In an era when communications were not developed enough, people in different countries were as isolated from each other as if they lived in different eras.
The world war has entered its fifth year, and the Austro-Hungarian Empire is already on the verge of collapse. In order to strengthen the people of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in their belief in the war, the media of the Austro-Hungarian Empire did everything possible. In the media of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Allies wanted to continue fighting.
It has become a hell on earth, so that the Austrians suffering in the war will ignore the immediate difficulties and firmly believe that the Allies can defeat the Allies in the next few months.
In the eyes of the three Austro-Hungarian soldiers, what they saw was obviously different from what the Austro-Hungarian media promoted.
There is no need to exchange children for food, there is no starvation everywhere, and there is no life for the people. The living standards of these colonial servants from the "backcountry" seem to be better than those of the nobles of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. This is really a devastating conclusion.
An obvious fact is that all the southern African soldiers that the three Austro-Hungarian soldiers saw were wearing cotton-padded clothes that looked very thick and had significantly better thermal insulation properties.
The hats they wore were made of unknown animal fur. Such hats were only seen on nobles, but everyone in northern Rhodesia had one.
The leather boots on their feet are made of a whole piece of animal skin. Some of them can be seen as cowhide or sheepskin at a glance, while some have never been seen before. All they know is that the patterns on the shoes are very beautiful and they are valuable at a glance.
Not cheap.
During the previous battles between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Italian troops, they once seized the individual food distributed by the Italian troops. Those exquisitely packaged, delicious canned and luncheon meats made everyone salivate. Sometimes, a box of cans even
A small-scale conflict will result.
Right next to the steaming coffee bucket, several chefs in white uniforms were pouring the opened cans into a large iron bucket, apparently preparing lunch for the soldiers.
The chefs were a bit rude, they moved very quickly, and not all the cans were emptied cleanly. One chef emptied the cans and then rinsed the boxes with water, only to be attacked by another chef.
scolded them, so everyone speeded up their pace, and the empty boxes around them were piled almost as high as them.
There must be some boxes that are not emptied.
The three Austro-Hungarian soldiers looked at the boxes eagerly, hoping to have a chance to help clean them later.
"Hello, I am Captain Ross from the Military Police of the Northern Rhodesian Division. What are your names?" A Chinese officer with the rank of captain sat down on the shell box in front of an Austro-Hungarian soldier.
The three Austro-Hungarian soldiers were squatting on the ground. They carefully tucked the corners of their coats into their arms. These cotton coats had just been unpacked. When they got them, the cotton coats were still smelling of engine oil.
smell.
For these three soldiers, this is the taste of happiness.
Several officers were interrogating three soldiers separately. They were far apart and separated from each other to ensure that they had no chance of colluding with each other.
"Dear Sir, my name is Gustav - Gustav Zweig."
"Okay, Gustav - oh no, sorry, it's Mr. Zweig, what is your purpose?" Ross asked while recording.
Fortunately, a soldier named Gustav Zweig knew English, which was rare in 1916.
That's not right, it's 1917 now.
"We are here to surrender. We are tired of the war and do not want to die silently. I also want to return to my hometown to be with my children. They need me-" Gustav Zweig trembled all over.
While answering the question, my eyes kept looking at the tin bucket where the fragrance was beginning to overflow.
Ross continued to ask expressionlessly: "Which unit did you serve in before? What is the unit's number and the name of the task force commander? Tell me everything you know."
The confessions of prisoners are an important way to obtain information, especially those prisoners who come to the door on their own initiative. Their confessions are usually more authentic.
In order to obtain prisoners, the Northern Rhodesian Division organized elite troops to capture the tongues of the Austro-Hungarian Empire troops. This was a very dangerous job. If a mistake was made, the entire army might be annihilated, but those with special skills enjoyed it.
, they regarded this as a very challenging job. The no-man's land between the Northern Rhodesian Division and the Austro-Hungarian Empire's positions was the "paradise" for these elite troops and precision shooters.
"I am serving in the reorganized 187th Division. There are only more than 6,000 people left in our division. The division commander is -"
"Wait, a division of more than 6,000 people?" Ross became suspicious. In the British Expeditionary Force, more than 6,000 people were almost a brigade, and some relatively large battalions had thousands of people.
The British army now has a standard division of about 15,000 troops. This is because the popularity of automatic weapons has reduced the size of the army.
The largest division is the U.S. Army. A standard infantry division of the U.S. Army has almost 25,000 people. The reason why there are so many people is that the U.S. military lacks professional officers. When the United States entered the war in 1915, the combined army and navy of the United States did not have as many as the British Expeditionary Force.
The losses in the Battle of the Somme were high. Under normal circumstances, an infantry company in the British army only had 120 men, while the American army had 250 men, more than double the number of British troops.
"Yes, we still had 16,000 people in the 187th Division the year before last. We fought from Russia to Italy without any reinforcements. Now there are only more than 6,000 people left. Many soldiers died in previous battles.
, some wounded soldiers never had the chance to return to the battlefield, and some wounded soldiers were simply abandoned. Now when I close my eyes at night, I can think of those wounded soldiers who were abandoned. They cried and begged me, but I had to leave——
"Gustav Zweig is a sentimental person, and he started to cry again as he spoke.
Rose silently handed over a handkerchief.
Gustav Zweig thanked him, but did not dare to accept it. There was no trace of dirt on the white handkerchief. Gustav Zweig lowered his head unconsciously.
Ross put the handkerchief back into his pocket and asked a random soldier to bring Gustav Zweig some food.
Soon, a large bowl of hot pasta was delivered to Gustav Zweig.
spaghetti--
By Chinese standards, it is actually similar to ramen. Except for the hollow pasta, which is called macaroni, the solid pasta is the pasta method closest to Chinese habits.
Of course, the pasta from northern Rhodesia is different from traditional pasta.
The noodles are still spaghetti, and the sauce is made from fresh beef and canned vegetables. A large bowl full of spaghetti is topped with a thick layer of fragrant meat sauce. The soldier is very considerate.
Gustav Zweig brought a fork instead of the chopsticks more accustomed to the officers and men of the Northern Rhodesian Division.
"Eat quickly, let's continue after eating-" Ross was not in a hurry, he was holding a cup of hot coffee and looking at Gustav Zweig with interest.
Gustav Zweig is not polite. He is really hungry. In the current Austro-Hungarian Empire, even officers are not eligible to enjoy such a bowl of pasta. They can also eat it in restaurants in Vienna.
There is no such rich pasta.
After devouring for a while, Gustav Zweig felt that it was not enough. He looked at Ross with eyes full of longing.
"No, no, no, you can't eat anymore, listen to me, you have been hungry for a long time, if you eat too much, you will starve to death -" Ross refused decisively, Gustav Zweig was not
The first Austro-Hungarian soldier to surrender voluntarily, many tragedies had occurred before.
Such tragedies are always passed down as jokes by the officers and soldiers in the Northern Rhodesian Division, but only by truly coming into contact with these Austro-Hungarian soldiers can we feel how miserable they really are.
"Okay, thank you very much, sir. I haven't had a full meal in a long time. This is the most delicious meal in my memory. I will remember it for the rest of my life -" Gustav Zweig held the bowl in his hands.
Knowing what to do with it, he noticed that the other soldiers were holding a used bowl and placed it in a tin bucket that was placed on the fire. Gustav Zweig wanted to take the bowl too, but he couldn't.
Don't dare.
Even a fire like this now was a rare luxury in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Last year, Vienna went through what was probably the coldest winter in history. The citizens burned everything that could be used to keep warm and ate everything except
All living things other than humans, books in museums are taken out and lit on fire to keep warm. This year in Vienna——
Gustav Zweig could not have imagined it.
"Put it here, someone will take care of it later." Ross poured out the unfinished coffee in the cup. Coffee colds very quickly in winter. If you don't throw it away, it will quickly freeze in the cup.
But this action made Gustav Zweig feel distressed. Looking at Gustav Zweig, if it weren't for Ross, Gustav Zweig wouldn't mind taking the cold food.
Drink the coffee.
Ross was helpless and raised his hand to call a soldier to bring him another cup of coffee.
Gustav Zweig kept saying thanks again.
"Okay, let's continue now. What's the name of your unit commander?" Ross continued the interrogation.
"Our division commander is Luke Toherty, and the supreme commander is General Otto von Bülow, but now General Otto von Bülow has returned to Germany, and it is said that he will participate in the upcoming attack on France.
"Although Gustav Zweig's position was not high, the awareness of confidentiality in the German-Austrian Allied Forces was really not strong.
Ross finally got the news he wanted. Recently, there has been more and more news about Germany's upcoming new offensive.
"Tell me in detail what you know about General Otto von Bülow." Ross corrected his attitude, and the information was obtained bit by bit.