Having a fifty-eight-year-old German field marshal help with a ladder sounds like nonsense, but it's not too much. In fact, even if Xu Jun wanted to step on the shoulders of the chief of staff and go to the wall, I believe that Keitel would not hesitate to lean down.

This was the case with Hitler, the marshal did not lack the courage to resist his superiors, but he knew very well that the power he now held in his hands came from the Führer's trust and support. The existing High Command is an institution that exists only by attaching itself to the Führer, and it is a military department established by Hitler in order to seize the command of the army, which is completely different from the Supreme High Command of the Army in the Weimar Republic, and the purpose of this organization has been very clear from the beginning of its creation, and in a sense it stands on the opposite side of the headquarters of the various services, because no one likes to suddenly have an extra administrative organ above their head, and take away part of the administrative and command power that belongs to them.

There is a certain overlap between the scope of organization and management of the High Command and the various service commands, and what allows them to rise above the three service commands is not the seniority and talent of the members of the High Command, but the authority and skill of the Reich Führer.

Keitel was legally responsible only to the Führer himself, and could only be responsible to the Führer alone, although in the previous European wars, he had made a lot of meritorious achievements and regained the acceptance and trust of his colleagues in the Army, but Keitel knew very well that he wanted to return to the good times when he served in the Army, and now he is no longer possible.

He had been attached to Hitler, but now he could only rely on Xu Jun, and once he lost the favor of the young Führer, Keitel would also lose everything he currently had, and his best choice at that time was to submit his resignation to the Führer, and then withdraw from the Wehrmacht, which had allowed him to fight for half his life. For Keitel, who values honor and tastes power, he would rather give himself a shot in the head than face this humiliation and miserable end.

Xu Jun was also aware of the problems in the marshal's personality, but he was not prepared to correct them. Xu Jun and Hitler have the same opinion on Keitel, although they know that the marshal's level is limited, but if he wants to control the Wehrmacht, he must rely on a general like Keitel.

Keitel should also feel the pressure on his body, he is very clear about his level, he knows that there are a lot of generals and marshals in the Wehrmacht who can replace him, not to others, just the former commander-in-chief of the Wehrmacht, Field Marshal Brumberg, is a more suitable candidate for this position than him, and the only thing Keitel can rely on now is obedience and loyalty to the head of the Reich.

"This order was personally signed by the Führer, and it is a great honor, Major, all you have to do is resolutely fulfill this mission." Keitel said with the marshal's staff on the chest of an army major.

"Understood! Your Excellency Marshal, but... Your Excellency Marshal, the training subjects of the 904th Commando have not yet been fully completed. The major said loudly with his chest puffed up.

"I don't give you time to finish training, and actual combat is the best training for soldiers, I want you to be ready to go before midnight today." Keitel turned and walked behind his desk.

"The Führer expects a lot from you, Major Gisberg, and do not let the Führer down." The field marshal picked up a form and signed his name at the bottom.

"You can list the equipment and supplies you need on this form and hand it over to your superior commander before you go, and your request will be dealt with with the highest priority." Keitel walked up to the major and handed the form to the other man.

"Giesberg, remember that this operation is top secret, only the Führer and I know about it at the moment, you don't need me to remind you what to pay attention to, do you have any other questions?"

"There are no problems, I am honored to accept this task, Your Excellency Marshal!" Giesberg replied loudly with his head tilted.

"Very well, you can go, Major." Keitel nodded.

"Hey! Reinhart! The Major gave a salute and strode out of the office.

"Hank, I'm going to see the Führer now, and if General Yodel comes later, let him go to the Führer's office to find me." Keitel tucked a few papers on the table into his briefcase, turned his face to the secretary standing in the doorway, and said.

"Yes, sir." The secretary nodded in acknowledgement.

"The discovery of the Eye of Odin this time is very important, let them continue to follow up, it seems that our plan has to be advanced, Weirle." Xu Jun sat on the sofa with a cup of fragrant green tea in his hand.

"Do you want to remind Randolph, my Führer?" Weirle said respectfully.

"No, just let Randolph play freely in Egypt, the more he makes trouble over there, the more he can cover the actions of the Eye of Odin." Xu Jun put down the teacup and picked up the telegram on the table.

"The plans of the British have clearly leaked, and their forces in the Middle East have been infiltrated like a colander. If it weren't for the adversary's exposure this time, we would probably have been on the back foot before we even started our actions. Weirle said.

"We don't have much time left to deal with these hidden dangers before the situation deteriorates further." Xu Jun threw the telegram on the table.

"The Afrika Korps is undergoing operational preparations and is expected to arrive in Alexandria in five days." Willle reports.

"Plus the rearmament and access to the combat area consumed ... It takes about a week. Xu Jun looked at the map on the table.

"And if the other side wants to gather enough troops, it will take about a month, and this is still in the case of sufficient logistics materials, if the logistics supply is insufficient, the assembly will take longer." Willle reports.

"Is this information from the Eye of Odin?"

"It is a combination of information from the British MI6 and intelligence collected earlier by the German Military Intelligence Service."

"We still need more detailed information, what do the British say?" Xu Jun asked, rubbing his eyebrows.

"They were also shocked when they learned about it, and Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was ready to convene a cabinet meeting to discuss it." Wehrle replied.

"That means they can't do anything until they come to a conclusion." Xu Jun said with a sneer.

"Not really, my Führer. General Wavell of Great Britain was authorized by the Prime Minister, and he was now able to mobilize all military units in the Middle East. ”

"You mean, they're waiting for our reaction right now?"

"You have reacted in a way that is reassuring enough for them, as evidenced by the advance movement of the African Army." Weirle said respectfully.

"Before the final launch, we must not attract too much attention, we must do a good job of secrecy, and the African Army cannot disclose any information to the outside world until it arrives in Alexandria." Xu Jun picked up the teacup.

"I will pass on your orders, my Führer." Wehrle replied.

"At tomorrow's meeting, we're going to focus on this plan. When did the planes of Eric, Field Marshal Kesselring and General Richthofen arrive? Xu Jun turned his head to look at Tysenhofen, who was sitting behind the desk in the corner of the room.

"The telegram says that they will leave Rome at about three o'clock this afternoon and should be able to reach Vienna before dinner." Tysenhowen reported.

"What about Manstein?"

"General Manstein's special army train arrived about this evening, and I have ordered the communications office to report to me immediately if anything changes."

"Good, Eric." Xu Jun nodded with satisfaction.

"The key to this operation is to control the air supremacy on the ground, and in this terrain, air power will play a pivotal role." Xu Jun picked up the red and blue pencils and drew a circle on the map.

"At the same time, this is also a combat test of our logistics supply system, and I hope to be able to find flaws that we are not aware of, otherwise it will not be so convenient to remedy them when the war breaks out on the Eastern Front." Xu Jun said as he poked the map with a pencil.

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