Politics and deals

On the eastern side of the Liegnitz front, the Duke of Brunswick stared at the map with a grim face—at this moment, more than 40,000 Prussia soldiers and over 14,000 Saxon Army were cut off on the western side of the front and had lost contact with him.

He glanced gratefully at his staff officer beside him—if it hadn't been for the latter's strong advice yesterday, he would have personally gone to the other side of the defensive line to command the troops. In that case, even he, the Commander-in-Chief, would be stuck there now.

After a brief discussion, the Duke of Brunswick looked around at the officers in the tent and said in a hoarse voice:

"That's settled then. Gather all the troops that Liegnitz can mobilize; we must rescue our people."

The Prussia Allied Forces forces were already small in number; if those 50,000-plus men were wiped out by Austria, there would be no point in continuing the battle.

After assigning the combat tasks, the officers hurriedly left to carry out orders. The moment the tent door closed, the Duke of Brunswick slammed his cane against the table in front of him, letting out a low, angry roar:

"Damn France! Damn! Damn! Damn! Where did they come from?"

"Those two idiots, Andreas and August, with such a superior force, were routed in just half a day!"

Yesterday he sent out a reserve force to try to break through the blockade of 10,000 French Army on the Liegnitz Defense Line, but they were driven back by the France in just two hours.

He knew that Austria would continue to reinforce its troops to prevent the more than 50,000 men from withdrawing, and he had to concentrate all his forces to launch a decisive attack in order to have any chance of turning the tide of the battle...

Three days later.

More than 40,000 Prussia Grand Army have been concentrated at the gap in the Liegnitz Defense Line.

The Duke of Brunswick looked through his Telescope at the cannons on the Austria lines, his heart filled with unease. He knew very well that on the other side of the defensive line, Lacy was surely preparing to encircle his more than 50,000 men.

If they cannot break through the defenses of the Austrian-French Allied Forces in this battle, then the situation in Silesia will be completely out of control.

Just as he was about to make a desperate gamble and order a general offensive, a staff officer rushed over, not even bothering to salute, and whispered a few words in his ear.

"What?!" Duke of Brunswick's eyes widened instantly. "Have you confirmed his identity?"

"Yes, Your Marshal." The staff officer gestured for the guards to step back before continuing, "The letter he carried bore the seal and signature of the Crown Prince of France."

"All troops, stand by!" Duke of Brunswick waved to the officer beside him, then mounted his horse and followed his staff back to their Camp.

Inside an officer's tent, the Duke of Brunswick saw the envoy of the Crown Prince of France.

The latter raised his hat in a gesture of respect to him and smiled:

"Your Excellency, on behalf of His Highness the Duke Crown Prince, I pay my respects to you."

The Prussian Army Commander-in-Chief nodded in return, then hesitated slightly before saying:

"You previously told my subordinates that you wanted to prevent the situation from escalating further?"

"This is His Highness's will." The envoy glanced westward and continued, "Currently, the France soldiers are positioned at the gaps in the defensive line, while your tens of thousands of troops are poised to launch an attack."

"It is obvious that our army will suffer heavy casualties after this World War I. Of course, your casualty figures will also be staggering. But in reality, this is completely unnecessary."

The Duke of Brunswick narrowed his eyes. It seemed the France were unwilling to make too many sacrifices for the Holy Roman Emperor; this was truly a blessing from God upon Prussia!

He quickly and calmly asked, "So, what suggestions does your Crown Prince have?"

The envoy bowed slightly. "You are launching a fierce attack on the Liegnitz Defense Line in order to rescue the troops that have been blocked on the western flank."

The Duke of Brunswick remained noncommittal.

The envoy continued, "If there is anything we can do to help your 56,000 soldiers escape, then this great battle can be avoided."

The Duke of Brunswick could no longer contain himself and asked with delight, "What does Your Crown Prince intend to do?"

"As you know, the defense of Zare is currently handled by Your Highness's three Infantry regiments. If the garrison here is suddenly redeployed elsewhere, then your men can advance north into the Glogau area."

Zare is located at a key point northwest of Liegnitz. If one can pass through here, one can continue north and enter the Glogau Province in northern Silesia.

The Duke of Brunswick looked at the French Envoy in disbelief. "Are you telling the truth?"

"You need not doubt His Highness's sincerity," the latter nodded, "However, even if your men can get through Zare, Marshal Lacy will definitely lead his army in pursuit."

"Your Highness suggests that if you want them to escape smoothly, you should send troops to provide some support on the north side of the defensive line, such as feigning a strong attack on the line to draw the Austrian Army's attention."

"Ah! Thank you very much, Your Highness," said the Duke of Brunswick with delight. "I will certainly give his suggestion serious consideration."

Joseph knew very well that if the 50,000 Prussia troops that had broken into Austria -controlled territory were eliminated, the situation in Silesia would be completely in Austria hands.

His strategic goal from the beginning was to use the conflict in Silesia to prevent Prussia and Austria from joining forces, rather than to help Austria dominate the German Territories.

Therefore, the Prussia army had to extricate itself to maintain the military balance between Prussia and Austria. However, it also needed Austria to achieve a substantial breakthrough in Silesia in order to escalate the Silesian Wars further.

It's like walking a tightrope; if you veer even a little to the left or right, you'll fall.

The Duke of Brunswick, with a businessman's smile, said, "Then, Your Excellency, what can I do for His Highness in return?"

"Oh, that's simple," the envoy smiled. "Your Highness needs a little money, 2 million Florin will do. That's an extremely good deal to exchange for your army."

The Duke of Brunswick was instantly stunned.

He guessed that the Crown Prince of France might want Prussia to cede some political benefits, or even secretly establish some military agreements, but he never expected that he would directly ask for money!

That's just too... tacky.

He inwardly scorned the mercenary France, then nodded and said, "That is indeed reasonable. So how shall I hand the money over to Your Highness?"

The Prussian Army's next month's pay has just arrived, and it should be enough to cover this amount.

The envoy replied without hesitation, "Send cavalry to transport the money to the vicinity of the breach in the defenses. After you receive news of the troops' escape, hand it over to our men."

Joseph certainly wanted to use this opportunity to gain some political benefits, but he knew that Prussia was deeply intertwined with the United Kingdom, and even if they agreed to his political conditions, they would most likely renege on them later due to the United Kingdom intervention.

So it would be more practical to take some cash. Therefore, he had someone roughly estimate the monthly military pay of the Prussia, and finally came up with a figure of 2 million Florin.