Colonel Adam followed Paulus's order and assembled the security forces of the headquarters, notifying the young major who had just led people into the bedroom to make final preparations and stand by at the end of the tunnel corridor from the underground command post to the ground.
At the ground entrance of the tunnel, Colonel Adam lit a cigarette for himself and waited for Paulus to arrive. The major of the guard next to him looked around, looking around, looking like he was waiting for Paulus to arrive.
He paced less than usual and came to Colonel Adam's side.
"Adjutant Adam, what are we going to do so late? It's really cold tonight."
Of course, Colonel Adam could tell that the man next to him was just gossiping, but he could not rule out the possibility that he wanted to ask something insinuating.
It would take a few minutes for Commander Paulus to come out. Adam, with smoke coming out of his mouth, put away the lighter and put it back into his pocket. He turned sideways and glanced at the major before replying.
"Commander Paulus is going to inspect the front line to see how the soldiers are doing. You and your people will keep your eyes peeled later. Recently, there have been frequent reports of Russians lurking in and secretly sabotaging things in the middle of the night.
Don't make any problems at this time, otherwise you know what the consequences will be, do you understand what I mean?"
Commander Paulus is going to inspect the front line!
Although this answer surprised the young major, it seemed reasonable after thinking about it carefully, and then he changed his expression to a normal expression and continued to speak.
"Adjutant Adam, I heard from some people in the headquarters that Marshal Manstein is coming to rescue us with a powerful armored group. His troops have already defeated many Russian positions and will be here soon. We, we
Will it be possible to play the game internally and externally soon?"
The young major's tone was somewhat unconfident, even timid.
Given his status and position, he should not spread rumors and believe them, let alone take the initiative to inquire about such a vital matter.
But the major couldn't hold back the strong desire in his heart. As for whether this strong desire was the desire to survive or the desire for knowledge, or a combination of both, the major tried to speak as quietly as possible so as not to let others hear.
The major who arrived didn't even know it himself.
Colonel Adam, who did not show many special expressions, glanced at the other party. To be honest, he was not surprised that he could be asked such a question.
At this point in the Battle of Stalingrad, none of the soldiers who are hungry and growling all day long still have unrealistic confidence in victory. If they can leave this damn city alive, it would be a thank you, but with the
The situation continues to worsen, and now even leaving this place alive seems to be a mirage.
Colonel Adam, who has asked similar questions to himself, is not qualified to reprimand others. It is best to tell others the appropriate answers he has concluded. It is best to stabilize the morale of the military. This is the only right thing that Colonel Adam can do at the moment.
"Yes, Marshal Manstein is indeed coming to rescue us with a large army. The Russian defense line outside the city has been conquered many times in succession. The rumors you heard are basically true."
"Really! This is true, great! We now have hope!"
An expression of excitement, comparable to winning a jackpot, immediately appeared on his face.
Before he finished speaking, Colonel Adam noticed that the young major leading the team was not the only one with an excited look on his face, but also a large group of guardsmen and junior officers behind him.
Everyone who was whispering had extremely excited expressions on their faces, and every word you said to me was filled with excitement that instantly boosted morale.
"Marshal Manstein is a master of attack. He is the conqueror of Sevenburg who was praised by the head of state himself. With him here, we will have no problem. Those Russians are definitely no match for Marshal Manstein. We will be able to leave this place soon."
Damn the city!"
"Thank you to the Führer, thank you to God, thank you to Marshal Manstein! I almost cried!"
"We are saved and can go home! This is the best news I have heard this year, I swear!"
Although the morale had increased a lot, Colonel Adam, who could vaguely hear similar words coming from the crowd, suddenly felt an unspeakable desolation in his heart.
Once upon a time, the Sixth Army led by Paulus was the strongest field group of the Wehrmacht that "attacked the sky" in the words of the Führer.
This fierce group, which represents the supreme combat power of the Wehrmacht field forces, vowed to crush Stalingrad and let this city, named after the evil Bolshevik bandit leader, be buried with the stubborn Russian idiots. A powerful and irresistible offensive.
There have been countless times when we almost achieved our goal, but each time we were just a little short of success.
The soldiers who were once full of confidence in victory have now become as happy as children who got their ideal birthday gifts just when they heard the news that they could survive, dancing and singing on the spot.
Song of praise.
In comparison, Marshal Manstein's reply to the call "Hold on! We will rescue you right away!" which could have had a positive effect was simply a great irony in Colonel Adam's eyes at the moment.
Colonel Adam, who was getting worse and worse as he thought about it, slowly shook his head, stamped out the cigarette butts thrown at his feet, and exhaled the last puff of smoke. At this moment, Paulus, wearing a trench coat, quietly walked out of the long, dark tunnel, guarding
The entourage and guards surrounding the Sixth Army Commander quickly set off.
At this point, there were very few defense zones left in the hands of the German troops in the city. The Soviet troops launched a powerful offensive from outside the city, just as the Germans did last year, but they just reversed the attack and switched the offensive and defensive sides.
After being completely surrounded, Paulus closed the door and beat the dog. Walking among the ruined streets, he felt an indescribable desolation in his heart. Even when he inspected the soldiers who had just been urgently summoned, their faces still looked nothing like victory.
An expression that doesn't matter.
"You did a great job, Lieutenant! Keep up the courage of everyone, and we can finally move towards victory."
He said unintentional words and squeezed out a smile. Even without looking in the mirror, he knew that it would be uglier than crying. Paulus felt that the smile of the second lieutenant who was being encouraged and praised by his right hand was at least better than his own.
Just a little bit.
"Commander Paulus, please speak!"
Paulus, who had just released the right hand of the first lieutenant in the first row, had not had time to lift his leg. The right hand of a soldier from at least the third row of soldiers was raised high, and then he jumped into Paulus' sight.
.
"Come out of the queue and be allowed to speak!"
Paulus spoke back without thinking, and the soldier who raised his hand also squeezed out of the queue and came to the front without thinking, and the words that followed were also blurted out without thinking or hesitation.
"Commander Paulus, can you give me a piece of bread? I have only received a piece of bread every day for a week. Let alone taking up arms to fight for the Führer, I am so hungry that I can hardly even stand in a military posture.
It’s stable.”
Unexpectedly, the scene where he should have been reprimanded loudly or even driven away was particularly strange and silent.
Among the more than a hundred soldiers and officers of the company in front of them, no one stood up to say a word of irony, and no one even said a word. Even though the scene was outdoors, it was so quiet that it was almost disturbing.
A strong night wind blew suddenly. Paulus, who didn't know if he was hallucinating, watched helplessly as the assembly line in front of him seemed to all sway in the direction of the wind, and stood tilted.
As a commander, Paulus, for the first time, didn't know what to say now, because he really didn't even have a piece of bread in his pocket.