"It's hard for us to continue this war. Whether it was a head-to-head confrontation or the cutting off of the opponent's logistical supply lines, our efforts were declared a failure under the enemy's command. At present, except for a few armies that are still holding on to resistance, all fronts are constantly retreating like an avalanche, and the commanders of the group armies have responded that the morale of the troops is severely low, and the desertion of officers and men has become the norm. Although our arms production was still at a fairly high level, our army did not have the courage or will to fight the Germans to the death: they either laid down their arms against the Germans after a short period of resistance, or they quickly retreated to the rear with the fleeing population at the front, discarding heavy weapons along the way. By the time they stopped, their combat effectiveness was gone. Marshall, chief of the U.S. Army General Staff, said with frustration.

"In fact, even our arms production is now showing signs of collapse. In addition to the massive bombardment of the southern states by the Luftwaffe, the decline in the enthusiasm of the capitalists and workers for the war was an even more important reason, and the great anti-war protests were now taking place in the states, in which they played a very important role. With no prospect of victory, both the capitalists and the workers refused to produce in the high-intensity forms of wartime, and if their wishes were not resolved in time, our equipment production would soon fall to the bottom. Labor Secretary Perkins added.

Secretary of the Navy Swanson glanced at the pale president sitting in his chair, as if he could not bear to irritate his nerves with bad news; However, he finally gritted his teeth and spoke again: "The Navy's efforts to cut off the Allied Atlantic shipping. It has suffered further failures in recent months. The Germans added small aircraft carriers to their convoy of escorts. This greatly limited the hunting of our submarines; Their battlefield maneuver is drastically reduced not only by prolonged diving. They will also be attacked by depth charges dropped by opposing aircraft. In the past month, we have sunk only 9 merchant ships of the other side, with a total tonnage of only 50,000 tons, while the submarine force has paid the price of 18 sunks, which is extremely dismal in every way. ”

Hearing the members of the cabinet pouring all sorts of bad news to him one after another, Roosevelt's heart was depressed, and his face, which was already a little pale due to various diseases, lost a little bit of blood. Although he was only 56 years old in 1938, he was in the prime of a political family. However, due to the damage to muscles, nerves and other tissues caused by more than 15 years of paralysis, as well as years of pressure and lifelong old smoking gun problems, his physical condition is still extremely unoptimistic under the action of multiple factors. According to the doctor's diagnosis, at this moment, he has suffered from chronic hypertension, emphysema, angina pectoris and other diseases, and there is a potential trend of atherosclerosis. Every night, Roosevelt, who was preoccupied, couldn't sleep, and the lights in the Oval Office of the White House were almost all night long, not so much because he was sleeping, but because he had no choice. Only through guò work can his tense nerves be relieved a little!

"Once an armistice is negotiated with Germany, it will be a complete disaster for the United States. They will not lightly let go of the United States, the only country that can compete with it in the industrial and economic spheres. We will face an armistice that will be ten times harsher than the Brest Treaty 24 years ago! By that time, all the achievements of the United States since its unification in 1863 would be reduced to nothing with the trampling of the Prussian boots, and even a return to the situation in which the country had fallen apart. Roosevelt spoke slowly, but his angry words made the cabinet members who were still immersed in a pessimistic atmosphere just now suddenly feel a chill in their hearts. The nature of the war has long since changed from the original alliance war to the never-ending confrontation between Germany and the United States for the realization of the post-war status. In the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, the Prussian army had already been able to negotiate peace with the other side after their victory at the Battle of Sedan but they marched all the way through almost the entire territory of northeastern France and besieged Paris. There is only one reason for this, and that is to completely defeat the imaginary enemy who is extremely threatening, and ensure that you gain absolute supremacy that is not challenged!

"But Your Excellency, if peace talks are not proposed, what means can we do to stop the German attack in the south of the United States?" After a long silence, the tall Vice President Wallace said with some anxiety, "Now that the situation at the front has collapsed, the only thing that can restrain the Germans from advancing is their logistical support, and the people at home are opposed to continuing the war, and the attitude of the Senate and the House of Representatives has taken a clear turn with the massive German invasion of the United States and the heavy casualties suffered by civilians in the massive bombardment." If we continue to fight, we will only let more Americans die in vain, and it will not help the final result in any way. In fact, even if you, Your Excellency, make this decision, it will be difficult for Congress and the people to continue to choose to comply. ”

Roosevelt looked at the deputy in front of him and said in a deep voice, "What you said is not wrong. At present, the United States is indeed at an unprecedented critical juncture, and it is difficult for any conventional means to reverse the decline. However, we still have a secret weapon in our hands that has not been used. Once it's in use, it'll be like a hurricane tsunami that will reduce a city like Atlanta to rubble, and nothing will survive its creation power. Originally, this was the top secret of the United States, and only two people but me knew the full details of it, but now, there is no need for me to hide it from you completely. ”

As soon as these words came out, everyone in the room showed a look of disbelief and shock. Marshall, who was in charge of the Army, suddenly remembered that he had come into contact with a certain scientific research group two years ago, and he said that he wanted a brigade of troops to be used for garrison and secrecy work. If the situation is really as Roosevelt said, and his side has such a powerful weapon, then this battle is still completely fought!

Seeing that the expressions of the cabinet members gradually changed from shock and surprise to excitement and joy, Roosevelt's face was as heavy as ever, and he did not feel any sense of high spirits: "Unfortunately, the number of such weapons is very limited, and with the number of such weapons we currently have, we are also powerless to eliminate all the German bandits who have invaded the territory of America." In addition, due to the great power of this weapon, it will cause extremely severe damage to our territory after use, and the area of its use will also be limited to a certain extent. Therefore, its significance is also that deterrence outweighs actual damage, and it cannot be aspired to use to turn the entire current war situation around. ”

Marshall's smile just now froze on his face, and he frowned for a while: "If that's the case, then how much practical significance does this weapon have?" Even if it is thrown into war, it will not change the final outcome! Vice President Wallace sighed softly and said, "General Marshall, you are too worried." We are not trying to use this weapon to defeat the Germans on the battlefield, but to use its deterrence to stop the Germans from attacking and negotiate with us on a relatively equal footing. If it had been so powerful that it had been able to raze a city, the Germans would no longer have dared to be so violent, and we would have been able to salvage as much wealth as possible from them. ”

Roosevelt nodded slightly, acknowledging Wallace's words. In the field of foreign affairs, Wallace, who had been working all his life, was indeed higher than Marshall, who was born in the military, and immediately grasped the key point. Although there are 10,000 reluctances to this alliance under the city, this is the only way that the United States can change the catastrophe of the country. He exhaled a sigh of relief and said, "I will ask you, Mr. Wallace, to make a specific diplomatic statement." We must make the Germans fearful of this superweapon and restrain it. ”

After a few more debriefings, the crowd got up and said goodbye to the president; Before leaving, Roosevelt demanded that they must strictly abide by the restrictions on the use of this weapon, and the latter, of course, was full of promise, and immediately made several oaths in the name of the Bible. When they disappeared outside the door of the Oval Office, the heavy look on Roosevelt's face was even worse, and between his brows was a melancholy look that was difficult to dissolve.

The White House was quite productive, and in just a few hours they were able to convey their attitude to Germany via the fixed-frequency radio station dedicated to diplomacy. In the statement, the United States has repeatedly emphasized that it already has super-weapons that can destroy the enemy in an instant, and has drawn a cordon on its national territory: as long as the German Army dares to cross this front, the United States will inevitably use weapons of mass destruction to deal a devastating blow to the invading enemy. As for the start of negotiations, the US side did not take the initiative to mention it in the statement, because this form of statement itself is to convey a hint of negotiations to the opponent, and the practice of not taking the lead in proposing it can occupy a certain head in the subsequent negotiations.

"The Americans even made a nuclear bomb?" Upon hearing this news, Qingying was shocked, not long after he returned from the nuclear explosion test site, the Americans had made such a breakthrough? He immediately summoned Hahn, a leading figure in the field of nuclear physics, and Canaris, who is in charge of the US intelligence network, to verify the authenticity of this information through their professional means. (To be continued......)

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