From Corsica to the Fourth Rome

The next day, February 25

Paris Military Academy, Place de Chevalier.

After yesterday's enrollment report, the 21st batch of freshmen at the Paris Military Academy officially began their first day of military school life.

The trainees all changed into the blue and white infantry uniforms issued to them. The style of this uniform was similar to the uniform of the soldiers of the line regiment. It was just that the emblem of the Paris Military Academy was drawn on the cuffs of the ribbons symbolizing military rank to highlight their trainees. identity.

Early in the morning, all the more than 300 freshmen gathered in Knights Square in accordance with the requirements of the admission handbook to wait for the next instructions.

In the queue, Lawrence and Prince Louis were looking at these fellow students with great interest.

After getting acquainted with Berthier yesterday, Lawrence also learned a lot about this military academy from Berthier.

The academic system of the Paris Military Academy is nominally six years, but in fact very few people actually stay in this military academy for six years.

Those aristocratic young men were dissatisfied with the difficult living environment here, and their purpose of entering the military academy was just to make their resumes look better, so that they could better get an official position in the army.

Therefore, many nobles will only stay here for a year and a half, and it is enough for them to have a military academy experience worth bragging about.

It is also difficult for most civilian students to complete their six-year studies. After all, the cost of living in Paris is not a small amount for them. Many people will choose to accept military ranks halfway and go to various local armies to support their families.

Including Napoleon in history.

When he was studying at the Paris Military Academy, due to the death of his father Carlo Bonaparte, the family's economic conditions deteriorated rapidly. Therefore, Napoleon only stayed at the Paris Military Academy for more than a year before choosing to receive a rank and enter the local city defense with the rank of deputy second lieutenant. He went to subsidize his family while in the army.

In fact, from Berthier's mouth, Lawrence also learned that there were not a few down-and-out nobles like Napoleon in the military academy.

Although these people are more or less discriminatory towards civilian students, they basically only stay in words and hearts and do not take action.

After all, there are only a few people in this military academy who can be as domineering and unscrupulous as Gur.

This is good news for Lawrence. He had no intention of going against all the noble students.

Uniting all the forces that can be united is what Lawrence wants to do when establishing his own power.

While Lawrence was sizing up the students around him, these fellow students were also spying on Lawrence and his group, and from time to time there would be a few whispers of conversation:

"Hey, that's Charles Bornaba, who beat up Count Isaac's son yesterday."

"You mean the tall guy with blond hair? He's so brave."

"He's just a lunatic. Yesterday he called on us to stand with him. What a fool. He just wanted to find a shield for himself."

"But it seems that there are several people around him who have decided to follow him."

"And he's considered a character for having such courage. Why not ask?"

"You want to make friends with him? Forget it, don't let Earl Isaac worry about him."

"Hmph, I am also from a count family, so why should I be afraid of him?"

"Come on, brother, a nobleman like you who has been in decline for many generations should not touch Count Isaac."

"You! Forget it, that's what you said."

Naturally, Lawrence heard all the undisguised rumors around him.

About half of the students decided to stay away from this madman named Charles to avoid being involved in the grudge with Count Isaac.

The rest of the people sneered at him, just thinking he was a brainless idiot.

The last small group of people recognized Charles Bornaba's courage and courage and admired him quite a bit. However, due to the power of Gul and Earl Isaac, they did not dare to take the initiative to get too close to him. .

Listening to the various discussions, Lawrence just smiled calmly. In any case, his goal of becoming famous in the military academy was achieved.

Crown Prince Louis found it hard to accept the harsh remarks and frowned, ready to go forward and argue with those people.

At this moment, a thunderous roar suddenly came from the edge of the square:

"You bunch of losers! What the hell are you doing just standing there?!"

This roar as loud as a bell immediately calmed the more than 300 students present. Everyone subconsciously stopped talking and turned to look at one side of the square.

They saw a bald officer walking towards them with a gloomy face.

He is about fifty years old, wearing a dark blue officer's uniform. He is not tall, but he is not angry and intimidating. His deep black eye sockets are a pair of shuddering cold eyes. It feels like anyone who stares at him for ten seconds will be stunned. Unconsciously, my legs began to tremble.

Lawrence couldn't help but look at the officer a few more times. What caught his eye was not the major rank ribbon on the other's sleeves, but the pair of cold, emotionless eyes.

Lawrence, who has commanded the Corsican Defense Forces, can conclude that only battlefield veterans who have been on the line between life and death many times can hone such a temperament and eyes.

Berthier, who was fully prepared for the investigation, also explained softly beside Lawrence:

"That must be Lieutenant Colonel Modise, our superior instructor. He comes from a military family. He loves soldiers as much as his sons and hates his enemies as much as his enemies. He served as the frontline battlefield commander in both wars. Because of his outstanding achievements, he was transferred from the frontline to the rear. , it is said that the Duke of Choiseul personally invited him to serve as an instructor at the Paris Military Academy.”

Lawrence also nodded thoughtfully. He was able to fully experience the War of Austrian Succession and the Seven Years' War and perform meritorious service. He was also favored by the Duke of Choiseul. He was indeed an outstanding front-line officer.

"Stupid pigs! Are you all deaf?!"

Lieutenant Colonel Modise seemed to have injuries to his legs and feet and was limping when he walked, but this did not make him look funny. On the contrary, his slow and heavy steps were full of oppression, and when combined with the thunderous The roar is even more chilling:

"You are also students of the Paris Military Academy? I'll grab four hundred fucking peasants from the countryside, and they all know how to stand in line and wait for the commander to come!"

The students took one look at their loose formation and then realized that they formed a relatively compact square formation after a burst of hasty footsteps.

"A bunch of trash. They didn't even know how they died on the battlefield."

Cursing, Lieutenant Colonel Modise took off the iron flask hanging from his belt, took a big gulp into his mouth, then glanced at the folder in his hand, and shouted impatiently:

"Listen to me, I don't want to repeat it a second time. I am Modis, with the rank of lieutenant colonel, former commander of the 12th Infantry Regiment of the Alpine Legion, your current instructor, honor. Forget it, it's a bunch of crap. I don’t even bother to recite the medals that I don’t have, anyway.”

Lieutenant Colonel Modise poured another sip of wine into his mouth, wiped his mouth with his sleeve carelessly, and continued:

"My mission is to prevent you losers from only dying when you go to the battlefield in the future. Just forget it if you want to die. Don't drag your soldiers to bury you with you, that kind of commander."

Halfway through, Lieutenant Colonel Modise seemed to recall some unbearable battlefield past. The anger in his voice became stronger, and his eyes became a little cloudy. With a force of his wrist, he forcibly squeezed the iron jug into shape. A lump:

"I will try my best to kill you."

The crumpled wine bottle fell to the ground, making a crisp clang sound in the silent Knights Square.

The students present all looked at the bald officer with fear. Even the arrogant noble young men could not help but restrain themselves a little and frowned at Lieutenant Colonel Modise.

Crown Prince Louis could not help but stand at attention, his whole body trembling slightly from nervousness. No one in the palace had ever dared to yell at him like this.

Lieutenant Colonel Modis narrowed his eyes and glanced at everyone, kicked the wine bottle away, and continued:

"In short, I am responsible for teaching you battlefield command and military theory practice. I don't know about other elective subjects, but if you don't get my approval for these two required courses, huh, then don't say that you are from the Paris Military Academy. Those who get out are only worthy of being used as cannon fodder, is it clear?"

There were sporadic responses from the students: "It's clear."

Lieutenant Colonel Modise frowned, and the veins on his forehead stood out, and shouted:

"Don't you all have a voice? Huh?! When you are on the battlefield, and there are twelve British artillery pieces roaring in unison six hundred yards away, your sounds are like the sound of a frog peeing. ! Answer me again!”

The students' hearts suddenly became tense and they quickly shouted in unison: "It's clear!"

“That’s pretty much it”

Lieutenant Colonel Modise finally showed a hint of satisfaction, then silently glanced at the students present and began to count the number of people in his mind.

More than a minute later, the lieutenant colonel suddenly frowned. He glanced at the documents in his hand, counted the number of students present, and asked in a cold voice:

"Hey, the document they gave me said that there are 372 students in this period. Why is there one less person here? What kind of bastard dares to be absent on the first day?!"

Under the questioning of Lieutenant Colonel Modise, a student replied tremblingly:

"Report to the instructor, it should be"

"Call me sir, this is a military academy, that is, the army. Don't you even have this bit of common sense?" Lieutenant Colonel Modise corrected him sharply.

"Yes, sir. The one who is absent should be Gul Alexei de Isaac."

The student carefully explained:

"He was injured and was carried out of the school this morning."

Lieutenant Colonel Modise was stunned, as if he had heard this name a long time ago:

"Injured? Well, you're going to end up in the Invalides before even going to the battlefield? What's wrong with him?"

The student did not answer, but like everyone else, they all turned to look at the center of the queue, looking at the expressionless Charles Bornaba.

Many people even snorted coldly, sighing secretly that there was no need for Count Isaac to take action. Instructor Modis alone would definitely not let go of that stupid Bornaba.

Even those students who admired Charles Bornaba sighed, I am afraid that this warrior will not end well in the hands of this devil instructor.

Lieutenant Colonel Modise narrowed his eyes and raised his fingers at Lawrence in the crowd:

"Come out, boy, did you hurt that man?"

Lawrence slightly stretched out his hand to stop Prince Louis and Duke Charles who wanted to go out together, and then stood alone in front of Lieutenant Colonel Modise:

"Yes, sir."

"Oh? That's quite generous to admit. I hope you can give me a reason." Lieutenant Colonel Modise squeezed his casserole-sized fist, and there was a frightening crackling sound between the muscles and bones.

Without changing his expression, Lawrence recounted Gur's bullying behavior, and then added:

"Since this is an army, all I have done is trivial punishment for soldiers like Gur who disrupt the ranks, disturb the morale of the army, and corrupt discipline."

"Hmph, punishment?"

Lieutenant Colonel Modise was surprised at the kid's calmness for a moment, then his eyes darkened, he grabbed Lawrence by the collar, forcefully pulled him in front of him, and asked in a deep voice:

"Who the hell do you think you are? What right do you have to punish others?"

Lawrence, who was being dragged by the neck, still had no expression on his face and replied calmly:

"I am a soldier, sir. I am a member of this army. Because of this, I cannot tolerate the bullying of my compatriots by people like Gur. Before I was given the power to impose sanctions, I had already shouldered the responsibility to impose sanctions." obligations.”

"What exactly do you want to say?" Lieutenant Colonel Modise increased his strength in his hands and asked through gritted teeth.

Lawrence said calmly:

"Not appointing a person with leadership authority on the first day this army was formed was itself a failure of duty by the superiors. This led to Gur being able to corrupt discipline unscrupulously. Since there is a lack of a leader, then I am willing to Stand up and fulfill this responsibility.”

Lieutenant Colonel Modise frowned even more tightly, but the strength in his hands relaxed a lot:

"Boy, do you want to say that this is my dereliction of duty?"

Facing this cold question, Lawrence just nodded without hesitation.

The students were even more shocked when they saw this. They had no idea that this idiot didn't kneel down and admit his mistake at this time, but he still dared to point the finger at the angry devil instructor? !

"That's right, sir." Lawrence added calmly:

"You are our highest superior, but you failed to anticipate problems within the military and take countermeasures in advance. This organizational flaw is the root cause of all this."

"You boy"

Lieutenant Colonel Modise slowly let go of Lawrence's collar and stared at the young man in front of him, who was always calm and calm, with wide eyes and angry eyes.

Prince Louis and Berthier in the crowd were both sweating, especially Berthier. He had inquired in advance that there was a disability index in the training at the Paris Military Academy. If Charles really gave this devil instructor to If you are offended to death, wouldn’t that be

Thinking of the worst outcome, Berthier clenched his teeth even more, not even noticing that his nails were embedded in his flesh.

Lieutenant Colonel Modise suddenly grabbed Lawrence's shoulder, squeezed it hard, and laughed loudly:

"You boy could be a damn general."

Before everyone could react, Lieutenant Colonel Modise patted Lawrence on the shoulder again and laughed happily:

"You can beat up Count Isaac's son. It really relieves my anger. Those idiots on the school committee kept telling me to pay more attention to Count Isaac's son who was about to enter school. I thought at that time Not happy. As expected, that kid did some bullying when he first entered school. He really deserves this beating!"

Lawrence held his sore shoulders and just smiled bitterly, thankful that he had made the right bet this time.

According to the information provided by Berthier, if Lieutenant Colonel Modise is really a professional soldier who loves his soldiers as much as his son and hates evil as much as his enemies, then he would naturally be quite dissatisfied with the style of a playboy like Gur.

In this way, he should not be too opposed to Lawrence's beating of Gur.

Judging from Lieutenant Colonel Modise's hearty laughter, he had indeed been dissatisfied with a noble boy like Gur who was ignorant and corrupted military discipline for a long time.

If the person commanding this group of students was an instructor who was following the crowd and siding with the aristocratic class, then Lawrence would naturally not adopt this strategy.

"And you, boy, you are so damn right. The first thing a leaderless army needs is to have a leader, but"

After laughing, Lieutenant Colonel Modise looked at Lawrence again and said with a ferocious smile:

"You just said that the fault of all this lies with me. Okay, I will bear the blame. However, I want to see if you are really capable of becoming a leader. I now appoint you as the 21st batch of cadets of the Paris Military Academy. Battalion Commander, you little bastards, did you hear this clearly?"

Unsurprisingly, Lawrence saluted with a military salute and responded solemnly:

"Yes, sir!"

The students who were gloating about the misfortune were shocked at this moment. They never expected that this majestic and terrifying instructor not only did not pursue the fault of that Charles, but also appointed him as the leader of the entire student camp of more than 300 students. A human battalion commander.

For those students with high aspirations, they have been coveting the position of battalion commander before enrolling. After all, such an experience can add a lot of luster to their resume, and it will undoubtedly be easier to get promoted after entering the army.

Berthier was even more astonished. He couldn't imagine that this poor boy would become the nominal leader of all the students in the same period on the second day he entered the Paris Military Academy. He couldn't help but think to himself:

"He actually became the battalion commander?! In this case, maybe the Shire Gang will no longer be a joke soon."

Lieutenant Colonel Modise also glared at Lawrence teasingly, curled his lips and said with a smile:

"I won't punish you. Count Isaac won't let you go easily anyway. Boy, please prove your ability to me as soon as possible. I'm looking forward to where you can climb in the French army."

"The highest level, sir."

Lawrence saluted another military salute and replied seriously.