Before the Pavia battleground, Napoleon raised his hat from afar towards Marmon to show his approval: "Your outstanding performance has truly amazed me, Auguste.
"I couldn't get in contact with you, yet you accurately chose the best interception position and delivered a fatal blow to the enemy.
"I was preparing for a grueling battle, but now, haha, we can sit down and enjoy a cup of coffee."
Marmon appeared slightly uneasy, spurred his horse to trot forward quickly: "I merely did what I was supposed to do. Uh, in truth, the enemy was utterly incapable of resistance…
"By the way, I heard from the captive officer that you have successfully captured Milan?"
This was not modesty; in fact, most of his main forces were already on their way to Milan.
Previously, he discovered that Lieputai had suddenly retreated, suspecting that the latter had gone to reinforce Milan, and thus ordered his troops to pursue eastward.