Chapter 201: Hearts and Minds

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As soon as Akado landed at the frontline military airfield of the northern German army, he saw his old acquaintance, Student. The commander of the German paratroopers had an anxious look on his face. Before the several heads of the northern front could even step forward to salute the Führer, he had rushed to the front and stood before Akado.

“Heil Führer!” he said, snapping to attention and saluting a step ahead of everyone. Student’s action was very displeasing to the others, but he looked urgently at the Führer who had once shown him great appreciation and said nothing more.

“It seems our commander of the paratroopers has been quite wronged these past few days,” Akado said, looking at the awkward atmosphere and making a joke to break the tension. “Is it because the food at the front really doesn’t agree with your stomach? Or did the army mess hall not give you any soup?”

“Hehehe,” several army generals chuckled, covering their mouths. But a few of the senior generals’ smiles were not quite so natural. Akado saw all of this but said nothing more, just looking at Student.

“My Führer! I have something very important to report to you. Please allow me to speak with you alone for a while. I believe that with your understanding of paratroopers, you will certainly understand my concerns,” Student said, staring into Akado’s eyes.

“It seems our paratrooper commander does indeed have something important to discuss with me,” Akado said, gesturing for everyone to walk forward. “It’s no trouble. Let’s go to the pilots’ dormitory at the airfield first and borrow a room to talk about Student’s problem. I hope our paratrooper commander hasn’t caused any trouble for me.”

The group walked toward the pilots’ dormitory, touring the airfield as they went. Along the way, Akado also looked at the Fw-190D fighters parked on the runway and chatted a few words with one of the pilots. He then leaned against a plane and took a few pictures. After satisfying Fanny’s propaganda needs, he found a room and met alone with the anxious paratrooper commander, General Student.

“My Führer, if the paratroopers are used in this way, we will lose this powerful branch of service that you personally created,” Student said, getting straight to the point as soon as he opened his mouth.

His words stunned Akado for a moment. He then asked, “From the day it is established, every army will one day be used. Isn’t that very normal? Didn’t we already agree on the plan for the use of paratroopers in the Polish campaign when you and I drew it up?”

Without waiting for Student to continue, Akado asked with a frown, “I have told you many things about paratroopers and have done my best to equip them with the most suitable weapons and equipment, as well as the highest level of supply… Isn’t all of this to enable the paratroopers to complete the most difficult missions under the most dangerous and harsh conditions? Do not be afraid of losses. You must train this paratrooper force with firm confidence!”

“My Führer,” Student said after a moment’s thought. “You know the original operational plan: the paratroopers would be dropped behind the Polish defensive line to control bridges and important transportation routes, departing about an hour before the ground forces, to insert our troops about 40 kilometers behind enemy lines. This operation was mainly to accumulate combat experience in the large-scale use of paratroopers and to provide various data for future operations.”

“Since you know this, why are you in such a hurry to see me? Even if the paratroopers have suffered losses, your heartache is a bit excessive,” Akado said, looking at Student with some displeasure.

“My Führer, the Wehrmacht is now using the paratrooper force that you have painstakingly built up as super infantry. I believe this is a serious waste,” Student said.

“Super infantry?” Akado was taken aback, then suddenly realized something. “Tell me in detail what is going on.”

“My Führer, this matter begins with the good news that the ground offensive to invade Poland was very successful,” Student said. He knew the Führer had guessed the gist of the matter and looked very angry, so at least on this issue, the Führer was on his side. He hurriedly continued, “Our army advanced dozens of kilometers in one day, breaking through Poland’s border defenses even faster than the marching speed of any country in the past.”

“And then?” Akado asked, his expression somewhat cold as he stared at Student.

“And then the problem appeared,” Student said. “The army found that the large number of traditional infantry deployed on the border simply could not keep up with the advance of the armored forces, and they felt that they had too few troops that could accompany the tanks in an attack.”

“At the beginning, they mobilized trucks and armored cars to attack along with the tanks. Later, they requisitioned civilian vehicles and racked their brains to use Poland’s trains and railway system,” Student said, using an air force operational map nearby to briefly explain. “In the end, the innovation in offensive methods turned our land attack into a pure speed competition. The cavalry was even regarded as a treasure by the army, because the cavalry could at least keep up with the tanks and bring back prisoners.”

“Go on,” Akado said, adjusting his mood with a sigh.

“And then they thought of my paratrooper units. At the beginning, they came to me with a request,” Student said. “They said the infantry couldn’t keep up with the frontline tank units, and that some tank units, because their attack speed was too fast, had lost their infantry cover. They asked me if I could carry out a local parachute drop to cover the tanks’ continued advance.”

His emotions became a little agitated as he spoke. “At the time, I didn’t think that this kind of coordination between different branches was a big deal, so I nodded and agreed. But who would have known that with the cover of the even faster paratroopers, the army’s tank units would attack even more recklessly. As a result, more gaps were created, and the paratroopers under my command were all thrown into the battlefield in batches and used as high-speed infantry.”

Akado suddenly realized that he had still underestimated the minds of these German military experts. In his past life, they had used paratroopers as elite infantry. This time, they had fantastically gone to the other extreme.

He now felt a deep sense of powerlessness. All the various out-of-control events from the past flooded into his mind, making his head throb with pain. Although he had tried very hard to bring the advanced experience of his past life to the Germany of this world, he found that he still could not control the centrifugal force that all vast institutions must face.

Although his ideas had been proven by history, although many of his regulations had been proven correct by the blood and bones that came later, they still could not be perfectly implemented in every corner of the Reich. For one reason or another, the future he had planned was disrupted again and again, becoming a nondescript hybrid.

Akado really wanted to know how those who transmigrated to ancient times managed to make a huge empire do their bidding. The rotten communication systems where news from some corner of the country would take a dozen days to reach the capital; the rotten bureaucratic institutions that paid lip service while being corrupt, yet could strangely become sharp and powerful after some supervisory office was established—and even the new recruits trained for a few months could repel a strong enemy…

It sounded like the worlds in the stories were so wonderful, while the real world was cruel. In fact, due to a matter of face, the navy and army had bickered, and a warship had been sunk. The entanglement between the army and the paratroopers had nearly destroyed the airborne force he would rely on in the future. The air force had even left the other branches behind and had launched the war against Poland a step ahead, completely disrupting the original plan.

“Call them all in,” Akado said to Student. No matter how angry he was, he could not reprimand half the commanders of the entire German Wehrmacht. He could only change slowly, change himself, and change all those who could keep up with his pace.

One by one, everyone walked into the not-so-large room. Akado waited until everyone was present before he spoke. “The paratrooper units have other uses. In the future, the use of this branch must be discussed by the Wehrmacht High Command and the General Staff, and can only be carried out with my approval! Understood?”

“Yes, my Führer!” everyone replied loudly. Seeing that Akado did not intend to lose his temper, all the generals breathed a sigh of relief. A few of them even cast grateful glances at Student. It seemed they thought it was because Student had been tactful in his speech.

“Resolve the Pomeranian Army within two days, then complete the encirclement of Poland. I want to create the public opinion that our army’s victory is inevitable,” Akado said, looking around at the army generals. When his eyes fell on Rommel, his gaze softened slightly. “In addition, I want to expand by ten panzer divisions. Draw one-third of the cadre from the existing armored units and fill the rest with new recruits. We will arrange the weapons in detail later.”

“Führer, if we suddenly lose one-third of our tanks and crews, the combat effectiveness of the original old tank divisions will be weakened. This will have an adverse effect on future operations,” Rommel said, glancing at his superior, the commander of the northern German Army Group E, before steeling himself to ask.

“Don’t worry about that. In two days, more than half of the eastern front armored forces will be given a week’s leave and then sent by train to the Western Front to rest and refit,” Akado said, walking over and patting Rommel’s shoulder. “Your performance in Poland has made me very satisfied. I hope you can continue to satisfy me.”

“As you command, my Führer!” Rommel replied loudly, standing at attention and saluting.

“Please remember, everyone is fighting bravely here for the future of Germany! For our children and compatriots to live happier lives! So please put the state first, and stop wasting your limited strength on balancing and hindering each other!” Akado said solemnly. “Think about how you got those records of advancing dozens of kilometers a day that you boast about! Think about who advocated for these weapons in the first place. Who finalized these tactics? Just half a month ago, you had no confidence in this blitzkrieg, and some of you were even trying hard to persuade me to abandon the plan to attack Poland.”

“Keep up with me! Don’t disappoint me too much,” Akado said. After his final words, he walked out of the small room.

“Long live Führer Akado Rudolph!” Rommel and Student stood at attention and gave the most standard German salute.