In North Africa, Guderian sincerely felt the freedom of operation and command, whether it was the selection of plans or the design of routes, basically they could be implemented by themselves, without interference from all sides, theoretically the Afrika Korps should obey the command of the Italian side, but at the moment the Italians who could command were still hiding in Rome, Guderian didn't bother to say a word, he smiled and said to Collingwood: "I plan to use you as the main force to teach Montgomery a hard lesson." ”

"We haven't beaten the British since the end of the French campaign, and the lads have always regretted letting them go at Dunkirk. If it weren't for Goering, a traitor, who bragged in front of the Führer, we would have driven the British into the sea. Collingwood stood in place with great ambition, "Sir, give the order, and we will fight as you say." ”

"There will be a military meeting in half an hour, and you will join you." Guderian smiled slightly, "Later, you will see my gestures and cooperate with me as much as possible." ”

Collingwood grinned and understood. Sure enough, not long after the meeting was held, Guderian became angry, and his angry temper was vented in the makeshift tent: "Judging from the information we have, the three infantry divisions on the northern front have not been able to buy us more time, and they surrendered in just one day. ”

Everyone was silent, although several Italian generals slandered Guderian in their hearts that letting the Italian infantry division resist the British was tantamount to abandoning the infantry division, but the pace of surrender of all three divisions after only one day of fighting seemed to be a little too fast, and they also felt that it was unreasonable, and they lost the face of the Italians. As for complaining to the leader, it is even more of a sloppy act, and the leader can control Guderian before he can have a ghost.

"Originally, according to my plan, we gathered our infantry units to cover the retreat alternately after two days of rest in Treakir, which is why I did not go directly to Tobruk but came here when I retreated from the El Alamein front - if I had really ignored them, I would have run away! But now the behavior of the infantry has made us too passive, and the British Eighth Army is aggressive, and if it continues to retreat according to the original plan, it will inevitably be caught up and eliminated by the British. Guderian lost his temper and sighed, and poured out a large pool of bitter water in a rare way, "Although I have received reinforcements from a new armored regiment in the country, you also know that this amount of strength cannot be confronted by the British, and a reliable strategy must be obtained. ”

"Sir, if you have any plans, you might as well tell them together, so that we can also know what to expect." An Italian officer probably couldn't help but say bluntly.

Guderian pondered for half a minute, and then spoke his thoughts: "My plan is simple, the large force will continue to retreat towards Tobruk, but there must be troops left to cover and deal with the British - this time cannot be less than three days. ”

"Ahh ...... "The Italians are looking at each other, and the Germans are going to sacrifice us again?"

"Let's discuss which team is more reasonable?" Guderian swept across the faces of several senior officers, as if adding an explanation, and as if talking to himself, "These troops need not only a fearless fighting spirit, but also a spirit of sacrifice." ”

As soon as they heard the word "sacrifice", several Italian generals confirmed their suspicions even more - this was probably the fate of being abandoned again. It's good to use a gecko to survive with a broken tail, but why does this chief always want to break his tail to survive? Guderian glanced at the venue, but no one answered, and everyone quickly lowered their heads as soon as they saw his gaze, for fear of being named by him.

After being silent for a long time, and finally no one volunteered to jump out, Guderian sighed and said in a distressed tone: "In this way, this time I arrange for the German troops to be the queen, and I can't let the Italian allies cover our retreat every time, otherwise I really can't explain in front of the leader." Colonel Collingwood, your regiment is new, well-organized and well-staffed, how about you take on this task? ”

"Sir......" Collingwood said, reading Guderian's intentions, and stood up in a slightly complaining tone, "can you consider others for this task?" Although our regiment is relatively well equipped and manned, after all, it is a reinforcement directly withdrawn from the Eastern Front, and it has hardly had a good rest in the past half a month from the Russian front line to the North African front, and besides, we lack experience in desert operations. ”

"Since you all have difficulties, then I will personally lead the troops to His Royal Highness." Guderian didn't get angry, but said in a melancholy tone, "I didn't expect those infantry divisions to be so indiscriminate, I would have known that I wouldn't let you come from Tobruk overnight, and now I have to retreat, and I can't explain to the above for such an infamous tossing back and forth." But this time I can't rely on just two armoured battalions, I have to keep the main forces of the 15th and 21st armoured divisions behind - you don't want to see me captured by Montgomery, do you? ”

The two division commanders glanced at each other, not understanding what Guderian wanted to express, and the soldier's sense of honor did not allow them to shirk, so they could only vaguely agree.

Several Italian generals were very moved, and fearing that Guderian would regret it, immediately stood up and said: "Thanks to the sacrifice of the commander, we will retreat as soon as possible to save time." "Others indignantly accuse the commanders of the infantry divisions who have surrendered, and say that they have decided to send a telegram to Rome immediately to defend General Guderian and the German allies, who have covered our retreat on the southern front of the battle of El Alamein, and this time to offer to cover our retreat, which is a noble chivalry, and anyone who doubts about it is a despicable villain.

Guderian frowned and said: "In view of the current strength of the enemy and our weakness, and based on the actual situation of the current troops, please prepare for the retreat of the Italian troops immediately." In order to speed up the pace of retreat and reduce the pressure on your march, don't carry similar large-caliber artillery and some logistical baggage, Tobruk has them anyway. Oil and supplies should also be left as much as possible so that we can spend more time with the British. The better we prepare, the more pressure will be on the British, and the easier your retreat will be. ”

Several Italians agreed to this without thinking about it, but thought that the commander was very thoughtful, and that these supplies were indeed slowing down the pace of the march. At this time, Collingwood stood up listlessly, and said, "Sir, in this case, let our regiment stay, and let the Italian allies retreat first, lest they go to the leader to complain again." ”

Collingwood's words, though a little unpleasant, sounded no less natural to the ears of several Italian generals, who complimented Colonel Collingwood on his courage and patted their chests and promised to seek clarification from the leader.

Guderian showed an imperceptible smile and said calmly: "The meeting is now adjourned, and the decision just now will be implemented immediately!" ”

After the Italians hurriedly took their leave, Lieutenant Colonel Merlinzin suddenly appeared out of nowhere and said jokingly: "Sir, this is the second time you have deceived the Italians, you have no intention of letting them stay at all, and you are interested in nothing more than their supplies and supplies." ”

Guderian feigned anger: "Then why don't you discuss with the Italians, I will leave the supplies to them, and let them cover for me?" ”

"This custody is killing them, so you might as well let them surrender directly."

Having said that, looking at Guderian's face full of smiles, several German generals noticed the strangeness and laughed together.

How do you know that Collingwood's speech is even more astonishing: "Lieutenant Colonel Merlinjin and other commanders, after all, you have not been in contact with the commander for a long time, and his plan is much deeper than you think!" ”

“？” Everyone looked curious.

"Do you think the Commander only cares about supplies and supplies for the Italians? Wrong, the prefect had to create an atmosphere of panic among the Italians. Collingwood blinked his eyes and pointed out all Guderian's intentions in a playful tone, "The fact that the Italians did not dare to stay for even a minute reveals how anxious and panicked they are in their hearts, and tomorrow they will be panicked routs in the sight of the enemy's reconnaissance planes -- the British must be worried that we will slip away, and not only will their vigilance be much lowered, but they will also lose their usual caution in the speed of advance and the route of the march, if we find a suitable place to hide, and then ......"

He gestured with both hands for an ambush, and everyone immediately realized.

Now everyone finally knew the commander's intention to drive the Italians away, on the one hand, because the Italians were very unreliable and weak in combat, and leaving them would not play a greater role, but might cause the whole front to collapse because of their panic; On the other hand, the chaotic retreat of the Italians would be like a magnet for the attention of the British, while more or less ignoring the actions of the German troops, which would be most effective as a surprise.

Sure enough, Guderian's next deployment plan was roughly similar to Collingwood's description, and the 35th Panzer Regiment was the unit that undertook the most critical task. ”