Chapter 456: Playing Both Sides
As for Duke Brunswick, he wasn't too worried about the French deceiving him. It was a simple deal—money in exchange for safe passage. He didn't have much choice anyway; if he rejected the French offer, he would likely lose those 50,000 troops.
Western Liegnitz.
The town of Wawernstadt had returned to Austrian control. Outside the town, near the Austrian camp, hundreds of honor guard soldiers stood in neat rows on either side of the road, watching with excitement as the French officers passed by, especially the young man leading them.
Behind them, large groups of regular soldiers ignored protocol and shouted loudly:
"Thank you, French brothers, may God bless you!"
"You arrived just in time—long live France!"
"Thank you, Prince, you saved us all!"
How could they not be excited? When the Prussian army broke through the front line, they all thought they were done for.
At the last moment, the French Royal Guard suddenly appeared, cutting off the Prussian forces that had penetrated the Austrian territory.
The French even sent cavalry to cover their flanks, ensuring their safe retreat.
Now, with Marshal Laessig rallying the Austrian forces to launch a counterattack against the Prussians, the tide of battle was rapidly turning in their favor.
The surrounding military band played an invigorating tune as Marshal Laessig, flanked by dozens of officers, stepped forward to greet them.
When he saw the French Prince among them, he signaled his officers to join him in a respectful salute, placing their hands over their chests.
"Thank you for your swift aid, Your Highness," Marshal Laessig said. "Austria will forever remember your assistance."
Joseph dismounted, smiling as he returned the greeting, exchanging polite words with the Austrians in a warm and friendly atmosphere.
Marshal Laessig personally led Joseph towards the camp. After some pleasantries, Laessig suddenly recalled something that had been troubling him and asked, "Your Highness, you mentioned earlier that you were surrounded by Driessen's forces and asked for reinforcements. But how did you suddenly appear on the Liegnitz front?"
Joseph had already prepared an explanation. He crossed himself and spoke with a pious expression:
"To be honest, the situation was incredibly dangerous. I almost died several times. However, by the grace of God, one of our cannonballs ricocheted multiple times and happened to strike a Prussian officer. His troops fell into disarray.
"I seized the opportunity to break out of the encirclement and made my way back to Liegnitz. When I arrived, I found the Prussians breaking through your front line. My forces were on their flank, so we launched an attack and, by some miracle, managed to repel them."
The Austrian officers were stunned. That sounded… almost like something out of a novel!
Laessig was also taken aback for a few seconds before hurriedly crossing himself. "Ah! God truly watches over you, Your Highness. You are indeed fortunate."
The group entered the camp, with some time left before lunch. Given the intensity of the battle, Marshal Laessig suggested that the French Prince rest while he and his officers continued their strategy meeting.
Joseph, however, looked at Berthier and the others beside him. "With such a critical battle ahead, let's join the meeting."
Marshal Laessig didn't argue; after all, the situation was urgent. He invited Joseph and his officers into a farmhouse that served as his temporary headquarters.
The farmhouse's main room was filled with maps and battle plans, evidence that Laessig and his officers had been meeting here before.
At Laessig's signal, one of the officers briefly outlined the current Austrian deployments and said, "This is the general situation on the battlefield. Marshal Laessig plans to reinforce the breach once General Davidoff and General Conrad's forces return. Then we'll encircle the enemy forces on the western side of the front from three directions.
"Currently, the enemy, led by General Andreas, is entrenched in the northern hills near the village of Balde. To defeat them, we'll first need to secure the high ground on both sides…"
Joseph listened patiently to the officer's presentation and then, with a serious expression, said, "Marshal, your plan is flawless. But how long do you think it will take to completely wipe out these 50,000 Prussian troops?"
Laessig responded without hesitation, "It will take five to seven days to gather our forces."
Given that many of their troops were still at Ratibor, the time required to recall them and prepare for battle was already tight.
"If the battle goes smoothly, we should be able to defeat the Prussians within a week. Even if they resist, I'm confident we can finish them off within two weeks."
While the Prussian forces were cut off on the western side of the Liegnitz front, they still numbered over 55,000, well-organized and capable of putting up a tough fight. It would take considerable effort to eliminate them.
Joseph nodded. "And after you defeat these enemies, what do you plan to do next?"
Marshal Laessig smiled. "We will continue to advance eastward, retake Liegnitz, and then march on Breslau."
"Do you think it will be that easy?"
"Hmm?" Laessig was puzzled. "What do you mean, Your Highness?"
Previously, he hadn't taken the young prince too seriously, but after Joseph had just saved his army from certain defeat, he was no longer dismissive of his opinions.
"You just mentioned that it would take about two weeks to destroy the enemy on the western side of the front," Joseph explained. "In that time, Duke Brunswick will have had enough time to reinforce the Liegnitz front.
"Even if we have the advantage in numbers, we'll still face a tough battle to break through."
He paused, then sighed. "It could take months, maybe even longer, to breach that line.
"And as you know, the public in Vienna already believes you've retaken Liegnitz. If this drags on, you'll be under significant pressure."
The Prussians had over 200 cannons along their front. Even with a numerical advantage, the Austro-French forces couldn't guarantee a quick victory. Of course, Joseph's estimate of several months was somewhat exaggerated.
Marshal Laessig's face fell. "You're right, Your Highness. But this is the best strategy I could come up with. If the Emperor blames me for poor performance, I have no choice but to…"
Joseph shook his head. "Marshal, we actually have an excellent opportunity right now. Duke Brunswick's forces are in disarray after pulling so many troops from the front line, and after their recent defeat, their morale is low.
"If we concentrate all our forces and launch a strong attack on the southern front, we could achieve a breakthrough."
Marshal Laessig shook his head as well. "Your Highness, there are still at least 90,000 Prussians defending that line. It won't be easy to break through quickly.
"And we can't just ignore the 50,000-plus Prussian troops on the western side of the front. If we start attacking the front line, they'll immediately strike us from behind."
Joseph had been waiting for this. A sly smile appeared in his eyes. "Marshal, what if I had a way to draw the Prussians away from the front and keep those 50,000 troops from causing any trouble?"
(End of chapter)
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