Chapter 692: He Is Our Role Model
In Paris, France, the citizens received the news a bit later. The events of the morning only began to spread by the afternoon.
To be more precise, the news didn't spread until after the parliament session ended at noon. The news trickled out in bits and pieces. However, when it first spread, the citizens largely disbelieved it. They thought it was a rumor because it seemed too unbelievable:
"Charles' army is in Belgium. How could they possibly suddenly be in Mézières?"
"I heard not only did they reach Mézières, but they also successfully captured it. That's a fortress city, surrounded by the Meuse River, with the Ardennes behind it!"
"It must be fake news from the government, right? Just to calm the citizens."
…
It wasn't surprising that the citizens thought this way. The government often exaggerated victories and kept failures secret. They believed this was done to help the citizens stay calm, continue working, and believe that their hard work was worthwhile, rather than losing hope and striking.
Of course, there were many different opinions mixed in:
"Charles is only thinking about his own interests in Belgium. He doesn't even want to reinforce Dunkirk. How could he possibly attack Mézières?"
"Shouldn't the attack on Mézières come from the Mons direction, breaking through the German defenses?"
"Exactly, the idea of suddenly appearing in Mézières is a joke. It's impossible. It's clearly a fabricated lie!"
…
These opinions mainly came from people bought by the capitalists, especially from companies like Schneider. They thought that if they wanted to defeat Charles, the best and cheapest way would be to create negative public opinion.
And now, it was the perfect opportunity: as long as Charles didn't reinforce Dunkirk, they could say it was "for his own selfish interests."
Even if Charles ultimately reinforced Dunkirk and won, it could be spun as a reluctant choice, implying that he didn't care for the country but was instead pursuing dictatorship.
Once such a consensus formed among the citizens, even a lie could easily bring down Charles.
By around 2 p.m., the Merit Daily published an extra issue, which included a photo of French tanks entering Mézières.
The newspaper casually added a few lines of commentary, using an official tone without any emotional color, as if stating something trivial:
"At 9:10 a.m., Charles' First Armored Division successfully crossed the Ardennes and reached Mézières."
"At 10:05 a.m., the First Armored Division successfully entered the city of Mézières. With the help of the city's citizens, they gained control of the city!"
"At 10:30 a.m., the German First Tank Division, which had been besieging Dunkirk, began to retreat. The danger to Dunkirk has been relieved!"
…
This was the work of Cobbudo, who believed that a more low-key approach would stir up more excitement at this moment. After all, "no extravagant words could describe the greatness of this victory!"
As soon as the newspaper was released, the people who had been secretly spreading negative opinions went silent.
They had considered various possibilities, even thinking about Charles attacking the Liege Fortress, but they never imagined that Charles' army would suddenly appear in Mézières and change the entire course of the battle.
What could they say now?
Could they still claim that Charles was refusing to reinforce Dunkirk for personal gain?
He attacked Mézières and relieved the siege of Dunkirk, so there was no need for reinforcement.
Could they claim that Charles was trying to establish his own dictatorship?
The battle for Mézières was clearly well-planned: first, capture Charleroi, then lay down roads and bridges in the Ardennes, and finally strike a decisive blow.
In other words, Charles had been preparing since the British forces began to collapse, not acting out of selfish interests, nor ignoring his allies.
What was even more shocking to the rumor-mongers and the capitalists behind them was…
They had believed that Charles would ultimately be forced to reinforce Dunkirk and lose his interests in Belgium.
To save Dunkirk, he would need to bring all his forces, which would leave Belgium vulnerable to reoccupation by the Germans.
However, Charles easily turned this dilemma into an advantage:
The 6th Army remained in Namur, keeping the Germans at bay and preventing them from attacking Belgium.
The First Armored Division maneuvered through the Ardennes to Mézières, breaking the siege of Dunkirk.
A perfect solution.
In fact, it wasn't just a perfect solution.
Through this battle, Charles not only shattered all the negative public opinions surrounding him but also further solidified his reputation in society.
Paris went wild again for Charles' victory. When the news was released in the newspaper, those who grabbed copies ran through the streets, frantically telling others.
As the Merit Daily sold out, the citizens became excited:
Those doing housework at home, walking in the streets, and even working in factories… everyone flooded the streets, cheering and celebrating.
Many people jumped up and shouted:
"Mézières, we've recaptured Mézières!"
"Charles is our eternal hero!"
"Charles is the savior of France, he is our savior!"
…
In contrast to the excitement in Paris, the small town of Davaz seemed much quieter.
The news was delivered by Fabio, the newspaper carrier. His vehicle was originally a horse-drawn carriage, and his daily job was to travel back and forth between Paris and Davaz, bringing the day's newspaper to the small town.
Perhaps because Davaz was Charles' hometown, the government had provided Fabio with a car and a new driver, Fidel.
That day, Fabio's car arrived in Davaz, honking the horn wildly while shouting, "Charles has won, Charles has recaptured Mézières, Charles has once again saved France…"
However, the neighbors in Davaz only reacted mildly. They glanced at Fabio and smiled at each other, saying, "Oh, Charles has won again."
"Yes, he always wins. That's great!"
And then, they went back to their tasks, planning to buy a newspaper later to read the details.
They had no strong opinion about Mézières, didn't understand what the battle meant, nor did they realize how difficult it was for the armored division to cross the Ardennes.
As for Charles' victory, they were already accustomed to it.
When the car passed by Deyoka's cottage, Fabio shouted, "Stop, stop, you fool! This is Charles' house!"
Fidel slammed on the brakes, and the car screeched loudly.
Before the car could even stop, Fabio jumped out, waving the newspaper in his hand and running toward Camille, who had come out the door, calling out excitedly, "Bernard, would you like one? Charles has won again, an incredible victory!"
"Okay, of course," Camille smiled proudly, taking the newspaper and handing over money.
Fabio didn't take the money: "No, Bernard, this is for you!"
Camille insisted on paying, but Fabio quickly ran off, jumped back into the car, and as the car started moving again, he took off his cap, saying, "Salute to you, Bernard, you have an excellent son, and he is our role model!"
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