At this critical moment when the building was about to collapse, Raul, a civilian councilor, rushed to Metz regardless of the danger. This moved the French Emperor very much. However, the last news brought by Senator Raul completely chilled the French Emperor's heart.
The dusty Councilor Raul walked into the meeting room of the city government under the escort of numerous Praetorian Guards. When he saw the Emperor, he almost shed tears.
"Your Majesty... I almost didn't see you... The Prussian vanguard has penetrated more than ten kilometers south of the Marne River, and my convoy was less than three kilometers away from them..."
"At this moment, there are no bridges or ferries that we can pass along the Marne River in Metz City all the way upstream. I took a detour from the Reims Mountain area downstream..."
Napoleon III suppressed his stomachache and said anxiously, "So the enemy is going to attack Paris? Where are our reinforcements? Where are the reinforcements?"
"My Majesty, don't wait for reinforcements. Although hundreds of thousands of troops have been organized in the south, water from afar cannot quench the thirst of the people nearby. They won't be able to get here in less than half a month..."
"There are many Prussian spies infiltrating the south. During this period, there are reports every day that the railways have been attacked and blown up by sneak attacks. Just repairing the railways cannot repair them!"
"What's even worse is that the workers chose to go on strike at this time! These lunatics don't care about the safety of the empire at all. This is a war period. They still talk about the bread every day and don't work at all. Many railways are not repaired. , the arms and supplies at the train station are piled up in the warehouse, but no one is loading them!"
"Your Majesty, the empire really can't hold on any longer. Workers across the country have gone crazy!"
Napoleon III's eyes darkened and he slumped on his chair. "They...how could they do this...when life and death are at stake, can't they put aside their arguments?"
"What can't we talk about? We can negotiate any way after the war, so why are we going on strike now?"
Congressman Raul took out a handkerchief and wiped his tears. "On my way here this time, I passed by the Sezana train station. I saw dozens of tons of flour and countless ammunition and supplies lying in the open air. It had been raining for days. All the supplies were soaked!"
"But no one cares about it, no one cares about it at all! All the workers have been gathered by the rebels, and they are just plotting to riot!"
"Where is the National Guard? Didn't your parliament say that you want to form a National Guard of 800,000 people?" the French Emperor grabbed the sleeve of Senator Raul and asked sharply.
"God, Your Majesty, do you still dare to use those Self-Defense Forces now? Who are the soldiers who form the Self-Defense Forces? Are they of the same mind as you?"
"Let me be more clear. Are those people really loyal to you?"
"You should have read the previous telegram. Our soldiers are being attacked continuously in Paris, and several arsenals have been robbed. The Queen and Montauban simply cannot control the situation!"
"Gambida is building an army in the south, but he has already promoted his republican ideals in public. These people want to overthrow your rule!"
Councilor Raul said helplessly, "The Queen asked me to bring you a message... You must not go back to Paris. No matter what aspect you consider, you cannot go back to Paris!"
"The current situation is that we are afraid of both sides. The rebels are still wary of our army. Blanqui and others are also waiting and watching. Maybe the bottom line of their negotiations is to form a coalition government!"
"At this time, we just need to preserve our strength on the battlefield. If it doesn't work, we can negotiate with the Prussians... As long as the veteran group in our hands is still alive, then the Republicans and the left must accept our existence..."
"Even if there are reforms in the future, they will still have to give us certain rights... At least His Majesty's life will be safe!"
"If you retreat at this time...to Paris...it will only force those people to abandon their worries unscrupulously, and by then they will eat us down to nothing!"
"We will never have a seat in the future government!"
Councilor Raul looked at McMahon and others, shook his head and whispered, "Now is different from the past. Don't expect that the bloody massacre can suppress those people!"
"The failure has shattered the aura of our army's invincibility, and now those rebellious poor devils have nothing to fear anymore!"
"Don't think that a hundred thousand troops can calm the situation in Paris. It's not enough! It's simply not enough!"
Councilor Raul's words completely blocked the possibility of the French Emperor fleeing to Paris, but where could he go if he didn't go to Paris? Prince Karl's regiment is stationed in the south toward the Marne River. Paris in the west is absolutely not allowed. Do we really want to retreat to the north?
At this moment, a thunderous explosion suddenly erupted in the east of Metz, and the Prussian position suddenly launched a large-scale artillery bombardment against the French army.
Everyone present was a veteran of the war. When they heard the intensity of the shelling, they knew it was not a feint!
"Your Majesty, the enemy has launched a large-scale attack. Looking at the scale of the artillery attack, the number of troops is at least 200,000. We can't stop it... move quickly!"
At this time, the communication soldiers hurriedly ran in from outside. They forgot to salute and rushed in, shouting loudly!
"The enemy launched a general attack! The Prussian Army Corps in the northeast took the lead in shelling our positions. The enemy has already set up a charging formation..."
"The Prussian Steinmetz Corps in the southeast is pressing forward across the board. They are taking a circuitous route south of Metz...many pontoons suddenly appeared in the enemy's position, and countless Prussian troops are crossing the Marne River!"
McMahon shouted, "No! The enemy is trying to outflank us from across the Marne River. They will never let us back to Paris!"
"Once the Marne is completely lost, we will never be able to return to Paris!"
Then the bad news came again. Before the King of France could make a decision, the communications troops brought bad news again.
"Report...the enemy has completed the southern encirclement. A large number of Prussian cavalry have appeared on the other side of the Marne River. They have begun to burn the docks and bridges near Reims Mountain!"
It's all over now, the French Emperor's way of escaping to Paris has been completely cut off!
The city of Metz has become a small boat in the storm. It is not besieged by 200,000 people at all. Old Moltke personally commanded the Chinese army plus Steinmetz's regiment, and even the cavalry of Prince Karl's regiment detoured back to Reims. Mountain.
A full 330,000 troops half-surrounded the city of Metz like a spoon, with no retreat in the three directions of southeast and west.
There was continuous artillery fire and the sound of killing was loud!
The fresh troops newly supported by the Prussian Army rushed upward in batches. They captured every small town, village, highland, and stronghold outside Metz like pulling nails!
The King of France stood on a high place and used telescopes to fight outside the city. As far as the eye could see between heaven and earth, there were battlefields everywhere, and there was hell-like fighting everywhere.
The overwhelming Prussian legions were too numerous to count!
"Break out! Break out quickly! We can't defend this place!"
