Iron and Blood: A Triumph of the Will

"I didn't mean anything by it, I just think you have some unrealistic fantasies about peace."

Joachim smiled at him and patted him on the shoulder, encouraging him, "Captain, don't be confused. After all, most Germans think this way now."

"......"

"Most Germans believe that laying down their weapons makes them peacemakers, but in reality, we who have laid down our weapons are not even sheep."

The latter clearly could not understand Joachim's remarks, and after thinking for a moment...

Manstein thought Joachim was just being sarcastic, after all, he had heard a little about the Americans' peace terms, which were based on the Emperor's abdication.

Now that the Hohenzollern family has lost the throne and fallen from grace, it's understandable that they might have some grievances.

He understood, so he didn't argue and just waited silently for Joachim to speak.

Joachim seemed to have seen through his thoughts and simply smiled at them.

A brief analogy was used next to the latter: "If you are a robber, when you are robbing someone, the first thing you will judge is their wealth and ability to resist. If the other party has the same weapons as you, you will hesitate or give up the idea."

"This situation perfectly illustrates the predicament Germany is currently facing: you have laid down all your weapons. What awaits you is complete subjugation, not their mercy. Because you have no power to resist, they can manipulate you however they want."

"Don't assume that the Wilsonian ceasefire reached in 1918 will be of any great benefit to us; in fact, it was essentially a test of obedience."

"The Germans laid down their weapons, and in the end, they didn't even have the right to sit on the dinner table."

"In the end, it's still a much larger power game between the Allied Powers and the United States. Whoever can play the game more in the House of Cards will have a greater advantage."

"Just watch, because of the problem with the newly formed Poland in the east, those guys will soon create a shocking wound in the east."

"What kind of wound?"

Manstein was also intrigued by Joachim, even though soldiers shouldn't be involved in politics.

But Joachim was different!

"What other kind of wound could it be?"

"Of course, it was about tearing a huge gap between East Prussia and Pomerania to provide these Poles with a relatively good outlet to the sea."

"This is absurd!" Manstein almost jumped up and down, he could hardly believe the fact: "West Prussia is the territory of the German Empire, and according to the principle of national self-determination, the local inhabitants should remain within the Empire. We have already lost Alsace and Lorraine in this war."

"Isn't that enough? Do you want us to give up even more territory?"

"The losers have no right to negotiate," Joachim replied calmly. "Arthas and Lorraine are not the whole price. The price we will have to pay is far more severe, such as losing all our colonies, our entire navy, and our army's size in the future."

"These are all things they want to do, only to turn us into lame giants."

"That way they can enjoy the spoils of victory on our corpses without worry."

"That bastard Wilson deceived us!" Manstein roared. "Not a single American son of a bitch is any good! Peace terms should be determined according to the principle of national self-determination, and now they've gone back on their word! Traitors!"

"Alsace and Lorraine are still German-speaking regions; they just identify with the French psychologically."

"Didn't it still separate from the German Empire?"

Joachim opened the train window, and the rumbling of the train plunged the two men into an eerie silence.

After a long silence, Manstein seemed to accept reality. But his tone still carried a hint of resentment: "It's impossible. According to the principles of our own nation, Silesia cannot leave the German Empire, Prussia cannot leave Germany, and Germany cannot do without Prussia."

Manstein had already believed seven or eight tenths of what Joachim said.

But he still harbored unrealistic fantasies, compared to the claims of this German prince who had lost his throne.

Manstein still believed in the conscience of Americans; when people are desperate, they will only believe what is in their own best interest.

What Joachim said was certainly unpleasant to hear, but he still decided to add fuel to the fire and shatter the other party's illusions.

By no means, he intended to seize this opportunity to bring Manstein under his wing.

"That's how it is from a nationalistic perspective, but that's the reality."

"What you can't win on the battlefield, you can't win at the negotiating table."

"You'd rather believe their conscience than what I say."

That's because it's human nature to like believing things that are in one's own interest.

"However, reality is cruel."

"Losing is losing. Laying down your weapons means being slaughtered at will."

"Don't feel ashamed or unable to accept defeat."

"If we lose today, we can win it back tomorrow!"

Joachim's words swayed Manstein into a daze.

He knew the other person was right; one had to be able to accept defeat. Only by accepting defeat could one win the next move!

"You might think what I said was a bit untrue, or perhaps too realistic, and that you can't accept it."

Joachim patted the young man on the shoulder again: "But that's the reality. Follow me for a few days, and in a few days you'll hear what those traitors signed in France. Then you'll personally experience what it means to lose sovereignty and national humiliation, and what it means to sell out your country for personal gain."

Manstein paused for a moment, then fixed his gaze on Joachim: "Your Highness, just how far can your vision extend?"

"I don't know how far it is, but I know I'm just doing my best to do what I should be doing right now."

"What is it?" Manstein already had a vague idea of ​​what the prince was up to, but he still pressed on, "Is he fleeing to Romania or heading to the Netherlands?"

"Or perhaps you received an order from His Majesty the Emperor...?"

"He is him, and I am me." Joachim felt helpless after having his father's property stolen and being branded as the German Emperor: "Everything I did was not for anything else, not for the Emperor, not for the Empire, but for national and personal vendettas."

"I want to avenge the Germans."

"So what can I do in this revenge?"

"Strive to follow in my footsteps; I need someone like you by my side."

"But my vision isn't long-term or far-reaching enough."

"That's because you and I have different kinds of wisdom. I'm a natural-born politician, while you're a military strategist."

"You will become a great general or marshal in the future, and I will help you complete your revenge and tear those arrogant guys down from their pedestals."

"But if we do that, wouldn't we become the sinners who started the war?"

"Earth is not a paradise, but a struggle for survival."

"The British and French have bared their fangs and will do anything to destroy our homeland."

"And we will use every means to save him."

Manstein has completely broken free from his inner moral constraints and is determined to follow Joachim to complete this revenge.

The latter smiled at him and extended his hand, which Manstein grasped tightly.

And so, the two of them set their goals together and set off for the first step in realizing their dreams.

It was also the first stop for Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, to realize his dream – Silesia.