At 12 o'clock at noon on 29 October, Italian Prime Minister Benito Mussolini represented the Italian Government in the unconditional surrender of the Greater German Reich at a surrender ceremony held in the National Assembly building in Rome.

It was really because all the field marshals in the German command at that time had gone back to Berlin for a meeting, leaving only the commander-in-chief of the front in Italy.

Jodel changed four pens when he signed, so it was Alfred who signed the surrender. Joseph. Ferdinand. Yodel's full name is said to have been a trick he heard from the Führer, and the Chief of Operations personally thought that these pens would be the best souvenirs and gifts.

Mussolini's calm leadership throughout the ceremony impressed the British and French delegates who attended the ceremony, who wanted to see the embarrassed side of the arrogant dictator, but there was no loss or frustration on Mussolini's face, and it was clear that the war and the farcical coup d'état had taught him a profound lesson, allowing him to finally recognize the reality of Italy and where he should stand.

The ceremony of the surrender of Italy to France and England was to take place the next day, the only request made by Mussolini, that the Kingdom of Italy could not surrender to three countries at the same time, and that he believed that Germany and England and France should be distinguished from the time of the declaration of war alone.

The news of Italy's admission of defeat spread across Europe at lightning speed, but the public did not seem to be very interested, as it was a predestined thing. Europeans are more concerned about the establishment of a new European order, because the surrender of Italy means that the state of war in Europe has come to an end, and Europa has finally ushered in peace and tranquility.

Germany's vision of a European Union now seems very tempting, and if the German Führer's plan is followed, the European nations may indeed be able to live in harmony with each other, and countries will be free from war forever.

Germany has become the dominant European power, and German has become the official language of choice among governments. In the financial market, the mark and the pound sterling, the franc together became the main trading currency, at this time you can see Schacht's sophisticated financial skills, with the majesty of victory, the value of the mark has not risen sharply, and still maintain a ratio of one to four with the pound, as for the dollar, Europe is still on the gold standard at this time, Schacht did not think of pegging the mark to the dollar.

"The lira is depreciating rapidly, and it is necessary to restore confidence in Italian society." Dr. Schacht pointed to the document in front of him and stated to Xu Jun.

"Mussolini is ready to come to Berlin to talk to me, his deputy minister of economy has resigned." The German Führer stood in front of the windowsill of the High Command's office with his hands behind his back, admiring the street view downstairs through the white curtains.

"My Führer, according to the latest information, the deputy minister jumped from the balcony of his house three hours ago." Wehrle reported from the sidelines.

"Was it murder or accident?" Xu Jun turned his head in surprise, he was amazed at how quickly the big chin took revenge on the betrayer.

"Not as you think, my Führer, we are sure that it is the result of excessive mental pressure, and we judge that similar things will be frequent within the Italian government for some time to come. Some people have staked everything they have on Mussolini's downfall, and no one would have thought that you would put Mussolini back in power. Weirle replied respectfully.

"My Führer, we cannot sit idly by and watch the economic collapse of the Kingdom of Italy, which will have a ripple effect on the European financial sector." Schacht wanted to bring the conversation back.

"I have discussed your proposal with Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and President Petain, and we have agreed that Italy can offset a part of the war reparations with state assets in kind, shares in factories and mines, and, if necessary, an Italian national debt. You will need to negotiate the exact amount with the British and French Ministers of Economy. Xu Jun walked back to his desk and picked up the report of the Ministry of Economic Affairs from the desk.

"It was so good that I started preparing as soon as I got back. In addition, some banks in the country want to get permission from the government to invest in Italy and give low-interest loans to Italian companies. Schacht was a bit hesitant at this point, because the Nazi government was very strict about banks, and he set many rules himself.

"These banks can be licensed, but care should be taken to avoid the outflow of foreign exchange, you are an expert in this area, and I am sure you know how to solve this problem. At the same time, we should also encourage German companies to participate in the Italian economy, which has a lot of advanced technology that we need at the moment. Xu Jun flipped through a few pages of the report, and then put it on his desk.

"This is really good news, my Führer, and I believe that many companies will be interested in this." Shacht nodded vigorously in compliment.

"I will read this report as soon as possible, Your Excellency." The Führer leaned on the armrest and raised his hand to pat the report.

"Okay, my Führer, then I will take my leave today." Shacht was the so-called cunning fellow, who knew how to divide and retreat, and it seemed that the Führer did not want to discuss this aspect of the matter anymore, and it was clear that the apostle had a clear idea in his mind.

"Goodbye, Dr. Schacht." Xu Jun stood up and shook hands with the Minister of Economic Affairs to say goodbye.

"How's the situation on Mussolini's side?" Seeing the Minister of Economy leave, the Reich Führer turned his gaze to his staff.

"My Führer, I don't know what you're referring to—" Wehrle scratched his head.

"Don't play tricks, Weierle, you know what I mean." Xu Jun said with a smile.

"Well, my Führer, judging by the timing, it should have already begun, and I have sent Colonel Dogen to the telegraph room to keep an eye on it, and the report will be sent to you as soon as it becomes available." Wehrle closed the lid of the solid alcohol stove, picked up the boiling kettle, and poured hot water into the teapot on the table.

On Saturday, November 2, 1940, four days after Italy's surrender, the atmosphere in the port of Taranto was still solemn, and the clouds of war still hung over the port.

The British, French, and German fleets again rejected the Italian Navy's request, and a fleet of four battleships, eight light and heavy cruisers, and fourteen destroyers remained firmly anchored in the harbor.

From a purely comparative point of view, the Italian naval fleet in the harbor should have the upper hand, and the Italian navy concentrated all five battleships, eight heavy cruisers and twelve light cruisers, as well as twenty-six destroyers of various types and sixty submarines, and it can be said that two-thirds of the royal navy was parked here.

But the problem was that the Imperial Italian Navy did not dare to clash with the Allied fleet at all, because at this time the morale of the lower sailors of the fleet was low, and the senior officers were deeply divided.

When the Roman coup d'état took place, the commander of the fleet, Angelo. Admiral Iyakino could not wait to announce to all the officers and men of the navy that Mussolini's government had fallen and that the Royal Navy fully supported the new cabinet.

As a result, some of the sailors on the navy ships mutinied, refusing to acknowledge the resignation of the prime minister, claiming that the generals had betrayed the leader, and that it was a premeditated coup against Mussolini.

In particular, the battleship Count Cavour, which was parked next to the dock, the angry sailors opened the ship's ammunition depot, they took out the guns stored inside, shouted the slogan of hanging the traitor, and seized all the senior officers on the ship in one fell swoop, and the sailors even turned the muzzles of the main guns and tried to shell the fleet headquarters in the port area, but fortunately, the marines on the dock reacted quickly and forcibly recaptured the battleship.

In order to avoid a similar accident, Iaquino consulted with Admiral Cavliani, who had returned to Taranto from Rome, and ordered all the sailors on the ship to live ashore, with only some necessary maintenance personnel on board.

The previous riots had already provoked tensions between the officers and soldiers, and the new orders of the command had aroused the discontent of all sailors. A rumor began to circulate among the sailors that Prime Minister Mussolini had not fallen, that the generals were carrying out a coup d'état, that they wanted to remove all the sailors who supported Mussolini from the fleet, and then take the fleet to bombard the Roman coast and force the government to accept their traitorous terms. (To be continued.) )