Chapter 325: Amiens

The urban warfare in the city of Amiens was still continuing. The German and French armies were engaged in a fierce struggle within the city. Several hours of fighting had already cost the German army about 500 soldiers, yet they were still unable to completely occupy Amiens. The French soldiers were insufficiently trained, and their weakness in individual combat capability was fully exposed in the urban warfare. In most cases, the German soldiers were able to take out these French opponents, who knew nothing about urban warfare, by relying on sneak attacks and ambushes.

The battle had already been going on for three hours. At ten o’clock in the morning, a car in the dilapidated city of Amiens was overturned by a shell. It was not because the German artillery was a hundred percent accurate; it was simply because the people in this car were too unlucky.

Soon, several French soldiers in the vicinity discovered this unlucky overturned vehicle. A dozen or so French soldiers stood in the middle of the road, watching. They were holding their rifles, their eyes filled with indifference and helplessness. Just over 100 meters away from here was already a German defensive position.

“Aren’t you going to rescue them?” a French company commander asked, walking over and giving orders to his men. Soon, everyone had gathered around and, with many hands, had pried open the already somewhat twisted and deformed car door. The door was covered with holes pierced by shell fragments. It seemed that the people in this car were more likely dead than alive.

But because an officer had given the order, the French soldiers were still very diligent in rescuing their own compatriots. They found that the driver of the car was already dead, because at least three pieces of shrapnel had hit this unlucky fellow’s abdomen and chest. But perhaps because of sheer good luck, the people in the back of the car were less seriously injured.

Soon, a French officer covered in blood was dragged out of the car by the soldiers. He was clutching his stomach, which seemed to have been injured by something. This person looked a little dazed, and behind him, the soldiers pulled out another person from the car. This person was clearly much younger than the injured one, but his face was pale, and he looked frightened.

A new round of shelling soon began. The shells flew over their heads and exploded on a street not far away, shattering the already cracked glass on the nearby buildings. These French infantrymen did not dare to continue watching. They carried the two men and fled, scrambling, toward a nearby courtyard.

After passing some broken courtyard walls, this group of French infantrymen, carrying the two men, came before a half-collapsed three-story small building. Before the war, a person of some status must have lived here, because ordinary people could not afford a three-story mansion.

The telephone in the room rang. The company commander signaled for the soldiers to put down the wounded, then grabbed the phone and said, “This is 2nd Company’s command post… What?… The Germans have advanced another 50 meters? Then there are only two buildings between them and us?”

He was somewhat annoyed and shouted loudly, “What do you want me to counter-attack with? My company has been holding this position since two hours ago and has not had a rest yet! We have lost 31 men and have not received any replacements. Ammunition and medicine are severely lacking. What do I have to organize an attack with?”

He slammed the phone receiver on the table, then picked it up again in annoyance and hung it back on the phone. This French company commander helplessly began to assign tasks. He pointed to a squad leader who was following him and said, “You lead the remaining seven men of the 1st squad to that building! If the German army charges in, you must repel them.”

“Yes, sir!” The squad leader gave a salute and then led a soldier out of the room.

“The rest of the 2nd platoon, organize a defensive line here,” the company commander said to another person, watching his subordinate walk out of the room.

“Sir! The German snipers will cause us more casualties!” the platoon leader said, somewhat reluctantly. “If we organize a defense there, we can only hold out for half an hour at most.”

“Then hold out for another half an hour!” the company commander slammed the table in annoyance. “What can I do? The higher-ups won’t let us retreat, so we have no choice but to hold on here!”

“Yes, sir,” the platoon leader nodded and also walked out with a few men.

Approximately 3,000 French soldiers had already been killed in action in Amiens, and at least another 2,000 had been captured by the German army. However, using the advantage of the terrain, the French army had destroyed two German StuG IIIs and had also taken out a Panther tank.

The command post soon fell silent. Only then did this company commander look at the young man and ask, “Have you had breakfast?”

“…” The young officer shook his head and did not speak.

“Then which unit are you from?” this French company commander asked, finding a broken bed piled high with miscellaneous items and sitting down on it. At the foot of the bed still lay the corpse of a French soldier. He had been shot in the abdomen and looked to have been dead for some time. He didn’t seem to mind the disgusting corpse and was still in the mood for a little chat at a time like this.

Because he was nervous, the young man dressed as an officer thought for a long time, organizing his words. As a result, just as he was about to speak, a shell happened to land right in the middle of the courtyard. The blast wave blew into the room, carrying rubble and debris, making it impossible to breathe for a moment. His ears were ringing. It was unknown how long it had been before the whole room fell silent again. The French company commander patted the dust off his body.

“Cough, cough,” the company commander said, helping the terrified young officer up from the ground. “Is anyone still alive? Answer me! Check the damage situation! Quick!”

He looked at the older British officer lying on the ground, who had been barely hanging on before. Now, after the explosion just now, he had lost all signs of life. He went over and felt the body, and pulled out the blood-stained identification and some banknotes.

Rein stared at Alice, waiting for her answer. Time passed, minute by minute, until Alice finally spoke. She said, crying, “I don’t want to kill people, and I don’t want you to get hurt! I’m just very scared right now! Really scared! I don’t know what to do…”

Rein’s hand twitched, and the dagger disappeared from his palm. He extended his hand toward Alice. “If you really want to survive on the front line, then come with me! I’ll let you see what a real battlefield is like.”

Alice was taken aback for a moment, then placed her own hand in Rein’s. With a pull, Rein pulled Alice off the rock and then supported her with his hand to let her land safely. The two of them, one after the other, ran toward the city of Amiens.

They passed a squad of grenadiers who had withdrawn from the front line to rest. These soldiers were covered in dust, some with blood on them. Their faces were covered in filth. Only their deep-set eyes showed that these men were still alive. These soldiers sat on the side of the road, resting with their guns in their arms. Only one soldier, who was on guard duty, saluted Rein.

“See them?” Rein said as he walked forward. “These people are people too. They were sent here from all over Germany. If we don’t kill, don’t kill with all our might, don’t kill with all our strength, then we will be the same as those who are killed, and we will die here forever.”

Rein walked to the side of the bodies of two killed French soldiers. These two bodies were just piled up together, lying at the corner of a block. Just like the broken bricks and rubble on the ground, no one gave them a second glance.

“If you don’t want to die, and you don’t want our comrades to die, then you have to kill, kill with the highest efficiency,” Rein said, kicking the two bodies with his foot, and then continued to walk forward. “Bend down! The front line is probably not far ahead. Stay close to me. Be light on your feet, otherwise you will be hit by a bullet.”

Alice nodded and, bent over, followed Rein. The two of them quickly passed through the block and stopped in front of a large building. There, through the show window, they saw a German frontline command post.

“Heil Führer! Good morning, sir,” a sentry who was leaning against a telephone pole, smoking, said, saluting Rein at attention. After all, Rein was now a lieutenant. In an infantry company, he was already an out-and-out big shot.

“Heil Führer,” Rein returned the salute casually and, pulling Alice, walked into the command post of this German grenadier company.

“I was bored waiting in the back, so I came over to teach a rookie a lesson,” Rein said with a smile, walking up to the busy German company commander. “I’m taking her to kill people. Is there a place where I can give it a try?”

“An armored trooper?” The company commander glanced at Rein, then at the Knight’s Cross with Oak Leaves on Rein’s collar, and a smile immediately appeared on his face. “Rein Hardt. It’s not a wise choice for you to come to the front line. After all, you are our number one ace tank commander now.”

“I’m very good at killing people, killing in all kinds of situations,” Rein said with a smile. “What I like more is to smash people’s heads and watch their brains splatter on the wall.”

“…” The grenadier company commander stared at Rein. A few seconds later, he nodded and said, “See that red building? We have a sniper team trapped there. There are a lot of Frenchmen around. They are organizing a counter-attack. We were just about to send people over. You want to go together?”

“No need,” Rein said with a wave of his hand, a brilliant smile still on his face. “I’ll take her. That’s enough.”

“You British boy, you can continue speaking now. It’s safe,” the French company commander said, lighting his pipe and taking a leisurely puff, asking casually.

“I am an assistant to an observer sent by General Gort. My superior, the one who just died, was hit by a shell on the way here. Now I need a radio… to contact my superiors and report the situation here,” the young British officer said, his expression very dejected, but he spoke very good French. “I am here to pass on the news of this place truthfully to General Gort, to tell him whether the battle in the direction of Amiens can resist the German attack. But now it seems the situation is very bad. It won’t be long before we are surrounded!”