As soon as Yang Shuoming's words came out, Wu Peifu and the others were shocked again, only Jiang Baili smiled and bowed slightly, as if he agreed with Yang Shuoming's opinion very much.

"You said that we would have attacked the United States first?" Wu Peifu shook his head and said, "How is it possible?" Who do they think they are? Is it impossible to declare war on the whole world? ”

"The United States has insufficient military strength in the Pacific, so it is a prudent policy to concentrate forces to defeat the US military first, cut off our foreign aid, and then turn around against our country." Yang Shuoming said, "If Germany's war in Europe goes well, the United States will certainly not be able to divide its forces in the Pacific, and China will be able to move freely in the Pacific if it is contained by the Soviet Union." ”

"I see." Wu Peifu understood, at this time, after the explanations of Yang Shuoming and others, he already had a new understanding of the situation facing China.

"From this point of view, the war situation in Europe has a very big impact on my country."

"Exactly." Jiang Baili said, "The key at the moment is the Franco-German war. ”

"This German is really powerful, he can conjure so many tanks in such a short time." Wu Peifu sighed.

"In order to circumvent the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles, Germany secretly transferred the tank development project to the territory of the Soviet Union, and they actually did not delay a day in this regard, so they were able to catch up and surpass Britain and France." Yang Shuoming said, "Of course, the Soviet Union has also benefited greatly in this regard. ”

"The Germans' trick of 'hiding from the world and crossing the sea' is really good." General Cai Yi, Minister of the Army, said, and sent a picture album to Wu Peifu, "Here is a detailed list and pictures of German tanks and self-propelled guns, and the president can take a look." ”

Between 1926 and 1932, Rheinmetall-Bosg, Mein, Krupp and Daimler-Benz received orders from the German Army Weapons Bureau for the construction of light (10 to 12 ton) and medium (to 23 ton) tanks. The order was under the cover of a project called "Tractor" in order to conceal the provisions of the Treaty of Versailles that limited the strength of German [***]. The prototype was tested in a highly secret manner at the test site of armored vehicles "Kama" near Kazan in the Soviet Union. "Kama" served as a training and testing military science and technology base for the Soviet Red Army and the German Army, and was part of the "Raparo Treaty" signed by Germany and the Soviet Union.

Back in 1927, Germany designed two types of self-propelled guns on the basis of full-tracked tractors. The first was armed with a 37 mm gun, lightly armoured, and 25 hp. The second was a 77-mm gun with 50 horsepower, and two self-propelled guns entered service with the German army in 1927.

From 1926 to 1929, at least 200 officers completed training at the "Kama" training school. All German prototypes of the "Tractor" were tested at the "Kama" test base. The test program ended quickly at the beginning of 1929 (at about the same time, German pilots were also trained in the USSR, and at least 700 officers graduated from two schools located on the territory of the USSR).

The development of the German light tank began in May 1928, and in October 1928, the "Krupp" and "Rheinmetal-Bosg" were respectively ordered to design and build light tanks. This model uses a self-propelled chassis for armored trucks and tractors capable of mounting 37 mm guns. In cooperation with Rheinmetall-Bosge, Krupp has started trial production on three prototypes. The specifications and designs of these prototypes are very similar, with the main difference being the suspension system. The prototype was completed in April-May 1930 and tested at the "Kama" test site in June 1930.

In 1925, Germany accelerated the development of tanks, and the "Daimler-Benz" and "Krupp" of "Rheinmetall-Bosg" received orders for the design of medium (heavy) tanks, and throughout the twenties and thirties, the German side developed more than ten kinds of tanks, first light tanks and armored artillery vehicles that were indeed similar to tractors, and then manufactured "large tractor 1" ("Daimler-Benz" company), "2" type ("Rheinmetall-Bosg" company) and " large tractor 1 ("Daimler-Benz" company) and " Type 3 ("Krupp"), weighing about 10 to 16 tons, all use overhead small pitch tracks and small diameter load wheels, because these prototypes have many problems, the engine is also unstable, and is not suitable for training and combat.

However, after such technology accumulation, the design and manufacture of German tanks became more and more mature, and for the shame of the defeat of the First World War, Germany spared no effort to absorb the design experience of other countries, among which there are quite a lot of places to learn from the design of Chinese tanks. The German tank absorbed the advanced design of the Chinese single-turret main battle tank and designed the famous "5" "assault tank", that is, the "Tiger" tank that later shined on the battlefield.

From the outset, the Tiger was designed to be equipped with a large-caliber gun, ample ammunition and unprecedented thick armor, and with the space used by the crew in mind, the overall structure was designed with a large number of vertical planes - mainly to reduce the number of manufacturing processes and steps and maximize the space inside the vehicle. It also greatly increased the production speed and output of the "Tiger" tank.

As for the "Tiger" tank, Germany adopted strict secrecy measures, and the Soviet Union, which had tank technical cooperation with Germany, only had a word about the existence of the "Tiger" tank after the cooperation between the two sides ended in 1936.

Of course, Germany's success in developing and mass-producing the Tiger tank in such a short period of time is inseparable from the large amount of indispensable resources it received from the Soviet Union.

"It seems that this German-French war is the real highlight!" Wu Peifu looked at the picture in his hand and couldn't help but gasp.

Yang Shuoming looked at Wu Peifu's somewhat exaggerated expression, and couldn't help but be secretly amused.

He looked up at the calendar card on the wall, and silently calculated the time in his heart.

He knows that this "highlight" will be staged soon in the future.

Germany, Berlin, Sanssouci Palace, Golden Hall.

"Lieutenant General Manstein, the battle plan you have proposed, I and Prime Minister Strassel have already seen it." The German Emperor Ruprecht I said, "How did you come up with it, can you tell me?" ”

"I may have been recognized as the initiator of this matter," said Manstein, "and I now come to you, by my own revelation, how this plan came to be. For, in any case, the idea behind this plan came from my head, and it was like all the memorandums I have drawn up to the Army Headquarters, the purpose of which is to make the plan of this operation go along our ideal line, and to achieve a decisive victory on the Western Front. ”

"I am personally honored to have been given such an opportunity to personally present this concept to the General Staff, and the Army Headquarters has issued a new operational order on the basis of the proposal of me and Prime Minister Strassell." "Now, I want to know some details about what you told me and why the Army Headquarters had not agreed to this plan. ”

"I must stress that Your Majesty, my Commander-in-Chief, Admiral Lundstedt, and my colleagues have always agreed with me, especially Admiral Lundstedt, who has personally signed in support of my proposal. Without his approval, we would not have been able to repeatedly submit memorandums to Army Headquarters in an attempt to change their original plans. Manstein said.

"I know." Ruprecht I nodded, motioning for Manstein to continue.

"I begin with a brief description of the plans of the Army Headquarters and explain why I cannot but consider this strategic concept a reason for its shortcomings. Second, in contrast to the plans of the Army Headquarters, I will enumerate some of the necessary theories that Army Group Headquarters use as the basis for their strategic considerations. Manstein opened a map with various arrows and said.

"The Army Headquarters advocated sending a strong right-wing force through Holland into northern Belgium to defeat the Anglo-French forces expected to be encountered there, together with the forces of both the Dutch and Belgian forces. In other words, the main thing is to use the powerful assault of the right wing to seek a decisive fight. This assault consisted of Army Group N and Army Group B. This force was concentrated in areas such as the Upper Rhine and the northern part of the Eivre. Army Group B commanded a total of three armies. This northern flank consisted of a total of thirty infantry divisions and most of the mechanized troops. Because the total strength of our army on the Western Front is only 102 divisions, it accounts for about half of our total strength. ”

"The task of the N Army Detachment is to destroy the Dutch resistance, while the three armies of Army Group B are to pass through the north and south flanks of the Lieju through the northern Belgian attack. A strong tank force should break up the enemy forces here and play the role of deciding the surname. ”

"Army Group B should attack separately bypassing the flanks of Lie, with two armies leading and the other two following them. The 18th Army was responsible for the elimination of the Dutch army. When Army Group B was tasked with the assault, Army Group consisted of two armies with a total of 22 infantry divisions, but there were no mechanized units at all. This army group advanced through southern Belgium and Luxembourg after assembling south of Ivre and Hensruk. The 12th Army was deployed to the left of Army Group B in echelons to cover the continued advance of Army Group B and prevent it from being hindered by enemy forces. Once the 16th Army had crossed Luxembourg, it was to rotate southward in order to protect the deep flanks of the entire operation. It should follow the Maginot Line in the Saar and the Muses east of Sedan

To the north of the westward extension, Army Group left two armies and 18 infantry divisions to defend the Siegfried Line from the border with Luxembourg to Switzerland. Another 17 infantry divisions and two mechanized divisions served as general reserves. ”

"The objectives of this operation were set out in the first section of the Army Headquarters' operational orders: to defeat as many units as possible of the French and their allies, and to occupy as wide of ground as possible in the Holland, Belgium, and northern France, as the basis for a successful air and naval campaign against Great Britain, and to provide a wide protective zone for the Ruhr region."

"Section II of the Operational Order identifies the first objective of the attack of these two Army Groups, and this action is to be personally coordinated by the Commander-in-Chief of the Army, General Brauchitsch. The objective should be to destroy the Dutch forces, to defeat the Belgian army as far as possible in the vicinity of the border fortresses, and to rapidly concentrate a strong mechanized force to establish a basis for an attack by a strong right flank force and a rapid occupation of the Belgian coastline. ”

"In the revised combat order issued, the Army Headquarters added that in northern France and Belgium the French army should be destroyed as many units as possible, in order to create favorable conditions for war on land and in the air between England and France."

"In the section 'Sequence of Battles and Tasks,' the Army Headquarters set the objectives of the Army Group as follows: to destroy enemy forces on the north bank of the Somme River and to rush to the shores of the Strait."

"The cover mission of Army Group A, while still continuing to be mainly defensive, has also been expanded. Its right-wing army, the 12th Army, was to cross the Maas River south of Fourmet and advance in the direction of Laon through the fortified area of the French border. ”

"The operational intent of these two orders of battle can be summarized as follows: to break the Anglo-French forces expected to be encountered at Belgian territory from the front with a strong right flank force, while the weaker left flank forces were to cover its flanks. The geographical target is the coast of the strait. As for what to do after the first strike, there is no mention of it in the combat order. ”

"So, tell me why you object." Ruprecht I said.

"My initial reaction to the plan decided in the battle order was one of sentiment rather than rationality. It seems to me that the strategic intentions of the Army Headquarters, by their very nature, were exactly imitations of the Schlieffen Plan of 1914. I feel at least that it is a shame that people of my generation cannot make a better plan and copy old texts, even if they are the work of a famous man like Schlieffen. But this plan has been tried once in the past, and the enemy is wary of its reuse. ”

"But my initial reaction to this sentiment was really unfair to the Army Headquarters. The first reason was that the plan had come out of the personal psyche of the late Mr. Hitler, and that the Army Headquarters was not responsible. The second reason is that, in fact, it is not an exact copy of the Schlieffen plan. The idea that this plan was the same as the Schlieffen plan was common was widespread, and strictly speaking, only two respects were correct: first, the German offensive was now focused on the northern flank, as in 1914; Second, both plans were preparations for an offensive through Belgium. In addition to this, the 1914 plan is a far cry from the current one. ”

"The first reason I object is that the situation is completely different. In 1914, it was also possible to obtain a surprise attack with a strategic surname, as Schlieffen had hoped. Even if this did not include the advance through Belgium, it did apply to the concentration of the main German forces on the northern flank. But now, such strategic intentions cannot be kept out of the enemy's knowledge. ”

"Secondly, in 1914 there was also a reason to hope, like Schlieffen, that the French would launch an immature offensive against Lorraine, and thus give us a good chance. Now, there is no hope for such a development. The enemy would immediately commit a strong force against our attack through Belgium and the Netherlands – and in contrast to 1914 – and the two sides would clash head-on. Moreover, as we advance through Belgium, the French are likely to launch a powerful counterattack on the southern flank of our main force. In other words, the Schlieffen plan was fundamentally unusable. ”

In addition to this, it soon became clear to me that the Army Headquarters had no intention of copying the entire concept of the Schlieffen Plan. Schlieffen drew up his plan with the aim of completely defeating the entire French army. His aim was to clear the enemy forces extending northward in a great detour, and when he had cleared the whole of northern France, he should continue to press downward as far as the west of Paris, and force the enemy to surrender by pressing all the enemy forces from Metz through the Fosgus Mountains to the Swiss border. In order to achieve this goal, he preferred to risk the initial defeat in Alsace, and at the same time preferred that the enemy would launch an offensive against Lorraine, so that their own actions would be enough to make the great detour of the German army a complete success. ”

"The present battle plan, on the other hand, does not include an intention to bring the battle to a victorious conclusion. Its objectives were very clear: first, a partial victory - the defeat of the Allied forces in northern Belgium, and second, a geographical gain - the capture of the shores of the Channel as a base for future operations. ”

"It is now very clear that the total defeat of France can no longer be accomplished in a single blow, as Schlieffen had planned. This sine qua non is no longer there. If, however, it had been designed to proceed further and definitively to defeat France once the victory had been won in part of the life as envisaged by the Army Headquarters, the existing operations must at least have a connection with this final objective! First, it should demand the complete destruction of the enemy's northern flank in order to establish a decisive advantage for the second step of operation, the latter of which was aimed at annihilating the remaining Allied forces in France, and secondly, it should at the same time create a favorable strategic situation for which this further strike could be launched. In my opinion, the battle plan now drawn up has no guarantee for the fulfillment of these two basic requirements. ”

(To be continued)