Republic of China: Ace Pilot

Chapter 689 The Final Salvation: The Mechanized Assault in the Ardennes Forest
Within a day, news of the German invasion spread.

However, people from different social strata have varying levels of understanding of the war situation.

Ordinary people in Paris only learned from newspapers and radio that the German army was attacking Belgium and that British and French troops were preparing to join forces with the Belgian army to resist the German attack.

However, within intelligence circles, as well as among high-ranking officials and generals, there was a clearer understanding of the war.

The situation regarding the war is unclear.

November 11st

People were marching in the streets of Paris in solidarity.

However, many people ignored the war and continued to enjoy themselves at night.

Newspapers were focusing their coverage on the successful capture of the Eben-Emar fortress by 89 paratroopers.

The content even included excerpts from German reports, which described it as a disgrace that the German army captured the Eben-Emar fortress, which was defended by 1200 Belgian soldiers, with only 6 casualties.

Overall, however, the French and British, from top to bottom, remained optimistic about the war.

In Paris, only one person knew that the war was unfolding just as it had in history.

Therefore, Fang Wen has been traveling around Paris for the past two days under Pierre's guidance.

He didn't need the other party to agree to anything; he simply left a vague possibility for them.

That is, should the situation in France change drastically, Taishan Airlines still has a number of covert air transport capabilities that can be put to use.

This process was not easy for anyone to accept, but even in the face of numerous rejections, Fang Wen persevered tirelessly.

The day's work didn't end until 9 p.m.

Fang Wen drove his car to the street in the center of Paris where Pierre's house was located.

The car stopped by the roadside near Pierre's house. Fang Wen said, "Today's event was very good. Let's continue tomorrow."

Pierre did not get out of the car. After the experiences of the past two days, Pierre felt he could not continue and raised questions again.

"Fang, you are a madman. I feel that cooperating with you was a mistake. You are going to ruin my life, career and family."

Fang Wen looked at Pierre, who was becoming somewhat hysterical, and understood that the other man needed a belief to keep going.

He hesitated.

Without Pierre's help, the rest of the story would never have been possible.

It's time to boost his confidence.

He said, "Pierre, do you want me to prove it to you?"

Pierre quickly replied, "Of course, if there is proof, I promise I won't say it again."

Fang Wen nodded. "Alright, go home and tell your family you won't be back tonight. Then I'll take you to see the certificate."

Pierre then got out of the car, went home for a short while, came out again, and got back into the car.

"Where do we go now?"

"Don't say anything now, just stay silent. You'll find out soon enough." After saying that, Fang Wen drove the car towards the European branch office.

Several tens of minutes later, the car stopped outside the branch office.

Although most of the people have moved away, there are still some security personnel guarding the area.

Upon seeing that it was Fang Wen, the security personnel opened the door and let him in.

The car drove into the camp and stopped directly next to the small track.

Fang Wen, Pierre, and Gong Xiuneng got out of the car and boarded the amphibious aircraft.

The plane took off in the dark and headed east.

Fifty minutes later, Fang Wen finally broke the silence.

“Pierre, we are now over the battlefield. Below us is Belgium.”

Pierre panicked immediately: "Why did you bring me here?"

“I’ll prove it to you!” Fang Wen explained while keeping the plane circling. “Remember that bet I made? I’ll show you.”

At this point, Fang Wen said in Chinese, "Gong Xiuneng, bring out that Soviet night vision equipment."

"Yes, Commander." Gong Xiuneng went to the rear cabin, opened the storage room door, and took out a heavy piece of equipment.

"Put it on, and then do as I say, and you'll see the proof."

At Fang Wen's request, Pierre opened his arms and had Gong Xiuneng's Soviet night vision equipment put on him.

This equipment was a Soviet military technology prototype that Fang Wen obtained in exchange for a walkie-talkie. Its principle was to conduct nighttime observation using infrared light.

It was a night combat device intended for tank crews and snipers, but due to the limited infrared materials available at the time, its clarity was only 30 meters, making it unusable in actual combat. However, it was "borrowed" by Fang Wen.

After Pierre put on his night vision equipment, Fang Wen instructed Gong Xiuneng to open the aircraft's lower hatch.

The hatch was not fully open, separated by a transparent glass panel.

Fang Wen let Pierre lie on it.

In response, Pierre, who was already secured with a safety rope, trembled as he lay down and pointed the two night vision cameras above his head downwards.

"What did you see?" Fang Wen asked.

“There are some spots of light, but I can’t see them clearly,” Pierre replied.

"This device is an infrared observation device that can see the thermal radiation generated by human and mechanical movements at night. You can't see it clearly because its actual effective observation range is 30 meters. The light spots below are also sources of thermal radiation. They only appear small when observed from a distance of 4 kilometers. In reality, those are boats on the canal and German tanks."

“German tanks and ships!” Pierre’s voice trembled slightly. He was just an art investor and dealer, and his psychological resilience was not strong when facing war.

"The proof I brought you is this. You probably don't understand yet, so I can explain it to you. The Albert Canal below was only completed by Belgium last year. Your military and the British never even considered its role in the war. Now that the German army has occupied the Eben-Emar fortress, they control this canal. They are now using the canal to travel upstream to the Liège region, and then from Liège into the Ardennes Forest. This way, they can break through your carefully designed defenses and cut the line in the middle. Then the seemingly impregnable Maginot Line will become an isolated island attacked from both sides."

Fang Wen's words were like needles piercing Pierre's ears.

Although Pierre didn't understand military affairs, he did know a thing about geography.

It seems that the French defenses did indeed overlook the Ardennes Forest, since the German army would not have been able to launch a large-scale attack on such forested and high-altitude terrain.

He replied with a glimmer of hope, "Fang, perhaps it's just a small group of German troops. Even if they pass through Liège and cross the Ardennes Forest, they won't have much impact on the war."

In response, Fang Wen activated his supernatural ability and connected it to Pierre's night vision device, allowing a portion of his mechanical perception to enter the night vision lens.

In an instant, Pierre saw the scene below clearly.

In the darkness, ships sailed south, transporting supplies.

On the flat land by the shore, rows of German tanks moved through Belgian farmland, accompanied by German soldiers.

With such a force, it was no longer the small troop Pierre had imagined.

No further explanation was needed from Fang Wen, so Pierre remained silent. Fang Wen then instructed Gong Xiuneng to remove Pierre's night vision equipment, close the bottom hatch, and turn the plane around to return to base.

(The image shows a Soviet active infrared observation device from World War II. The lower disc is for emitting infrared light, and the upper disc is for observation.)
The plane flew back to Paris and landed discreetly on the branch office's small runway.

The hatch opened, but no one got out.

Fang Wen got out of the driver's seat and sat next to the dazed Pierre without saying a word.

After a moment, Pierre spoke up: "Fang, your previous judgment was correct."

Fang Wen nodded: "I know. It's a pity your army doesn't believe me."

Pierre suddenly perked up. "That's because you're a foreigner; perhaps I can convince them. Fang, please take me back to the city."

The two then got up, left the plane, got into their car, and set off again.

The car drove back to downtown Paris, and Pierre visited the homes of several familiar military generals.

But each visit yielded no results.

The last attempt to visit failed; it was already 2 a.m.

A dejected Pierre got into the car.

“They don’t believe me; they think everything I say is made up.”

"Are there any other ways?" Fang Wen asked.

Pierre looked up, a glimmer of hope in his eyes: "There's another place, but we can't get in until daytime, but we can go there first."

"Where?"

"Monty Castle, where the Army High Command is located."

The car drove out of Paris and stopped after traveling more than 40 kilometers.

French sentries were on guard in the distance, and passage was prohibited at night.

And cars are not allowed to park nearby.

Fang Wen turned the car around and stopped in a small town 2 kilometers away.

There was still some time before dawn, and the three of them sat in the car waiting.

In the silence, Pierre couldn't help but speak up: "Fang, do you think I can succeed by doing this?"

Fang Wen sighed inwardly, thinking that it was not so easy to change history with just a few words. He had previously published an article in the newspaper to expose the true colors of the Japanese, but it still had no effect.

The course of history is the result of the interaction of countless individuals and events; trying to change them is no easy task.

Take Pierre's actions this time, for example. Could the French high command change the battlefield layout because of a few words he said?
Despite thinking this in his heart, Fang Wen still looked at Pierre sincerely and said, "I hope you succeed."

“I also hope that no Frenchman wants to be defeated by the Germans,” Pierre lamented.

Time passed slowly, and finally dawn broke.

But it wasn't time to go to Monty Castle yet, so the three of them got out of the car and found a restaurant in town to eat at. Pierre then used the restaurant's phone to ask for permission to go.

After a while, Pierre returned and said, "It's all set. A friend of mine gave me permission to go through. You guys wait here for me, I'll drive in myself."

Fang Wen handed the car keys to Pierre, who grabbed a piece of bread and hurriedly left the restaurant.

Fang Wen and Gong Xiuneng continued eating their breakfast.

After finishing the last slice of bread, Gong Xiu asked, "Commander, is it worth all this trouble for you?"

There were only two Chinese people there, so Fang Wen explained to his guard in Chinese: "Whether he succeeds or not, it will benefit me. If he succeeds, the French army will block the German army in the Ardennes Forest, and I will have done a service to France, which will make hiring them much smoother. If he fails, and the German army invades France, I will take the technicians I want under the guise of rescue. As long as we remain neutral, this trip to Europe will definitely be fruitful."

Gong Xiuneng looked at him with admiration: "Commander, you really have a brilliant plan. It turns out that our Taishan Airlines will not suffer any losses and will only gain advantages."

"That won't do either. We have to suffer the losses we have to endure. Nothing can be too perfect."

The conversation between the two Chinese people attracted the attention of other diners in the restaurant, but because no one understood Chinese, they missed the opportunity to learn about a major turning point.

2 hours passed.

The car drove back to the town.

Pierre got out of the car with a gloomy expression and walked over to Fang Wen, who was sunbathing and drinking coffee by the roadside.

He sat down: “It failed. The chief of staff doesn’t believe me. He still thinks the Germans can’t send a large number of tanks to attack the complex terrain of the Ardennes Forest. Fang, I understand how you feel. From now on, I will do everything I can to help you accomplish that. But you have to get my wife and children out of France first, and also my collection.”

“Sure, I’ll take them to Switzerland first, it’s a neutral country. Once things are settled here, I’ll arrange for you to go to the United States on my company’s cargo ship. Right now, German warships and submarines can’t go to the Atlantic, so it’s safe for the time being,” Fang Wen replied with a smile.

“No, I want to send them to Australia. I bought a large piece of land there to build a farm, and they will live a good life there.”

“That works too. We can send them to Geneva first, and then they can return to Asia together after things are settled here.”

After some discussion, Pierre decided to leave France and dedicate himself to helping Fang Wen.

5 month 12 day.

The German army launched a large number of air raids, including the Ardennes Forest region.

French warplanes engaged in fierce aerial combat with German warplanes, but they inadvertently overlooked the Ardennes Forest.

Without aerial reconnaissance aircraft, the German 19th Panzer Corps under Guderian and the subsequent Kleist Panzer Group entered the Ardennes Forest from Liège.

The vanguard engineers, guided by guides and spies, quickly cleared a passage.

The mechanized troops behind quickly followed.

In contrast to the French army's laxity, the German army's fighting spirit was high under Nazi patronage, and their marching speed was astonishing.

In just one day and one night, they traversed 100 kilometers of forest and appeared in the Sedan region on the banks of the Meuse River.

The city of Sedan, located on the east bank, was captured directly by the German army.

The German army then quickly launched a river-crossing offensive.

The French forces stationed here consisted of only a second-rate division, which had not even completed its fortifications, and was severely lacking in anti-tank guns and landmines.

Faced with the continuous arrival of German mechanized troops, the morale of the French army was low.

The subsequent offensive was even more intense.

January 13,
The German Luftwaffe deployed approximately 1470 aircraft to carry out more than 4000 bombing raids. This saturation bombing crippled French firepower and command systems.

Guderian's 19th Panzer Corps crossed the Meuse River by rubber boats and pontoon bridges and seized the Malfi Forest Heights on the west bank.

A pontoon bridge was then built over the river.

On May 14, the German army repelled the British and French air force's counterattack on the pontoon bridge, and armored forces crossed the river in large numbers and advanced into the interior.

The mechanized swarm assaults in the Ardennes Forest were unstoppable.

(Monti Castle)
(End of this chapter)