I'm playing whack-a-mole in Siberia

Chapter 873: Talking about peace at this time, are you kidding me?

De Gaulle alone could not stop the capitulationism that was spreading wildly in France.

The mustache guy was very good at using public opinion. When Germany attacked Poland, many people in Paris said that Germany just wanted to teach Poland a lesson and would not declare war on the British and French forces. After conquering Poland, Germany would stop.

Germany did not declare war on Britain and France at the same time after Britain and France declared war on Germany.

This seems to prove, in a way, that Germany really had no intention of becoming an enemy of the British and French forces.

Regardless of whether Germany would attack France or not, Albert Le Brun, Weygand, and even Pétain did not want to fight Germany.

Germany annexed Austria and Czechoslovakia without the use of force.

In the process of defeating Poland, the combat effectiveness demonstrated by the German army frightened France, which was also the main reason why Weygand wanted to negotiate with Germany.

After France declared war on Germany, it planned to imitate the Russian Empire in the last World War and send troops to attack Germany, forcing the German army to return for assistance and relieve the pressure on Poland.

Before the war broke out, Poland had already mobilized and claimed to have a million soldiers.

No one expected that Poland, with a million soldiers, was completely unable to stop the frenzied attack of the German army. Poland was destroyed before the French offensive forces had even assembled.

Although the demise of Poland was due to Russian factors.

Even Pétain had to admit that unless Russia continued to provide unstinting assistance to the British and French forces as it did in the last World War, the French army would never be able to defeat the German army.

What made Weygand happy was that on the day Poland was destroyed, German ambassador to France proposed an immediate ceasefire to France and Britain.

Wei Gang was very happy.

Pétain remained silent.

Charles de Gaulle was extremely anxious, as this was clearly a delaying tactic by the Germans.

Just like the annexation of Austria and Czechoslovakia, Germany needed time to digest Poland.

The little mustache had already overturned the Versailles system, tore up the Munich Agreement, and treated the German-Polish Non-Aggression Pact as a piece of waste paper.

Once Germany completed its occupation of Poland, it would certainly attack France.

"Charles, even if there is only a one percent chance, we must give 100 percent of our effort."

There was nothing that could be done to save Pétain.

"No, as long as we act immediately, we still have a chance."

Charles de Gaulle refused to admit defeat, and the next six months would be France's only window of opportunity.

Europe had already entered winter in October. The German army was exhausted after defeating Poland and needed time to rest.

France's first wave of mobilization orders was to expand the French mainland army to 140 million people.

France could also mobilize troops from its overseas colonies to join the war in mainland France.

With the help of one million British troops, France was not completely powerless.

"Charles, don't stay in the office all the time, go to the frontline troops and take a look—"

Pétain knew the current situation of the French army better than de Gaulle.

After leaving Pétain's office, de Gaulle drove to a military camp near Paris.

In 1939, Paris was still one of the most prosperous cities in the world.

The Champs-Elysées was crowded with people, and well-dressed men and women were lingering in the high-end stores, buying up the newly launched cosmetics and luxury goods.

The Seine River is as busy as the Champs-Elysées. Young men and women come in pairs and take sightseeing boats to enjoy the scenery on both sides of the Seine.

A Renault car and a Polestar car collided with each other. The two drivers swore at each other and stood on the street cursing, but they had no intention of fighting.

De Gaulle didn't know how long this false peace could last.

The Fifth Division, stationed in the suburbs of Paris, made many achievements in the last World War and was hailed as the ace unit of the French Army, shouldering the honor of defending Paris.

Fortunately, when he entered the door, the guards registered Charles de Gaulle's car according to regulations.

As soon as the car entered the door, de Gaulle heard the girl's giggles.

Turning around, I saw two young male and female officers chasing and fighting each other.

Charles de Gaulle's face darkened and his mood became increasingly heavy.

As the first French unit to be transformed into an armored division, the armored vehicles equipped by the 5th Division all came from Russia.

The car passed the repair shop, where four Type 26 armored fighting vehicles purchased at a high price were parked in an open space without any cover. The bodies of the vehicles were rusted and it was obvious that they had been parked for a long time.

At the entrance of the repair shop, several officers were gathered together smoking and chatting.

As the car passed by the officers, de Gaulle heard one officer say, "I would rather be ruled by the Germans than by Borum."

Borum is the presidential candidate of the French left-wing political forces.

"Let's go back!"

Charles de Gaulle felt there was no need to look any further.

George needs to be looked at again.

The French did want an armistice with the Germans. London's attitude was: an armistice was fine, but it required the German and Russian troops to withdraw from Poland and for Władysław Sikorski to return to power.

This requirement is obviously impossible.

Since it's impossible, there's nothing to talk about.

Well, since we can't come to an agreement, we should at least prepare for war, right?
The British neither agreed to Germany's request for an armistice nor actively prepared for war, leaving George at a loss as to what to do.

"Can't you see by now? Britain would rather sacrifice France than let Germany go to war with us."

Vasily sneered.

The current situation is very complicated. On the one hand, Germany is sending peace signals to Britain and France, but on the other hand, it sends Ribbentrop to Russia again to try to form an alliance with Russia.

"From last year to this year, we have successively conquered Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland. Now you should face up to our strength. Germany is at its peak as never before. If Germany and Russia join hands, we can completely conquer Europe."

Ribbentrop's confident expression was tinged with the unique German arrogance.

George didn't mind this, but Vasily felt a little uncomfortable.

Germany has repeatedly expressed its willingness to form an alliance with Russia, but Russia has never agreed.

They disagreed before but agree now, which means Russia despises the poor and loves the rich.

Vasily is no longer young, and even if he feels uncomfortable, he will not show it on his face.

"Since the armies of the two countries are acting in unison, will the German army be the main force, or will the Russian army be the main force?"

Vasily still wanted to see whether the Russian-German alliance could really conquer Europe.

"Germany, of course!"

Ribbentrop blurted out.

Vasily smiled and said nothing more.

George was not opposed to joining forces with Germany, but the prerequisite was that the coalition forces must accept Russian command.

But how is this possible? The little mustache man is suspicious by nature and he doesn't even trust the German generals, let alone transfer command to Russia.

If George took command of the German army, he would send all the German troops to the English Channel and cut off the source of Berlin's support.

George had the same concerns.

Russia and Germany have not even established the most basic mutual trust, let alone military mutual trust.

After sending away the unrealistic Ribbentrop, George attributed Berlin's suggestions to a smokescreen released by Berlin.

"Carry out according to the original plan?"

The original plan that Vasily was referring to was to attack Germany immediately after Germany defeated France.

This plan has a very high time requirement and must be carried out after Germany defeats France, neither earlier nor later.

If it was too late, the German army would have turned around and lost the precious window of opportunity.

If it is too early, it will become a repeat of the last World War, giving France a chance to catch its breath.

"Yes, proceed as planned."

George learned the lessons of the last World War and refused to modify the battle plan.

During the last world war, if Nicholas had adhered to the battle plan formulated by George before the war and watched the German army and the British and French forces consume each other, the Russian Empire would not have been completely passive.

Russia was covered with ice and snow again in October, and the whole city was blocked by heavy snow.

The arsenals in Vladivostok and Tula were brightly lit, with workers working in three shifts, resting while the machines continued, producing all kinds of military supplies.

The United States on the other side of the ocean was also extremely busy. It not only had to supply the British and French forces, but also had to supply Germany. It was recovering from the economic crisis at a very fast pace.

The Germans were preparing for war, and Moustache had been building up his army all winter.

Paris was still prosperous and peaceful, and France even slowed down the pace of war mobilization.

London was caught in great controversy. Chamberlain was still working for peace. However, Churchill, who was urgently summoned into the cabinet by Chamberlain to serve as the First Lord of the Admiralty, claimed that if Britain lost the help of France, it would be powerless to prevent Germany from attacking the British mainland.

Churchill's remarks sparked controversy. Britain still has the most powerful fleet in the world. If the Germans were allowed to land on British soil, what would be the use of Churchill as the First Sea Lord?

Churchill's aim was to strengthen the air force.

The German army invaded Poland, and the first wave to attack Poland was the German Air Force.

It was precisely because the German Air Force completely destroyed Poland's command system that the Polish army lost its unified command capability and suffered a crushing defeat.

Britain did have a huge naval advantage.

However, Britain did not have much advantage in the air force. Once the German army attacked the British mainland through the air, Britain lacked effective means to respond.

"We should imitate Russia and build a strong air force. This is our last chance. We cannot pin our hopes on our allies."

At the critical moment, Churchill finally played the role he was supposed to play.

(End of this chapter)