Chapter 783 Sandbag’s self-cultivation
Demobin waited for the Genoese envoy to finish blowing the rainbow fart, then gestured behind him and continued:
"You should know that the Austrians will cut off our army's retreat at any time. I went to Genoa this time, but I took a very big risk."
He sighed solemnly: "Perhaps, I will be surrounded and unable to return to France."
Vanoni was stunned for a moment and pressed his hands on his chest in an affectionate gesture:
"There is no more heroic general in the world than you. Thank you for everything you have done for Genoa!"
If someone told him that historically Napoleon did drive away the Austrian army that occupied Genoa, but he never left here again until his defeat... and he also emptied the Genoa treasury in the form of a loan.
I wonder what this Mr. Messenger would think.
Of course, Joseph had no intention of occupying Genoa.
On the contrary, it was in France's best interest to ensure Genoa's independence.
This is an important starting point for controlling trade in northern Italy. Only by protecting the regime here as much as possible can Sardinia be prevented from unifying the entire Italian peninsula.
From a geopolitical point of view, it is far more advantageous to have a bunch of small countries around France than to have a unified big country.
Not to mention the economic aspect. Small countries have limited industrial capabilities and can only open their markets to big countries, otherwise they will not be able to meet even the people's daily material needs.
Especially now that the Italian people are beginning to wake up, it is not easy to rule Genoa. After eliminating the Genoese government, it will help Sardinia remove obstacles to unify here.
Dimobin nodded and got to the point:
"You see, I was originally planning to return to France, so I hardly prepared any logistical materials. Once a fight breaks out, I'm afraid..."
Vanoni was very wise and immediately patted his chest and said:
"Please rest assured that our country will do its best to ensure your logistics supply."
"That's great." Dimobin looked towards the port, "Let's work together to defend Genoa!"
……
Across the Po River in northern Italy, in the city of Alexandria, Melas and Beaulieu were sipping coffee and playing chess.
The latter's army had just experienced a major defeat and needed a good rest, so he had nothing to do in the near future and could only stay in Milan, and he was free.
"General Argentau was very efficient and took less than two days to completely control Genoa." Melas placed his "car" on the opposite baseline, "What do you think the French will do next? ”
Beaulieu picked up the "horse" to block the side of the "king" and thought:
"Judging from Dumobin's previous command, he reacted very quickly and deployed his troops very quickly. If there is a slight delay on General Cervoni's side, he is likely to escape back to Toulon."
Up until this point, Beaulieu believed that Dumopin had commanded the Battle of Toulon.
There is no way, Napoleon is still too young and his reputation has not yet appeared. Beaulieu never imagined that he would be defeated by a lieutenant colonel in his twenties.
Melas still respected the old marshal in front of him and nodded: "You are right. Therefore, I want the Argentau Army to take the initiative to attack the French to delay the retreat."
"In that case, you need to send more troops to the Argentau Army."
"Yes, I am going to transfer Milan's garrison to him. And you will be responsible for Milan's defense."
Beaulieu smiled and picked up the "Elephant": "Thank you, it seems I can rest for a while."
In his view, the main force of the French army was concentrated in the south of Sardinia, separated from Milan by Turin and Alessandria, and it belonged entirely to the rear. While the two were talking, an officer walked quickly into the courtyard, stood at attention and said to Melas:
"Commander, I just received news from General Argentau that the French army is approaching Genoa."
Melas paused while holding the chess piece, and looked at Beaulieu in surprise:
"Are the French crazy? How dare they not evacuate Italy but continue eastward?"
"It must be that the previous victory has dazzled Demobin!" Beaulieu showed joy, "In this case, you will have enough time to mobilize superior forces to surround him in Genoa. The distance to victory has never been so close to us. Close!”
Melas heard him mention "victory" and couldn't help but think of the official sent by His Majesty the Emperor last week to convey the commendation for the "Victory at Toulon".
Poor Count Hellinsetzer did not learn that the Austrian army had actually been completely defeated in Toulon until two hours before arriving in Milan. He was so embarrassed that he could not move forward or retreat. In the end, he had to declare that he had lost the edict and fled back to Vienna overnight in embarrassment.
Melas dismissed the messy thoughts in his mind and quickly came to the map. His eyes were full of the look of a beast when it saw its prey:
"The Cervoni Army continued to move south and divided its forces to control the Catipona Pass... The Colli Army went to Novi Ligure and cooperated with the Argentau Army to form an encirclement on Dimobin..."
Viligure was a small city north of Genoa, but controlled the route north from Genoa to Alexandria.
After Melas's order is conveyed, more than 50,000 Osa-Safa troops will gather in the Genoa area, fiercely cutting off all Dimobin's vitality.
But he did not notice that there was not much left in the entire Lombardy region.
……
Please...you...collect 6...9...books...!
The town of Voltri on the coast of northern Italy.
Outside the temporary command post of the French and Italian Front.
"Commander, I still believe that we should use the main force to ensure the smooth flow of the Catipona Pass." Joubert looked at the army preparing to launch a general attack on the port and made a final effort. "Only the reinforcements from Paris can pass. Yamaguchi arrives here.
"That will be the best time for a decisive battle with the Austrians. Attacking Genoa at this time... will only cause us to lose all logistical channels."
"There won't be any reinforcements." Demobin said and motioned to the herald, "Let's launch a general attack."
Then he looked at Joubert: "The first batch of reinforcements has joined Colonel Bouwanaba's army."
"Ah? But where is his legion now?"
"I don't know either." Dimobin put his cane under his arm and picked up the telescope to look at Genoa. "This is an order directly issued by His Royal Highness the Crown Prince.
"But according to my guess, we are playing the role of 'sandbags' here, and Colonel Buwanaba is the 'right punch'."
He is worthy of being a veteran in the forefront of the old French army. Regardless of his commanding ability, he still has this strategic vision.
"And the current opportunity is very good." Dimobin handed the telescope to Joubert. "The Austrians are obviously not fully prepared for our active attack. We should be able to capture Genoa soon."
It was a similar situation when the French army raided the town of Voltry the day before yesterday.
The Austrian troops gathered beside the road as if they were about to start their march. As a result, the French army captured this place in only 3 hours.
(End of chapter)