Descending On France 1780
Chapter 236 - 229 Beginning

Chapter 236: 229 Beginning

At this time, Anning was in his headquarters, reading the enemy intelligence report summarized by Bertier.

Bertier invented a distinctive marker, differentiating enemy troops verified through reliable channels from those speculated based on rumors.

Anning said, "Lasalle has done well with detailed reconnaissance, and Bertier, you’ve also done a great job to organize such extensive enemy intelligence."

Bertier humbly responded, "I’ve merely done what a Chief of Staff should do."

Anning nodded and then carefully observed the enemy positions on the map.

"The attacking enemy is coming from three directions; one group has already engaged Napoleon at Sedan, the second will soon meet Bernadotte at Verdun. The problem lies with the third group," Anning explained while studying the map.

Anning was very grateful to Bertier, as without him only sleeping three hours a day to integrate the enemy intelligence so effectively, it would not have been so easy to grasp the situation.

Anning clearly understood why Napoleon having Bertier as a Chief of Staff and not having him made such a big difference.

However, Anning still had to pretend that he was making judgments based on his own military skills and talent.

But he soon really relied on his military knowledge to choose a preset position to ambush the enemy’s third group of troops.

Anning pointed with a pointer to the bend at Marne River: "Right here, we must block the enemy troops at this position. If we can’t hold them here, and the enemy breaks through to the plains between Marne River and Seine River, with our current level of training, it’s very difficult to defeat them in open combat; we could only resort to outnumbering them."

Bertier said, "The troops we brought from Marseilles can engage in open combat, this enemy won’t be many, as their logistics can’t support large numbers."

Anning thought for a moment, then shook his head, "No, the troops from Marseilles should serve as the strategic reserve. They are our ace in the hole and shouldn’t be mobilized lightly. How many newly formed troops can we deploy immediately?"

Bertier replied, "We have 27,000 fully integrated troops, well-armed, uniforms and flags are all in place, but we are short on military musicians, we are still urgently training them..."

Anning declared, "Send a call to Paris City, there are so many musicians in Paris, the Republic needs them!"

Bertier protested, "Bringing musicians... to the battlefield? I oppose this!"

As Anning was persuading his Chief of Staff, Beethoven entered the door, "I am willing to serve in the military as a musician!"

Anning exclaimed, "No, Sir! If something happened to you, how could I explain to future generations! I can’t bear this responsibility!"

Beethoven assertively said, "The flag of the Republic stands for equality, brotherhood, and freedom! Equality comes first, and I am willing to serve on the battlefield as an ordinary soldier."

Anning hesitated, "This, well, you..."

"Even General Frost personally led a charge during a crisis, I have long awaited such a day!"

Following Beethoven, David who came in said, "He had already noticed the shortage of musicians, so he planned for this day. That’s why he was just eavesdropping on your conversation outside..."

Anning frowned, "But..."

You are the maestro of music; your death would be a tremendous loss to the history of human music... dammit, I can’t say this aloud!

Beethoven spoke enthusiastically, "Moreover, I know, General, your first experience on the battlefield was as a military musician! At that time, General, you hadn’t received any military training—apart from that of a military musician—and merely as an ordinary musician, you participated in battle and then received a medal!"

Anning felt helpless, "What, you also want to save a noble young lady disguised as a man?"

Beethoven laughed, "If there is one, I would certainly warmly welcome her! As a musician, I can’t refuse such a romantic development!"

Anning held his forehead, what else could he say at this time.

It’s possible that if Beethoven survives from the battlefield and returns, he might burst forth with amazing creativity, composing great works that have never appeared in history before.

Moreover... just defending across the river, it wouldn’t be so unlucky that Beethoven would die, right?

Rather, it’s better to send him now to avoid having to send him out for field battles later on. Fight one or two battles now, and we can bring Beethoven back, and assign him a task to "create an inspiring piece that reflects the bravery of the frontline soldiers," and then place him at the rear from then on.

Thus, Anning decided: "Well, since you’ve spoken to this point, I can only wish you a victorious return."

Beethoven’s eyes lit up with pleasure: "Thank you, with the General’s blessing, I feel much more at ease. Honestly, even though I’ve experienced the battlefield, ever since I decided to be a regular military musician, I’ve been having trouble sleeping, haunted by nightmares, the moment I close my eyes, all the horrific scenes I’ve seen on the battlefield come together into terrifying nightmares."

Anning: "Then why don’t you compose a piece about the horrors you’re facing?"

Beethoven: "I will! Of course, I will. But that’s after I return from gathering inspiration on the battlefield. Yes, gathering inspiration, this is the real deal, I will definitely write a heart-shaking piece!"

No, no, just by strolling along the Seine River during the day, and watching the moon at night, you could still write heart-shaking pieces.

Anning suppressed a bitter smile and grasped Beethoven’s hand: "Well... I’m swamped with military duties, so I can’t see you off, you should go find Lazarcano to integrate you into the troops about to be deployed."

David: "I’ll go see him off. Alas, as a painter, the only military role I could serve in is as a scout, drawing maps."

Maps of this era were basically all hand-drawn.

Anning: "Your responsibility is to follow me and depict the magnificent scenes of the war. These are all precious historical records."

David nodded, then said farewell together with Beethoven.

After the musician and painter left, Bertier asked, "Do we need to arrange the unit where Ludwig is staying as a reserve?

Anning: "No, he would notice it, he’s so smart."

Then he looked down at the map again: "Now there’s another problem, who will command this battle?"

Bertier: "It would be great if Davout was here."

Anning: "He can’t be in two places at once. Well, after thinking it over, it looks like I can only take charge myself."

Bertier: "Your direct command adds a huge boost to our troops’ morale. In a defensive battle, this is a significant advantage."

Anning listened and smirked, thinking, at least my morale aura is working.

Thus, Anning, thanks to detailed reconnaissance and enemy situation analyses, as well as basic military knowledge, chose the battlefield for the campaign.

This was the beginning of a series of consecutive battles.

Later, military historians referred to this series of battles collectively as the "Three Rivers Campaign," as the locations of these mobile battles were precisely situated between the Marne River, Seine River, and Somme River.