The Fox of France

Chapter 80: Valmy (1)

In addition to dealing a heavy blow to the Bonaparte brothers, Dumouriez had also taken the entire Red Army with him. Despite Carnot's furious protests (Carnot believed that sending Joseph to the front would severely hamper the efficiency of their rear war preparations and that sending the "Red Army" to the front was akin to killing the goose that lays the golden egg), Dumouriez knew that his political life hinged on the outcome of this battle. If he were to lose, what use would there be for others to keep the mother hen? So, Carnot's protests were naturally ignored.

Moreover, Joseph felt that leaving Paris was a good idea. Firstly, the situation in Paris was becoming increasingly unstable, and a revolution could erupt at any moment. He believed that if a revolution broke out this time, the danger it posed would be much greater than the last. There would likely be a situation where "the palace was reduced to ashes, and the streets were hung with the bones of nobles." Staying in Paris was too dangerous, even more so than being at the front lines. As they say, a wise man doesn't stand under a collapsing wall, and leaving Paris at this moment was a blessing for Joseph.

As for Lucien and Louis, Louis was manageable; he was young and obedient. But Lucien was showing signs of troublemaking potential. He was neither a child nor an adult, understanding some things and pretending to understand others. He had a bold spirit, in other words, he was in the phase of a troublesome teenager.

Unfortunately, to nurture him, Joseph had imparted a considerable amount of politically accurate knowledge, but his elder brother Napoleon hadn't been of much help. He had filled Lucien's head with a lot of romantic and rebellious thoughts. In summary, Lucien was a teenager with some newfound knowledge.

Teens with knowledge could be trouble. A teenager who hadn't learned chemistry might play with fireworks at home. But a teenager with knowledge of chemistry might be found concocting thermite in their garage or trying to make their friends inflate like balloons by feeding them gas-producing pills. (Don't hide, Edison, we're talking about you!)

Lucien was precisely one of these knowledgeable troublemakers. Joseph thought that if they didn't keep an eye on him, who knew what kind of trouble he might stir up? Joseph could return from the front lines to find Lucien leading a group of people, waving flags in front of Doyel Castle and shouting, "Down with the feudal system, long live the Republic!"

So, they needed someone reliable to look after him.

Among the people Joseph knew, only one person was both reliable and trustworthyLazare Carnot. So, he entrusted Lucien and Louis to Carnot with great solemnity. He spoke frankly to Carnot, saying, "Lazare, Lucien has made some active friends during his art studies. I'm not saying these people are bad. If they were, I would never allow Lucien to associate with them. But... you know, Lucien's friends are all hot-blooded youths, ready to lay down their lives for noble ideals, the kind of people who are willing to fight for their beliefs. They're good people, but... Lazare, you know that everyone has their own interests. I'm more than willing to sacrifice for France, and Napoleon is the same. But... Lucien is still too young, his thinking isn't mature yet, so I hope..."

Carnot interrupted him, saying, "I understand what you mean, Joseph. The situation in Paris is very unstable now, and who knows what might happen any day. The environment is harsh, people's behavior is unpredictable, some have joined the royalists, some are fighting, and some are waiting. Lucien is just a child; he should wait. Honestly, I'm not afraid to sacrifice for France either. But the reason we're willing to sacrifice for France is so that those children don't have to. I'll take care of them."

"Why does that sentence sound so familiar? Like I've heard it in a movie somewhere; it seems a bit ominous," Joseph's thoughts seemed to drift in an odd direction. "Maybe I should entrust Lucien and the others to someone else?"

However, although Joseph knew people who were morally upright, able to care for orphaned children, and trustworthy, like Armand, Saint-Just, or even Robespierre, he believed that they were the ones who needed to be isolated the most. If he entrusted Lucien to them, who knew what would happen? So, after some thought, he decided to trust Carnot.

"But Joseph, you know I'll be very busy during this time, especially after you leave," Carnot continued. "I suggest you have Lucien and Louis take a break from their studies and stay at my house. I'll have my wife look after them and keep them from going out."

"That's a good idea," Joseph agreed, nodding. "And they should have something to do. I've prepared some math problems for them. It'll not only exercise their minds but also consume some of their excess energy."

While saying this, Joseph took out a folder from his bag and handed it to Carnot. "But the orders came suddenly, and I didn't have time to prepare more questions for them. Lazare, if you have time, you can also come up with some questions for them."

"That's an interesting idea," Carnot nodded. "Don't worry; I'll check their homework every night."

And so, Lucien and Louis began their dark days.

Dumouriez left Paris, but he didn't immediately head north to command the counterattack. He had completely lost trust in the French army, so he decided to rely more on the volunteer army to defeat the enemy. Although the volunteers lacked training, their morale was high, and they wouldn't inexplicably collapse like the regular army. As the failures continued in the front, the National Guard also realized that France had to defend itself. Many patriots joined the volunteer army, providing Dumouriez with over ten thousand troops in the short term, just in the vicinity of Paris.

The morale of these volunteers was quite high, but their military skills were lacking. Therefore, Dumouriez had Joseph and Napoleon intensively train them while praying to God for the enemy's movements to slow down.

Perhaps it was France's longstanding piety that touched God. The enemy's movements did indeed slow down.

Until Austria and Prussia began their war mobilization and continuously shifted their troops toward France, the great Empress of the East Roman Empire, after scolding the French rebels and expressing moral support for Austria and Prussia's military actions, gently waved her hand, and a hundred thousand gray cattle surged across the border.

The Polish army rose to resist, and they were doing well, but while they were bravely fighting, King Stanisaw led the way to surrender. "We were ready for a life-or-death battle, Your Majesty, why did you surrender so soon?" Surrendering, while they fought valiantly, was demoralizing for the Polish army. By July, the whole of Poland was in the hands of the Empress.

The Empress's actions surprised Austria and Prussia. They thought she would consult with them on how to divide the Polish spoils, but the Empress simply grabbed the whole of Poland for herself and put it on her plate.

Austria and Prussia immediately proposed that all three parties sit down together to discuss how to divide Poland. But if you don't have troops, why would the Empress negotiate with you? So Prussia immediately halted the troops it was sending to France, hoping for a peaceful resolution. After all, even if they didn't send troops, they would still have limited repercussions as they didn't share a border with France.

Upon seeing Prussia's conciliatory stance, the Empress made a counter-proposal. She suggested separate negotiations with Prussia and Austria to discuss the division of Poland.

Her intention was clear; she wanted to divide and conquer. Prussia had sent troops, so they could get a share of the spoils, but what about Austria? Could you move your troops from the border with France? Could you dare?

Austria naturally couldn't, so why should the Empress share the spoils with them?

After much negotiation, the Empress had the meat, the King had the soup, and the Emperor, well, he could smell the meat.

And time passed as they haggled.

It wasn't until July 30th that the Austro-Prussian coalition crossed the border into France and encountered relentless heavy rain. In this era, almost all roads were dirt roads, and in heavy rain, they turned into mud pits. Carriages and cannons couldn't move an inch in these mud pits, which gave Dumouriez more time to prepare. The coalition's supply lines became difficult to maintain, and a significant portion of their troops lagged behind.

Following Joseph's advice, Dumouriez had already relocated a significant number of French artillery units to the Sedan region in preparation to intercept the coalition here, allowing them to rest while the coalition suffered from endless negotiations and muddy roads. This further increased the number of troops under Dumouriez's command. Not long after, he had more than a hundred thousand troops. However, Lafayette, realizing the grim situation, failed to persuade the army to follow him back to Paris to support the king, so he left the army and attempted to reach North America. Unfortunately, he was captured by the Austrian army while on his way through Holland.

By August 19th, the Austro-Prussian coalition had crossed the border into France, but then they faced a continuous downpour. With most roads turned into mud, their vehicles and cannons struggled to move through the quagmire, giving the French the upper hand in both numbers and artillery.

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