Fight

Not only did Arthur and John make progress, but Charles, Flying Eagle, and Davey also achieved breakthroughs.

Comparatively, the Russian soldiers were far inferior to the British and French soldiers of the same period, especially in an era before World War I. France, in particular, was proudly waving the banner of a 'Great Republic,' boasting a terrifying empire with a standing army of millions!

In fact, at this stage, France was indeed formidable. The only power in the entire world capable of suppressing it was the Germany Empire, known for its strictness.

Moreover, France had not yet gone through World War I, and its population could still support a massive war.

Excellent economic and industrial foundations, coupled with the high quality of their soldiers, made the French and British armies virtually invincible in this era!

However, in reality, signs of domestic fatigue were already appearing, but this ailing tiger was only just beginning to feel unwell.

Arthur and John could rely on large-scale bombardments to suppress the Russian army, but for the British and French forces who had already entered the city, Davey and his men faced a more difficult fight.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

A series of cannon roars sounded from the makeshift positions, and with the explosion of gunpowder, shells roared towards the distant British positions.

Smoke and the flash of explosions appeared at the British positions, and severed limbs filled the British trenches.

Although England only sent an army of 20,000, this number was by no means small, and they had all the necessary artillery and various military supplies.

Facing Van der Linde's bombardment, their highly skilled soldiers were able to quickly muster resistance.

"Boom, boom, boom..."

Immediately after bombarding the British positions, Mr. Van der Linde's positions also came under fire.

However, thanks to the increased range, the British bombardment currently had little effect.

But they had noticed this and were gradually advancing to bring Van der Linde's forces within range.

"Davey! The British army has advanced again!" Mike, holding two small pistols, walked in covered in dust from outside the trench defense, shouting to Davey, who was in charge of commanding inside.

"Fall back! Quick, quick, quick, keep falling back! The British cannons can't reach us. If they advance, we retreat. We'll skirmish with them!"

Davey shouted, holding a red book, then pointed to the red book in his hand and said, "Dutch said, 'Enemy advances, I retreat; enemy tires, I attack; enemy retreats, I pursue.' Damn it, we currently have the advantage of artillery range, so let's fully exploit this advantage!

Remember, Mike, every Van der Linde's Guard is our most precious asset. Protecting our soldiers with the best strategy is the principle of sustainable combat!"

"Oh, sh*t! I'm starting to not understand what you're saying now, Davey!" Mike cursed angrily.

"Then you've studied too little! Damn it, how many times have I told you to go to the tavern less, and see fewer ladies? You never listen! What if you just studied Dutch's books for a while after you're done at night?

Why do you never read them? Mike, damn it, I can't believe such a stupid person is my brother! We're completely on different levels now!" Davey roared, wishing he could go up and slap Mike a few times.

Damn it, this idiot makes him feel exhausted every day; he's never seen anyone so lazy!

"Oh, sh*t! Enough, enough! You don't need to say anymore. You're still scolding me during a battle?" Mike waved his hand impatiently, then ran out without looking back to relay Davey's orders.

"Sh*t! Stupid! Idiot! Damn bastard!" Davey himself cursed loudly in the command post.

The various books written by Dutch Van der Linde seemed unnutritious at first glance, almost like common knowledge, but upon closer inspection, he seemed like a god. All aspects, all ideas, were clearly encompassed. Whether it was strategy, politics, or military affairs, he described them concisely yet very usefully.

All the strategies Davey was now using to strike the British army were learned from Dutch's books.

A great man is indeed a great man; his summary of guerrilla warfare was the essence.

The British army was being tormented by Davey and his men.

In fact, they were originally stationed in Washington city and had not left the city to fight this torturous war of attrition with the Van der Linde Gang.

But Davey continuously sent out various small forces to launch small-scale surprise attacks on British troops in various locations.

Sometimes two or three people would be sent to raid, with one or two hundred people providing support, to ensure no losses.

After a raid, the British army would gather its forces and begin a sweep, only to be bombarded from a distance.

When the British army sent out troops to directly encircle the bombarded area, they would once again fall into this war of attrition.

But in this war of attrition, only the enemy could hit them, and they couldn't hit the enemy. After being pulled back and forth two or three times and losing a dozen people to artillery fire, they would hastily contract their defenses and return to Washington.

But upon returning to Washington, Davey would again send soldiers to ambush and pick off one or two.

Although the number of British soldiers picked off in a single ambush was small, perhaps only one or two, or three to five, the sheer frequency of attacks was overwhelming.

With frequent attacks, the British army would get agitated, gather their forces, and go out to encircle, only to be bombarded again because they were clustered together...

Davey maximized the long-range versus short-range pulling tactics, tormenting the British army to no end.

The troops dared not gather together, because if they did, they would be bombarded.

But the troops also dared not disperse, because if they dispersed, they would be picked off individually.

How the hell do you fight this?

It's truly torment without repetition!

The British army was on the verge of collapse from being strung along. Yet, they couldn't massacre American civilians to threaten these damned Van der Linde's Guard, which meant they had no way to control them.

Originally, there were British patrols outside Washington, but now they were so harassed that they didn't even dare to send out patrols.

Washington was no longer being defended; they just kept going out, trying to corner Davey and his men and push them back!

But as soon as they pushed, Davey would lead his team and run.

The Van der Linde's Guard were still divided into three groups: one group, led by Davey, harassed with artillery from outside; another group hid in the wilderness, and as soon as the British army in Washington came out, they would sneak into Washington to strike the stationed British troops.

And another group followed the Van der Linde warships, harassing and bombarding the British fleet at sea.

This left the British army completely helpless.

While Davey and his men were making the British army here suffer, Charles, Flying Eagle, and Bill had already engaged in real combat with the French army.

"Boom, boom, boom…"

Artillery fire filled the sky.

Because of Mr. Van der Linde's previous act of aiding the enemy by selling weapons to France, although France had not yet mass-produced longer-range artillery and Venice Giant Cannons, the French were already prepared for them.

They knew Mr. Van der Linde's cannons were powerful and had an extremely long range, so after occupying Delaware, they immediately began building bunkers to defend against shelling.

In addition, their warships carrying Venice Giant Cannons were docked in the port. Delaware was originally a major port state, so these giant cannons could cover almost the entire area of Delaware's port cities, preventing Van der Linde's Guard from gaining too much initiative.

Mr. Van der Linde did not have many warships, so he could not launch an attack from the sea to strike the French warships.

So Charles, Bill, and the others could only lead their troops to issue a declaration of war to the French army in Delaware.

Compared to Arthur, who indiscriminately fired cannons, or Davey, who constantly used underhanded tactics, the battle process in this place was a bit too gentlemanly.

January 18, 1901, Spring.

Charles, Flying Eagle, and Bill walked around Delaware, then went in for another look. The few of them gathered to discuss, but found no solution.

Flying Eagle and Bill were more inclined to individual combat, in their own words.

"Charles, it's not that troublesome. I think we can just ride in, kill, and leave, then go back and kill at night!

Oh, and we brought explosives this time. Throw the explosives in, and once the scene is chaotic, we can completely take advantage of the confusion!" Bill said exaggeratedly, still wearing his thick, baggy pants.

"Sh*t! Are you crazy! That's twenty thousand men, not two hundred, Bill! Dutch will kill us if we dare to do that!" Charles felt like he was going crazy.

None of the people he brought could come up with a good idea.

Flying Eagle said with a serious expression, "I think we should just issue a declaration of war to them, Charles."

Flying Eagle had also studied at the military university founded by Mr. Van der Linde.

But this child was a bit too straightforward; he didn't learn the strategic twists and turns, only how to issue a declaration of war.

After reviewing European history, he discovered a strange point.

That was, Europeans seemed a bit too straightforward. As long as you issued a declaration of war, or clearly stated when you would fight a battle.

Then they would very readily and trustingly go to the appointment, set up their formations, and fight you.

This made Flying Eagle very difficult to understand. He thought these might just be some anecdotes, but now he wanted to try it.

"Alright, it can only be this way," Charles sighed, then nodded.

January 19, 1901, Spring.

Van der Linde's Guard sent personnel to deliver a declaration of war to the French army in Delaware.

The declaration clearly stated that Van der Linde's Guard would engage in a decisive battle with the French army on the outskirts of Delaware three days later.

The letter stated: This war is a battle between gentlemen, please be sure to follow the promise!

After discussing for a full two hours, the French army finally replied with a letter.

This letter first praised Van der Linde's Guard for their gentlemanly conduct, and then proudly accepted Van der Linde's Guard's proposal of war.

Three days later, on January 22, 1901, Spring.

Both the Van der Linde and French sides each mobilized ten thousand troops and engaged in a proper battle on the outskirts of Delaware.

Flying Eagle was stunned, Charles was stunned, and Bill was stunned.

They never expected these Frenchmen to be so punctual, and to not have thought of any crooked ideas at all. They really just prepared supplies for three days, and then properly confronted them.

The commander of the French army fighting them was very happy.

During the battle, he didn't forget to send a reporter over with a message.

'Mr. Van der Linde's troops are truly honest and trustworthy; this is an extremely gentlemanly act!'

In reality, these French were truly happy. They actually didn't want to fight the Americans; what they truly wanted to fight now was Germany.

In the Prussian-French War, the Germans brought them immense pain. William I was crowned German Emperor in the Palace of Versailles in France. How was that any different from riding on their heads and sh*tting?

The reason France fought so fiercely in World War I was to retaliate for the pain of the Prussian-French War.

And this time, when the American troops were dispatched, these French soldiers, including their commander, did not want to fight the Americans.

Not to mention the long distance, the key was that they had no hatred for the Americans, and with an Atlantic Ocean between them, they simply couldn't threaten France.

The French military headquarters was even more inclined not to participate in this incident.

But unfortunately, the French government, in order to expand its interests and mend the wounds of the Prussian-French War, forcefully overruled all objections and sent them over.

This is why they are a bit playful now, because they never intended to fight in the first place, just like Italy in World War II.

This war lasted for a whole day.

At first, both sides exchanged artillery fire. Van der Linde's Guard's weapons were far more advanced than theirs, which caused the French army to suffer a considerable hidden loss.

Subsequently, these Frenchmen felt they couldn't continue with the artillery bombardment; it was too disadvantageous.

So they sent someone over to negotiate.

Both sides would stop shelling and resume fighting after resting for a day.

Charles and Flying Eagle agreed to this idea. The French were very happy, thinking that Mr. Van der Linde's troops were truly gentlemen to the extreme! This was a true manifestation of civilization!

So these Frenchmen held a dinner party in their camp, drank red wine, ate steak, and slept soundly all night.

The next day, both sides continued to shell each other.

The French hadn't dug trenches yesterday, and they were still at a disadvantage today. They fought for a whole day, and by evening, they came to ask for peace again.

Charles and Flying Eagle agreed again.

That night, these Frenchmen continued to drink the unfinished red wine.

Until late at night, a group of soldiers in steel armor appeared before them, carrying modified Maxim light machine guns.

Delaware fell.

No, the French army in Delaware fell.

It is said that the French prisoners, who had fought Van der Linde's Guard for two full days, were still smiling as they were being loaded onto the prisoner transport train, asking, "Does Mr. Van der Linde provide wine?"

In their minds, with a powerful homeland like France behind them, they might not even reach the American West before France would demand their return through diplomatic means. So there was no need to fear or panic at all.

This is also why they were not at all serious during those two days of shelling.

The prisoners from the three sides, with varying moods, were grandly transported to Mr. Van der Linde's western territory.

But the impact of these three wars had only just begun.

January 25, 1901, Spring.

The news of the complete defeat of the British, French, and Russian fleets swept across the world like a storm through newspapers.

These three pieces of news had an earthquake-like impact globally.

No one could have predicted that Mr. Van der Linde's troops would be so capable in battle!

That was sixty thousand soldiers! Sixty thousand men, defeated by them in such a short time?

What kind of terrifying combat power was that?

It should be noted that, according to history, when the Empress Dowager Cixi confronted the Allied forces, the actual number of Allied participants was only thirty to forty thousand.

With an actual sixty thousand troops participating, this was no longer a so-called small-scale battle. The total number of personnel involved on both sides had reached over one hundred thousand, making it a medium-scale major war.

This was also because both sides were long-distance landings, bringing only food and weapons, with no logistical personnel. Otherwise, based on the ratio of logistical personnel to combat personnel, this battle could truly be called a major war.

And a warlord from the West, Dutch Van der Linde, was not only able to withstand this major war but even won it!

And won easily!

It is conceivable that Dutch Van der Linde has completely surpassed the scale of an ordinary warlord!

Tsar Nicholas II was furious. It is said that he broke his newly bought sandals that day and declared, "I will make America and Dutch Van der Linde suffer true pain!"