Chương 48: Chapter 48
As compensation for the problematic chapters yesterday, I have published 4 chapters today.
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Accompanied by the piercing sound of the fire alarm, numerous fire trucks rushed from all directions to the scene of the fire, joining the firefighting efforts.
Unfortunately, the towering flames told people that unless God himself suddenly appeared and extinguished the fire, the chances of survival for those inside were slim to none.
Looking at the red flames that almost illuminated half of the sky, Wilhelm couldn't help but feel relieved that it wasn't one of those skyscrapers from the future, with dozens or even hundreds of floors. Otherwise, how much would be lost in this raging fire?
While most of the people in Berlin were captivated by the large-scale fire, another wave of disaster quietly descended upon certain individuals.
Countless luxurious estates, villas, and upscale residences were surrounded by teams of armed men.
In one of the estates, the old butler who came to open the door looked at the group of individuals outside wearing unfamiliar uniforms and armed to the teeth with fear and trepidation. Judging by their fierce appearances, it was clear that they were not here for a social visit.
The old butler nervously swallowed and gathered his courage to inquire, "Who are you? What do you want?"
The leading lieutenant replied coldly, "We belong to the newly formed First Brigade of the Imperial Guards! We received information that a group of criminals is hiding in your estate. We are here to arrest them. Open the door!"
Criminals? The old butler's head shook like a rattle drum. "You must have made a mistake. We don't have..." He stopped mid-sentence as the lieutenant outside had already drawn his pistol and aimed it at the butler's head, his face filled with impatience. "Whether or not we find out by going inside, open the door immediately, or I'll shoot you!"
Faced with the dark barrel of the gun, the old butler dared not say anything further and tremblingly reached for the switch on the front gate. He watched as this group of Imperial Guards, who seemed more like criminals, rushed into the estate. He distinctly heard the fierce order given by the lieutenant who had just pointed his gun at him. "Search the entire estate, don't let anyone escape. If they don't resist, don't harm them. They are the labor force of the Empire. And try not to damage anything inside, as those are all the Empire's properties. As for those who dare to resist, kill them all!"
"You... you..." The old butler felt as if he had fallen into an ice cave, his whole body turning cold. What on earth had happened? What had his master done to offend someone? Just a few days ago, his master had hosted a group of friends from the political circles, all laughing and enjoying themselves. How did it turn into such a disaster now?
Not good! He suddenly remembered the hot-tempered young master in the house, along with his pistol. If these people barged in and the soldiers truly carried out their commander's orders, the young master's fate would be uncertain. "Commander, you must be mistaken. My master is good friends with General Werner von Fritsch from the Army Headquarters." In reality, his master only had a few chance encounters with General Fritsch, and they couldn't even be considered regular friends. But now he couldn't worry about such details. He needed to survive this ordeal first.
The lieutenant glanced at the butler with disdain in his eyes. "Wener? I've never heard of this Werner von Fritsch, and there is no position of Army Commander now. You old man, shut your mouth and stand still! If I didn't see that you still have a few years left to live and serve the Empire, I would kill you right now!"
As soon as the lieutenant's words fell, a series of intense gunfire erupted from the lavishly decorated room.
"Damn it!" The old butler sat on the ground in despair, looking helplessly as the soldiers escorted dozens of people out of the house.
"Any casualties?" the lieutenant asked when the soldiers approached.
The soldier who was asked shook his head. "There was a dumbass who resisted with a gun and ended up getting shot to pieces. We have no casualties, just a few bullet holes in the walls. What about this old man?" He pointed to the butler on the ground.
The lieutenant waved his hand and said coldly, "Take him with us." After giving the order, he muttered to himself thoughtfully, "This is also a waste. Maybe when we move to the next place, we should say we're taking them for questioning, ask a few questions, and then let them go, to avoid resistance."
"Yes, sir!" The soldier saluted and approached, grabbing the butler by the collar like a little dog and dragging him towards the large truck outside. They had no concerns about offending anyone. Not to mention that they were backed by the Imperial royalty, even if they didn't have that support, these people would be thrown into the harshest concentration camps, with little chance of coming out alive. There was no room for concern, not even the chance to put someone in a difficult position.
At another villa...
Leading the team was a lieutenant with a relatively gentle demeanor. He looked at the short and chubby middle-aged man, a Jew named Ezekiel, and calmly delivered the arrest warrant. "Mr. Ezekiel? I was ordered to arrest all members of the Ezekiel family for committing crimes of speculation."
Ezekiel was shocked. "Wh, what? What kind of crime is speculation? Why haven't I heard of it?"
"Never heard of it?" The lieutenant sneered. "Okay, I will add one more crime of contempt of German law, wait until you reach the concentration camp to study the country's laws." He said that and waved his hand to indicate his soldiers to act.
Ezekiel quickly extended his hand. "Lieutenant, Lieutenant, there must be some misunderstanding here. Can we resolve this misunderstanding? We could become friends." As he spoke, he magically produced a golden bar of gold in his palm.
Seeing the gold bar, the lieutenant's expression changed slightly. "A gold bar, this is a good thing." However, he didn't accept the gold bar. Instead, he delivered a fierce punch to the protruding belly of Ezekiel.
"Oof!" Ezekiel's previously smiling face instantly turned pale. He couldn't help but let out a painful groan, his legs weakened, and he collapsed to the ground.
The lieutenant wasn't satisfied with just that. He continued to deliver a kick, knocking the fat man down. He sneered, "Daring to bribe the Imperial Guards? You're tired of living, you damned Jewish pig!" He felt greatly insulted, and if it weren't for the orders, he would have already drawn his gun and beaten this ignorant fat man to a pulp. These greedy vampires, did they really think they could get away with money?
Busy throughout the entire night, the Imperial Guards arrested over a hundred families, including many prominent nobles and wealthy Jewish merchants. The unstable elements who had been under Reinhard's secret surveillance were also wiped out under special instructions from Wilhelm. Almost all former officials, along with a few insignificant minor political parties, pro-British, pro-American, pro-French, pro-Italian, and pro-Japanese factions, suffered the same fate and were sent to concentration camps.
These politicians, who were ready to watch the show, never dreamt that Wilhelm would suddenly strike them so ruthlessly. They had planned to take advantage of Emperor William II's inability to control the situation and seize the opportunity to transform Germany into a "democratic and free" republic. However, they encountered someone who didn't play by the rules. When several "spirited" members of parliament were arrested, they cursed William II as a damn dictator, but before they could say much, they were beaten by the Imperial Guards until their mouths were full of broken teeth. Watching these ruthless soldiers who showed no mercy, using rifle butts to strike and leather boots to trample, they all fell silent and obediently boarded the trucks.
Wilhelm knew very well that now was a good opportunity to act without restraint. The people had no jobs and no food to eat, so who would care about the arrest of former prime ministers or diplomats? They would only be concerned once they were well-fed. Just like in the original timeline, when the little mustache came to power, he immediately dissolved the parliament, banned opposition parties, and dismantled trade unions. However, at that time, most Germans were not concerned about the lack of parliament, opposition parties, or trade unions because they were thoroughly disappointed with the Weimar government, which had accomplished nothing after World War I. The trade unions couldn't even guarantee basic unemployment relief, so they were essentially useless.
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