"It seems that the Italian general has chosen to go down the road of no return." Rommel, who received Gambala's reply, said with some sympathy: "It is estimated that the leader of their country is putting pressure again." I really can't figure out why a group of military strategists should listen to a politician pointing fingers in their own field, don't they have the consciousness of being a general? ”

"What would you do if one day, I mean, if, the Führer gives us orders that are difficult to fulfill?" Gauss, chief of staff of the German-Spanish Combined Corps, who had long been friends with Rommel, asked half-jokingly.

"I will resolutely carry it out!" Rommel said solemnly: "The Führer's military literacy is far higher than that of ordinary politicians, he is not only a politician who came out of the army, but also a proud disciple of the commander-in-chief of the Wehrmacht, General Sickett. The Führer had another understanding of war. If the Führer asks us to complete an extremely difficult task, it means that it is already a task that cannot be done. ”

Unexpectedly, Rommel, who had always been assertive and arrogant, would say such a thing, and Gausslen took a long time before he came back to his senses and said: "It seems that we have a good leader, and this is probably the envy of the Italians." ”

"Yes, we have one of the best leaders in the world. At least, that's what I think. Rommel looked at him reverently and said, "That is the best gift God can give to Germany." ”

Although Rommel only praised Reinhardt in just two short sentences, this already left Gauss dumbfounded.

Did Rommel, who has always been arrogant and conceited, praise others?

Since Gauss met Rommel, he had never heard of it! Not to mention the reverence and strength of praise like this one.

Suddenly, a rumor came to Gauss's mind and he was curious: "I heard that you once had an unpleasant experience with the Führer, General. Would you mind revealing it to me? ”

After a few seconds, Rommel realized what the experience Gauss was talking about, and laughed: "I always remember the experience you said, when I was a captain, and the Führer had just been promoted to second lieutenant. Because there was some dispute in the quarrel, he started to move. Good fellow, the Führer had no signs before he started at that time, and he used some tricks in the next three ways. Can you imagine a soldier who fights like a bandit and kicks you in the lower body? ”

Gauss had never heard of these details. At this moment, it was rare to hear it from the mouth of Rommel, and it made his eyes shine: "And then? ”

"And then?" The corners of Rommel's mouth rose: "Then I beat the Führer down on the spot, and he would not have been able to fight." ”

Awesome! The general who beat the Führer! This cow is enough for Rommel to blow for a lifetime. Gauss was a little puzzled, why had he never heard him take the initiative to mention it?

Rommel, who had talked too much on a whim, smiled bitterly. Since then, Reinhardt has been harassing him by phone almost every night, "begging" him not to say anything. The most hateful thing is that the slut specially picks up the phone at 1 or 2 o'clock in the morning. If you don't answer, someone will knock loudly on the door in the middle of the night to visit. It made Rommel's family restless during that time. It was only after his repeated assurances that Reinhardt stopped this harassment that was harmful to others and not to himself.

............................

"The government sent a telegram ordering us to rush back to help!" A second lieutenant, who had rushed into the headquarters, rushed to Francisco without even making a report.

"How so?!" Francisco, who had just led his army south to Albacete, read the message in the telegram with a frown.

By the time Francisco read the telegram, the hand he had held it was already drenched in sweat. The Madrid defence, on which he had high hopes, has lost two-thirds of the way, and at this rate, it seems that the last line of defense will not be able to hold off the opponent for long.

As the architect of this plan, Francisco calculated every route of the march with precision, thought of all the terrain factors, but did not anticipate the terrifying breakthrough ability of the German armored forces.

"Frontal defeat of our 100,000-strong troops in two lines of defense, and still expanding the results?" Francisco smiled bitterly: "The Germans have such a unit, but they can endure it for 3 months without sending a single soldier." Their commander is a little too resilient. ”

In fact, Francisco, as one of the few visionary leaders in Spain, has always maintained a wary of the German-Spanish Combined Corps. However, after this vigilance has been maintained for too long, the so-called vigilance is only a feeling of habit.

Not only Francisco, but the entire top of the National Army formed an illusion of inertia about the German-Spanish Combined Corps. It seems that the German-Spanish Combined Corps is just an empty shelf with nothing to show for itself, and it will not make any big noise. Otherwise, why would they stand still for so long? Or perhaps, their commander Rommel was just a wine bag and a rice bag, and he didn't have the real talent that a general should have.

All kinds of fabricated rumors and illusions have made the national army pay a terrible price. Francisco's plan to count on the Madrid Line to contain the Desi Combined Corps for a month now seemed more like a joke, the wild talk of an ignorant child.

This southward movement, orchestrated by Francisco, will be a classic failure from today.

And as the German commander of this classic rapid war, Rommel's blockbuster after forbearance will become a good story in the history of warfare.

This battle will be added to by countless literati and become a legend in the history of modern Spanish warfare, and it will be enough to be included in the textbooks of military academies in various countries!

Francisco felt dizzy when he thought that his elaborate strategy would be repeatedly emphasized in the negative textbooks of future military academies as a key point on which the Republican Army had high hopes but led to the accelerated defeat and demise of the Republic.

The government of the Second Spanish Republic has moved its capital from Valencia to Barcelona, the capital of the Catalan province bordering France. And this legion, which Francisco took to the southern front, was the last hope of the government of the Republic, and was asked to bring it back to the province of Catalonia to defend the government of the Republic.

"General!" One of Francisco's aides stepped forward and said, "Now that Madrid is about to fall, our strategic purpose of going south has been lost. It would be better to heed the government's request and move north into Catalonia. Taking advantage of the fact that there are still 100,000 German-Spanish troops in Madrid, we will speed up our northward march and enter the province of Catalonia through Valencia. ”

"It's useless." Francisco, who had gloomy eyes, said coldly: "The militia in Madrid can't hold out for that long, and when we reach Valencia at the latest, the German-Spanish combined corps will be able to cut off our route into Catalonia." ”

Ignoring the look of disappointment on his staff's faces, Francisco continued: "The troops on the southern front cannot withdraw with us, otherwise we will be bitten by Franco's national army. But the Comintern column on the northern front could take part of the People's Guard south to Guadalajara and buy us time to enter the province of Catalonia. As long as we enter Catalonia, we will be able to defend ourselves with neutral France and the Ebro River. We can't lose this game yet! ”