Iron Cross

"I've had steak and sausage recently, and they tasted pretty good..." Hoffman laughed, "People change. I ate meat when I was a kid, but I didn't eat it for a long time. Now I'm eating it again. You won't find it unacceptable, will you?"

"No! Of course not!" Eva was very happy, "I can accept your choice and decision, as long as you like it."

"Maybe some red wine." Hoffman knew that the Führer would not tell his woman too much about politics, but he could mention it a little, "Now my followers who are used to observing words and expressions have summed up the rules - those who can stay and eat with me are first-class officials; if they can also drink a few sips of beer or red wine with me, and joke around, they are the most popular officials! Of course, I still hate smoking extremely."

"Adolf, you are more humane than before. Many people used to think it was a chore to have dinner with you, but now, they are probably trying their best to stay and have dinner with you." Eva laughed, her laughter was very relaxed, "You can change, and I can change too. I decided to quit smoking from tomorrow, whether you are present or not, I will not touch that thing."

When he woke up in the morning, Hoffman felt relieved: he did not dare to say that he had fallen in love with Eva, but at least he had initially accepted him - she had given everything for the head of state, he could not be irresponsible to her, feelings can be cultivated slowly, and more importantly, because Eva accepted herself very well and did not find any problems at all - maybe this is the lover she wanted?

When he walked into the restaurant, his entourage and secretaries were already sitting neatly at the dining table waiting for him. His seat was in the middle of the table, facing the front of the window, and he could look out at the mountains in the distance - now covered with snow. When dining here, the left hand is always Eva Braun's seat, and the lady on the right will rotate every meal, including female secretaries. Today, the one sitting next to her is Mrs. Jung.

The Führer has many female secretaries, but everyone knows that the Führer is a gentleman in terms of relationships between men and women, and there are no scandals. Eva will not be jealous of this, and most of them are known to Eva. However, out of sensitivity, she still found several new faces, such as Cole and other adjutants. After September, the Führer's adjutants were almost completely replaced, and there was also a woman who seemed a little familiar. When Darges told her that this was Helen, the Führer's new secretary and mathematical assistant, she was surprised for a long time, and finally remembered that she had seen the photos in the newspaper. To be precise, many times she, like others, could only know what the Führer was doing through the newspaper-isn't this the little girl who took a photo with Hoffman when he went to inspect the air defense base!

Hoffman greeted everyone and sat down at his seat casually. The breakfast was served very delicately, and this was also Hoffman's first time to enjoy it in the villa. The white fine porcelain was all hand-painted with Alpine flowers, such as gentian, azalea and European orchid, all made according to Hitler's design. In the middle of the plate was the gold-plated national emblem and an eagle with outstretched wings, with "A" and "H" written in Latin on the left and right sides, and glittering silver cutlery next to it - also made according to the design of the head of state, also marked with an eagle and engraved with "A" and "H" in Latin. He was filled with infinite emotion, and then he remembered that he was sitting in the position of the first person in Germany, the most powerful and influential leader in Europe - the feeling of power was really good, and if he was allowed to travel back to the life of a 21st century scholar after getting used to this kind of life, he didn't know if he would feel lost.

In addition to the exquisite tableware, there were also flowers in the center of the table, all provided by the first-class flower shops in Berlin and Munich, and airlifted here, which seemed even more precious in such a cold winter. When Hoffman saw the scene of decorating the table with long-stemmed roses and rare orchids, he was deeply moved. What shocked him even more was that at this moment, there were more than 2,000 officers and soldiers guarding the villa day and night (divided into 4 shifts, rotating every 6 hours), and they could not show too obvious signs, in order to ensure the safety of the head of state and let him enjoy a relaxing vacation - this is the real world of the dictator. He has passed the initial uneasiness and began to enjoy these completely normal treatments in the eyes of outsiders.

The servants quickly brought up breakfast, with a rich variety. Hoffman chose some white bread and a few slices of bacon, asked for an omelette and fruit salad, and also chose a glass of milk - Martin Bormann built a greenhouse on the mountain when he built the head of state's official residence. Fresh vegetables can be provided every day, as well as milk, eggs, red currant and black tea trough juice, grape and apple juice, all of which are shipped from the farm. Honey is provided by the apiary in the Upper Salzburg forest area and Kilstein respectively - standard special products.

Eva smiled slightly. She saw Hoffman eat all the bacon. The other secretaries and attendants did not show any surprise. Moreover, Hoffman did not talk much at the table. He did not give speeches as he did in the past. She smiled happily. Although she was not used to it, she was sure that the man she loved had changed subtly.

"Ladies and gentlemen... Now I will announce a decision. I will go skiing with Miss Braun this morning. If you like, you can go together. If you have other ideas, you can also move freely in the yard."

As soon as Hoffman finished speaking, everyone cheered together - it was a rare opportunity to relax with the Führer, and no matter whether they could ski or not, they were willing to go together to broaden their horizons.

Hoffman's original skiing skills were not bad, but the Führer's body was not good. He fell several times, making Eva laugh for a long time. Fortunately, Major Genshe was protecting him closely, and although he fell, he was not affected at all. When he finally mastered the trick and slid smoothly, everyone applauded him excitedly.

But less than half an hour later, he could only sit on the snow pile, panting and sighing: "It seems that I really need to strengthen my exercise. I feel exhausted after just a few minutes."

"Haha, maybe it's because you haven't mastered the trick yet, so your physical strength is consumed quickly. Skiing is not particularly strenuous..." Eva sat next to Hoffman with a smile, "My dear, I am very happy today."

"Because I accompany you skiing?"

"Not because of skiing - but because you only have me in your eyes today. I haven't seen you so relaxed for a long time. I am sincerely happy for you."

"I have given too much for the German people But now it's good, the situation of the empire is not bad. "When saying this, Hoffman felt full of accomplishment: if it was the original history, now it would be the situation of defeat in Stalingrad and complete failure in North Africa. He not only successfully stabilized the situation on the Eastern Front, but also opened up a new situation in North Africa and the Middle East, and at the same time alleviated (if not solved) the most profound resource problem that constrained Germany. Whether it is the current situation or the potential, the power of the Third Reich is incomparable. He is more and more confident in the position of the head of state - no matter what the future holds, at least he will not fail in May 1945.

"This is all because of you. I read in the newspaper a few days ago that the spoils were being divided outside, either women's pajamas or nylon socks, and everyone was very happy..."

"You didn't get any, did you? Actually, I have the Iron Cross..." Hoffman laughed, "I asked someone to prepare a gift for you."

"What is it?"

Hoffman asked Genscher to bring it over, a newest Carl Zeiss camera - the Führer and Eva first met in a photo studio, and Eva loved taking pictures very much.

Seeing this gift, she was very excited, and took several photos of the surrounding scenery on the spot. After getting familiar with it, she pointed the camera at Hoffman and asked him to pose for skiing.

This is what men and women in love often do. Hoffman smiled and did as he was told. Then Eva handed the camera to Genscher and asked him to take a few photos of the two of them together. The shutter sounded and captured the shot of Eva leaning on Hoffman's shoulder with her head tilted, her face full of intoxication.

Good times are always short. At around 10 o'clock, just as Eva was still eager to invite Hoffman, who had just finished his rest, to skate again, Darges stood in front of the Führer awkwardly and reported the latest telegram he had received: "The High Command and the Navy Command reported that at around 9 o'clock, the U-354 submarine discovered the traces of the enemy fleet, which was roughly 100 nautical miles south of Bear Island. The weather was relatively bad, and the visibility on the sea was low. It was temporarily impossible to carry out air strikes. The Tirpitz formation had already rushed over... The Navy Command was ready to launch the "Rainbow" plan. According to your request, they asked for instructions for the next action."

"Who is in command at the front line?"

"Vice Admiral Kumets."

Hearing this name, Hoffman frowned - in history, it was the failed Battle of the Barents Sea that ruined Raeder's future, and it happened to be Kumets who commanded the battle.

"Tell Kumets to be bold and careful, and not to be too afraid of losing warships - this is inevitable, his mission is to find the fleet and deal with them." Hoffman thought for a while and said, "Get ready, and go back to Berlin in 2 hours."

Dalges knew that he must be very hated at this moment, so he didn't dare to look at Eva's face, just lowered his head and said: "Yes!"

Hoffman regained his decisiveness at this time. He knew how important the Battle of the Barents Sea was, not to mention that it would involve the implementation of the "Tsunami" plan later, so he stood up, hugged Eva and whispered: "I have an important mission and must rush back to Berlin."

Tears were already rolling in Eva's eyes, but she still said firmly: "Go."

Hoffman thought about it, and didn't know where he got the courage from, and whispered in Eva's ear: "Wait for me, I will visit Italy in a few days, and you can go with me at that time - as the head of state's girlfriend..."

Eva's eyes suddenly bloomed with a strange light: "Really?"

Hoffman nodded heavily!