I was a tycoon in World War I: Starting to save France

Chapter 938 Crossing the Rhine River

Berlin, the German General Staff Headquarters.

The staff officers, who had been basking in the glory of the decisive victory on the Eastern Front not long ago, were now busy again, needing to use all available resources to obtain intelligence on the Western Front.

"Britain has acquired 57 new tanks, mostly HMS Independence," the staff officer reported, holding the phone. "In addition, there are 43 Camel fighter planes."

"The U.S. armored forces have been replenished with 62 'Sher A1' tanks." The communications officer guarding the radio delivered the telegram: "In addition, 20 U.S. soldiers have landed and are assembling in the Lorraine area."

……

Hindenburg frowned, threw the telegram handed to him aside, and roared:

"Don't tell me about British and American military intelligence; they're not important."

"What I need is information about Ciel, understand? Ciel's!"

"And his troops, the First Armored Corps, its location, its current equipment status, everything."

The staff officers were startled and immediately organized a manpower to investigate the situation in Shire.

However, Charles's troops had not been on the front lines for more than two months; they had vanished from the German army's sight like ghosts.

The only place they could detect was the First Panzer Corps in Metz.

Ludendorff handed Hindenburg a cup of coffee: "At least we know when Charles will attack."

"What?" Hindenburg looked up sharply at Ludendorff.

Ludendorff explained:
“I was referring to Charles’s warning.”

"He told us to withdraw from Romania and Italy, or he would launch an attack."

"Then why don't we just go through the motions?"

Hindenburg understood Ludendorff's meaning: "You mean, make a show of retreat first, and then prepare for war on the other side?"

“Yes,” Ludendorff nodded. “To be precise, it’s not preparation for war, but preparation for defense.”

Hindenburg considered it for a while and then agreed to Ludendorff's plan:

"Great idea."

"At the same time, we sent diplomatic signals of compromise, leaving the Charles with no reason to attack."

"Once we are ready, we will launch a surprise attack on Romania and Italy."

At this point, Charles, as the head of the League of Nations, had no choice but to follow his earlier statement and "ensure the security of both countries by attacking Germany."

Thus, Germany was able to roughly determine the timing of Char's attack!

Hindenburg's gaze locked onto the map on the table, and he pointed at Freeman: "Strengthen the defenses here. I believe the Charles will still break through from here."

Freeman is positioned on the Saarbrücken front, a key transportation hub and industrial center of the Hindenburg line, a point of attack that Charles is unlikely to abandon.

……

"Are you really not planning to flank Saarbrücken?" Pershing asked.

At the British Sallburg Command, this was the first joint meeting of the British, French, and American armed forces, where Charles, Pershing, and Haig gathered to discuss the operational plan for attacking the German forces.

“Of course not.” Charles’s tone left no room for argument: “The Germans are well prepared in this area, so why should we attack from here?”

“Because it is the linchpin of the entire Hindenburg line,” Pershing replied. “Taking Saarbrücken is equivalent to breaking through the entire Hindenburg line.”

Saarbrücken directly produced more than one-fifth of the firearms and ammunition for the Hindenburg defenses. In addition, with the ammunition stored there and the transport routes, at least half of the ammunition was related to it.

Even the strongest Hindenburg Line would crumble under a shortage of ammunition; it was only a matter of time. "That's why the Germans set a trap for us there," Charles said, pointing to the attack route on the map.

"Although it is only 20 kilometers long, there are forests, landmines and obstacles everywhere along the way."

“Every step we take forward comes at a heavy cost, which is not my style, and I will not cut in from there.”

Charles's style has always been to achieve major victories with minimal casualties.

Haig, who had been silent all along, finally spoke up, his voice muffled: "So, your plan is still to force your way across the Rhine?"

“Of course,” Charles said firmly.

“You may not have considered one thing, Lieutenant General,” Haig said.

"The east bank of the Rhine is also unsuitable for mechanized warfare; that area is either hilly or a narrow alluvial plain."

“Tanks will be unable to move an inch on that sandy clay, which will be a nightmare for your ‘Shire B2’.”

The Rhine River was a British defense zone, and Haig had surveyed the terrain on the east bank.

Especially now that it's spring and the snow has just melted, even if the Shire's troops successfully cross the river, they will have little chance of achieving anything significant.

“You needn’t worry about that, Lieutenant General,” Charles replied.
"As soon as we invade Germany, it will deal a blow to the morale and confidence of the German army."

"I believe that it won't be long before the Germans can't withstand the pressure and there will be internal strife, just like in Russia."

Then Charles shrugged: "And then, just as you've been waiting for, the Germans surrendered unconditionally."

Haig and Pershing exchanged a glance. Charles's plan seemed feasible. Germany was indeed overburdened and might only need one last straw to break the camel's back.

Seeing that the two had no objections, Charles pointed to Saarbrücken on the map and continued:

"What we need to do is convince the Germans that our main offensive focus is still here."

"This can draw away the main German forces, thereby relieving our army of the pressure of crossing the river."

"Once we successfully cross the river, my troops will immediately turn their attention to Offenburg, Germany, which will be our first forward base!"

……

General Staff Headquarters in Berlin.

A communications soldier who had just deciphered the code held the telegram in his hand as if it were a treasure. He was stunned for a moment, then jumped up and ran to Hindenburg, who was making a battle plan while looking at the map.

"Marshal!" The communications soldier was overjoyed. "We've obtained Xia's battle plan."

"what?"

Hindenburg and Ludendorff turned their gazes to the communications soldier simultaneously, and the others also stopped what they were doing and looked in their direction.

Before the communications officer could answer, Hindenburg darted forward, snatched the telegram from his hand, quickly glanced at it against the map, and nodded: "This is probably true. Charles is planning to attack Offenburg."

"Offenburg?" Ludendorff located it on the map and exclaimed, "My God, he's planning to force his way across the Rhine!"

“We are completely unprepared in this direction.” Hindenburg frowned. “Charles has ‘ribbon pontoon bridges,’ so the Rhine River is their advantage, not ours.”

The river was originally a natural barrier, but the "belt bridge" can build a pontoon bridge in a few minutes, allowing tanks to pass, thus turning the natural barrier into a danger.

"Strengthen the defenses of Offenburg," Hindenburg ordered in a deep voice.

Then he added another order: "Keep it secret, don't let Charles find out."

Otherwise, Charles might change the direction and location of his attack, which would be troublesome!

(End of this chapter)