Four Hundred and Ninety One

In the thousands of miles of yellow sand, a troop is advancing with difficulty. This is the most suitable battlefield for the German armored forces to fight decisively, and this is the position that the generals most yearn for. The reason is simple: this place is vast and uninhabited, there are no cities to hinder the progress, and this place is simply a paradise for war.

The battle on the periphery has been over for more than ten days, and Rommel has achieved brilliant results. However, he didn't have time to argue with the British prisoners. After handing over the British prisoners to the Italian troops who came, he led his African Army to start a long expedition.

He chased the retreating British 9th Army, and killed Tobruk, the core area of ​​the British defense, where a large amount of supplies had been hoarded. For more than ten days, his troops have been fighting every day, biting the troops behind the British Ninth Army, chasing and killing them for several kilometers in one breath.

At this moment, Rommel is leaning on his convertible car seat. On his head is a German officer's cap with a frameless plexiglass goggle. This unique goggle with exaggerated shape allows him to cover his eyes when the wind and sand come.

There was no rest for several days, and Rommel was exhausted from the chase, so he fell asleep in his seat as soon as the troops stopped to rest. A huge armored command vehicle was parked next to the convertible car, and several combat staff officers were smoking and chatting in a windy place.

No one knew where this long-distance raid was going to hit. Everyone just saw from the map that they were getting closer and closer to Tobruk, which was heavily guarded by the British. There are German and British tanks scattered all over the road. This is a completely self-destructive crusade.

The German army went from two tank regiments to one tank battalion, and General Friedrich of the 7th Infantry Army fell behind halfway through. Now he is still trying his best to help Rommel gather the fallen soldiers, and build a supply station and a water supply station about 110 kilometers behind Rommel.

Only a tank battalion of the 7th Armored Division and a mechanized infantry regiment of the 7th Infantry Army kept up with Rommel. So now the troops in Rommel's hands are not even the size of a division, and can only be regarded as a strengthened regiment at best. Just two hours ago, the British troops were forced to counterattack Rommel's pursuit again. A division of British troops turned around and attacked Rommel. Under the fierce counterattack of the German troops, although the attack was repelled, Rommel also consumed his precious ammunition.

Now the wind and sand are getting bigger and bigger. It was also approaching night, so Rommel's troops stopped to rest. There is only one-third of the ammunition left, and there is not much food and fresh water left. The most terrible thing was that the fuel supply was interrupted, which made Rommel restless.

After sleeping for about ten minutes, Rommel opened his eyes. He got up from the car, jumped onto the gravel and walked to his armored command vehicle. The radio has been set up, and there are some ammunition and empty oil drums piled up messily around. Rommel took a water bottle from a staff officer.

He took a sip of the gasoline-smelling water, then screwed on the lid of the kettle and handed it back to the staff officer.

Because the containers for storing fresh water are very limited, the German army likes to use empty gasoline barrels to fill more drinking water. Although this method makes the water unpalatable, it can save their lives in times of crisis. As for the laundry thing - you put the clothes in the sand and rub them a few times, that's how the Afrika Korps do their laundry. How about it? Is it different from what you imagined?

"Where is General Frederick now?" Rommel was very concerned about when his follow-up troops could catch up. He knew that he had become a legend, a star of the First Empire. In more than ten days, he commanded the troops to advance several kilometers, and such a fast attack speed created a new world record. And such a rapid advance also made the people in Berlin go crazy. This feeling of being sought after and supported by people made Rommel a little elated, which is one of the reasons why he was eager to win Tobruk.

Another reason for his continuous attack is the pressure of logistical supplies. This kind of pressure could have made the attacking troops take the initiative to stop, but Rommel took this pressure as a clarion call to urge him to move forward.

He is used to having someone in the rear sorting out trivial logistical issues for him, and he is used to the efficient and timely logistical supplies in Germany. So when the Italian officer around him regretted that the supplies had been almost consumed, he was angry. He decided to take Tobruk and subsidize himself with British oil and fresh water.

However, it turns out that Rommel still underestimated the importance of logistical supplies to the German armored forces. When the supplies were almost cut off, the combat capabilities of the German troops were greatly weakened. Not to mention the 150mm caliber artillery under General Friedrich's command and the bulky 88mm caliber anti-aircraft guns, Rommel found that the more maneuverable Panther assault guns could not keep up with his fast pace.

Modern warfare is not just about the number of aircraft and tanks on the front line, nor is it just about the bravery and fearlessness of soldiers.

Because of the various failures of the tanks as they kept moving forward, the number of tanks in Rommel's hands became less and less. First, a few tanks fell behind because the engine air filter needed to be replaced, and then the entire tank The whole battalion of tanks was forced to stop to clean their engines and exhaust pipes because of this problem.

However, more British tanks are scrapped. On average, if a German tank fails, you can find several British abandoned cars and tanks around. This is why Rommel kept chasing after him. As long as the British lost more, Will suffice.

He kept dismantling spare parts with paralyzed tanks to ensure the integrity of the armored units in his hands. At the beginning, he was able to ensure the strength of a regiment, but now he can barely maintain the tanks of an armored battalion to continue moving forward.

When Rommel set off, his back was against the Italian military airport. As long as his troops called for reinforcements, they would get a response from the Air Force in about a few minutes. But now he has almost completely lost his air force superiority, and the military airports far away in the surrounding area cannot guarantee the air supremacy near Tobruk at all.

Looking at a dozen tanks not far away, Rommel thought of retreating for the first time. He received an order from the Army General Staff to stop advancing. Tobruk had never been so close, but looking at the map, he felt that this British fortress was so far away from him at this moment. There were more and more British defenders in front of him, and the counterattack became more and more violent, which made him smell a sense of crisis.

"General Frederick is still here to collect the stragglers. He has set up a circular defensive position and built a fresh water purification station near the sea." A staff officer pointed to the location on the map and said: "A dozen Minutes ago he had telegraphed that he was investigating a site for the establishment of a front airfield."

"In the British counterattack just now, they dispatched 3 planes and blew up 4 of our trucks. We lacked anti-aircraft firepower. The British counterattack just now was in front of the 1st Battalion. We lost two armored reconnaissance vehicles, which belonged to the armored battalion. 7 soldiers were killed and 35 others were wounded.” The commander of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Regiment of the 7th Armored Division was following Rommel. His clothes were covered with gravel and he looked a bit sloppy.

Rommel nodded. He witnessed the encounter just now. At that time, he was confirming his position. An armored reconnaissance vehicle not far from him was hit by a British shell suddenly. Yes, and then a fierce battle broke out between the two sides, and the battle lasted for nearly two hours before it ended.

"Send reconnaissance troops to the two wings! I want to confirm the position of the British troops on the two wings." Rommel thought for a while and arranged for the commander of the 1st Battalion: "If the British troops appear on both sides of us, then we will immediately begin to retreat... order all The troops are ready for battle, and I fear a British counterattack is about to begin."

After assigning the tasks of the frontline troops, he turned to look at his chief of staff again: "Confirm the information with General Frederick, I need to know whether the commander of the British army on the opposite side is Montgomery..."

He paused, and then continued: "Also, tell him not to advance rashly, and set up defenses on the spot."

"General!" A telegraph officer jumped off the command vehicle, stood beside Rommel, and handed a telegram to Rommel: "A call from the Supreme Command! A combat order issued by the head of state himself."

"Führer?" Rommel was taken aback for a moment, and then continued: "Read!"

"I am Arkador Rudolph. I order you to temporarily stop the attack and wait for the arrival of new orders from the Supreme Command." The telegraph officer read righteously and sent out a telegram.

Rommel smiled wryly, took the telegram and looked at it: "It seems that the head of state does not approve of my attack on Tobruk, but now it seems that I can't run even if I want to. Maybe the British attack has already begun. "

While Rommel was smiling wryly, on the opposite side of his position, an American with a steel helmet on his head was watching his tank rumble past him. He was smoking a cigar with a haughty look on his face.

The soldiers following the tank were not wearing British helmets with large brims, but American helmets with flat brims. This unit is the American Volunteer Army unit that Montgomery took over the command, and the commander of this unit just exhaled a puff of white smoke and said with a sneer: "Let me, the American tank unit commanded by Patton, come and meet you This world-renowned tank warfare expert. El Rommel." (To be continued. If you like this work, start () to vote for recommendations, monthly tickets, your support is my biggest motivation. Mobile phone users please to read.)