Life of Being a Crown Prince in France-Chapter 930 - 838: War Crown Prince

The soldiers were excitedly discussing the dinner menu when suddenly the sharp sound of the military trumpet echoed all around.

This was the signal for an enemy attack.

Immediately, the company commander hurried past from the front line with the flag bearer and drummer, loudly ordering, "Everyone, pick up your guns, fit your bullet-proof inserts, and form ranks!

"Stay sharp, this should be the Prussians’ last attack today!"

The sergeant quickly urged everyone to prepare for battle, then glanced at his watch and angrily said, "These bastards, attacking at 4:30. That way ’Miss Delvaux’s banquet’ might have to go to another camp!"

The soldiers’ eyes instantly reddened.

The field kitchen couldn’t cook after dark because the firelight would be the perfect artillery target for the enemy.

Their battle here was likely to last until it got dark, meaning the kitchen couldn’t come over.

Andre gritted his teeth and said, "Aim well and fire! We must drive the enemy back before nightfall!"

"That’s right, as long as we fight hard enough, we should be in time for dinner."

"Jesus protect us, let ’Miss Delvaux’s banquet’ stay..."

Over ten minutes later, thousands of Prussian skirmishers, covered by artillery fire, quickly approached from the south.

Behind them were more than 30 battalions of infantry charging in columns.

However, the Prussians were surprised to find that the French Army to the southeast of Eishdorf was unusually fierce today. Every soldier seemed to go mad, completely ignoring the artillery fire and desperately pouring bullets towards them.

The Prussian Army’s frontal attack was immediately hindered. However, due to their overwhelming numerical superiority, their encircling forces on the east side quickly surged forward again.

This is the terrifying aspect of numerical superiority in large-scale operations.

Normally, 5,000 elite troops could easily defeat 10,000 enemies, but when army sizes expand to 50,000, handling 100,000 enemies becomes extremely difficult.

It’s not just a simple proportional problem.

When 100,000 people spread out on the battlefield, they occupy several kilometers in width. The fewer-numbered side simply cannot cover such a vast area, and due to the length of the battle line, they can’t even see the distant enemy.

After the battle begins, you can repel the frontal enemy only to find out that your flanks have been unknowingly surrounded.

This is why larger battles test the commander’s capability even more—a lot of times they need to rely on experience and intuition to judge the enemy’s movements and preemptively allocate forces.

However, this time, as soon as the Prussian encircling forces approached the French lines, two French light infantry camps countercharged fiercely and pushed them back, even disrupting the formations of the Prussian infantry behind them.

Prussians closer to the French Army seemed to hear, apart from their usual shouts of "For the Crown Prince," cries like "for dinner" and "stewed beef" coming from the opposite side.

In this way, the soldiers on the Eishdorf front, filled with "anger value," repelled the Prussian attack before 5:30.

By this time, the setting sun was still barely hanging on the horizon.

Andre and Auror and others quickly saw the smoke rising from "Miss Delvaux’s banquet" and instantly started singing joyfully.

Just as the Prussian Army launched their final offensive, Massena finally spotted the flag adorned with the Crown Prince’s insignia from a distance on the north side of Eishdorf.

He promptly signaled for the military band to start playing and straightened his uniform a bit before hurrying over with his guard.

"Honorable Crown Prince, it’s a pleasure to see you here," Massena said, placing a hand on his chest and bowing before the Crown Prince’s horse, "However, we’re too close to the enemy here, very dangerous, do you think it’s better to..."

Joseph dismounted, tossed his reins to Kesode, and stepped forward while stepping on the fallen leaves, patting Massena and signalling the music band nearby, "I’ve come here to fight, so stop with all these formalities."

Massena had always served in the old army before. It wasn’t until Joseph returned to France from Silesia that Massena enrolled in the Paris Police Academy for further training, so he had never fought under Joseph and wasn’t aware of Joseph’s style or habits.

Massena quickly nodded, saying, "Yes, Your Highness, I’ll remember that. However, I still suggest relocating to the command post at Viertz, which is relatively safer."

Joseph turned with a smile, "The enemy is not at Viertz. I’ll say it again, I’m here to fight, how can fighting not be dangerous?"

He understood very well the importance of the Rhineland.

This was truly the key to the entire Germanic Region and also the breakthrough point for the Allied Forces’ attack on France.

Whichever side won here in France and the Anti-French Alliance would gain absolute initiative in the entire war.

Therefore, he personally came with the Lefevre Corps to Luxembourg, even if he didn’t take part in commanding the battles, he could at the very least boost morale.

Massena had no choice but to follow and respectfully said, "With you leading France, it will surely achieve glorious victory!"

Joseph didn’t reply to his comment, instead, he looked toward the direction where the sounds of artillery were coming from. "Tell me about the battle situation in detail, please."

"Yes, Your Highness," Massena knew that the Crown Prince had led armies on campaigns several times before, so he didn’t obstruct any further and, mounting a horse alongside Joseph, said,

"Our line of defense remains stable from Eishdorf to Constum. However, Ferdinand has gathered nearly a hundred thousand troops here, and the pressure to defend is quite substantial.

"Fortunately, Udino’s corps defeated the armies of Thuringia and Lower Hesse in Neuerburg, otherwise we would have faced an additional 13,000 enemies here."

Joseph nodded slightly.

Massena’s deployment was very correct. He didn’t stubbornly defend the Luxembourg Fortress but instead created strategic space on the Ardennes Plateau, which allowed Udino an opportunity to surprise the enemy’s rear. Otherwise, even if the latter succeeded in his assault, he would still be surrounded by the enemy.

Massena continued, "As for Luxembourg Fortress, General Bertier is leading the Royal First Infantry Division’s three regiments and the Champagne Corps, totaling 14,000 people for defense.

"They are facing the Allied Forces of Hanover, Mainz, Trier, and other nations, with more than 15,000 troops. There shouldn’t be any unexpected developments."

During the Brabant uprising, Hanover’s main forces were severely damaged by Joseph, now its combat power is about the same level as Lower Hesse, Thuringia, and other countries.

As for Mainz and other small countries, their military strength is even less noteworthy.

So there really isn’t much difficulty in defending Luxembourg City.

Joseph and Massena rode through Eishdorf Town, and they could already see the smoke from the front lines from a distance.

He shook the reins and said to Massena, "The issue of insufficient troops will soon be alleviated; I have brought 36,000 reinforcements for you, who should arrive here by tomorrow."

"36,000?" Massena’s eyes lit up instantly, and he excitedly said, "You’ve brought here the Southern Netherlands Army! Does that mean the Royal Fourth Infantry Division is among them?"