Henri Arsène's corps advanced well in Belgium, and the Belgian army, which had been hastily confronted, suffered heavy losses.

Belgium's compulsory military service system has increased the number of soldiers, but it still can't match that of powerful France.

Not only in terms of quantity, but also in quality, the gap is even greater, and it is not uncommon for recruits to flee or surrender en masse.

Charles Rozhille and Leopold I had no choice, which may seem ridiculous, but they drove the French out of Belgium and found themselves unable to borrow money.

The reasons for the formation of this strange circle are very complex, and I will not go into too much detail here, in short, the Belgian government, which has no money, is in a very awkward position.

As for lending, they had little cooperation with the entire German Confederation, including the Netherlands.

Therefore, even if there is an arms dealer named Luxembourg next to them, they do not have the channels and funds to buy it, and the relationship between Luxembourg and the Netherlands and Belgium is not good, and it is one thing to send troops to support Belgium, and it is another thing to provide arms and materials to Belgium.

To tell a somewhat ironic fact, human life in the nineteenth century was cheaper than munitions.

And the sources of the two are different, the former only needs a group of enthusiastic young people, while the latter has to go through businessmen and politicians.

Businessmen and politicians will evaluate the pros and cons of the whole thing, and in their minds it is clear that supporting Belgium is not a good deal.

Belgium is too close to France, and its borders are too long, and it lacks high mountains, almost all of which are hills and flat lowlands.

The cost of the French attack was low, and the price for Belgium to defend their territory was too high, which was clearly a loss-making deal.

This explains why the French were able to advance so easily and quickly.

Provisional Command of the Henri Arsène Corps.

As commander of the North-Western French Army, Henri Arsène was sitting at an ornately decorated desk, with a steaming cup of coffee in his hand and an up-to-date issue of the Paris Journal.

If you just look at him drinking coffee, you will think that he lacks tension, and sipping is a habit of Henri Arsène, even on the battlefield.

However, the occasional gunshots outside are a constant reminder that this is a battlefield, not a senior club.

Henri Arsène put down the newspaper and took another sip of coffee.

"Marshal Oudino is still too merciful, but those guys from the logistics department really deserve to be shot."

The reason why Henri Arsène said this was that the supply sent by the logistics department at this time was only one-third of what he requested, but in fact Henri Arsène only had 70,000 men and asked for 200,000 supplies, which was very unreasonable from the logistical point of view.

Henri Arsène had his own considerations, but at this time the French Second Republic really had no money, and the logistics department was also wronged.

From the moment he entered Belgium, Henri Arsène carried forward the glorious tradition of the French army, plundering his troops.

But it was precisely because of this that he was able to quickly win the love and respect of the soldiers as a young commander (39 years old and less than 40).

In addition, none of the prisoners of war of the Belgian army, Henri Arsène, were released, but were pulled to nearby cities for ransom, and if they could not be handed over, they were directly assigned to the hard labor camp.

Towns along the way either provided supplies, ransoms, or hard labor, or he sent troops to loot.

It was precisely by relying on this method of fighting to nourish the war that Henri Arsène's Northern Army went through several battles, but the strength and equipment became better and better.

The pace of the advance was also astonishingly fast, and the French army was once again pointing at Brussels.

This was not in Franz's calculations, and in terms of strength before the war, the Belgian army would not be defeated quickly even if it could not win.

Far from being able to consume much of the French army, the Belgians made the French more and more confident.

Now it seems that the Belgians will not wait for the German coalition to collapse first, but fortunately, Belgium is far away from Austria, and it is only up to Archduke Karl to end.

Brussels.

King Leopold I of Belgium was almost angry to death after opening the handwritten letter of Henri Arsène, the commander of the French army, and the green tendons on his forehead kept jumping, and even if he was well cultivated, he couldn't help but burst into foul mouth.

"Damn the Gallic barbarians! Are you here to collect the tribute? ”

"Protection money, exactly, sir."

Henri Arsène's messenger did not shy away from saying.

"What's the difference between you and the barbarians?"

Charles Rozhye asked.

"We're more civilized and we're keeping our promises, and you can ask the towns along the way if we're keeping our promises."

The French courier's words were really infuriating, but the blood pressure was even more to come.

"A million francs a month, that's fair. A million francs can save you and your subjects from the flames of war, so why not? ”

This kind of crooked reasoning was so angry that both Charles Rozher and Leopold I could not speak, and everyone could say what they said, but the problem was that now they really couldn't hold it, and they had no money.

There are many examples in the history of Europe that have escaped disaster, but this time is different, and times have changed.

Both Charles Rozhier and Leopold I had a vague feeling that if they did choose to break the bank and avoid disaster, then the so-called bond between Belgium and the German Confederation would no longer exist, and perhaps even Belgium as a country would not exist.

The king and Brussels can bribe the French, so is it not in other cities, other people can also bribe the French?

Will those fanatical German nationalists understand the difficulties of the Belgians at this time?

Charles Rozhier and Leopold I hesitated for only a few seconds, but the other was clearly prepared.

"Are you not willing to pay this price for the sake of millions of innocent lives in Brussels?

Kings and nobles are indeed greedy fools. ”

The messenger said again, with a false gesture.

"I'm sorry, please forgive me for my gaffe, I was also indignant just now."

Leopold I's eyes sharpened to the messenger, but the latter remained cynical.

"You scared me."

"Drop-off! Tell Henri Arsène that the Belgians will never surrender! ”

Then the two guards lifted the messenger up and sent him out without saying a word.

"My name is Jean Berto, and we'll meet again!"

Leopold I's personal cultivation was very good, but Rao was also very angry with the other party. The other side was to the point, and there was no doubt that the French were well aware of the situation in Belgium at this time.

It is not difficult to make a judgment based on intelligence, but it is rare to have the courage and courage to make this decision.

It seems that Henri Arsène is not the nerd as he is rumored, on the contrary, even many battlefield veterans cannot do it.

But the most important question for Leopold I at the moment was where the reinforcements were?