The headquarters of the Anglo-French army, located south of the Marne, was in a state of gloom. The news of the heavy losses suffered by the 1st and 3rd armies of the British expeditionary forces and the 1st French armies under the attack of the German 1st and 8th armies, was communicated to them. After Marshal Xia Fei received such a telegram, he was silent for a long time. Obviously, even he himself did not expect that the Anglo-French army would be defeated so badly.

"Your Excellency, now that we are in Paris, only the 4th Army of the British Expeditionary Force and the 10th Army of the French Army remain. The two armies totaled only 400,000 men. Even with the 100,000 men of the 1st Army, the strength was only comparable to that of the Germans. Moreover, the 4th Army of the British Expeditionary Force and our 10th Army were both newly formed units, and their combat effectiveness was worrying. It was almost impossible to use these forces to fend off the German attack. Admiral Foch looked worried, even desperate.

The breakthrough of the German 1st Army Corps and the 8th Army Corps on the left flank undoubtedly dealt a fatal blow to the British and French forces. Now, even their capital was under the threat of the Germans. It is estimated that in a few days, the Germans will be in Paris. When the time comes, how will this battle continue?

"It is almost impossible to hold Paris with those troops alone. We don't even have the strength to defend Paris now. Let's not forget, here we are, also suppressed by the Germans. When it was defeated by the Germans, it is very difficult to say. Marshal Xia Fei said.

Admiral Foch was stunned for a moment, and his face turned even pale.

Indeed, Paris may not be able to hold it anyway. After a crushing defeat on the left flank, the Germans were to advance directly to Paris. And here, too, they could not withstand the attack of the Germans. If the Anglo-French forces were also defeated at the Marne line, they would not have the extra forces to defend Paris. In the face of the German attack, they were bound to lose.

It's just that such a result is undoubtedly somewhat unacceptable for a French* soldier. After all, they were fighting for France, desperately fighting with the Germans. But is this war already doomed?

"Your Excellency Marshal, if we lose Paris, will we surrender to the Germans?" Admiral Foch asked.

Marshal Xia Fei thought for a moment, and then said: "This is not something I can decide, it is up to the president and the government to decide. But, as a soldier, I will fight the Germans to the end! ”

Admiral Foch nodded, he was also unwilling to surrender to the Germans. Of course, if the president and the government decide to surrender, there is no way to do it.

"Your Excellency, the Germans have once again launched a massive artillery bombardment of our defensive line, and they have used at least thousands of cannons." A staff officer, Marshal Xia Fei, with a panicked face, reported.

Marshal Xia Fei and Admiral Foch were both nervous. Obviously, they all anticipated the intentions of the Germans. With the German 1st and 8th Army Corps already victorious, the German army on the Marne Line could not sit still.

"Order all the departments on the front, hold the line, and prepare to fight the Germans to the death!" Marshal Xia Fei ordered.

If their defenses were torn apart by the Germans and they were defeated, the Germans would be able to encircle Paris. It would be absolutely impossible for the Anglo-French troops stationed in Paris to hold back the German attack. All Marshal Xia Fei could do was to hold on to the Marne line and continue to hold on. As for whether there will be a turnaround, it's hard to say.

"Boom! Rumble! Rumble! ”

On the Marne front, thousands of German artillery pieces were firing fiercely. Trolleys transporting artillery shells were rushing back and forth to transport shells from the ammunition depot to the artillery positions. The gunners, shirtless, stuffed shells into the chambers and fired them.

The positions of the British and French forces were once again hit by heavy German artillery fire. Although, in the previous battles, the Germans had almost plowed through the positions of the British and French forces with shells. Most of the fortifications were destroyed by heavy German shelling. The rest are fortifications that have survived some shelling corners. In addition, there were some positions reconstructed by the British and French forces in the interval between German artillery bombardment.

But now, under the heavy shelling of the German army, these fortifications have been destroyed again.

As for the artillery of the Anglo-French army, it was silent. They simply don't have much left. The previous German artillery suppression had already bombed, and the artillery of the British and French forces had already paid extremely heavy losses. The existing cannons were regarded as treasures by the British and French forces, and they did not dare to use them easily. Rather than having those cannons destroyed in a fierce artillery battle with the Germans, it would be more cost-effective to wait for the German infantry to attack.

The German army's fire preparation this time did not last long, and an hour later, the shells began to extend to the deep positions of the British and French forces. The Anglo-French army knew that this was a precursor to an offensive by the Germans.

The reason why the Germans did not prepare for artillery fire for a long time was, on the one hand, to save shells. After the Battle of the Marne, the next time I am afraid it will be the turn to attack Paris. If the French refused to surrender, there would be a fierce battle between the two sides, and at that time, Paris, the romantic capital, would probably be razed to the ground by German shells. For this reason, the Germans naturally had to store as many shells as possible. On the other hand, because the defense line of the British and French forces has long been almost destroyed, there is naturally no need to waste shells.

"Attack!"

As soon as the artillery fire began to extend, the commander of the front gave the order to attack.

This time, instead of direct infantry sorties, four armored divisions, in four sectors, launched an attack.

A large number of black-painted tanks poured out of the German positions like a black tide and rushed towards the positions of the British and French forces. These black tanks formed a torrent of steel that no one could stop.

"Oh God! Tanks of the Germans, a lot of tanks. A French soldier said in horror.

"Damn, how could the Germans have so many tanks? How can we resist? ”

"What about anti-tank guns and anti-tank guns? Get ready for battle! "There are still some brave people who are not intimidated by the huge size of the German tanks and are still ready to continue fighting. However, in the previous battles, the Anglo-French anti-tank guns and gunners suffered heavy losses. The remaining anti-tank guns and gunners, if they want to stop so many tanks of the German army, it is undoubtedly a fool's dream.