CHAPTER 421: CHAPTER 421 REVISED: CHAPTER 421

France was ecstatic over Shire’s brilliant victory. People flooded the streets to celebrate; bars, clubs, restaurants, and every other place were packed with people, yet more continued to gather, standing at the door despite not ordering anything.

Everyone was discussing this thrilling and unbelievable day:

"This is the best National Day. Shire ended the battle before the day was over."

"Unbelievable. Everyone, including military experts, thought this battle would last at least six months, but Shire did it in one day. One day!"

"I wasn’t even mentally prepared, and it was already over."

"We thought that winning in half a month or a month was ’mythologizing’ Shire. The fact proves Shire is much more miraculous than we imagined!"

...

Not only France but the world was shocked by this god-like stroke of genius displayed in one battle by Shire.

At this time, Italian Chief of Staff Cadorna was directing operations at the front line.

A few days ago, he ordered the 2nd and 3rd Italian Armies (about 20 divisions totaling nearly 200,000 troops) to attack the Austrian Army’s positions on the eastern bank of the Isonzo River in three separate offensives, while the Italian Navy blocked the sea traffic at Trieste.

Cadorna’s idea was that sustained bombardment and continuous assaults would quickly cause the enemy to collapse due to logistical shortfalls.

However, he did not expect to encounter similar logistical issues. Even though Italy’s logistics were not completely blocked, the supplies needed for sustained bombardment and assaults were several times more than the enemy’s.

Within a few days, the stockpile of ammunition prepared for over a month was exhausted, over 20,000 casualties were incurred, yet no progress was made.

(Note: The First Battle of the Isonzo River lasted only 14 days, ending abruptly due to ammunition shortages. The Italian commander had not even calculated the basic ammunition logistics.)

As Cadorna was sitting at his desk, worried over the map, a staff officer hurriedly entered with a telegram and excitedly reported: "General, Shire has liberated Brussels, the capital of Belgium, and he has also captured Antwerp, a fortress of Belgium, enabling the French Army to complete the encirclement of over 200,000 German Army troops."

Others in the command post could hear it as well, and they looked in astonishment before erupting in cheers, as if they were the ones who had won the battle.

Logically, Cadorna should feel ashamed right now.

Shire had surrounded over 200,000 enemies with inferior forces in just one day, while he, with the advantage of 200,000 soldiers, was struggling and even getting bogged down after several days in attacking a weaker opponent.

But Cadorna didn’t feel that way, nor did the elated staff officers around him.

Italians are naturally optimistic and less likely to consider factors unfavorable or humiliating to themselves.

"Great." Cadorna smiled and nodded, saying proudly, "This shows that our decision to join the Allies was correct. With Shire here, victory is just a matter of time!"

The command post unanimously agreed.

"General," in this self-induced euphoria, a collected staff officer reminded, "but our current problem still exists. What should we do now?"

Cadorna casually replied, "Don’t worry, Ricardo. The worst-case scenario is that we haven’t advanced a step. But as long as France wins, we win too! So, what do we need to worry about?"

At that moment, Cadorna did not foresee that the worst-case scenario was far from just "not advancing a step"!

...

In London, Britain, the Minister of the Navy sat by the villa window, forlornly gazing at the ships passing by on the Thames River outside.

Not long ago, he had resigned from his post as "Minister of the Navy" and retreated from the core of power, now only symbolically serving as a member of the Dardanelles Strait Commission.

This was because the campaign in the Dardanelles Strait had been unsatisfactory.

In fact, it wasn’t just "unsatisfactory," it was "extremely terrible."

Reports from the front line stated:

The air was filled with the stench of corpses, the water supply was barely sufficient to quench thirst, and the sun in Gelibolu was scorching with almost no shade to be found. Large flies swarmed everywhere, and as soon as a can of food was opened, it was immediately besieged by them.

Most fatal of all, an epidemic was spreading at the front, and soldiers were dying in droves, not from combat, but from disease.

Finally, the Minister of the Navy, who had been the most enthusiastic advocate and had guaranteed the success of the campaign, became the target of blame. Under pressure from all sides, the "Minister of the Navy" had no choice but to tender his resignation.

As the "Minister of the Navy" sat by the window, staring blankly outside, the butler knocked and entered with a telegram: "Sir, General Winter has sent a message saying that Shire achieved a decisive victory last night..."

The "Minister of the Navy" was stunned, thinking he had misheard: "I remember Shire only launched the offensive yesterday morning."

The butler, at a loss, hesitated and handed the telegram to the "Minister of the Navy": "Do you need me to confirm it?"

"Of course." The "Minister of the Navy" took the telegram and glanced at it.

As the butler left, he couldn’t help laughing. How could it be? Just one day, the soldiers’ rifles hadn’t even warmed up yet, and they won.

Is today April Fool’s Day?

Or is General Winter mocking me in this way?

However, not long after, the butler returned: "It’s confirmed, sir. Shire maneuvered over a hundred kilometers in one day. His forces surrounded the over 200,000 German Army troops."

The "Minister of the Navy" was utterly shocked.

Over a hundred kilometers in one day?

Surrounded over 200,000 German Army troops?

Could this possibly be true?

Oh my God, he had achieved an unprecedented feat, it was no exaggeration to say he made history!

How did he do it?!

The Minister of the Navy felt envious of this young genius, a veritable military strategist.

Then the "Minister of the Navy" thought of the mess in the Dardanelles Strait. If anyone could save that campaign, it would surely be Shire!

The "Minister of the Navy" wasn’t thinking about the life and death of the front-line soldiers but about his political career and his promise to "take up the rifle as a soldier on the battlefield if the Dardanelles Strait campaign failed."

Hesitating for a moment, he rushed to the communications room and sent a telegram to General Winter: "Ask Shire if he is willing to return to the Dardanelles Strait to command the battle."

This was thoroughly shameless.

When the Dardanelles Strait fell into difficulties, Shire’s appearance had turned the tide for the better, and everyone believed the campaign would soon achieve victory.

At that time, the "Minister of the Navy" schemed to send Shire away, releasing rumors that "the German Army knew Shire was on the battlefield and would stop at nothing to kill him."

Now, as the Dardanelles Strait again fell into turmoil, he shamelessly requested Shire’s return to save the "Minister of the Navy’s" political future.

But the word "shameless" did not seem to exist in the "Minister of the Navy’s" vocabulary.