On October 22, 1918, Hersmann accompanied the future German President Albert and two revolutionaries destined to live long to the stormy capital of Berlin - although they refused to participate in the coalition government led by the Social Democrats, Prince Baden was pressured (some marched in Berlin) to order the release of Liebknecht and Rosa. Luxembourg.

On Berlin's train station square, Hersmann saw a familiar scene. Thousands of Spartacist supporters gathered in the square, waving red flags and chanting the Internationale at one moment and Liebknecht's name at the other. The sound is deafening!

Like Lenin, Liebknecht climbed to the top of a ready-to-prepare car and delivered an impassioned speech. Once again, he attacked the German government's war policy and declared that the main enemy of the German people was at home, that is, German imperialism, the German war faction and Germany's secret diplomacy! Demand that the government immediately stop the war and achieve peace without land cessation and without reparations! At the end of the speech, Liebknecht and Rosa. The Luxembourg duo also led their supporters to the masses on foot to the Russian embassy to pay tribute to the young socialist republic!

"Although they are unwilling to cooperate with us, they have not announced that they will immediately launch a proletarian revolution!" Albert, who escorted Liebknecht back to Berlin, stood on the steps outside the waiting hall of the train station, listening carefully to Liebknecht's speech. Finally, he smiled at Lieutenant Colonel Hersmann, who had been standing beside him as if he were an adjutant.

"Mr. Councillor, it seems that your persuasion has served a little," Hirschman replied respectfully. "You have won the empire a temporary respite."

"Well, he's pretty good at talking." Albert smiled, "Lieutenant Colonel, how much time do you think we have left?" ”

"A few days...... Or two weeks. Hersman said in a solemn tone.

"It's only been that time?" Albert was stunned. During this time, the situation on the battlefield was actually okay, and the German army temporarily stopped its decline. At present, the battlefield is still far beyond Germany's borders.

"Yes, Mr. Senator, how many days do you think Austria-Hungary will last?" Hersman spread his hands helplessly, "The Czech Republic has declared its independence, Hungary is in chaos, and a revolution can break out at any time." Once Hungary declared independence, how could Austria support the war on its own? If there is also a revolution in Austria...... Unless the Spartacists joined the government and helped the government suppress the revolution. Otherwise, even if they do nothing, the revolutionary wave will still sweep through Germany! ”

"Austria-Hungary......" Albert shook his head, "you have a point, they saw this, and that's why they want us to 'surrender unconditionally'." ”

The "Fourteen Points of Peace Conditions" and "preferential democracy" are indeed a trap! Immediately after the German "democratic government" came to power, the Allies raised their asking prices, no longer mentioning the "Fourteen Points of Peace" and still demanding that "the German army completely surrender its main equipment and means of transport for the army, navy and air force." This is to demand the surrender of the German army, and unconditionally!

Although the Entente did not say that the "Fourteen Points of Peace" was now nullified, anyone with a little common sense would know that once the Germans surrendered their weapons and equipment, they would still be lambs to the slaughter. Under these circumstances, Britain, France, and the United States would not be imperialist if they had spared Germany......

But the majority of the people in Germany did not realize at this time that peace was a more painful thing for them than to insist on war! Most people still believe that the United States Congress on the other side of the ocean has found a just peace in its conscience.

After separating from Albert, Hersman told Chloe to go home first. Together with Ogali, he got into a carriage sent by the Russian-German Economic Promotion Company and went to Tsosen, on the outskirts of Berlin, where the Tsar's family lived in Germany. Then he returned to Berlin to report to the Grand General Staff and Liebknecht, Rosa. The meeting between the two men in Luxembourg - Hersmann also intends to draw special attention to these two dangerous elements. It's best to eliminate them now, don't wait for them to do something earth-shattering, and that's it!

At the Grand General Staff, Hersmann heard the laughable news that the Germans of Austria-Hungary were about to achieve national self-determination. The non-German members of the Reichstag had returned to their hometowns to pursue national self-determination, and the remaining German parliamentarians, after studying the provisions of the Fourteen Points of Peace on national self-determination, believed that the German nation within the Austro-Hungarian Empire could also be self-determined, so they wanted to pass a resolution to merge Austria and the German Empire......

But can the Austro-Hungarian German nation really self-determine, as stated in the Fourteen Points of Peace? Hersman didn't believe it, and neither did 99 percent of the staff officers in the Great General Staff. Because they all found themselves being tricked by the little tricks of the Americans.

When Hersmann arrived at Königplatz (where the Great General Staff was located), the people here were either sad or angry, and some were cursing loudly in annoyed tones, including Hindenburg.

"Deceived! Germany has been deceived! There is no such thing as a 'just peace'! The Fourteen Points Peace Conditions are also a lie...... They're going to take everything from us! These devils, these garbage without a sense of honor! ”

The roar of Field Marshal Hindenburg, Chief of the General Staff, was clearly heard outside the corridor outside his office.

"Lieutenant Colonel Hersman, please follow me." Major Schulenburg, Field Marshal Hindenburg's aide-de-camp, saw Hersmann and immediately led him into Hindenburg's large office. There was not only Field Marshal Hindenburg, but also the emaciated Admiral Ludendorff. Rarely angry, Hindenburg got angry and walked around the office. Ludendorff sat down on a couch facing the door.

"Lieutenant Colonel Hersman, are you here?" Ludendorff saw Hersmann and said weakly.

"Your Excellency the Marshal, Your Excellency the Admiral, it is me." Hersmann gave a military salute to Ludendorff and Hindenburg, and then stood there straight. Hindenburg also stopped, and turned to look at Hersmann.

There was a deathly silence in the office. I don't know how long it took before I heard Marshal Hindenburg sigh and smile bitterly: "Unconditional surrender, you should know, right?" Actually deceived by the Americans! What a stupidity! ”

The news of the unconditional surrender was learned of by Hersmann when he had just arrived at his hotel in Breslau, and he and Albert received calls from various systems at the same time.

"Your Excellency, Marshal, we underestimated the meanness of the Americans!" "They were never gentlemen!" Hersman said. ”

"That's right! They are not gentlemen, they are a bunch of crooks and robbers! No credibility at all! Ludendorff also scolded.

At the beginning, it was said that Germany could negotiate peace with a democratic government, but it was proposed to surrender unconditionally! If you had said earlier, Germany would not have been in such chaos now, and Karl I of Austria-Hungary would not have accepted the Fourteen Points of Peace. Maybe Germany and Austria will be able to grit their teeth and hold on.

"This is unacceptable!" Hindenburg gritted his teeth, "Unconditional surrender is unacceptable!" The Reich could not afford to lose his arms, at least the Army could not lose their weapons, otherwise the survival of Germany would be in question! ”

Are things that bad? Hersmann said that in history, Germany did lose its main naval fleet after World War I, and only a small number of old ships remained. The Air Force was also forced to disintegrate, but the Army did not lose. In the early days of the Weimar Republic, there were still hundreds of thousands of German Wehrmacht Army, and there were also a huge number of "Freikorps", otherwise Germany would have been reorganized into a Soviet state!

Therefore, there must have been some factor that prompted the Entente to open up to Germany and allow it to retain considerable force. Hersman thought to himself: This factor must be revolution! Now that the Russian Revolution is getting bigger and bigger, the White Guards supported by the Entente are failing, Austria-Hungary is about to disintegrate, and there is a high probability that a new Soviet state will emerge. And if Germany also has such signs, will the Entente still dare to really exterminate the weapons of the German Reich?

But this suggestion cannot be mentioned by oneself - it was the Hohenzollern dynasty that was overthrown by the revolution! As a Junker aristocratic officer, why do you have to pretend to be royalists, right?

While Hersmann was wondering whether he was going to disguise himself as a royalist after the war, Ludendorff spoke in a hoarse voice: "Lieutenant Colonel Hersmann, I have consulted with the marshal and think that we can support the socialist revolution in Hungary. Weapons and ammunition will soon be delivered to Budapest...... In the name of supporting the Ottoman Empire.

In addition, Nicholas II will decree that she will be canonized by Ogali. Nikolaevna was the Grand Duchess of the United Duchy of the Baltics. And our relations with the Russian Bolsheviks may also be broken, but you still have to keep in touch with them as much as you can. In the unlikely event that peace is not attained, then cooperation with Soviet Russia is the last hope for our revival. ”

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