Steel Soviet Union

In the end, Paulus could not do anything. He could neither give the hungry and cold German soldiers a promise, nor could he give them a piece of bread that could suppress their hunger. Paulus, who walked away in the wind, felt that he Like a useless useless person.

"Did we really bring no food?"

Facing Paulus' question for an unknown number of times, Colonel Adam, who was also trapped in a deep sense of powerlessness and self-blame, shook his head.

"The headquarters is about to run out of food, Commander Paulus. We only have enough food left for all the staff of the headquarters for three days. If nothing can be done after three days, everyone will be hungry, including you. , Commander Paulus.”

The Sixth Army Headquarters has a large number of personnel to support a large number of soldiers who perform their own duties. Once these hundreds of people are out of food, it is equivalent to a person's brain ischemia. At worst, this will have a fatal impact on the entire army. , but after hearing these words, Paulus really doubted whether his group could survive these short three days.

The dilapidated ruined streets were extremely quiet and deserted. Not even the sound of rats searching for food in the dark could be heard, let alone the Russians who were becoming increasingly difficult to deal with. But the speculation in Paulus's mind pointed to whether even the rats in the city had been caught and eaten by the soldiers of the army group?

This is not alarmist talk, but a fact that is right before our eyes.

When he just walked into the small dilapidated building he was defending for inspection, Paulus clearly saw that in a tattered helmet placed at the corner of the stairs, there was a pile of bones that had obviously been skinned and boned by someone using tools. The bones of small animals were piled inside. Curious, Paulus even stopped and leaned down to take a closer look for a few seconds.

There are more than one kind of skeletons of small animals, including cats, dogs, and even a sizable mouse head that looked like a sharp-mouthed monkey when it was alive.

All the bones have lost all traces of blood and have completely turned into white bones. The piles in the helmets are almost overflowing. As for the final destination of these skinned and boneless animal remains, I have seen the group of After seeing the starving ghosts who hardly looked like German soldiers, Paulus already had a very definite answer in his mind.

"Maybe tomorrow I mean after dawn, Adam. Maybe those Russians will come after dawn. What should we do then? I want to fulfill my oath to the Führer, but everyone should not have to do anything else. By choosing this path, I hope everyone can choose their own final outcome.

Although he is reluctant to face it, Adam must admit that what Paulus said is the truth and that he should consider it carefully and take it seriously. Otherwise, it will be too late to consider these things when the Russians actually come over. .

He didn't answer Paulus's question directly, but looked at it carefully as if he had thought it over carefully. The answer given by Adam, who spoke again, did not end Paulus' confusion.

"I think this should be decided by you, Commander Paulus, we are all followers of the Sixth Army behind you. You once led us to victory, if we face inevitable defeat and cannot escape, at least I will Take it all in stride, but I will follow your decision as to which method to use, just as I have in the past.”

Colonel Adam took up his post with a mission similar to that of monitoring Paulus. However, after working side by side with Paulus through so many ups and downs, Adam felt that the mission he had originally carried was no longer important. , the important thing is where he will ultimately follow Paulus's footsteps and reach the end. This is the predetermined ending that Colonel Adam, as the chief adjutant, has planned for himself.

Paulus, who was kicked back by Adam, said nothing, raised his head and glanced at the sky where there were not many stars above his head.

A strong desire to survive burned deep in his heart and lingered. Paulus could no longer deny the idea that he did not want to die in this damn Stalingrad. He could not avoid his strong desire to survive, and some things were worth it. I went to give it a last try under the banner of the entire army group.

It was almost dawn after returning to the headquarters. Paulus personally drafted a message and sent it to the base camp in Berlin. He wanted to make a last-ditch effort for the sake of all the soldiers of the Sixth Army and his own life.

"Food, fuel, ammunition, medicine, everything that could be put to use suffered a devastating disaster. The combat effectiveness of the troops dropped sharply. A total of 60,000 wounded were left in the ice and snow environment without any effective support. Treatment, injury and infection are rampant in these nutrient-poor petri dishes, and new pits are dug every day to bury those who might have survived."

"My head of state, I once again ask you to give us operational assistance. While there is still the possibility of continuing to fight, the Sixth Army will continue to resist until Marshal Manstein's army comes to rescue us. If all this It’s impossible, please give me authority, and I will order an end to this meaningless battle that cannot continue.”

Paulus was as anxious and looking around as if he were in a cage awaiting trial.

He didn't know how furious the head of state he had always believed in would be after receiving the telegram, whether he would tear up the ink-smelling telegram newspaper to pieces, and curse and spit loudly on everyone in the office around him. Stars were flying, and he no longer dared to think about whether the call back from Berlin would order him to be fired on the spot.

"I have tried my best to do a good enough job. The head of state will definitely be able to understand me. He will definitely do it! So many living lives will not be thrown into hell in vain, absolutely not!"

Paulus, who kept comforting himself, finally underestimated the ambitions of madman Hitler. The call back from Berlin was like a death sentence, completely ending Paulus's last hope.

"Repeat the order, no surrender! The troops must resist until the last moment and fight the enemy to the end! Fight until the last German soldier falls! Only in this way can a new front be established in Rostov and the north, and the Caucasus Army can be secured safe evacuation.”

"Everything has meaning. The motherland will remember the names of the loyal, not the death of the treacherous."

As if he had lost his soul, Paulus leaned back on the chair and dropped his arms, leaving a thin telegraph newspaper floating alone in the air. Only that long sigh echoed in the room and lingered for a long time.