Descending On France 1780
Chapter 111 - 105 Cavalry Regiment Super Double

Chapter 111: 105 Cavalry Regiment Super Double

Anning entered the assembly hall and immediately went on stage to deliver a speech, essentially repeating what he had just said, then emphasizing how the situation in Conte was extremely perilous. He talked about the attempts to maintain the previous regime, continuing as an enclave controlled by the Pope, so there was a necessity to maintain military presence in Conte, and so on...

Anning originally thought he could vote after his speech, but Petition whispered a few words to Lafayette, then stood up and said, "Regarding the appointment issue of Mr. Frost, does anyone else have their own opinions? Feel free to come to the podium to speak."

Lafayette did not immediately take the stage. Instead, a priest representative named Watt went up and mentioned that we should avoid offending the Pope and that the matter of reclaiming the Pope’s enclaves in France should be postponed.

The representatives were filled with righteous indignation, shouting "Traitors, get off the stage!"

However, based on the resolution passed last year, the personal rights of representatives are inviolable, so Priest Watt stubbornly finished his speech before being asked to step down by Petition.

It was only then that Lafayette went on stage in a methodical manner.

"Gentlemen," Lafayette began, "the situation in Conte may indeed be very urgent, but it can be predicted that for a long time to come, there won’t be large-scale rebel forces in Conte. Placing a military genius there is clearly an underuse of talent. I still support Mr. Petition’s proposal, to have him serve as the Garrison Commander in Paris. And as for the rank, I think it’s not bad to promote him from Brigadier to Major General."

Anning frowned, since Lafayette had just frowned upon the matter of him becoming the Garrison Commander; how come he turned around and agreed all of a sudden?

This change was full of conspiratorial flavor.

Dan Dong, beside Anning, also whispered, "Why would Lafayette support you as Paris Garrison Commander? Wouldn’t that split his power in half? Just to keep your rank down to Major General? Is it worth it?"

In France’s military ranks, Vice Admiral and Admiral are honorary titles, awarded to those with military achievements, and in practice, the troops they command are about the same as those commanded by a Major General.

At this time in the French army, a Major General could already command an army corps, and generally, an army corps was responsible for one strategic direction, like the most famous Italian Corps.

Vice Admirals also did not have larger military organizational structures to command. Moreover, in this era, due to communication and organizational capacity limits, being able to establish an army corps was already the limit.

Units on the scale of army groups or larger, were only possible after significant developments in communication technology.

So, Lafayette actually didn’t need to give up half of his powers just to downgrade Anning’s rank from Vice Admiral to Major General.

There must be some subsequent conspiracy.

Anyway, Anning made up his mind not to fall into the trap.

He thought to himself: Lafayette, you give me the title of Garrison Commander and the rank of Lieutenant General, corresponding to the Security Commander, and the rank of Major which corresponds to Lieutenant General. You want me to be the full junior Commander of Paris, have you not seen the Fifth Republic? Aren’t you afraid I’ll give you a surprise on the 12th of December?

However, Anning now has a problem with launching a coup – too few capable subordinates. The few junior officers Anning promoted were actually quite mediocre; Anning truly had no one else to use, so he promoted them.

In the Fifth Republic, the full junior Commander had several capable people like Xu Shanshou and Xu Heping.

To really do it, Anning would need to bolster his forces first.

Forget it, it’s too much trouble. Better to continue tilling the land in Nanyang, preserving my life amidst chaos, not seeking fame among the feudal lords.

To achieve this, I’m set on going to Conte!

After Lafayette finished speaking, Anning was just about to stand up to retort when Robespierre took the stand first.

He strode confidently to the podium, adjusted his glasses, and then looked over the entire venue: "Ladies and Gentlemen! Is there anyone who knows the situation in the Conte Region better than Mr. Frost? If Frost believes it’s necessary to continue the military pressure, it must be out of necessity.

"Think about it. Frost is dedicated to the constitutional cause, how could he possibly stay in a remote place and not participate in the making of the constitution? He must have detected some sort of clue, forcing him to stay!"

Anning nodded repeatedly, exactly, that’s it! I must have discovered some signs I myself wasn’t aware of, that’s why I chose to stay in Conte!

Robespierre continued to speak, essentially emphasizing the trust in the judgment of frontline commanders, and so on, then he stepped down amidst applause.

Watching Robespierre approaching, Dan Dong whispered, "It’s quite surprising he talked so much without a script. Usually, he always has a script, and that script has to be revised many times, he might have been preparing for the speech from last night."

Anning said: "After all, it’s Maximilien; that’s just his meticulous nature."

"Everyone now calls him ’The Incorruptible,’" Dan Dong said, "You’ve been away fighting, so you might not know."

Anning thought to himself. I’ve known that for a long time, long before I knew him.

Anning: "I don’t know. But it indeed suits him well."

Robespierre returned and said to Anning, "I suspect those who are displeased with Lafayette are now confused. They originally hoped you would counterbalance Lafayette and intended to keep you in Paris. Now that Lafayette has made his move first, they must be puzzled."

Dan Dong: "So you delivered a speech just to give them reasons to oppose Lafayette?"

Robespierre: "No, those who oppose Lafayette will continue to oppose him as usual. I was trying to win over the undecided middle group, currently known as the Plain Faction."

As he spoke, Robespierre pointed to the group sitting in the middle of the meeting hall.

Following this, several others took the stage to speak, most echoing Robespierre’s speech.

Then Petition took the stage and announced the commencement of the vote.

Half an hour later, Anning was elected as the National Assembly’s Special Commissioner for the Conte Region by a narrow margin, but was only granted the rank of Major General.

Anning was very satisfied with the result. After all, his request for the rank of Vice Admiral was merely following Lu Xun’s theory of "asking for the roof to be removed to get a window": propose something extreme to end up with what you actually want.

After the vote, the meeting was nearing its conclusion. Ba Yi, Petition, Mirabeau, and Lafayette came to find Anning together.

"Your Majesty wishes to meet the hero of Conte."

Anning: "What are we waiting for, let’s go."

In fact, by convention, the first person to meet after quelling the rebellion should be the King, but now the King’s status is not what it once was. Therefore, Anning went to the Parliament first.

The Palais des Tuileries, where the King resided, was just beside the National Assembly’s meeting venue, a short walk away.

Louis XVI and Queen Mary were already waiting for Anning in the Tuileries’s audience chamber.

Upon seeing Anning enter, Louis XVI stood up from his seat and stepped forward to shake Anning’s hand: "You fought very well!"

Anning: "The Cavalry that Your Majesty provided played a huge role. Without their scouting, I could not have achieved such great results."

Louis XVI, pleased upon hearing this, said: "Really? It seems the ladies performed quite admirably!"

Saying so, Louis XVI glanced back at Queen Mary, then spoke to Anning, "By the way, I heard you have been appointed as the military Special Commissioner for Conte?"

—Damn, the King knows about the decision already?

Anning glanced at Mirabeau, aware that Mirabeau was the secret advisor to the King and Queen.

Mirabeau looked nonchalant.

Anning: "Yes, indeed, I have been reassigned to Conte."

Louis XVI: "I see. As a local military commander, having just a small force is definitely inadequate. So, after consulting with the Queen, we decided to hand over the entire Guard Cavalry Group to you. Now you will have a complete Cavalry!"

Anning was startled.

The Guard Cavalry, full of unwed noble maidens—Your Majesty, assigning such an ’army’ to me will lead my thoughts astray!

Anning then noticed the expression on the Queen’s face.

Wait, it seems the Queen looks rather smug with her successful scheme?

Upon reflection, Anning understood: the Queen wanted to maintain control over the troops under Anning. With a Cavalry group stationed here, should the Royal Family need to act in the future, and if Anning does not respond, it is possible the Cavalry might defect...

This Queen Mary, quite cunning.

But why would she think the Guard Cavalry would surely side with the Royal Family? At the time of the Bastille, it was also the Guards who defected to support the revolutionary masses.

It appears that this woman has a touch of cunning but lacks greater wisdom.

Anning: "Thank you, Your Majesty. I will certainly make good use of this elite Cavalry unit!"