In Soissons now, everyone is confused, including Otto von Bülow and Hutier. They don’t know what fate they are about to face. God has abandoned them. Although William II
There was no abandonment, but William II was unable to rescue them home. The food had been eaten up, the bullets had been exhausted, and the cannons had been thrown away during the retreat. If they were not on the verge of desperation, Otto von Bülow and Houdy
Nor will I hand over wounded soldiers to the British Expeditionary Force.
"After the war is over, we may all be judged -" Otto von Bülow was drinking coffee with Hutier in his temporary headquarters.
As a senior officer, his treatment was certainly different from that of ordinary soldiers. Ordinary soldiers did not even have food, while Otto von Bülow had coffee to drink.
Otto von Bülow drank instant coffee produced in East India and sold by a South African company.
These coffees may have been spoils of war in the previous stage. The quality of the coffee was indeed good, but Otto von Bülow tasted it tasteless.
"After the war, whether the empire will still exist is a question." Hutier frowned a little. He used to drink coffee with sugar and milk, both of which are now luxuries in Soissons.
This Hutier is the Hutier who invented the "Hutier Tactics" in another time and space.
"Hutier Tactics" is actually a relatively advanced infantry-artillery coordination tactic. This honor in this time and space does not belong to Hutier, but to Rock of the British Expeditionary Force. The infantry-artillery coordination tactics used by the British Expeditionary Force are also
It is called "Locke Tactics".
Of course, compared with the "Hutier Tactics" of another time and space, the "Rock Tactics" are indeed more advanced. The "Hutil Tactics" of another time and space only include infantry and artillery coordination. The "Rock Tactics" of this time and space are indeed more advanced.
"Including not only infantry and artillery coordination, but also infantry-tank coordination and air-ground coordination. Roque can be regarded as the originator of "air-ground integrated combat." Based on this, Roque's words should be included in all military works published after the World War.
name.
"What should we do next?" Otto von Bülow finally asked this question. When ammunition and food are exhausted, it is almost impossible to break through, but surrender——
This was also a difficult decision for Otto von Bülow and Hutier.
Hutier did not speak and looked at the steam rising from the coffee cup in front of him. In fact, there was only one way in front of the German army in the encirclement, but neither Hutier nor Otto von Bülow could say it.
They also have the pride of being soldiers!
"General, it's dinner time -" Otto von Bülow's adjutant brought dinner to Otto von Bülow and Hutier.
The dinner looked pretty good, with vegetables, meat, and wine to go with it.
A very embarrassing fact is that the German troops in the encirclement were short of bullets and food, but there was no shortage of wine.
However, these wines are not high-strength wines that can be used as alcohol for disinfection, but fruit wines with relatively low alcohol content. Many fruit wines are stolen from the homes of French civilians. The French are not good at fighting, but their winemaking skills are pretty good.
"It's so rare that we can still eat meat now -" Hu Tier did not forget to pray before eating.
Otto von Bülow glanced at his adjutant, who hesitated to speak.
"Say—" Otto von Bülow tucked the napkin into his collar.
"General Hans killed his little stone -" the adjutant raised his head slightly to prevent the tears from flowing down. The little stone was General Hans's war horse. For soldiers, the war horse is like their own relatives.
Otto von Bülow sighed deeply and felt that the knife in his hand weighed a thousand kilograms.
Hans was an officer under Otto von Bülow. Everyone knew that General Hans was a horse fanatic. He personally bathed and fed the little stones, and often chatted with the little stones. He would also talk to the little stones in the wild.
Sleeping together, as a senior officer, a general is qualified to use a car, but Hans never rides in a car, and always directs operations on a small stone.
Now, the little stone who was inseparable from Hans finally made his final contribution to Hans.
"What is the soldiers' dinner?" Hutier finally finished his prayer. He also felt sorry for the small stone, but since the horse meat has been served on the table, it cannot be wasted.
Hutier is a very pragmatic person.
"Broth, potatoes, maybe cabbage -" the adjutant was not sure. The generals ate meat, and the soldiers always got a mouthful of soup. For hundreds of thousands of people, a horse was really a drop in the bucket.
Otto von Bülow looked at the horse meat in front of him and couldn't swallow it.
"Let's go see General Hans -" Hutier ate up all the horse meat as quickly as possible.
"General Hans shot himself after killing Xiao Shitou——" the adjutant said in a heavy nasal voice.
Otto von Bülow and Hutier did not speak. What made General Hans despair was not the encirclement, but the prospect of imminent defeat for the empire.
Just when Otto von Bülow and Hutier decided to let the wounded soldiers surrender, nearly a hundred wounded soldiers had already committed suicide, including more than a dozen Junkers noble soldiers.
Others may not understand these soldiers who would rather die than be captured. Otto von Bülow and Hutier can understand that some people are attached to their families, some pursue wealth, and some regard glory as their life!
"Send a telegram to Marshal Locke of the British Expeditionary Force. I hope to get a chance to meet Marshal Locke." Otto von Bülow made up his mind. Some decisions must be made sooner or later, and some blame must be shouldered. The commander who won the victory
The officer gets the glory, but the failed commander bears the responsibility. Otto von Bülow had this realization the day he became a soldier.
"Sign my name too -" Hu Dier also made up his mind. Strangely, before making the decision, Hu Dier felt that it was difficult to breathe. After making this decision, Hu Dier felt relaxed.
"Oscar, there is absolutely no need for you to be like this." Otto von Bülow said sincerely. If Hutier also signed, then he and Otto von Bülow would bear the infamy of defeat and surrender.
"Come on Otto, we are partners. If we occupy Paris and hold the entry ceremony, we will walk into the Arc de Triomphe side by side -" Hutier did not shirk his responsibility. We share the blessings and the hardships.
"General Hutier, it's an honor to cooperate with you!" Otto von Bülow saluted Hutier. In the future, Otto von Bülow may not be qualified to use military salutes.
Once surrendered, both Otto von Bülow and Hutier's military careers would be over.
"Salute to you, General Bulow!" Hutier returned the salute. The sadness of the end of the road permeated the entire headquarters. The adjutant who sent the telegram had just walked out of the door and slid to the ground with his face covered and his back leaning against the wall, his shoulders twitching.
, sadness flowed out from his fingers, with tears and blood.
Roque received a joint telegram from Otto von Bülow and Hutier that night. Yamin was a bit far from Kruy, so Roque set off overnight.
"My Lord, there is no need for you to go to Soissons in person. You can simply ask Otto von Bülow and Hutier to come to Amin. They are surrendering and we are surrendering. It is as if we are asking them."
Sidney Milner, who had just returned from vacation, returned to the front line and felt very uncomfortable.
Sidney Milner became a father again, his second child during the World War.
Don't think too much, there are no inappropriate plots. As a senior military officer, Sidney Milner can bring his family members with him on the front line, so it is normal to have children.
Phyllis did not visit Roque this winter because she had to wait in Nyasaland to give birth.
The finance minister of the federal government of Southern Africa, who is still single, is said to have adopted a baby boy last month.
The reason why "adoption" is not put in quotation marks is because everyone is accustomed to this kind of thing.
"You are right. It was indeed me who asked them. I asked General Otto von Bülow and General Hutier to surrender to our British Expeditionary Force. Is there any problem?" Rock laughed, since he got it
For real benefits, some appropriate concessions must be made in other aspects.
To say the least, Otto von Bülow and Hutier are both the most outstanding soldiers of this era, and they are indeed worthy of Rock's courtesy.
Don’t forget that after the end of the world war, the feast of carving up Germany will begin. Rock doesn’t like those shabby factories, shabby farms, and shabby castles in Germany, but he covets all kinds of talents in Germany. Military talents are also talents.
The military academies in Southern Africa are in great need of experienced and capable instructors like Otto von Bülow and Hutier.
The car sped all the way and when it arrived at Cruy, Zhou Bu was already ready. Although Roque did not announce it to the outside world, the news had already spread. Paul Coker, Commander-in-Chief of the Ninth Army of the Expeditionary Force, and the French Third
Army Commander-in-Chief Charles Mangin arrived at Crewe earlier than Roque. The 16th Division Commander Horn and Chief of Staff Peter Brod also arrived early. Foch and Pétain were still on the way and would arrive at Crewe later.
Alas, this is the first time since the outbreak of the World War that such a large number of German troops surrendered collectively, although they only had the will to surrender.
No one wants to miss this big scene that may be written into the history books.
Zhou Bu spent a lot of time on preparations and prepared a huge field tent for Rock. All the tanks and armored vehicles of the 2nd Brigade were arranged around the tent by Zhou Bu, preparing for Otto von Bülow and
Hu Tier made a show of force. There were not many tanks, only about 60, and a lot of armored vehicles, probably more than 100. The gathering of so many tanks and armored vehicles was really shocking.
When Roque arrived at the scene, the layout had not yet been completed. The military police pulled the rope in front of the tank to make sure that all the tanks must stop in the same straight line, and the muzzle pointing and raising angle must be uniform.
A British flag was erected on each tank, and the tank crews all put on new clothes and looked in high spirits.
When it comes to image engineering, Southern Africa is definitely outstanding.
ps: Halfway through writing, I realized that something was wrong with the atmosphere. It was too sad. Life itself is difficult enough, so we can’t make it difficult for our brothers——