From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

Sir Robert glanced at Justin again and did not reply. Instead, he turned to look at the fiercely fighting battlefield.

"Huh? What's going on?" Sir Robert suddenly murmured softly in surprise, and quickly squinted his eyes to look at a corner of the battlefield.

In his field of vision, a blurry dark-brown figure was rapidly approaching the center of the battlefield at a speed that was far faster than running. There was no doubt that the only cavalry unit of the Corsican Defense Force had such charging speed.

"They sent out cavalry? At a time like this?"

Master Justin quickly looked in the direction that Sir Robert was pointing. Sure enough, a cavalry company of light cavalry galloped out from the rear formation of the National Defense Force and began to charge towards the battlefield.

"It's really strange. Although our army is at a disadvantage, the formation has not collapsed yet. Using light cavalry to charge at this time is still the same as committing suicide. Even students in military schools wouldn't make such a mistake, right?"

Sir Robert looked at the cavalry company that appeared on the battlefield with great confusion, and touched his chin, unsure of his decision.

In the era of line infantry, the role of cavalry has been greatly reduced.

For those experienced commanders, when they see a cavalry charging towards their formation with scimitars, they will calmly order their subordinates to adopt a hollow square formation for defense. This simple and effective formation has been Its great effectiveness was proven during the Seven Years' War.

For example, in the Battle of Waterloo, even the French's most elite cuirassiers suffered a disastrous defeat when they attacked the British infantry array head-on.

In military academies in various countries, teachers will definitely tell future generals that under normal circumstances, do not rush to use cavalry to attack a well-formed infantry square.

Even to Sir Robert, a layman, this was by no means a good time to dispatch the light cavalry.

"Hahaha, don't think too much, this is definitely Bonaparte's command error."

Mr. Justin on the side could no longer control that much. He laughed almost paranoidly and patted Sir Robert on the shoulder hard:

"He's just a kid. How can he command the troops?"

"Really?" Sir Robert stared closely at the cavalry company that suddenly appeared, but he always had a bad feeling in his heart.

At the same time, on the battlefield filled with gunpowder smoke.

This cavalry company, which had been ordered by Lawrence, had been divided into two parts, and they were outflanking the serf soldiers who were fighting fiercely from the left and right wings of the battlefield.

"Damn it, listen to the order! Form a hollow phalanx and retreat back!" The instructors on the outermost edge watched the cavalry charge and anxiously issued instructions to their subordinates, preparing to fight in a textbook hollow phalanx. Shrink defense.

The figures of the light cavalry were getting closer and closer, and the soldiers who were exposed on the outermost periphery also raised their hearts in their throats. Listening to the sound of horse hooves tramping on the ground, they almost couldn't help but want to drop their hands. The weapons scattered and fled.

However, when this group of cavalry came to the forefront of the firefight, they did not wave their sabers and attack their formations as the foreign instructors expected. On the contrary, they did not even draw the scimitars from their waists. come out.

"What is this doing."

Even these experienced commanders were stunned for a moment subconsciously, watching helplessly as the cavalry continued to gallop along the two wings without any intention of attacking the infantry formation inward.

Less than a minute later, these cavalrymen had already crossed the line of fire and arrived at the camp of the landlord group army.

These heroic riders clung to their horses' backs to reduce the risk of being hit by stray bullets, and at the same time shouted in unison in an orderly manner:

"In the name of Governor Bonaparte, all soldiers who lay down their arms shall be pardoned and made freemen!"

"Lay down your arms and you will be pardoned as free men!"

"No harm will come to the unarmed!"

More than a hundred cavalry shouted loudly along the two wings of the Landlord Army. Their chorus of calls even once covered the roar of musket volleys on the battlefield, and clearly reached the ears of most serf soldiers.

Among the serf soldiers, these shouts immediately aroused a thousand waves in their hearts, even surpassing the fear brought to them by the continuous gunshots just now.

Although the landowners strictly prohibited any discussion of topics related to the freedmen, the changes that had taken place in the town of Propriano had already reached the ears of these soldiers through various means.

Even in the rumbling rumors, Propriano has been described as a kind of saint-like heaven on earth where white bread and butterbeer are everywhere, and everyone is friendly.

"If only we could be free men like that."

Every tired and unbearable night, these serf soldiers would sigh like this before falling asleep, hoping to drift to that paradise land in their dreams at night.

"Really? Just put down the musket and you won't be hurt."

"When the war is over, will we also be free people?!"

"Ah ah ah ah! No matter what, I will risk my life!"

For a time, rumors spread throughout the Landlord Group Army. Even the soldiers who were exchanging fire with the National Defense Forces on the front line couldn't help but get confused at this time. The loading movements on their hands had slowed down. Instead, they were considering whether to follow the instructions of the cavalry. Said to put down the weapon.

On the front line, a foreign instructor was riding on horseback. He looked at the longing and hesitation on the faces of his subordinates, and couldn't help shouting angrily:

"You bunch of pigs! Keep loading and shooting, if anyone dares to put down the musket."

As he spoke, the instructor pulled out the sword on his left waist and pointed the tip of the sword at everyone as a threat.

At this moment, a cruel look flashed across the face of a serf soldier behind him.

Then, before anyone could react, the soldier shouted, raised his musket with a bayonet and stabbed the instructor on the horse.

"Uh-huh.!"

The instructor on the horse shrank his pupils, and the severe pain from his back made him unable to think about anything for a while.

He turned his head to look behind him with difficulty, his brows filled with disbelief. He could never imagine that these serfs, who were usually timid and timid, dared to poke the tip of their bayonets at him.

Immediately afterwards, the serf soldier swung his bayonet to the right with all his strength, and the instructor's body fell down from the horse as weakly as a puppet on strings.

Because his feet were still wearing stirrups, the instructor fell with his head on the ground. He fell heavily to the ground and immediately stopped moving.

The soldiers of the entire company watched in stunned silence as their commander fell motionless to the ground, already turning into a corpse.

A complex and indescribable emotion spread throughout the company. They lost their commander and the warlord also disappeared during the battle. Now no one can restrain their free will.

Starting from a certain soldier in the first row, he looked at the Wehrmacht soldiers just dozens of yards away in front of him, swallowed nervously, and immediately threw the musket in his hand in front of him, and he knelt down as if relieved. on the ground.

Gradually, more than a hundred soldiers in the entire company followed his example, dropped their weapons in front of them, knelt on the ground, and silently prayed for their fate.

Upon seeing this, the soldiers of the National Defense Force on the opposite side immediately put away their muskets under the order of their superiors. Many of them were from serfs. They had experienced the same life and oppression as the serf soldiers on the opposite side. After seeing the other side surrendering, they naturally I don't want to kill any more of these compatriots.

"Do you want to rebel?!"

"Damn mud-legs! What are you going to do!"

"Stop it all!"

What happened to this company began to spread throughout the Landlord Army. Under the call of the light cavalry, these bullied soldiers resolutely pointed their guns at the instructors and supervisors on horseback.

The majesty established by these superiors was simply vulnerable to the desire for freedom. Although they scolded their subordinates and tried to use pistols and sabers to get the soldiers to return to their posts, these useless actions were nothing more than It’s a drop in the bucket.

The backbone commanders of the landlord group army did not fall to the guns of the National Defense Forces, but they were almost killed and wounded by the swords and muskets of their own people.

Rebellion spread like a plague, radiating throughout the army.

The serf soldiers had almost only one idea in their minds - to end the war and start a new life as free people.

Large numbers of serf soldiers discarded their brand-new muskets like garbage and knelt on the grass with their hands raised; in order to receive these prisoners, the Wehrmacht even had to separate a small number of soldiers specifically for the purpose of collecting these surrendered soldiers. Move to the rear.

Wherever the vanguard troops of the National Defense Forces went, they encountered almost no decent resistance. Only the landowners' cronies and servants still had the last chance to defend themselves with muskets. Of course, these resistances faced the overwhelming momentum of the National Defense Forces. It's also completely useless.

A rout, a rout that spread thousands of miles, a rout that no one expected.

Master Justin looked down at his army with a pale face, looking down at them being easily washed away like a wooden embankment in front of a flood.

"Why. Why did they surrender!"

The old man roared and roared to Sir Robert standing aside with a ferocious face:

"I have raised these beasts for decades, and they actually knelt down before that Bonaparte boy?! They also have better equipment, brand new imported British goods! And those instructors! Aren't they all those who have fought seven times? A professional soldier in the war? Why!”

Unfortunately, no one could answer his screams.

The southern landowners who followed Master Justin were even more filled with grief and anger. They put almost all their wealth and even their lives on Master Justin's side, trying to make their wealth and power further through this civil war.

However, what they saw at this moment was that the army they had placed high hopes on collapsed thousands of miles under the enemy's attack.

Many landowners rushed to Mr. Justin angrily and asked loudly why they had gotten to this point.

"Damn it"

Sir Robert clenched his fist and punched the horse. In this situation, this elegant gentleman could not maintain his calm expression.

He also didn't understand why those cowardly mud-legged people dared to turn against their superiors at this time.

However, as a qualified agent, Sir Robert quickly regained his composure, glanced at the landowners in front of him coldly, and said in a deep voice:

"Gentlemen, failure is a fact, and we can no longer dwell on it."

Only then did Master Justin and the landowners wake up. Yes, they must not stay here waiting to be caught by the Bonaparte boy and sent to the gallows.

"Where else can we go to escape?"

A small landowner looked around blankly, his tone full of decadence.

Is there any place in Corsica that can escape Governor Bonaparte's search? !

Sir Robert suddenly shook his head, pointed in the direction of the seaside and said slowly:

"I have arranged a ship in a natural harbor in the south. We can rush over while the army can still resist for a while. If it is later, it will be too late."

The faces of all the landowners first flashed with joy, followed closely by a touch of indescribable bitterness.

It is true that following Sir Robert and escaping overseas by boat can escape the pursuit of Governor Bonaparte, but this also means that their inheritance for generations will be handed down on the island of Corsica, and even many landowners present are connected to it. They didn't bring a single gold coin, and the only thing they could get was to come back alive.

Master Justin seemed to have aged dozens of years in an instant, standing there like a corpse without losing his soul; his land, his servants, his wealth, everything could only be left in Corsica, he But he couldn't take anything with him.

"Gentlemen, there is no time to hesitate. If you want to live, come with me."

Sir Robert took one last look at the retreating troops on the battlefield and issued an ultimatum to the landowners.

Soon, except for four or five landowners who were really reluctant to part with their property and chose to stay in Corsica to seek a chance of survival, everyone else followed Sir Robert on horseback and began to gallop southward.

…

A group of landowners followed Sir Robert and rode non-stop for more than three hours. Fortunately, the battle on the front battlefield was not completely over yet, and the group did not notice any pursuers from the National Defense Force coming.

Sir Robert led the landowners to search on the beach for a while, and soon found a secluded mountain stream beach.

As Sir Robert said, this is indeed a secluded natural harbor. There is a temporary simple pier in the harbor, in which a ketch is safely moored. This small sailing ship is famous for its good maneuverability and speed. It was favored by merchants and Mediterranean pirates.

At this moment, there were more than twenty sailors on standby on the simple pier. They had daggers and pistols on their waists and looked solemn. It was not until they saw Sir Robert and his entourage arriving on horseback that these sailors finally breathed a sigh of relief.

A sailor officer at the head came forward and saluted Sir Robert with a military salute:

"Sir, are you leaving now?"

Sir Robert nodded solemnly: "The situation is urgent and we cannot wait and see. By the way, where is my lord now?"

"His Excellency the Baron is in Marseille and is ready to cross the sea to Corsica at any time." The sailor commander put down his saluting right hand and replied seriously.

A flash of guilt flashed across Sir Robert's face, he lowered his head and sighed:

"I'm so ashamed that the war has failed. I have no face to face His Excellency the Baron...but..."

Halfway through his words, Sir Robert suddenly turned his head and glanced at the bewildered landlords, and ordered in a cold voice:

"Fortunately, the lives of these people are still of some value. Come here! Tie all these people up and throw them into the lower cabin!"

Although the landowners could not understand Sir Robert's foreign language, they suddenly panicked when they saw the vicious sailors approaching them with ropes in their hands.

"Mr. Robert, what are you going to do! Aren't we going to cross the sea and escape!"

Master Justin struggled and rushed to Sir Robert, asking with wide eyes.

And this gentleman obviously no longer wanted to talk nonsense with Mr. Justin. Before the other party could react, Sir Robert hit Mr. Justin hard on the temple with his elbow, causing him to fall unconscious on the dock board.

"Gentlemen, it's time you pay for what you've been given."

Sir Robert looked at the gentlemen with an expressionless face:

"Governor Bonaparte will surely like this gift."