On May 25, just as Ludendorff intercepted the Russian army's clear code communication and returned to the command post to prepare for a big fight, a phone call from the headquarters Koblenz made him stunned.

According to the order conveyed by Colonel Tapeng, the chief of operations of the High Command on the other end of the phone, Moltke Jr. was to give him three full regiments and a cavalry division, much to Ludendorff's shock. You must know that the Schlieffen plan that the German army is currently implementing was formulated by him in that year; He was able to determine the density of troops to be committed to each kilometer of the offensive on the Western Front, even to the last decimal place. So, Tapeng's words made Ludendorff incredulous. At present, except for the Kaiser's garrison, every soldier on the Western Front has been invested in the right flank that needs to be urgently strengthened, and now is the peak moment of the right flank offensive, how can the high command transfer the forces of almost all of them to form a group army to the Eastern Front?

Although, from a personal point of view, having more troops is undoubtedly something that every commander dreams of; However, out of consideration for the overall situation of the war and loyalty to his deceased mentor Schlieffen, Ludendorff made his objections clear. Since the Germans had intercepted all of the Russians' operational telecommunications and the battle to destroy the Russian Second Army was about to begin, Ludendorff stressed that these forces were not needed on the Eastern Front; If you really want to be transferred, you won't be able to participate in this battle that is about to break out. Tapon, however, said that the troops could be brought in.

This fateful decision came from the panic of the German High Command. According to Schlieffen's previous expectations, it would take six weeks for the Russians to mobilize; However, the Russians moved quickly to surprise the Germans, who launched an offensive two weeks after mobilization. and posed a great threat to East Prussia. Despite the appointment of new commanders and chiefs of staff to rush to the Eastern Front. Little Moltke still couldn't rest assured. Based on the information we had before. The Russian army used to attack East Prussia consisted of 2 armies and 25 divisions, which were twice as many as the Eighth Army. The Eastern Front was very different from the Western Front: the vast territory and the crisscrossing roads made it impossible for the Germans to be like the Alsatian defenders on the Western Front, digging trenches and holding on to a narrow frontal battlefield. Once the Russians made full use of their huge advantage in cavalry and carried out a large-scale mobile outflanking, the German troops trapped in a corner could only wait for death!

There was no doubt that Germany could never surrender East Prussia to the Russians. The plight of refugees. The Junker estate was to be left to the ravages and slaughter of the predatory Cossacks, and the cries of the noble ladies who pleaded with the Kaiser and Empress to save their family's land and fortune all had a direct impact on Moltke's final decision. In order to stir up anti-Russian sentiment, the German government deliberately dispersed the refugees who fled west from East Prussia to various cities, but the result was that rumors spread and frightened itself. Once the Russian army marched into Berlin, all German victories on the Western Front would be in vain.

At this time, the German army was already advancing in France, and the "great victory" of the border battle convinced the German high command that the Western Front had been won. And it was a decisive victory. Under these circumstances, Moltke Jr. naturally had the confidence and ability to strengthen the Eastern Front. At the last moment. Moltke Jr. still withdrew due to Ludendorff's opposition, and reduced the size of the original plan of three corps and one division to two corps. However, the strength of the German right flank was also greatly reduced, and this was the first chance of survival for the defenders of Paris.

On 24 May, Gallerien was inaugurated as commander-in-chief of the French garrison in Paris. This veteran general has been freed from the unrealistic "desperate attack" tactics in the army half a month ago, and has fully realized the unique power that defensive tactics can have; He will use the forces of those three armies, though they are far from being available now, to defend them against the enemy outside of Paris. He studied the Russo-Japanese War, the Balkan War, and the unprecedented tragedy of the French army at the Battle of Salbul, and was convinced that a series of fortifications such as wide and deep trenches, covered with earth logs, flanked by barbed wire, and "wolf traps" with wide openings and pointed piles at the bottom of the caves, would be impregnable by a stoic, well-trained, machine-gun army. These were the fortifications he had prepared for in the various sections between the artillery positions, and now it was the troops of the three active regiments that Messimi had promised him.

Gallerien set out to turn Paris into a large military camp. Prior to this, President Poincaré's fear of telling the population about the defeat of the front-line army had led to the slow pace of the city's defenses: every time a building that was in the way of artillery fire was demolished, the mayor of the district and the superintendent of engineering had to sign a document specifying the amount of compensation to be paid to the owner, a time-consuming and troublesome procedure. In response to this situation, Gallieri resorted to an iron-fisted approach similar to that of Chauffeur: as soon as the two reserve divisions were placed under the command of the city defense forces, he announced that the government of Paris would be placed under the authority of the military governor, that is, himself, and immediately issued a series of drastic orders.

The Paris Military Region was abruptly expanded, and 35 kilometers around the city center were brought under the control of the army. In these regions, Gallieni carried out the task of building fortifications mercilessly, and he never wasted time and mercy on those who dissent or vacillated, who were weak or incompetent, just as their commander-in-chief, Chauffeur. Within two days of taking office, Gallieni dismissed two generals and ten colonels from his posts, and announced to all the citizens of Paris a solemn declaration that the German army was approaching and that he would fight there to the last minute. Gallieni loved the people of Paris as much as he hated the politicians at home, and he was convinced that the French people, when they learned the truth, would have the courage to assist the army in resisting the invasion.

While Gallieni's flagrant violations of liberty and law would never have been permissible in peacetime, his arrogance and arbitrariness have been most effective in the current life-and-death situation. His rank of general, and the glorious exploits he had accomplished over the past decades, enabled him to completely suppress any disobedience and resistance, and to carry out his orders in the most effective way. All the inhabitants of the suburbs, even the "most incompetent", were forced to take up picks and shovels to build fortifications. He ordered 10,000 shovels to be collected within 24 hours, and all of them were delivered in the evening. He also ordered the purchase of 10,000 long hunting knives as tools, which the quartermaster objected to because it was illegal to procure them. Gallieni looked at the quartermaster for five seconds with a wolf-like look, and the quartermaster immediately turned and galloped away, so the hunting knives were delivered to the troops within the specified deadline.

Fortifications were built, bridges were demolished. All roads leading to Paris are barrierd, including the sewers. Able-bodied men such as bakers, butchers, and vegetable farmers were organized, while cattle were herded into the city of Paris to graze in the Boñero Forest, where the citizens rested and scattered. In order to expedite the mobilization of ammunition stockpiles, Gallieni recruited all available means of transport, including taxis in the city of Paris.

As time passed, Gallieni's forces began to grow. An infantry brigade from Morocco arrived in a port in northwestern France by ship on the 27th, and Gallieni hurriedly held it in his hands - it was for the suzerainty of this colony that the shocking war broke out between France and Germany, which involved all the five major European powers. The Sixth Army was formed on the 28th at Amiens, north of Paris, and although its troops were a ragtag army composed of three local divisions north of Paris, it also had a mobile force that could be driven. In the heart of France, two infantry divisions, two reserve divisions and a cavalry regiment are being intensively mobilized and are expected to reach the front line in Paris on 1 June. In addition, Britain sent a brigade of a new expeditionary force to France, which also strengthened the Allies' dominance on the French battlefield.

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Longwei Fortress, the command of the German Fifth Army.

In a classical room with a strong French style, Qingying, dressed in military uniform, is staring at a combat map hung by spikes at the four corners. As a core member of the German High Command, Qingying learned of Moltke Jr.'s decision to transfer the two corps to the Eastern Front as soon as possible. However, he did not dissuade them: Germany had been dominated by the Junkers since ancient times, and their interests in East Prussia had to be satisfied.

And in terms of objective conditions, these two armies should also be transferred out of the French battlefield. Because under the role of Qing Ying, the German Army was equipped with a large number of technical weapons that did not exist in history; Although these weapons have been used in battle, they have put a greater pressure on logistics than they have historically been. With the Belgians destroying all the bridges, rails, and roads in their territory, it was difficult to provide enough supplies for such a powerful right-wing group, even with the logistical organization of the German army.

But that doesn't matter anymore. With the advantage of bombing airships and armored troops, the German army on the Western Front also had every chance to break the enemy in a decisive battle and capture Paris after losing these two armies. Less than a month into the war, the French army still lacked the ability to deal with these two weapons. At present, what Qing Ying has to do is to command his army after the border battle is over, and make persistent efforts; At this time, he had already set his eyes on a small French town called Verdun. (To be continued......)

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