The Duke of Brunswick’s face instantly turned paler than that of the courier.

He stood in a daze for a good two or three minutes, and his mind finally accepted the reality. He turned dejectedly to his aide, saying: “Order the Denberg Corps to intercept the enemy north of Viertz, while everyone else makes a northward retreat from Plum back to Gai’erden.”

Denberg was the commander of the Bavarian Army. He still had over 11,000 soldiers under his command and should be able to delay the French Army for a while.

However, the Duke of Brunswick had no idea that two days ago, Massena had already ordered Saint Iler to lead 7,000 soldiers to fortify at the Wuer River, cutting off the Allied Forces’ retreat route.

[Note: The Wuer River, Saar River, and Zel River are actually different sections of the same river with three different names. They are located in the Ardennes Plateau, and on the northern and southern borderlines between Luxembourg and Trier.]

…

Central and northern Ardennes Plateau.

The Duke of York glared at the narrow French defensive line on the distant hillside, almost falling into impotent rage.

He had just received news of the assault on Trier and the defeat of the Duke of Brunswick, yet he could do nothing.

His troops had been stalled near Burgplatz Peak for an entire week.

Damn French, leveraging the highland advantage, never engaged him directly, only prolonging the confrontation through constant withdrawal.

And he could no longer afford the delay.

Once the French thoroughly crushed the Duke of Brunswick, they would concentrate their main force against him.

The Duke of York summoned two Austrian generals, briefly explained the current situation, and then grimly instructed: “We can’t continue to waste time here.

“Order the troops to immediately head east and assist the Duke of Brunswick around the Saar River.”

Count Cléfart immediately responded: “Your Highness, the pressing matter isn’t aiding the main Allied Force, but swiftly returning to Cologne to prevent an attack by the French in Trier.”

The Duke of York felt a tightening in his chest upon hearing that.

He had been so focused on reinforcing the Duke of Brunswick that he had forgotten that he himself might lose a retreat route!

Currently, Koblenz and Mainz were occupied by the French Army, and the northern Cologne crossing was the only way back to the East Rhine.

He took a deep breath, thrust his cane into the grass, and said through gritted teeth: “We retreat to Cologne. The Duke of Brunswick will make it back safely.”

The Walloon Corps commander, Major General Jia Yar, noticed the diminishing artillery fire from the Allied Forces and, surprised, ordered the cavalry to scout ahead.

Half an hour later, the cavalry scout returned, reporting to him: “General, the enemy seems to be retreating.”

Jia Yar exhaled a long breath, it seemed his mission was successfully accomplished.

He turned to the Order Officer beside him and said: “Have the soldiers rest on the spot; we should soon return to Namur.”

Nearby, the deputy commander of the Walloon Corps, Quasi-General Contant, pondered briefly, leaned closer, and said: “General, according to the battle reports delivered by the headquarters yesterday, our army has launched a full counterattack against the enemy on the Ardennes Plateau.

“If I’m not mistaken, those British troops should be heading to support their main forces.”

Jia Yar nodded in agreement: “That’s very likely, so what?”

“This is a great opportunity for us to earn merit, General,” Contant urged, “We should pursue them, at least slow down the British reinforcements.”

Jia Yar hesitated, aware that the Duke of York had more than 10,000 more troops than himself.

Seeing his indecision, Contant continued: “General, from Mechelen to here, we’ve been on a passive defense mission with little credit.

“Looking at the imminent national victory, if we don’t seize the opportunity now, there won’t be much chance in the future.

“We can leave some troops at Burgplatz Peak. If the situation doesn’t look favorable, we can retreat and return.”

Jia Yar was convinced by his words.

If he could turn a defensive battle into a rout, then after the war, he was highly likely to be promoted to Vice Admiral!

After discussing with Contant, he ordered 4,000 troops of the Alpine Corps to stay and hold the position, while he led the Walloon Corps and American volunteers in pursuit of the enemy.

Well, he knew the Americans had little combat capability, serving only as rear guards in case the enemy suddenly turned.

The Duke of York’s rear guard, numbering just over 2,000, was soon broken through by Jia Yar.

Then the Walloon Corps pursued the Anglo-Austrian Army relentlessly.

Jia Yar quickly realized something unusual; the British seemed to be retreating very hastily, twice abandoning supplies rather than turning to fight.

This only strengthened his resolve to pursue.

However, those British dogs ran rather fast…

He suddenly recalled a tactic used by the Crown Prince in Mechelen previously and summoned the American volunteer officers, instructing them to ride lightly to catch up with the British, not to engage but to incessantly hurl insults instead.

Jia Yar’s method surprisingly worked.

An officer commanding the British rear guard, upon hearing American taunts about getting beaten to tears by American farmers in North America, finally couldn’t take it anymore.

He had participated in the American War of Independence, and if it weren’t for the French Army’s intervention back then, he would have crushed the North American colonies to dust!

He promptly ordered his rear guard to turn and form up, eager to teach those foul-mouthed scoundrels a lesson.

The Duke of York was calculating the route on a map, estimating that it would take another two and a half days to reach Cologne.

At this moment, he suddenly heard gunfire erupting from the south.

Soon, a courier reported to him that Jones’ corps in the rear had unexpectedly stopped and was engaged with the enemy.

The Duke of York was instantly furious; abandoning even the supply train was meant to avoid getting entangled by the enemy, and Jones, that fool, had sought combat on his own!

After much hesitation, he was ultimately reluctant to abandon the 7,000 soldiers in the rear——the British forces he brought now only had 15,000 left, which was nearly half of his manpower.

But soon, the Duke of York regretted it.

The Walloons still avoided direct confrontation, veering constantly towards the flanks, clearly intending to hold them down.

After grappling with the Walloon Army near Dylan for two days, the Duke of York received another urgent military report.

The Duke of Brunswick was encircled by the French Army in the Rhodeshausen area, perilously close to destruction, while within the Rhineland, the French Army had occupied Mainz and was turning northward.

The Duke of York felt a sudden surge of despair, ultimately ordering the Austrian Army to keep engaging the Walloons while he proceeded to defend Cologne.

However, his Order Officer soon returned, dripping with sweat, and reported: “Your Highness, Count Cléfart has already led the Austrian Army to disengage, leaving a huge gap in the left flank of our forces.”