The Fox of France

Chapter 145: Special Tactics Training Camp (3)

The next day, Lucien and Javert spent the whole day running around Paris. However, it wasn't as smooth as the first day, and many people were still missing.

"Napoleon, don't worry. The remaining individuals on this list are the hard ones to find. But in another two days, we should have them all," Javert reassured Lucien after another fruitless search.

"I know that. When I first received this list, I had planned to take about a month to gather these people. Yesterday, with your help, it all went so smoothly that it raised my expectations. Today's progress, in fact, exceeded my original expectations," Lucien said. "A few years ago, my brother brought me out from Corsica to study in Paris. I've been in Paris for several years, and while I can't compare myself to the true Parisians, I always thought I knew Paris. These past couple of days walking through the alleys with you in Paris, I've realized I don't know Paris at all."

"Even people who've lived in Paris their whole lives can't claim to know it completely," Javert sighed.

"Mr. Javert," Lucien continued, "in two days, we need to prepare to leave Paris."

"So soon?" Javert was surprised.

"Yes, the sooner we return, the sooner we can begin our work," Lucien replied. "As for the rest of the people, we can leave one or two individuals in Paris. They can continue recruiting and get to know the situation in the city."

"Mr. Lucien, our people in Paris can't gather high-level information," Javert said.

This was normal; Javert's associates were mostly low-level police officers, and the upper echelons were far removed from them.

"You don't need to worry about high-level matters; we have other channels for that. What we lack is knowledge of the streets," Lucien explained. "So, are you a little reluctant to leave Paris?"

Javert sighed, "Yes, I am. After all, I've been here for half a lifetime. Nearly every street and alley in Paris bears my footsteps."

"My friend, we are only temporarily leaving," Lucien said. "We will definitely return to Paris!"

Two days later, after another visit to Fouch, Lucien left Paris with about twenty people, and they would become the first group of instructors for the Special Tactics Training Camp.

Fouch had already noticed Lucien's actions a while ago. To be honest, Lucien's actions had a hint of something else, so Fouch's reception of Lucien was quite cold. However, he also knew that diversifying and not putting all the eggs in one basket was the right choice for any mature organization. Although Lucien was a pure-blood Bonapartist, Fouch had the confidence to surpass him with his own abilities.

During these days, Napoleon had found an estate near Toulon to serve as the training base for the "Special Tactics Training Camp."

The estate mainly consisted of hills and forests, originally used by a local noble for hunting. After the Toulon rebellion, the noble and his son had fled with the British, leaving behind what they couldn't take, which was then confiscated. The farmlands suitable for cultivation were put to use by the local farmers. However, this hunting estate, being remote and unproductive aside from wildlife, had fallen into disuse. It was now being repurposed for the "Special Tactics Training Camp."

While they had the location, they didn't have students yet. At the moment, the Polish insurgents were fiercely fighting the Russian army near Warsaw. Their situation was far from optimistic. Their military commander, Kosciuszko, had been seriously injured in previous battles. Despite some initial victories due to sudden uprisings and various smuggled supplies, their situation had worsened significantly.

Now, the Russians, Austrians, and Prussians had essentially agreed on how to divide the spoils. The good times for the Poles were over. With the three parties reaching an agreement, the smuggling routes within Prussia were almost immediately cut off. Subsequently, the Poles faced attacks from three directions. Though they were still resisting, their defeat was only a matter of time.

Vebitzki had begun contacting Lucien to inquire about training underground resistance fighters.

So, even though they had no students at the moment, the people in the training camp remained busy. They needed to prepare the various courses before the Polish insurgents arrived.

According to Lucien's plan, these courses would primarily include the following:

Firstly, reconnaissance and counter-reconnaissance. Without training in this area, underground work would be extremely challenging. Even Joseph himself took time out of his busy schedule to provide suggestions on setting up these courses. Many of his ideas were rejected for being impractical, but some of his suggestions received admiration from the instructors. Some of them even said, "I didn't know such operations were possible," or "It actually seems feasible," prompting Javert to say, "If Mr. Joseph Bonaparte had become a policeman, he would have been a legend in the police force." Of course, others joked that what Javert really meant was, "If Mr. Joseph Bonaparte had become a criminal, we wouldn't have been able to live in peace."

Joseph, however, didn't think there was anything extraordinary about it; after all, he had watched hundreds of episodes of children's detective series.

Secondly, various weapons usage and related combat techniques. Underground combat techniques were entirely different from conventional warfare, with unique demands like stealth and speed. This required many distinctive skills. Some individuals even proposed using death row inmates to verify the effectiveness of certain rumored techniques, but Joseph promptly rejected such a cruel suggestion. After all, the organization was established to promote European revolution and the liberation of European people. Therefore, such a proposal was against its principles.

Nonetheless, Joseph, who had studied "Bring'em Back Alive," understood the importance of "keeping the opium but not publicly smashing it, to ensure complete revolution, and delivering it to the pharmacy for medicinal use."