บท 12: Cousins from Hell
"Erwin Rommel!"
Wang Weiya never imagined that one day he would stand face to face with this world-renowned general.
"Lieutenant Ernst, I witnessed the outstanding performance of you and your Third Platoon when facing the enemy's new weapons," Rommel said seriously. "It's truly remarkable. Although the enemy used new weapons in today's attack and breached several of our positions, only here, you and your soldiers remained calm and composed. That's commendable."
"Thank you for your praise, Lieutenant Erwin," Wang Weiya replied politely. "It's just what a German officer should do. If you don't mind, I think we can have a chat over there."
Rommel nodded and followed Wang Weiya to a corner of the defensive position.
The enemy's attack temporarily ceased, and Rommel carefully observed the enemy positions with his binoculars before lowering them. "If I'm not mistaken, the enemy will launch a new attack in about an hour."
"Yes, that's exactly my assessment," Wang Weiya interjected. "Our ammunition is sufficient, but we're severely lacking manpower. I believe we'll face a tough fight."
"German soldiers never fear any battle," Rommel said confidently. "Lieutenant Ernst, have you noticed? Your position at B and my position at C are quite close. If the enemy launches a major attack, I believe we can support each other..."
Wang Weiya had already noticed this.
The defensive positions of the Third Platoon at B and Rommel's position at C were indeed close. He had thought of it the first time he arrived at the position. However, this tactic had not been considered before, and the battle broke out quickly, leaving him no time to establish contact with the C position.
But Wang Weiya never expected that at the C position, it would be Erwin Rommel!
"I fully accept this proposal," Wang Weiya said without much hesitation. "If that's the case, our two positions will be linked, and the enemy will face strikes from both sides."
Rommel nodded in satisfaction, but there was still no smile on his face. "Well, let's talk about that strange thing invented by the British."
The "strange thing" in Rommel's mouth was obviously referring to the tank.
Wang Weiya pondered for a moment. "Lieutenant Erwin, that's a tank..."
He carefully explained the tank to Rommel.
The tank was discovered by the British officer E.D. Swinton and the engineer Maurice Hankey by accident. They realized that if a cannon or machine gun were mounted on a tractor, it would be invincible. In October 1914, the European battlefield in the First World War reached a stalemate. Colonel Swinton, serving with the British Expeditionary Force, suggested the need to manufacture an armored vehicle capable of clearing paths, crossing trenches, and suppressing machine gun fire to break the stalemate on the Western Front.
At that time, the British Army showed no interest in the idea. However, Winston Churchill, the First Lord of the Admiralty at the time, was thrilled and ordered the formation of the "Landship Committee" to lead the development of the "landship." In February 1915, the British government adopted Swinton's proposal and, using automotive, tractor, gun, and metallurgical technologies, successfully tested a prototype in September 1915, called the "Little Caterpillar." Weighing 18 tons, with 6 millimeters of armor, it was equipped with a 7.7mm "Maxim" machine gun and several 7.7mm "Lewis" machine guns.
In 1916, the British produced the Mark I tank. It had a diamond-shaped outline, a rigid suspension, prominent gun mounts on both sides of the body, and two tracks running over the top of the body, with a pair of steering wheels at the rear. The tank carried eight crew members and came in two variants, male and female. The male variant had two 57mm cannons and four machine guns, while the female variant only had five machine guns.
All this information was firmly stored in Wang Weiya's mind, and he effortlessly recounted it. But to Rommel's ears, Lieutenant Ernst Brem sounded like he had witnessed the birth of the tank firsthand.
"How did you know, Lieutenant Ernst?" Rommel asked, his face full of confusion.
Wang Weiya hesitated for a moment. "Uh, Lieutenant Erwin, perhaps you don't know, but not long ago, Corporal Heinrich Elena from the Army Staff Intelligence Bureau told me before she left."
"Heinrich?" Rommel's face finally showed a hint of a smile. "No wonder. So it was Heinrich who told you. Those people from the Army Staff Intelligence Bureau indeed have extraordinary powers."
Wang Weiya had a bad premonition. "Do you know Corporal Heinrich?"
"Yes," Rommel replied with a smile. "She's my cousin."
Damn it, Wang Weiya cursed himself inwardly. Why did he have to come up with the excuse that Elena told him? Wasn't he just asking for trouble?
Elena turned out to be Rommel's cousin? God, he had never had that in his database. Such a coincidence in the world. If they ever met as cousins in the future and talked about himself, wouldn't his lie be exposed immediately?
Wang Weiya felt a headache coming on, but at this point, there was nothing he could do...
Little did Rommel know what was on his mind. After carefully discussing the ways to deal with the tanks, he earnestly discussed with Wang Weiya how they would support each other in the upcoming battle. Then he straightened up:
"Lieutenant Ernst, it's an honor to meet you. I hope that in the upcoming battle, we can give those British a run for their money."
"The honor is
mine," Wang Weiya replied absent-mindedly.
Rommel didn't stay here for too long. The enemy on the opposite position was gathering, and evidently, a new attack was about to begin.
Rommel returned to his position, and Wang Weiya felt somewhat discouraged. What if his lie was exposed? Would he be considered a spy? Or would he be seen as a freak by others?
That damn Dr. Qin, why did he have to bring him to this time and space?
"Hey, Lieutenant, the enemy is attacking!"
Sergeant Hall's words interrupted Wang Weiya's thoughts. Since things had developed to this point, what was the point of thinking too much?
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