"Aim a little, aim a little more!" In a half-buried bunker, a sweaty second lieutenant of the Ming army commanded his 88-mm gun to adjust the muzzle angle of fire and aim at the surging German armored units in the distance. Pen % fun % Pavilion www.biquge.info

The concealed gun emplacements in this position were covered with heavy anti-artillery fortifications and also covered with camouflage camouflage. This allowed this gun position to evade heavy shelling and German dive bombers. Three of the eight 88 guns placed in the shelter of the unnamed high ground position had been destroyed, and the remaining artillery was now fiercely blocking the German armored forces that were rapidly rushing over.

Since the end of the Battle of Northern Italy, the Germans have been keenly aware of the power of the armored forces. They soon developed one, two, three, and four models of tanks with the help of the British, and mass-produced them to equip the troops.

The German 15th Panzer Division was one of the few German armoured divisions that had been completely equipped with the latest No. 4 tank. They excelled in previous battles, repeatedly successfully breaking through the Ming defenses. This time, though, they had a formidable opponent.

The Marine Corps has its own anti-tank forces, they are armed with several 50-mm and 75-mm anti-tank guns. Together with the five 88-mm anti-aircraft guns left over from the shelling and air raids, they inflicted great damage on the attacking German armored units.

"Fire!" The second lieutenant, lying on the gun scope, suddenly shouted after the scope put a German tank No. 4 painted with an iron cross into the crosshairs.

"Boom!" Following the second lieutenant's order, the 88mm gun let out a roar, a long cannon flame erupted from the muzzle, and a tungsten core armor-piercing projectile came out of its chamber and slammed into the German tank in the distance at a super high speed. The second lieutenant could clearly see from the gun mirror that the hapless tank was bursting into flames, and it didn't take long for it to stop.

"Good!" The young lieutenant waved his fist vigorously, raised his hand to wipe the beads of sweat from his forehead, and shouted loudly, "Reload!" ”

The stubborn resistance of the Ming army was beyond the expectations of the Germans. This is completely different from the Ming army they have encountered before. The defenders of Tobruk were fierce, well-trained and well-equipped. The assault units of the 15th Panzer Division lost a significant amount of armored forces in a very short time. Tank IV, with high hopes from the Germans, was completely unable to withstand the bombardment of 88-mm anti-aircraft guns, and even the strongest front armor was easily penetrated. And that's at a very long distance.

The German soldiers were no less brave, especially their armored units. They rushed to the Ming positions under brutal artillery bombardment, suffered huge casualties, and fired artillery counterattacks from time to time, destroying some of the Ming army's firepower points.

The Germans were well-trained and had an advantage in offensive forces. Eventually, at great cost, they stormed the unnamed heights and engaged in a fierce battle with the Marines guarding it.

The MG42 and semi-automatic rifle submachine guns, which were heavily armed with the Ming army, had great firepower. For the German soldiers, who were still mainly armed with Mauser 98 rifles, after being overwhelmed by the dense rain of bullets, their only option was to hide behind a sturdy tank for protection.

And the invincible No. 4 on the battlefield in the past met a formidable opponent this time. The 50-mm anti-tank guns equipped by the Ming army are relatively easy to say, and most of the time they cannot be penetrated. But the 75-mm and 88-mm guns of the Ming army were going to die. None of the thickest front armor of the fourth could resist the gouge of armor-piercing shells. This incident also directly led to the Germans quickly speeding up the development and production program of the new tank.

Under the severe supervision of the commander of the German Panzer Corps, the Luftwaffe's ground liaison officers stationed in the troops had to desperately summon the Luftwaffe, which was under great pressure in the sky, to rush down to help.

The German dive bomber units, desperately inflicting heavy losses, dropped bombs on the defenders' positions one after another, destroying many artillery pieces. This allowed the German attacking forces to move on. However, after suffering heavy losses, the 15th Panzer Division was no longer able to continue.

"Come back." Looking at the wreckage of the chariots emitting thick black smoke and the large number of German soldiers who died on the battlefield on the front line. Rommel, with a grim expression, put down the telescope in his hand and ordered in a deep voice to end the attack.

After losing dozens of tanks and hundreds of soldiers, the 15th Panzer Division had already lost most of its armored strength, and they were on the verge of becoming an infantry division. Under these circumstances, Rommel had to transfer the 15th Panzer Division to rest and replenish. Then the battlefield turned to conventional artillery and infantry positional warfare.

It was clear that the German infantry would not be able to break through the fortified positions without overwhelmingly superior artillery fire and air support. Three days later, the German offensive quickly subsided.

At this time, the powerful counterattack force led by Zhang Cheng himself had begun to approach the Halefaya Pass and Kapcuso Fort. They are about to pose a great threat to the Afrika Korps besieging Tobruk.

Faced with this unfavorable situation, the German High Command sent a special envoy to inspect the situation at the front. After some investigation and analysis, the envoy was ready to report to the High Command that the Afrika Korps no longer had the strength to continue the forced fighting, and suggested that the High Command order Rommel to immediately lift the siege of Tobruk, withdraw the troops back to Benghazi to rest and build defensive positions.

Before sending the telegram, Rommel approached the envoy, Lieutenant General Paulus, Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the German Army.

"William, I need your help." In the German front headquarters outside Tobruk, Rommel handed over the water glass in his hand.

"I'm sorry." Paulus turned his head to look out the window at the city of Tobruk, which was constantly flashing with huge bright spots of light under the cover of night in the distance, shook his head slightly, and said, "Erwin, I know what you want to do. But what I'm telling you is that you can't do that. You're going to wipe out the entire Afrika Korps and the advantages you've built up some time ago. ”

"You should understand that there is no point in defending alone." Rommel sighed, listened to the loud roar in the distance, turned to the table and poured himself a glass of water, took a sip, and said, "If we don't attack, we don't threaten the Suez Canal, which is so important to those powerful Chinese." Then the existence of the Afrika Korps does not make any sense. Not even the simplest of pinning down the enemy is possible. For the Ming Dynasty, who has completely transitioned to a wartime system, even if we can contain their hundreds of thousands of troops in North Africa? What role can it play in the whole situation? Daming will not lack these hundreds of thousands of troops. The only thing that can really turn the tide of the war is the Suez Canal! Even just threatening there is far better than just defending. ”

Although the "......" did not agree with Rommel's desire to continue the attack with the forces of the Afrika Korps in this unfavorable situation, Paulus also had to admit that from a strategic point of view, Rommel's words were indeed not wrong. This is a large-scale all-out war that has affected the entire world, and victory or defeat on a single battlefield actually depends more on whether or not it can play a positive role in the overall war situation.

If the Afrika Korps were to capture, even if it only threatened the Suez Canal, the impact on the course of the war would be immeasurable on a strategic level. However, Paulus frowned, and turned to look through the window at Tobruk in the distance, shrouded in night. His instincts told him that Rommel's plan could not succeed.

"William." Rommel came to Paulus's side with a glass of water, looked at him with resolute eyes, and said in a deep voice: "Only the capture of Tobruk can be regarded as a real threat to Egypt, Alexander, and the Suez Canal!" I'm just over a hundred kilometers away from Egypt now, and if I can capture Tobruk, then I'll be able to get reinforcements into Egypt! ”

An inexplicable glint flashed in Rommel's eyes, and he turned his head to look at Tobruk, who was immersed in artillery fire in the distance, and said with some gloom: "I have a strange feeling in my heart. If I hadn't taken it this time, I'd probably never have had the chance to get back so close to Egypt. ”

Paulus's body trembled slightly after listening to Rommel's words, and he turned his head to look at Rommel in surprise. After a moment of silence, Paulus sighed, "You only have two days. ”

The corners of Rommel's mouth curled into a shallow smile, and he raised the glass of water in his hand to signal to Paulus.

Rommel also knew that his time was running out. Zhang Cheng's movement was so big, and the German intelligence agencies were not eating for nothing, they naturally knew that Zhang Cheng had led a powerful army to the rear flank of the Afrika Korps. This is why the German High Command sent Paulus to persuade Rommel to suspend the offensive and retreat to Benghazi to rest and wait for reinforcements.

After convincing Paulus, Rommel quickly reformulated a completely new plan of attack. At this time, another armored unit under his command, the 21st Panzer Division, which had been left in Benghazi to rest temporarily, had quickly caught up and arrived on the outskirts of Tobruk, ready to fight at any time. They were accompanied by thousands of trucks carrying large quantities of supplies and an entire heavy artillery regiment. This is also the confidence of Rommel to dare to insist on attacking even when Zhang Cheng has already appeared on the flanks to pose a threat.

Rommel prepared to capture Tobruk in one fell swoop, and then borrowed Tobruk's fortifications to hold the important port city with the support of the combined European naval fleet. Rommel first sent the 15th Panzer Division and the 27th Infantry Division to the area of the Halefaya Pass, Kaptso, and Hafield Ridge to block the rescue corps led by Zhang Cheng. He himself personally commanded the 21st Panzer Division and three infantry divisions, supported by strong artillery fire, to launch an unprecedented night battle against Tobruk.

That's right, Rommel chose to fight at night.

After a few days of fighting, Rommel knew very well that the German First Air Force could not provide him with sufficient support, and was even bombed by the fighters of the powerful Ming Army Air Force. In this case, Rommel opted for a night battle to neutralize the air power of both sides. Relatively speaking, this was more beneficial to the Germans.

On the 15th of September, after a whole day of vigorous feints. As night fell, after the whole army had dinner. The 21st Panzer Division, which had been hidden during the daytime battles, began to warm up their tank engines. A loud roar spread throughout the battlefield! (To be continued.) )