Iron Cross

The convoy flew away from the position, kicked up a cloud of dust, and quickly disappeared from everyone's sight.

"What a risk... You just sat there for so long, chatting with this captain, I thought you were exposed." This was the voice of Heinz, who was selected by Guderian as the commando captain.

"The captain is a smart man and tried every means to trick me. I didn't expect that I studied at Cambridge University and was very familiar with it. There would be no flaws at all." The person pretending to be Lieutenant Colonel Robin was the African Army Staff. Captain Rank, who has been working in the logistics department. Speaking of which, he is a somewhat interesting figure. His father is German and his mother is British. The two families have always been friends. They got married before World War I when the relationship between Britain and Germany was still good. At that time, not only the British Intermarriage is relatively common between Germans and Germans. Strictly speaking, even the British royal family are German aristocrats. The mother of Kaiser Wilhelm II is the eldest daughter of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom.

Rank was born in Germany two years before the outbreak of World War I. Because his parents were civilians and their family was well-off, he was not affected by the war. When the revolutionary storm broke out after Germany's defeat, the situation was in chaos, especially during the hyperinflation of the Mark. His father died of physical and mental exhaustion due to the failure of his industry and the family was devastated. The Ranke family, unable to survive, had to follow their mother back home. England and received a secondary education there. With his clever mind, he naturally entered the University of Cambridge.

Originally, Ranke did not have a particularly clear understanding of the country and nation, because although his nationality has always been German like his father, his mother is British, and he has lived in the UK for many years, and he also has a good impression of the UK. But as he got older, the pervasive ridicule and invisible discrimination from the British when he was in college made him unhappy. In fact, he had never experienced the nonsense about the happy life in Cambridge. It was a word-of-mouth and unscrupulous show off from a group of aristocratic classmates. He could neither afford the expense of such extravagant entertainment, nor was he accepted by the mainstream circles. People mentioned that he only had the nickname "German brat".

It was difficult for him to graduate. He thought he could find a good job with his Cambridge graduate diploma. Unexpectedly, because of his German ancestry, all government agencies and public organizations politely rejected him, including applying for a job as a school teacher. was rejected. He majored in statistics, and ended up taking on business bookkeeping work in a low-end company. He hung out with a bunch of students who graduated from business schools, and was laughed at by them from time to time.

His studies were not going well, his career was not going well, and his mother died of illness. One after another, one blow after another made him more depressed and taciturn. He did not choose to resist, but decided to endure it silently alone. He thought that this would be the case for him in his life, and that would be the case for Germany.

But the situation in Germany has changed dramatically, and the head of state has come to power!

The head of state solved unemployment, the head of state solved Germany's economic problems, and the bread, jobs and order that the head of state promised to the public during the election campaign were all realized. This completely different approach and all kinds of refreshing political propaganda made this young man People fall for it. Comparing the aristocratic politicians in the UK who are at odds with each other, who are trying to undermine each other, who can only shout empty slogans but are helpless to deal with actual problems, he feels that the head of state is a hundred times better than them.

By chance one day he saw a newspaper, which contained a fragment of the Führer's public speech: "...You may want to say: Mr. Hitler, I need a job and a piece of bread. Yes! You are right, Life is so important. But I want to tell you that there is something more important than life, and that is dignity!" He felt that this sentence really spoke to his heart, and he couldn't suppress it. To live with himself, his fiery German emotions sprouted. He exchanged all his savings and the little inheritance left by his mother for the boat tickets and expenses to return to the country. He was determined to go back, he wanted to go back to the country - to his own motherland!

On the first day he returned to Germany, he reported to the military recruitment agency. Although he was older than the enlistment age, he still hoped to have the opportunity to serve. He also confessed to the other party that his mother was British and he was only half German. The head of the recruitment office looked at him with strange eyes and said to him: "What does it matter? Your father is German, and the blood of the German nation flows in you. As long as you agree with the interests of the German nation and are willing to defend it, Fight to the death for his honor, you are our comrade, you must know that the Führer is still an Austrian!”

Because he had a college degree and could speak English, he was admitted to the army. Taking into account his age and major, he was assigned to serve in the army's logistics organization and became an enviable professional technical sergeant. He worked like crazy in the army, unleashing all his professional abilities and patriotic enthusiasm. He soon had the reputation of a "living database" - a division's supplies, whether it was guns or ammunition, whether it was Whether it was gasoline or flour, he kept it all in his mind without looking at the account books, and could tell his superiors at any time the remaining quantity and the time available for use. Not only did he pass the Gestapo's loyalty test, he was also promoted to second lieutenant.

In 1938, he followed the troops to Austria, which happened to be the time of the German-Austrian Anschluss. He saw with his own eyes that all the people spontaneously took to the streets to welcome the troops. The German national sentiment was everywhere, which was even more impressive than when the Saarland was taken back in 1935. People are excited. Because everyone believes that since even an Austrian-born former army corporal can become the head of state of Germany, then the slogan that all German nations in the world are one family is true, and the Germans will never treat the Austrians badly. When the troops entered the city, everyone enthusiastically sang the "Deutsche Lied":

Deutsch, Deutsch, you are above all,

Higher than all things in the world;

Whenever, to protect and defend,

Brothers always stand together.

…

With his eyes filled with enthusiasm, he was also singing loudly. At this moment, he felt that his life had value, his struggle had a direction, and his soul finally found its destination.

Based on his own service experience, he does not believe that he has been discriminated against in the military. He has the same opportunities as other officers regardless of promotion or commendation. Even because he had lived in England for many years and received a bachelor's degree from Cambridge University, before the French campaign began, the General Staff specially asked him to teach young military cadets (this was a rare honor for a lieutenant) and provide them with Analyzing the social status quo and class structure of Britain, and listening to him use his personal experience to tell the military students about the dirty, decadent, and hedonistic fallen empire. In comparison, he believed that the fate of the German nation was like nirvana. , the rising period has just begun.

Guderian was not that capable of using the Brandenburg special forces, but he thought of Rank, who was born in England and could report all the supplies to him on his first day without looking at the account books. Equipment and Personnel Captain Officer. When asked for his opinion, Rank, who had never been on the battlefield, accepted the mission without hesitation and played the role of Lieutenant Colonel Robin, while the commando captain Heinz played the armored vehicle driver. This convoy is of course fake. From the officers to the soldiers, everything in the convoy is pretended by the Germans. However, except for the people, everything else in the convoy is real - yes, these are all products captured in the battle in the previous two days. The entire set of belongings, from clothes to hats, from guns to vehicles, from purses to official documents, and even pocket watches, were all obtained from British people.

An order issued by Major General Horrocks more or less helped the commandos infiltrate, because in line with the principle that family scandals should not be made public, he did not convey the situation that the 10th Armored Division had been severely damaged and a large number of personnel were captured. Otherwise, the scope of Clark's cross-examination would be wider. You must know that except for Rank, the rest of the commando team basically cannot speak English, and they are not familiar with the British situation. The secret will be revealed as soon as they open their mouths.

"Sir, what should we do in England now? Do we really go to the British brigade?"

"No." Heinz told the telegraph operator, "Immediately send a telegram to Chief Guderian to tell us that we have blended into the defense line and ask him to launch an attack immediately. As long as we find the British artillery position and destroy it, we will succeed."

Guderian, who had been nervously waiting for news from the commando team, finally received the news: "Sir, Rank reported that the operation was successful. Let us launch an attack immediately. They will cooperate with us..." In addition, he also gave the British a rough understanding of the situation. The deployment situation was also discussed.

"Very good! They did a good job! Record their merits, and their names should be given priority whether they are promoted or awarded." Guderian was overjoyed. "The entire armored force attacked and defeated the British as quickly as possible. People are defeated.”