Morris. Gustave. Admiral Gammelin, like his boss Reynolds, did not know that his opponent was hanging.

Unlike the lawyer-turned-prime minister, he was a veteran of the First World War, serving as chief of operations at the French army headquarters and leading combat units at the brigade and division levels. It also suppressed an armed uprising of the Syrian working people after the war. He was a general with a lot of combat experience, and he thought he knew the German army and the French army very well - of course, he knew the German army in the First World War and the French army in the First World War that could die for his country with a smile......

Therefore, when he learned that the German army had attacked Belgium and that the Belgian fortress of Eben-Emer had been captured by the German surprise attack, General Gammelin was not too nervous, and still slowly (since the bad luck of Emperor Napoleon, the French were such a "slow son" when they were fighting) issued an order to the Northeast Front to carry out the "Deir" plan for the main force of the 1st Army Group, and at the same time strengthened the 1st Reserve Panzer Division for the 1st Army Group.

Then he sent people to Charles. De Gaulle and the commander-in-chief of the British Expeditionary Force, Admiral Verrick, came to Vinson's headquarters. And he himself went to bed - the admiral had some insomnia before the Germans began to move, but now he could rest in peace. As for the specific command of the front, it was the commander of the Northeast Front, Joseph. The work of Admiral George.

It was not until near noon that the old admiral woke up from his sleep and ate something. At this time, the latest battle report and Charles. Colonel de Gaulle arrived with him.

So, the old general met with de Gaulle while reading the battle report.

"Charles, I'm going to put you in command of the 4th Reserve Panzer Division, an elite force, better than the Panzer Division of the Germans." The old general looked at the battle report, and the news was very bad. The Eben-Emer fortress was still in German hands, and the Germans had captured two nearby bridges.

Plus, Luxembourg has fallen! This year's Luxembourg Grand Duchess was as pro-German (German) as her sister and did not choose to fight the German invaders heroically, but this was to be expected. Moreover, the French High Command had already planned to deal with it - if Germany undermined Luxembourg's neutrality, then it would be extremely vigilant that the German army would break through through Luxembourg from the middle!

The Maginot line was only built to the Franco-German border area of Metz (bordering Luxembourg and Germany), and there was no line to cover the Franco-German border in Metz. Moreover, the southern part of Luxembourg is very well developed and has a well-connected railway network. Once the Germans broke through from the south of Luxembourg, they would be able to penetrate directly into the reserve of the "Maginot Line" and encircle the French army of 50 divisions in one fell swoop.

Thus, in the plans of the French High Command, after the capture of Luxembourg by Germany, the urgency of encircling the rear of the "Maginot Line" was above the reinforcement of Belgium.

To this end, the 2nd Army, which was owned by Army Group 1, was to be deployed in Metz to cover the rear of the Maginot Line. At the same time, 11 more divisions (including the 1st Reserve Panzer Division) were drawn from the reserves to be attached to the Northeast Front, which was the same as filling the gap left by the 2nd Army's withdrawal from the 1st Army Group.

That is to say, after the German occupation of Luxembourg, the number of reserves directly controlled by the French high command will be greatly reduced, and at the same time, the frontal strength of the Ardennes Forest will also be greatly reduced - in fact, the French high command guessed to a certain extent that Germany would break through from the middle, but they did not expect that the German breakthrough would be in the Ardennes Forest and not in the south of Luxembourg, which is easily accessible.

However, even if the Germans broke through from southern Luxembourg, the French 2nd Army alone would not be able to stop the 64 open divisions of Army Group A.

"Charles," said Gammel, handing the battle report to de Gaulle, "look at this, what do you think?" ”

De Gaulle looked down, his brow already furrowed. He also knew the High Command's plan of response to the fall of Luxembourg - all French operations were carried out around the "Maginot Line". With so many troops already concentrated on this line, adding more troops to cover the flanks is likely to result in a shortage of troops on the Belgian battlefield.

"Admiral," said de Gaulle in a low voice, "if the reinforcement of Belgium were only nine divisions of the 1st Army, the 7th Army, and the British Expeditionary Force, it would be difficult to defeat the main force of the Germans." ”

"You don't have to beat," said Ganmarin, smiling, "as long as you can get a stalemate in Belgium...... The strength required for defense is certainly less than for offense. The Charles, your 4th Reserve Panzer Division, may be sent to Belgium in 1 month to take part in the defense. Do a good job! ”

The 4th Reserve Panzer Division was not created out of thin air, but was formed on the basis of the 4th Light Mechanized Division (also a division created after the start of the World War), so it took a relatively short time to build.

"Understood, Admiral." De Gaulle, aware of Gammelin's conservatism, said no more, saluted and left, taking over his Fourth Reserve Panzer Division.

After a few more moments, the British Admiral Verrick hurried in. Because the land war in Western Europe had already begun, the British Expeditionary Force Command and the Allied General Command would be merged.

"His Excellency Winston Churchill has become Prime Minister?" Gammelin invited Admiral Verrick to lunch, and still discussed with him slowly and methodically the political changes in Britain.

"I have heard that he is a staunch anti-German," asked Ganmarin tentatively, "does this mean that it will be difficult for us to make peace with Germany after a stalemate on the Belgian battlefield?" ”

The Belgian battlefield is a stalemate, of course, otherwise what else? 30 divisions of the Anglo-French army (to be added later) plus 22 divisions of the Belgian army, on the defensive in a rather narrow field, the Germans could not have made a breakthrough as they had in Poland.

"Impossible!" Admiral Verrick sensed that the French admiral was testing the British attitude, and he hurriedly said, "At present Germany is attacking because the reserves of fuel are not enough to cope with a protracted war," and his view is representative of the Anglo-French forces, "It is a risky gamble, if the Germans lose...... We will be able to win by tightening the blockade. ”

"Oh," Admiral Gammelin nodded, then took a sip of champagne and muttered simply, "it should end like this, and it's good for all of us." ”

……

"Marshal, our men have arrived in Luxembourg City (referring to the capital of Luxembourg)!" Admiral Halder was as happy as a child, dancing and waving a copy of a telegram. "There was no reaction from the French...... They're just meditating! ”

Due to the proximity of Luxembourg City to the "Maginot Line", the German General Staff was constantly worried that the French would occupy it before the Germans and then carry out sufficient destruction. This small Germanic country was rich in iron ore (which was exactly what Germany needed) and was easily accessible to large armies.

What's more, the French "Maginot Line" did not cover the Franco-Luxembourg border. This meant that Germany had one more route to attack France! Although Germany did not necessarily attack from the south of Luxembourg, France had to mobilize heavy forces to defend.

"That's good," Hirsman said as he ate in the No. 1 command center of the General Staff with a few slices of bread and meat in milk, and laughed at Halder's words. "The French are going to send troops into Belgium on the one hand, and on the other hand, they are going to move troops to Metz to defend ...... Ardennes is positive and affirms emptiness. This will be beneficial not only for the breakthrough of armored forces, but also for our airborne landing west of the Maas River! ”

Airborne on the west bank of the Maas! This was not found in the original "Manstein Plan" or "Operation Scythe". But now there were no Norwegian and Dutch campaigns to be fought, and the Wehrmacht had enough airborne troops and transport aircraft at their disposal. And Germany's air superiority is now also quite large, and there are "escort fighters" such as the Fokker Zero available. Naturally, an airborne operation could be launched to cooperate with the breakthrough of the 1st Panzer Army (the commander was General Guderian).

"If the Maas River can break through, then the victory of this war is set!" Admiral Halder said to Hersmann with admiration, "Your Excellency Marshal, Your Majesty the Emperor has really become the master of Versailles now!" ”

"The Maas River will definitely be able to break through!" Hersman was confident, "But the victory of the war has not yet been decided...... Unless we can get the French Mediterranean fleet! ”

"Marshal, I'll do my best." Harder said. He was the commander-in-chief or deputy commander-in-chief of the forthcoming headquarters on the Southern Front, and the capture of the French Mediterranean Fleet was the key to the operation on the Southern Front, in which Germany would have to rely on the Italian navy in the Mediterranean, leaving its destiny in the hands of others.

"It's not just military, it's also about politics and diplomacy!" Hersman shook his head, "There are too many uncertainties. He paused, and then asked, "Has the plan to land on the British mainland been completed?" ”

"Advancing with the Navy," said Halder, "the Navy believes that a decisive battle of the main fleet is needed in the English Channel...... It will be a sea and air battle. It would not be enough if there were only 2 'Bismarck' class, 1 'Gneisenau', 3 'Deutschland' class and 3 'Admiral Hipper' class. ”

"Isn't there still air force and naval aviation?" Hersman took a bite of his homemade sandwich, chewed a few bites and swallowed it. "It's April, and there's a good chance that the French campaign will be decided in June. July and August are the time windows for the implementation of the 'landing plan...... Whether we're going to land or not, there's going to be a plan! He thought for a moment, "You don't have to worry about this, concentrate on the liberator plan, and after the 1st Panzer Army completes the breakthrough, I will personally go and discuss it with Marshal Raeder." (To be continued.) )