Cannonballs fell from the sky and fell into the water with a roaring explosion, causing huge waves to stir up huge waves.

The raft, which had just been thrown into the river and had not yet had time to play its role, was hit by the huge waves.

Looking at the scene happening in front of him, Colonel Boardman had no hope for the next attack.

There is no way, the Suez Canal is simply too narrow. Standing on the river's side, you can see the opposite side with the naked eye, and no river crossing tool can keep it secret.

You must know that the Suez Canal has been regarded as a top strategic place by France and Austria since the beginning of navigation, and in order to ensure the safety of the canal, the two countries have deployed a large number of artillery along the coast.

Without any surprises, the French artillery was deployed in Egypt, and the Austrian in the Sinai Peninsula. The two countries each occupy one side to ensure their own voice.

Originally, these artillery pieces and fortresses were intended to guard against the British, but they did not expect to end up hitting their former allies.

After the outbreak of the war, in order to occupy the Suez Canal, both France and Austria invested heavy troops to fight.

However, the defenses of both sides are very perverted, and no one can complete the landing without destroying the canal.

"Send a telegram to the command, the enemy has been prepared for a long time, the raft we prepared was shelled by the enemy, and the plan for a sneak attack on the port of Suez went bankrupt!

In view of the current situation, it is recommended that Headquarters authorize the blowing up of the Suez Canal and the filling of a passage. ”

Colonel Boardman said helplessly.

This is not the first time he has proposed to blow up the canal, but the Suez Canal is of great strategic significance, and the dredging technology in these years is not good.

Once a canal is damaged, even if it is only in a local area, it will take a long time to repair.

During the war years, time was of the essence. Taking a canal that is not strategically important will not form a strategic advantage over the enemy at all.

From the battle between the armies of France and Austria, it can also be seen that everyone is still fighting in closed canals as much as possible.

Of course, this has nothing to do with the shareholders behind the Canal Company. After all, the shares of the Suez Canal have long been divided between the elites of the two countries.

If you don't look at the face of the monk and look at the face of the Buddha, even though it is a time of war, you still can't escape from interpersonal relationships. Maybe the bigwigs in the command are themselves one of the shareholders of the Canal Company.

No one can make up their minds to destroy the canal unless it is absolutely necessary.

Relatively speaking, the army is quite simple. These are complex issues that Colonel Boardman needs to consider, as a front-line commander he only needs to consider military issues.

……

Receiving a telegram from Colonel Boardman, the wrinkles on Admiral Fislav's forehead intensified.

In order to facilitate colonial expansion, starting from the opening of the colonies, the colonial governors appointed by Austria were all military attachés, mainly responsible for colonial security and foreign wars.

As Governor General of the Middle East, from the beginning of the war, Admiral Fislav automatically became the commander of the Middle East theater of operations, responsible for the capture of the Suez Canal.

Behind the high position, there is also heavy pressure. Unlike previous enemies, this time the enemy was French.

If you open the history books, you will know that in the history of European wars, the French are a big boss, and most of the time they are the first power in Europe, and the French Army is recognized as the first in the world.

In the face of such an enemy, it is impossible to be too cautious.

In fact, Fislav is not the only one who thinks so. When the war first broke out, the generals of the anti-French alliance were basically a little timid.

But all this was in the past, and with the outbreak of war, everyone's reverence for the French army quickly subsided.

That's right, the elite of the French army is indeed powerful, but there are too few such troops, and more are ordinary troops with poor combat effectiveness.

This is true of the European battlefield, let alone Egypt. In addition to those elite native divisions, the remaining colonial troops are simply not enough to see.

Because of the blockage of the canal, although the Middle East theater did not achieve many results, the fraternal troops in East, West and North Africa were advancing with great triumph.

There is no way, the border line between Fau and Austria is too long, although most of the areas are blocked by deserts, but there are many areas without deserts.

The border line stretches for an unknown number of thousands of miles, and even if the French government wants to deploy heavy troops for defense, there are not so many troops to fill in, and the burden of defense naturally falls on the colonial government.

There is no doubt that on the one hand, there are fiefdom nobles who fight for themselves, and on the other hand, there are indigenous armies that work for the French, and the combat effectiveness and will of combat effectiveness on both sides are not at the same level.

Victory is always the most morale-boosting, and Admiral Fisraf, who was worried about whether the French would cross the river, now only thinks about how to fight it.

……

Inside the headquarters, Chief of Staff von Franc said with a smile: "This is already the thirty-sixth telegram proposing to blow up the Suez Canal, my Excellency Commander, now is the time to make up your mind." ”

Admiral Fislav glared at him angrily, rolled his eyes and said, "You think I don't want to, but the impact of blowing up the Suez Canal is too great."

We can't use it ourselves, anyway, the country has been prepared for a long time, and we don't expect to be able to use it normally in wartime.

The problem is that when the Suez Canal was opened, we issued a proclamation of the eternal neutrality of the canal, which clearly declared that the free navigation of the canal would be guaranteed at all times.

Now, because of the war, the canal has been temporarily closed, and the country is under great diplomatic pressure.

If it were reported at this time that we had blown up the canal, international public opinion, which had been in our favor, would have been reversed in an instant. ”

Whether you like to admit it or not, war is in the service of politics. As a high-level commander, Admiral Fislav had to consider the political implications.

Don't look at the closure of the Suez Canal now, in fact, neither France nor Austria has publicly announced it, and some are just a proposal from the Footwrap Canal Company.

Theoretically, the Suez Canal is still navigable, and neither France nor Austria can stop it.

Of course, as long as you listen to the roaring artillery fire on both sides, no one dares to pass through the canal at this time.

Not daring and not being able are completely different concepts, and now it is the French and Austrian who bear the international pressure together, because the war was provoked by the French, and most of everyone's resentment is directed against the French.

It would have been different if the Austrians had blown up the canal, and it would not have been the French who had cut off the people's money, but the Austrian government.

It seems that being scolded is just a small problem, but it is a deep analysis. That would mean that the government's painstaking accumulation of international credibility would be directly destroyed.

The loss of international credibility will inevitably affect the re-establishment of the international order in Austria after the war, and the interests involved will be great.

Von Franck nodded, agreeing with this explanation, but the next words directly made Feslav half angry.

"That's your question, who made you the commander? The General Staff is only responsible for drawing up battle plans, and the political influence has nothing to do with us. ”

Looking at the gloating chief of staff, Admiral Fislaw only wanted to punch him, but this could only be thought.

Rules are rules, and from the very beginning of the establishment of the Austrian staff system, they were forbidden to mix in politics.

If you really run to consider the problem from the political level, then it is not far from getting out.

This is part of the balance of power, mainly to learn the lesson of the German staff in the original time and space to seize power in World War I, which is a taboo that cannot be touched.

In fact, Admiral Fislav, the commander, is also restricted from being involved in politics, but his special status determines that he must consider issues politically.

Problems that cannot be decided will naturally have to be reported. Anything that could affect the future strategy of the Reich was decided only by the Vienna government.

……

In the evening, rows of rafts were quietly launched, and Colonel Boardman was on the front line to make the final mobilization for the sneak attack.

Looking at the energetic young men, Colonel Boardman neglected to feel that he was full of guilt.

Risking their lives knowing that there is little hope is murder in a sense.

But war is so cruel, in order to win the final victory, no opportunity can be missed.

Colonel Boardman's self-reproach, which did not last long, was soon broken by a voice.

"Colonel, the time for action has come. The enemy's searchlights had just swept over, and we had only fifteen minutes. ”

With the advent of the electric age, it is natural that it has also been applied to the military, such as searchlights on the battlefield.

The Suez Canal has a limited width, and the light can shine directly on the opposite side, which naturally becomes a sharp weapon to prevent the enemy from sneaking attacks at night.

"Attack!"

……