Conquer Europe from the West

Chapter 140 The Night Before the Battle
The day.

Once Ryan's plan was announced, all the staff officers of the Eighth Army were summoned together for a comprehensive discussion of the plan.

By that evening, the entire plan had been revised more than a dozen times, but the core remained unchanged.

The Imperial Army will continue to garrison a small number of troops in Insterburg, while sending the majority of its forces to the Southern Theater to intercept and annihilate the Imperial Second Army.

That night, Rehn himself made a brief encrypted contact with General Pritwitz, commander of the Ninth Army Corps in Königsberg, using the headquarters radio.

However, at that time, there was no such thing as encryption or non-encryption in radio communication, so Rein solemnly ordered the telegraph operator to send a notification first, and only after the platoon leader Schulz was found would a formal telegram be sent again.

The content is also very simple.

The question was about the size of the main force that could be mobilized for the ninth episode, and how many mobile artillery pieces the Ninth Army had.

Pritwitz clearly didn't understand what Renne meant, but he knew Renne, so he immediately ordered one of his cavalry divisions to take two artillery battalions by train to Insterburg.

When they arrived in Insterburg, the 20th Army, which had readjusted its deployment strategy, seized the locomotive and cargo boxes sent by Pritwitz and rushed towards Erenstein without stopping.

They were to arrive in Naidenburg, located southeast of Allenstein, within two days, where they would lie in ambush and launch a feint attack on the Imperial Second Army advancing toward the Vistula River, while remaining ready to retreat toward Allenstein to await the arrival of the next train.

The 17th Corps will depart a little later; they will arrive at Allenstein faster than the 1st Corps and be stationed there as the new central force.

At the same time, the First Army will move further west together with the 20th Army, and quickly create a defensive line on the western side of the Imperial Army through night marches and other means.

The entire plan will take at least four days and at most a week.

This is similar to what Ryan said at the meeting.

And it was precisely when these troops completed their assembly, and the First Army and the First Cavalry Division began to assemble at the front line in an attempt to launch a feint attack on the Imperial First Army Group, that the Imperial forces also began to move.

It was midnight on October 26th.

Rein drove a Ford Model T provided by headquarters along the road from Insterburg to Compiègne, while on the other side of the road stretched the First Corps of the Eighth Army for several kilometers.

Brinkman, in the passenger seat, was scanning the sky with a gem that could be used as a searchlight, and successfully used it to scare away several Imperial military aircraft that were trying to conduct aerial reconnaissance missions at night.

But she wasn't very happy.

Because Ryan had once misspoke, saying that this thing could shoot down planes, Brinkman had been thinking about how this thing could actually shoot down planes instead of driving them away.

Not long after, the pilot of a Royalist reconnaissance plane was suddenly blinded by the beam of light and crashed to the ground.

Soon, a huge fireball erupted from the ground in the distance, and only then did Brinkman finally cheer: "Colonel, this thing you were talking about actually works!"

Ryan glanced at her and said, "Instead of celebrating this, you should look around for places where trucks can drive."

Although it's called a truck, what Ryan was actually referring to was a truck-mounted cannon.

The truck-mounted cannons configured for the Empire did not adopt the double-layered side-by-side wheel design that Raine had previously mentioned, because it would be a waste of time to recreate an axle that could be dynamically balanced.

So they simply built a wider one, and even attached extra rubber plates to the wheels, to make do with it.

But the truck itself is not light, and with a 77mm cannon added, the weight immediately increases dramatically.

This is also the main reason why Rein's troops were a test unit, and there were only three truck-mounted artillery pieces—they were heavy, cumbersome, and prone to getting stuck in the ground. If they were captured by the enemy, it would be equivalent to exposing his secrets.

Therefore, identifying the routes that can be taken and planning the paths for entering and exiting the battlefield has become the most important thing at present.

Nearby, at Rein's prompting, Brinkman immediately focused and began scanning the surrounding terrain with the "searchlight" he had taken from the airship.

Meanwhile, the two gunners in the back seat immediately took out their small maps and started writing and drawing on them.

They must confirm in the shortest possible time that the surrounding environment is suitable for truck-mounted artillery operations; otherwise, truck-mounted artillery must absolutely not enter this area.

Of course, Renn didn't really care about that.

After all, the truck-mounted artillery currently in use is something that any country can come up with, and it's completely different from the self-propelled artillery developed in later generations.

However, the people at the equipment development institute insisted on protecting the truck-mounted artillery, and considering that he would rely on them for a living in the future, Ryan had no choice but to agree.

the other side.

Because the searchlights did indeed successfully drive away the reconnaissance planes in the sky, and even shot one down, wherever Ryan's car went, he could hear the cheers of the troops there.

This made Brinkman's hand, which was gripping the searchlight, want to turn even more towards the sky.

Raine didn't bother to say anything to her. He simply parked the car on a high ground where it wouldn't be hit by the Imperial artillery, and ran back to the highway to smoke by himself.

Just then, a series of crisp hoofbeats came from ahead.

"General François."

Ryan immediately recognized the man as the commander of the First Army and saluted him.

"No need."

François waved his hand, handed the reins to his adjutant, dismounted, and stood by the roadside like Renne. He took out a cigar from his pocket and asked curiously, "I heard that Colonel Frieze, you don't like your men saluting you?"

Renn was slightly surprised that François would bring this up, and then said in a somewhat helpless tone, "After all, it's not a safe rear command post. Who knows if we'll get shot in the head by an enemy sniper if we keep saluting everywhere on the front lines?"

"Ha ha ha ha."

François was amused by Rennes's remarks, but everyone could tell that his laughter was more of a helpless laugh than a sarcastic one.

François laughed for a while before saying in a nostalgic tone, "When I first joined the army, I was often made to clean chamber pots and toilets for saluting the wrong time."

"Later I thought, I'll climb to the level where everyone salutes me sooner or later, otherwise all that cleaning of toilets and chamber pots will have been for nothing."

"Look at him now, at his age, he's only managed to become a division commander."

He had a cigarette dangling from his lips, his hands on his hips, watching the First Army troops slowly advancing in front of him, his mouth full of emotion.

Ryan replied, "Then you're having a much better time than me."

"Oh?" François glanced at Rennes. "What do you mean?"

He clearly didn't think that Raine was having a hard time in the military. After all, the Empire hadn't fought many wars in the past few decades, and Raine himself was a top student who graduated from military academy. In theory, he shouldn't have encountered too many difficulties.

But Ryan's answer was very straightforward.

"I gave up the commission and instead had the opportunity to study advanced military officer courses."

A simple sentence made François's eyes widen.

He pondered the person for a while before belatedly realizing that Renn's name didn't contain the word VON.

"What are you thinking?" he asked in surprise. "This is no small matter."

Raine said calmly, "I don't regret it now."

He turned to look at Brinkman, who stood on the high ground like a lighthouse: "If I had chosen the path of being commissioned and serving in the military like her, I probably would have died under the French guns months ago."

"I know that."

Although François had never returned to the capital, he still knew quite a bit about what was happening there and about the news from Rennes.

But those were things he'd read in newspapers and press releases, and he habitually didn't believe them.

In addition, Rennes had a Blue Star Medal around his neck, so François once thought that Rennes was already a noble officer.

“But that wouldn’t be easy in the army,” François said with a hint of regret.

Because he was clearly aware of the treatment and position of ordinary officers in the army, Ludendorff, being a civilian officer, had to have the General Staff assign him a Hindenburg to gain respect.

However, given the current situation, the two of them are clearly not as easily accepted as Ryan, a recipient of the prestigious Blue Star Medal with numerous merits.

There wasn't any other reason. The main thing was that Raine had already breached the Falland Army Group's defenses twice and wiped out their headquarters.

The crucial point is that no one in history has ever been able to destroy two enemy army group headquarters in such a short period of time.

This is the real reason why Renn can convince everyone.

However, François also knew Hoffmann, so his trust in Rennes came from many sources. Part of it was his merits, and part of it was that Rennes's combat strategy was very similar to Hoffmann's strategy. Both were based on containment and targeted strikes, and were very bold while their plans were relatively complete and meticulous.

Rennes didn't continue along with François's line of thought. Instead, he said, "Actually, it's not so bad. Besides, the people in the military are easier to get along with than the guys in the Ministry of Defense. I really don't like those guys in the Ministry of Defense."

"Haha, that's true."

François was amused by Rennes's statement, but perhaps because he had also been disgusted by the people in the Ministry of Defense back then, his laughter became somewhat restrained.

He gestured to his adjutant to go first, then pulled Ryan and the troops forward: "So, what are your plans for the next battle?"

François was referring to the battles that would continue tomorrow and the day after.

The First Army Group is now on the front line, less than three kilometers away from the Imperial forces. However, because the artillery had already begun shelling in the afternoon, and because the Imperial's artillery has a longer range than the Imperial's, the Imperial has not yet been able to organize a counterattack.

This indirectly proves that the Imperial Army is beginning to experience a large-scale shortage of supplies.

However, this won't last long.

Because the scouts soon discovered that the two armies of the Empire on the flanks were showing signs of continuing their advance.

This is a good omen, and it perfectly matches Ryan's previous predictions.

But before that, the First Army Group needs to launch a large-scale feint attack to make the Imperial forces mistakenly believe that the Empire wants to fight a decisive battle with the First Army Group.

Without much thought, Renn glanced at the soldiers on the roadside who were a step ahead of him, and then at Brinkman and the others who were still surveying the terrain on the high ground not far away. He said directly, "We will launch an attack tonight. The specific time of the attack will be decided by you, General François, but there are prerequisites."

François didn't care about such things, because he had long heard that Rennes' troops were more swift in their attacks than ordinary troops, so he wasn't surprised. He simply said, "What are your conditions? Please speak freely."

Renn glanced at François again at his words before saying, "We need the First Army to launch a feint attack and a formal offensive across the entire front line, for a total of two waves of attacks."

"In the first offensive, we need to launch the offensive under the cover of night or smoke bombs. During this period, my troops will ambush in the enemy's forward positions and disguise themselves. Once the troops are in place, the First Army Group responsible for the feint attack can immediately withdraw."

"Then, when the Imperial Army lifted the alert and attempted to fill the gaps in the defensive line, the artillery units in the rear immediately began to carry out precision strikes on the Imperial Army positions that had been attacked before, and sent infantry forward again."

"My troops will break through the enemy's lines during this period, while the First Army can rush into the Imperial Army's positions through the breach and further expand the gains."

Ryan spoke very conservatively, revealing nothing that couldn't be disclosed.

This left François completely bewildered.

However, he still grasped a few very important points: "You want to directly penetrate the Empire's defenses from the front of the 27th Army?"

"almost."

Renn nodded: "But this requires the rear troops to catch up immediately, otherwise my men will only die in the Empire's encirclement with the best equipment in all of Europe."

His last sentence was said in a self-deprecating way, which pleased François greatly.

Because François was a military commander with excellent battlefield judgment, he never made any wrong decisions during the entire Battle of Tannenberg in Earth's history.

This is very rare for a general, after all, no one is perfect.

"Aren't you worried that our people won't be able to fill the gap smoothly?"

François was clearly not prepared for Rennes's idea, so his voice carried a hint of self-deprecation: "This is not a good job. If the troops suffer heavy losses in the first wave of attacks, it may cause the troops to refuse to launch an attack."

Ryan understood what he meant.

In the history he knew, when Falkingham planned his campaign to make Verdun the battlefield to drain the last drop of blood from the French, the German troops were exhausted by the lack of a clear objective, which eventually led to a loosening of the front lines and low morale.

However, Rennes also had his own preparations.

He nodded and said, "In a large-scale feint attack, it's unavoidable that this situation would occur without informing the soldiers."

"But I also have my own troops."

As he spoke, Renn looked in the direction of Insterburg.

"Your troops?" François asked, puzzled. "Didn't you only bring a company and a few dozen trucks?"

"Yes, I only brought these troops with me."

Ryan nodded: "But no one said I couldn't call in reinforcements from the rear, right?"

François was momentarily stunned, for he had never imagined that troops could travel from the capital across half the empire to the very edge of East Prussia at such a rapid pace.

He wasn't stupid, so he naturally wouldn't openly ask Renn how he did it; he just looked at Renn with curiosity and doubt.

Raine understood what he meant, so he pointed to the sky and said, "Not many, just one battalion, Your Excellency General."

"If the First Army refuses to launch an attack, my troops will set out directly from their positions and break through the enemy's frontal defenses independently to rescue friendly troops trapped in the battle lines."

"Do you know what you're saying, Colonel Frieze?"

François clearly didn't believe Rennes's troops could do that, but Rennes didn't expect his trust either.

After all, even if he himself heard these words, he wouldn't believe them at first.

Of course, that was based on the premise that Rein did not know the equipment deployed by the troops.

François remained silent, and the two stood at the entrance to the makeshift trench, watching the group of soldiers lining up to enter the defensive line.

After a long while, almost when Brinkman and the two gunners had finished their road survey and were about to drive back to Insterburg, François spoke again.

"Colonel Frieger."

he said.

"What will it bring us if this operation succeeds?"

François did not clarify his meaning; he used a very vague expression.

Renn was thinking.

He didn't know whether to talk to François about tactical innovations or equipment upgrades...

Because this question is too broad.

As for this operation, who knows if he's referring to the main campaign or this feint attack?

François' First Army will only stay at the front for three days. Today is the second day, which means he will lead his troops away the day after tomorrow.

Whether this operation succeeds or fails is meaningless to him—because the Empire has already lost all its territory east of Insterburg.

Coincidentally, François was a general from East Prussia.

In the first offensive by the Empire in August, he successfully led his troops to drive the Empire out of the Empire's territory.

If they hadn't been ordered to retreat later, they wouldn't have ended up having to defend Insterburg.

Even so, his First Army remained at the forefront, showing no intention of retreating.

Having figured this out, Rennes uttered a phrase that François would remember for the rest of his life.

"After this battle, the Empire will never again have the power to invade the Empire's territory."

(End of this chapter)