Deep behind enemy lines

Napoleon was taken aback. He had seen the "Encirclement and Interpenetration" tactic in the officers' textbook at the Paris Police Academy, but he only had a general understanding of it and had no idea how to use it.

He then looked at the regimental commander. "However, if we ignore the Hanover Army, once they join forces with the Prussia, General Leo may have difficulty holding them off."

Colonel Dumont nodded slightly. "Actually, I had the same question as you at the last General Staff meeting."

He then smiled and said, "But you must remember that the reason why the armies of both the Hanover and the Prussia were able to set foot in the Southern Netherlands was due to the Netherlands Rebellion."

"If we capture Antwerp, the Netherlands Rebels ' Parliament will cease to exist. So even if the Prussia defeat General Leo, what can they do? Directly occupy the Southern Netherlands? I'm afraid the Dutch people and United Kingdom won't agree to that."

Napoleon suddenly realized. "Therefore, Karl II will definitely come to Antwerp's aid."

"Yes. His Crown Prince said that as long as our march is faster than the Hanover and we threaten Antwerp before they reach Liège, then the Austrian Army will be in no danger."

"But," Napoleon pondered, "It doesn't seem like a wise decision for us to venture deep into the Southern Netherlands and engage the enemy in their heartland. Karl II could even cut off our supply lines and wait for our surrender."

Colonel Dumont cracked his whip. "Who said we'd have a decisive battle in Antwerp?"

"Your understanding of the ' Encirclement and Interpenetration ' tactic is still not deep enough."

He paused for a moment, feeling somewhat ashamed. In fact, he himself had not studied this tactic much; it was only because he had attended the General Staff meeting and listened to the Crown Prince's explanation that he was able to instruct Napoleon by reading from the text.

"Well, um, 'flanking maneuver' and 'infiltration' are actually two different tactics, both aimed at manipulating the battlefield situation and putting the enemy in a disadvantageous position."

"After luring Karl II back north, our army will then..."

He suddenly stopped. The Ministry of War behind him was a top-secret matter, and Major Bonaparte's rank seemed to be too low to access it.

"You'll find out soon enough. After all, His Highness the Crown Prince is absolutely a tactical genius."

When it comes to commanding troops in battle, Joseph, who only attended military school for a year and a half, may not be as good as any of the Field-Grade Officers in the Royal Guard Legion, but he has advanced tactical theories from hundreds of years later in his mind, and a wealth of practical cases to refer to.

Many tactical theories are like this; once you understand them, they're actually quite simple. You can apply any one of them to the current battle situation and suppress an opponent who doesn't understand those tactics.

For example, on the European Continent battlefield today, generals focus on how to deploy their formations in the best possible way and from which angle to attack, rarely considering large-scale flanking maneuvers.

Even a genius like Frederick the Great could only exert influence at the level of a war zone, yet he was already able to easily defeat his contemporaries.

What Joseph brought, however, was the theory of the "King of Encirclement and Interpenetration" that would later become the subject of the East, which was enough to give Karl II a run for his money.

Of course, even if they were to face the Hanover Army head-on, Joseph believed that the Royal Guard Legion still had a good chance of winning.

Although the Royal Guard Legion could only commit fewer than 14,000 men to fight against Karl II —two regiments had to be reserved for Leo in case he was defeated by Blücher, forcing Joseph to rush back to defend Luxembourg, and soldiers from the Moulins Legion remained in Luxembourg to maintain order—after deducting casualties from previous battles, leaving only these remaining soldiers— the Royal Guard Legion's training, morale, and equipment level still gave them a greater chance of victory against the 24,000-strong combined Han and Dutch Allied Forces.

However, engaging in a direct confrontation with a superior enemy force would likely result in significant casualties for the Royal Guard Legion, something Joseph was unwilling to accept.

There are also many favorable conditions for Encirclement and Interpenetration in the Southern Netherlands.

For example, in the French region of the South Southern Netherlands, the French Army was even more popular than the Brabant Revolution, as logistical supplies were easier to obtain.

Furthermore, Austria's decades-long rule over the Southern Netherlands had laid a deep foundation. Austria officials were present throughout the country, and even after they were ousted from power, they could still provide Joseph with intelligence, supplies, and other support.

Most importantly, the Southern Netherlands offered Prussia and Hanover too many crucial points for rescue, giving Joseph a wealth of tactical options.

North of Brussels.

In the Southern Netherlands Parliament chamber, a Liberals member of Van der Noot's faction, his face flushed, pointed at Onck was sitting in the front row. "The Hanover army is on its way to Liège, and we should be cooperating with them to crush the Austria in one fell swoop! But you've let the army hide!"

"This is our battle as Southern Netherlands, our struggle for freedom and democracy! You are destroying the future of Southern Netherlands!"

Onck remained unmoved, while his faction of members of parliament skillfully responded, "Freedom and the people must first be alive. Our army is exhausted after fierce fighting. They will be ready to fight again when the time is right."

The core Conservatives members of parliament present at the meeting had already been informed by Onck that he had reached a secret agreement with the France —as long as the Southern Netherlands did not intervene in the war between France and Prussia, France would support the Southern Netherlands' independence once the war ended, provided that the South Namur Province was taken.

Onck never believed that the weak Southern Netherlands could challenge Austria; the only remaining question was whether to side with Prussia or France.

As far as he knew, Prussia and United Kingdom supported the Netherlands annexation of the Southern Netherlands.

In comparison, Namur's appetite for France cooperation is much smaller. Moreover, a significant portion of the Conservatives MPs come from French regions and are more willing to cooperate with France.

After learning of the agreement between Onck and France, some Conservatives members of parliament even wanted to mobilize forces in the South to help France drive out the Prussia.

Just as the Liberals lawmakers were about to retort, an officer forcefully pushed aside the guards on both sides of the gate and rushed into the meeting room like a startled buffalo.

Van der Noot frowned; the military had been acting increasingly outrageously lately.

Just as he was about to launch his attack, he heard the officer shout in alarm, "The French Army force has already crossed east of Brussels and is less than 10 miles from Antwerp!"

Ten miles is about 16 kilometers, which would normally take a day and a half to cover.

A deathly silence fell over the entire Southern Netherlands Parliament Hall. After a good seven or eight seconds, Van der Noot suddenly cried out, "Quick! Call for reinforcements from His Majesty Karl II! His army shouldn't be far away..."