Imperial Elite

Chapter 153 The Darkest Moment
Those familiar with Poland know that it is a country with an ancient history and a glorious past.

Don't be fooled by the Teutons' current dominance over Bunitania and Gaul, their past actions—they swore allegiance to the King of Poland and Germany in order to acquire a small piece of land and establish a duchy.

As for Lucia, the former gendarmerie of the Old World, it was once driven to Moscow by Polish-German forces and even captured the Tsar, making it the only country in the Old World to have accomplished this feat.

Even the once-powerful Sultanate of the Old World was killed by Polish winged hussars during the siege of Vienna.

In short, aside from being partitioned and destroyed, Poland is a strong nation with a glorious history.

Even during the period of national subjugation, in order to restore their nation, the Polish Germans provided the Great with a considerable number of cavalry during his conquest of the Old World. These cavalrymen were even called the best by the Great.

However, perhaps due to an excess of martial spirit, the Polish Germans did not have enough political merit.

Therefore, in terms of choosing sides, the Polish-German team, which lacks sufficient points, mainly focuses on whoever is stronger.

So who is the strongest in the Old World right now?

Naturally, the Teutons in Gaul were dealt with within a few weeks.

Although Joe is now quite arrogant, anyone with a little common sense can see that.

Old Joe even made it into Germania, but in the end he still had to leave. What does that mean?
The Teutonics are clearly stronger, so now that the Führer has given him face, how can I not reciprocate?

So Poland chose to vote for the Teutonics.

At this point, Poland's defection to the Teutonic Kingdom was undoubtedly adding the final, potentially fatal, blow to an already precarious situation. As Poland made its decision, the other two small countries to the east of Bohemia also adopted a stance of "I'm not pretending anymore, I'm laying my cards on the table, I've wanted to join the Teutonic Kingdom for a long time."

At this time, the only country around Bohemia that had not yet shown its teeth at Bohemia was the Russian military government.

Faced with this situation, just as Old Joe returned to Bohemia with his troops to begin establishing defenses, the Bohemian president and cabinet members found Joe in his command post, along with the Bohemian commander, whose face, like Joe's, was etched with rage and pressure.

The situation has deteriorated to this point; it's time for them to begin their final plan.

Before the situation deteriorated, the most important technicians and data in the military factory had already been transported out of Bohemia. They would then complete the evacuation plan and thoroughly destroy the military factory, leaving the Teutons with nothing but a factory building.

However, they did not want Joe and NATO's strength to be wasted in Bohemia, a dead end. As a completely landlocked country, now surrounded by the Teutonic allies, they had no hope of getting outside help and were almost destined for annihilation.

Therefore, rather than trapping NATO's military forces here, the Bohemian president hoped that Old Joe would consider leading a breakout to establish a government-in-exile elsewhere, so that they could fight back and reclaim Bohemia in the future.

In this chaotic command post, filled with maps depicting various defensive positions and assault plans, and reports from enemy troops gathering on all fronts, the Bohemian president looked at Joe, now disheveled with sunken eyes and his clothes crumpled like a pile of kimchi, just as he had when he saw Old Joe sending gold mixed with other supplies to Bohemia years ago.

"General, you have fulfilled your oath and fought to the last moment. But now, for the future of you and your troops, we must release you from your obligations to Bohemia."

"What do you mean?"

Joe looked at the Bohemian president with a puzzled expression as if he were speaking some alien language, not Buntanian.

The Bohemian president looked at old Joe, and Joe had seen that expression on his face many times before. It was the expression of someone who had made up their mind to take responsibility. Joe had seen that expression in Paris, in the Far East, and when he led his troops back to Bohemia from the pursuit of the Teutons.

"Ten minutes later, we will give a national address saying, 'We have made the incredibly painful decision to cease resistance. This is entirely our own choice as Bohemians, to prevent the destruction of our people and cities.'"

Upon hearing this, Old Joe couldn't help but clench his fist.

The Bohemian president, seemingly oblivious to Old Joe's clenched fist, continued, "We sincerely thank and will forever remember our great ally."

“Joe, you have fulfilled a promise that is more important than the covenant. You are a true hero. Now, it is our turn to ask you to conserve your strength for a greater purpose.”

The Bohemian president turned his gaze to the map on the huge table in the center of Joe's command post. Around Bohemia, there were densely packed troops from what had already been discovered, including those from Teutonic, Polish, and two other small countries on the eastern front.

“Anyone who wants to follow you can join Wagner and leave. We'll stall for time as much as possible in the negotiations, and you, Joe…”

The Bohemian president looked at the map and said, "We believe you can lead those who are still able to fight and continue the fight."

Upon hearing this, Old Joe slammed his hand on the table.

"Do you know what you're talking about?!"

The Bohemian president nodded, looking calmly at old Joe.

"Of course I know that if we persevere, we might be able to hold on for a long time, but..."

"No buts!"

Old Joe slammed his fist on the table in front of him in a fit of rage.

"Cancel that stupid broadcast right now!"

Looking at his old friend, whom he could perhaps call a friend, Joe sighed.

“Listen, I know the situation is bad right now. With the Teutonic army pressing in, the exposed Morawa Gorge will become their breakthrough point.”

As Joe spoke, he pulled a world map from under the table and placed it on the table.

"But it's not time to give up yet, we still have a chance."

As he spoke, Joe gestured on the map.

"The Polish Germans' defection to the Teutons seems to have left us isolated and helpless, but they have also disrupted the balance. Now they have cut off the road transport between Upper Silesia and the People's Revolutionary League. You should know how much the People's Revolutionary League values ​​Upper Silesia."

As he spoke, Joe began placing some pieces representing the troops onto the map.

"Guess what the People's Revolutionary Union thought after Poland sided with the Teutons?" The Bohemian president looked at the map in front of him, seemingly having thought of something.

"You mean..."

"Yes."

Joe nodded.

“Even if it’s just to gain a buffer zone, or even just to preserve the industry in Upper Silesia, the People’s Revolutionary Union must open up land transportation with Upper Silesia. And while they are opening up land transportation, they must also open land transportation to us in order to shorten their defensive line, so that we can hold their vulnerable flanks for them. Otherwise, the Luscan military government and the Teutons will be able to completely overwhelm them on the long front.”

Joe took out a pen and drew a few strokes on the world map.

"Now the Gaulish exile organization has announced its readiness to join NATO, and Bonitania is about to join as well. Wagner has recruited quite a few volunteers in Citibank..."

Joe put down his pen and looked at the Bohemian president.

“I know this is the darkest hour, but if we can hold on, we still have a chance. The Teutonic war machine is entirely dependent on the oil supplied by the Lucia military government. If we can cut off their land transportation, it will inevitably affect the operation of their war machine. To do this, we must maintain a forward base to the south. We must continue to fight! I will not leave, and you will not surrender. We will win, just like in the last war.”

The Bohemian president stared at the map Joe had spread out in front of him for a while, then looked up at Joe.

"How sure are you?"

Joe put down his pen.

"This isn't a question of how confident we are; it's something we have to do."

Old Joe looked at the President of Bohemia and said.

"Stop talking about withdrawing from NATO. It's easy to leave Bohemia now, but who knows how many more people will die if we have to come back."

Looking at Old Joe and the map in front of him, the Bohemian president gritted his teeth. His expression flickered like a traffic light for a while before he turned to look at the cabinet members who had come with him.

"Come on, time is of the essence, let's vote. Should we stick to the original plan, or persevere? Those who want to persevere, raise your hands."

After he finished speaking, the Bohemian president raised his hand, and then the cabinet members thought for a moment and raised their hands as well.

Seeing that the cabinet members had all raised their hands, the Bohemian president nodded. "Cancel the national broadcast. I will be giving a national address later today." Then the Bohemian president turned to look at old Joe.

"Joe, now everything is in your hands."

Joe nodded, then extended his hand to the Bohemian president.

"All for victory, my friend."

"Of course, everything is for victory."

The Bohemian president shook Joe's outstretched hand.

The fact that the Bohemian president was preparing to withdraw from NATO and choose to surrender had been somewhat foreshadowed when they were transferring their military factories.

But when they actually almost did it, it still startled Joe.

Although he eventually persuaded the Bohemian president to abandon the idea, Joe was still as shocked as when he heard about Gaul's surrender that the Bohemian president had ever had such a thought.

After all, the early relocation of the core personnel and data of the military factory was a precautionary measure in case Joe couldn't hold it. However, with Poland joining the Teutonic Army and preparing to surrender directly, this was something Joe hadn't anticipated.

After all, the Teutons in the Sudetenland had just been driven out not long ago. If they surrendered to the Teutons now, it was easy to imagine what would happen to them.

However, while doing so, they also choose to take the blame upon themselves rather than launch a surprise attack like the Gauls, thus preventing Joe from being caught off guard.

After the Bohemian president and his entourage left, Joe turned his gaze to the Bohemian commander. Joe saw the same confusion in his eyes; clearly, these guys hadn't even informed their own people...

This made Joe want to say something, but in the end, he didn't say anything.

While continuing to adjust troop deployments and preparing to defend the Sudetenland and Morawa lines to the death, Joe was also waiting for the People's Revolutionary Union to make a decision.

Because an emergency communication channel had been established with the People's Revolutionary League in the past, after Poland defected to Teutonicism, Joe immediately used this channel to send his proposal to the League: 'While Poland and the Teutons are currently focused on me, you should quickly seize the opportunity to open a route to Silesia. I will also cooperate with you in the operation. This way, you can reduce the threat on the eastern front, and we can continue to hold out. If we are finished, you will have to fight on two fronts.'

The People's Revolutionary Union (PRU) also found Joe's proposal very reasonable, since the pressure from the Southern Lucia military government had never lessened, especially after the Lucia military government occupied the Caucasus oil fields. Several new oil fields discovered by the PRU were located near the contact line between the two sides.

The low-intensity wars of the past two decades have made the Revolutionary Alliance very clear about just how much fuel modern warfare requires. No matter how powerful a war machine is, it is nothing but a pile of scrap metal once it runs out of fuel.

So even though they knew that now was the perfect time to take action on the western front and open up a land link with Upper Silesia, the People's Revolutionary League still had some concerns.

That is, once a surprise attack is launched against Poland, a surprise attack must also be launched against the Russian military government in the south. Otherwise, if the Teutons intervene in the war, they will be caught in a two-front war.

Originally, the People's Revolutionary Alliance wanted to wait for the capitalist world to fight amongst themselves before cleaning up the mess, but how come I've suddenly become the main force?

Faced with this problem, the People's Revolutionary Alliance was somewhat hesitant.

Then, at that moment, a selfless and kind person made the decision for them.

After conquering Gaul and bringing Poland into his camp, the Führer felt that José and Bohemia were nothing more than withered bones in a graveyard, easily destroyed. Now it was time to begin preparing to complete the final piece of the thousand-year empire and resolve the threat from the east.

While transferring troops to the eastern front, the Führer also began communicating with the Russian military government, preparing a surprise attack on the Revolutionary Alliance to completely eliminate their common enemy.

Theoretically, this secret agreement was highly confidential, and no more than ten people in both countries knew about it. However, one of them happened to be the same general who had informed Russia of the Teutonic military government's collusion with Russia.

(End of this chapter)