From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

"Too amazing."

Chief of Staff Berthier gently put down the telescope and was speechless for a long time. After a while, he came back to his senses:

"The power of this gun is far beyond my imagination. I am afraid that our exchange ratio is more than one to five!"

Lawrence's expression was still serious, and he was not too excited. Such an outcome was also within his expectations:

"One battle does not mean anything. The Genoese army is not a strong enemy. Their morale collapsed too quickly."

Lawrence, who has always been paying attention to the battlefield situation, can see that the defeat of the Genoese army is due to the complete collapse of morale. Many soldiers even joined the fleeing team without firing a shot in this battle.

And if they are facing a powerful army like the Prussian Iron Army that can withstand a 40% casualty rate and still persist in fighting, I am afraid that even the Corsican Chasseurs equipped with rifled rifles will have to pay a heavy price to win.

In addition, Lawrence also deeply understood that even with a huge advantage in equipment, the Corsican Chasseur Corps would not necessarily be able to win every battle and be invincible on the European battlefield.

Compared with traditional line infantry, the biggest disadvantage of the Chasseur Corps using a skirmish formation is that it is very easy to be completely overwhelmed by the enemy's cavalry attack. This is why the armies of European countries still retained a large number of line corps in the late 19th century.

It was not until the invention of the Maxim machine gun and the bolt-action rifle that the infantry's firepower was greatly enhanced and the cavalry troops withdrew from the war stage that the line tactics were basically completely eliminated.

Therefore, preventing the enemy's cavalry attack is undoubtedly a major tactical point for the Corsican Chasseur Corps. When necessary, a considerable proportion of line infantry must be retained to protect the left and right wings of the Chasseur Corps.

Fortunately, the Republic of Genoa's investment in the army is very stingy, and naturally it will not maintain a large and expensive cavalry unit. Therefore, the Corsican army can fully deploy its formation with confidence and perfectly play the firepower advantage of the Chasseur Corps.

Berthier nodded slightly in agreement. He also understood that it would take a long time to develop a corresponding reasonable tactic for this epoch-making weapon, and only actual combat was the best place to test theoretical tactics.

Looking at the scene of the Genoese soldiers fleeing on the battlefield, Berthier asked:

"It seems that there is no point in pursuing the enemy. Perhaps we should hurry up and enter Genoa City?"

In Berthier's view, this broken Genoese army no longer posed any threat. Instead of wasting time capturing prisoners of war, it would be better to enter Genoa City as soon as possible. After all, the Corsican army's time is very precious. No one knows how long Andre Davout can hold back in Liguria.

"No, continue the pursuit."

Lawrence shook his head slowly. Although his tone was very calm, his words made Berthier shudder:

"And no prisoners of war will be accepted. All Genoese soldiers will be killed without mercy."

"Kill without mercy?"

Berthier's pupils trembled slightly. He did not expect this order at all.

He never thought that the Charles Bernabat he knew was a bloodthirsty person, and executing the captives who had surrendered was a dishonorable thing.

Lawrence nodded slightly and confirmed his order again.

And the reason why Lawrence issued this abnormal order naturally had special considerations.

The most important point is that the Corsican army needs to bypass Genoa and march north to Turin this time. Once the Corsican army is at a disadvantage in the battle on the Po River Plain, it must also retreat southward through Genoa.

If these enemy soldiers are allowed to return to Genoa, they will soon be able to recover their combat effectiveness after regrouping, because this battle did not kill too many Genoese soldiers, and most of the enemy troops fled the battlefield directly after their morale collapsed.

At that time, if the Corsican army retreating southward is obstructed by the Genoese army while avoiding the pursuit of the Sardinian army, it is very likely to fall into the danger of annihilation.

Lawrence was fully confident that he could directly capture Turin and force the Kingdom of Sardinia to make peace, but as a qualified leader, he had to keep all possibilities in reserve.

Therefore, Lawrence had to do his best to cause casualties to the Genoese army and weaken its manpower, so that the Republic of Genoa would not pose any military threat for a certain period of time, so as to eliminate future troubles.

In addition, another important factor was the hatred of the Corsicans towards the Genoese.

What these Corsican soldiers dreamed of was to visit Genoa one day and let those former high-ranking colonists taste the bitter fruit they had sown. This obsession with revenge had been suppressed in their hearts for thirty years.

With these thirty years of national hatred and family hatred, with thirty years of blood and tears, if this revenge army from Corsica entered the city of Genoa without any restraint, anyone could imagine what kind of hell the once prosperous city of Genoa would become overnight.

Naturally, Lawrence would not allow his soldiers to burn, kill, loot, and act recklessly in the city of Genoa, venting their anger on the civilians; this was not because Lawrence was kind-hearted, but because the scorched earth city of Genoa could not bring enough benefits to Corsica.

But even with Prime Minister Bonaparte's prestige in the military, if he completely prohibited Corsican soldiers from taking revenge on Genoa, the sergeants would certainly obey this order, but the soldiers in the army would inevitably feel resentful and resentful because of this. Unfair.

In this way, in order to improve the morale of the army, to maintain his prestige and control in the army, and to protect the civilians of Genoa from being slaughtered, someone must pay their lives.

Laurence Bonaparte's order was quickly conveyed to all the Corsican troops.

The soldiers accepted the order expressionlessly and began to perform their duties. In the hearts of many people, they had been waiting for this moment for too long, and many Corsicans did not even think that this day would come. , a day when they took revenge on the Genoese with their own hands.

No one wants their hands to be stained with blood, but if it is the blood of a mortal enemy, that is a different matter.

The sounds of wailing and begging for mercy resounded in the suburbs of Genoa City. When these Genoese soldiers were bragging in the tavern about how they would break the bones of the Corsican people, they definitely did not expect this moment today.

If you could look down at this land from an eagle's perspective, you would be able to see countless red footprints extending from the pool of blood in the center of the battlefield. They were the blood stains left by injured soldiers fleeing on this land.

Lawrence watched this one-sided massacre with cold eyes. He had never been a saint who could not bear to kill. On the road to supreme power, morality and kindness were only tools, and only profit was the only criterion.

And he also believed that if the roles of the two sides were reversed today, the Genoese would not show even a trace of kindness.

More than two hours later, this unsuspicious chase came to an end.

If someone stood in the middle of the pool of blood and looked up at the sky, even the blazing sun hanging high in the midday sky seemed to be covered with a blood-colored gauze.

There was no such thing as an orderly retreat for the completely defeated Republican Guards, especially when the Genoese soldiers discovered that the Corsican people did not accept prisoners of war at all. The Genoese people, surrounded by fear, had lost all organizational ability, and everyone only focused on risk his own life.

Although there are no exact figures, it is estimated by the Genoese soldiers who narrowly escaped that three-quarters of the entire Republican Guard had died at the hands of the Corsicans, not counting those who managed to escape but were seriously injured. .

In other words, the most elite standing army force of the Republic of Genoa has been completely destroyed today, leaving only an empty shell-like establishment.

After simply cleaning the battlefield, the Corsican army also discovered an unexpected gain:

"Are you General Tyro Belrain?"

Lawrence looked at the dying and bloody general in front of him with some surprise. He was captured by the pursuing Corsican soldiers when he tried to retreat on the edge of the battlefield.

Although they received the order to kill without mercy, after the soldiers discovered that they had captured the top commander of the Genoese Army, they immediately escorted him to Lawrence.

The extremely weak General Belrain vomited blood and staggered to his knees. When he raised his head and saw Lawrence's face clearly, indescribable complex emotions appeared on his pale face:

"It was really you, Laurence Bonaparte, the young officer at Sheephorn that day."

Three years ago, when General Tilo Belland was inspecting the Bay of Sheep in northern Corsica, he was unexpectedly captured by a Corsican force that had sneaked behind enemy lines.

Later, the Corsican troops used themselves as prisoners to successfully escape from the siege of the Genoese Army, which was ten times their own strength.

Although they were enemies of each other, General Bellerin at the time was extremely impressed by the commander of that unit, the young Major Laurence Bonaparte of the Corsican Defense Forces.

It could be said that it was not a coincidence of fate. General Bellerin himself could never have imagined that today, three years later, he would once again fall into the hands of Laurence Bonaparte as a prisoner.

The only difference is that three years ago, even though he was a prisoner, General Belrain could talk and laugh with the young major officer in a condescending manner; but today, three years later, also as a prisoner, General Belrain could He could only kneel on his knees and wait anxiously for Prime Minister Bonaparte's words.

Time is really the most amazing thing in the world. Three years, just three years. This period of time has not even left any trace on the face of the young man in front of him. He has already stood where he cannot touch and can only look up. above height.

The dying General Beleran thought so, and he grinned uncontrollably:

"Has the Corsican's revenge finally come? Will the city of Genoa turn into a sea of ​​fire today?"

Lawrence lowered his head and glanced at the gunshot wounds on the opponent's body. Although there was no direct hit to the vital point, General Belrain also had no less than five gunshot wounds on his body. He probably also suffered severe fractures when he fell from the horse. Such injuries are not suitable for a native. As far as the frail old man is concerned, it is hopeless.

However, for Lawrence, the dying old general still had his role.

"If I could borrow something from the general, the anger of the Corsican people might not have to spread to the people in the city." Lawrence said suddenly.

General Belrain raised his head with difficulty. He knew that Laurence Bonaparte would not amuse himself with an old man with one foot half in the grave, so he smiled bitterly:

"I am a dying man. You can do whatever you want, Mr. Bonaparte."

When General Berlan said the word Mr. Bonaparte, his tone was very strange. Three years ago, he could still openly call the young man in front of him a kid.

Lawrence looked down at General Berlan. Although the two had only met once in Yangjiao Bay three years ago, General Berlan did help him a lot at that time - he forged a letter between him and Ciro Russell, so that he could use Paulie's hand to successfully get rid of Ciro Russell, a big worry.

However, since the two were already on the opposite side, Lawrence had only one way to deal with General Berlan - squeeze out the last bit of his value and then throw him away like a rag.

Lawrence turned his eyes away from General Berlan and ordered the guards on both sides:

"Immediately behead General Tiro Berlan and inform the whole army that Tiro Berlan, the former commander of the Corsican Corps of the Republic of Genoa, has been executed; all units should reorganize and march to Genoa City immediately."

General Berlan, who was dying, did not say anything when he heard this order, and the smile on his mouth became even more tragic.

He knew very well what image he, the former commander of the Corsican Corps of the Republic of Genoa, had in the hearts of the Corsican soldiers.

I am afraid that in the entire Corsican National Defense Force, from Governor Pasquale Paoli to the newly enlisted privates, everyone was looking forward to the day when they would be sent to the guillotine by their own hands.

Especially the Corsican soldiers of the former Northern Corps, as the front line of direct confrontation with the Genoese, the soldiers there were looking forward to the day when they could push all the Genoese Corps stationed in the north into the sea and drown them.

Because only after that day, it means that the Genoese were completely expelled from the land of Corsica, and it means that Corsica has gained complete independence and liberation.

Although Corsica is no longer afraid of the threat of Genoa, in the hearts of the soldiers, the name of Tiro Berlan is still the number one enemy of the entire Corsica Kingdom.

At this moment, General Berlan can also guess that the reason why Lawrence Bonaparte sent himself to the guillotine for execution was just to use his head to appease the hatred in the hearts of the Corsican soldiers.

Thinking of this, General Berlan's face was a little more relieved.

If the anger of the Corsican soldiers can be appeased, at least the people of Genoa City will not have to suffer a disaster, and his death can be regarded as a worthy death.