of the scattered soldiers, the commanders, company commanders and platoon leaders drew their command knives and waved them forward, desperately driving their men into the smoky village.

In such an environment, it was difficult to see the surrounding situation clearly, and there was no time to shoot slowly, so it soon became a short hand-to-hand combat. The flying ash soon covered the soldiers' faces with a layer of black powder, and the choking smoke made them feel uncomfortable all over. But now no one cared, and they rushed into the burning village in groups of three or two, roaring.

The original text can be read in Liu # 9 @shu/bar!

Some people fell down in the stray bullets from time to time, but others were unaware. They rushed to every house and gully, searching for the enemy frantically. The number of defenders was obviously less than theirs, but these Russians were equally tenacious. They also held guns and roared to meet the enemy who invaded the position.

Smoke and artillery fire were saluting them. No one could see the overall situation clearly. Everyone was only concerned with searching for enemies around them, and then fighting frantically. Being killed or killing others, all they needed was courage to die and luck favored by God. Blood soon flowed everywhere in the village, and there were stains and houses destroyed by artillery fire everywhere.

The French army's superiority in manpower gradually gave them the upper hand. The frantic roars and the sound of artillery fire echoed everywhere. This originally beautiful village has become a ruin burning with flames. There are people lying on the ground everywhere. Most of them have passed away, and the rest are groaning in pain on the ground.

Lucien stayed outside the village with the remaining reserve troops. He watched the situation closely with a telescope, ready to let his reserve troops join the battle at any time.

Just as the sunset came to the cliffs on the opposite bank of the river, the fighting in the village gradually came to an end. Most of the defenders had died in the battle, and the remaining people finally began to retreat to the river bank. When they left the village, Lucien finally couldn't bear it anymore. He ordered the remaining people to follow the retreating Russian army and cross the river in one fell swoop.

There was only a narrow pontoon bridge on the river. The retreating enemy troops soon crowded together on the pontoon bridge. A small number of people fired back at the pursuing French troops, and most of them fled desperately to the other side. Led by the officers shouting orders, the French officers and soldiers rushed to the pontoon bridge frantically, and soon chased to the side of the pontoon bridge, and then rushed onto the pontoon bridge against the counterattack from the opposite bank. Some soldiers who had been killing red-eyed even jumped directly into the river and rushed forward desperately.

The river was waist-deep and the current was not turbulent, but the water still made their movements very slow. However, no one complained. They held their guns and walked forward unwaveringly, approaching the other side little by little.

At this moment, the earth trembled slightly.

"Boom!" Then, a deafening sound suddenly resounded between heaven and earth, and then it was transmitted to the ears of the French on the other side.

Accompanying such a terrible sound was the whistling shells. These were so powerful that they either exploded on the ground, sweeping around with flying shrapnel, or simply exploded in the sky, and the steel shotgun shells inside suddenly fell to the ground.

The dense shrapnel firepower immediately turned the river bank and village, which had been soaked in blood, into a hell on earth. Shrapnel flew everywhere with flesh and blood, screams continued, and the remains and fragments of the corpses fell into the sky and then fell to the ground, dyeing the river red.

Such bombardment was several times louder than the bombardment of the French field artillery just now, which made people suspect that God was sending down a punishment on the world.

Lucien, who was in the rear, was watching everything on the front line quietly with a telescope. He knew that this was a counterattack by the Russians, and judging from the power of their artillery, it should be a large-caliber 18-pound or even 32-pound artillery. Such an artillery attack was enough to suppress any possible attack, not to mention that they had the cliffs and slopes of the river bank as cover.

He held his telescope tightly, and because he was too hard, his hands began to turn white.

Right in front of him, a company commander he knew was hit in the head by a shotgun falling from the sky. Almost silently, his brain suddenly splattered, and his headless body slowly drooped to the ground, and the fragments of the original head were no longer known where they were taken.

You died like a real soldier, may you rest in peace. Lucien thought silently.

He had seen too many wars and could not be sentimental.

Under such bombardment, the already scattered French officers and soldiers became even more chaotic. Most of them hesitated between the river bank and the river. Only a few brave people, or those whose minds had been engulfed by the war, withstood the oncoming artillery fire and forced to swim across the stream.

They were soon knocked down by the artillery fire and bullets on the other side of the river. Only a very few people, relying on brute force and luck, rushed up the slope frantically. Then, they found that on the high platform of the slope, there were several multi-sided forts of the Russian army lying in front of them, and these forts were madly tilting artillery fire at them.

Even if they were so bloodthirsty, their remaining rationality told them that it was impossible to break through these forts with the existing strength alone.

Courage was gradually swallowed up by despair. The originally brave soldiers suddenly became extremely cowardly. They shouted and ran back, and then many of them fell to the ground forever in the process of retreating.

They ran all the way back to the river bank, and their retreat frightened the remaining people even more. The attacking troops finally gave up the courage to attack on the river bank. They retreated uncontrollably. Even though the commanders waved their sabers and shouted at the top of their lungs to order them to re-enter the battle, the retreat still happened uncontrollably. The officers were wrapped in the soldiers and then retreated back to the village.

Lucien watched his troops retreat in front of him quietly. He did not feel ashamed of it. His troops were brave enough.

It was time to give up the attack.

"Ah, unfortunate children!" Seeing this miserable scene, the British commander, Marshal Raglan, put down his telescope.

It was dark now, and there was no way to launch an organized attack under such circumstances.

Today's battle can only end here.

"They are indeed a little unfortunate, but their misfortune has created conditions for our luck." Marshal Treville next to him replied, "At least they occupied the front line for us and let us take a look at the strength of the Russians."

"I hope their sacrifice is worth it." Marshal Raglan sighed.