In the end, Paulus could not do anything. He could neither give the hungry and cold German soldiers a promise, nor could he give them a piece of bread that could suppress their hunger. Paulus, who walked away in the wind, felt that
Like a useless useless person.
"Did we really bring no food?"
Facing Paulus's question for an unknown number of times, Colonel Adam, who was also trapped in a deep sense of powerlessness and self-blame, shook his head.
"The headquarters is about to run out of food, Commander Paulus. We only have enough food left for the headquarters personnel for three days. If nothing can be done after three days, everyone will be hungry, including you.
, Commander Paulus.”
The Sixth Army Headquarters has a large number of personnel to support a large number of soldiers who perform their own duties. Once these hundreds of people are out of food, it is equivalent to a person's brain ischemia. At worst, this will have a fatal impact on the entire army.
, but after hearing these words, Paulus really doubted whether his group could survive these short three days.
The dilapidated ruined streets were extremely quiet, with no one around. Not even the sound of rats looking for food in the dark could be heard, let alone the Russians who were becoming increasingly difficult to deal with. But Paulus's guess was that
But he pointed to whether even the rats in the city had been caught and eaten by the soldiers of the army group?
This is not alarmist talk, but a fact that is right before our eyes.
Just when he walked into the small dilapidated building he was defending for inspection, Paulus clearly saw that in a tattered helmet placed at the corner of the stairs, there was a pile of bones that had obviously been skinned and boned by someone using tools.
Small animal bones were piled inside. Curious, Paulus even stopped and leaned down to look carefully for a few seconds.
There are more than one kind of skeletons of small animals, including cats, dogs, and even a sizable mouse head that looked like a sharp-mouthed monkey when it was alive.
All the bones have lost all traces of blood and have completely turned into white bones. The piles in the helmets are as if they are about to overflow. As for where the skinned and boneless animal remains ended up, I have seen that group of bones.
After seeing the starving ghosts who hardly looked like German soldiers, Paulus already had a very definite answer in his mind.
"Maybe tomorrow I mean after dawn, Adam. Maybe those Russians will come after dawn. What should we do then? I want to fulfill my oath to the Führer, but everyone should not have nothing else to do.
By choosing to take this path, I hope everyone can choose their own final outcome."
Although he is reluctant to face it, Adam must admit that what Paulus said is the truth and he should think about it carefully and take it seriously. Otherwise, it will be too late to consider these things when the Russians actually come over.
.
Adam did not answer Paulus's question directly, but looked at it carefully as if he had thought it over carefully. The answer given by Adam, who spoke again, did not end Paulus' confusion.
"I think this should be decided by you, Commander Paulus. We are all followers of the Sixth Army behind you. You once led us to victory. If we face inevitable defeat and cannot escape, at least I will
Accept all this calmly, but as for which method to use, I will follow your decision, just like in the past."
Colonel Adam took up his post with a mission similar to that of monitoring Paulus. However, after working side by side with Paulus through so many ups and downs, Adam felt that the mission he was carrying was no longer important.
, the important thing is where he will ultimately follow Paulus's footsteps and reach the end. This is the predetermined ending that Colonel Adam, as the chief adjutant, has planned for himself.
Paulus, who was kicked back by Adam, said nothing and raised his head to look at the sky where there were not many stars visible above his head.
A strong desire to survive burned deep in his heart and lingered. Paulus could no longer deny that he did not want to die in Stalingrad. He could not avoid his strong desire to survive, and there was something
It is worth giving one last try under the banner of the entire army group.
It was almost dawn after returning to the headquarters. Paulus personally drafted a message and sent it to the base camp in Berlin. He wanted to make a last-ditch effort for the sake of all the soldiers of the Sixth Army and his own life.
"Food, fuel, ammunition, medicine, everything that could be put to use suffered a devastating disaster. The combat effectiveness of the troops dropped sharply. A total of 160,000 wounded were left in the ice and snow environment without any effective support.
Treatment, injuries and infections are rampant in these nutrient-poor petri dishes, and new pits are being dug every day to bury those who might have survived."
"My head of state, I once again ask you to give us operational assistance. While there is still a possibility of continuing to fight, the Sixth Army will continue to resist until Marshal Manstein's army comes to rescue us. If all this
It is impossible, please give me authorization, and I will order a stop to this meaningless battle that cannot continue."
Paulus looked around in panic, as if he were in a cage awaiting trial.
He didn't know how furious the head of state he had always believed in would be after receiving the telegram, whether he would tear up the telegram newspaper that smelled of ink and curse everyone in the office around him.
The stars were flying, and he no longer dared to think about whether the call back from Berlin would order him to be fired on the spot.
"I have tried my best to do a good enough job. The head of state will definitely be able to understand me. He will! So many living lives will not be thrown into hell in vain, absolutely not!"
Paulus, who kept comforting himself, finally underestimated the ambition of madman Hitler. The reply from Berlin was like a death sentence, completely ending Paulus's last hope.
"Repeat the order, no surrender! The troops must resist until the last moment and fight the enemy to the end! Fight until the last German soldier falls! Only in this way can a new front be established in Rostov and the north, and the Caucasus Army can be secured
An’s withdrawal.”
"Everything is meaningful. The motherland will remember the names of the loyal, not the death of the treacherous."
As if he had lost his soul, Paulus leaned back on the chair and dropped his arms, leaving a thin telegraph newspaper floating alone in the air. Only that long sigh echoed in the room, and it lingered for a long time.