In late September, just as Desai was about to retreat from Tallinn, Dongbrovsky, who was stationed in the Danze Corridor, ordered General René's Fourth Army to enter East Prussia from west to east; and to the east, General Reedes' newly formed Lithuanian Legion, supported by the Polish army in the city of Konisburg, occupied the city without any effort. In addition, the Silesian Legion, Vivas Legion, Warsaw Legion (the army of the aristocratic army) and the army of the Saxony Kingdom were also cooperated openly and secretly.

In just less than five days, the entire East Prussia, like Lithuania and Latvia, returned to a corner of the Polish territory. A week later, the army that came to rescue Konisburg was suddenly ambushed by the First Army and the Silesian Legion commanded by the East Brovsky, and the 24,000 Prussian troops were lost. Subsequently, Berlin had to accept the alliance under the city again and announced the abandonment of Konisburg (East Prussia) and all territories east of the Oder River.

...

Meanwhile, in Moscow, the European conqueror from Corsica and his soldiers were in great trouble.

At around 8 pm on the 15th, a report of a fire came from China, where there were numerous workshops and various precious goods and commodities, including fur products, exquisite clothing, silk fabrics from India and China, etc. However, all rescue and fire extinguishing work were futile, and the fire spread rapidly, and now it has endangered the entire city... The city has become like a huge furnace.

At first, Napoleon and his officers did not take the fire too seriously, believing that the fire was just a small riot caused by drunk soldiers or porters.

"His Majesty the Emperor rested very early...but at 10:30 pm," Kolangu recalled, "My adjutant woke me up and told me that the city had caught fire and the fire had lasted for more than 40 minutes. I had no doubt about it at all, because my room was burned by the spreading fire, and I left there in time and choked several times by the thick smoke. Then I woke Christopher again... The Imperial Guard was on standby, but we still decided to let His Majesty rest for a while. I quickly got on the horse and went to see what happened in person? And what kind of rescue work I could organize... But a strong wind came from the north, which came from the direction of the two fire sources that had originally caught fire. The wind helped the fire, and the smoke filled the entire city and caused great harm and damage to the city."

Another fire broke out at 12:30 in the middle of the night, and then several other fires occurred in succession. The situation was very critical, so everyone decided to wake up the Majesty of Emperor Napoleon who had been sleeping all night. It was found that all the water pipes and other fire extinguishing facilities in the city were destroyed by Rostopkin before leaving the city. The servants and soldiers carried buckets of water and sand to extinguish the fire. However, the fire was too big. Although the arsenal was protected by a large number of soldiers, the windows of the palace had begun to break and fall off.

"At the beginning, Napoleon believed that the fire was caused by the negligence of our unruly soldiers," continued Kolangu, "he could not believe... the Russians would set fire to their capital to prevent us from occupying the city." However, the arsonist captured by the French army quickly admitted that it was Rostopkin's order to burn the city. "I then checked the stables of the empire, where some European horses and the Tsar's royal carriage."

Kolangu reported, "This fire caused us to mobilize all our army - I should say so - everyone here is trying to put out the fire. We breathe not air but fireworks, our lungs are filled with smoke and dust."

That night, the sound of the broken walls and ceilings collapsed, the howling and whistling of flames, the screams of people, the turbulent smoke and clouds rose up sometimes, mixed with bright Mars. Although the smoke rolled out, there were red columns of fire like bunches, and there were golden flames like fish scales spreading along the wall.

Fortunately, with the help of the Imperial Guard, the bridge to the south of the Kremlin was finally saved. The heat wave swept was so hot that it was impossible to stay for an extra minute, and the hair on the soldiers' fur hats was also burnt due to overheating.

At 4:30 p.m. that day, Napoleon finally ordered the evacuation of Moscow City, and their next destination was the Petrovskoye Palace, just a few miles from Moscow on the road to St. Petersburg.

At the Petrovskoye Palace, Napoleon seemed very quiet because Murah was sure that the Russian army had been severely damaged and his morale was very low. The Tsar would be forced to surrender soon. This news prompted Napoleon to decide to extend his stay in Moscow.

So, on September 18, Napoleon returned to the Kremlin. In two days, the entire city was catastrophe, and even the houses that were rescued in the fire were looted. The Sloboda Palace, this extremely luxurious palace, was reserved for him outside the Kremlin. It was razed to the ground in the fire, and nearly three-quarters of the entire Moscow city were burned, including nearly 800 churches. The French army had to point the bayonet at its partners who were too indulgent, took advantage of the fire, and rectified some people on the spot.

A few days after returning to the Kremlin, Napoleon announced that he decided to spend the winter in Moscow. The army moved the food, fur, clothing, etc. needed for wintering into the city; fortifications need to be strengthened...

On September 20, Napoleon wrote in a letter to Alexander, "I have no personal hostility to war against your country. The prosperous and beautiful city of Moscow no longer exists because it has been burned by your misbehaving governor of Moscow... If you send me a letter of peace talks before or after the war in Borodino, you will probably stop this war... If your Majesty, you still intend to reconcile with me, you should consider sending this letter..."

Of course, the Tsar did not respond to this, and he threw Napoleon's letters into the trash can.

In addition, Kutuzov, on behalf of Alexander, said in his reply to the French envoy: "I have not received any instructions from peace talks, because in the eyes of the Russian people, the French are a group of barbaric plunderers and destroyers! Just like the Khan of the Tatars in their eyes."

After that, Napoleon ordered Corangu as a former ambassador to go to St. Petersburg to negotiate with the Tsar, but both times were rejected by Corangu, who simply pointed out that it was very obvious that Alexander did not intend to surrender to France.

So on October 3, Napoleon had quietly begun to prepare for evacuation. That day, he ordered the troops to prepare to leave Moscow on the 15th or 16th. For some reason, the mailing road from Paris to Moscow has become extremely smooth in the past few days, but the cabinet ministers brought all the bad news.

In addition to the successive fall of the French army on the Spanish battlefield, Napoleon clearly realized that Desai was no longer accepting his discipline. The Polish king made a bloodless coup in Warsaw, forcing traditional nobles to accept his supreme rule; in addition, Desai also ordered the liberation of serfs in Lithuania and Latvia and carried out the land revolution carried out by France in 1793.

Even worse news came in mid-October, and Desai's naval and army stopped moving towards St. Petersburg in the direction of Estonia. Soon, he ordered the expulsion of Marshal MacDonald and successfully took over the command of the Prussian Legion. In the meantime, East Prussia and the east bank of the Oder River became a new territory of Poland, and even the Free Port of Danze allowed the Polish army to enter and exit freely.

"Damn Desai, he has reached an agreement with the British, Swedes, and even the Russians to betray me; and have you, my stepson, become his accomplice?" The angry Napoleon accused Prince Eugen who rushed over.

Eugen shook his head and then became silent. He was also extremely shocked by the bold Desai's actions. After Napoleon vented, Eugen said: "For a long time, what Desai needed was a unified and powerful Poland. At this time, perhaps this requirement is not excessive, because France needs an ally to continue to stabilize the Eastern Front. As for the Prussians and the Austrians, it is impossible for them to really want to fight against Russia, but Desai will definitely not have peace between Poland and Russia! Unless one of the two falls forever.

If, if His Majesty insists that I have conspired with Desai in secret, please order my position to be removed, and I will be willing to be tried at any time and at any place in the Military Court!”

Of course, Napoleon would not replace the commander of the 4th Legion with a fervent mind, nor would he order the gendarmes to arrest his stepson. The emperor still believed that Eugen's infinite loyalty to him was just blinded by the despicable and cunning Desai. In the Battle of Smolensk and the Battle of Borodino, Eugen's heroic performance fully proved this, and there is no doubt!

In addition, Napoleon also believed in Eugen's judgment and could not make any public confrontation with Desay before returning to France. Not to mention that on the long journey of thousands of kilometers, the 200,000 Russian troops led by Kutuzov encircled and intercepted him. At this time, the total strength of the large army had dropped to less than 100,000, of which 20,000 were still wounded patients, and they were still lying in the hospital in Moscow and groaned in pain. The truly combat-capable troops were only between 70,000 and 80,000.

At the same time, Desai has formed 5 and 6 legions in Poland, Lithuania and other places, with a force of up to 150,000, and the number continues to increase. In addition, Desai also has a reserve team of 200,000 to 300,000, a Baltic Combined Fleet that can quickly assemble. Once it really breaks apart with Desai, the latter can cut off Napoleon's retreat at any time and send the emperor directly to the Russians.

Therefore, although Napoleon was very unwilling to give up, he still signed a decree in Moscow, which publicly recognized the various private actions of the Polish king. As long as Desai continues to oppose Russia, Poland and France are still strong allies. As for the damn "bad debt", it will be kept until the emperor returns to France and collects another 300,000 troops, and then take it slowly to liquidate it.
Chapter completed!