Rommel, who had been suffering from stomach problems, had returned from Africa, and he stood in front of Hoffmann with a respectful expression, but the grievances in his eyes could not be concealed in any way: a month earlier, in order for the war in Africa to go smoothly, he had flown back to his base camp to ask for reinforcements, but the Führer sent him away in a few words for the sake of the more important battlefields on the Eastern Front, and told him to wait patiently for the news of the victory in Stalingrad and the Caucasus. In order to take care of the Führer's overall strategy, he endured, and even considered that his unfavorable situation would gradually increase over time, and he was ready to take the initiative to attack and seek to deter the British. But a month later, just five days before the scheduled start of the offensive, he received an order from Guderian to come and replace him.

He had reason to be angry, not against Guderian, but only at the Führer's capriciousness - a month ago he asked for 200 tanks and an infantry division for reinforcements, and a month later Guderian was able to take up his post with two armored divisions and three motorized rifle divisions. Although no soldier has set foot in the sands of Africa so far, except for Guderian and a few of his assistants, Rommel has his own channels and knows that the Führer has not fooled Guderian this time - the troops he promised have been transferred out of the Eastern Front and are being rapidly replenished, the authority is at the highest level, and Guderian is likely to gain more strength - the "Flying Fortress" Panzer Division, upgraded from Hermann Goering's armored brigade, and the elite paratrooper brigade reorganized by General Student will also be put into the African theater.

"My marshal, I'm sorry......" Hoffman didn't know what words to use to explain to Rommel, because he couldn't explain the reason for the change of overall strategy after the crossing, and it was inconvenient to say outright that Montgomery would be Rommel's bitter hand - there were both elements of the same command style and a lack of troops, and he could only comfort the desert fox with warmth.

"The war in Stalingrad and the Caucasus was going very hard, and in a sense many people had been right in the sense that I had been suggesting it, so I decided to shift my focus to the southern front." Hoffman euphemistically explained the reason for his "capriciousness," "Don't be too surprised by Guderian's appointment—simply because I know you're not in good health, and I want you to go back home to recuperate." This time, I asked you to come back, on the one hand, I hope you have a good rest, and on the other hand, I ......"

"Führer, my body is still holding up, I ......" Rommel wanted to ask himself if he had lost the Führer's trust, but after thinking for a moment, he swallowed the words that had come to his lips - the Führer had cultivated himself by virtue of promoting himself from a small guard battalion commander to a field marshal, and he could not justifiably express this question.

Hoffman saw what he was thinking and waved his hand casually: "You don't have to think too much. Your condition is an important aspect, but even more important is the big picture: there are so many things going on right now, I need competent personnel to share the burden for me, you know, my reserve commander is a traitor, nearly 2 million reinforcements and reserves are in a mess, no one can afford to hold up the scene, I need a competent cadre that I know well and can do. ”

"General Jodl has been with the Führer for a long time and is familiar with the work of the High Command, and I feel that he is more qualified for this post than I am."

"He can't, he's a staff commander, he has no real combat experience, and he has very little contact with front-line troops. Now in wartime, there is an urgent need for experienced soldiers and officers, and even more so for experienced commanders. Hoffman explained, "You're the right person for me." ”

After listening to the explanation, Rommel was still silent, if according to this logic, Guderian also met the requirements, why did he have to come back?

Hoffman forced him to sit down: "I know you are very dissatisfied with this arrangement, but I really think about it, you are not in good health and need to rest, and the reserve army also needs a commander with high battlefield prestige, your experience, your exploits and even your tactics are what I urgently need, and it is good for you to dispel certain rumors......"

Rommel was silent, he knew what "certain rumors" were referring to -- he had just been promoted to the rank of marshal two months ago, and a large number of veteran generals and generals on the Eastern Front were still waiting with their eyes open, and any of them were commanding more troops than Rommel and destroying more enemies. Having no experience in commanding a large corps has always been Rommel's weakness - he was only a division commander during the French campaign, and he moved into North Africa when the army on the Eastern Front was advancing wildly, and his troops never exceeded 50,000.

So Hoffman called him back as the commander of the reserve army, and let him personally experience what it was like to be in control of the large corps, and the place where the field battle had been chosen, and he sold it in front of Rommel," Guderian said that there would be another reinforcement before the end of the year? ”

"Yes, he told me so, so Führer, I think it's too unfair to me."

"I said reinforcements, but I didn't say that reinforcements continue to strengthen Guderian...... According to credible intelligence, there will also be a landing of American troops, possibly in French Morocco, most likely in December, and their ambitions must be thwarted, otherwise a gap in our strategic system will be opened -- Italy, the soft underbelly of Europe, will be punched hard by American cowboys. I will not tolerate that. In the future, the direction of Africa will be divided into two clusters, east and west, one will naturally be led by Guderian, and the other will be led by you. Hoffman's eyes were fixed on Rommel, "The core of this reinforcement group is the main force of three armored divisions - all of them are well-known front-line troops, which are now being replenished, and the corresponding infantry divisions are to be drawn from the current reserves, and only the best people can familiarize them with the battlefield and improve their tactical skills." In the face of the American attack, I need a general who can turn the tide, can I trust you, my field marshal? ”

Erwin Rommel put his legs together and raised his hands respectfully: "As you wish, Führer!" He was now convinced that the Führer was not going to abandon himself, but was ready to give himself a greater and greater mission.

Hearing Rommel's affirmative reply, Hoffmann breathed a sigh of relief, and his face finally softened. I have just explained a lot with great effort, that is, I hope that Rommel, who has a stubborn personality, can let go of all cranky thoughts to cooperate with his intentions. If we compare it from this point of view, then General Paulus, the former commander of the Sixth Army, is much more tame, although he also does not understand the personnel changes and it is difficult to accept the fact of the sudden replacement, but he did not complain in the second half of the report back to China, and the respect for the Führer during the audience was the same as always, Hoffman only persuaded a few words before putting aside all his unhappiness and happily went to take up his post on the Western Front, and when he left, he also hinted that he would keep an eye on the old Marshal Rundstead to prevent him from causing trouble for the Führer's overall strategy. If it weren't for the fact that he had behaved in his original historical time and space, this attitude would have made Hoffman feel guilty for the rest of his life.

Hoffman patted Rommel on the shoulder: "Say hello to your wife Lucy on my behalf, unfortunately I can't give you too much leave, those troops returning from the Eastern Front to rest need experienced commanders to tell them what is the essence of desert warfare - the snowy Russian front line and the long yellow sand of North Africa are two completely different styles of warfare, the North African front has the staff team you left behind to assist Guderian, and all this here can only rely on you completely." ”

"I think she would thank the Führer for his concern and understanding of all this." Rommel nodded, and said in an affectionate, natural tone, "I promised her to take her around the world after her victory." ”

"Count me in then, and maybe we'll have a chance to travel the world together." Hoffmann smiled, as he pondered and dealt with affairs, he changed more and more from the position of an intellectual to the Führer, and his spirit was also depressed lately, and he could only numb himself with constant work, and Rommel's enthusiastic answer greatly improved his slightly gloomy mood.

"It's an honor!" Rommel seemed to have something in mind, adding, "You can rest assured of the training and adjustment of the reserve army, especially the second wave of the Afrika Army, in order to assist me in my work, at my request, Field Marshal Keitel specially transferred Colonel Klaus von Stauffenberg to the country as the head of the training department of the reserve army, an excellent officer with abundant energy and boundless fighting spirit, although he is a descendant of the nobles of the Württemberg court, he is very loyal to the leader, and his performance in the North African war is particularly prominent. If I return to North Africa in the near future, I am willing to nominate him as Chief of Staff of the Reserve Army in due course. ”

"Colonel Stauffenberg?" At first hearing the name of the mastermind of the "720 Incident", Hoffman showed a surprised face, and finally calmed down, only nodded slightly, and then held Rommel's hand tightly and said goodbye with a pun, "You may encounter unimaginable difficulties and challenges, good luck to you and that future chief of staff." ”