Father of France

Chapter 34 Military Marseille
The British response was a state visit to France in mid-October, which the French provisional government under Charles de Gaulle also took very seriously.

The two countries still have a lot in common when it comes to issues related to the United States, especially now that France needs Britain more than Britain needs the United States.

As night fell, Admiral Dragon returned to his encampment. The room was brightly lit, and neither Adile nor his son Como rested. Adile reheated the food he had prepared, trying his best to show his gentleness.

“We will hire a maid for the family, as your health is not convenient.” Dragon was very gentle with this girl who was only one year older than his son.

"Dad, is my brother staying out again?" Como asked where Corman was. Since arriving in Paris, his brother had come home every day, and he was a little uneasy not seeing him today.

“He has his own mission, which I cannot tell you,” Admiral Dragon replied solemnly. “Don’t worry, Corman is a smart man and will not put himself in danger.”

At Marseille train station late at night, the train whistle tore through the quiet night sky. After slowly pulling into the station, the carriage doors opened, and soldiers wearing masks stepped off the platform. Footsteps echoed in the darkness. This unit that had arrived in Marseille at night consisted of two battalions of the Antioch Regiment of the Youth Division, totaling 1,600 men.

Although Paris has a large population, it is much smaller in area compared to the other divisions of the youth divisions in northern France. The progress of clearing out French traitors was relatively fast. After a period of busy operations, the Antioch Regiment's workload was not so heavy. So, with General Duval's tacit approval, two battalions returned to southern France.

The two battalions disappeared silently into the night, as if they had never been there. Only a few cigarette butts scattered on the platform proved that someone had been there.

The sun will rise as usual tomorrow, and Marseille, a revolutionary holy site no less vibrant than Paris, will once again be bustling with activity. Not far from the Marseille City Hall is the command headquarters responsible for the war against Italy. With the approval of the provisional government, the French military command has integrated the French troops in southeastern France into a temporary army group to fight against Italy.

All conflicts and frictions must give way to the war to avenge the humiliation suffered by the Axis powers and regain confidence.

In the command post, several generals expressed their gratitude to representatives from all walks of life in Marseille for their support of the campaign, which at first glance really did have a sense of the close relationship between the military and the people.

Major General Raphael, commander of the 5th Mountain Division, saw the representatives from all walks of life off from the command post, repeatedly expressing his gratitude, saying, "Without the support of the people of Marseille, we could not have accomplished anything. The support of the workers is especially important; without the support of the workers, the war could not have continued."

“General Raphael, we all support avenging Italy’s betrayal during the war.” A group of representatives, including Vincent Vulán, spoke up to express their contempt for Italy.

As everyone walked toward the door exchanging pleasantries, they suddenly noticed that several soldiers wearing black masks had appeared at the gate. Although the Youth Division had landed in Marseille, their departure was brief and did not leave a lasting impression on the people of Marseille.

Several representatives who had been invited to the command post were taken aback for a moment, but did not take it seriously and were about to leave when the two sides passed each other. Suddenly, the leader, a second lieutenant, said, "Vincent Woodrow."

Vincent Worong froze, and several masked soldiers pounced on him and pinned him down. Vincent Worong roared, "What are you doing?"

Also pinned down were Vincent Woolong's fellow French Communist Party members; both were quickly brought under control.

“Bring Mr. Vincent to the car.” Koeman took off his mask and smiled at the other delegates, then greeted Major General Raphael, commander of the 5th Mountain Division, “Long time no see, General Raphael.”

“You came to Marseille without even saying a word. You’ve really grown up, addressing people by their titles as soon as you see them.” Major General Raphael shook his head, full of regret. “You weren’t like this in Damascus, Coleman.” He showed no concern for Vincent Woolen and his companion, who were being escorted to the jeep, but reassured the remaining representatives, “Mr. Vincent Woolen will be fine. They might need to speak with him in Paris to get some information. Let’s not speculate.”

The emergency ended quickly. Since there were so many military generals, they naturally trusted him. As for Vincent Vulán, that was a problem of the French Communist Party, not theirs.

“Everyone else will be happy to see you here.” Major General Raphael pulled Coman into the command post, bombarding him with questions. “Weren’t you working for that old man in Duval in Paris? The commander sent me a telegram yesterday that really startled me. Are you going to join the war too?”

“Definitely, but not so soon. First, we need to disarm the French Volunteers in Marseille.” Corman didn’t intend to hide anything and told the truth.

Northern France was occupied and had many French collaborators. The work of purging French collaborators would eventually return to southern France. At the same time, the French Communist Party's influence in southern France was quite large. It's simple: is it easier to fight the German army or to fight against Vichy France?
It's definitely the latter. The French Communist Party organized armed uprisings in more than forty cities, mainly in the south of France.

Aside from Paris, Marseille, another city that was also a revolutionary holy site, had a considerable number of supporters of the French Communist Party. There was also the French Volunteer Army, an armed force under the French Communist Party, which was not disarmed in Marseille.

The two quickly entered a conference room where four generals were present. Upon seeing Koeman, they greeted him. Having not seen them for a year, Koeman felt somewhat unfamiliar with the generals and, after a moment's mental search, politely greeted them, "General Buster, General Edian, General Michelle..."

After exchanging pleasantries, several generals from the First Army learned of Koeman's purpose in coming to Marseille and said dismissively, "We can easily disarm the French Communists; you don't need to take any risks."

"This is our job as a youth division, and it's best to avoid armed conflict; we're all French." Koeman was just saying that; he certainly wouldn't intentionally cause armed conflict.

While Corman explained his purpose at the French Army Southeast Command, arrest operations had already begun throughout Marseille. Under the guidance of the local police, the residences of the secretaries and commanders of the French Communist Party in Marseille, as well as the French Volunteer Army in Marseille, were raided.

The two battalions of the Antioch Regiment arrived in Marseille at night and began arresting people at dawn. Their actions were swift and decisive, but some people on the list still managed to escape.

It is evident that the French Communist Party has a genuine mass base in Marseille, which is why some of its leaders were able to escape unscathed.

However, the struggles of these experienced French Communist veterans were futile. Checkpoints were set up at every intersection, and the Marseille City Hall and the Southeast French Army Command jointly issued an order to impose military control on Marseille.

After leaving the French command post, Corman appeared in the cell where Vincent Woolen was being held. Martin saw Corman and said directly, "I didn't use torture to extract a confession. You can have this man."

“I haven’t used torture to extract confessions.” Koman frowned slightly. When did he ever give others that impression? “I just had a good talk with them. It would be best if they were willing to disarm.”

Martin listened to this self-praise casually. Although people always have a strong creativity in tormenting others, these simple young men who had just joined the army were not like that. Who else could be the source of pollution for the Youth Division besides Koman?
　I remember in my previous book, the British author, a reader commented that the protagonist, a nobody, was too overpowered, becoming an invincible force. I wanted to keep this book low-key, but it seems I was wrong.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)