The War Court and Lap Pillow, Austria’s Mandate of Heaven - Vol 3 Chapter 31

Brussels, Belgium.

King Leopold I is a hero. After he got the news that the German Confederation was going to liberate Luxembourg, he did not go home for Christmas like the stupid ministers in the country, and pinned all his hopes on the British and the French.

“Mr. Nuodong, I’m really sorry, I want you to come to discuss state affairs on Christmas Eve. But we can’t completely pin our hopes on the British and French. If we Belgians want to stand tall among the nations of the world, we must rely on ourselves.”

Jean-Baptiste Noton was the Prime Minister of Belgium at this time, and he was also a far-sighted politician. It was under his and King Leopold I’s rule that Belgium became the country with the most potential in Europe one.

“Your Majesty, you are right. Zhuolang and the others lack foresight, thinking that they can rest easy by relying on the British and French, and they are not even ready to mobilize the whole people. I support you.”

Leopold I nodded his thanks.

“Mr. Nuodong, please see that our Luxembourg province is located in the Ardennes, with a dense network of rivers, hills, and many castles. It is not easy for the troops of Austria, Prussia, and the German Confederation to break through.

And they won’t just take back West Luxembourg, the Netherlands is also their goal. Maybe they are also ready to fight the British and French, we can’t take it lightly. ”

Hearing His Majesty’s words, Baptiste Nodong couldn’t help but break out in a cold sweat. He didn’t expect that things would develop to this point. If this is the case, it is simply a repeat of the Napoleonic Wars, and I really don’t know how many people will die.

“You mean…”

“You guessed it right, the army of the German Confederation will most likely bypass the Ardennes Heights and break through our defense line from the confluence of the Meuse River and the Ult River.”

Leopold I was an all-rounder. He could not only govern the country, develop the economy, but also lead troops to fight. It’s just that his first two abilities are so outstanding that people always forget that this king is also the hero who will conquer the world immediately.

“Liege! That’s right! This will become the battlefield for the decisive battle with the German Confederation.”

It suddenly occurred to Baptiste Nodon that as soon as Leopold I came to power, he built a military camp in Liege the following year and stationed 2,000 troops there.

Of course, many people objected, but His Majesty the King resisted all opinions. I really didn’t expect that His Majesty the King had already thought of this possibility in the future at that time.

“Your Majesty, what a forethought!” Prime Minister Jean-Baptiste Nodon sincerely admired.

“We have 1,500 people in the western Luxembourg area and 2,000 in Liege, and now we are sending the main force to Liege to strengthen the local defense.

At the same time, recruits were recruited from various places and sent to West Luxembourg. We have to be ready for everything, as long as we can keep it for two or three months, they will have to give up.

Even without the help of Britain and France, we must keep our homeland! ”

“Your Majesty is wise.” Jean-Baptiste Nodon said sincerely.

“How soon can we complete the deployment.”

“For about a month, we still need to buy enough weapons and equipment, clothing and food.” Let Baptiste Norton tell the truth. In fact, Belgium’s independence is not based on force, but on general trends, and the Netherlands is unreliable. opponent.

“No! It’s too slow! These dispatches must be completed within a week, and we must complete the deployment before the arrival of the German Confederate Army.”

According to Leopold I’s estimation, it would take several months for big countries like Austria and Prussia to complete their mobilization.

Even with a standing army, it is impossible to reach Luxembourg within a week. The Luxembourg army composed of hundreds of militias has no combat effectiveness at all.

Belgium and Luxembourg are also old rivals, and they know each other very well. However, the most casualties in the fierce battles between the two sides are civilians. As for the reason, it is very complicated. In short, it is the four words of national hatred and family hatred.

Netherlands, Royal Palace Amsterdam.

King William II of the Netherlands was as weak as his father. He was afraid that the German Confederation would attack the Netherlands, and he was even more afraid that the British would abandon him.

Before the war even started, the head of state of the Netherlands was ready to surrender.

Although the British government has repeatedly stated that it will protect the rights and interests of the Netherlands and ask it to stand up. But how could the Dutch, who had already been sold more than once by the British, believe this.

The envoy of King William II of the Netherlands has already gone to Vienna. With such a king, the ministers of the Netherlands are naturally not prepared to fight to the end. They have not even recalled the strongest troops in the Netherlands, nor have they mobilized.

As the world’s first capitalist country, the people of the Netherlands have long been indifferent to politics. They care more about their wages and whether they will have food tomorrow.

As for the king, the country, the government? what is that? Let them go to Asia to rob, this group of people will not look back, because there is money to be made. But let them work hard for other people’s things? Even if it is the prince’s personal conquest, they just fire two guns and go through the motions, as long as they are worthy of their wages.

In the ten-day invasion of the Netherlands in history, the Dutch prince led an army to attack Belgium. Although it claimed to have destroyed the Belgian army, it did not cause many casualties.

As for the most powerful liberals and conservatives in the Netherlands, they don’t want to fight either. On the contrary, they are actually very envious of organizations such as the German Customs Union and the German Confederation~www.mtlnovel.com~ After all, there are money to be made and protection provided, which can greatly improve their living standards.

Liberals are mainly composed of businessmen, urban middle school scholars, senior civil servants, etc., while conservatives are churches and nobles.

In particular, business groups have begun to send information to the German Confederation. Some of them hope to obtain the concession of the German Customs Union, while others simply want to keep their assets when the Netherlands is conquered.

This information, ranging from soldiers, horses, money and food, to deployment maps, and even details such as the character of the general and the number of people in his family, is also clear.

As for the church and the nobles in Europe, there is always some relationship between Li and Li. We are all relatives and friends, so what can’t we talk about?

The war has not yet begun, from the king to the civilians, no one has the heart to fight, either preparing for peace talks or preparing to defect.

However, the development of the situation quickly took a turn for the worse. The Dutch envoy had just arrived in Luxembourg, and the Austrian envoy was already waiting for him.

After the two sides met, just after a simple conversation, the envoy of King William II of the Netherlands almost dropped his jaw in shock.

He immediately decided to take the Austrian envoy to meet His Majesty the King in person, because the news was so shocking that he felt that His Majesty the King would not be able to believe it if he said it.

The Austrian envoys also anticipated this situation early on, and they boarded the carriage to Amsterdam together.

When passing through the center of Luxembourg, the Dutch envoy was once again so shocked that he almost fell off the carriage. He saw black and heavily armed soldiers gathering here under the banner of their respective states.

The flag erected in the center of the square is the flag of Austria, but there is a line of words on it.

“Volunteer Army of the German Confederation”