Starting with the smashing of Dunkirk

Chapter 49: Let the enemy's cavalry division sing and dance!
Major General Rawlinson was forced by the corps commander to promise to launch a full-scale counter-offensive before dawn.

In fact, that very night, some of the Burma officers on the front lines, based on their real-time assessment of the battle situation, organized small-scale counterattacks in an attempt to cut off the German army's pincer movement and recapture the positions they had lost.

It wasn't just the Burgh troops, located northeast of the German pincers, that did this. Even on the southwest side of the German pincers, French generals launched several pincer attacks to support their allies.

But without a doubt, these hastily organized counterattacks failed to break the German pincer movement and instead caused heavy casualties to their own side.

Because the main forces of the 12th and 6th Divisions of Baria had already reinforced the positions they had just captured during the day and built a solid defense.

Even Major General Karl Lyudpot, commander of the 12th Division, had moved his division headquarters forward by at least five or six kilometers.

A large number of MG08 heavy machine guns, and even some direct-fire field guns, were brought into the newly captured positions.

Therefore, whether the French or the French launch a counter-offensive, they will be caught in a crossfire of intersecting defensive forces!

The greatest casualties suffered by the Burghers and French forces that day actually came from this counter-offensive.

Throughout the day, the breakthrough by the two assault battalions, in terms of absolute numbers, did not actually kill many of the Bu army.

Lelouch's company suffered over 70 casualties after a full day of bloody fighting, and more than 100 were seriously wounded and had to retreat to the rear. His company suffered as many as one-third of the casualties, not even counting the minor injuries that did not require them to leave the front lines.

The enemy killed or wounded by Lelouch's company numbered only a few hundred. If the total results of both assault battalions are included, the total number might be close to two thousand.

Considering that the enemy was not elite, and that the 3rd Army had suffered heavy losses at Mons and was now mostly composed of new recruits, the exchange ratio itself was not significant.

The assault battalion's greatest contribution was its breakthrough, its ability to create an opening and shift the German forces from the "attacking side" to the "defending side."

Because it threatens the enemy's retreat and attacks the place the enemy must defend.

Originally, both German divisions were to leave their trenches and charge, exposing themselves to direct artillery and machine gun fire.

Now, however, they can crouch in trenches, letting the enemy charge and expose themselves to artillery and machine gun fire.

If warfare could be quantified like in the game Hearts of Iron, it would be equivalent to the entire German attacking force suffering a "defense strength divided by two" debuff, while the enemy could enjoy a "defense strength multiplied by two" positive buff.

But now, due to the disruption caused by Lelouch's tactics, the roles of offense and defense have shifted in some areas. The German army can defend with two divisions doubled, while the Burgh and French armies have to defend with two divisions divided.

After repelling two enemy counterattacks that night, Major General Karl felt refreshed and his understanding of Lelouch's contributions became more concrete.

"So offensive campaigns can be fought like this, and so exhilarating! My soldiers were originally the ones who had to charge forward against all odds! But thanks to that kid's planning, we can comfortably lie in wait while the enemy charges through a hail of bullets!"
"After the war, you must persuade my elder brother to promote him! As long as he compiles the assault tactical manual and promotes it throughout the army, he'll be guaranteed a major just for that planning achievement!"

Major General Karl looked at the latest battle reports from various defense zones and watched the Burgh and French troops falling like wheat on both sides of the position. He felt incredibly refreshed.

The deal of using two battalions to break through at a single point was worth it to allow two divisions to hold their ground and defend.

The two German divisions remained safely entrenched in the trenches all night, inflicting thousands of casualties on the counterattacking enemy.

As the Bu army's frontline troops failed to launch a counterattack, the bad news was reported up the chain of command, making the higher-ups increasingly anxious and determined to intensify the counterattack.

For example, the Brzezin cavalry corps stationed in Poppelinge was repeatedly urged by Marshal French, the Brzezin commander-in-chief, to arrive in Bayol before dawn the next morning and launch a full-scale attack on the German commando unit that may have infiltrated and outflanked them! They must be completely destroyed!
……

Lelouch was unaware that he was being watched by the high command of the Burgundy army. At that moment, he was leading several small units, rampaging and infiltrating the undefended area behind Bayole Town.

After breaking through the heavily fortified area of ​​the Bu army, his room for maneuver actually increased considerably. Taking advantage of the darkness of night, he launched sneak attacks and caused a great deal of damage to the enemy's rear.

Around 3 a.m. in the middle of the night, the two platoons of advance reconnaissance troops sent out by Lelouch, led by Lieutenant Model and Lieutenant Dieter, even broke into smaller groups and finally made their way to the railway line between Bayole and Stenford in the rear.

Lelouch assigned them the task of sabotaging the railway as much as possible—because Lelouch knew that only by letting the enemy know that the railway that sustained their supplies could not be saved would the garrison in Bayole panic and consider retreating, thus undermining the morale of the 3rd Army from a global perspective.

However, since December 21st corresponds to the fifth day of the lunar month, the waxing crescent moon was still very dim, and visibility at night was extremely poor. At first, Model and Dieter did not know where they were.

Finally, while they were still feeling their way around, they suddenly saw a train passing by about a kilometer ahead. Only then did they realize that they had finally bypassed half of the town and reached the railway line behind them.

Lieutenant Dieter, seeing the train loaded with supplies, couldn't resist the urge to sabotage it: "Let's go up and fire a few grenades with the grenade launcher and blow the train up. There's no time to get close enough to place the explosives."

Model, however, was more cautious. He reviewed his superior's words before setting off in his mind before rejecting the idea: "No! The commander ordered us to sabotage the railway. A few grenade launchers can at most overturn or damage the train, but we can't guarantee that we'll cut off the track. We only have one chance to launch a sneak attack. We should take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness and slowly sneak over to plant the explosives."

Moreover, the commanders have conducted simulations; once the railway is destroyed, the enemy will certainly lose the will to defend the city and may retreat north to the higher ground. These supplies have just been delivered; they may not have time to use them, and they might even benefit us—if you insist on blowing up the train, wait until it's unloaded and returning home before bombing it.”

Dieter thought about it and realized it really made sense, so he readily agreed.

The two assault teams, using infiltration and reconnaissance tactics, slowly advanced, briefly exchanging fire along the way and eliminating two railway patrol teams of the Bu army.

However, because war was raging everywhere, the fighting here didn't attract much attention. Special operations didn't exist in this era, and defenses in the rear were often lax.

Half an hour later, they reached the railway and quickly buried the explosive device, stuffing all the explosive charges they could find under the rails and tying them tightly to the sleepers.

A short while later, the train that had previously transported military supplies into the town returned. It also carried a trainload of wounded soldiers and corpses, as well as a few civilian personnel who needed to be evacuated—of course, Model didn't know who was on board, and on the battlefield, there was no law prohibiting the bombing of trains carrying wounded soldiers.

In Model's eyes, all he saw was a trainload of enemy combatants retreating.

"Detonate!" With Model's order, the assault platoon's accompanying engineers pressed the detonator, and the dozen kilograms of TNT detonated instantly, blowing several sections of the rails away and blasting five or six nearby carriages into the air. The remaining carriages were also pulled off the tracks and overturned by the enormous force.

The vast majority of the Burma soldiers on the train were killed by the bombs, collisions, or falls.

A few wounded men struggled to crawl out of the train, but were caught in a pincer movement by Model and Dieter, who fired their submachine guns at the train wreckage several times before quickly retreating.

Around four o'clock, Model finally found Commander Lelouch again and gave a brief report on the situation.

"Sir! We've located the Bu army's railway and blown it up!"

Lelouch couldn't help but raise an eyebrow: "Excellent! Now the 3rd Army in Baylor Town will have no choice but to retreat! But we shouldn't be careless, the enemy will definitely launch a final, frenzied retaliation."

Now we must quickly reinforce our fortifications and hold out until reinforcements arrive to cover our losses. That way, we can consolidate our gains. Send a telegram to Regiment Commander Lister, instructing him to quickly bring the 16th Regiment to take over the position, and also to have Battalion Commander Rundstedt gradually move closer to us!

"Yes, sir!" Platoon Leader Schweinsteiger, in charge of communications, immediately went to make arrangements. Meanwhile, Model and Dieter joined the effort to deepen trenches, build foxholes, and camouflage firing positions.

Lelouch actually guessed the enemy's movements with pretty much the right amount of information.

Just twenty minutes later, a platoon that had gone ahead to scout sent back a radio telegram, warning Lelouch:
"Sir! I see a large mobile force heading this way from the direction of Stenford to the north! It's an enemy cavalry division!"

"A cavalry division?" Lelouch was taken aback, and the image of a movie he had seen in his previous life, "War Horse," involuntarily came to mind.

That 2011 movie included scenes of Burgundian cavalry divisions charging towards heavy machine gun positions during World War I, brandishing sabers and dying.

It's only 1914, and the war has only been going on for a few months. The enemy's tactical thinking is indeed quite backward. Could it be...?

Thinking of this, Lelouch felt a surge of eagerness and quickly asked the person beside him, "Model, do you know anything about the Burgh's cavalry? Do you know what weapons they use?"

Model, on the other hand, had a solid foundation in his skills and answered without hesitation: "There are pistols and carbines, as well as sabers and cavalry swords, which are assault weapons."

Lelouch was overjoyed: "Excellent! You two platoons, go and hide in the nearby grove, dig a few foxholes, and use the excavated soil to tamp down the light machine gun bipods! Fill all the water containers with snow water to prepare for cooling the machine gun barrels! Or you can simply shovel snow to bury the machine gun barrels, leaving only one opening!"
All submachine gunners, gather together! We'll use our submachine guns to slow down the enemy and lure them into thinking we lack long-range suppressive fire!

Under Lelouch's methodical command, the soldiers of Company A were all busy at work. At the same time, Major Bock's company, led by Rommel and Lister, was also accelerating its approach, selecting suitable positions along the way and setting up traps.

Lelouch felt his blood boiling. He had been fighting a high-intensity, frustrating battle all day. It was a rare opportunity to bully an enemy with outdated thinking, and he couldn't let such a chance slip by!

Of course, you have to show weakness first to lure the enemy into investing more and betting more!

In a little while, we'll make those "nomads" sing and dance!
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P.S.: Never mind, I'll finish both chapters in one go this morning, just to ask for some comments and to ask people to follow my updates.

Because it won't be available until mid-August. Don't give up while following the updates, or the book will be finished!

(End of this chapter)