Victory

Blücher's cavalry was largely ineffective. With only a thousand or so light cavalrymen, what use could they be against an army of over 60,000? Blücher led his cavalry in an attempt to maneuver around in front of Napoleon's army, trying to disrupt Napoleon and buy some time for the Duke of Brunswick. However, his harassment was practically useless; in fact, on one occasion, he got too close and was caught in a volley of fire from the France infantry, resulting in the deaths of several of his cavalrymen.

After a few laps, Blücher ordered the cavalry to stop further away, allowing the horses to rest. Otherwise, if they continued running like this for a few more laps and the horses got tired, what if, just what if, the France cavalry charged out at that moment? Wouldn't they have no chance of escape?

Then, just as Blücher had feared, Augereau arrived with a troop of cavalry and confronted Blücher. After a brief standoff with Augereau, Blücher felt he had done his best and withdrew with his cavalry.

During the retreat, his adjutant asked, "General, shall we retreat to Verdun?"

"No, we cannot lead the enemy's main force there. We will go to Longwy," General Blücher replied resolutely.

Napoleon's army thus successfully reached Verdun.

By this time, Field Marshal Brunswick had gathered as many troops as possible and retreated to his camp. However, due to the hasty retreat, much was lost, including the large number of cannons the Britain had brought. Fortunately, the Britain had remembered to nail the mortises of the cannons shut during their retreat.

The Anglo-Prussian Allied Forces, relying on their own camps, managed to create a meager defensive framework—it wasn't that they didn't want to flee, but how far could they go without their supplies? And even if they did take those things, they wouldn't have had time.

They were then surrounded by the France Army of the North and the Italian Legion.

Outside the Allied forces' fragile defenses, Napoleon, surrounded by a group of generals, approached Joseph, who was also being escorted by a group of generals.

Joseph extended his hand to Napoleon and said, "Now, the General of Defense is formally transferring command to the General of Offense."

Their hands clasped together, Napoleon asked, "Where do you intend to go next?"

"Back to the lab," Joseph said.

"That's because you always like to hide in the back," Napoleon said.

"And what about you? Where are you planning to go next?" Joseph asked.

"To Berlin!" Napoleon said.

Joseph thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "Alright, well, if you're going to Berlin, I have someone here you can take with you. I think he'll be very useful... This is Soult. He's young, but he's a good fighter. Well, today's counterattack was basically commanded by him. I think in terms of on-the-spot command, he's much better than me."

"My brother, it's not a compliment to say that I can command better than you on the spot," Napoleon laughed. At the same time, he extended his hand to Soult: "Welcome, General Soult, let's go together and raise the tricolor flag on the Brandenburg Gate!"

"I would be more than willing, Your Excellency!" Soult grasped Napoleon's hand. "However, before that, we must first remove a small obstacle—Your Excellency, I believe we can send envoys to demand their surrender."

Around 2 p. m. that day, a French Army messenger carrying a letter from Napoleon entered the Anglo-Prussian Allied Forces camp and delivered the following letter to the Duke of Brunswick:

"Marshal Brunswick and Generals:"

You are now at your wits' end. One of your ally, Russia, has withdrawn from the war; and the army of your other ally, Archduke Karl of Austria, is more than 200 kilometers away. Do you think he will spare no effort to come to your rescue? Do they even have the strength to relieve your siege? Do you want to break out? We are surrounded on all sides. How can you possibly escape? Even if you do manage to break out, can you escape our relentless pursuit?

Your troops have already suffered more than half of their casualties. In recent days, although you have forcibly incorporated peaceful residents of the various Germany states into your army, how can these people fight? In recent days, under our attacks, they have suffered heavy casualties and have long lost the courage to fight. Now, you only have such a small place, no more than a small military camp, with so many people crammed together. One of our shells can kill an entire platoon of yours.

During this period, your wounded soldiers and officers have been suffering greatly alongside you. Many of your soldiers and junior officers are reluctant to fight anymore. There have even been several mutinies because of this. You, as marshals and generals, should understand the feelings of your subordinates, cherish their lives, and find a way for them to survive as soon as possible, so that they will not make any more unnecessary sacrifices.

Now we can concentrate several times your manpower, ten times your firepower, and weapons far more advanced than you can imagine to fight you. Our France technology is the best in the world, as you should have learned in these days of fighting. And in our arsenal, there are even more powerful weapons yet to be used.

If you can immediately order your entire army to lay down your weapons and cease resistance, our army can guarantee the safety of your senior officers and all soldiers, as well as the safety of their personal property. This is your only way out. Think about it! If you think this is good, then do it this way. If you still want to fight, then fight again. In the end, you will be eliminated."

The Duke of Brunswick accepted the French Army surrender offer and then politely told the French Army that they needed to discuss the matter.

The French Army envoy then stated, "General Napoleon Bonaparte has generously given you twenty-four hours to consider—much more time than you initially gave me. If you are willing to accept our terms, you may send an envoy to our army for negotiations."

After explaining these matters, the French Army, Commander Fermat, left the Allied camp.

The following morning, two hours before the deadline, Marshal Brunswick led his more than 40,000 besieged troops to surrender to the French Army. Marshal Brunswick handed over his marshal's baton to Napoleon. The more than 40,000 Britain and Prussia soldiers who followed him also laid down their weapons.

The news was quickly relayed back to Paris, and Science Truth Daily immediately issued an extra edition, distributing it free throughout Paris. Soon after, everyone knew this exciting news, and cheers resounded throughout Paris city.

Even in the War Department's offices, Carnot could clearly hear the cheers. But the cheers didn't cheer Carnot up; instead, they made him frown even more.

He knew about the false information Joseph had arranged. Joseph hadn't deceived him on this matter. However, the fact that this false information had triggered another rebellion was unexpected. Carnot had thought that the Royalist Party had already been severely weakened in the last rebellion.

As for Napoleon's suppression of the Royalist Party rebellion, if you were to ask Carnot whether he supported it, Carnot would certainly have. However, Napoleon's performance in Parliament greatly angered Carnot, because this action seemed to shake the foundations of democracy and the republican system.

Although Lucien assured him that neither Joseph nor Napoleon harbored any ambitions of becoming Dickinson, Carnot remained somewhat worried.

Carnot was absolutely convinced that Joseph had no ambition to become Dickinson. He knew Joseph too well; Joseph was the kind of person who, even when attending meetings, habitually sought a seat where no one could see him. He certainly wouldn't want to be Dickinson, because that would violate his principle of "making a fortune quietly."

As for Lucien, Carnot believed he would never be like Dickinson, because Cano had practically watched Carnot grow up. He knew him well and knew that Lucien was more interested in fine wine, good food, beautiful women, and idle wandering. Lucien's idol was not Caesar or Octavian, but the legendary Don Juan.

But Napoleon is a different story, because Napoleon idols were either Caesar or Alexander Great. He might actually have wanted to be Dickens, or even the "first citizen."

However, Carnot also agreed with Lucien's assertion that France was now fighting against the entire reactionary feudal world as a single nation. Therefore, if the France government was not clean and efficient, France would certainly be overwhelmed by these reactionary feudal states.

"In the long run, France, a land of freedom and democracy, is irreconcilably opposed to the autocratic and dark states of Europe. We are not like the United States, a country that can hide in a corner of the world and live in seclusion. Therefore, at least in this critical moment, according to the Social Contract, France sovereignty naturally originates from the France people, and the power of the government derives from the people's contract of relinquishment. We certainly hope that everyone needs to relinquish as little power as possible. However, at necessary times, relinquishing more power to guarantee the most fundamental interest—the sovereignty of the people—is also necessary."

In the current situation, even Carnot had to admit that France truly needed a clean and efficient government, one that could make decisions quickly and resolutely implement them. Those who had previously manipulated the political scene had been proven unfit for such power, either due to incompetence or moral failings. Therefore, for now, they could only temporarily accept a Dicket.