Chapter 95: Mula's Reluctance

"Order the whole army to retreat!" Philip said expressionlessly.

"Retreat? Now?" The deputy was completely surprised, finding it hard to understand Philip's command. They had just managed to push Mula's cavalry into a desperate situation, and now retreating would mean losing the afternoon's battle results.

"Yes, retreat. I cannot make the same mistake as Mula. After an afternoon of fighting, our soldiers are exhausted. The enemy's reinforcements have just joined the battlefield, boosting their morale. Mula's troops are starting to recover with their help. Continuing to fight the French in this situation will not be advantageous for us. I cannot risk your lives like this," Philip said calmly.

"Let's retreat! Sometimes temporary surrender is for future victory. Besides, we have already severely damaged the French cavalry. This achievement can be reported to Archduke Karl and His Majesty the Emperor," Philip continued.

"Yes, sir. Understood," the deputy nodded.

"General's orders! Retreat!" A messenger immediately rushed to the center of the Austrian army to deliver Philip's command.

"Don't forget to inform Vasily. He should retreat with us," Philip reminded his deputy.

"Yes, sir. I'll notify Vasily," the deputy replied. Though he looked down on Vasily, who had risen through royal connections, he knew their mission was to rescue him, and they had to follow orders.

With Vasily's command, the Austrian army immediately disengaged from Mula's troops and began a slow retreat, with the French not pursuing.

The two sides slowly disengaged from the battle, retreating towards their respective territories.

...

"Mula, how is the situation?" Da Wu came to Mula's side in the army and asked.

Mula was not in a good state. He no longer had the vigorous appearance he had when he set out. His clothes were disheveled, his expression was dejected, and his face was covered in dust and dirt.

"Almost there, but we couldn't completely eliminate Vasily. Their cavalry arrived just in time, and I not only failed to destroy Vasily but also lost half of my troops," Mula gritted his teeth, speaking bitterly. This time, he had suffered a major setback.

"Yes, Napoleon anticipated this. Seeing you gone for so long, he knew you must have encountered trouble, so he specially sent me with the army to investigate. Luckily, my troops arrived just in time," Da Wu replied.

"Thank you today. If it weren't for you, I'm afraid I would have died here," Mula sighed.

"We are comrades in the military. There's no need for such words," Da Wu waved his hand calmly. "Napoleon is very worried about you. Let's go back. I don't think these Austrians will attack again."

"Yes, then I'll trouble you to cover our retreat," Mula said to Da Wu.

With that, Mula began to retreat with his troops, marking the end of the largest cavalry battle in this war.

...

Perhaps fearing that the Austrians would send more reinforcements, Mula hurried along the way. By the time Mula returned to Milan, it was already midnight.

During this period, Napoleon had been waiting in his headquarters in Milan, eagerly awaiting news about Mula.

"Report! Consul Napoleon, General Mula has returned," a staff officer came to Napoleon and reported, having been ordered to bring any news about Mula directly to Napoleon.

"Mula is back? Quickly... take me there," Napoleon said excitedly upon hearing the news of Mula's return.

In the afternoon, he had sent Mula to chase after Vasily's retreating troops, but since then, there had been no news from Mula. The seasoned Napoleon immediately realized that Mula was likely in trouble, so he dispatched Da Wu to rescue him.

Rescue or confirmation of news both required time, and during this period, Napoleon had been restless, anxiously waiting for news about Mula. Now, upon hearing that Mula had returned, Napoleon could wait no longer. He rushed out immediately.

Marmont was the most trusted general. Although after he had become the first consul of France, he gathered many capable generals, some of whom were as capable as Marmont, but Marmont still remained his most trusted general, and this did not change.

Milan gate.

Marmont has already returned, he is preparing to go to the staff headquarters in Milan to report to Napoleon. Just on the way, he happened to meet Napoleon who was coming urgently.

"Consul Napoleon!" Marmont exclaimed in surprise, he didn't expect to meet Napoleon here.

"Marmont, how are you? I heard you encountered an ambush by the Austrians? Are you okay?" Napoleon hurried forward and patted Marmont on the shoulder, asking.

Napoleon's tone was full of concern, which made Marmont feel very warm.

"Please rest assured, I'm fine. It's just that this time I was unable to completely defeat Vasily, and my cavalry division lost at least six thousand men. It's all my fault for commanding too hastily," Marmont said with his head down. When you lose, you lose, and there's no good excuse.

"It's okay! You're back, that's what matters. The cavalry division has suffered heavy losses, but we can recruit soldiers again. However, if you're not here, even if the cavalry division is reformed, it will lack soul. Just take this failure as experience for the future, I believe after this crisis, you won't make such mistakes again," Napoleon reassured.

"Yeah! General Marmont, don't worry, we'll attack Tuganaya soon. When the time comes, I will avenge you," Lanna beside Napoleon also comforted Marmont.

"Well, okay."

After hearing the comforting words from Napoleon and his colleagues, Marmont's mood improved a little.

"And Davout? Hasn't he come back yet?" Napoleon began to inquire about Davout's whereabouts again.

"Not yet. In this battle, the Austrians used the Hungarian Hussars, who are formidable. General Davout has to watch out for their attacks while retreating, so it will probably take some time," Marmont explained.

"Oh! Hungarian Hussars? I've heard how powerful they are, but are they really that strong?" Andre stepped forward and asked. It was his first time hearing about the strength of the Hungarian Hussars.

As a person from later times, most have heard of the European cavalry, mostly the Cossack cavalry, but few know that Hungarian cavalry is equally formidable. Their combat power is not weaker than the Russian Cossacks.

"Yeah, their combat power is indeed formidable. Our cavalry finds it difficult to gain the upper hand against them in battle, and the key issue is their numbers. When it comes to cavalry numbers, France has only two cavalry divisions, but the Austrians have deployed five cavalry divisions just in the Italian theater," Marmont said bitterly. If the forces were equal, he could definitely contend with the Hungarian cavalry without falling into the current situation of being chased down by Philipp.

"Enough, Marmont, don't dwell on this matter. You retreat to the rear first, replenish your troops, and when your central cavalry division's strength is restored, you will have the chance for revenge."

"Yes, I understand," Marmont nodded. Although he didn't want to leave the battlefield at this moment, Napoleon was right. The losses suffered by his cavalry division were too great to sustain high-intensity combat anymore. He had to leave and replenish his forces. If he did so, perhaps there would still be a chance to return to the battlefield for revenge.

Thinking of this, Marmont couldn't help but sigh. He never expected to be the first French general to leave the battlefield, which made his proud self-esteem hard to bear.