CHAPTER 551: CHAPTER 543 MARSHAL SAINT ARNO RETURNS

The news that General Pelissier led the Anglo-French Army to occupy the South Shore of Sevastopol was relayed by cavalry to the Allied Command located on the North Shore of Sevastopol. Upon hearing this news, the commanders on the North Shore of Sevastopol displayed expressions of surprise.

In the Allied Command’s plan, after the Anglo-French combined forces reached the South Shore of Sevastopol, they were not supposed to immediately advance into the South Shore. Instead, they were to display an intention to advance to the South Shore, forcing the Russian Empire to divert some troops to defend against General Pelissier.

This would alleviate the burden on General Troche, and the Anglo-French forces near Malakhov Castle only needed to quietly wait for the arrival of artillery to take the next step.

Who knew General Pelissier was not one to adhere to siege tactics (France after the Napoleonic Wars favored siege tactics), and soon after reaching the vicinity of Malakhov Castle, Pelissier delivered a "black hand" to the South Shore of Sevastopol.

With high morale, the Anglo-French forces used "human wave tactics," scaring the Russian Empire, which was low on morale, into retreat and thereby occupying Malakhov Castle, and then seamlessly also occupying the South Shore of Sevastopol.

"Quick! Send someone to Constantinople immediately... No! I must personally go to Constantinople to commend General Pelissier!"

Marshal Saint Arnau, recovering from his surprise, remarked excitedly to Jerome Patterson at his side.

Among everyone present, if anyone was most concerned about General Pelissier, it was undoubtedly Marshal Saint Arnau.

Since Pelissier took over as the acting commander-in-chief of the Allies, Marshal Saint Arnau’s posthumous reputation has been closely tied to General Pelissier.

Just like Hindenburg and Ludendorff during World War I, Pelissier’s success is Marshal Saint Arnau’s success, and conversely, Pelissier’s failure would be Saint Arnau’s failure.

For the ailing Marshal Saint Arnau, General Pelissier is his lifeline to maintaining his legacy.

As long as General Pelissier captures Sevastopol before he dies, Saint Arnau can claim the credit for capturing Sevastopol.

Even though this achievement might seem insignificant compared to those marshals of the Napoleonic era, among the French generals of Marshal Saint Arnau’s time, his achievements outshine theirs by a large margin.

Even Marshal Biron, who completely conquered Algeria, cannot compare to Marshal Saint Arnau!

Even if subsequent battles achieve more brilliant results than Sevastopol, that cannot undermine his position.

Unless the Allied Forces capture St. Petersburg or Moscow, only then can Marshal Saint Arnau’s glory be overshadowed.

Even if the Anglo-French forces really capture the heart of the Russian Empire, Saint Arnau believes that he will still be the subject of the Empire’s propaganda after his death.

According to Marshal Saint Arnau’s understanding of His Majesty the Emperor, His Majesty loves to bestow a series of honors on the deceased to highlight his own majestic and upright image.

His Majesty treats the marshals of the First Empire this way, so the posthumous honors of this Second Empire marshal personally discovered by His Majesty will certainly not be inferior to those of the First Empire marshals.

Of course, all of this is premised on General Pelissier not undermining him, and while it’s true that Marshal Saint Arnau enjoys the Emperor’s favor, the veteran General Pelissier is also a beloved and trusted general of the Emperor.

If General Pelissier were not a confidant of the Emperor, the Emperor would never have entrusted the "Imperial Guard" to General Pelissier.

Not to mention that now Pelissier has already won the battles of Alma and Sevastopol, making his weight in the Emperor’s heart more significant than before.

Marshal Saint Arnau can deceive the French by saying that the Sevastopol campaign was his operation, but he cannot deceive the Emperor in Paris.

Pelissier’s attitude will be crucial in determining whether Marshal Saint Arnau receives posthumous honors.

Thus, Marshal Saint Arnau is willing to personally go to Constantinople to advocate for General Pelissier.

According to the previous agreement between Pelissier and Marshal Saint Arnau, after capturing the Sevastopol Fortress, Saint Arnau would take the credit, and General Pelissier would take the benefits.

Now that the Sevastopol Fortress has been captured, Marshal Saint Arnau must show Pelissier his attitude.

Standing beside Marshal Saint Arnau, Jerome Patterson clearly didn’t know about the matters between Marshal Saint Arnau and Pelissier, and he said worriedly to Marshal Saint Arnau, "But... Marshal, your health!"

"Cough... cough!" Marshal Saint Arnau cleared his throat, a relieved smile appearing on his lips, and said, "I know my own body; I fear it won’t last much longer... Actually, my condition has been poor ever since that fainting spell! But to avoid unsettling the whole army, I’ve been holding on... Now that the battle is over! I can finally relax!"

After saying this, Marshal Saint Arnau resembled a deflated balloon, his smile turning very feeble and revealing a sense of weakness.

Looking at the French Commander before him, Commander Lagren felt a sense of shared fate and sorrow.

Marshal Saint Arno, born in 1798, was only 56 now, while Commander Lagren himself was already 64.

The Saint Arno before him now was entirely different from the one he had met in the Varna Region, which made him feel sad.

"Arno, we’ve already won! You can relax for a while!" Commander Lagren tried to comfort Marshal Saint Arno: "Constantinople is indeed a good place for recuperation. Go there and rest for a few days. When our troops set off again, you can return to Sevastopol to command the battle!"

"Indeed!" La Malamor also chimed in, praising him: "Which of us isn’t impressed with your command! The Allies still need you to lead them!"

"That’s right!" Omar Pasha also nodded in agreement.

"Thank you all for your kindness!" Saint Arno smiled, saying something even he didn’t quite believe: "I will recover quickly and return here to fight alongside you!"

"We await your return in Sevastopol!" Commander Lagren replied to Marshal Saint Arno with a heavy heart.

"Hmm!" Marshal Saint Arno nodded slightly, catching his breath, and then turned his gaze to Jerome Patterson, speaking urgently: "Captain Jerome!"

"Present!" Jerome Patterson, infected by the heavy atmosphere, replied in a low tone.

"Pull yourself together!" Marshal Saint Arno sternly said to Jerome Patterson: "Within you flows the blood of the Bonaparte Clan!"

"Yes!" Jerome Patterson replied loudly.

"Very good!" Marshal Saint Arno nodded with satisfaction, "Listen! While I am in Constantinople for recuperation, General Pelissey of the Guard Division will take over all my positions and manage the French Expeditionary Army. Everyone in the French Army must follow General Pelissey’s instructions! Do you understand?"

"Understood!" Jerome Patterson replied loudly.

"Very good!" Marshal Saint Arno sighed with relief and waved his hand: "Immediately spread this news to the French troops!"

"Yes!" Jerome Patterson saluted Marshal Saint Arno and left the Allied Command.

Watching Jerome Patterson depart, Marshal Saint Arno showed a relieved smile, then turned to the three commanders before him and said sincerely: "Commander Lagren, Commander Malamor, Commander Omar, I hope after I leave, you will coordinate with General Pelissey as much as possible! Honestly, General Pelissey is much more capable than I am!"

"Rest assured! We will definitely cooperate with General Pelissey’s actions!" Commander Lagren replied to Marshal Saint Arno: "After all, who can refuse a general leading us to victory!"

"Indeed!" La Malamor also responded: "General Pelissey’s achievements are evident to all of us!"

"Quite right!" Omar Pasha also nodded in agreement.

"Sorry for the trouble!" Marshal Saint Arno saluted the three commanders present, who immediately returned his salute.

That afternoon, Marshal Saint Arno, the commander of the French Expeditionary Army, took a carriage to the South Shore of Sevastopol.

At this moment, Pelissey was wrapping up work on the South Shore of Sevastopol, and the arrival of Marshal Saint Arno forced General Pelissey to stop his work and follow behind him.

"Thank you for your efforts!" Looking at the undamaged city before him, Marshal Saint Arno said, holding Pelissey’s hand.

"It’s nothing!" Pelissey shook his head in response, then asked with concern: "Commander, your health..."

"It’s already failing!" Marshal Saint Arno sighed deeply and replied to General Pelissey with eager eyes: "Promise me! You must keep winning! Only victory can secure our place in history!"

Under Saint Arno’s hopeful gaze, General Pelissey mumbled, trying to say something, but in the end, he didn’t speak.

Ultimately, Pelissey solemnly saluted Marshal Saint Arno.

Marshal Saint Arno also returned the salute with a serious expression.