Conquer Europe from the West

Chapter 100 Erich Ludendorff

The effects of the peace agreement were immediate.

The Farlan troops that were still in the territory of the Kingdom of Perije were almost immediately surrounded by all the surrounding Perije troops.

However, the peace treaty above did not immediately change the minds of the troops below.

After a fierce ideological struggle, the troops of the Kingdom of Perij chose the third option of making the Farlans leave their homeland with dignity, between fighting with them and making friends with the Empire.

However, the commander of the Farlan army refused to accept the kindness from his former ally.

There was no other way. The Perijie Kingdom Army, which had to carry out orders from above, could only use the rifles and cannons in their hands to dignify them.

At this time, it was already August 29th.

The break lasted from 6 p.m. on the 27th to 6 a.m. on the 29th. The full 36 hours of rest allowed Ryan, who had been working continuously all day, to have enough rest.

But he was not idle either.

The first thing he had to do as an officer was to write a letter to the family of the soldier in the army who had to go home to recuperate and get custom dentures because he had broken his front teeth. The content of the letter was basically that as a commander, he had failed to take good care of his soldiers, which led to their injuries.

McIver was put in solitary confinement as soon as he returned to the brigade camp to complete the follow-up treatment of his wounds because he was too active on the front line.

But it wasn't until after the war that Ryan discovered that McIver jumped like that because he suffered from claustrophobia and acrophobia when in the air.

The main reason for this is that the Empire never thought that someone would be as abstract as McIver, and that both symptoms would be triggered at the same time only when they were in the airship and at high altitude.

However, because McIlwain's symptoms were not serious and his outward appearance was simply a bit of excitement, no one took it seriously.

Until one day, when Brinkman was conducting parachute training on a mixed airship transport aircraft, he discovered that McIver would become excited as soon as he entered the airship cargo hold, but would become normal as soon as he entered the transport aircraft cabin...

Well, if you are on the ground, you won’t feel claustrophobic, and if you are simply at a height, you won’t feel afraid of heights. Both points must be met at the same time - and there must be no windows around.

Let’s put this topic aside for now.

August 29th, noon.

Empire, Imperial Capital, Ministry of Defense.

A bustling crowd was moving through the building that was decorated like a palace. Ryan, wearing a military officer's uniform that he was not used to, stood on the third floor of the Ministry of National Defense hall and looked down.

He had just finished his promotion ceremony from major to lieutenant colonel.

The ceremony was simple and uncomplicated. A major general from the Ministry of Defense and a lieutenant general from the army handed Ryan the lieutenant colonel's uniform, and then it ended.

But as Ryan knew before, after this investiture ceremony, he would immediately become the official commander of the Imperial Infantry Regiment.

The former commander of the 502nd Camp, Major Garrett, had a lower rank than him.

Just as Ryan was thinking about whether he should go to Bergman's research institute to confirm their development work on the new submachine gun, a voice called him.

"Ryan Flig!"

Ryan turned around immediately, only to see a middle-aged man with a balding head.

He was wearing a suit with a brown embroidered tie around his neck. The collar of his white shirt was turned up high, sticking to his neck, with only two small triangular pleats left in the front.

The man rushed up to the top floor from the lobby on the first floor like flying. After seeing the lieutenant colonel uniform on Ryan, he was stunned for a moment.

It was not until then that Ryan realized that the other person was Ludendorff.

"I knew what you needed was a fight!"

Ludendorff came up and hit Ryan's arm firmly: "But I haven't heard you say anything about going out to fight."

Ryan smiled bitterly: "How much of the General Staff's affairs can be spoken out?"

Ludendorff pulled Ryan to sit on a bench nearby. He agreed with Ryan's statement. "But the front line is pretty relaxed now. You don't know, a few days ago I was in charge of the Second Army's command against the fortress of Perige, and they surrendered before I even started fighting."

Ryan could hear the frustration in Ludendorff's tone, and he could also hear his relief that there was no need to waste so much manpower and resources to launch a battle against the fortress.

"Isn't that great?"

He did not say that this result was achieved after he led his troops to capture Ostend, because according to the orders of the Ministry of Defense and the Marshal, the confidentiality level of this intelligence was comparable to the deployment information of the Imperial Air Force Fleet.

"It's really good."

Ludendorff's reaction was just as Ryan had predicted. He shook his fist at the air and said confidently, "This way, the Empire won't have to be timid when facing the Farlan front. The First and Second Armies will also have sufficient supplies and transportation capabilities when they attack Palu."

Ryan was a little worried that Ludendorff might let the cat out of the bag in public, so he quickly changed the subject: "But isn't the railway badly damaged? It'll take some time before we can launch a full-scale offensive, right?"

"That's not something I can know."

In response to this, Ludendorff's reaction was obviously much more depressed than before.

He said, "I received an order yesterday afternoon to have my troops go to the Eastern Front with General Hindenburg's troops to prepare for a possible attack from the Russian Empire."

"The Eastern Front?"

This was the first time Ryan heard someone mention the Eastern Front in the rear, but he didn't really want to get involved in the battle with the Russian Empire.

The land in Russia is so bad that even trains with tracks may not be able to pass through normally, let alone cars.

He didn't want to command a unit that couldn't even guarantee basic transportation conditions.

"Yes."

Ludendorff nodded heavily. "According to the intelligence provided by the Marshal's adjutant, the Empire immediately accelerated the mobilization of its troops after the Perijie Kingdom surrendered to the Empire."

"They had just completed the reorganization of 10,000 men two days ago, but by last night they had 40,000."

Ryan didn't expect Tsarist Russia to be so fast: "So fast?"

"Maybe we need the support of the church..."

Ludendorff's voice wasn't as high-pitched as before. His eyes wandered, monitoring anyone who might be looking at him. In a voice only Ryan could hear, he said, "After all, their church is still very powerful."

church?

Ludendorff's statement aroused Ryan's interest.

Ryan knew that the Eastern Orthodox Church was the main faith and group of the Empire, and he also knew that the Empire had always been a country with a large number of religious believers in history, but this was the first time he heard that the church was very powerful.

But he didn't dare to ask, so he could only sit there and say nothing.

But Ludendorff, with an air of unconcern, said, "But the General Staff has confirmed that these Imperial bastards can't even muster a single army. Ten or so regiments is the limit."

What he said is quite right.

Historically, Tsarist Russia launched attacks on Germany with an army of tens of thousands, and their end was just as miserable as the comparison of the strength of the two sides' troops.

Ryan was actually very confident in Ludendorff.

After all, he was the kind of ruthless man who dared to lead his troops directly into the enemy's defense line and cause trouble. The capture of the Sun Fortress was largely due to the very good effect of Ludendorff's sneak attack.

Besides, the Empire sent an entire army to the Eastern Front this time. Even if we counted it less, there were still 300,000 people. Just relying on the soldiers of the Russian Empire, it would take at least three army groups to barely tie with the Imperial Army.

Looking back at myself...

Ryan thought of the Verdun offensive for which his troops had already begun preparations.

There was only one regiment of troops available, but they had to attack Verdun, which had ten times the number of troops they had.

He opened his mouth casually, muttering to himself: "Hey, another ten times the number of troops..."

But the sound was immediately heard by Ludendorff.

"Ten times? Ten times the troops?"

"again?"

The young imperial brigadier general took a deep breath in an instant.

Ludendorff was not unaware of what Ryan had done when the war broke out.

He clearly remembered that when the Emperor awarded Ryan the Blue Star Max Medal, he said that Ryan, with nine people, launched an attack on the Farlanes, who were more than ten times his own number, and wiped out enemies who were five times his own number.

At that time, Ryan was successfully promoted from lieutenant to captain thanks to this achievement and his contribution to providing important intelligence to the rear.

And now.

Ryan has been promoted from captain to lieutenant colonel...

What’s even more terrible is what he just said!
ten times?
Ten times again?
Why did he add the word "又"?
No matter how confused Ludendorff was, he was now a brigadier general and there was no way he would miss such important information.

As an officer from the General Staff, Ludendorff knew very well how much effort and cost a unit would have to pay to defeat an enemy several times its size, and these costs were often beyond the commander's reach.

But Ryan not only succeeded once, according to what he just said, he even succeeded a second time!

What's even more terrible is that Ludendorff heard from others half a month ago that Ryan led a reinforced battalion in Alsace and destroyed the front-line headquarters of the French First Army in Belfort.

Although Ryan hadn't mentioned it to him, that victory would definitely earn him a promotion to major...

The Empire never promotes an officer two ranks in a row unless he is dead.

So, this means that after being promoted to major, Ryan made another contribution and was promoted to lieutenant colonel!

On the bench, Ludendorff looked at Ryan sitting next to him, and his heart was already in turmoil.

"and many more."

Suddenly, Ludendorff remembered the honorary communication that was intercepted by the troops in Liege in the early morning of the day before yesterday, which cursed the Federal Kingdom.

His eyes were as big as copper bells: "Flig, you, didn't you carry out a combat mission the day before yesterday..."

In response to this, Ryan immediately realized that he had let the cat out of the bag.

He quickly shut up, then took out two cigarettes and, while lighting them, whispered, "I'm sorry."

"really!"

Almost the moment Ryan apologized, Ludendorff understood what Ryan meant.

He slapped his thigh so loudly that it startled two passing lieutenants.

Ryan saw that those young officers almost immediately acted like they were still in military school, as if they were deeply afraid that they would be targeted by the lieutenant colonel and brigadier general in front of them.

"Damn it, it still has to be you."

Ludendorff, who had recovered from his shock, sounded less energetic than before. He sighed deeply and said calmly, "So, when will the next battle be?"

He knew that asking Ryan about his combat objectives was absolutely forbidden, but judging from Ryan's current appearance, his next battle would surely be a decisive one.

This was Ludendorff's judgment based on his own experience.

Moreover, even if he didn't know the location of the battle, just knowing the time was enough for Ludendorff to make preparations for what happened next.

The transportation of supplies and the movement of troops both take time.

If a time has been set for an operation, even if it is only approximate, then the general information of the operation can be judged by the time and scale.

Ludendorff believed that Ryan's troops would not be thrown into a meaningless battlefield. This would definitely be a very important battle that could even change the situation of the war.

aside.

Ryan looked at Ludendorff, thinking constantly in his mind.

The main purpose of the Empire's operations on the Eastern Front was to prevent the Russian Empire from launching an attack on the Empire.

No matter which country it is, they are all well aware of the ridiculous combat effectiveness of the Tsarist Empire and the shockingly low combat capabilities of their soldiers.

Therefore, for Ludendorff, the most important thing was not how to defend against the enemy's offensive, but how to completely destroy the enemy's will to fight.

Secondly, as an army composed mainly of serfs, the Tsarist Russian Empire's army collapsed very quickly.

Ordinary troops will basically lose the ability to maintain the front line after their casualties exceed 30%. For the Empire, the elite can be maintained at 35%, and the ordinary troops at 28%, while the Russian Empire will be even lower.

But the offense will obviously lead to other problems.

For example, to further confirm the fact that the empire was fighting on two fronts, or to give the United Kingdom an excuse to send troops.

Ryan thought that he had to ensure that the United Kingdom sent troops later than the time when the Russian Empire's front collapsed.

But he also needed to use the empire's failure in the overall battle in exchange for the opportunity to force Moltke the Younger to resign voluntarily.

In this case, this battle must begin after the entire campaign begins to move towards the sea.

"number twelve."

After careful consideration, Ryan spoke slowly.

"You absolutely cannot attack before the 12th. I can't tell you the specific timeframe for the attack, but it cannot be before the 12th at the earliest."

"Next month?"

Ludendorff immediately grabbed Ryan and asked, "If we attack... to what extent?"

Then he heard Ryan's answer.

“The deeper the better.”

Ryan's voice was cold.

"But the maximum distance should not exceed 200 kilometers from the border."

"You can only break through there at best, because in another month, winter will come to the Empire."

"The Empire's equipment is not suited to fighting them in that environment."

"All you have to do is delay, use the minimum amount of troops, and force the Empire into a quagmire. That's all."

This inevitably made Ludendorff confused.

Ludendorff asked: "Why? Wouldn't it be better to take Moscow in one go?"

"If we can get the Empire to surrender immediately, the Empire will be able to better deploy its troops to the Western Front..."

But Ryan completely shut Ludendorff up with just one sentence.

"Can you guarantee that they won't tear up the surrender agreement?"

He said, "The Tsar of the Empire and the King of the United Kingdom are blood brothers. They signed the treaty to fight against the Empire."

"If one front suffers a setback, the other side will inevitably redouble its forces, attempting to provide an opportunity for attack on the other side. Erich, they share a common destiny. We must defeat the Union, the Empire, and Farlan simultaneously."

"Otherwise we're just going to be in a situation where we have troops moving around."

"Hold them back, and make them waste supplies and men on repeated assaults against the Empire."

"Only in this way can we win."

"This is not a battle that will end in a short time. You have to treat it as a war that will last for two years, three years, or even longer."

After saying that, Ryan didn't want to waste any more time talking.

He had said enough to Ludendorff.

The surrounding Ministry of Defense officers had already turned their attention to him and Ludendorff.

As two people who came from the front line, they have much more blood on them than ordinary people.

And, just as Ryan walked towards the stairs and prepared to leave.

Ludendorff immediately stood up and called Ryan again.

"Wait, Flig."

Ryan stopped and looked at the other person.

Ludendorff looked at Ryan and asked, "When will the Union intervene? If they do, are you confident enough to hold them back?"

Ryan: "They will intervene after you launch your offensive, but the longer the stalemate on the Eastern Front lasts, the more troops the Union can mobilize at once, which is disadvantageous to the Western Front."

"For this reason, your offensive must begin at the earliest after the date I give you, and at the latest, not until the end of the month."

"Why?" Ludendorff was still puzzled. "Isn't it based on the consumption of manpower?"

Then he heard Ryan's explanation.

"Because it would take their fleet at least 40 days to sail back from the Cape of Good Hope to the Aurora, and 20 days if they go through Suez."

"Too late will give them time to reorganize their forces. Too early will prevent us from achieving our strategic goals."

"These are no longer the days when wars could be ended in a few months, Erich."

(End of this chapter)