Chapter 918

Even though they had the upper hand on the battlefield, General Morkes wasn't anxious at all.

Other than the symbolic attacks to put pressure on the French, the Austrians didn't make any big moves and allowed the French to deploy their troops.

Vittorio Emmanuel III watched as the Austrians lost their fighter jets day by day, but the Austrians didn't do anything at all. He was very anxious.

As a top student who graduated from the Sandhurst Royal Military Academy, Vittorio Emanuele III was well versed in military training even though he had never led a soldier before.

However, as a king, he didn't have any authority other than his noble status on the surface.

After lobbying General Morkes to launch an all-out attack several times to no avail, Vittorio Emmanuel III even protested to the Government of Vienna and asked for a change of commander.

Without a doubt, this request wasn't supported. The Austrians seemed to have the upper hand on the southern front, but that might not be the case if they really fought their way out.

The French weren't as easy to bully as the Kingdom of Sardinia. The complicated terrain and poor transportation in the Regions of Italy were all problems that the Austrians had to face.

As long as they pushed forward a few hundred kilometers, the Austrians' firepower advantage would disappear. It wasn't that they didn't have enough weapons and ammunition, but the transportation couldn't keep up.

Without firepower advantage, the Austrians would have to pay a heavy price against the French who had the terrain advantage.

This point had already been proven in the original space-time. After the outbreak of World War I, the Austro-Hungarian Empire easily defeated the Italians with only a small number of troops. However, as the front moved forward, they quickly lost to the terrain and logistics. They won first, then lost.

The conservative attack route on the southern front was naturally created by Franz. In his eyes, keeping the French Italian army was more valuable than killing them.

Countless cases had proven that having more troops wasn't always better. More troops also meant more consumption. Although France was strong, it was still lacking in maintaining a few million troops.

The French increasing their troops in the Regions of Italy was what Franz wanted to see the most.

Central Europe needed a large number of troops, Egypt needed a large number of troops, the southern front needed another large number of troops, Africa needed …

Where could the Government of France find so many troops? With their population of more than 30 million, it was impossible for them to form such a large army.

To solve the problem of insufficient troops, the Government of France had to either arm the natives or recruit a large number of Italians.

Either way, it would decrease the combat power of the French army, and the more troops they added, the more their combat power would decrease.

In comparison, the Anti-French Alliance had a much greater advantage in this aspect. Although the expansion of the army would decrease the combat power of the troops, the quality of the army was higher!

It could be said that every time they expanded their army, the scales of victory would tilt towards the anti-French Alliance.

France and Austria were not the only two big countries on the European continent. If the situation of the war suddenly became clear, there would be interference from other countries.

The other countries wouldn't just watch Austria break up France. Otherwise, France would have been torn apart as early as 1815, and they wouldn't have to wait until now.

The quick battle seemed to be a beautiful victory, but it could not really cripple France, leaving behind endless troubles.

Apart from winning a nominal victory, Austria would not get much benefit at all. He might not even be able to unify the German region.

What Franz wanted was a Shinra Empire that everyone wanted to join.

Franz wanted a Shinra Empire that everyone wanted to join. He didn't want a Shinra Empire that was united by force and could split again at any time.

As for driving out the French and liberating Italy, those were just political slogans for the Italians. That was never the goal of the Government of Vienna.

Vittorio Emanuele III's original intention was to attract the French army's attention, so his efforts were in vain.

…

The Suez Canal.

Opening the map, one would know that whoever controlled this golden waterway would have the initiative in this war.

From the beginning of the war, Austria sent troops from Sudan, Libya, and the Sinai Peninsula to besiege French Egypt.

The roar of the cannons continued. The Suez Canal, which used to be bustling with activity, was now silent.

Without the passage of ships, the port naturally became sluggish. Because of the war, a large number of people fled to avoid the chaos. At this moment, the port of Suez was mostly occupied by French soldiers.

Unlike the others, the quick-witted Hardedef didn't flee. Instead, he expanded his tavern.

Soldiers were humans too, and they needed to relax, especially in times of war. They needed an outlet to vent their frustrations, and alcohol was a must.

The business of the tavern didn't decline because of the war. Instead, it became more and more prosperous. Hardedef was so happy that he couldn't close his mouth.

He sincerely hoped that the war could continue. It would be best if it could last until the end of time, just like the Hundred Years War …

The only flaw was that many French soldiers didn't have alcohol tolerance. After a few glasses, they lost themselves and often got into fights.

Accidental injuries were inevitable. Humans might be able to avoid it, but the tableware, tables, and chairs in the tavern suffered.

Just a moment ago, Hardedef dealt with a fight. Although he said he dealt with it, all he did was inform the officer to come and pick up the person.

Unfortunately, the person involved was poor again. He was searched thoroughly, but he didn't even have a franc.

No money was no money. Other than admitting that he was unlucky and being forced to agree to delay the compensation, there was nothing Hardedef could do.

This was the frontline. Who knew when these unlucky people would be picked up? The dead didn't need to pay their debts.

Hardedef didn't care if it was just these losses. Because of the war, the prices of goods in Port Suez had already skyrocketed.

What really worried Hardedef was the situation on the battlefield. He didn't even need to go out and gather information. Just by listening to the conversations of the customers, he could analyze some things.

A certain unit had suffered heavy casualties, someone had survived, someone was unlucky …

Regardless of whether he needed to keep it a secret or not, he spilled it all after a few glasses.

The speaker didn't mean it, but the listener understood.

The battle for the Suez Canal was still ongoing. Hardedef couldn't determine the final outcome, but it was an indisputable fact that the French army had suffered heavy casualties.

Suez was also the frontline. Once the Austrians used this place as a breakthrough, the tavern's business wouldn't be able to continue.

Although Hardedef loved money, he cherished his life even more. Guns and cannons had no eyes on the battlefield. One moment of carelessness would lead to death.

The Government of Paris had issued a national mobilization order. In times of crisis, the governor of Egypt had the right to conscript all French people in the country.

As early as a week ago, the governor of Egypt had issued a conscription order. According to the rules, Hardedef should have entered the barracks long ago.

However, there were exceptions to everything. Privileges were everywhere. With the help of francs, Hardedef successfully avoided military service with the excuse of being weak and ill.

Unfortunately, even if he avoided it once, he might not be able to avoid it forever. Based on years of life experience, Hardedef was certain that once the situation on the battlefield worsened, the colonial government's recruitment efforts would be further increased.

Perhaps by then, the step of a physical examination would be skipped. As long as one wasn't missing an arm or a leg, they would have to go to the frontline.

This was also the reason why the rich left Port Suez. Everyone was a person of status. How could they risk their lives on the battlefield?

Although everyone had confidence in France, that was because they had high hopes for the mainland, not the Egyptian colonial government.

Before Hardedef could make up his mind, the war spread to Suez. The Suez Canal was still too narrow. A mere few hundred meters could not escape the range of the cannons.

As the rumbling sounds continued, the artillery shells that fell from the sky began to wreak havoc in this burgeoning city, as if a meteor shower had fallen.

Without any hesitation, Hardedef joined the fleeing army. From that night onwards, the city officially became a military port.

…

"Fick, you idiot. I told you to prepare the boats. What's the use of these broken things? They might just sink in the water. "

A middle-aged officer roared at his subordinates. It was obvious that he was really angry. They originally planned to attack Suez, but when they arrived, they realized that there were no boats at all.

Fick's young officer hurriedly explained, "Colonel, you can't blame me. The Suez Canal is too narrow. The enemy's cannons can cover everything.

Any gunner would be able to hit the target at a distance of a few hundred meters. We can't hide the big boats at all. We can only make do with some rafts.

But don't worry, we destroyed the French's big boats. We don't have to worry about them launching a sneak attack. "

After listening to this explanation, the middle-aged officer's face became even uglier. Without enough boats, it was easy to imagine the difficulty of crossing the river with just a bunch of rafts.

Unlike other regions, the Sinai Peninsula was not a good place. If the Government of Vienna hadn't fallowed the land and relocated the population to stop the spread of desertification, they probably wouldn't even be able to provide water for the troops.

Apart from a few garrisons, the Sinai Peninsula was an uninhabited area. Without any manpower, it was impossible to solve the problem of the ship on the ground.

It was easy to get the locals to send boats over, but the problem was that before the boats could enter the canal, they would be destroyed by the enemy's cannons.

It was too easy to hit a boat from a distance of two to three hundred meters. From this point of view, even if there were boats, it would not be easy to cross the river.