Chapter 265

Chapter 265 Pre-war preparations

  A few days after the war broke out, Grand Duke Albrecht was not in a hurry to attack, but he still had to do it.

On the frontal battlefield, Albrecht did not intend to let the troops rush directly, because he himself was afraid that Italy would not be able to withstand a charge, so he ordered the Austrian army outside the Alpine defense line to feint from the north, giving the Italians a sense that the Austro-Hungarian Empire planned to attack from the north. The illusion of a breakthrough.

   This trick works very well. The defense line in the north is much longer than the defense line in the south, but the road is not easy to walk, and the passage of personnel and materials is not easy.

But behind the northern line of defense is not only Venice, but also Lombardy, while the southern line of defense is short and only in the narrow plain east of Venice. Albrecht really wanted to catch Italy off guard from the north!

  So when the Austrian army made some moves, Italy began to strengthen its northern troops. The northern defense line relied on the Alps. In fact, Italy's strengthening of these places is also a kind of pressure on its own logistics.

  In addition, the advantage of doing this is that it can make the Italian troops more dispersed, so the Kingdom of Italy must draw more troops from the rear.

  …

  About ten kilometers southwest of the outskirts of Rome, the Papal State, this is where the Austro-Hungarian army was stationed.

  Antonio and other Austro-Hungarian soldiers are taking off the Italian country clothes they have worn for nearly two months.

  In order to facilitate the training of the troops, they were dressed as Italian farmers before. Although this place is very remote, if someone with a heart finds out, it is very likely that the news will be leaked.

Just put on the military uniform smuggled from the sea, and with the last button fastened, Antonio, the head of the third regiment of the fourth brigade of the second division of the Austro-Hungarian Expeditionary Force, tidied up his imperial uniform and complained to the brigade commander: "Brigade commander , If I don't wear the military uniform again, I doubt whether I have really become an old farmer in Italy! Look at the cocoon of my pistol, the hand holding the gun has become the hand holding the farm tool!"

"Hehe, I, the brigade commander, am not accompanying you to work in the field. What is there to talk about, and if you let the real farmers see you when you are farming, they will probably chase you with the soles of their shoes angrily. , An idiot who can only use brute force." The fourth brigade commander said to his subordinates.

   "It's okay to tell me, Brigadier, you are not much better. You can't do a good job of digging the soil. The fields around here are the most ugly of your land." Antonio retorted.

"Farming the land itself is not to be judged, but to see how much fruit can be harvested. Although we can't farm the land, our value is reflected in the battlefield. Whether our hard work in the next two months can be fruitful or not depends on the results. record."

It is naturally impossible for the Austro-Hungarian Expeditionary Force to conduct serious military training in Italy. They were not even issued with guns before. In order to prevent these soldiers from being raised, General Karl really sent them along with the officers of the Austro-Hungarian Expeditionary Force. The main reason for rushing to work in the fields is to prevent muscle relaxation and mental slack.

   As for spear skills, don't worry too much. These are good soldiers selected from the Austro-Hungarian Army, the group with the highest military literacy. Even if they don't get used to firearms for a few months, they will not become unfamiliar.

  Antonio pretended not to hear what the brigade commander said, and muttered in his mouth: "I don't know if the corn I planted so hard can germinate."

   "Don't think about it, those seeds are just for you to show off. I really thought that if you plant crops for two days, you will become a farmer."

  …

  At present, the number of Austro-Hungarian troops here has reached more than 10,000, which is double that of two months ago.

In order to hide so many troops in the Pope's country, the Austro-Hungarian Empire rented a large farm around here. In the previous life, this was the location of a sports center outside Rome, but now it is a large deserted beach, so the price is very cheap. As for the owner of the farm, he was a nobleman living in Rome.

The conditions here are actually not too bad, there are some slopes, the land is much poorer than the surrounding area, and there are no big rivers passing by, the water source is relatively scarce, and some food can still be grown, but the output is pitifully low, so most of the time it is abandoned with.

  Businessmen from Austria paid a lot of money to rent such a large piece of bad land, which made the landowner very happy.

Someone would use money to invest in agriculture here. He must have lost his head, but this did not arouse his suspicion. He speculated that the Austrian businessman might have rented this place out of nowhere. It also makes sense to know the local context.

   Then the farm owner turned around and took the land rent paid by the Austro-Hungarian Empire and went to the city of Rome.

   "Is everyone here?"

   Lieutenant General Karl, the supreme commander of the Austro-Hungarian Expeditionary Force, appeared in front of everyone at this time. His glasses had not been taken off, and he held the map behind his back.

   "Report to the commander, the troops have assembled!"

   "Very well, next we will give them a severe stab in the heart of the Italians. This time we are behind the enemy's rear, and the situation is not without danger. Don't you be afraid!"

   "Die for the Empire!"

   "Don't say such depressing words, I want you all to live, and I also hope that you can go to Florence with me for the military parade!"

   "Hahaha..." Lieutenant General Karl's words caused everyone to burst into laughter.

After everyone's laughter finally stopped, Lieutenant General Karl immediately changed his face, and said seriously with a face full of experience: "Okay, let's get down to business. According to the information disclosed by the Italian high-level, there are more than 30,000 people in the Kingdom of Italy. They are rushing to the Roman area, and the Italian self-proclaimed hero, Garibaldi, is leading the team. Although he is suspected of bragging, his ability is still much better than that of other Italian military officers, so he is worthy of attention. Opponents. At present, the Pope's territory other than Rome has no serious resistance to the army of the Kingdom of Italy, so the enemy will soon rush to Rome, probably tonight, and we want to go to Florence for a military parade. This Italian army must be defeated first."

   "Commander, are we going to enter the city of Rome to change defense?"

   "No, after the Pope's army fights with the Italian army led by Garibaldi and others, we will be responsible for the sneak attack."

   "What if the Pope's army directly surrenders?"

"You don't need to worry about this point. Pius IX is the least likely to surrender in Italy. The Roman army is mainly composed of foreigners such as France and Switzerland, so it will not be defeated in one blow. Our people will tell you that Protect Pius IX alone to prevent the news before the war from being leaked."

Raising his left hand and looking at the time on his watch, Lieutenant General Carl said: "It's almost afternoon, let the cooking team start cooking, take out all the best supplies we have stored, and start cooking meat today! It's a good night to eat Italian food. People are caught off guard!"

   "Yes, Commander!" The subordinates happily agreed.