I'm the Dauphin in France

Chapter 1350 Victory Day

At the same time, the Russian defenses in Minsk were also beginning to crumble under wave after wave of attacks from General Wojciechov's Polish left-wing army.

To avenge their earlier retreat from their positions, the Parma artillery, under the command of their French company commander, advanced to within 500 paces of the enemy and, braving a hail of artillery fire, began bombarding the Russian positions.

Shortly after, as a shell shattered a Russian military flag, a large number of Polish soldiers surged toward the area like a tidal wave.

The Russian defenses, having lost a large number of troops, could no longer hold out, and the breaches quickly widened. By noon the following day, the entire southwest of Minsk was under Polish control.

Yannick, on the other hand, was knocked unconscious by his mount during the battle in the early morning and only woke up at this time.

He groggily grabbed the medic and asked anxiously, "How is the situation on the battlefield?"

His staff officer heard the commotion and rushed in from outside the tent: "Are you feeling better? The Russians we surrounded have surrendered, it seems there are more than 3 of them!"

Yannick slumped back onto his pillow and sighed, "We've finally avenged them!"

The staff officer continued, "General Madalinsky is currently attacking Minsk, and it is said that Marshal Koschushko has come to the front lines."

Yannick nodded, and after a long pause, he asked again, "How many of us are left?"

The staff officer lowered his head: "2300 men, Lieutenant Colonel. The General Staff has ordered us to return to Lida for rest and reorganization. The soldiers who can still hold out have been incorporated into the 4th Infantry Regiment of the Royal Command."

Yannick said somewhat discontentedly, "I'm not going to Lida..."

As he was speaking, a weathered-looking officer in a wheelchair was pushed in, and the military doctor and guards in the tent immediately stood at attention respectfully.

Yannick turned his head with difficulty, and was immediately shocked: "Marshal... Marshal!"

……

Kutuzov had a bad feeling about the situation, but he never expected it to get this bad.

The Semyonov Corps failed to rescue them, and also lost thousands of soldiers from the Tuchkov Corps, as well as the Minsk defense line.

Under the relentless and fearless attack of the Poles, Minsk only lasted three days before the western part of the city was breached.

Fortunately, Kutuzov had been preparing for the retreat, so nearly 30,000 Russian troops were able to escape to the other side of the Svisloch River.

"General, the Poles have just occupied the west bank of the river," the staff officer's voice came through. "They number about ten thousand."

Kutuzov sighed and instructed his messenger, "Order them to cross the Dnieper River tonight. Let the Braslav army retreat as well."

After two months of fighting, he could clearly feel the terrifying morale of the Polish army.

In this situation, continuing to hold out in Lithuania would likely result in being surrounded.

The most sensible strategy now is to retreat back to China, defend the Dnieper River, and formulate further plans after reinforcements arrive.

On March 18, 1800, the Polish army finally reached the west bank of the Dnieper River.

By this time, the Poles had recovered all the territory previously occupied by Russia. King Stanisław II personally held a ceremony in Warsaw to commemorate the fallen soldiers and declared this day as Poland's "Victory Day".

In the city of Minsk.

Koschushko listened to the deafening cheers coming from the street, signaled his staff to close the window, and then turned to the Polish generals in front of him: "Without a doubt, the Russians will never give up their invasion of our country. I know this country very well."

General Mokronovsky stood up: "Marshal, a counterattack against Russia is indeed imperative. But I believe the most crucial thing right now is to ensure the stability of the Gdansk Corridor. As you know, the vast majority of our aid comes from the port of Gdansk. If the Prussians break the agreement, they will cut off our connection with the port at any time. Therefore, we should control Tukhel first before we can fight the Russians with peace of mind."

Tuchel is a city south of Gdansk, belonging to Prussian territory. Controlling it would provide ample protection for the Gdansk Corridor.

Koschusko glanced at him: "General, your idea is dangerous."

Mokronovsky clenched his fist and said, "The Prussians launched an invasion without hesitation when we were at our weakest. This is the punishment they deserve! Currently, the Prussian military is at its weakest, and we have every opportunity!"

Madalinsky hurriedly said, "In fact, our army has also suffered heavy losses. We are not absolutely certain of victory in the fight against Prussia."

The Polish army fought extremely bravely in retaking its eastern territories, but this resulted in heavy casualties, and currently only about 67,000 of its main forces are ready to be deployed at any time.

Mokronovsky pointed out the window and shouted, "Listen to the voice of the people! We can conscript countless soldiers whenever the motherland needs us!"

Koschusko raised his hand to interrupt him: "I don't want to hear about attacking Tuchel anymore. Our primary objective must be the east bank of the Dnieper."

General Madalinsky cautiously reminded him, "Sir Marshal, the Lithuanian Parliament seems to want to end the war as soon as possible, so they might..."

“They must comply with the General Staff’s decision,” Koschushko said emphatically. “Great Sem will legislate in support of my proposal.”

He himself is a member of the Polish Senate and has a great deal of influence over the lower house, the House of Representatives.

The generals in the room had no further objections—at present, war against Russia was the most politically correct course in Poland, and no one dared to voice opposition unless it was a decision made by a big shot like Kosciuszko.

……

Switzerland.

Zurich.

In the Confederation Parliament hall, Swiss Speaker Obholser surveyed the representatives of the thirteen cantons who had finally managed to gather before him, and held up the document in his hand, saying, "That's roughly it. This money will help us acquire a railway from Bern to Zurich. Of course, we may need to raise some funds domestically. This railway will better connect our central and northern regions, reducing the cost of transporting silk and wheat from the central region to Zurich by more than 70%..."

Most of Switzerland is mountainous, with only a small plain between the Jura and the Alps, which is also the economic lifeline of Switzerland.

Bern is the most important city on the north-central plain.

Geneva State Representative Gesellen suddenly raised his hand: "Your Excellency Speaker, I admire your railway plan, but our State Parliament only wants the money that is rightfully ours."

Yes, the "money" that Oberholzer was referring to was the payment for logistical supplies provided to the French army by the cantons when they were fighting in Switzerland, totaling 670 million francs.

(End of this chapter)