Chapter 407: Can This Fool the Germans?
On the road from Arras to Cambrai, Foch sat in a speeding car, his interest piqued as he flipped through the file in his hands—equipment information about Charles's troops.
Cambrai was within the operational zone of Foch's Northern Army Group. As most of the support and supplies required for Charles's operations in Cambrai were provided by this group, Foch needed to understand the equipment situation.
"Interesting," Foch said as he scanned the document. "He’s fully motorized his troops—tanks, armored vehicles, and trucks. Even the artillery isn’t exempt."
Foch turned to his chief of staff, Weygand, who was sitting beside him. "What do you think?"
Weygand, Foch's principal aide and the most fervent advocate of his "offensive doctrine," had risen rapidly through the ranks after gaining Foch's favor two years earlier. He had served as chief of staff of the 20th Army Corps, then the 9th Army, and was now chief of staff of the Northern Army Group.
"With all due respect, General," Weygand replied emotionlessly, "I don’t believe this is the right approach. Such vehicles could easily become targets for devastating enemy fire."
Foch nodded slightly, indicating his agreement. He had reviewed the data on the armored vehicles and artillery—they seemed rather vulnerable.
Especially those so-called "truck-mounted guns," which were nothing more than a simple combination of trucks and cannons, with perhaps some reinforcement to the chassis.
Foch couldn’t help but envision these vehicles being destroyed one after another under enemy fire.
"Moreover," Weygand added, "I question the battlefield effectiveness of these vehicles. Other units are moving on foot—they can’t keep up with Charles’s forces. Does Charles think he can defeat the Germans single-handedly with just his 10,000 men?"
Foch did not argue; he didn’t know how to refute the point.
Without support from other units, speed could just mean rushing headlong into an enemy encirclement—delivering a quicker death.
"However," Foch mused, "the fact remains that he keeps winning, Colonel, and he’s never lost."
"That might be due to our tactics," Weygand replied.
"Our tactics?" Foch looked at Weygand in surprise. Could he be doubting the "offensive doctrine" too?
But Foch quickly realized he had misunderstood.
Weygand explained, "Our tactics are no secret to the Germans. They’re using similar tactics against us. We know each other well, as they can predict our next move."
"You’re saying," Foch interjected, "that with the Germans already accustomed to our tactics, Charles’s sudden shift to a different approach has thrown them off balance?"
"Exactly," Weygand affirmed. "Petain’s defensive tactics are similar in that they differ from the ‘offensive doctrine.’"
After a pause, Weygand concluded, "Once the Germans become accustomed to their own tactics, it will lead to their defeat. Ultimately, the battle will return to its original point—offense."
Foch remained silent.
Though he had developed and championed the "offensive doctrine" and had once firmly believed in it, his conversations with Charles had planted seeds of doubt. Now, he refrained from declaring which approach was correct.
At that moment, the car entered a mountain pass, where several heavily armed guards approached. The vehicle slowed to a halt for inspection.
…
Charles had a habit of avoiding camps within towns. Though more comfortable and convenient, such locations offered the enemy opportunities for decapitation strikes and put civilians at risk.
Unless in exceptional circumstances, he always set up his headquarters in the forest.
At this moment, Charles had just received news of Grevy and Armand’s arrest.
He marveled at how clever and cautious Grevy had been—far beyond what Charles had imagined.
Who would have thought the book hidden in the safe was inconsequential? It was Balzac’s The Peasants, which aligned well with Grevy’s right-wing identity and ideals.
But it was merely a decoy to bait others into stealing it and to alert Grevy.
Each time Grevy placed it in the safe, he carefully inserted strands of hair between the pages. If anyone tampered with it, he would know immediately. Then, he would pretend The Peasants was a cipher book, sending out irrelevant telegrams.
The real cipher book was actually his personal diary, which he carried at all times.
Using old diary pages to encode new entries, he synchronized updates with trusted agents in Germany. This way, the ciphers changed daily and were never reused.
But Grevy made one critical oversight—Armand.
This vulnerability allowed everything to fall into place:Harleyy extracted intelligence from Armand, and the infiltrator posing as a “servant” in Grevy’s household photographed the diary pages. Grevy’s secrets were now laid bare.
This was a major victory for Charles. The right-wing forces would suffer a devastating blow.
The party leader collaborating with the enemy?
And their target was Charles?
This was nothing short of dragging all of France into the abyss!
The public would inevitably speculate:
Did the right-wing forces hope to invite foreign intervention or collude with external powers to restore the monarchy?
It seemed likely that Grevy was not acting alone—the entire right-wing faction was suspect.
…
Consequently, right-wing deputies would be forced to keep their heads down, whether or not they were aware of Grevy’s actions. Schneider, for one, would cut ties with them, fearing the taint of scandal.
Then, it would be Charles’s turn to step onto the stage…
As Charles pondered, a communications officer entered and reported, "Brigadier, General Foch has arrived."
Before the officer finished speaking, Foch entered with a cheerful smile, bending slightly as he stepped in. "How are things, Brigadier? It’s been a while!"
(Note: In 1910, the average height in France was 166.8 cm. Foch, at 175 cm, was considered tall for the time.)
"All is well, General," Charles replied, stepping forward to shake his hand.
Foch curiously glanced around the bunker, his tone admiring. "You share hardships with your soldiers—more than most French generals do."
"Not really, General," Charles said self-deprecatingly. "I’m just more cowardly. I can’t risk assassination by staying in town."
Foch laughed heartily; he didn’t believe for a moment that Charles’s choice was driven by cowardice.
Foch then turned to the main topic. "You intentionally let everyone think you and your troops would appear in the Bastille Day parade, didn’t you?"
"Yes," Charles admitted with a nod.
"Do you think this can fool the Germans?" Foch asked, skeptical.
"If it were just that, probably not," Charles replied.
Foch picked up on the nuance in Charles’s words. "There’s more?"
Charles smiled. "Not just more—much more."
Charles had made extensive preparations for today’s offensive.