"Murat, I'm afraid we can't hold on much longer." Napoleon held a glass of whiskey in his hand.

His originally straight back was now a little rickety, making him appear even shorter. There were also patches of white hair on his sideburns, and the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes were getting deeper.

old!

If I could describe Napoleon in one word, it would be old.

Murat lowered his head and said nothing. He would accept his fate if he lost to the Ming Dynasty. Because the Ming Dynasty's military power was indeed powerful!

But he was not convinced when he lost to the Germans.

It can be said that the French and the Germans have had a feud for thousands of years. Until ten years ago, they were still fighting each other to the death.

I thought that this alliance with the Germans would dilute people's hatred of history.

But who would have thought that the Germans would come up with such a trick at a critical moment.

They sold the French, and now they are digging their ancestral graves.

"South America is not ready yet. We still need at least half a year. This is the shortest time!" Murat shook his head and sighed helplessly.

The fact that France has reached this point has a lot to do with Murat. At first, Ming Dynasty did not show any intention to kill Napoleon.

It was Murat who took the initiative to provoke the conflict between France and the Ming Empire in order to gain the support of the Hebrew plutocrats.

In the end, the Ming Empire, an ally, was brought to the point of parting ways.

regret!

But regret is of no use.

Murat knew very well that regret at this time had no effect other than affecting his mood.

"Ask the British for help, maybe we can survive a little longer.

I will go to England and talk to British Prime Minister Winston. If necessary, I will ask the Queen. As long as Britain sends troops, we should be able to survive for another year." Murat took a sip of wine and said that now it is almost the only time. method.

"The British won't help us, they have too much time to take care of themselves!

If my guess is correct, the Ming Dynasty is actually preparing to attack Gibraltar.

As long as Gibraltar is captured, there will no longer be a force in the Atlantic that can compete with the Ming Navy.

The British! They will be the first to surrender. After the Ming Dynasty's huge battleships arrive at the mouth of the Thames, they will surrender.

At that time, we will still be unlucky. And it will be irreversible!" Napoleon took a sip of whiskey and sighed helplessly.

"Then we...!" Murat had no choice. He knew that what Napoleon said was right. Once Gibraltar was lost, Britain would definitely be the first to surrender.

"We have no choice but to continue to resist. At most... we will resist for another three to four months at most.

Leclerc didn't get many things from South America, but fortunately it was still a wilderness, and the Portuguese were not our opponents yet.

I want you to take Josephine with you to South America. Take away everything you can, gold, machinery, skilled workers, university professors... Anyway, take away the best things in France.

If you let the Germans come, you won't get anything good." There was no blood on Napoleon's face, and it was frighteningly white.

"Then...His Majesty the Emperor, where are you?" Murat's eyes widened and he looked at Napoleon in confusion.

"I stayed!

I am the Emperor of the French Empire, and they will not rest until they catch me. I simply stay here and wait to be caught by them.

It doesn't matter if he is beheaded, imprisoned, or even exiled.

Anyway, I'll stay in France and let them do whatever they want. Anyway, I can buy you some time.

Let's set off for Murat. If the Ming Dynasty captures Gibraltar, our ship will never be able to go to sea again.

We don't have much time!" Napoleon's words were sad and desolate, and contained a strong bitterness.

"Your Majesty the Emperor! How can you stay here? If you want to stay, I will stay." Murat was shocked when he heard this. Napoleon wanted to leave him alone.

"If you stay, do you think the Germans or Ming people won't come looking for me?

They will still try their best to find me. If they really find South America, we will be finished. France will not even have the last place to stay.

It's better for me to stay and bear everything for the empire.

Go ahead, Murat, I know you can do it. Take care of Josephine, take care of my children.

Maybe the Ming people won't kill me, they just want to imprison me." Napoleon drank the whiskey in his glass, sat down on the sofa, and his eyes were lonely and dull.

"No, His Majesty the Emperor, this is not possible. You come with me!" Murat kicked down the stool like a madman.

"Don't be silly Murat, this matter is settled. Just organize it and leave in a week."

It must be done in a secretive manner. People who go to South America must have their hearts set on France.

The future of France depends on you!"

"Your Majesty the Emperor!"

Just when Napoleon was asking for help, the French army was fighting fiercely with the German army in Metz.

As an important town in Lorraine, Metz has been a battleground for military strategists since ancient times. A place where there are four battles must have many fortresses.

Border areas, especially the border areas where Germany and France confront each other, have so few fortifications. Metz is such a fortress-type city!

These fortifications were not built by Napoleon, but were built layer upon layer since the Middle Ages.

Here, you can see not only castles built with huge rocks, but also bastions from the musket era.

You can also see the semi-buried turret of the industrial era.

The Moselle River flows quietly on the ground, dividing the city of Metz in two. The Moselle River has become Metz's natural moat.

Relying on this natural barrier, the French defenders had resisted the German army for ten days.

In the past ten days, the German army crossed the river several times and was beaten by the French army, suffering heavy casualties.

Many German corpses were left on the east and west banks of the Moselle River.

As the defensive side, the French army was waiting for work. There were Maxim machine guns hidden in the withered reeds by the river.

They are all veterans, so they naturally know how to fight Maxim most effectively.

After the barrel is raised, the attack will be in a parabolic scattering pattern.

Bullets are falling from the sky, and even if you are made of copper and iron, you will be beaten into a hornet's nest.

The German army was obviously eager to capture Metz, because as long as they captured Metz, there would be no solid French fortress ahead.

The next time we encounter such determined resistance, it will probably be Paris.

However, the Germans doubted the determination of the romantic French to defend Paris!

The lessons learned from Warsaw's past are there. Although Warsaw finally surrendered, the bustling city of Warsaw was almost razed to the ground.

Warsaw lost 60% of its population, and the remaining people also had many wounded.

This shining pearl of Eastern Europe was completely destroyed.

At that time, the French also cheered for the Warsaw people and supported them spiritually.

But now that the tide has turned, they probably don't have the courage to defend Paris and eventually turn Paris, the capital of Europe, into ruins.

As if under pressure from their superiors, the German artillery shells continued to drop downwards, and the bombardment lasted for thirty-six hours.

Ney stayed in the command post on the west bank of the Moselle River and felt the tremors of the earth from time to time.

It must be an artillery piece with a caliber of 120 mm or more, otherwise it would definitely not have this power.

Ney was very worried that his troops would be crushed by heavy artillery.

The First Army was an army he created by himself, and had followed Napoleon in his campaigns in the north and south.

Ney, who has a violent personality, can name every officer in the unit.

He suffered heavy losses in Russia, and finally had to retreat to France.

After Ney's First Army withdrew from Kharkov, it headed west. Then it rested in Metz!

Originally planning to take a two-month break, Ney has left the army and returned to his home in Paris to enjoy family happiness.

But they didn't expect that in just over a month, the Germans would rebel. They attacked the retreating French army, causing heavy casualties to the French army.

In Austria alone, as many as 20,000 French troops were ambushed and killed by the Germans.

If the number of casualties in Germany is included, the French lost at least 30,000 people before the war started.

This is the last unit to withdraw from Kiev, Ukraine!

The French are very lucky to have a wise and mighty Emperor.

If the French were to withdraw another week late, most of the French troops would be blocked by the Germans on their way back.

At that time, people are really fighting for their own lives.

The sound of artillery was still ringing. Ney held the phone in his hand and kept calling the defenders of the fortress ahead.

At the front is the most capable regiment of the French First Army. The Royal Guards Lancers!

Although the name is Lancers, this unit has no horses anymore.
To be continued...