Admiral Wavell did not dare to give up all of his previous victories, for he could not explain to Britain how he had lost along the way. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info

Just as Marshal Graziani of Italy did not know how to explain his defeat to Mussolini, Admiral Wavell could not explain his victory and defeat.

The country is now desperately promoting this victory in North Africa, and countless people regard him as a hero of the British Empire.

If he failed at this time, the negative impact on the morale of the whole of Britain to resist the German attack was immeasurable.

"We can't let the Germans into Egypt! This is the bottom line that must be adhered to! Wavell said as he looked at his subordinate, Lieutenant General O'Connor.

Although Lieutenant General O'Connor was reluctant, he had to admit that his superiors had made the right choice.

It's just that for them, relying on half of the troops in their hands to complete the more arduous border defense work, the pressure is unimaginably great.

This time they faced not a large but unprepared Italy, but the German Army, which had already managed to defeat France.

Looking at the situation in front of him, it is obvious that the opponent has very high combat effectiveness and has an overwhelming tank armor advantage.

"Although we can't easily give up the border, but in this state, how can we stop the other side's attack?" Lieutenant General O'Connor said gloomily.

Admiral Wavell thought for a moment and said, "Our first task now is to gather the troops in Libya!" ”

There are still about 7,000 people scattered throughout Libya, including soldiers in the vicinity of Bairdi, adding up to more than 13,000.

These soldiers were the bulk of General Wavell's counterattack against the German Afrika Korps, and if these forces could not be assembled, the battle would not really be necessary.

"A lot of the soldiers are retreating, they haven't encountered the German troops, and it seems that the other side is also trying to find a way to concentrate their troops." Lieutenant General O'Connor replied.

The current situation still looks relatively gratifying, at least most of the troops scattered in enemy-occupied areas have not encountered enemy attacks.

But not all of the good news they got, at least after the siege of Bairdi was lifted, the possibility of the Italian army being destroyed was completely stifled.

Looking at the strength of both sides in North Africa at present, the British army is still at an absolute disadvantage.

At the beginning of the campaign, Admiral Wavell's plan to rely on Operation Compass to change the balance of forces between the enemy and the enemy was completely frustrated.

At this time, the Italian army besieged in Bairdi alone exceeded 20,000 men, and if these soldiers relaunched the offensive under the leadership of the German army, it would be an absolute disaster for the British.

"Before we give up on Bairdi, we will try to destroy this force! Or at least, let them not dare to leave Baierdi! Admiral Wavell, who had already resolved to abandon Baildy, said this to Lieutenant General O'Connor.

"Shell Baierdi, try to organize some attacks." He looked at the map and spoke his mind.

His aim was very simple, that is, to embolden the Italian army in Bardine, who were unwilling or unable to follow the German forces on the offensive.

In fact, he knew that with less than 10,000 German troops, the offensive was more than enough and the garrison was insufficient. As long as the front was long enough, the German army would stop advancing on its own because of the emptiness in the rear.

Therefore, if the Italians could be allowed to hold their troops still, they could stop the advance of the German army...... It's a short time, but it's sure to have an effect.

And what Wavell lacked was time, and the emergency transfer of troops from India and Australia would soon enter Egypt.

In the same way, once these forces were in place, Wavell's army would be strengthened as never before—and at that time, the small number of German troops would not be to be feared.

"Will the Germans rush from behind?" Lieutenant General O'Connor was worried about this, because until now, he did not have the exact location of the opposing main forces.

Although the British army sent a large number of reconnaissance troops and contacted the retreating teams in the hope of finding the location of the main force of the German army.

But until now, the main force of the German army has not been discovered, and the reconnaissance force of the opposing side is very powerful, often destroying the scattered British troops, making it very difficult to detect.

"One day! We fight here for a day, and no matter what the result is, retreat immediately! Admiral Wavell was also worried that the Germans would come and make the situation extremely complicated.

But he had to do something to salvage his already low morale and lay the groundwork for his later defenses.

In the other direction, the German armored forces stopped in the desert to rest, and along the way from the east of Tobruk to the perimeter of Bairdi, the Germans also needed respite.

However, they are still in very good shape, because the equipment is very well maintained, and there are many mechanical experts to follow, and their tanks have not suffered too many breakdowns.

Far from these resting tanks, there were several infantry trucks sent to support them, and because more and more prisoners were captured, Rommel had to let some of the infantry catch up with the tank units and collect the captured British.

Now Rommel has captured more than 6,000 people and killed at least 1,100 people. His troops rampaged through the desert as if they were no one.

"The British don't know yet that we're so close to Baierdi." Putting down the binoculars in his hand, the commander of the 15th Tank Regiment of the 8th Panzer Division of the German Army sighed.

His troops marched east along the parallel line of the highway and reached the vicinity of Bairdi in one go. Fortunately, since the defeat of the British 7th Panzer Division and the capture of a large number of prisoners of the division's logistics units, he has not encountered any decent resistance.

More than 100 tanks divided into three armies, like a three-headed dragon, swept across the south side of the road.

Most of the remaining strength of the British 7th Panzer Division is still in Egypt, and there are only a dozen tanks left.

India's 4th Infantry Division was not much better, losing one infantry regiment and almost all of its artillery...... As well as the capture of Italian artillery.

"The British in Baierdi were on the lookout, and they were obviously aware that we were nearby, but they didn't notice us because of the confusion." The regiment commander analyzed several of his commanders.

He pointed to Baierdi on the map: "There may not be as many British people surrounding this place as there are Italians in the city...... It's hard to believe that they didn't even dare to fight back. ”

"Have we seen fewer Italians along the way? They weren't soldiers at all, just a bunch of poor people who were down. The commander of a German armored battalion opened his mouth and laughed.

Along the way, the German army freed at least 20,000 Italian prisoners, poor prisoners with little fighting spirit, hundreds of whom were guarded by a few men, like a flock of sheep being driven.

There weren't actually many German tanks in the vicinity, and although it was the headquarters of the entire tank regiment, there were only 45 tanks.

However, these 45 No. 3 tanks are still a significant force in this place.

On the turret of the command tank, which was responsible for carrying a high-power command radio, an officer poked out his head and shouted to the regimental commander: "Sir! An order from the General Command! ”

The regimental commander walked over and took the telegram handed to him by the officer, which had just been translated from the cipher state, and it looked a little messy.

However, it was clearly written that he was required to immediately lead all the tanks he could find to assault the British army near Baierdi as soon as the battle for a frontal attack began.

"General Rommel has reached the offensive position, and in 15 minutes the battle will begin! Our mission is to attack all British units we can find from the south! Questions? The regimental commander pinched the telegram and turned to the officers around him and asked.

"No problem!" All the officers nodded, then dispersed and walked to the tank in their respective charges.

Just as Rommel was mobilizing his troops to prepare for a surprise assault on General Wavell's troops at Bardey, a large British infantry force that was retreating towards Bardey crashed into Rommel's command.

And so a tragic encounter began. The British soldiers, thinking that they were surrounded by the Germans, burst to the east.

Rommel's army was suddenly attacked by a large British force behind him, and he was slightly flustered, and the battle turned into a stalemate for a while.

The place of the battle was already not far from the British lines, so the sound of machine guns and rifles immediately alerted the officers under Lieutenant General O'Connor.

Five minutes after the exchange of fire, Lieutenant General O'Connor was debriefed by his men, and then he grabbed his phone and reported the incident to Admiral Wavell, who was preparing to retreat.

"General! The main forces of the Germans are near us! It's near us! Lieutenant General O'Connor was already panicking at this time, and shouted nervously into the microphone.

Admiral Wavell didn't expect the other party to be so close to him, and hurriedly opened his mouth and ordered: "The attack is canceled!" Let's get out of here now! Let the troops retreat towards the Egyptian border! Immediately! ”

Almost at the same time, the radio of the command vehicle of the German armored forces was busy, and Rommel, who had been silent, finally broke the silence when he couldn't bear it.

Rommel's voice came from inside the German commander's headset: "Can you hear my orders?" ”

"It's clear! Sir! The commanders of the tank units, who had been waiting for orders, immediately replied.

"Attack! Attack now! Rommel gave a vague order.

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Yes! Long Ling has written one more chapter! Ask for a subscription and ask for a monthly pass! I beg the support of all Imperial soldiers! …… It's just that Long Ling works so hard...... Let's make the results of this "Overlord of the Empire" look better...... Thank you!