Life of Being a Crown Prince in France

“Find a way yourself?” Desai asked in surprise, “What do you mean?”

Napoleon picked up the coffee pot on the table and poured him a cup, speaking slowly: “Let’s hypothesize.

“Now that both the Ottoman Empire and Prussia have declared war on Austria, Vienna suddenly launches a surprise attack on our garrison in Udine, aiming to get Venice’s tax revenue and supplies.

“In such a situation, what should we do?”

Desai answered without hesitation: “Of course, use cannons to teach them a harsh lesson!”

Napoleon nodded: “As a result, the enemy troops defending Klagenfurt Fortress were unable to withstand the attack, and our troops seized the opportunity to capture the fortress during the counterattack.

“Now, there’s almost no obstacle between our army and Vienna. Moreover, Austria’s main forces are still fighting in Silesia or Wallachia.

“What decision do you think the General Staff would make?”

Desai’s eyes lit up: “Of course, to immediately occupy Vienna!”

Napoleon smiled: “Yes, we can’t let Vienna fall into Ottoman hands, can we?”

Desai immediately sensed something was wrong: “Wait a minute, your hypothesis is probably hard to stand. Austrians are unlikely to provoke us actively.”

“No, they will.”

“Why? Unless they are crazy!”

Napoleon did not continue, but raised his coffee cup to him: “You are my best friend. So, can I trust you?”

“Of course. I can shield you from bullets without hesitation.”

“Thank you for your sincere friendship!” Napoleon seemed quite touched, nodded vigorously, and then continued, “In fact, I have made some preparations for this plan. For example, I have reached a consensus with the Intelligence Bureau.

“In over a month, Director Fouche will send people…”

He simply recounted the procedure and then looked at Desai: “At that time, we need a trustworthy general to lead the troops to break through Klagenfurt Fortress, rather than restrain soldiers from crossing the border.

“You are the only person I can trust. So, I hope you can accept this task.”

Desai became nervous immediately: “Secretly mobilizing troops will lead to a military court…”

“No, you are just rightfully counterattacking. Moreover, by then, you will be the greatest hero in capturing Vienna. Who would blame a little overstep?”

Desai licked his lips and asked again: “Why would the Intelligence Bureau take risks with us?”

“You always quickly identify the key to the problem.” Napoleon cast him an appreciative glance, “Have you heard that the Crown Prince intends to establish a new intelligence agency specifically for foreign affairs?

“Director Fouche wants to use this matter to demonstrate the Intelligence Bureau’s control over foreign situations — the Intelligence Bureau will appear as an important force assisting in the occupation of Vienna in our reports.

“In addition, the military will also fully support the Intelligence Bureau in the future as a return.”

Finally, under Napoleon’s persuasion, Desai nodded, “To prevent France from missing the opportunity to control Central Europe, I am willing to give it a try.”

“Very good.” Napoleon showed a satisfied smile, “I have already submitted an application to the General Staff to transfer you back to Udino, replacing Colonel Sellier.”

If Joseph heard the conversation between the two at this moment, he probably wouldn’t be surprised. After all, historically, Napoleon was accustomed to “going it alone.” During the Italian campaign, the Directory had repeatedly demanded he stop attacking due to unsustainable military funds, but Napoleon always engulfed them with continuous victories, forcing them to desperately extract blood from domestic sources to supply his great army. Eventually, the Directory collapsed due to financial bankruptcy.

Although Napoleon had achieved extremely brilliant feats at present, Massena’s victories along the Rhine River were by no means inferior to his.

Even Moro had also created a huge impact by once approaching Vienna, being placed on par with Napoleon by people.

It was a situation the proud and ambitious Napoleon was unwilling to accept.

The Italian campaign had already made him begin to be headstrong, determined to overshadow all the French generals, having everyone look up to him.

But now that the war had ended, participating in parties and salons daily in Paris would never grant him this honor.

As a general, he needed war.

Only ongoing war could earn his fame!

Napoleon had not thought of it, but in history, he indeed led armies across the entire European Continent, trampled Egypt, crossed the Syrian desert, and even tasted barbecue in remote Moscow.

But what awaited him in the end were enemies all around the world, with him withering away on Saint Helena Island with the spirits of countless fallen French Army soldiers.

On a wrong path, yet he still wanted to walk it without hesitation…

…

Portugal.

East side of the Porto Fortress Group.

Marquess of Wellesley, watching the Spanish soldiers surging towards the bastion through his telescope, said to his attendant with a relaxed expression, “Alexander, please get me a cup of tea. There shouldn’t be anything to do today.”

“Yes, General.”

Thomas Graham, the British Expeditionary Force’s second-in-command brigadier, said with some concern, “General, do we need to cover the Portuguese’s flank? I mean, their tactical setup has obvious gaps, in case the enemy…”

“Don’t worry.” Wellesley handed the telescope to his attendant and then took the teacup, saying, “The Spanish tactics are equally crude.

“Their commander clearly intends to storm the easternmost bastion, using it as a base to continue expanding north to avoid our gunboats on the Douro River.”

“But the French might notice the gap in the flanks.” Graham said, “Their troops haven’t shown up yet.”

Wellesley pushed another cup of tea in front of his deputy: “Thomas, relax. Intelligence indicates they are still in Reyal.

“And I am not just waiting passively.”

“Do you intend to?”

“Perhaps you have noticed, Colonel Hill left the camp yesterday morning.” Wellesley said, “He is probably nearing the Tamega River by now.”

Graham’s eyes instantly lit up: “You plan to surround Talavera?”

“No, no, that would be too risky.” Wellesley shook his head, “We have less than 7,000 soldiers. And those Portuguese can’t be expected until they complete the ‘mixed formation.’

“So, we…”

“Harass the supply line. And gather the nobles of the Portuguese mountains to form a resistance force.”

————

Most of the reconnaissance work of the Security Bureau is completed by the Black Room (cabinet noir). After the outbreak of the revolution, the intelligence obtained by the Bourbon Dynasty’s Black Room through letter inspection became a target of public criticism. Both the Legislative Assembly and the Constitutional Assembly passed texts confirming the illegality of letter checking. But after the outbreak of war, the revolutionary government regarded communication with rebellious areas as a counter-revolutionary act, establishing special offices in ordinary police stations for letter inspections. Many local reconnaissance committees began inspecting Royalist Party members’ letters, causing many nobles from the Bourbon Dynasty era to be sent to the guillotine.

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