Napoleon ordered MacDonald to take command of 42,000 troops opposing Schwarzenberg by defending behind the Aube River.
MacDonald would have the II, XI and VII Corps and the II Cavalry, V Cavalry and VI Cavalry Corps.
Marshals Auguste de Marmont and Édouard Mortier had 10,000 men facing Blücher near Meaux.
Napoleon took 35,000 troops and began marching northeast against Blücher's rear.
Measures were taken to hide the fact that Napoleon was no longer facing Schwarzenberg's army.

The Austrian commander quickly guessed that Napoleon was not in front of him.
On 27 February, Schwarzenberg defeated Oudinot in the Battle of Bar-sur-Aube when the French marshal deployed his troops in an exposed position on the east bank of the Aube.
Though Oudinot was slightly superior in numbers, he was caught with most of his artillery and half his cavalry on the west bank of the river and brought only 18,000 troops into action, suffering 3,500 casualties.
Another authority stated that the French lost 2,600 killed and wounded and 500 men and two guns captured.
The Allies sustained 1,250 Russian, 400 Bavarian and 250 Austrian casualties.

The day after his defeat, Oudinot withdrew his troops to Vendœuvres, weakly pursued by the Allies.
Unaware of Oudinot's setback, MacDonald advanced to Laferté-sur-Aube where the Allies had destroyed the bridge.
On 28 February soldiers from Gyulai's corps attacked Michel Sylvestre Brayer's division at Silvarouvres, seizing the bridge there.
MacDonald abandoned Laferté-sur-Aube and began pulling back to Bar-sur-Seine.
Casualties were about 600 men on each side.
On 1 March the Allies sent out two reconnaissance forces under Johann Maria Philipp Frimont and Peter Petrovich Pahlen.
Frimont occupied Vendœuvres after some skirmishing with Gérard, while Pahlen operated on Frimont's right.

Feeling less anxious about his enemies, Schwarzenberg ordered an advance on Troyes for 2 March.
That day, finding Gérard's troops holding the Guillotière Bridge, Pahlen moved north through the villages of Mesnil-Saint-Père and Géraudot to reach Dosches.
His probes in the direction of Laubressel were chased off by French forces.
Peter von Wittgenstein's Russian corps occupied Piney while Wrede's Bavarian-Austrian corps spent the night near Vendœuvres.
On the southern flank the corps of Crown Prince of Württemberg and Gyulai pursued MacDonald's forces.
They drove Brayer's division from Bar-sur-Seine at a cost of 500 Allied and 100 French casualties.
Brayer fell back to join XI Corps.
Napoleon ordered MacDonald to take command of 42,000 troops opposing Schwarzenberg by defending behind the Aube River. MacDonald would have the II, XI and VII Corps and the II Cavalry, V Cavalry and VI Cavalry Corps. Marshals Auguste de Marmont and Édouard Mortier had 10,000 men facing Blücher near Meaux. Napoleon took 35,000 troops and began marching northeast against Blücher's rear. Measures were taken to hide the fact that Napoleon was no longer facing Schwarzenberg's army. 
The Austrian commander quickly guessed that Napoleon was not in front of him. On 27 February, Schwarzenberg defeated Oudinot in the Battle of Bar-sur-Aube when the French marshal deployed his troops in an exposed position on the east bank of the Aube. Though Oudinot was slightly superior in numbers, he was caught with most of his artillery and half his cavalry on the west bank of the river and brought only 18,000 troops into action, suffering 3,500 casualties. Another authority stated that the French lost 2,600 killed and wounded and 500 men and two guns captured. The Allies sustained 1,250 Russian, 400 Bavarian and 250 Austrian casualties.
The day after his defeat, Oudinot withdrew his troops to Vendœuvres, weakly pursued by the Allies. Unaware of Oudinot's setback, MacDonald advanced to Laferté-sur-Aube where the Allies had destroyed the bridge. On 28 February soldiers from Gyulai's corps attacked Michel Sylvestre Brayer's division at Silvarouvres, seizing the bridge there. MacDonald abandoned Laferté-sur-Aube and began pulling back to Bar-sur-Seine. Casualties were about 600 men on each side. On 1 March the Allies sent out two reconnaissance forces under Johann Maria Philipp Frimont and Peter Petrovich Pahlen. Frimont occupied Vendœuvres after some skirmishing with Gérard, while Pahlen operated on Frimont's right. 
Feeling less anxious about his enemies, Schwarzenberg ordered an advance on Troyes for 2 March. That day, finding Gérard's troops holding the Guillotière Bridge, Pahlen moved north through the villages of Mesnil-Saint-Père and Géraudot to reach Dosches. His probes in the direction of Laubressel were chased off by French forces. Peter von Wittgenstein's Russian corps occupied Piney while Wrede's Bavarian-Austrian corps spent the night near Vendœuvres. On the southern flank the corps of Crown Prince of Württemberg and Gyulai pursued MacDonald's forces. They drove Brayer's division from Bar-sur-Seine at a cost of 500 Allied and 100 French casualties. Brayer fell back to join XI Corps.
Battle of Laubressel