Chapitre 24: Order
Despite the orders, many soldiers found it hard to believe that their superiors would actually command them to march into the heart of the desert.
Their reasoning was simple: if the entire army perished from thirst in the desert, how could their superiors expect them to continue fighting?
This thought was certainly logical, but they clearly didn't understand Rommel... Rommel was known for his unorthodox tactics. He didn't just defy enemy expectations; he often pushed his own men beyond what seemed possible.
Those close to Rommel described him as having an "engine that never stops." His extraordinary willpower led him to expect the same from his subordinates, without realizing that ordinary people had physical and mental limits.
So, when the order came the next morning to march across the desert, there was disbelief among the troops.
Some soldiers even whispered among themselves:
"Does General Rommel know about this order?"
"Is this some foolish command from the Italians?"
"Should we verify this?"
...
But all their speculations and doubts were in vain, as the order had come directly from Rommel himself. Ironically, it was the Italians who were against this plan.
In reality, only one part of the army was required to venture deep into the desert. This was another of Rommel's unconventional decisions:
The German forces were limited, with only about 15,000 men in one light division. Pursuing an enemy force of 150,000 British troops... Traditionally, the military doctrine would dictate "do not divide your forces," as splitting an already small force could lead to them being easily defeated by the enemy in detail.
But Rommel completely ignored this principle and divided his forces into four parts for the pursuit:
The first part was the reconnaissance battalion, consisting of 1,500 men with a few light tanks and armored vehicles. This group was to advance along the coastal road and capture the port of Benghazi... As previously mentioned, ports were crucial in desert warfare.
The second part was the 5th Panzer Regiment, the main force of the 5th Light Armored Division, where most of the tanks and armored vehicles were concentrated.
This group would follow the first part to Benghazi, then push eastward to pursue the British forces, advancing toward Mechili.
This arrangement made sense: tanks were not well-suited for deep desert maneuvers because they consumed too much fuel and water, their weight made movement in the desert difficult, and their engines struggled in the high temperatures... Tanks were better suited for advancing along the coast, where supply lines were more accessible, and there was a road.
The third part was the 6th Infantry Brigade, tasked with advancing slightly inland from the coast to protect the 5th Panzer Regiment's flank and provide support as needed, eventually advancing toward Mechili.
The fourth part was the 1st Regiment of the 6th Infantry Brigade, which was ordered to start from Agdabia and march in a straight line on the map toward Tengeder, 64 kilometers south of Mechili, to cut deep into the British rear.
The entire plan was brilliantly laid out, with Rommel setting multiple traps that the British would never expect: the British believed they only had to worry about the forces pursuing them from behind, unaware that another force was advancing toward Mechili from the right flank. As the British rushed to defend Mechili, they would be completely unprepared for the force cutting even deeper into their rear at Tengeder... One trap after another, like a perfect ambush.
However, as mentioned earlier, the German forces were severely outnumbered. If the British organized a counterattack... the consequences could be disastrous.
Qin Chuan wasn't too worried about that, though. He knew Rommel would succeed... The British had already been scared out of their wits and lacked the courage to counterattack. Rommel had calculated this perfectly when he devised his pursuit plan.
What concerned Qin Chuan was that he belonged to the 1st Regiment of the 6th Infantry Brigade—the fourth group that would be making the deep desert penetration.
The entire march would cover 453 kilometers, and that was just the straight-line distance on the map.
When Captain Three-Fingers Basil informed the soldiers of this, they immediately erupted in protest.
"Captain!" someone asked. "How many days will it take us to reach the destination, covering over 400 kilometers?"
"If we march 40 kilometers a day, it should take about 12 days!" Captain Basil replied. "They've given us 13 days."
The soldiers were in an uproar.
"Thirteen days!" the baker protested. "Has anyone considered that the actual distance might be much longer than what's shown on the map, not to mention the sandstorms, lack of supplies, especially water and food, and all those other problems?"
"It will indeed be challenging!" Captain Basil acknowledged. "But if there were no challenges, what would they need us for?"
With that, the soldiers fell silent.
German soldiers were much more disciplined in this regard than troops from other Western countries... If soldiers from other nations faced such a situation, they might have gone on strike or even rebelled.
"So!" Captain Basil continued, "Let's end the discussion here. You have half an hour to prepare. Understood?"
"Yes, sir!" the soldiers responded in unison.
Though they were told to prepare, the soldiers had no idea what to prepare for. The only thing they could do was fill their two canteens to the brim... The 5th Light Armored Division had little experience in desert warfare, with their only desert training consisting of a few lectures on tropical diseases. This led to situations where the army's mess unit initially brought wood-burning stoves into the desert, only to realize there were no trees for fuel and that they would have to bring their own.
"We should find some locals to guide us!" Qin Chuan suggested anxiously.
He saw that the logistics officers were filling empty fuel drums with water and loading them onto trucks... This might be the water supply that would keep them alive for the next dozen days.
But something about this didn't sit well with Qin Chuan: what if the trucks broke down? What if they got separated from the logistics convoy? What if they ran out of fuel and the trucks couldn't move anymore?
There were countless unforeseen dangers, and any one of them could be fatal.
"That would be difficult!" Werner shook his head. "First, we don't speak the language, and second, the locals won't want to take the risk. They might even be hostile toward us!"
Werner was right. Not long ago, the German army had shown little regard for the lives and property of the local population during battles, so it was no surprise that the locals were reluctant to cooperate with the Germans.
"But we should at least try!" Qin Chuan insisted.
"How?" Werner asked, bewildered. "We only have half an hour!"
Without further explanation, Qin Chuan grabbed Werner and headed toward the Italian transport convoy.
État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone