Chapitre 128: Chapter 7 Death of the Navy's Enemy
On the north side of the Munich Telegraph Office hall, there was a row of small booths. For a small fee, people could make phone calls from there to other cities in the country, provided their contacts were also by the phone. For the past three months, Zhang Hainuo had almost come to this telegraph office every week. Radio waves would carry his instructions across the ocean to reach the Americas, and then carry messages back from there. But on this day, after entering, he walked straight to the row of booths. After a moment of hesitation, he picked up the phone and asked the operator to connect him to a number in Bremen.
"Hello, I'm looking for the Colonel, I'm Link... Hi, Colonel, it's me, your old friend Link!... No, this time I need a few hunters, yes, the best ones, price is not an issue!... The hunting location? In Austria, can that be arranged?... I'll notify you of the time separately, it will be soon!... Don't worry, what I want to hunt is neither a rooster nor a hen, but a wild boar... Yes! That's not a problem!... Well, goodbye!"
After hanging up the phone, Zhang Hainuo should have felt relieved because the "Colonel" had agreed to send over some of the best hunters, essentially professional killers. But Zhang Hainuo felt that their identity was more like mercenaries. In the past, he would never have had any dealings with such dangerous characters, but this was Germany in 1924, where many people had joined various Free Corps around the country—essentially private militias of certain civilian organizations or individuals, the Stormtroopers being one of them, a phenomenon unique to this era.
The Colonel, who specialized in black market dealings, also had a small armed force under his command, but they rarely got involved in political conflicts. Instead, they specialized in settling troubles for clients, such as eliminating competitors or taking out enemies. Of course, the cost of such actions was extremely high, much higher than hiring those wandering killers!
In Germany, Zhang Hainuo didn't have enemies, but there were plenty of potential competitors. One of them he identified as someone who needed to be taken out early—just the thought of the German Navy without naval aviation made him wake up in the middle of the night from nightmares, it was terrifying!
But for some reason, he still felt conflicted. While he had indirectly killed many people during his time as a submarine commander, he had never targeted someone like this, especially someone who had left such a significant mark in history. Without him, there wouldn't be the boastful claim of "Anything that flies in Germany belongs to me." Little Mustache would also lack a capable assistant on his rise to power. Whether this was good or bad, Zhang Hainuo couldn't quite say.
Commander of the Stormtroopers, President of the Reichstag, Interior Minister of Prussia, Chief of the Air Force, Prime Minister of Prussia. Titles as numerous as grains of sand, vast industries, and staggering collections—perhaps even the Imperial Chancellor would envy him in this regard. If this person were to disappear from history early, who would inherit all of this?
Visiting Hitler in 1924—the reason it's called the last time is because their next meeting will be in free Munich.
"Herr Baron, I will soon return to America! There, I will continue to seek support for the revolutionary cause in Germany, as I have always believed that most German immigrants still harbor a loyal heart to the motherland. Because the blood of the Germanic people still flows in their veins!"
Zhang Hainuo noticed that when he spoke this "farewell declaration," Little Mustache still seemed somewhat reluctant—He had been in Munich for more than three months now, and overseas fundraising had naturally been suspended, but it had given him some constructive advice. Obviously, their communication had deepened much more than before the beer hall riot.
"Don't worry about me, Hainuo! Hans and the others are here. I'll be fine here. Maybe even better than ever!" Hitler's words carried a distinct tone of irony. During his time in prison, he had indeed gained weight, and his face had become rounder than before, but almost everyone knew that this was not the life he desired.
"Oh, Herr Helmut, you've met him before, the deputy captain of the Naval Assault Division! When I'm not here, the Naval Assault Division will be under his full command. No matter what happens, the entire Naval Assault Division will be loyal to you!"
Zhang Hainuo timely introduced the burly man in an old navy uniform next to him to Little Mustache. During his time in Munich, apart from visiting and attending trials at Landsberg Prison, he hadn't been idle. Besides telegraphing with contacts in America, he had put all his energy into this Naval Assault Division—after November 9, it, like the NSDAP, had
"Your Highness, it's my honor to serve you!" Helmuth complimented awkwardly.
"Ah, excellent!" Hitler shook hands with Helmuth, then turned to Zhang Hainuo and asked, "Is the Naval Assault Division still active?"
"We assemble three times a week, mainly for training and learning. I've compiled the articles you wrote in the People's Observer for them to study! Besides that, the division has no other activities!"
Zhang Hainuo knew that Hitler was most worried about being sidelined by his rivals within the party while in prison, so when Rosenberg told him that the underground NSDAP was preparing to join other civilian organizations in the spring elections, Hitler scoffed at the idea. He believed that it was dangerous for the NSDAP, in its illegal and disintegrating state, to form alliances. If he authorized this from prison, he would have to relinquish control, but the shrewd leader knew that the power he granted could easily be lost, and the safest course of action was to suspend party activities and address them after his release.
Sure enough, Hitler was very pleased with the current "focused training and learning" status of the Naval Assault Division, but then he expressed concern about the division's funding sources—in Germany, unofficial armed warriors like the Stormtroopers also needed to be paid because few people would join such risky organizations purely out of enthusiasm, especially when hungry. However, the NSDAP's move underground was considered futile by most, and people were sympathetic but reluctant to donate to a party with no future.
"I've mortgaged the estate left by my ancestors. I borrowed some money from friends, which should sustain the Naval Assault Division for a long time!" Zhang Hainuo glanced at Helmuth, "If circumstances permit, we plan to select some reliable friends to join the division and aim to restore its previous scale by the end of the year! Currently, our division only has personnel!"
Hitler neither opposed nor actively supported the idea. After considering for a moment, he instructed, "Proceed with caution in all matters, especially in maintaining the purity of the division members. We must not let Jews or other malicious individuals infiltrate!"
"We understand!" Zhang Hainuo promptly replied. After the beer hall putsch and his six-month imprisonment, Hitler's anti-Semitic thoughts hadn't diminished. Instead, he believed that Jews were manipulating Bavarian authorities and the courts behind the scenes.
"Go ahead with confidence!" Hitler said to Zhang Hainuo and Helmuth. Given the current situation, there was nothing he could promise—money, power, or status—he had almost nothing.
To Zhang Hainuo, loyalty shown at his most embarrassing moments was far more valuable than flattery after gaining power. Equally important was constantly showing this person where your value lies.
Before leaving Landsberg, Zhang Hainuo visited other people as usual, including Edwin. As a logistics commissioner for the NSDAP and one of the organizers of the uprising, his sentence was one year shorter than Adolf Hitler's. Although he initially joined the NSDAP for status and power, prison life was a complete turnabout for him. Under Zhang Hainuo's guidance, he had already understood the principle of patience and laying low. And just recently, Hitler ordered him to select a group of reliable Stormtroopers to establish a brand-new Party Defense Corps after his release from prison, to replace the ineffective Adolf Hitler Assault Division in the uprising.
On the evening of returning to the Munich city center, Zhang Hainuo once again convened a meeting of all Naval Assault Division members—except for seven, including Eberhard. Because they had recently "left the team." The remaining members of the division only knew that they had left Munich with their families, but they had no idea that their final destination was distant Brazil, and no one had heard of the Schneider Shipyard.
Among the departing seven, some had some connections with Jewish people or other non-Nazi ideologies. However, that wasn't the most important aspect. Zhang Hainuo selected them because of their expertise in navigation technology, ship maintenance, and other areas, which aligned with the current "talent recruitment plan" of the Schneider Shipyard. They would travel with their families by train to Bremen. There, representatives from the Schneider Shipyard would promptly send them and their families to Brazil according to Zhang Hainuo's instructions.
After briefing the plans for the next few months, Zhang Hainuo handed 6,000 Reichsmarks to Helmuth, who was in charge of finances, a significant amount considering the staggering "worthlessness" of money after 1923. It was enough to be used.
With the issue of the Naval Assault Division resolved, Zhang Hainuo boarded the train to Austria the next day to address another issue—after the beer hall putsch, Goering narrowly escaped death and was later sent to Austria by Nazi party members for recuperation. This prolonged recovery period would be his most vulnerable and helpless time, but after enduring it, he would regain his position in the NSDAP and rise to power.
Accompanying Zhang Hainuo was Hanfstaengl, who was prepared to convey Hitler's instructions to Austria. When he heard that Zhang Hainuo was going to visit Goering, he was visibly surprised. Considering that Goering wasn't a likable figure within the NSDAP, Hanfstaengl was taken aback. Despite his attempt to conceal it, his eyes, filled with bewilderment and distrust, betrayed his true feelings about the visitor—perhaps, he thought this person was merely here to mock Goering or to take advantage of his vulnerability.
However, Zhang Hainuo didn't do that, despite his genuine dislike for the man.
"Mr. Goering, it's regrettable to visit you at such a late hour! After the uprising, I spent two months in Denmark, then wandered in Munich for a while before finally catching up with Mr. Hanfstaengl's visit. I hope you don't mind my impertinence!"
Clearly, Zhang Hainuo's aristocratic courtesy couldn't completely dispel Goering's hostility. He reluctantly nodded to him, then extended his right hand, "Thank you, Mr. von Finkenstein! Your visit honors me deeply!"
"Mr. Goering is too kind! How is your recovery from the injuries?" Since entering, Zhang Hainuo observed Goering's movements as he got up from the sand and walked, speculating that his thigh injury had mostly healed. However, on the way here, Hanfstaengl told him that in the initial weeks, to alleviate the patient's pain, the doctors injected Goering with a large amount of morphine. Although it brought temporary relief to Goering at the time, if morphine were injected for a long period, addiction would develop. Unable to stop using it, the purpose of its use was no longer to treat the disease but purely to satisfy a pathological need, turning the person into a drug addict.
Morphine injections caused hallucinations due to intoxication, leading to mental excitement, enhanced imagination, agile thinking, and eloquence. However, after the effects of morphine wore off, symptoms like weakness in limbs, fatigue, drowsiness, and even confusion would occur. Furthermore, morphine addiction, due to the massive stimulation received during drug administration, would result in a mode of thinking known medically as "peculiar vanity," often manifesting as arrogance, arrogance, and greed, leading to ridiculous and unbelievable actions.
Knowing the symptoms of morphine addiction, people might not be puzzled by the pathological behaviors Goering exhibited in his later life.
Goering looked at his wife, Karin, who was slender and could be described as thin, with a gentle motherly look in her eyes as she gently stroked his head with her left hand. Goering suddenly grabbed her hand and offered a deep affectionate kiss with his thick lips, all so natural and heartwarming.
At that moment, Zhang Hainuo remembered another question: If Karin hadn't died early in 1931, would the later Goering still be the arrogant and greedy man he became?
Such a hypothesis was feeble. Karin's illness was said to have both congenital and accumulated effects from the poor living conditions after following Goering. Perhaps it was a mockery of their peculiar love—a life of luxury in Sweden would probably have spared her the taste of such bitter days, and her body wouldn't have broken down early.
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Zhang Hainuo quickly suppressed his sympathy. Here, accompanying Goering was no longer a large group of Stormtroopers, and the delicate Karin might not even know how to handle a gun. As long as the plan was well executed, permanently solving this troublesome figure wouldn't be difficult.
For Zhang Hainuo, who was knowledgeable about history and aimed to revitalize the navy, this was definitely a huge temptation. "Strike while the iron is hot," he still remembered this ancient Eastern proverb.
In the subtle relationship between Hanfstaengl, Zhang Hainuo, and Goering, conversations occasionally fell into awkwardness. Fortunately, Karin was a woman of depth who always managed to steer the conversation towards pleasant topics. They stayed for about three-quarters of an hour. Hanfstaengl and Zhang Hainuo bid farewell, and the Goering couple politely invited them to dinner. After being politely declined, they escorted their guests to the door.
"I will soon leave Europe, hoping to meet again in free Munich!" Zhang Hainuo politely said, but his words were intentionally directed at Hanfstaengl—a person who had already left Europe. Would someone who had no deep hatred or conflicting interests with Goering take action against him?
Perhaps, but the likelihood was slim.
"Safe travels!" Karin's lips curved into a pleasant smile, but against Goering's weary expression, the smile seemed forced and resigned.
After leaving Goering's place, Zhang Hainuo and Hanfstaengl went to the train station together. Their destinations were different—Hanfstaengl was going to meet with others in Salzburg and Amman, while Zhang Hainuo bought a ticket to Berlin. He told Hanfstaengl that he would leave Germany by next Monday.
Salzburg was to the east, Berlin to the north. The two bid each other farewell on the platform of the train station. As Zhang Hainuo had hoped, the train bound for Berlin arrived first, and under Hanfstaengl's gaze, he boarded.
Two hours later, Zhang Hainuo got off the train near a small Austrian town not far from Innsbruck. He made a phone call to the "Colonel" from the local telegraph office, instructing him to send the hunters to Innsbruck, where he would wait for them.
The "Colonel" replied: the hunters would be on their way tonight. They could arrive within two days and needed a phone for communication.
After spending a quiet night in the small town, the next day, Zhang Hainuo boarded a southbound train and returned to Innsbruck before noon.
In this Austrian mountain city, where the chill had dissipated and spring was in the air, the Goering couple stayed in a not-so-large hotel near the city center. Since the end of World War I, Austria had experienced turmoil and inflation similar to Germany's, making National Socialist ideology quite popular here. Austrian Nazis had even formed their own SA units, imitating the NSDAP.
Goering found refuge with Austrian Nazi sympathizers, but Zhang Hainuo wasn't worried because he hadn't seen a single armed guard from the hotel entrance to departure the day before. However, he had heard from Edwin that Hitler intended for Goering, as the sole representative of the Nazi Party, to go to Rome to meet with Italy's dictator Mussolini, pleading for a loan for the Nazi Party's resurgence. If Goering indeed went to Italy, it would be more difficult for Zhang Hainuo to act against him later.
After getting off the train, Zhang Hainuo found a hotel near where the Goering couple stayed and requested a room with a window facing the street, from where he could use his binoculars to monitor the hotel entrance.
The afternoon passed quickly, with people coming and going from the hotel, but there was no sign of the Goering couple. Perhaps they were too wary of Goering's fugitive status to appear openly. If so, Zhang Hainuo decided to have the hunters take action directly inside the hotel. Even if they couldn't escape, it wouldn't matter— the Colonel had assured him that the hunters wouldn't know any information about the employer or the target, so even if they were arrested or killed in action, Zhang Hainuo wouldn't be implicated. All he needed to do was to pay the hefty fee, enough to buy four Mercedes-Benz cars.
The next morning, Zhang Hainuo contacted the Colonel again, providing the phone number of a nearby café. The Colonel instructed him to wait by the phone; the hunters would arrive in the afternoon, and they would call that number and ask for "Mr. Loen." Zhang Hainuo only needed to reply, "I am a friend of the Colonel."
This peculiar but secure rendezvous method was agreed upon. Later that afternoon, Zhang Hainuo waited by the phone, and the call came. The voice on the other end was deep and spoke fluent German with a northern accent. The person asked for details about the target, such as address, appearance, and surroundings. Finally, the person said they would conduct a field investigation and call again at 9 o'clock in the evening.
For the next four hours, Zhang Hainuo found himself bored. He flipped through newspapers repeatedly, drinking coffee after coffee. Originally the instigator of this operation, he was now sidelined—a situation that wasn't necessarily bad, as he was unlikely to be implicated by the police. But he felt uneasy; if the operation failed, the alarmed target might go into hiding like a rabbit, making it much more difficult to strike again.
At exactly 9 p.m., the phone rang again. The same deep voice informed him that the target had found a poor hiding place. They were confident they could resolve the issue within fifteen minutes, and if necessary, they could even take action that very night.
Zhang Hainuo informed them that they must wait until Monday, two days later, to deal with the target. He would inform the Colonel separately.
The person agreed and said they would use the two days to further observe the target's situation. They instructed Zhang Hainuo to wait by the phone at noon and 9 p.m. every day.
In addition to observing the hotel through his window every day, Zhang Hainuo ordered flowers from a nearby florist, with a card reading "To Hermann Goering, wishing you a speedy recovery, your faithful supporter!" He asked the delivery person to hand-deliver the flowers and card to the person in room 7 on the second floor of the hotel where the Goering couple stayed. The delivery girl reported seeing the slightly chubby, dejected man and a stylishly beautiful woman in the room.
With this information, Zhang Hainuo confirmed that the Goering couple was still staying there.
Monday, the day Zhang Hainuo "left Germany," finally arrived. The deep voice on the other end of the phone didn't specify when to take action but reminded Zhang Hainuo not to go to the café anymore—if any of them were arrested, there was a risk of the phone number being leaked. As for the outcome of the operation, Zhang Hainuo would know when he contacted the Colonel the next day.
Zhang Hainuo suspected that the hunters would act either at midnight or in the early hours of the morning. That night, he slept very alertly, as his hotel was close enough to the Goering couple's hotel that he should be able to hear any gunshots or similar noises.
However, it seemed like nothing happened that night. But the next day, as he passed by the hotel on his way to the café across the street, he noticed several men gathered near the hotel entrance. Although they didn't openly carry weapons, each one of them seemed vigilant, and it appeared that everyone entering or leaving the hotel was being questioned.
Had the hunters successfully taken out Goering?
Zhang Hainuo trusted the Colonel's capabilities because he always provided him with military equipment and technical drawings. But based on this, he speculated that the hunters' abilities might be somewhat biased. However, sending his own men to take risks against a "sick cat" in a foreign land didn't seem worthwhile. Even if the hunters failed, Goering wouldn't have any evidence to suspect him. He wasn't worried about that.
In the afternoon, Zhang Hainuo called the Colonel. On the other end of the line, he received the coded message: "Hunting successful, one wild boar and one deer killed."
Zhang Hainuo understood what this meant: barring any unforeseen circumstances, Goering and his wife were both dead.
After hanging up, he felt a mix of emotions. He still remembered Karin's smile when he left, perhaps it was a relief for her. If Goering had continued to live, he would have made her constantly fearful and tearful over the next few years, and her family would have been heartbroken by her eventual demise due to her addiction to morphine, all while Goering enjoyed his high life...
Without Goering, would there still be the formidable German Air Force that dominated during World War II?
Turning away, he briskly left the telegraph office. The warm spring sunlight bathed him, and suddenly, Zhang Hainuo laughed. Hitler never lacked henchmen; Hess, Himmler, Goebbels, Speer, and others. While they may not have been as adept in social interactions as Goering, most of the time Goering's influence on German strategy was counterproductive. He remembered figures like Milch, Richtofen, and Kesselring in the Air Force, especially Lufthansa CEO Milch, praised by many as the "true designer" of the German Air Force. He sought practical results and was very meticulous. In the establishment of the Nazi Air Force, he applied his rich experience in corporate management to meticulously plan every aspect of the work, striving for perfection. For example, in establishing aviation laboratories, meteorological stations, flight schools, etc., he meticulously planned each step.
Perhaps without Goering, the German Air Force would have been even stronger than it was in history!
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
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