On the evening of August 28, 1942, Berlin, the capital of the Third Reich.

It is the time of summer and autumn, and under the majestic Brandenburg Gate, pedestrians and vehicles are hurrying. Although newspapers and radio had been extolling the victories of the Imperial army on the Russian front, it was clear to all reasonable people that the war had been prolonged. It took more than a month to fight Poland, and less than two months to blitz Western Europe and force France to surrender, but since the beginning of the Barbarossa Plan, the war in Russia has been going on for a whole year and two months, and although there are constant reports of the grand results of occupying millions of square kilometers of land and destroying hundreds of divisions, everyone has never waited for the news of Stalin's surrender, and even the most optimistic people do not think that they can see the hope of total victory before the New Year.

Carl Sr. is the owner of the "Berlin People" bar, and although his name sounds big, in fact, the total business area is less than 100 square meters, and the decoration can hardly be called luxurious. Fortunately, the location is good, the price is affordable, and the business is barely passable. The bar used to be frequented by ordinary Berlin workers, who often had a few drinks with their co-workers after work and then happily started talking – the best place for them to socialize. During the war, the exchange of war is obviously the first place, as long as the big and small gossip is said, the custody can spread like wings, if anyone occasionally comes back from the countryside and misses the latest news, as long as they sit in the bar for a long time, regardless of whether there is an announcement in the base camp, the custody can listen to it here for a long time.

However, although the bar has been as lively as before for more than a year, the old Carl fully senses that the situation is slowly changing. The scene of five or six crowds flocking to the city, bragging and chatting in the sky, and a dozen beers are no longer visible, and more and more people drinking have been replaced by the polite middle class. These little bourgeois, who either work in government offices or are freelancers such as editors, journalists, writers, painters, etc., would not have patronized this level of pub in the first place, and they usually disliked the rudeness and lack of class, and the places with poetic names such as "Rhine Dream" and "Danube Night" were their favorites. It's just that the situation is stronger than people, and the taxes imposed by the imperial government on beer are getting higher and higher, and all materials must be supplied by tickets, and the income is only enough to support their families, and the working class obviously cannot afford to pay this money. And although the little bourgeois are still barely able to pay it back, they have also consciously cut down on this seemingly "extravagant" expenditure and lowered the grade here. The "people of Berlin" were still full of people, but the elder Boer knew that the original cheerful drink had long since been replaced by a shallow drink.

He had an unusual sensitivity to supplies and prices, and in his memory, after the victory of the French campaign, Berlin seemed to have entered a happy mode all of a sudden, with a great abundance of supplies, red wine from Bordeaux, Belgian chocolate, and various cheeses and other foods flooding the market, and the prices were surprisingly cheap, and French-style clothes, tableware, furniture, and perfumes were all blooming everywhere, which were said to have been piggyback by soldiers and officers who went to France to fight in the war. It is blushing to say that although the industry of the Third Reich is second to none in Europe, it is often reflected in the fields of machinery, equipment, electrical machinery, metallurgy, etc., and it seems that it is far less than half of the romantic peoples of France, Holland, and Italy in terms of enjoying life. Karl the Elder has heard more than once that Berlin is almost as backward as a 19th-century countryside compared to Paris, except for some large-scale buildings and new transport facilities! However, this joyous day did not last long, as the war in Russia progressed, the supply of materials gradually became tight, and the price quietly rose, and in many cases even the money could not get the goods. How did this happen? He couldn't help but fall into deep thought.

"Old Karl, bring me the best Bavarian stout."

"Sorry, no." Old Karl replied mechanically, and then followed the voice, and saw a tall and thin man walking in from outside, and it was his old customer, 35-year-old Henin, who immediately greeted him warmly.

"I've got money, really." The other party shook the money bag in his hand, and made a clanging sound, obviously there were quite a few of them, it was the characteristic sound of 5 mark coins, and old Karl was very familiar with it.

"It's not that I won't sell it to you, it's really not, it's been out of stock for several days." Old Karl looked helpless, "Didn't you hear that the radio has been propagating a few days to transfer to a wartime system?" The government has issued an announcement that beer like this, which consumes a lot of food, will be reduced in supply, and I don't know if anyone else will be able to get it, but I don't have it anyway, and I won't even have it again. ”

"This damn wartime system." Haining looked a little depressed, sighed, and sat on the high chair in front of the counter casually, "If you don't have dark beer, you can just take a tie of other beers, I'll treat you, let's drink together." ”

Old Karl quickly set up the cup, poured a full cup for Henin first, and then brought himself half a cup, "For the health of the Führer, cheers." ”

The wine glass "banged", the sound was not small, but the slightest foam did not spew out, and old Carl asked strangely while drinking: "Why do you have time to drink beer in the store at this time today?" It stands to reason that you should send the baron's daughter to piano lessons. ”

"Stop talking, I'm fired." Haining continued to shake the money bag, "This is my severance pay. ”

"What did you kid do to make people angry? Could it be that it made Miss Baron's belly bigger? ”

"If only I had the skills." As soon as the amber liquid struck, Henin's words opened, "My situation is exactly the same as yours, thanks to this wartime system - didn't it call on the Junker nobility and wealthy families to dismiss their domestic servants as soon as possible to free up labor for the cause of the Empire?" Of course, the old baron, full of patriotic fervor, would not go against the government. Besides, even if you hire me again, it's useless, the baron's stock of gasoline ran out last month, you know, the gas station outside has long been out of gas, the old baron has been looking for relations, and it cost a lot to get only 3 barrels, he said that he should keep it and use it at a critical moment, and in the future, the young lady's piano lessons will be taken by the tram himself...... So, I was swept away. I've been in the Baron's service for 10 years, and it's a bit sad to think about it. ”

"Let a noble lady squeeze a stinking and dirty bus?" Old Carl frowned, "This is really Sven's sweep. ”

Henin shrugged, looking indifferent.

"And what do you plan to do in the future?"

"I'm going to go to the front, the Wehrmacht is recruiting drivers, I signed up and passed the medical examination, and I will leave on the 3rd of next month, no, this is the offer letter." He pulled out a crumpled piece of paper from his bosom, with the Imperial Eagle emblem holding the swastika on it and the large red seal of the enlistment office on the bottom.

"Is this considered service? But you're more than 35 years old. Old Karl gave it back to Henin after a cursory glance, and asked suspiciously, "Which general are you going to drive for?" ”

"General? Stop telling jokes, I'm going to drive a truck. You know, I drove a truck for 5 years before going to the baron's house, whether it's a BMW or an Opel truck, I know it well. ”

Old Carl lowered his voice and asked, "Why don't you go and drive the bus?" Although the income may be less, after all, it is safe, and you are also old and young. ”

"Bus?" Haining shook his head, "I want to go, but people don't want it - the latest recruitment notice is clearly written, as long as the young female driver." ”

"Why?"

"How long has it been since you've been out?"

"It's been a few months, what does it have to do with that?" Old Carl was puzzled.

"That's right." Haining slapped her thigh, "No wonder you don't know anything, the rules have changed!" The female driver has to take on the work, because they are all young and beautiful chicks driving, and now there are even a bunch of people in the car. I heard that there was also a need to expand the recruitment of female drivers to replace male drivers under the age of 40 - all of whom would be assigned to drive trucks. I thought about it, I might as well go to the front line for the same truck, at least the income is much higher. ”

"This is a terrible wartime system." Old Carl echoed in a low voice, and as he was talking, a terrible air defense siren suddenly sounded, and Haining looked a little flustered.

"Don't panic, this is just a warning in advance, the British bombers are still far away." Old Carl was confident and pointed to a door next to him, "Do you see that door?" If the plane comes, you just push open the door and go down. It used to be a wine cellar underneath, but now I don't have much inventory anyway, so I simply converted it into a bomb shelter, and it's very safe inside. ”

"I don't know if the fat man with the medal changed his name to Mel?" Henin grumbled as she gulped down the remaining beer. Reichmarshal Goering once publicly promised on the radio, "If a bomb falls on Berlin, I will not be called Hermann Goering, you can call me Mayer (a common Jewish name)." "The terrible sound of air raid sirens like this, which might go off two or three times a week in Berlin, is mostly a false alarm, but it is unpleasant. So now, as long as there is a bombing, everyone will take this matter out and ridicule the Marshal of the Reich's guarantee of bankruptcy.

The air raid sirens were quickly lifted, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and Haining's face finally eased. It seems that the Wehrmacht's boast of a strong air defense system in Berlin is quite reliable, at least the British bombers are walking around, and it is not known which city will suffer today. Seeing that the beer was at the bottom, he was about to get up and go home after paying for the drink, when suddenly the loudspeakers all over the streets began to work.

"The German people, patriots of all Germany, now broadcast urgent news."

Old Karl muttered: "I don't know what battles have been won at the front, the Russians are all crazy, and they will not surrender to this extent." ”

Haining didn't answer, just listened to the radio quietly, "...... Under the personal command of the Great Führer, the SS had recently uncovered an assassination attempt against the Führer, and in this attempted assassination attempt, they openly brought bombs to the venue of the military conference, but fortunately the Führer dealt with it promptly and unscathed...... The Imperial army is constantly winning, and our enemies cannot defeat us on the battlefield, so they can only resort to this despicable, shameless, and obscene means, instigated by the International Jewish Organization, the general leaders of the warmongers of the British, American, and Soviet Unions, and the rebels within the empire, in collusion with the traitorous lackeys, in a vain attempt to stab us in the back and repeat the story of 1918! This incident also shows that in the process of the Empire's continuous advance, the scum who have infiltrated the ranks of National Socialism and who have stolen high positions in the past few years have finally been exposed impatiently, and their plot is doomed to bankruptcy! Now, Hermann Goering, the head of the treasonous group, has committed suicide, and the rest of the inner party has been arrested. It is hoped that all the German people will keep their eyes open, always abide by the purpose of National Socialism, and make a clear break with a handful of rebels and lackeys of foreign forces...... Long live our leader, the great, glorious, and correct Führer Adolf Hitler! Long live the invincible and invincible German people! ”

"Hermann Goering?" Henin's eyes widened and he muttered, "It seems that he doesn't need to change his name to Mel." ”