When Weitmann heard that the people who shoveled snow on the roadside were Jews, he couldn't help but think of a rumor he had heard, and couldn't help asking curiously: "God General, I heard that those Jews who were sent to concentration camps would be sent to gas chambers and executed. I wonder if this is true or false?"
"It's simply nonsense." As soon as Weitman finished speaking, Kurtzbach said in a stern tone without hesitation: "This is all rumors spread by Britain, the United States and the Russians, trying to slam the morale of our army in this way. Captain Weitman, I don't know where you heard this from, but this matter ends here. If I hear you mention it in the future, I will send you to the military court without hesitation. Do you understand?"
Weitmann didn't expect that his casual question would cause such a big reaction from Kurtzbach. He could only blush and replied in a low voice: "I understand, General."
As an officer of Kurtzbach's level, he naturally knew a little about the massacre of Jews in the concentration camp. The reason why he used such harshness to stop Weitmann was that he did not want such news to spread to the army to affect morale. After all, this practice is inconsistent with the familiar chivalrous spirit.
The car arrived at the small building where the headquarters was located and stopped. A German captain on duty at the door immediately ran over. He bent down and looked into the car. He saw clearly that it was Kurtzbach sitting in the back seat. He quickly raised his hand and saluted, and asked respectfully: "Hello, General Kurtzbach, do you have any notice to the headquarters?"
"Some." Kurtzbach knew that Paulus was his command and was attacked by guerrillas, so he checked in and out in a very strict manner. Even the senior officers who often came here, if they were not ordered, they might be stopped outside the small building by the officers and soldiers on duty. Kurtzbach pushed open the car door, walked out of the car, and said to the officer: "I came here to report to him by the order of the commander."
"What about him?" The officer looked at Weitmann who came out of the other side of the car door and asked vigilantly: "Has he also been ordered to report to the headquarters?"
"Yes, he is the person he wants to meet with when the commander named him." After Kurtzbach said this, he was afraid that the officer would not believe it. He also reminded him: "If you don't believe it, you can call to verify it."
The officer's eyes met the roof of the car, stared at Weitmann opposite him for a while, and then said to Kurtzbach: "General Kurtzbach, please wait here for a while, I want to make a call to verify."
When the officer went to call, Weitmann walked around the rear of the car and came to Kurtzbach, and asked curiously: "God General, do you have to go through such a harsh investigation every time you come here?"
"It wasn't that strict before," Kurtzbach looked at the officer standing in the booth and shaking his head, saying, "But since the war was in a stalemate, the headquarters' security work has become increasingly strict."
After waiting for a while, the officer walked out of the booth and came to the two of them. He said to Kurtzbach respectfully: "General Kurtzbach, I have verified it. The commander has indeed notified you to come to the headquarters. Please, I will take you in."
"No need, Captain." Kurtzbach did not appreciate the low posture shown by the officer. He waved his hand and said, "I am very familiar with the road inside. Even if no one leads the way, I will not get lost. Let's go, Captain, let's meet the commander now." The words he said to Weitmann.
Unexpectedly, just after the two of them walked a few steps, the officer blocked their way in front: "I'm sorry, General Kurtzbach, please hand over your gun."
Kurtzbach often came here and knew that handing over the matching gun was a rule, so he handed over the weapons to the officer without hesitation. Weitmann, who came from the front, did not have common sense in this regard. When he heard that the officer asked him to hand over the weapons, he wanted to argue with reason, but when he saw that Kurtzbach had already handed over the weapons, he swallowed the words he said, and obediently untied the belt with the pistol and handed them to the officer on duty.
Kurtzbach took Weitmann into the building and walked along the corridor towards Paulus's office. He also whispered to Weitmann: "Captain, what the Commander asks you later, you will answer whatever you want, don't be nervous. Do you understand?"
As a low-level officer, Weitmann had almost no chance to see the division commander, let alone the senior officer of Paulus. From entering the building, his heartbeat accelerated, and he kept thinking about what to say after seeing Paulus later. At this moment, he heard Kurtzbach's reminder and nodded vigorously.
Paulus's office is two inside and outside. The adjutant sitting in the outer office. When he saw Kurtzbach walking in, he quickly stood up to greet him and said, "General Kurtzbach, the commander has been waiting for you for a long time." Seeing Weitmann behind Kurtzbach, he asked casually, "Is this the officer the commander wants to meet?"
"Yes." Kurtzbach nodded, then asked back: "Can we go in and meet the commander now?"
The adjutant knew that Paulus was waiting for Kurtzbach, so he dared not be negligent. He hurried to the door and raised his hand to knock on the door. He heard something inside, and immediately pushed open the door and stood at the door to report to the door: "Commander, General Kurtzbach has arrived!"
A moment later, the authorized adjutant pushed open the door and asked Kurtzbach and Weitmann to enter Paulus's office. Weitmann followed Kurtzbach into the office and saw two German generals without military caps standing at a conference table with maps discussing something.
Hearing the footsteps at the door, a shorter officer came over, reached out and shook Kurzbach with his hand, and said politely: "General Kurtzbach, you are here, Your Excellency Commander, wait for you for a long time."
"There's no way," Kurtzbach replied with a wry smile, "The snow outside is too heavy and the road is difficult to walk on, so it's time delayed. Please forgive me for the Chief of Staff."
"General Kurtzbach," Paulus looked away from the map, looked at Weitmann, who was standing straight, and asked, "Is he the officer who commanded the troops to attack the barricade factory?"
"Yes, Commander." Kurtzbach nodded and replied in a positive tone: "He is Captain Weitman, the battalion commander of the 3rd Battalion of the 577th Regiment. He reported to me about the Russians having mysterious anti-tank weapons."
Paulus stepped forward to Weitmann, looked him up and down, and asked expressionlessly: "Captain, please tell me the situation again."
Weitman knew that the purpose of being called here was to introduce Paulus in detail the mysterious Russian weapons. He did not dare to neglect, and quickly reported to Paulus what he knew.
After hearing this, Paulus did not immediately express his opinion, but turned to look at Schmidt and asked, "Chief of Staff, what do you think about this? Did the Russians really obtain Americans' individual anti-tank weapons?"
Schmidt frowned and thought for a while, and then replied cautiously: "Commander, according to what Captain Weitmann said, I think it should be the American individual anti-tank weapon."
Hearing Schmidt's answer, Paulus' expression became more serious: "If the Russians were really equipped with such weapons in large quantities, it would be a disaster for our armored forces."
"Your Excellency Commander, you are right." As soon as Paulus finished speaking, Kurtzbach said: "After several months of shelling and bombing, Stalingrad has almost become a ruin. Our armored forces are unable to exert their power in field battles at all. Slow-moving tanks and assault guns will become targets of attack for the new anti-tank weapon of the Russians."
"The current priority is to figure out how many such weapons the Russians have." Paulus said solemnly: "Only after mastering the accurate number can we formulate corresponding response measures."
"Mr. Commander, I don't think the Russians have such individual anti-tank weapons too many." Schmidt suggested to Paulus: "After all, this weapon has just been equipped with the US military force for a while, and they may not have many of them. The number of Russians that can help them is even smaller."
On the way to the headquarters, Kurtzbach had been having headaches for the Soviet army to possess such anti-tank weapons. At this moment, when he heard Schmidt's statement, he showed a surprised expression on his face: "Chief of Staff, if I am not wrong about your intention, the anti-tank weapons that the Russians possess may only be the ones that destroy assault guns?"
"I think this is likely to be very big," Schmid replied in a affirmative tone: "If the Russians had a large number of individual anti-tank weapons, they would never have used such weapons for the first time until now."
Knowing that the Soviet army had few individual anti-tank weapons, Kurtzbach seemed to have regained some confidence. He asked Schmidt modestly: "His Chief of Staff, do you have any good ways to deal with the individual anti-tank weapons in the hands of the Russians?"
Schmidt glanced at Weitmann, who was standing next to him, and said, "According to the captain's description, the Russian anti-tank weapon fired at a distance of more than 80 meters, which means that the range of this weapon is 100 meters. To deal with such a weapon, we only need to park our tanks or assault guns outside its effective range."
"But how do we know where the Russian anti-tank soldiers are lying in ambush?"
Schmidt heard this question from Kurtzbach and sneered, saying, "General Kurtzbach, the tactics used by the Russians in combat are very rigid. Their soldiers will only stay in fixed positions and shoot at our attacking troops. Next time you attack, you can order the tanks or assault guns to stop three hundred meters or more from the Russian positions and use artillery fire to cover our infantry charge. As long as our infantry kills those Russian anti-tank hands, our tanks or assault guns will continue to advance."
"Chief of Staff, you said this is a good method." After Paulus praised Schmidt, he walked to Weitman again, looked at him and said, "Captain, I hope that your troops can use the methods mentioned by the Chief of Staff to deal with the Russians' individual anti-tank weapons in the next attack."
While Schmidt was still talking, Weitmann was thinking about how to command the troops to seize the Soviet position of the barricade factory. As soon as he came up with an idea, he heard Paulus talking to him, and quickly straightened his body and replied excitedly: "Commander, please rest assured, I will definitely apply the tactics mentioned by the Chief of Staff to the next attack."
"Very good, very good!" Paulus nodded with satisfaction in his statement, raised his hand and patted his shoulder twice, adding: "Captain Weitman, if your troops can successfully take down the barricade factory, I will definitely promote your rank and award you an Iron Cross."
Weitmann was so excited that his face turned red when he heard Paulus say he wanted to promote his military rank and award him a medal. He wanted to express his gratitude to Paulus, but because he was so excited, he didn't know what to say for a moment.
Fortunately, Kurtzbach promptly rescued him and said with a smile: "Mr. Commander, our captain is so nervous that he doesn't know how to express his gratitude to you. Now, on behalf of him, I will answer you that we will definitely take down the barricade factory."
Paulus raised his hand and looked at his watch, saying, "Okay, I've said everything I need to say. If there is a way to deal with the individual anti-tank weapons in the hands of the Russians, you will immediately rush back to the barricade factory and strive to launch another attack on the Russians' positions before dark."
Kurzbach heard Paulus' order and glanced at the phone placed on the desk, then asked tentatively: "Master Commander, can you let me use your phone? I want to call General Steinmetz and prepare him for the attacking troops, so that when the captain and I rushed back to the barricade factory, we could immediately attack the Russian positions."
Since Kurtzbach's request was related to seizing the barricade factory as soon as possible, Paulus naturally would not refuse. He nodded and reached out to make a request gesture, indicating that Kurtzbach could use his phone.
Kurtzbach walked to his desk, picked up the phone on the desk, dialed, and said to the microphone: "I am Kurtzbach, pick me up General Steinmetz."
Chapter completed!