Evening of 13 August, Poland.

The sunset melts gold, the sunset is like fire, and the ordinary village is bathed in the gorgeous afterglow, which looks quiet and peaceful. However, this picture-like leisure scene was completely ruined by the German soldiers who were busy in it. Not only did they erect machine guns and barbed wire around the village, but they also climbed the spire of the church to erect communication antennas. Scouts, sentinels, and chassesses spread out on the perimeter, keeping the village firmly at its core.

A black command car whipped up dust and sped from afar, and even from a long distance, the shrill roar of the engine could still be heard. After a few sentry posts as usual, the car finally stopped in front of a quaint and crisp courtyard. A tall old man with a gray beard on his lips was already standing quietly in front of the door, and when he saw the familiar figure with a round double chin who stepped out of the car, his face couldn't help but show a hint of joy and relief.

"Erich, Max, you have once again taught the Russians the prestige of our German army at the Narev River." The tall old man with a standard Chinese character face smiled and spoke, his words full of heartfelt praise for the person in front of him, "The Russian Fifth Army has been reduced by more than two-thirds, and the remnants of the Russian First Army that narrowly escaped in the Battle of Tannenberg have all entered our prisoner of war camp at this moment. Frederick the Great's Heroic Blessing, this is yet another glorious victory! ”

Ludendorff and Hoffmann, who got out of the car, shook hands with Hindenburg, who were waiting here at the same time, although they had only been separated for more than a month, but they already had a feeling of time standing still between them. During this period of time when each commanded an army on one side. Hindenburg found the other party to be an indispensable key figure in the command of the army: Hindenburg was like the helmsman of a seafaring ship. Ludendorff, on the other hand, is the ship's powerful engine. In the face of Hindenburg's praise. Ludendorff, with whom he had formed a tacit understanding, just laughed; Hofmann, on the other hand, said with a respectful face that their success was far from comparable to Hindenburg's triumph on the Silesian plains.

The battle map is hanging, and the sand table is meandering. In the living room of the premises temporarily requisitioned as the general headquarters of the German army on the Eastern Front, the situation of the enemy and the enemy on the battlefield in Poland had been portrayed as much as possible by the conscientious German staff officers. The three Hindenburg pondered over the map, but their faces were full of relief and comfort.

Three days earlier, the southern flank, held by the Russian Fourth Army, had been broken through again by the German-Austrian forces. The Russian soldiers, who had been defeated in successive battles, no longer had any confidence in continuing to fight. There was only one thought left in their minds, and that was to try their best to escape from the conflict with the gang of killing gods in front of them. The Germans were marching all the way, and the forward troops had reached the city of Warsaw. Despite the efforts of Grand Duke Nikolai to try to save the situation, the Russian army, which had lost all its will to fight, was unable to stop the German advance.

To add insult to injury for the Russians, the local Polish population was more excited than angry at the arrival of the Germans. In the occupation and plundering of Poland that lasted for more than 150 years, the Russians were fierce, tyrannical and greedy, which had made the inhabitants of this land hate the Slavic colonizers to the core, and all kinds of rebellions and uprisings emerged one after another. Although Germany was also one of the main culprits in the partition of Poland, it was compared to the violent and harsh Russians. German rule, however, was apparently much milder, which undoubtedly prompted the Poles to choose the lesser of two evils. This sand table in the current Hindenburg headquarters. It was built with the great assistance of a traitor; Its attribute of leading the way to the glorious liberation of the motherland saved the German army from the suffering of ignorance of the path in the previous battles, and made Hindenburg have a clear and profound insight into the battlefield situation.

"At present, the shape of the Polish battlefield is completely clear. The six armies assembled by the Grand Dukes of Russia in this land were completely annihilated or routed by us in a six-week campaign; Although they had three armies of nearly 700,000 troops rushed to the front from the rear, according to reliable information sent back from St. Petersburg by our Austrian allies, these troops were hastily mobilized and formed by the Russians after the outbreak of war, and their weapons were extremely scarce and low, and they could not be used as the main force in battle! ”

In front of the open sand table, Hindenburg, who had already pinned the blue Max medal on his chest, slowly spoke, with absolute confidence and calmness in his words: "In this stage of the campaign, although we have suffered more than 80,000 attrition, compared with the Russian army, which has suffered heavy defeats, we have an advantage more than any previous battle. The time was ripe for the capture of Warsaw. I intend to attack Shvikuv in the northeast of Warsaw and Masovia in the east to surround the city. If the Russians flee quickly, we will take the Warsaw trophy and extend the railway supply line to the forefront. And if the Russians choose to hold on to the Warsaw area, then I don't mind choosing to crush all their stubborn resistance. Erich, what do you say? ”

Ludendorff looked at his partner in front of him with some surprise, as if he couldn't imagine that Hindenburg, who had always been calm, would come up with such a bold and unrestrained battle plan. At present, although the Russian army has suffered heavy losses, the number of troops retreating to Warsaw still exceeds 200,000; In the East, millions of gray animals have spread their fangs, ready to pounce on their prey. However, after a while, he was relieved. Prior to this, wasn't Hindenburg, who was in charge of the army independently on the Southern Front, the way in which the Russian Second Army was encircled and annihilated, opened up the shape of the entire Polish battlefield?

"With the advantage we have achieved so far, the remaining Russian units in Warsaw are certainly powerless to compete with our troops. But Paul, our follow-up force is far less strong and sufficient than it was a month ago. ”

Ludendorff raised his head, stared at the huge map of Europe on the wall, and said: "At present, the Imperial army is met with stubborn resistance from the French in the city of Paris, and it has not been able to take it after more than three weeks of onslaught; Moltke's chief of staff had already given the order to fight to the death, and all the personnel and materials in the country began to tilt towards the army on the Western Front. As far as I know, none of the four newly organized armies of the Empire have been assigned to the Eastern Front Corps, and all of them have been put into the meat grinder of the city of Paris. And the heavy artillery with a caliber of more than 150 mm produced by military factories across the country also gave priority to meeting the offensive needs of the Western Front army. As for those steel chariots that are not afraid of bullets, the flying fortresses with a single shot as powerful as the Great Berta cannon, and the bomber groups that can fly after the wind, our Eastern Front troops have not seen them since the beginning of the war! ”

Speaking of which, Ludendorff's tone was already quite unkind, and his grim face was full of anger. Ever since he and Hindenburg were appointed on May 21, the Germans on the Eastern Front have been at an absolute disadvantage in their confrontations with the Russian army (well, the Austro-Hungarian army was directly ignored by Ludendorff). However, with such a small number of troops in hand, the combined Xing-Lu successively created outstanding victories that shook the world, and annihilated more than 1 million Russian troops in total. And the rolling cluster of 70 divisions on the Western Front has not achieved such results until now; The fantastic battles of Tamnenberg, Lake Masuri, and Radomsco that completely ate the enemy army were only comparable to the difference in circumference of the Crown Prince's Fifth Army in the border battles. It stands to reason that the General Staff should have shifted the focus of their offensive to the Eastern Front a long time ago, but they completely gave up the opportunity to win the war on the Eastern Front for the sake of such a place name as Paris!

Hoffmann, the chief of the operations department, who had not spoken, cleared his throat and said, "Therefore, the safest way for us is to work together with the Austrians. They have the heavy artillery firepower that our army desperately needs, and with their superiority in numbers, they can also help us share some of the pressure of the Russian army. With the entry of the Italians, the Austrians were able to draw five divisions from the Italian-Austrian border to the front, and perhaps we could make good use of this undamaged Austrian force. ”

Hindenburg nodded slightly: "Tonight I will go to meet Conrad (Herzendorff) and ask him to lend me the First Army, together with this group of troops, to cooperate with the command." At the same time, a telegram for help was sent to the General Staff Headquarters in Compiègne, asking them to transfer two armies to the Eastern Front to cooperate with the upcoming Warsaw Campaign of our army. All the battlefield information is in this article on the table, and the next specific battle plan will be formulated and handed over to you for arrangement. ”

Ludendorff nodded calmly. The bruises on Hoffman's forehead twitched slightly, but the difference in rank between the generals and colonels made him obedient to the commander's orders. Hindenburg looked down at the pocket watch in his hand, and with a satisfied smile on his face, he let out a long yawn and said, "I'll go catch up on sleep first, and I'll leave it to you here." Under Hoffmann's unkind gaze, Hindenburg's sturdy body stepped up the stairs to the second floor and disappeared into the rest room dedicated to the commander.

"It turns out that His Excellency the Commander is in such a hurry to recall us back to the headquarters for this." Looking at the door that slammed shut, the corners of Hoffman's mouth twitched, and he said to Ludendorff next to him with displeasure. Ludendorff was expressionless, but picked up the copy of what Hindenburg had said from his desk and began to look through it. After a while, his brows furrowed slightly, and he muttered: "The main force of the Baltic Fleet has entered Wilhelmshaven, and it can no longer provide fire support to the army in the near future?" Is there going to be any big move in the Navy? (To be continued......)