The collapse of the Russian army took everyone by surprise.
After all, it seemed implausible that the entirety of the 1.5 million-strong Russian army, even though encircled by the German army, could possibly conclude the war in a mere two and a half weeks.
Even if it were 1.5 million cattle and sheep being slaughtered by the German army, it would surely take more time than that, wouldn't it?
But one can hardly blame those Russian soldiers who seized grain from the Ukrainian people. Since they had not brought sufficient grain to begin with, they couldn't just surrender and starve to death.
However, the Russian government clearly didn't see it that way.
No matter the process, the current outcome was the near-annihilation of 1.5 million Russian troops, which equated to the Russian government handing nearly a million laborers to Germany for free.