The orders issued from the command post were quickly conveyed to the non-commissioned officers of the landing force at all levels.
Just half an hour later, hundreds of Ajaccio citizens who had not been evacuated to the Dongcheng District for various reasons and were captured by the Sardinian army gathered blindfolded in a square and were captured by the Sardinian soldiers in boundless fear and despair.
executed on the spot.
In order to save ammunition, the Sardinian soldiers did not even choose to shoot them. Instead, they used bayonets to penetrate the hearts of these ignorant civilians from behind.
The entire square was filled with a lingering smell of blood. Many civilians who were stabbed in the heart did not die immediately, but fell in a pool of blood with hideous faces and struggled for a long time before slowly becoming silent.
And Colonel Bartland's orders were implemented perfectly.
The Sardinian soldiers then cut off the heads of the dead, put them on long poles and brought them to the front line area where they were fighting with the enemy. They held up the bloody corpses and shouted asking all Corsicans to give up resistance immediately.
Of course, for the volunteers who were determined to take up arms and go to the battlefield, this despicable and vicious method could not inspire any fear in them, but instead aroused the resentment in the hearts of all soldiers to infinity.
No one knows whether those poor people who were brutally killed by the Sardinians and whose heads were hung on the flagpole in humiliation might include their parents, relatives, friends, and children.
At the same time, a raging fire was also set on fire by Sardinian soldiers, and soon spread in the city of Ajaccio.
Especially at the front line of the confrontation between the two armies, it was almost reduced to a sea of ​​fire. Even the sea breeze blowing by brought a scalding heat wave. Countless buildings familiar to the citizens of Ajaccio were also submerged in this area.
In the sea of ​​​​fire, the crackling sound of wood and stone exploding due to the high temperature can be heard everywhere.
The flames flying in the sky illuminated the entire Ajaccio in orange, and the Sardinian soldiers took advantage of the favorable wind and fire to once again launch a fierce attack on Ajaccio.
...
"Damn Sardinians, are they crazy...!"
In a building on the front line in Beicheng District, the injured commander Pasquale Pauli stood by the window, staring blankly at the overwhelming fire in front of him. The waves of heat that hit his face almost made him unable to open his eyes.
Eye.
Pasquale Paoli never imagined that the Sardinian army would be so eager to capture Ajaccio that they would even reduce Corsica's largest city to a charred wasteland.
What makes Poly even more troublesome is that the wind direction tonight is from west to east, which means that the roaring east wind will spread the sea of ​​​​fire to Dongcheng District within a few hours.
Although the building density in Dongcheng District is low, the fire will not spread as quickly as it does now, but as long as time is given, with the blessing of the east wind, the Sardinian Army will still be able to use fire attacks to continuously push back the entire city defense force
.
By then, both the city defense troops and the Prime Minister's Office will probably be forced to withdraw from Ajaccio and go south to join the main force of the National Defense Forces, handing over the capital of Ajaccio to the Sardinians.
Big beads of sweat rolled down from General Pauli's forehead, perhaps because the temperature of the room rose rapidly under the heat wave, or perhaps because Pasquale Pauli also realized that Corsica had reached the point of its life and death.
crucial moment.
As the former Governor of Corsica, Pasquale Paoli knew very well that once Ajaccio fell, the Kingdom of Sardinia would be able to establish a safe supply line and provide continuous reinforcements from the mainland. According to Corsica,
With the army strength of the National Defense Force, it is absolutely impossible to recapture this city again.
After realizing this, Pasquale Pauli's eyes dimmed instantly. Although he was no longer the ruler of this island, he still had deep feelings for this land and its people.
Especially after witnessing the atrocities committed by the Sardinian army, Pasquale Paoli could not accept it. The island he had fought for for more than twenty years was completely reduced to a colony of the Kingdom of Sardinia.
In contrast, he was more able to accept the usurper Laurence Bonaparte continuing to rule Corsica. At least the young man was nominally his legal successor, and he could also have a good death in his hands.
When General Pauli looked at the sea of ​​​​fire in front of him with mixed emotions, the fire had already spread to this area. A volunteer soldier also rushed upstairs, quickly grabbed the injured General Pauli and walked out:
"General, the fire is about to reach here! The Sardinians are also approaching! Let's retreat first. The Central Gendarmerie and the French Army are also planning to retreat to the border of Dongcheng District!"
"Yeah..."
Hearing the news, Pasquale Pauli was stunned again, and the look in his eyes once again disappeared. Since both the French garrison and the Central Gendarmerie have chosen to retreat, it means that the criticality of the battle situation may be
It was worse than he imagined.
He knew that if the situation was not unavoidable, the garrison and the Central Gendarmerie would not take the initiative to retreat to the core Dongcheng District.
After all, if the war situation continues to deteriorate, the entire city defense force will have no room for retreat.
At that time, the choice of leaving any Corsicans would be to fight to the last man in Ajaccio, or to withdraw from the capital and hand over the city to others, and either of these options was obviously absolutely unacceptable.
"Is Ajaccio destined to fall tonight..."
General Pauli quickly put away the maps and annotations on the table, and finally turned back to glance at the sea of ​​​​fire outside the window. The approaching flames reflected his pale cheeks in orange:
"Laurence Bonaparte, will Corsica end up like this in your hands... Or are you still holding back as before..."
This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading!......
"What a fire, what a good fire. Even the wind tonight is a perfect easterly."
At the same time, in Xicheng District, Colonel Bartland and several trusted officers walked out of the command post and went to a high ground to observe the battlefield situation in person.
Colonel Butland on the high ground held binoculars and carefully observed Ajaccio covered in fire, as enthusiastic and excited as if he was admiring a master painting in a museum.
Those areas that have been burned by the sea of ​​​​fire look like a piece of coal that has not been extinguished from a distance, shining a shocking dark red in the dark night.
This dark red area continues to expand, which means that the Sardinian army is taking advantage of this God-given fire to continuously compress the defensive space of the Corsican defenders.
Colonel Bartland didn't care how many people's bones and souls were buried under the dark red ashes, nor how many Corsican homes were turned into ruins. On the contrary, he was witnessing the city of Ajaccio.
Step by step into destruction, the colonel felt a great sense of satisfaction in his heart.
A year ago, he was defeated on the land of Corsica at the hands of the most deserving Laurence Bonaparte, leaving all his glory, achievements, status and power in this land.
He was so disgusted with the land that he felt sick to his stomach.
And now, Colonel Bartram looked at the hell on earth in front of him proudly. He was already immersed in beautiful fantasies, imagining that this city destined to be turned into scorched earth would become his perfect revenge against Lawrence Bonaparte.
prove.
"Hmph, Bonaparte who loves his people like his own son, Bonaparte who loves people as his own son, is all bullshit."
Colonel Bartland grinned and looked at his cronies beside him triumphantly:
"I'm standing here plundering his city and slaughtering his people. Where is he, Laurence Bonaparte, and what can he, Laurence Bonaparte, do? How ridiculous!"
All the officers also smiled and echoed a few words. They all knew that since Colonel Bartland was defeated by the Bonifacas last year, he regarded Laurence Bonaparte as his number one enemy and wanted to do it all day long.
I killed the Corsican myself.
At this moment, Colonel Bartland, who was confident of victory, vented all his anger and hatred on this land without any scruples.
The colonel laughed heartily, and the pleasure of revenge was like an electric current flowing through his body. This pleasure was a thousand times stronger than taking a puff of the purest Cuban cigar.
And while everyone was standing here admiring the Sardinian army advancing eastward with the help of fire, a herald suddenly climbed up to the high ground out of breath. The uniform on his body was the naval uniform of the Sardinian fleet.
:
"Colonel, there is an urgent message from Fleet Headquarters!"
Colonel Bartland was stunned for a moment, then cursed and said:
"Urgent report? Damn it, there are so many people in the headquarters doing shit. This battle will be over soon. Why are they meddling..."
But the herald couldn't care less about Colonel Bartland's complaints. His face was pale and his chest was heaving violently. He had obviously run all the way from the port to here. The herald shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Reporting to the commander, our fleet has discovered a warship formation heading towards Ajaccio in the northwest direction. Its size... is initially estimated to be about three times the size of our fleet!"
"What did you say? The scale is..."
Colonel Bartland's brain shut down for a few seconds, and the smile and proud look on his lips disappeared in an instant:
"Three times the size of our fleet? Are you fucking kidding me, that's France's Mediterranean fleet?! How could they take the initiative to intervene in this war? Didn't the French already sign a declaration with the British?!"
Although the Sardinian fleet also privately rented many warships from the British Royal Navy on a temporary basis, Colonel Butland could never imagine that France would directly send their main Mediterranean fleet to Ajaccio.
Even the officers next to them changed their expressions, completely confused as to what the Kingdom of France wanted to do.
With such blatant transgression, are they trying to break the non-aggression pact?!
The herald was also sweating profusely and forced himself to answer:
"The identity of the opponent's fleet has not been verified, but the headquarters speculates that it is most likely the French Mediterranean Fleet... Diplomatic affairs can only be left to diplomats to resolve. As soldiers, we must now avoid fighting with that large fleet.
The fleet is engaged in a battle, and our fleet is already preparing to evacuate the Ajaccio port area."
Colonel Bartland nodded blankly. In this case, immediate evacuation of the fleet is indeed the best option. If the French fleet really breaks the neutrality treaty and attacks the Sardinian fleet, the Sardinian fleet will suffer heavy losses even if it is not completely annihilated.
They absolutely cannot take such risks.
And in the next second, Colonel Bartland immediately realized something, and his face instantly turned pale:
"What about this landing force...?"
If the logistical support of the fleet is lost, then even though the force in the hands of Colonel Bartland has several times the strength of the Corsican Defense Force, it can only be slaughtered like a wild beast with its limbs cut off.
To be continued...