Those who have tickets will smash the tickets, and those who don’t have tickets will smash the tickets!!!

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Paris, France.

The day after Falkenhein arrived here, he held a military meeting on the Western Front in the name of the Chief of General Staff. On the one hand, he announced that he had officially replaced Moltke, and on the other hand, it was naturally for the situation here. The German Emperor's patience was not very good.

When Chentian's 8th Army, the East Prussian Army, arrived on the Western Front, eight major German armies gathered in the Western Front, and the main generals of the eight major armies attended the meeting on the day. The meeting alone was already spectacular.

The small conference room gathered almost all the elites of the German army of this era. In addition to Falkenhein, General Cluke, the commander of the 1st Army, General Bilo of the 2nd Army, General Hausen of the 3rd Army, Duke of Wurttemberg of the 4th Army, Prince of the German Crown Prince of the 5th Army, Rupresit, Crown Prince of Bavaria of the 6th Army and General Helingen of the 7th Army, and General Mavitz, Commander of the Cavalry Corps, and General Rudendolf, who was then the Chief of Staff of the Second Army.

In a corner of the conference room, the dismissed Moltke sat there expressionlessly. Although Falkenhein had actually replaced his position, all this was not announced to the outside world. Therefore, Moltke will also participate in every future military meeting, but no one will ask for his opinions or take him seriously, which is the best punishment for him.

Chen Tian silently observed the expressions of other generals. After failing to attack the French Seine defense line, the degree of frustration on each person's face was different. Some people had no expression on their cold faces, while others frowned. In short, the welcome to the new Chief of Staff in this atmosphere was more like a mourning ceremony for the fallen soldiers.

Prince Prince, who was sitting next to Chen Tian, ​​was surprisingly quiet today. He neither expressed his welcome to Chen Tian nor expressed his dissatisfaction. He just greeted him briefly when he took his seat, and then sat there with a sad face. In the second Seine Battle that ended before, Prince's 5th Army suffered the most casualties. As for how miserable it was, Chen Tian opened the report in front of him and took a rough look. The statistical report that had just been released this morning really shocked him.

Previously, the seven armies on the Western Front basically participated in the battle to attack the French Seine defense line, with the main attacks being the 1st, 2nd, 5th, and 7th armies, while Prince and his 5th army were the main arrows of assault. As a result, after the four-day battle, the German casualties reached 230,000, of which Prince's troops actually reached 21%, and the loss of equipment was even more serious.

If he hadn't seen this report with his own eyes, Chen Tian would not have believed that the attacking party with the advantage would have become like this. He glanced at the little Moltke in the corner again. It seemed that this guy would not give up without his stupidity in ruining Germany's victory. Looking at his pitiful look, Chen Tian was disdainful to humiliate him.

However, the report in front of him only contains casualties data, and does not introduce the progress of the battle and the reasons for the failure. Therefore, Chen Tian actively waited for the battle summary at the meeting to solve this mystery that he was puzzled.

"Everyone, I am very honored to meet you here. Although our army had just suffered a defeat, there is no doubt that our huge advantage in front of the French. I hope I can lead the German officers and soldiers here to victory with everyone!" Falkenhein, the protagonist here, spoke. Everyone's reaction was not very enthusiastic, but out of politeness and respect, everyone still turned their attention to the new chief of staff.

"In addition, our respected Prince of East Prussia and the 8th Army also came to the Western Front after the victory of the Eastern Front. I think His Highness will definitely bring their good luck on the Eastern Front here without hesitation." This time, there was finally a relatively neat applause. Chen Tian deeply felt that winning the respect of others was not based on his identity, but on his own strength and performance. It seems that the victory he and the East Prussian Legion won on the Eastern Front has been recognized by these people, and even Prince barely clapped his spirit and clapped his face.

"Everyone, I feel very honored to be able to fight side by side with you!" Chen Tian stood up and greeted everyone briefly. Except for Prince and Moltke, he was not very familiar with other generals. As for the legendary top-notch strategy and tactics, he personally did not particularly appreciate it. After all, in history, that guy lost his courage to fight until the end of the war.

"We are also honored to be able to fight with His Highness, the Prince who used 200,000 people to eliminate millions of Russian troops! I hope that the Prince can also let the French taste the strength of our Eastern Front legion just like on the Eastern Front!" The speaker was General Cluke, whose army has been the most prominent force on the Western Front so far.

Of course, Prince's 5th Army had a good record, breaking through the border, capturing Verdun, and occupying Paris, but his troops had been in high casualties in battle, and the large amount of replenishing new recruits would inevitably have a certain impact on their combat effectiveness.

"Okay, let us all understand the situation here now. You can add it at any time when I report it!" Falkenhein glanced at everyone, and no one expressed his disagreement and he began to speak:

"At present, our army's entire army in France includes 8 armies and 1 cavalry regiment, with a total of 2.173,421 people. After replenishment and strengthening of new recruits, the number of our army is currently 2.647,533. After receiving the support of the 8th Army's aviation team, our army currently has a total of 905 aircraft in France. There are 17,355 artillery pieces, more than 4 million shells, 1,033 tanks, 1,457 armored vehicles, 5,612 trucks and 12,457 motorcycles."

"The French army deployed about 830,000 troops on the Seine defense line, and their reinforcements are constantly moving from southern France. It is estimated that the French army will exceed one million by the end of October. Currently, 58 divisions of France's five armies are deployed on the Seine defense line centered on Versailles and 156 kilometers wide from north to south. The defense system includes 7 fortresses and 21 fortresses, and the depth of the defense line in various regions is 1-3 kilometers. The French army has more than 4,000 artillery and an ominous number of trucks, and there are about 10,000 British soldiers fighting with the French army. However, this British army lacks weapons and ammunition, and its morale is almost ignored in combat."

Speaking of this, Falkenhein paused for a moment and turned his eyes to everyone again, "Do you have anything to add or correct?"

"Uh... At present, the French army includes French foreign legions with few people but extremely powerful combat effectiveness, including Africans, Arabs and Asians. In previous battles, our army's troops crossing the Seine River were attacked by this force!" Cluke said with some depression. It may be considered a winning act to encounter French foreign legions with few people on the long front.

"Asian?" Chen Tian thought for a while. It should be the Vietnamese recruited by France in the Vietnamese colony. It seems that the people participating in this war are becoming more and more complicated.

"What is most annoying is that the idiots in the intelligence department actually don't even know the specific number and location of French cannons. The biggest mistake in our battle was that the French artillery positions were not knocked down, which led to the French attacks on the dense artillery fire when crossing the river. Most of the floating bridges were damaged, and the troops that had already crossed the river were trapped on the other side of the river. The three tank regiments that our group army crossed the river first could not advance or retreat. As a result, my tank hand could only swim back in a mess after blowing up the tank! I think that the person who insisted on launching an attack without suppressing the opponent's artillery fire should be pulled out and shot!" Prince suddenly stood up angrily, his fist hit the table, and everyone present was stunned for a moment. Especially Xiao Moltke, Chen Tian seemed to be able to feel that he was trembling like leaves in the wind at this time. It was not a good thing to be targeted by the crown prince.

Chen Tian did not feel unfair about Prince. With this guy's character, if he had realized this before the attack, he would not have obediently executed Moltke's orders. After the attack failed, he would drag the unlucky Moltke out to pay for all the responsibility for the failure.

After Prince's mood eased a little, Falkenhein said:

"Since His Royal Highness mentioned that, let's summarize the battle that ended before! Our army invested a total of 86 divisions of 1.69 million people and more than 10,000 cannons, and more than 700 combat aircraft. We launched a comprehensive crossing attack on the French defense line along the Seine River. There were 32 crossing locations in total. Before the attack, our army carried out a whole day of artillery bombing and bombing, but because the French artillery was hidden in the bunker, and our army did not know the specific location of the opponent's artillery position, the French artillery retained at least 80% of the firepower when the attack was launched."

"Our first wave of attacks involved about 700,000 soldiers, and used the method of forcing ferrying bridges and boat ferries. After our vanguard troops arrived on the other side of the river, the French suddenly launched a long and violent shelling of the river surface. The troops crossing the river were severely damaged, and the ferrying bridges and ships also suffered heavy losses. As a result, more than 100,000 soldiers were stranded on the other side and were fiercely counterattacked by the French army. In the end, less than 30,000 people swam over and retreated, and almost all the equipment that had crossed the river was lost."

"So far, we have been injured, killed and missing soldiers in this battle, totaling 231,061 soldiers, lost 3 aircraft, 165 artillery pieces, 172 tanks, and 154 armored vehicles. Fortunately, the officers and soldiers of the tank armored forces blew up most of the tanks and armored vehicles before retreating, but I think there are still a small number of tanks and armored vehicles falling into the hands of the French."

After Falkenhein finished speaking, everyone was speechless. Although these losses embarrassed them very much, they were all indisputable facts.

"God!" Chen Tian then understood why the casualties in this battle were so heavy. Mr. Moltke, the decision-maker of the battle, relied on his own large numbers to cross the river, but was attacked halfway. The Chief of Staff was not an ordinary coward. As for those tanks and armored vehicles, it seemed that the pace of eliminating the French army must be accelerated and the French should not be given time to study and imitate such mechanized weapons.

"French artillery only requires range to cover the surface of the Seine River, so most of them are deployed far away from the river bank, and our artillery basically cannot reach them. Moreover, the French artillery positions are hidden too well, and it is difficult for our planes to find them. Even if they are discovered, it is difficult to destroy the artillery hidden under the strong bunker. The French are still strengthening and setting up new artillery positions, and they often take advantage of the night to transfer artillery positions. If this problem is not solved for a day, it will be harder to capture the Seine defense line than to climb to the sky." The speaker was General Hegenlin, the former Army Secretary. It seems that he had already hated the French artillery.

"Is there no way to bypass this line of defense?" Chen Tian asked cautiously. It would be better to ask more questions and give less opinions when he first arrived. Besides, some things cannot be seen on the map.

Regarding the newcomer on the Western Front, General Cluke explained kindly: "I'm afraid it's very difficult! The Seine River is like a large fence, extending from the coast to the French inland, blocking a large area of ​​land in central and southern France behind us. If you want to go around, you have to go back to a place close to Switzerland. Although the French army has weak defense, our logistics transportation line has also been lengthened a lot. The distance of the Seine River can almost span most of France!"

Chen Tian nodded. It seemed that the risk factor of detour was higher than that of a frontal attack. It was undoubtedly stupid to pull a long transportation line on the enemy's territory. Moreover, the current tanks need to add fuel once when they walk dozens of kilometers, and they do not have the ability to run long distances for the time being.

"I think I'll use poison gas and poison all the French to death! Let them be arrogant, hum!" Bilo's proposal immediately received nods from several generals.

Falkenhein didn't speak.

Is it inevitable to use poison gas? Chen Tian thought in his heart that he didn't really want to see the use of poison gas in war. It would be best if he could defeat his opponent with just conventional weapons. He always had a very contradictory view on poison gas. After the German army used poison gas, the French army would soon retaliate, which would be very cruel to soldiers who were harmed by poison gas on both sides. However, if the German army did not use poison gas, who could guarantee that the French would not put it on the battlefield first?

"But how much damage can our poisonous gas cause to the French artillery in the bunker? Also, our poisonous gas bombs are not large yet, and it may not cover many French artillery positions! Even if the French artillery on the assault front is killed, the French artillery fire in other locations can still be bombarded by our crossing forces!" The Duke of Württemberg seems not very supportive of the use of poisonous gas.

"Our cannons cannot reach their artillery positions, and aviation bombs cannot penetrate their artillery bunkers. The French finally became smarter! Xia Fei is Xia Fei, and fame is not blown away!" Chen Tian felt that the battle on the Western Front was much more interesting than the Eastern Front.

"Okay! Everyone, today's meeting ends here. I hope everyone will go back and call the officers from their respective troops to summarize the experience of this battle. At the same time, the army of all groups has time to rest. We will try our best to end the battle on the Seine this month!" Falkenhein paused, "There is still 10 days left, I hope everyone will work hard!"

Everyone stood up and left without expressions as before. There was nothing exciting about today's meeting. Especially Prince, this guy who had never suffered setbacks seemed to have been really hit this time. I don't know how long it would take to put that bitter face, and finally left without calling one.

Chen Tian was too lazy to pay attention to this guy, but Falkenhein warmly invited him to inspect the front line together.
Chapter completed!