I Became a Plutocrat in World War I: Starting with Saving France

One thing Colonel Delion miscalculated was that the Germans used not just "a thousand" cannons to bombard Verdun, but more than two thousand.

On the nearly 10-kilometer front at Verdun, the German Army had deployed a total of 2,000 howitzers, 500 trench mortars, and more than a dozen powerful 210MM howitzers.

(The image above depicts a German 210MM howitzer from 1910, with a range of 9,400 meters and a shell weight of 120 kilograms)

During the preparation period for the attack, the German Army not only stockpiled a large amount of ammunition but also deployed over 30 engineer companies and more than 20 railway companies to improve transportation. The total number of construction personnel was more than 20,000, and just the shells sent to the front lines amounted to over 200 trainloads.

Ironically, while the German Army was intensively perfecting various facilities, the French Army on the other side was busy dismantling artillery and redeploying forces.

...

At nine o'clock on the night of September 3rd, the French soldiers were listlessly hiding in tunnels and fortresses, ready to end the day with sleep.

At this moment, three red signal flares suddenly rose into the sky.

Noticing the light, the French soldiers curiously emerged one by one, looking in the direction of the light source; it had been a long time since they had seen such a thing.

Is this the signal from the Germans for an attack?

They must be crazy!

This is Verdun!

In the next second, the entire area suddenly shook as though the earth itself was trembling.

All caliber artillery on the front and in the depth position of the German Army simultaneously opened fire, and countless shells fell on the French positions, lighting up both sides and the sky above the battlefield.

Yet this was merely the beginning.

A barrage of shells, with sharp whistles, continuously streaked across the sky, swiftly flying from the German positions to the French positions.

Immediately followed by waves of explosions, with puffs of smoke spreading radially in the firelight, intertwining with the dust kicked up into the air to form dark clouds.

The French soldiers were completely unprepared for this.

The only one who believed the Germans would attack was Colonel Delion, and he had been ordered not to spread statements such as "The German Army is about to launch an attack," because it would "disturb the morale."

The soldiers were dumbfounded by the sudden bombardment, staring blankly at everything; when they finally reacted, they screamed and frantically searched for shelter.

But in the darkness, they did not know where to hide, and the tunnels were either already collapsed or had dirt "swishing" down from them. They looked unsafe, more like dark, gaping graves.

Even fortresses, which seemed indestructible, were collapsing into ruins under the bombardment.

Colonel Delion was stunned and dazed in the fortress. Clutching his ears, he shouted, his head's dim light swinging to and fro, flickering before finally plunging into darkness.

He stumbled out of the door and entered the battle area, seeing soldiers setting up machine guns at the machine gun posts.

"Get away from there!" Colonel Delion shouted.

The German bombardment wasn't going to end so soon; no enemy could come up at this time, and setting up the machine gun would only expose them to danger.

But the machine gunners couldn't hear his shouts.

Just as Colonel Delion was about to rush forward and pull them back, there was a roaring explosion with a flash of fire, hurling the two machine gunners violently backward, their bodies slamming into the wall behind them before sliding to the ground.

Colonel Delion stepped forward to check, finding their mouths, noses, and ears bleeding, their faces cracked open like mirrors shattered on the ground.

The electric lights flickered back on, probably due to someone activating the backup power.

Colonel Delion gritted his teeth, leaving the two wounded men behind and ran along the corridor to the command center.

As soon as he entered, he ordered the radio operator: "Send a message to the High Command…"

"The radio's damaged, Colonel."

"Then use the phone." Colonel Delion shouted angrily.

"The phone can't connect!" The radio operator replied loudly, "Maybe too many people are on the line at the same time!"

At that moment, the phone rang miraculously. Colonel Delion rushed forward to grab the phone, shouting into the receiver regardless of who was on the other end:

"They've opened fire, the bombardment is unprecedentedly violent, report to the Commander immediately…"

The call was cut off before he could finish.

Colonel Delion held the phone, dazedly listening to the outside bombardment for a moment. He took a deep breath and coldly ordered, "The final moment has arrived, gentlemen, prepare for battle!"

...

Xia Fei only received the news an hour later, when Major Jules found Deputy Commander Kanes, who then woke up Xia Fei.

Before waking up Xia Fei, Kanes hesitated for a moment.

He asked Major Jules, "Are you sure the German Army is launching a full-scale attack? I am more inclined to believe it's a feint!"

"No, General, I am very sure." Major Jules replied anxiously, "I heard the sound of the cannon fire over the phone. It was violent. Colonel Delion said at least a thousand cannons were firing at Verdun!"

Speaking, Major Jules felt a chilling sensation, as if he had just drunk a glass of ice water, the cold piercing through to his heart.

Do they really think this military report is not worth waking up Xia Fei?

Isn't it true that any military report, no matter how small, should be reported? Even if it's just a minor skirmish!

Now, with the front lines in great peril, they are still assessing whether it's worth disturbing Xia Fei's sleep!

What happened next left Major Jules even more dumbfounded.

Kanes brought Major Jules to Xia Fei's resting room door and knocked gently.

Waiting a while with no response, he knocked again softly.

This time, finally, Xia Fei's voice was heard, "What's the matter?"

"General," Kanes reported, "There's a staff officer sent by Colonel Delion, saying the Germans have already attacked Verdun!"

"Colonel Delion again." Xia Fei complained dissatisfiedly, "Can't he keep quiet for a while? Tell him it's a German feint..."

"General!" Major Jules shouted through the closed door, constraining his anger, "Thousands of cannons are bombarding Verdun, don't you care at all? At least you should consider, Colonel Delion might report to the government over your head, just like last time!"

"Major!" Kanes rebuked, attempting to silence Jules, but seeing the murderous rage in the latter's eyes, he swallowed his remaining words.

Finally, the light inside the room came on.

Then the slow sound of clothes being changed was heard.

After quite a while, Xia Fei came out dressed impeccably, even wearing his military cap precisely straight as if he had adjusted it in front of a mirror.

He casually nodded to Major Jules:

"Alright, Major. Let's see what's going on."

"But I must remind you,"

"It may not be what you think!"

The veins on Major Jules' forehead throbbed. This is the "French sedative"?

Why did he feel an urge to draw his pistol and kill this guy?!