Chapter 97: The Showdown

The moment he entered, Röhm began to shout impatiently, “My Führer! I hear this matter has become uncontrollable! I don’t know what you plan to do, but if you decide you would rather sacrifice the Stormtroopers to protect Dr. Goebbels, then I will have no choice but to order my men to counter-attack.”

“Counter-attack?” Hitler asked after taking a deep breath. “Is your counter-attack likely to be effective? I mean, can it disrupt social order and force the Parliament to withdraw its discussion on sanctioning the Stormtroopers?”

Röhm did not answer. He just stood there in silence, because he knew the answer to this question. If he had the ability to make the Stormtroopers unleash a bloody storm and shake the rule of the entire German government, then he wouldn’t be suppressed by the Greater Germany Party’s SS to the point where he couldn’t even lift his head. So his counter-attack was destined to be just a struggle, the painful struggle of a dying man.

“What does Dr. Goebbels say?” Röhm was silent for a moment, and finally, he was the first to break the silence and ask. “If he can voluntarily take responsibility, we will not suffer too great a loss this time.”

“Not suffer too great a loss?” Hitler stared at Röhm and cursed, “Are you an idiot? If I had gotten rid of Krupp, do you think that wouldn’t be a major loss for Akado?”

He stared at Röhm and cursed in a rage, “If I had a choice, I would rather trade twenty of your Stormtrooper cadres for Dr. Goebbels! The Stormtroopers have completely disappointed me! Besides taking funds to mess around with all sorts of nonsense, you have accomplished absolutely nothing.”

Röhm still kept his head down and said nothing, but on his lowered face, the corners of his mouth had already lifted slightly into a smug smile. This time, he had won after all. Hitler was cursing him like this because he couldn’t bear to part with the Stormtroopers. If Hitler were prepared to sacrifice the Stormtroopers, he would never be roaring in front of him in such a rage.

As expected, Hitler, after roaring for half an hour, finally calmed down. He collapsed weakly into a chair and ordered his secretary, Martin Bormann, who had just walked in the door, “Bormann, go and find Dr. Goebbels! I want to have a few words with him.”

“Yes, my Führer!” Bormann turned and walked out. Before long, he returned with Goebbels.

On Goebbels’s thin cheeks, his cheekbones were somewhat prominent, making him look like a zombie that had just crawled out of hell. He pursed his lips and stared at Hitler, a hint of madness on the verge of breaking out.

“Goebbels! You are my most loyal friend. I have always dreamed of revitalizing this decadent country with you…” Hitler did not avoid Goebbels’s gaze, but sighed and said helplessly, “But I have failed! I was not able to defeat that fellow named Akado! So I must pay the price.”

Goebbels looked into Hitler’s eyes, and finally, he smiled. “Hitler! You know I have always seen you as my god. I revered you, looked up to you so much. I never even doubted that you would lead me to final victory! I dreamed of making you the leader of the German people!”

He walked over and studied Hitler’s face carefully, as if to forever commit that eagle-like face to memory. “But I have still failed! But I still believe you are the best choice for the German people! And you have not disappointed me!”

“Remember! We have supporters in France. They hope we can stop or at least restrain Akado! So we can have a lot of resources! And in the east, Poland, which is feeling more and more threatened, will also stand up and support us!” Goebbels began to lay out some of his plans.

Staring at Hitler, he spoke more and more fluently, “Of course, the most important thing is the domestic propaganda mission! That woman Fanny is not to be underestimated! She is a true genius of public opinion and propaganda! When I was around, I could barely manage to get some advantage from her. When I’m gone, no one will be her match! I suggest you should find a chance to get rid of her!”

Hitler wanted to say something. Perhaps he felt that getting rid of Fanny was a very difficult plan. But Goebbels raised his hand to stop Hitler from speaking. This was the first time he had interrupted the god in his heart, and perhaps it would be the last.

“One failure means nothing! Two also… Hitler, I hope you can truly stand up! No longer fear that Akado! You also have many brilliant friends surrounding you! Use these resources and defeat him!” He patted Hitler’s arm very solemnly, then said no more, just stared into Hitler’s eyes.

After a long time, he finally nodded at Hitler, then turned and left without a sound. Until the door of Hitler’s office closed, he never once looked back.

Hitler knew that this separation would be their last, but he still couldn’t say any words to keep him. He had even prepared a small pistol for Goebbels. This pistol was made in France. Although its failure rate was quite high, its advantage was its small size and convenience. And because it was so small, its magazine only held 5 bullets.

About a few minutes later, Bormann walked into Hitler’s office and placed a small pistol on Hitler’s desk. “Dr. Goebbels has just committed suicide. He was afraid Akado would be suspicious, so he shot himself in the chest. He was very brave. He shot himself five times and just passed away.”

And so, the formidable figure of a generation, Dr. Goebbels, left this world, exiting the stage of history as a small and humble figure. He maintained his ruthlessness and determination to the end. Even his farewell was filled with a sense of finality and ferocity. But he had proven his talent with facts. After all, there was one person who had left this world even more humbly, and that person was Hermann Göring, who had died long ago on the streets of Munich.

Hitler, as if his last ounce of strength had been drained, plopped down into his chair. He closed his eyes and was silent for a long time before finally speaking, “Have Röhm come in! Send someone to contact Akado. Say that I request a meeting. I want to talk to him.”

…

Two hours after the Nazi Party had delivered Goebbels’s body and the bodies of a dozen or so perpetrators to the Greater Germany Party headquarters, the proposal to disband and outlaw the Nazi Party Stormtroopers was withdrawn. Of course, this storm also seemed to have vanished without a trace.

The Jewish members of parliament left, satisfied. They more firmly supported the Greater Germany Party, which had stood up for them, and more vigorously promoted the myth of the hero Akado saving the German people. Of course, all of this came later.

And right now, the male protagonist of the myth, Akado Rudolph, was in his office on the top floor of the Greater Germany Party headquarters, receiving the leader of another party—the leader of the Nazi Party, Mr. Adolf Hitler.

“Recently, you have crossed the bottom line of being a German,” Akado said, swirling the red wine in his hand. When he was working, or rather, when he was working in the army, he was not allowed to drink, so he liked to drink Coca-Cola. But when he was outside, he used red wine or coffee to match his status.

“The one who has truly forgotten that he is a German is precisely you, Akado!” Hitler said, narrowing his eyes and staring at the man before him. They had once lain in a field hospital, chatting. Now, though dressed in suits, they could never get back to being the comrades who stood shoulder to shoulder back then.

“I am working my heart out for the strength of this country! And you are pulling my leg!” Akado laughed, took a sip of red wine, and then continued, “Although you did not succeed, you have caused me quite a bit of trouble!”

“For an inconsequential Jew, you forced me to kill a truly noble Germanic elite!” Hitler was somewhat furious but forcefully suppressed his anger. “If you are only going to eliminate the Jewish dogs within Germany, then I will continue to make this kind of trouble for you!”

Akado sighed and said, “Actually, I have great reverence for the German nation. No matter when, no matter where, it has always had so many true patriots. Prime Minister Bismarck was like this, General von Seeckt was like this, President Hindenburg is like this. Even those who were defeated by me, deep down in their hearts, still love this country.”

He glanced at the completely puzzled Hitler, gave a self-deprecating laugh, and continued, “But you alone! Although you love this country, you love it in the wrong way! So I am now more and more certain of my decision! I must defeat you!”

Akado nodded. “We are enemies. This is something you decided a long time ago. Now there is only victory and defeat between us, and you only have one chance. The next parliamentary election will decide the outcome!”

“Goebbels told me! Failing once is nothing! Failing twice is also nothing! I will ultimately be victorious!” Hitler said very solemnly, rising to his feet.

Akado also put down his wine glass and stood up. “I will strike you down once, twice, three times! Until many, many times! Until you can no longer get up! Until you are lying on the ground watching me revitalize Germany!”

“I will make you pay the price!” Hitler said, turning to walk out.

“I will have the price ready and waiting for you to take it!” Akado replied with a smile.

Hitler walked out of the main door of the Greater Germany Party headquarters, looked back at the imposing building, clenched his fists, and walked down the stairs step by step. He had found his lost confidence. Most importantly, he had rekindled his fighting spirit. He wanted to win more seats in the parliamentary election. He felt he could definitely do it.

And upstairs, Akado sat in his seat, closing his eyes and enjoying Anna massaging his shoulders. Anna, while pressing from Akado’s shoulders to his neck, spoke, “You’ve provoked him like this, but you don’t make a move. You will bring trouble upon yourself in the end.”

“It’s not yet time, Anna!” Akado said with his eyes closed, humming happily. “I still need him to stir up the mud, to make this pool of water even murkier!”

Downstairs, Hitler got into his car, only to find that there was a kind-faced old man already in the car. He was not surprised, because he knew the faction this old man represented. And this old man did not make him wait long. He narrowed his eyes and asked directly, “Mr. Hitler! We are looking for a partner to deal with Akado. Are you interested?”