Novel Full Chapter 1327 - 1232: The Value of Prisoners of War
Chapter 1327: Chapter 1232: The Value of Prisoners of War
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“Were they sent to the battlefield by that patricidal Devil?” Naselli asked. Although the story of the Honorary Representative hadn’t reached the part about Paul I’s murder, everyone had already guessed who did it.
“Yes…” Sergeant Poppard responded quickly, smiling, “Don’t think you can get information out of me. The real culprit will be revealed tonight.
“But these people deserve what they got. They came to destroy France.”
At this moment, the previously busy Russian prisoners suddenly stopped their work and turned to look westward.
Geiszler tensely took the gun from his back: “Are they going to revolt?”
The guards at the railroad construction site also started raising their guns and shouting, but soon, the Russian prisoners began bowing and respectfully saying something in a certain direction.
Sergeant Poppard understood a bit of Russian and frowned immediately: “Princess? Is it the Crown Princess who has arrived?”
Geiszler had good eyesight and immediately pointed to the distant procession: “Over there. Is the one wearing the purple dress the Crown Princess?”
A group of court guards escorted Alexandra to the prisoners, signaling the servants to bring baskets of steaming bread. Accompanying them were dozens of doctors carrying medical kits on their backs.
The Crown Princess signaled to the guards on the construction site. Soon, a thousand Russian prisoners lined up and walked past her one by one.
“This is baked from my bakery. Eat it quickly.” Alexandra handed out bread to the prisoners, offering a few comforting words, and instructed doctors to tend to any injuries she saw.
The Russian prisoners, seeing the Russian-style accessories on Princess Alexandra’s collar and holding the still-warm bread, almost all silently wiped away their tears.
At this moment, only Princess Alexandra still remembered them…
After distributing the provisions, Alexandra went to a nearby crane, lifted her skirt, and climbed onto a platform over a person tall, then called the Russians over with her clear Russian voice piercing through the chilly morning air: “It’s good that you remember me.
“I too remember all of you!
“In my childhood, my father often took you to train near the Gatchina Palace.”
These Russian soldiers had always loathed Paul I’s training, but after half a month of hard labor at this icy construction site, they all found it to be the fondest memory of their lives.
Alexandra continued: “Today I didn’t come to reminisce with you but to ask you.
“Look at the chilblains on your hands, your weary bodies, and the wounds under your shackles. Have these gained the honor promised by the Tsar?
“My dear brother, that pitiful creature drunk on power beyond his soul, eagerly made a pact with the Devil, exchanging my father’s life for his crown!
“Yes, he shot Father with a flintlock. Every Russian knows it wasn’t some candlestick, and it wasn’t an accidental fall; it was his shot…”
She took a deep breath, her voice suddenly turning somber:
“And at this moment, he’s in the warm Winter Palace, seated on a gilded throne, betting you like a hand of silver coins on a gambling table seeking more power!
“Without a doubt, you are expended like a handful of coins, then toiled here day and night to repay his debts.”
“I’m not just here to expose the lies. I hope you all remember this humiliation—the shame of being deceived, used, and finally discarded by the man in the Winter Palace!
“I hope you all live well. I will plead with the guards here; they will not mistreat you. And you must work diligently until one day you return home—that day will surely come—then tell everyone you meet the truth of this war. Tell the relatives of soldiers who couldn’t return to Russia for whom their blood truly flowed…”
Geiszler, not understanding Russian, eagerly looked towards the Honorary Representative: “Sergeant Poppard, the Crown Princess isn’t inciting the prisoners to escape, is she?”
Poppard, with limited Russian, only half-understood, but still shook his head: “No, she is telling them a story.
“Much like the stories I’ve been telling you these past few days.”
He turned and waved to the soldiers: “Put your guns away, there’s nothing happening here. Let’s continue our journey.”
The next day, Geiszler saw the surging river ahead, which was the Rhine River.
In the camp at Strasbourg, over two-thirds of France’s 23rd Infantry Division was already gathered here.
According to the Company Commander, the others would arrive the day after, at which point the 23rd Infantry Division would head to Karlsruhe to fight the invading army led by Britain’s Picton—with tens of thousands of soldiers.
By then, the entire newly formed 6th Army Group, 35,000 men strong, including their equipment and logistics, would have arrived on the East Bank of the Rhine.
…
Meanwhile, the Marquess of Wellesley was scolding his officers in the city of Leipzig in western Saxon.
“Snow is no excuse for leaving supplies in Dresden! The soldiers have been drinking river water for three days; the Saxons must bring the wine immediately!”
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In 1799, during Napoleon’s expedition to Egypt, Victor was still serving in the Italian Army. But under the fierce onslaught of the Russian-Austrian Alliance Army led by Marshal Suvorov, no matter how bravely the French Army fought, they could not withstand the Alliance’s attacks, and Victor was wounded in the Battle of Trebia (June 17-19, 1799). In March 1800, when Napoleon formed the Reserve Army, Victor commanded an army (15,000 men) and crossed the Alps with the First Consul, capturing Milan, the capital of Lombardy. Austrian Army Commander Melas immediately ordered General Ott to seize Vukla to secure the Po River crossing. On the morning of June 9, Ott’s forces (18,000 men) encountered Lannes’ army (8,000 men) at Montebello, and an intense battle ensued. Following behind Lannes, Victor, upon hearing the news, immediately led the Shamanba Division (6,000 men) into battle, fighting alongside Lannes for over nine hours and ultimately annihilating the Austrian Army. On June 4, Victor and his army participated in the decisive Battle of Marengo, showing great courage in both the initial defeat and the subsequent counterattack. After the armistice agreement, Victor left the Italian Army to become the commander-in-chief of the French occupation forces in the Netherlands (present-day Holland). In 1803, he was appointed as the general governor of the North American Louisiana Colony, but before he could take office, the colony was sold to the United States. In 1805, he was appointed as the French Empire’s ambassador to Denmark. During the Prussian Campaign of the War of the Fourth Coalition, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Fifth Army, and in January 1807 became the commander of the Tenth Army, but was captured by a sudden attack by Cossack Cavalry near Stettin.