CHAPTER 332: CHAPTER 332: YELLOW-GREEN FOG

In mid-April, the pre-dawn breeze at Ypres was gentle, and the humid sea breeze still carried a chill.

Inside the Allied front, most soldiers were still asleep, with only a few sentries yawning while keeping watch towards the Germans’ direction from their trench.

Suddenly, a yellow-green smoke wall, taller than a person, rose from no-man’s-land and slowly drifted towards the Allied frontline with the wind.

Felix, who was on guard, rubbed his eyes, thinking he was seeing things due to a lack of sleep.

After repeatedly confirming it, he turned and asked his comrade Klein, who was dozing off with a rifle in his arms: "Klein, wake up. Am I seeing things? A yellow-green fog."

Klein mumbled: "You must be mistaken. The weather’s been great these past few days; there wouldn’t be any fog!"

"It’s real, right in front of us." Felix kicked Klein: "Get up and take a look."

Klein frowned, seemingly dissatisfied with Felix’s behavior. He had lived here all his life and had never seen any yellow-green fog. This must be a lame excuse by Felix to wake him up.

However, when Klein stuck his head out, he indeed found a yellow-green fog rolling towards them like a tide, now less than a hundred meters away.

Klein exclaimed: "It doesn’t look like fog."

"If it’s not fog, then what?" Felix retorted.

"I don’t know!" Klein replied.

"Perhaps we should report this to the higher-ups..." Felix suggested.

But before he could finish, Felix smelled a pungent odor. He couldn’t help but cough, his eyes burned, and his throat felt like it was on fire.

Klein experienced the same reaction.

Felix immediately realized this was the work of the "yellow-green fog" which hadn’t even "engulfed" them yet but caused such strong reactions.

The words "poison gas" flashed through Felix’s mind. He decisively pulled Klein and ran back along the communication trench.

As Klein ran, he intermittently shouted: "We need to inform others..."

"No time!" Felix responded.

Informing others would mean everyone would be "engulfed" by the gas. They should notify the second line of defense to minimize casualties.

Felix’s actions proved correct. Over three thousand soldiers on the first line, unprepared, had only a few dozen survivors.

Thanks to sentries’ timely notifications, the second line had significantly fewer casualties.

Even so, the entire Ypres salient, including over a hundred thousand Allied troops, the British Fifth Army, and the French Twentieth Army, completely retreated, leaving a ten-kilometer-wide gap in the frontline.

In this battle, the German Army released six thousand canisters of chlorine gas, totaling one hundred and eighty thousand kilograms, poisoning fifteen thousand people, with five thousand fatalities.

The German Twenty-Sixth Army followed the gas into the gap, encountering almost no resistance, easily occupying the Allied positions and advancing towards the Ypres-Commines Canal.

(Above image depicts a close-up of a gas release during World War I. Chlorine gas, being denser than air, can settle in low-lying areas for extended periods, maintaining sustained lethality against the enemy.)

...

At the Northern Army Group Command, Fuxu, as usual, woke up promptly at six o’clock. After a brief wash, he started his daily jog around the village.

This was a long-standing habit of Fuxu, who believed that maintaining the troops’ offensive speed required a strong physique.

Although, as a general, he did not need to charge at the enemy on the front lines, he felt he should lead by example whenever possible.

Fuxu usually jogged for half an hour, but this day he had to cut it short.

As he completed half a lap and was about to drink some water, Morini rushed over in a panic, shouting: "General, there’s a situation; you need to return to command immediately."

Fuxu was displeased with Morini’s demeanor. As a military officer, especially a staff member of the Army Group Command, one should always remain calm.

Morini, oblivious to this expectation, ran up to Fuxu, out of breath, and reported: "Gas, General, it’s gas!"

Fuxu responded with a hint of displeasure: "Shire is bringing up the gas issue again?"

This guy just wouldn’t stop. He had been warned last time. This intelligence might even be deliberately released by the Germans to disrupt the Allied troops’ morale!

However, Morini shook his head and replied: "No, General, it’s the Germans... the Germans have released the gas!"

Mid-sip, Fuxu choked on his water, coughing uncontrollably, his eyes filled with shock as he looked at Morini and asked: "What, gas? Are you, are you sure?"

"Yes." Morini nodded emphatically: "At Ypres, our forces suffered heavy casualties and a massive retreat. Shire was right; the Germans were preparing for gas warfare!"

Fuxu could no longer maintain his composure. He threw down his water bottle and sprinted towards the command post.

...

The news soon spread to France, and Paris was in an uproar; everyone knew that the Germans had used gas on the battlefield:

"This is inhumane; they can’t do this."

"This isn’t war; it’s slaughter!"

"They’re simply demons, merciless killers, executioners!"

...

At the time, Shire was on leave at home, enjoying extended rest periods as per the routine of taking a day off every two days temporarily.

This was arranged by Gallieni, considering Shire had just returned from the Gallipoli battlefield and needed rest, which Shire gladly accepted due to numerous personal matters.

As he slept soundly, there was a sudden, urgent knock on the door, followed by Lauren’s shout: "Colonel, the General wants you back at the command immediately!"

Shire immediately realized something urgent had happened.

This was the first time Lauren had come up to knock on the door himself instead of having Dejoka wake Shire.

Shire vaguely guessed that the gas war might have started; only this could make Lauren so tense.

Sure enough, as Shire hurriedly donned his uniform and stepped out, Lauren, pale-faced, reported: "Gas, the Germans have used gas. You were right again!"

Shire responded with a neutral "Hmm," and led him downstairs.

Dejoka and Camille were already waiting downstairs, having heard some news. At this moment, they watched Shire descending the stairs with apprehension.

Surely they wouldn’t send Shire to the battlefield again, would they? Camille thought, but she didn’t voice it, only stepping forward involuntarily to block Shire.

"Today is your day off, Shire." Camille’s excuse was feeble: "You should rest at home!"

"It’s fine, mother," Shire replied. "I’m only going to Paris, nowhere else, I promise!"