The term which Bruno had used to insult the French soldiers was one taken from his past life. Whether it was invented or merely popularized in the late 20th century, Bruno was not entirely aware. But its origins lie in with the French surrender in 1940, a mere six weeks after the conflict with Germany began.
This was something that Americans had never let the French forget, despite actually being allied with the French Resistance throughout the remainder of the war. And naturally certain more nationalist leaning Germans had picked up on the term.
Because Bruno had his memories from his past life, he was quick to shove the insult in Leon’s face after the man had blatantly disrespected him, first by spitting in his direction, and then by using a French derogatory term for the German people.
He had not provoked the man at all, but the revanchist sentiment was strong among the French population following their defeat in 1871. And this hatred for the Germans would continue for decades to come.
Culminating in their declaration of war against the German Reich in 1914, as well as the imposing of the abominable treaty of Versailles in 18, which due to the punitive actions taken against the German Empire, for literally no reason other than French pettiness, ended up being a direct cause for the Second World War a mere two decades after the fact.
No doubt Leon would be one of the men lining up in 1914 to fight against the Germans, and assuming he stayed in the French Army until then would probably be a high-ranking officer by then. Far more powerful than he currently was.
But Bruno would not let the Germans be defeated in this timeline now that he had been given a chance to change the future. Hell, he had already changed the timeline with several minor actions in the Boxer Rebellion.
As for Leon, he naturally took the term Bruno had used as an insult for the French surrender in 1871, despite just now hearing it for the first time in his life. And was damn near ready to attack Bruno for his words, despite him himself starting the dispute. That is, until the French General who invited Bruno and his men stepped in and defused the situation.
“What is going on here? Captain Sinclair, I hope you are not causing trouble with our new advisors?”
Leon was forced to cease any further hostilities he had planned when Major General Henri- Nicolas Frey stepped forward to personally welcome Bruno to the French occupied territory. He immediately threw up a salute to the French General, as did Bruno and his men, as a sign of respect for the man’s position.
“General, I was merely introducing myself to the German Captain!”
Although General Frey eyed Leon with suspicion, being well aware of the man’s prejudices towards the Germans. He did not say anything further, instead stepping past his own officer to greet Bruno, and was quite friendly in his introduction.
“Major General Henri-Nicolas Frey, it is a pleasure to meet the man who is responsible for the victory at Mount Cangyan. I must say, a tricky situation you found yourself in. The enemy holding up in fortified temple complex with only one entry point, exposed to enemy fire, and a steep cliff above full of snow preventing you from striking it with artillery?
I don’t know how you managed to eliminate the rebels without a single casualty, but assuming we have the time I would love to hear the details of your strategy!’
Bruno was surprised how well versed the General was in his victory that took place not too long ago. However, he would not dare reveal how he emerged victorious, as to do so would be to leak a powerful advantage the German Army was now preparing for future conflicts.
Man-portable mortars had the ability to change the nature of WWI. After all, when they came into prominence, especially in WW2, they had pretty much replaced the nature of heavy static machine guns, which trench warfare in 1918 relied heavily upon.
Bruno also had plans to implement better machine guns, but he would need to rise through the ranks of the German army, and further exploit his father’s connections to the Land Army and Fortifications committee if he wanted to implement these designs into service.
Thus, he simply responded cordially, dismissing the French General’s request in the politest way possible.
“I’m not one to boast, but if the General wishes to hear about the victory at Mount Cangyan in more detail, I’m afraid it will have to wait until after we have solved your insurgency problem.
My men are more than willing to provide support wherever needed, but I do want to make it clear we are here in an advisory capacity and do not intend to be thrown into position as a replacement for your own soldiers.”
General Frey laughed at Bruno’s words. He was indeed surprised the man could speak so fluently, and with a dialect that made it seem he was like a native Parisian. Nor did he take Bruno’s last remarks seriously, as he assured Bruno his soldiers would not be seeing any actual combat during their patrols and punitive expeditions.
“Not to worry lad, I assure you my men are more than up to the task of fighting these damned rebels. But your insight on how to best deal with them would be most welcomed.”
After this, the General left his captain behind, while taking Bruno, as well as the Platoon commanders beneath Bruno’s command to a more sheltered area where they discussed at length the best way to draw out and eliminate the rebels. Following a similar path that the Germans had used to thoroughly annihilate the Boxer Remnants in their area of occupation.
And before long, Bruno found himself, interestingly enough, on horseback riding beside the French General who deployed his battalion into the snowy countryside to hunt down and eliminate the rest of the boxers.
Bruno’s company was in the rear, protecting himself, and the General, alongside the artillery which would be used to pound the enemy positions when spotted. As for General Frey, while he and Bruno smoked cigarettes on horseback, he was quick to ask Bruno’s opinion on the war, and the region in general.
“You’re young, younger than a captain ought to be. I heard about that nasty business with the Russians. I presume the fact that you wear the insignia of a captain on your shoulders means that you replaced the blathering fool who tried to reprimand you for standing up against violations of the Hague.
Just because the Chinese did not sign or ratify the convention, does not mean that we who belong to nations who had done so should not be expected to abide by them. It’s a sickening loophole, and I’m glad someone put a stop to it.”
Bruno was surprised that the French General was in agreement with him in this regard. Initially, he was callous towards the plight of the locals. Believing that they themselves were to blame for not signing the Hague Convention of 1899.
Despite this, Bruno quickly shifted his opinion when he actually witnessed the atrocities committed in front of him. Reading about War Crimes that had happened in the past, and witnessing them in person, were two completely different things.
At that moment, his conscience wouldn’t allow him to simply stand by and watch as War
Crimes were committed in front of him. Sure, he had suffered quite a bit because of what he did. But at the end of the day, he didn’t regret it. And he was quick to give voice to this
sentiment.
“It was moments before we stumbled across the ransacked village that I rather coldly stated to one of my fellow officers that there was simply nothing we could do about such things.
That we weren’t powerful enough to compel others to follow the same standards that we ourselves adhered to. To force others to abide by our values and how conducted ourselves in a
time of war.
And yet, no more than five minutes passed before I came across the scene of the Russian soldiers and the crimes they were committing. I was aware that these things were happening, and I didn’t care until I was confronted with it. Forced to witness it with my very eyes. I’m not a sentimental person, nor an empathetic one. Had the boxers used the village as a stronghold, I would have ordered it to be shelled without hesitation or remorse. Even if the entire town’s civilian populace died in the barrage.
But there’s a big difference between being ruthless in the pursuit of victory, and being sadistic towards those who have already surrendered. What the Russians did was wrong, and my conscience did not permit me to simply walk away and pretend it wasn’t happening. The consequences of my actions are no doubt more severe than I currently understand them to be. And may very well lead to future friction with the Russian Empire. Yet at the very least, they helped put an end to the needless suffering that was taking place here.
After everything that happened, I came to te realize that despite being a mere lieutenant, my actions have more power than I could have possibly imagined when I first landed in this
country.”
The French General remembered every word that Bruno had spoken. At first, he had assumed the man was the sentimental type for the way he treated the locals.
But when Bruno revealed he had no qualms shelling a position held by the enemy, even if civilians were doomed to be caught in the blast, he began to realize that the young German Captain in front of him was a man of significant fortitude.
Bruno wasn’t a monster. He had no desire to inflict suffering on anyone could it be avoided. At
least not based on what he had just said, and the actions he had taken so far. But he was by no means a saint. If given the chance to engage in evil for the sake of victory, he would disregard his soul and take the path of least resistance to triumph.
Given the chance to rise to a prominent position in the German Army, Bruno would be a
formidable enemy in the years to come should Germany and France find themselves at war. And because of this, General Henri-Nicolas Frey made a mental note of the name Bruno von
Zehntner.
The French General would be keeping a close eye on the Bruno’s exploits during the years that followed. Let alone the next few months as they fought together to put an end to the Boxer Rebellion, or more specifically those remnants who still dared to take up arms.