"What? The Russians are going to buy so many planes from us? ”

Ferdinand was stunned by the sudden fall of pie from the sky, and the sale of planes to Russia was nothing new, but it was usually a small business of a few dozens.

This time the Russians directly opened their mouths with 3,000 aircraft, could it be that this is to turn Bulgaria into their military-industrial production base?

Foreign Minister Metev explained: "Your Majesty, this may have something to do with the Eastern Front, the Russians have limited production capacity and cannot meet their needs on the front, so they have to purchase a batch of fighters from us." ”

Obviously, the events that took place in Russia are still kept secret, but they will soon come to light, and the Russian capitalists will certainly act as soon as they find out that their orders are gone.

Ferdinand thought about it and felt that it was right, now except for Bulgaria, the Russians have no place to buy even if they have money, the submarines of the Allies have been very rampant recently, and now Britain, France and Bulgaria are all building ships at full power, and they still can't catch up with consumption.

There is also the problem of distance, if an order is placed in Bulgaria, it will only take two or three months to start deliveries, and one hundred and eighty aircraft can be shipped back and immediately equip the troops.

If the United States places an order and it does not fail to see a single Mao Mao for a year and a half, it is obvious that the Russian Air Force will not be able to wait.

Ferdinand said calmly: "First find out the amount of aircraft lost by the Russians on the Eastern Front, and then negotiate with them." ”

It is not difficult to find out the amount of loss of the Russian army's aircraft, and the Entente countries have sent military observation missions to each other, and the loss of aircraft has no value in secrecy, and there is no way to keep it secret.

"Yes, Your Majesty!" Metyev replied in the affirmative

Ferdinand added: "Remember that we don't take cash, let the Russians exchange raw materials, and even if they receive cash, they only accept gold!" ”

Of course, the second half of the sentence is, unless there are not enough raw materials in the short term, otherwise the Russians will not pay for anything in gold.

In the previous transactions, everyone knew this. Since the outbreak of the world war, the Russians have only used more than 30 tons of gold for emergencies, which may be the gold production of the Russians in one or two years.

However, Ferdinand knew that in the near future, the Russians would definitely pay for it in gold, for example, when they were defeated on the Eastern Front and were in dire need of weapons and equipment!

At present, most of the trade between Bulgaria and Russia is settled within one month, and as long as there is arrears, all the goods behind are detained.

No matter what the Russians say, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not relented, and the reason for the refusal is simple: Bulgaria pursues free trade, and enterprises have the right to dispose of unpaid goods within the limits agreed in the contract.

In this context, it is impossible to go into debt, anyway, all that is produced is strategic materials, and the Russians can use it themselves if they don't want Bulgaria.

It doesn't matter if it's an inferior product, isn't there still a cannon fodder unit, it's just right for them to use.

……

When Bulgaria and Russia were negotiating on the purchase of aircraft, the battlefield on the Eastern Front changed again, the Germans suddenly launched a full-front counterattack, and the defense line of the Russian Western Front in Poland was torn open.

Then the Germans swarmed in, and this opening began to expand rapidly, and hundreds of thousands of German troops penetrated directly into the rear of the Russian army and began to flank the Western Front.

The Supreme Commander of the Russian and Western Fronts, Colonel-General Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov, said in a roaring tone: "Order the 3rd, 4th, 6th, 8th, and 10th Cavalry Divisions to go at once to block and block the enemy!" Order the Ninth Army to quickly reinforce Wroclaw and close this gap! ”

The current situation on the battlefield is very unfavorable for the Russians, especially the Western Front, if they can't stop the Germans in time, then disaster will come.

An operational staff officer, armed with an urgent telegram, reported to Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov: "General, the German air force is bombing again, and the Seventh Army at the front is requesting air fire support!" ”

Admiral Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov said angrily: "Vladimir Oscarlovich Capper, didn't you tell him to ask for air fire support, just contact the Air Force directly, what are you looking for me?" Could it be that I can't do this little thing for them personally? ”

The staff officer hurriedly explained: "General, the Air Force said that there are no planes available now, and their planes are undergoing major repairs!" ”

Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov was even more angry, and two words popped out of his mouth: "Bastard, their planes are not bad sooner or later, why are they bad now?" Give me the Air Force General Command, Lao Tzu will personally talk to their commander-in-chief! ”

"Yes!" The staff officer replied without hesitation

Time passed in a hurry, and after more than two hours, the phone was finally connected, and Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov snatched the microphone and roared: "Call your commander, Lieutenant General Nikolai-Nikolai Okas, to answer the phone!" ”

I only heard a very polite reply from the other side: "I'm sorry, our commander, Lieutenant General Nikolai Nikolai Okas, is reporting in St. Petersburg, may I ask who you are, and when His Excellency the commander returns, it will be convenient to contact you." ”

Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov said angrily: "Nikolai Nikolai Orkas is not here, let you call the shots and answer the phone, 100,000 are anxious to know!" ”

After saying that, Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov directly handed over the phone to an operational staff officer and waited for the other party to reply.

didn't let him wait long, the voice on the other side sounded again, Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov directly took the phone and said: "I am General Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov of the Western Front, and now I ask you to immediately send planes to support the Seventh Army at the front, understand?" ”

The opposite side replied: "Sorry, honorable General Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov, I am the Chief of Staff of the Air Force, Peter Nicholas, we cannot do what you ask!" ”

Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov sneered and said: "Reason, if there is not a satisfactory answer to me, then you better immediately send the Air Force to provide fire support to the front, otherwise see you in a military court!" ”

Pyotr-Nicholas smiled bitterly and said: "Your Excellency Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov, even if you see you in a military court, our Air Force will not be able to send planes now."

As for the reason, of course, it's the damned capitalists in China! As a result of the cornerwork cut of those bastards, the warplanes that our Air Force now uses have become disposable products.

It's okay to use it normally, but once you fight with the enemy, the machinery inside is scrapped, and you need to replace a lot of accessories, and now our fighters are under repair, so I can't do anything about your request!

Now our commander, Lieutenant General Nikolai Nikola Okas, is appealing to the country in St. Petersburg on this issue, and if it is convenient, I hope that you will also support us on this issue! ”

After listening to the Air Force's explanation, Colonel-General Alexeivich Brusilov suppressed his anger, and he also felt the same for the fact that not only the Air Force but also the Army had a large number of inferior weapons.

"Well, I understand your distress, and all the generals of the Western Front will stand with you on this issue, but I believe that you must have a way to send planes to support!

As far as I know, some of the Air Force's equipment is imported from Bulgaria, and although you have replaced them with new models, you should also bring these planes, so let's make do with them! ”

It is clear that Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov knew about the plans of the Air Force, and nothing more than wanted the generals of the front to support them in attacking the capitalists at home, and now it was just a just right excuse.

However, he still planned to cooperate with the actions of the Air Force, after all, he was not interested in the capitalists at home, otherwise he would not have joined the Red Army in history.

It's a time of war, and once the generals on the front line agree, no one can resist their joint pressure.

Naturally, the capitalists in Russia are no exception, and no matter how big their protective umbrella is, it is inevitable that they will throw a few scapegoats out in order to give an explanation to the military, at least a few capitalists on the surface will die.

By the way, it can also deter other unscrupulous capitalists, let them know that if they get into trouble with the military, they will lose their heads, and the front-line generals of the Russian army will not refuse this kind of thing.

Pyotr-Nicholas was embarrassed and said: "Well, since His Excellency Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov has said so, we will immediately unseal these decommissioned aircraft, and in three hours they will be at the front!" ”

Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov said calmly: "Then I will wait for your good news!" ”

The deal was concluded, and Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov knew that if he refused the Air Force's request, they would probably not have planes.

As for the unsealing of retired aircraft, this is all obvious nonsense, most of these aircraft have been purchased in the last one or two years, and they have been retired from service.

It is nothing more than that the domestic capitalists spent money and opened up the relationship to eliminate these planes on the grounds of backward performance, so as to purchase their new planes!

As long as the generals of the air force are not stupid, they know what the level of industrial capacity of Russia is, and if the capitalists save a little more in this situation, the consequences will be self-evident.

Although the trouble was solved, the mood of General Alexei Alekseevich Brusilov was not much better, and he was still considering whether to connect it again, and by the way, the problem of the quality of the army's weapons and equipment was also solved.

……