Eating Both Ends of the Sugar Cane

As for the Duke of Brunswick, he wasn't worried about the France cheating him. It was a fair exchange of money for the release of the prisoners—a transaction based on honesty. The main problem was that he had no choice; if he refused the France offer, he would likely lose his 50,000-plus men.

The West Liegnitz.

The Wolfenster Town had returned to Austria control. At this moment, outside the town, near the Military Camp, hundreds of Honor Guard soldiers stood in neat rows on both sides of the road, excitedly watching the France officers passing by, especially the young man at the head of the group.

Behind them, a large group of ordinary soldiers shouted loudly, regardless of the danger, "Thank you, France brothers! God bless you!"

"You've arrived just in time! Long live France!"

"Thank you, Your Crown Prince, you saved us all!"

How could they not be excited? The moment the Prussia Grand Army broke through the defenses, they all thought they were doomed.

At the critical moment, the France Royal Guard Legion suddenly appeared and cut off the Prussian Army that had broken into Austria- controlled territory.

Meanwhile, the French Army also sent cavalry to cover their flanks and help them retreat safely.

Marshal Lacy then rallied the Austrian Army and launched a counterattack against the Prussia. The entire war situation is now rapidly developing in their favor.

The surrounding military music suddenly became more rousing, and Marshal Lacy led dozens of officers out to greet them.

Upon seeing the Crown Prince of France, he immediately gestured behind him and, together with the officers, saluted with his hands on his chest. "Thank you for your assistance, Your Highness the Crown Prince. Austria will forever remember your help!"

Joseph dismounted, smiled and returned the greeting to everyone, and kept saying polite words, creating a very harmonious atmosphere.

Marshal Lacy personally led Joseph toward the Camp. After exchanging pleasantries, he suddenly remembered his doubts and hurriedly asked, "Your Highness, you said you were surrounded by Derrison and asked me to send reinforcements, but how did you suddenly appear on the Liegnitz front?"

Joseph had already prepared his explanation. He immediately made the sign of the cross on his chest and said with a devout expression, "To tell you the truth, the situation was extremely dangerous. I almost died several times. However, by God's blessing, one of our artillery shells, after ricocheting several times, happened to hit a high-ranking Prussia officer, and his troops immediately fell into chaos."

"I seized the opportunity to break out of the encirclement and fled all the way back to Liegnitz. But as soon as I arrived, the Prussia broke through your lines. Our troops were positioned on the enemy's flank, so we launched an attack and, incredibly, defeated them."

The Austrian Army were stunned by what they heard; this was simply... something even a novel wouldn't dare to write!

Lacy paused for a few seconds, then hurriedly made the sign of the cross on her chest. "Ah! God has blessed you, Your Highness, you are so lucky."

The group entered the camp, and there was still some time before lunch. Due to the intensity of the battle, Marshal Lacy asked the Crown Prince of France to rest first, as he needed to hold a battle meeting.

Upon hearing this, Joseph looked at Berthier and the others beside him. "With a formidable enemy at hand, let's join the meeting as well."

Marshal Lacy didn't say much, as the overall situation was of utmost importance, and invited Joseph and the others into a Farmhouse. This was his temporary command post.

The Farmhouse's living room was filled with maps and operational documents, indicating that Lacy and his men had been holding a meeting there earlier.

At Lacy's prompting, an officer first gave a brief overview of the current Austrian Army deployment, and then said, "This is roughly the situation on the battlefield. The Marshal's plan is that after General Davydov and General Conrad's legions return, the first step is to reinforce the troops at the gap in the defensive line, and then to encircle the enemy forces on the west side of the defensive line from three directions."

"Currently, the enemy forces are centered around the Andreas Legion, relying on the low hills north of Balde Village for defense. To defeat them, we must first attack the high ground on both sides..."

Joseph looked at the spirited Marshal Lacy and patiently listened to the officer finish explaining the battle plan before saying with a serious expression, "Your Marshal, your plan is flawless. However, how long do you think it will take to completely annihilate these 50,000- Prussian Army?"

Without hesitation, Lacy replied, "It will probably take five to seven days to mobilize the troops."

After all, a large number of troops are stationed in Ratibor, and the time available for withdrawal and rest is already very limited.

"If the battle goes smoothly, we can defeat those Prussia in a week. Even if they resist, I am confident that we can end the battle within half a month."

Although the Prussian Army was cut off on the west side of the Liegnitz Defense Line, it was still a large army of more than 55,000 men, and well-organized. If they were to put up a firm resistance, it would take considerable effort to annihilate them.

Joseph nodded. "So, after annihilating this enemy force, what's your next step?"

Marshal Lacy, beaming, said, "Then of course we'll continue the eastward offensive, recapture Liegnitz in one fell swoop, and then march on Breslau."

Do you think it will go that smoothly?

"Hmm?" Marshal Lacy, somewhat puzzled, "What does Your Highness mean?"

He hadn't taken this young man seriously before, but just two days ago, the latter had saved his army from a seemingly hopeless situation. How could he dare to disregard the other's opinion now?

"As you just said, it will take about half a month to a month to annihilate the enemy forces on the west side of the defensive line," Joseph said. "That's enough time for Duke of Brunswick to reinforce the Liegnitz Defense Line again."

"Even if we have a numerical advantage, we will still face a difficult offensive battle."

He paused, then sighed, "Perhaps it will take half a year, or even longer, to break through that defense line."

"And as you know, public opinion in Vienna believes you have already regained control of Liegnitz. If this drags on any longer, you will likely face considerable pressure."

More than 200 cannons were still positioned on the Prussia defensive line, and even with the numerical superiority of the Austria Allied Forces, it was impossible to say that they could take it down quickly. Of course, Joseph's claim of half a year was somewhat of an exaggeration.

Marshal Lacy's face also turned bitter upon hearing this. "You are right, Your Highness. But this is the best tactic I can think of. If His Majesty the Emperor blames me for the poor performance in battle, then I can only..."

Joseph shook his head and said, "Your Marshal, we actually have an excellent opportunity right now. The Duke of Brunswick had previously withdrawn a large number of troops, causing chaos in the defenses. In addition, they just suffered a defeat, and the soldiers' morale is low."

"If we mobilize all our forces now and launch a strong attack on the South defense line, we are very likely to achieve a breakthrough in one fell swoop."

Marshal Lacy also shook his head. "Your Highness, the Prussia defenses still have at least 90,000 troops, and it will probably not be easy to break through them quickly."

"Furthermore, we cannot ignore the more than 50,000 enemy troops on the west side of the defensive line; otherwise, they will immediately attack us from behind once we begin our assault on the line."

Joseph had been waiting for this question, and a sly smile immediately flashed in his eyes, "Your Marshal, what if I had a way to divert the soldiers from the enemy lines while keeping those 50,000 Prussia from causing trouble?"