Chapter 689: Forest Infiltration
To the north of Mézières, on the edge of the Ardennes Forest.
A series of camouflage-covered vehicles drove one by one along the muddy road into the forest, stopping under the trees. As soon as they stopped, a group of German sappers rushed to unload their cargo.
Mézières was a supply hub and material transit station. To avoid concentration of supplies that could be targeted by French bombers, the Germans had extended the road into the forest and built simple warehouses to ensure the safety of the supplies.
At the other end, two German officers carefully shielded themselves from the cold wind, lighting cigarettes.
Finally, they managed to light them, and both officers inhaled deeply with satisfaction.
"I haven't had a vacation in a year, Captain," the lieutenant with a beard complained. "I'm not even sure I can keep going."
"You should consider yourself lucky, Lieutenant," the captain replied expressionlessly. "You've still had 'a year without vacation'."
The lieutenant paused, then both of them nervously chuckled.
"A year without a vacation" also meant that he had survived for a year since enlisting, while many others were lucky to survive a few days.
After laughing for a while, the lieutenant cursed loudly, "To hell with this. I don't even understand why we're fighting this war…"
"Shh!" The captain stopped him, looking around warily.
"Don't worry," the lieutenant responded. "A lot of people say the same thing. We're just speaking the truth."
The captain raised his hand to silence him and reminded, "Listen, what's that sound?"
The lieutenant listened carefully, and in the mountain breeze, he faintly heard a "crunching" sound, like branches breaking, followed by the hum of a motor.
"Maybe others are working nearby!" the lieutenant dismissed it. "You know, our warehouse is almost full."
"Is it?" The captain hesitated, looking back at the passing trucks. Then, he seemed to agree with the lieutenant's point.
This was more than 100 kilometers from the front lines in the Ardennes. What else could it be, if not their own trucks?
It was battlefield syndrome, the captain thought, because he had just come from the front and hadn't adjusted to the "peace" of the rear.
They didn't take it seriously and continued their previous conversation while smoking.
Finally…
"CRUNCH," a tree with a thick trunk was crushed, and its branches and leaves were blown up by a gust of wind, sending dust towards the two men.
The captain was startled, coughing a few times as he shouted at the dust, "What's going on? Didn't you see anyone ahead? This is a warehouse…"
However, as the dust settled, a tank appeared before the captain.
With a 37mm cannon and the French flag on the turret, the tank was followed by several soldiers, clearly identifiable as French due to their uniforms and helmets.
Both sides froze.
The captain reacted first, quickly reaching for his pistol at his waist. But before he could draw the gun or pull the trigger, several bullets shot toward him, knocking him down into a pool of blood.
The German sappers immediately panicked, running around like startled ants, looking for their rifles that were propped up nearby.
But some remained frozen, staring blankly at the slowly approaching tank, as if they couldn't believe the enemy was right in front of them.
…
Inside the city of Mézières, General Nikolaus was still lamenting being "ignored" and brooding over his self-pity.
Suddenly, a few gunshots came from the direction of the Ardennes Mountains to the north, followed by several explosions.
"What's going on?" General Nikolaus looked toward the source of the sounds.
"I'm not sure, sir," the staff officer replied. "It could be the French guerrillas."
"These bastards," General Nikolaus cursed irritably. "Send in reinforcements and wipe them out, all of them!"
"Yes, sir!" The staff officer turned and passed the orders.
General Nikolaus sat back down in his chair, loosening his collar.
Now, even the guerrillas were riding over his head!
However, before he could settle back into his seat, the gunfire from the direction of the mountains grew more intense, with even the distinctive sound of the "Saint-Étienne 2" machine gun.
General Nikolaus furrowed his brow. Could the French guerrillas be armed with the "Saint-Étienne 2" light machine gun?
This machine gun hadn't been fully issued to even the regular French army.
At that moment, the communications officer standing by the phone suddenly called out nervously, "Sir, tanks have been spotted in the Ardennes direction. It's the 'Char A1'!"
"What?" General Nikolaus jumped up from his chair as if he had been pricked by a needle. "That's impossible!"
"The 'Char A1'?" How could it be in the rear?
Could it be Charles' forces? Had they crossed the Ardennes?
A chill ran down General Nikolaus' spine, and his hair stood on end. He shouted at the communications officer, "Immediately, assemble all available forces for reinforcements. We must stop them in the forest!"
As a former tank division commander, General Nikolaus knew that tanks were not suited for mountain or forest warfare.
Therefore, the best option was to stop them in the forest.
Otherwise, if they managed to reach the plains, it would be the German army's nightmare.
Just as General Nikolaus hastily grabbed his armament belt from the wall and began to fasten it, the sound of submachine guns firing "rat-tat-tat" reached his ears.
General Nikolaus froze.
It was indeed Charles' troops. Only his forces were equipped with submachine guns.
And this type of weapon was a close-quarters combat tool. His plan to use the forest for close combat to block the French forces might not work after all.
…
In the rain-drenched Dunkirk, the city was engulfed in flames.
Major General Erwin was leading the troops in their final assault on the British defensive lines.
The British attempted to use their old tactic to block the German tanks' charge: battleship gunfire.
But Major General Erwin had already thought of a countermeasure. He ordered his soldiers to release smoke at the upwind side.
The smoke, combined with the light rain and the explosions, created a haze over the entire coastline, including Dunkirk.
The seaplanes launched from the battleships circled in the air but couldn't determine the enemy's location or pinpoint the bombing coordinates.
At that moment, Major General Erwin ordered the tanks to charge.
A fierce battle unfolded at the foot of Dunkirk. The British forces suffered heavy casualties under the tank assault, retreating into the city, abandoning their positions.
"Now," Major General Erwin proudly raised his head and waved his hand. His voice was full of confidence, "Dunkirk is ours. Let's enter the city and celebrate, warriors!"
However…
"Sir!" A communications officer shouted. "The French have appeared in Mézières."
"What? What did you say?" Major General Erwin looked at the communications officer in disbelief. "Mézières? How is that possible?"
"Charles' troops most likely crossed the Ardennes and attacked Mézières!" the communications officer replied. "General Nikolaus wants you to head back for reinforcements immediately!"
Major General Erwin stood stunned, his mind reeling.
At that moment, he finally understood why Charles had remained so still all this time!
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