"That's the plan, what do you think? Does anyone else have additional comments? ”

Snyder took a lit cigarette from a commander, took a puff, and then smuffled out a smoke ring.

"It should be fine, but I don't know if the infantry units and the covering artillery will be able to meet us on time, and if they are late, we will have another night battle, and if so, will the command agree to let us rest for one night before attacking." The platoon leader, Second Lieutenant Zaft, squatted on an empty oil drum, he held an operational map in his hand and looked at his company commander with a frown.

"Do you think the military command will agree to do this, we are already a lot behind the other troops. But rest assured, by the time we arrived at the rendezvous point, the mechanized infantry of that battalion and two heavy artillery batteries should have been waiting there. The telegram just received said that the troops had already departed from their stations. And they will do the necessary reconnaissance for us before we arrive. Snyder replied lightly.

"Where are those troops, have you met them before?" The third platoon leader, Rolf, put down the kettle in his hand, and he asked as he wiped the corners of his mouth with the cuffs of his combat uniform.

"The command said that it was the 77th Mechanized Infantry Battalion, they used to seem to be from the Fourth Army, I only remember that their commander was Feng. Lieutenant Colonel Fulshaugen, a hero who fought in the last war, is a first-class Iron Cross winner. But he must be in his fifties by now. Snyder replied with a smile.

"Seventy-seven mechanized infantry battalions, I haven't heard of them?" Zaft scratched his head.

"They had just been reorganized into a mechanized battalion, and before that they were just a second-line infantry battalion."

"The second-line troops, that is to say, the army has transferred a group of warehouses from the back to support us." Rulf looked at Snyder with his mouth wide open.

"What can be done about this, now the front-line troops of our army have suffered serious losses, and they must be withdrawn to rest. The second-line troops are not bad, and they are not required to charge, as long as they attract us the fire of the French, provide us with some cover, and consolidate the positions we occupy, and the key attack is still on our own. Zaft smiled and patted the three platoon-long men on the shoulder.

"Zaft is right, we're the ones in this game. Okay, you don't have a problem with this operation. If there is no problem, go back and convey the order, and let all the personnel make preparations before the attack. Pack everything up. We're ......," Snyder looked up at his watch.

"We left half an hour later, at thirteen o'clock German time. Don't keep those foot soldiers waiting. ”

"Yes, sir."

The platoon commanders hurriedly stood up and nodded to Snyder. Then the officers turned around and ran towards their respective armored platoons. Snyder crouched down and carefully folded the map on the ammo box and stuffed it into his bag.

"Sir...... Captain...... Chief Snyder......"

At that moment, a man shouted loudly and ran down the street in a panic towards Snyder. Lieutenant Snyder was startled, and he looked up in confusion to see that it was his young loader.

"Something happened." Snyder asked aloud.

The loader ran as fast as he could, his face now flushed from the intensity of the run.

The young loader gasped violently and reported to Snyder, "Report...... Report...... Sir. The sentinels on the perimeter met two of our soldiers, who ...... They said that their troops were attacked by surprise by the French. Sgt. Hank...... Ask me to report to you, and he wants you to take a look at it right away. ”

"What...... There is such a thing. Snyder scrambled to the entrance of the village with his bag on his back, and the little bomber hurriedly followed with a bitter face.

"Are there only two of them?" Snyder asked his men as he ran.

"I only saw two people." Karl hurriedly replied.

"Do you know what force they are?"

"I don't know, Sergeant Hank talked to them for a few words and hurriedly asked me to come to you, I don't know what the hell is going on, I just heard that they were attacked by the French." The loader replied gasping.

It seemed that he couldn't get something out of this subordinate's mouth, and Snyder couldn't help but speed up his pace. The fact that the two German soldiers were able to run to their own station showed that their troops were being attacked near their own station, and at this time, it was quite unusual for the French to take the initiative to attack the German ** team, and Snyder could not help but have a hint of foreboding in his heart.

Snyder could already see his tank clearly by this time, and he saw from a distance that there was already a large group of people in front of his car, and what made him strange was that there were two tall war horses standing next to his tank.

"Looks like those two soldiers rode in." Snyder's company was an armored company, and there were only four horses in the whole company, and it was also the horse used by the logistics squad to pull the field cooking car, and none of them were such tall war horses.

"Get out of the way, the company commander is here." Several sharp-eyed tankmen saw Snyder running in the distance and shouted at the crowd, and the soldiers quickly made way for their commander to enter the circle.

Snyder slowed down, trying to calm his breath before heading toward the group. Before entering the crowd, he also carefully looked at the two horses, it seemed that they were tired, the muscles on their legs were still shaking, the corners of their mouths were still foaming, and their bodies were covered with dust mixed with sweat, and their beautiful fur had lost their original luster, looking dirty, and they looked really embarrassed, and the two soldiers pulled their reins to comfort them.

Snyder walked into the crowd and came to the center of the circle, where he first saw two grizzled German soldiers sitting on the ground with their backs to the tank's tracks. Dyers, the company's medic officer, was bandaging the wound on one of the soldiers' arms, while his gun commander and driver crouched beside the other soldier with a water bottle and chatted.

Seeing Snyder arrive, two of his crew members and the medic stood up in a straight salute. The two soldiers struggled to stand up and salute, but Snyder quickly crouched down and held them down.

"Which unit are you and what is going on?" Snyder asked eagerly.

"Report sir, I'm Private Lowe, and he's Private Bruce. We were from the reconnaissance company of the 77th Mechanized Infantry Battalion. Our battalion was subjected to a surprise attack by French units. Sir, we must prepare for defense at once, the French are advancing here, and please report this to Legion Command immediately. The private, who had been wounded in the arm, replied weakly.

"What! Seventy-Seven Infantry Battalion? Tell me, what's going on, aren't you going to meet us at the rendezvous point? How is your battalion now, and those artillerymen. Where were you attacked by the French and how many troops did they have...... Quick, tell me about this from beginning to end. Snyder was almost stunned by the news, he had no idea that the troops who were being attacked were about to join him, and he was eager to know the details of what had happened.

"We set out early this morning from the village of Kadot towards the rendezvous point with your battalion in front of us, and the two heavy artillery batteries following us closely. The two of us were scout cavalry, and our squad of seven people was responsible for searching the right flank of the troops. It was very smooth at the beginning and didn't have any trouble on the way. We also rested for half an hour on the road for lunch, when no one thought that we would be attacked by the French ** team, and those comrades were still talking about how to teach the French a good lesson when the time came. Luo Wei said weakly, with a wry smile on his face.

"Then what about the future, go on. How did you get attacked by the French ** team? Snyder lit a cigarette and handed it to Lowe.

"Thank you, sir." Lowe took the cigarette and took a hard puff, and after coughing violently, he then said to Snyder, "Then we will continue to march." Just as we were about to reach the rendezvous point, the Forward Scout noticed something unusual, and I don't know exactly what they found, but Feng. Lieutenant Colonel Fulshaugen immediately ordered the troops to stop the advance. He also ordered us to expand the search area to both flanks, and as a result we found a large number of French troops moving towards us in the depth of the right flank. Then the same was discovered on the left flank, and we ran into a large force of the French, numerically numbered at least three regiments or more of French infantry. ”

Shaking and taking a puff on his cigarette, with a pained look on his face, he continued: "Next, the French will attack us. The French soldiers pounced on us like crazy. They shouted loudly as they charged at us. We were only scouts, and we could not defend ourselves against their attacks at all, so we had to retreat back and move closer to the group.

Feng. Lieutenant Colonel Fulsmgen ordered a full-speed retreat, but by then it was too late. The attack of the French was so sudden that they took us by surprise. The heavy artillery units in the rear simply had no way to immediately turn around and retreat, they blocked the way for our retreat. Before our battalion could take shape, the French rushed in front of us. The flank line collapsed at that time, and the infantry could only fire at the French under the cover of the armored hull. Then the French shells fell on our heads. We were all blinded, and the troops had almost lost their command. It was a massacre, the officers were knocked down one by one like targets, and the screams of our soldiers were everywhere......" Tears glistened in Lowe's eyes, and his face wrinkled in pain.

From Lowe's description and that look of grief, Lisnyder felt the fierceness of the battle, and his ears seemed to hear the loud shouts of the German soldiers who were desperately resisting.

Snyder took off his hat with a heavy expression, and then gently patted the weeping senior soldier on the shoulder. The lieutenant stood up and looked at his subordinates, his platoon commanders had received the news and rushed here, and the officers and tankers followed their company commanders to take off their military hats and mourn the officers and soldiers who had died in battle.

Snyder crouched down and kindly asked Lowe, "Soldier, what happened to you, how did you get out of that disaster?" ”

"We're desperately rushing out, Feng. Lieutenant Colonel Fuls Morgan ordered that we must break out of the encirclement of the French and report to the command about our attack. Since the radio station was destroyed, we could not report it to our superiors.

The lieutenant colonel ordered us to come here after breaking through the French encirclement, and you were the German detachment closest to us. The lieutenant colonel told you to inform you of the situation, and he told you to prepare for the defense immediately, and if the French continue to attack, this will be the next target. He also wants you to report the situation to Command immediately using your radio. The Lieutenant Colonel finally asked me to bring you a message to tell his family that he had said that sacrifice for the sake of the motherland was the most glorious thing, and that he hoped that his sacrifice would contribute to the final victory of great Germany. So his family doesn't have to be sad. When I last saw the lieutenant colonel, he was standing in his command car and personally shooting at the French, who were only three or four meters away, with his machine gun in his own right. My Scout Cavalry and I fought our way out of the encirclement, and in the end of the seven, only me and Bruce were left. ”

With a shudder, Lowe pulled out a delicate wooden box from his pocket, which he handed to Snyder.

"This is what the Lieutenant Colonel asked me to bring to you, and I ask you to give it to his family if possible."

Snyder opened the box with a serious expression, and inside was a first-class Iron Cross, with the words 1914 cast on it, and the silver-white trim shone dazzlingly in the sun.

"No, soldier. It's up to you to keep it. Snyder slammed the lid shut, and he carefully placed the box in Lowe's hand.

"It's up to you to hand it over to the Lieutenant Colonel's family, this is the request of a great soldier. A fierce battle is about to begin here, and this may be the toughest test for our company, and as commander I will be on the front line to direct the battle. So, I don't know if I'll still be able to complete the task given to me by the lieutenant colonel. I beg you, Private Lowe, to complete this task in my place. ”

"But, sir......]

"No, but, this is the task I gave you. Well, we don't have time to be upset. You tell me exactly how many troops the French have, and whether they have tanks or not. And how long it will be before they get to us. Snyder pulled out his map.

"The situation was chaotic at the time, and it is difficult for me to give you exact information, but judging by the proficiency of the troops involved in the attack, the French had at least one division, and they also had a lot of heavy artillery, and the French were overwhelmed with shells at that time. Tanks? I didn't see it, I saw only some armored vehicles. ”

"They have tanks, I see it." Bruce, who had been listening, said loudly.

"What, the French have tanks, what models, how many." Snyder grabbed Bruce's shoulder and asked eagerly.

"It is indeed tanks, I saw a lot of French tanks when I went to the forward to pass the order, although they were very slow, but the forward troops had no way to stop them from advancing. I don't know exactly what the model, but there seem to be two kinds, one is about the same size as the second type, but much taller, and the other is very large, more than ...... It's bigger than this tank, and it's tall. However, they are all very slow. Bruce said, pointing to Tank Four behind him.

"Why didn't you tell me about tanks earlier?" Lowe questioned Bruce.

"I told you, maybe you didn't listen to it at the time." Bruce whispered.

"Well, let's not argue about it, there is not so much time now. You tell me, how far are those French from us, and how long will they get here? Lowe? Snyder asked.

"We were attacked about three kilometres east of the rendezvous point, and we rode our horses for more than an hour to get here. The battle was still going on, they couldn't have been as fast as we were, and my Lance was the fastest horse in the army. I think if the French were infantry and those slow tanks, it would be at least three or four hours before they got here. ”

"Three or four hours, I understood. Well, you and your companions must be tired, and you're wounded, so let's go to the back with the military doctor, Second Lieutenant Dyers. You have made a great contribution this time, I will ask the command to issue you a medal, okay, don't insist anymore, this is an order. Snyder stopped the protest of the two soldiers, they obviously wanted to help a little in the preparation for the battle later, but under Snyder's stern gaze, they had to give up their intention to continue arguing, and obediently followed the medic to the tent where the volunteer station rested.

"Well, I think you've heard it and understood where we are now. I don't need to say anything more, you all know what to do, and all of you are ready for battle at once, and remember that among the enemies we are going to face this time is the French panzers. Signal man, you go and report this intelligence to Command now. Ask them to give us immediate instructions on what to do next, and let me know as soon as they have news. Come with me, and now we're going to have a good idea of what to do next. Snyder shouted orders to his subordinates, and he led the four platoon commanders to his makeshift office.

Behind them, the tankers scattered towards their tanks, and they now decided to take a closer look at their tanks once more. Because this time, they will face a peer who also has this steel behemoth, and the slightest mistake in tank battles can cost the entire crew their lives at the same time.

"What do you think?" Snyder sat on an ammunition box and looked at his platoon commanders.

"I think we're in danger this time, it's hard to hold this village with tanks alone, we need infantry support." Zaft, the leader of the platoon, said with a frown.

"Yes, we only have nineteen Type IV tanks left, and the two Type 3 and Type 2 light companies that have been working with us have been transferred to the rear to rest. Speaking of infantry, we now have only one platoon of logistics. If we stick here, everyone can guess what will happen. The second platoon leader, Cons, nodded in agreement.

"No matter what, I'll obey your orders, sir." Rulf said loudly to Snyder.

"If according to my thinking, this battle must not be fought, we simply do not have the strength. If it is as I want, we will immediately retreat and abandon this village, which is already a ruin anyway, and the French will give it to them if they want, and it will be of little use for them to take it. We immediately retreated to the rear, then went to build fortifications in more defensible places, and gathered enough strength to teach the French soldiers a hard lesson. But now it seems unlikely that this is possible. The command will not let us retreat, otherwise the rear will not be ready for defense in the future. I suspect that the order from above must have been for us to hold on to this place, to delay the French attack as much as possible, and to wear down their strength. Snyder said solemnly.

"As things stand, we have too little chance of winning. If the command orders us to defend it, we will now have to prepare to build fortifications, and we will have to work out the tactics of defense. Time is just too tight. Garwan, the leader of the fourth platoon, said slowly.

"Yes, we're short on time, so let's start talking about the defense plan now. I just found a problem in Lowe's words. If my conjecture is correct, we may be able to make the French suffer a little. Snyder scratched his head.

"Sir, the command calls back." At that moment the communications soldier rushed into the tent with a telegram. Snyder stood up and took the telegram, and the officers' expressions began to become nervous.

"Can you tell me what that said? Sir. Rulf asked in a whisper.

"Hold on."

Snyder slipped the telegram into the pocket of his uniform.

"General Guderian personally ordered, and he ordered that we must stop the attack of the French army at all costs. We were not allowed to abandon our positions until the last resort, and our task was the same as I had thought earlier, to delay the attack of the French ** team as much as possible, and to gain time for the reinforcements to arrive. ”

Snyder glanced coldly at his subordinates, and then ordered loudly: "Gentlemen, it is now our turn to defend the glory of the German ** team. Just like Feng. As Lieutenant Colonel Fulshaugen said, it is his highest honor for a soldier to die for the sake of his country. Get ready for the final battle. ”

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