Iron and Blood: A Triumph of the Will

Chapter 20 Intelligence Tsar

"Walter Nikola?"

Joachim tried hard to recall the name, but he couldn't find any recollection of it, whether he searched for the former or the latter.

He shook his head. "I don't recall. How come he's an expert in intelligence?"

"People from the General Staff."

Manstein organized the information in his mind and then told Joachim everything.

It turns out that Walter Nikolai was the head of the Counterintelligence and Intelligence Directorate IIIb of the General Staff of the German Army.

The top intelligence officer in Germany during World War I was loyal only to the army and the emperor, not to political parties, and had an extreme aversion to democracy and revolution.

"I see..." Joachim nodded, then added thoughtfully, "I also spent some time in the General Staff, but I felt his performance wasn't very good."

"Your Highness, why do you say that?"

Manstein was somewhat surprised by Joachim's words.

She turned around and stared at him in a daze.

"As far as I know, his performance during the Emperor's campaign was not very good. The British learned our intelligence codes, and he..."

Joachim did not finish his sentence, because he felt that there was really no need to say anything more.

"This is Ludendorff's problem, not his." Manstein suddenly realized and explained, "Although I am being polite, Your Highness, there are some things I must defend in Nikolai's defense. Some things in the campaign were beyond his control. He was just the head of intelligence, while Commander-in-Chief Ludendorff should bear full responsibility."

Upon hearing this, Joachim lowered his head and remained silent.

But Manstein went on to say, "I also heard about what Ludendorff was doing on the front lines."

"As you know, I have some connections with the General Staff."

"Telling the truth can easily hurt people, so after Ludendorff came to power, the intelligence agencies could only report good news and not bad news."

"Therefore, the reason for this situation is not because of Nikolai, but because of that incompetent Ludendorff."

"Well... Ludendorff was definitely not a good guy," Joachim added.

"So the problem isn't with Nikolai's intelligence capabilities, but with Ludendorff himself."

"What has he accomplished during his tenure?" Joachim pondered for a long time, considering that he really didn't have anyone on his side who could create an intelligence department out of thin air, so he simply had to ask the question that concerned him the most.

"He is undoubtedly the king of spies." Manstein had clearly been studying German tactics, so through his connections in the General Staff, he could obtain the latest first-hand information at any time. As a result, he knew Walter Nicolas by heart: "Within 48 hours of the outbreak of war, he paralyzed the French intelligence network in the Reich, and cracked the French transportation lines, codes, and safe houses throughout the Reich, arresting more than 500 people in total, thus directly paralyzing the French intelligence agencies in the Reich."

"He's actually that amazing!"

Joachim was immediately surprised and couldn't help but turn around and stare at the other person.

It seems to be a matter of judging whether Manstein was telling the truth, lying, or exaggerating.

It's common knowledge that Germany has always been terrible at intelligence... How did they manage to hide a super genius during the Reich era?

"In addition, he provided a great deal of intelligence during the Battle of Tannenberg, clearly determining the Russian army's offensive route and supply speed."

"You could say that no intelligence agency provided a large amount of accurate intelligence."

"General Hindenburg and Ludendorff dared not use encirclement tactics to completely annihilate the Russian Second Army..."

"And the subversion in Russia is directly related to him."

"In addition to these, they incited Irish independence from Britain."

"Inciting anti-British riots in the Middle East..."

"What is his attitude towards the Poles?"

In fact, Joachim was already interested when he heard that Nikolai had made a huge contribution to the intelligence on the Battle of Tannenberg.

At the time, he was patient enough to continue listening.

But when he heard that the subversion in Russia was related to him, he couldn't sit still any longer and blurted it out.

"You can call and ask him yourself," Manstein said with a smile, keeping everyone in suspense. "But he'll definitely give you a satisfactory answer."

"Then you just listen over there and give me your phone number."

He could already tell the answer from Manstein's expression, but Joachim didn't point it out.

He simply smiled and nodded at the other person, then strode over to the phone.

Although Germany is currently in chaos, at the request of the Republic's government, telephone lines remain open, especially for high-ranking officials such as the governor.

Naturally, it is unobstructed and can reach the ears of the heavens!

"Transfer to Berlin, Reich Army General Staff... then transfer to the IIIb Counterintelligence and Intelligence Directorate."

"who I am?"

"Ludwig Edeller......."

Joachim lost count of how many times the call had been transferred, but it finally went through. The person on the other end was noticeably cold: "Governor Ludwig Edeller, is there anything you need me to do?"

"Or is there some problem in Silesia?"

"How are you feeling?"

"I'm not that guy."

"..."

The call was immediately disconnected.

"Did he hang up the phone?"

Manstein stared at Joachim's gloomy face and nearly bit his tongue off.

The guy he recommended was really a bit strange.

"It's alright, I'll call him back." Joachim remained calm and dialed the number again.

"Transfer to Berlin, Reich Army General Staff... then to the IIIb Counterintelligence and Intelligence Directorate..."

"Who are you?" The voice on the other end of the phone grew increasingly cold.

"Joachim..."

"I don't know you... I'm very busy, please don't call me again."

The call ended abruptly as soon as the voice faded.

Now, Manstein truly held his breath: "It's dead again?"

"It's okay, I'll call him again."

Anyone would be annoyed if their phone was hung up on twice in a row.

Not to mention that Joachim was a man of some standing, holding the phone: "Transfer to Berlin, Reich Army General Staff... then transfer to the IIIb Counterintelligence and Intelligence Directorate...!"

"Who are you?" The voice on the other end of the phone was unusually cold.

"Hohenzollern!"

"......."

"Can you recognize my voice, Nikolai?"

"Your Highness the Crown Prince..." The person on the other end of the phone clearly hesitated before speaking.

"Joachim Hohenzollern."

"Your Highness."

"I'm glad you can recognize my voice."

"Where are you now?" the person on the other end of the phone asked again.

"Breslaw......."

"You didn't go to Romania?"

"It shouldn't be you asking me questions, but me asking you questions," Joachim said slowly. "The first question..."