It's better to conquer them than to command the steel torrent

Chapter 186 | Keep your spirits up! Don't embarrass yourself!

"Lieutenant Lyman, we're running out of time. How can we let the military technology and wisdom of the Varlanders fall into the hands of the Ivanros?" Klein urged anxiously again.

Shank stared intently at the Second Lieutenant named Lyman in front of him.

If that doesn't work, then use money. A check temporarily approved by the embassy and placed on one person can be a huge sum of money.

Lieutenant Lyman had not heard of the military-industrial complex ordering the destruction of the Henschel factory's technical data.

The main reason for this was that the war situation deteriorated too quickly. The government never expected that in just two or three weeks, Ivan Rus's army would have advanced deep into the country.

Right now, we must start by destroying the most critical government secrets. Many things are better left unsaid, but once they are, they may be worth more than a thousand taels of silver.

Who in this world dares to say they don't have any shameful secrets?
Secondly, there are military secrets—mainly various documents from the General Staff.

In comparison, the technical data from the military industry sector doesn't seem so 'frightening' and isn't a top priority.

Perhaps the Varland defense industry has already decided to destroy valuable data on its own weapons and equipment in the past two days, but the order has not yet been passed down to the grassroots level.

The closer they got to the war zone, the more chaotic and nearly paralyzed the Varland government became.

In conclusion, after careful consideration, Lieutenant Lyman nodded and agreed.

It wasn't that he trusted these people too much, but rather that the thought of the consequences was truly unbearable.

The Henschel factory in Kassel has advanced aircraft and tanks, the fruits of the wisdom of the Varlanders. Whether they are destroyed or given to allies, we will never let the enemy benefit from them.

As for the origins of these people, Lieutenant Lyman didn't bother to investigate further. Whether they were genuine or not, as long as they weren't the despicable Ivan Rus's, it was fine.

As he stood up, he said, "I agree to let some soldiers cooperate with your operation, but they are all new recruits and have not yet completed their full training."

With the characteristic arrogance of Mariana's army, Morel said nonchalantly, "They do look terrible, like farmers who have just learned to throw grenades. I'm worried about them having an accident if they're given weapons and ammunition."

Lieutenant Lyman had no intention of arguing with her, so he let her have her way with her words.

Shang Ke breathed a sigh of relief, never expecting that his impromptu idea would succeed without any major incident.

Snowflakes are falling.

Forty or fifty new recruits from the Imperial German Army lined up outside. Then, six or seven men carried several wooden ammunition boxes, threw them on the ground, and cut the sealing strips with pliers. Inside were bright yellow Mauser heavy-point bullets. The other three ammunition boxes contained wooden-handled grenades.

"Come here! Get your bullets and grenades!"

"Standard quantity: sixty bullets and one grenade per person, quick action."

The soldiers, wearing steel helmets and fully armed, carried Mauser rifles, filled the leather ammunition pouches on their belts with magazines, and then took out a grenade and clipped it into their belts.

The group of new recruits was led by two exempted soldiers (senior veterans exempt from chores) and a corporal.

There was no other way; this recruit training camp branch only had one officer, and naturally, there weren't many non-commissioned officers either.

In addition, Lieutenant Lyman kindly lent three of the five Opel trucks he had, which could just squeeze in enough for everyone to sit.

"Perhaps I should refuse them..." Lieutenant Lyman murmured to himself, watching the convoy disappear into the distance, snowflakes accumulating on his peaked cap.

Before long, the convoy of cars and trucks disappeared at the end of the road.

Two hours later. Kassel is just a small city with a small population. Large enterprises like the Henschel factory, which employ five or six thousand people, are the mainstay of the local economy.

Shank and his group arrived in Kassel in the afternoon. What greeted them was a chaotic street, and an indescribable sense of oppression and desolation welled up in their hearts.

The civilians who insisted on fleeing brought their families with them.

Civilians who did not want to flee kept their doors and windows tightly shut.

Large numbers of Imperial troops retreating from the northern front are marching south, their uniforms loose, dirty, and tattered, their expressions and eyes filled with dejection.

Seeing this, Shang Ke rolled down the car window and called out a few times, but no one answered, so he asked Mo Luo to stop the car.

Shank opened the car door, stopped Lieutenant Dide who was riding a motorcycle with a sidecar, generously offered him a pack of cigarettes, and asked, "How's the situation? Have the Ivanros attacked yet?"

Klein then translated and relayed the information.

The captain took out a cigarette, lit it, took two deep drags, and sighed, "An entire army corps of Ivan Rus' is attacking Hanover. Our division only participated for a week before having to retreat. I hear that some Ivan Rus' reconnaissance units are heading south..."

Hanover is not far from Kassel, about 160 kilometers by road.

Moreau looked around, feeling both disdain and curiosity about the disheveled and embarrassed state of the Dide soldiers.

She asked, "I don't understand why you are like this. I defeated the Ivanros in Budapest, and they weren't that scary. How did they defeat you?"

The captain was embarrassed. He gave a few bitter laughs, opened his mouth to speak but then remained silent, unsure of where to begin.

After a short pause, he finally spoke: "It's quite simple, really. Artillery bombards, tanks charge, infantry charge..."

You still have the leisure to chat with others and show off your superiority?
Shank grew impatient and simply dragged Moro away.

"To the Henschel factory!" He rolled up the car window, unscrewed the water bottle, took a sip, and said irritably, "Don't mock the Varlanders; you'll be beaten senseless when you're in the same situation."

First, they bombard you with 152mm howitzers, then hundreds of T-34s storm into your position, followed by waves of infantry... Small-caliber anti-tank guns can't deal with T-34s, anyone would be dumbfounded.

The group rushed to the Henschel factory.

The closer you get, the stronger the sense of oppression from those towering factory buildings becomes.

Rows of steam locomotives were parked outside the assembly workshop, like steel lions lying in the snow.

Henschel has its own security unit, with heavily armed security personnel guarding the gates and intersections. The factory is now completely at a standstill, and the employees coming and going appear uneasy.

Shank turned halfway around and instructed Moro and Klein in the back seat: "Be careful, don't embarrass yourselves. Go through this openly and honestly, and make sure you get the first impression."

For the two of them, the idiom might not be fully understood when taken out of context, but they could still grasp its meaning when placed in the context of the sentence.

So the convoy drove straight over and stopped in front of the gate. After a few people got out of the vehicles, they called the soldiers on the trucks to get out and line up.

The security captain rushed over, puzzled.

Before he could even ask a question, Moro adopted an aggressive demeanor, urging him impatiently and arrogantly, "Hey, you, gather all the security personnel and take us to the company's office area."

The corporal and two exempted soldiers led their troops in formation and marched over in an orderly fashion.

(End of this chapter)