Chapter 293: The Complication

Advanced chapter at my Patreon https://www.patreon.com/c/caleredhair

“Field Marshal von Brauchitsch, General von Bock, General Student,” Akado said, standing by his plane and looking at his subordinates after

“Field Marshal von Brauchitsch, General von Bock, General Student,” Akado said, standing by his plane and looking at his subordinates after the award ceremony had concluded in an incomparably enthusiastic atmosphere. The Führer was now returning to Berlin. “We have so many outstanding soldiers. If we still cannot win the war, it will be our fault…”

“My Führer, we will certainly do everything in our power to help Germany win the war,” Brauchitsch said, standing at attention. The other two also quickly nodded in agreement.

Akado nodded. “Gentlemen, please march toward victory with me.” After speaking, he led Anna onto the plane. Two ground crewmen carefully closed the plane’s door, and then the plane’s engines quickly began to turn.

As the engines spun faster and faster, the plane also began to slowly taxi forward. Finally, under the gaze of the people, it taxied to the end of the runway, and its three wheels left the ground, flying toward the distance.

And in the sky, a dozen or so fighter planes that had taken off earlier met it, forming a protective screen around the Führer’s plane. Soon, these planes had completed their formation, a dark mass flying into the clouds. The people on the ground could only see a few small black dots hidden among the clouds.

“How is the offensive in the direction of Sedan progressing?” von Bock asked, turning his head to look at Brauchitsch after the Führer’s plane had disappeared over the horizon.

Brauchitsch, turning his head back and walking with von Bock, looked at him with his hands behind his back and said, “Rommel is fighting very well there. He advanced 55 kilometers in one day and is now attacking fiercely to the west near Laon.”

“Sometimes I really feel that the Führer is an incredible person,” von Bock said as he walked, glancing at Brauchitsch. “Rommel, Guderian, von Rundstedt, Keitel, von Leeb, Manstein, von Kluge, List… including you and me. Back then, we were all just mid-level officers in the Wehrmacht. But the Führer was actually able to pick out so many formidable generals.”

“A man of wisdom is someone that we mediocre men cannot fathom,” Brauchitsch said with a smile. “All we need to do is to follow in his footsteps, to strive to follow, and not to be left behind by him.”

“News came in two hours ago that in the vicinity of Stonne, the French forces are organizing a counter-attack. The 1st Panzer Corps is there, holding off the enemy’s tanks. That is an important defensive area near Sedan. The security of Stonne directly threatens the river crossing near Sedan. If the 1st Panzer Corps is defeated, our 2nd and 7th Panzer Corps will be in a passive position,” von Bock said, looking at Brauchitsch with concern. “Should we have Rommel slow down for a while and wait for the infantry to go up and strengthen the defensive line near Stonne?”

“Which unit is in that vicinity?” Brauchitsch asked after a moment’s thought, looking at General von Bock.

“A portion of the 3rd SS Panzer Division, as well as a grenadier battalion from the 9th Motorized Infantry Division,” von Bock replied immediately.

“Send a telegram to Guderian! Order him to reinforce this unit and to ensure the absolute security of the defensive position near Stonne,” Brauchitsch said to von Bock. “And then order the infantry behind them to speed up their march and to arrive near Stonne to stabilize the defense before dawn tomorrow.”

“So you mean that before the infantry has filled the gaps in the defensive line, Guderian’s troops are to hold their position and are not allowed to advance west?” von Bock asked with a frown. “Although this is a safe move, it will also make Rommel’s troops too exposed.”

Brauchitsch shook his head and sighed. “This operational plan drawn up by the Führer and General Manstein looks very good indeed, but it also has very great risks. If the other side were to launch a pincer attack from the north and south on our armored forces, then we would lose these tank units and the entire war situation would become passive.”

He glanced at von Bock and continued with a grave expression, “So everything in this plan depends on speed. If we can have the speed of the blitzkrieg in Poland, then we will achieve great success. But I have always been very worried, very worried that France, after all, is not Poland… It will not be so easily defeated.”

“I understand. I will have von Rundstedt restrain Guderian, have him stop his westward advance, rest and reorganize his troops on the spot, and hold his position in the direction of Stonne,” von Bock said, having made up his mind and nodding. “We must protect these armored forces for the Führer. This is the greatest asset we have. So there can be no mistakes. I would rather Rommel let a portion of the enemy forces in the encirclement go than let him take a risk.”

“At least we are in agreement on this point. Let’s handle it this way,” Brauchitsch said after a moment’s thought. “Send a telegram to Guderian and Rommel. Tell them we are short of fuel and cannot maintain our current offensive speed. Have them stand by for a day. This way, we can also give an account to the Führer.”

On the plane, Akado was staring at the clouds in a daze. He did not yet know that his and Manstein’s operational plan had been changed beyond recognition by the two military leaders. So at least at this moment, his mood was still quite good.

Outside the plane’s window, a full twelve Fw-190D liquid-cooled fighters formed a huge protective circle, surrounding his plane in the center. The roar of the plane’s engines made it difficult to sleep, but as Germany’s “Air Force One,” this transport passenger plane was already the most luxurious flying vehicle of its era.

Akado was leaning back in his soft chair, a brown blanket covering him. On the table in front of him were spread two operational maps of the Sedan area. He was holding a magnifying glass and carefully looking at the villages and defensive lines marked on them.

According to the news he had received before boarding the plane, the vanguard of Rommel’s army had already occupied Soissons and was attacking Laon fiercely. This speed had already exceeded his expectations. And the tireless Rommel was at this very moment leading his troops, charging toward one of their phased objectives—Marle.

And the 1st Panzer Corps, under the command of Guderian, had already approached the south of Laon, completely destroying the defensive line of the French 9th Army. They were now almost advancing side by side, fighting bravely forward to sweep away all obstacles and charge toward the English Channel.

However, a main force of the French army had already reached Montcornet and was there, engaging Germany’s 7th Panzer Corps. And in the area south of Stonne, the French army had assembled the newly formed 10th Armoured Corps, preparing to launch a fierce attack on the German flank. This corps had one tank division and one armored car regiment, as well as being reinforced with an infantry division. Its strength was very formidable. And the commander of this corps was none other than France’s number one armored warfare expert, General Charles de Gaulle.

On the ground, a soldier with headphones was carefully staring at a glowing screen, watching the fluctuations of the light spots on it. “Sir! A batch of planes has been detected, heading northeast, and is entering our jurisdiction.”

The duty officer nodded and ordered, “These planes are flying toward Berlin. Confirm the ownership and purpose of the planes. Notify the anti-aircraft units to prepare a warning shot if the target formation does not respond.”

An NCO on the side immediately picked up the phone and then asked, “Airfield, there are planes in our airspace. I need to confirm the target. It’s best to have the patrol fighters go and confirm. Berlin is right behind us.”

At this moment, a soldier rushed in, handed a telegram to the duty officer, and then said, out of breath, “A notice just received. The Führer is returning to Berlin, flying on Air Force One. They are using the first frequency.”

“My God!” The duty officer jumped up from his chair, quickly grabbed the telegram, and read it carefully. He immediately snatched the phone from the NCO’s hand. “Have your planes use the first frequency to make contact. That’s the Führer’s plane! That’s the Führer’s plane!”

The officer at the airfield on the other end replied with some dissatisfaction, “Are you an idiot? You want us to intercept and inspect the Führer’s plane? If my plane flies into the Führer’s plane’s safe defensive identification zone, how do you think I should explain that accident to the SS?”

“You wait while I verify,” the officer at the airfield said. Then his voice, ordering his subordinates, came through the phone. “Go and use the first channel to contact the other formation. What? It is indeed the Führer’s plane? Alright, I understand! Have the patrol fighters escort it from outside the alert distance. Alright… Hello? Are you still there? It has been confirmed. That is the Führer’s flight group.”

“The idiot on duty in the telegraph room fell asleep, so I also just received this notice… You’re lucky enough. At least your fighters won’t open fire rashly. A few seconds ago, I almost gave the coordinates of the unidentified aircraft to the anti-aircraft units,” the duty officer at the radar station said angrily. “The alert is canceled! There’s no problem.”

“If I were you, I would beat that sleepy idiot telegraph operator and then send him to the French front,” the duty officer at the airfield said on the other end of the line, and then hung up.

“The good news is, there was no plane intrusion. It was a false alarm,” the duty officer at the radar station said with a snort, looking at his several sweating subordinates. “The bad news is, because of one mistake, we almost shot down the Führer’s plane.”

“Sir! I… I really didn’t mean to…” the female officer on duty in the telegraph room who had caused the trouble was so scared she had already started to cry. All the officers present looked at her with some sympathy.

Yes, it was her. The duty officer in this telegraph room was a female soldier. Judging by her age, she was only in her late teens, the prime of her youth. Her short hair made her look very charming.

“Pack your things. I will submit a report and have you transferred to France. As for what you will do, that will depend on your luck,” the duty officer said coldly.