The Rise Of Australasia

As the representatives of Germany and France discussed their first meeting, at the military camp outside Paris, Charles de Gaulle, the commander of the Paris defense armored forces, was also meeting Martin, the Commander-in-Chief of the Australasia Expeditionary Force, and the army's third division General.

"General Martin, what brings you here?" Seeing Martin, looking exhausted from the journey, a somewhat depressed de Gaulle couldn't help but be surprised and asked with a puzzled face.

"General de Gaulle, I have already heard about your government's decision," Martin said to de Gaulle, getting straight to the point.

"If Your Excellency is here to mock us, then you have succeeded, and I wish you a not so fond farewell," de Gaulle said, his face growing even more sullen with anger as he mentioned the French government's decision.

"Of course not, General de Gaulle," Martin shook his head, looking seriously at de Gaulle and said, "I just want to ask General de Gaulle one question."

"What question?" Hearing that the other party was not there to mock him and France, de Gaulle's expression improved significantly, and he asked.

"Does General de Gaulle really wish to see France head towards destruction?" Martin asked meaningfully.

"What can I do?" de Gaulle shook his head helplessly, smiling bitterly at Martin, "I am just the commander of the armored forces; I can't even influence the Paris defense forces, let alone make decisions for the military and government."

"No, now you have the power," Martin shook his head, his gaze towards de Gaulle carried a hint of a smile.

"Huh?" de Gaulle suddenly froze, quickly lifting his head to look at Martin.

"General de Gaulle, would you like to become the Commander-in-Chief of the French Army?" Martin continued with a smile, but his words surprised de Gaulle greatly.

"Commander-in-Chief of the Army? No, that's not possible," de Gaulle shook his head, saying incredulously.

Given his current qualifications and position, unless he made substantial contributions during the war, it was simply impossible for him to become the Commander-in-Chief of the Army.

Moreover, there were many generals with more seniority than him; the position of Commander-in-Chief of the Army was absolutely impossible for him.

"But what if you have the support of us and the British?" Hearing de Gaulle's response, Martin's smile deepened, and he revealed the truth, "The foolish French government doesn't understand what they are doing; they are creating an extremely powerful enemy for the whole of Europe.

Compared to the foolish and ignorant French government, both we and the British would prefer to work with a true Frenchman like you, General de Gaulle.

Whether it's for France or for our own countries, the most important thing now is to win this damned war."

Hearing this, de Gaulle swallowed hard, his eyes flashing with a hint of madness.

It was true, if they let the government and military carry out this so-called undefended Paris policy and surrenderism, it might only take the German Army a few days to take Paris.

Without Paris, France would then be at the mercy of the Germans. Although it indeed could avoid war, was this bare survival in exchange for the annihilation of the country really what the French wanted?

"The British have already agreed to help us?" de Gaulle was still somewhat incredulous, repeatedly confirming with Martin.

"Of course. If General de Gaulle does not believe it, you can later call the headquarters of the Expeditionary Force of Britain to confirm the news.

Please be assured, we are very sincere. We now all have a common, powerful enemy, that is the German Empire.

We are willing to help France on the premise that France will continue to participate in this war as our indispensable ally."

de Gaulle nodded, not surprised by the demands Martin spoke of.

If Martin had said that Australasia and Britain had no demands at all, that would have indeed been strange.

Only when both parties confirmed they had demands and aligned goals could such cooperation be tight.

"What should I do?" de Gaulle took a deep breath, as if solidifying his resolve, and looked towards Martin.

"Wait for our signal, then lead the troops into Paris," Martin said with a smile, his words making the usually confident de Gaulle freeze in perplexity.

"Enter Paris? Doesn't that mean a complete break with the current French government?" de Gaulle paused, becoming somewhat hesitant.

"When they proposed the plan of an undefended Paris, General de Gaulle, you should have realized that this government is no longer a French government, they are just a group of cowards who would make any sacrifice for peace.

If you don't want to be a coward too, then your only option is to break with the current cowardly government.

What France needs now is not cowards, but a true warrior who can decisively save the country."

"General de Gaulle, have you not yet grasped the situation?" Martin said with a smile.

"Moreover, the Dove faction's plan of leaving Paris undefended conveniently facilitates our operation," Martin remarked jokingly. "With no defenses in and around Paris, if we so desire, we can control the French government and the upper echelons of the military at any time.

"As long as General de Gaulle quickly establishes a temporary military government with our help, the current French government will be of no concern," he said.

de Gaulle nodded again but quickly raised his own concerns, "If it's just my armored troops, it might be difficult to control the entire French Army, right?

"Even with Deputy Minister Ron, it would be difficult to influence all the military. The government could likely strike back," he added.

"Yes, that's why we need someone with great prestige in the military to keep them in check," Martin suggested, seemingly prepared, with an unexpected choice: "What do you think about General Wegang?"

"Of course, General Wegang is absolutely the perfect choice," de Gaulle nodded, finally placing some trust in Martin's plan.

At least for now, there seem to be no flaws in General Martin's plan.

The military can easily breach current Paris and take over the government. With General Wegang's help, controlling the French military shouldn't be an issue either.

This also means that this operation is almost guaranteed to succeed, and France can finally be rid of the Dove faction's cowardice and restore the glory of France.

"So, when do we act?" Having decided to join the plan, de Gaulle was firm in his resolve. He was somewhat impatient about this operation.

If they did not act soon, once the German Army reached Paris, executing a coup would become difficult.

"Wait for our signal, General de Gaulle," Martin said with a smile, as if the plan was just a trivial matter: "Let this negotiation continue for a few more days, which will also help the temporary military government gain control over France."

Clearly, a coup also needs a somewhat legitimate reason.

To win this war, the absolute key factor is the support of all the French people. To gain the support of all the French people, the coup must have a very reasonable excuse.

Among all possible excuses, the current government colluding with the enemy and committing treason is definitely the best reason. If we can gather more intelligence on the French government's negotiations with Germany and, based on the French government's various actions, portray the current French government as traitors who colluded with the enemy, then this coup will have a very good reason.

What's more important is that in doing so, the responsibility for the war can be completely shifted to the previous French government. As long as the temporary military government reorganizes the military preparation, the French Army can face the war with a completely new appearance.

A completely determined pro-war French government obviously aligns more with the interests of Britain and Australasia.

Furthermore, with efforts from all parties, it is quite possible to delay the war entirely within French territory, even just north of Paris.

Of course, although it appears that the French people would suffer the most from this, compared to the historically disgraced France, perhaps this world's France could gain some reputation.

After all, the mockery that Paris could never be breached before France's surrender inflicted deep wounds on France, which was Europe's superpower a hundred years ago.

On August 5, 1936, the first contact between the French government and the German Army broke down.

The French government's delusion of preserving most of its territory was completely impossible for the German Army.

Following the breakdown of negotiations, the German Army continued its advance and soon reached the banks of the Mars River.

If they crossed the Mars River, Paris might likely be surrounded by the German Army.

In such a crisis, some members of Congress proposed an even more absurd suggestion to the French Parliament—that all military forces withdraw from Paris and relocate to Tours in the south to avoid needless casualties caused by the war.

Even more absurdly, in Parliament's vote, nearly half of the members voted in favor, facing a quarter abstaining and nearly a quarter opposing, nearly securing an absolute majority.

On August 6, 1936, during a meeting between British and French leaders, Prime Minister Winston Schmidt proposed to President Albert that, after being defeated, France should engage in guerrilla warfare to harass and delay the Germans' advance, and seek opportunities to reorganize the greater French military.

However, President Albert decisively rejected Schmidt's proposal. President Albert stated that doing so would cause deeper harm to France, which was not in the interest of the French government and its people.

President Albert's decisive refusal also made Schmidt realize that peace negotiations would not compel France to return to a war stance.

On the morning of August 7, 1936, London and Paris were filled with news reports titled "Winter is Coming."

As people wondered what exactly the news was about, the rumbling of armored vehicles outside Paris completely changed the French government and the war.