Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

Chapter 443: Chapter 357: Going Around in Circles

Joseph was acutely aware of how difficult life was for the common people at that time. If he took their food and livestock without paying, it was likely that an entire family could starve to death.

Moreover, local procurement was much cheaper than transporting supplies via a long and narrow supply line from within France, after all, there were no transportation costs or losses, and therefore, it was not necessary to pinch the peasants’ life-saving money.

In addition, paying for supplies could leave the South Netherlanders with a good impression, making it easier to procure supplies locally in the future. Perhaps some locals, eager to make a profit from the price difference, would take the initiative to deliver goods to the Guard Corps camp to sell.

At 3 p.m., the Guard Corps began to move southwest, bypassing the south of Antonov and heading straight to Ghent Province, skirting the boundary of Brussels.

Joseph still rode on the left side of the marching column, occasionally waving to the soldiers to boost their morale, and they responded to him with excited cheers.

Bertier spurred his horse forward and bowed slightly, saying, “Your Highness, Major Mason has sent a message, since the Hanoverian Army is quite compact, he chose not to launch an attack.”

Joseph nodded, “He did the right thing. The key to breakthrough tactics is not to seize an opportunity whenever it arises, but to prioritize the preservation of one’s own living forces, and to disrupt the enemy formation as completely as possible.”

With less than a thousand men, including two companies, Mason’s battalion acted as the mobile force near the large Hanoverian forces.

Joseph’s order to him was to carry out breakthrough operations and further disorganize the enemy’s formation when the enemy was engaged and in disarray.

At present, there are still too few officers in the Guard Corps who can hold their own. Lefevre stayed with Leao to help, leaving only Bertier. People like Dawu and Napoleon are still immature, and their ranks are not enough to independently command a corps.

As for Mason, he had shown considerable cleverness during the exercises with Weng Ke, which made him the only mobile unit.

If people like Napoleon could prove to be of great use, or if Joseph could recruit fierce generals such as Massena, Moro, or Lannes, he could definitely turn the Hanoverian Army into a sieve.

"Talent is always the most precious resource Joseph sighed to himself. However, he also knew that the development of an army was not something that happened overnight. In fact, the growth rate of the Guard Corps had been quite astonishing.

He believed that if they could achieve a resounding victory in the Southern Netherlands, the Guard could attract more talent, ushering in the next surge.

In the middle and rear of the marching column, Napoleon was again consulting with the regiment commander, “So, is our real target Ghent?”

Without waiting for Colonel Dumont to say anything, he immediately realized, “No, Ghent doesn’t have a target that can mobilize the enemy

Colonel Dumont smiled and said, “Exactly, there are only over 8,000 Southern Netherlands Rebels there.”

"That’s the main force of the Rebels,” Napoleon suddenly had a realization, “Our target is not Ghent, but Brussels!”

Colonel Dumont was surprised to look at the young major. He hadn’t thought of the connection between Ghent and Brussels at the staff meeting until the Crown Prince mentioned it, which made him realize it.

And yet this Buonaparte figured it out in just a few seconds!

Somewhat unwilling to succumb, he probed further, “Oh? Why do you think that?”

Napoleon answered rapidly, “It’s pretty simple, if the main force of the Rebels in Ghent is wiped out, then Brussels would be an apple ripe for the picking. The Rebel Congress might even surrender to us directly.”

"Then why don’t we attack Brussels directly?” Colonel Dumont continued to inquire.

"That would put our army in jeopardy. If the Hanoverian Army quickly comes to aid and the rebel main force in Ghent also moves towards Brussels at the same time, it’s very likely they will form a pincer attack on our forces.” ᚱÂƝŏΒƐⱾ

Ignoring the surprised look from the regiment leader, he continued, “Even if the enemy lacks coordination, our attack on Brussels will probably cause the rebel’s Congress to flee to Ghent. In that case, even if we capture the city, we won’t gain any strategic advantage, since it’s merely an isolated city deep in enemy territory.”

Colonel Dumont nearly blurted out “That’s absolutely right.”

He composed himself and cleared his throat, “You really are young and promising. Perhaps in a few years, this regiment will be in your hands.”

Napoleon simply responded, “Thank you for your praise,” but in his heart, he was filled with admiration for the young Crown Prince who had proposed this series of tactics. Not yet 16, having studied only military theory at the Paris Police Academy, he possessed such incredible command abilities!

If Corsica had such an outstanding leader, the road to founding a nation would certainly be smooth sailing. He muttered to himself inwardly.

East of Brussels.

Charles II looked westward with a deep furrow in his brow.

The Dutch commander, General Bronckhorst, holding the intelligence report, wondered, “The French just took a turn near Antonov and left? Heading west? What are they after?”

"Ghent.” Charles II spat out a single word, then begrudgingly summoned the orderly officer, “Order the entire army to immediately turn west.

"Pass the order, march at increased speed, leave all unnecessary baggage for the rear guard! Speed, I want speed!”

"Yes, Marshal!”

Bronckhorst hesitated, “Your Excellency, if the French are heading to Ghent, there’s absolutely no need for us to bother with them.”

"And then what?” Charles II’s voice was low, “Witte’s forces are no match for the French.”

He vividly remembered how Witte’s army of 5,000 had been surrounded by little more than two regiments, less than 2,000 French soldiers, and nearly annihilated.

"If the Southern Netherlands Army’s main strength is gone, those in Brussels will surrender immediately!”

Bronckhorst paused, quickly grasping the implications, and urgently ordered the Dutch Army to rush westward as well.

Meanwhile, in Ghent, the Southern Netherlands Insurgent Army also received the news and began to nervously prepare defensive positions.

However, just as the Hanoverian Army had marched northwest for three days, almost reaching Ghent, Charles II suddenly received a report from a Cavalry Scout that the French had changed direction again, heading southeast.

Charles II quickly unfolded the map and marked the movements of the French forces, and then he realized in shock that in pursuing the French, he had moved too far north. At this point, the distance between the Hanoverian Army and French forces to Liege was now negligible.

He broke out in a cold sweat, realizing that with all the French’s twists and turns, their real target was the Prussian Army in Liege!

In a panic, he ordered to immediately move towards Liege for reinforcement.

What he didn’t notice, due to several days of high-speed marching, was that the Hanoverian Army, which had a slightly better quality of troops, had already left the Dutch trailing by seven or eight kilometers.

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