Steel Soviet Union

"From the day we put on this uniform, our destiny is not in our own hands. Weickert, I think you should know this."

""

Strimmermann's tone was as calm as still water, but to Weickert's ears it sounded like a stormy sea.

"It's over. It seems we are still planning to fight to the end."

Does Colonel Weickert want to live?

Of course, who wants to die if they can live?

But at this moment, Colonel Weikert still remembered that he was still a Wehrmacht soldier. He had to obey the orders of his superiors before following his own personal will. Stromermann held his destiny in his hands.

After saying this, Strimmerman no longer stared at the night scene outside the window, but chose to slowly turn towards Weickert. He wanted to see what the subordinate behind him was like at this moment. An expression.

"Do you think I'm cruel? In just one sentence, I decided the fate of more than 30,000 people and pushed them into the abyss of death."

""

Weickert still didn't speak. At this moment, his true heart was entangled in a whirlpool between reason and morality, and he didn't know what to do.

If he only considered his personal thoughts, Weickert felt that his answer should be yes. Stemmermann was not qualified to make choices for all the besieged German soldiers. Not everyone wanted to follow the orders of the Führer. He even thought about saying this and telling Stummerman loudly to his face, even if the thought only lasted for a short moment.

But reason told Weickert that he could not do this.

The bounden duty of a soldier is to obey orders, and Strimmermann was just following the duties of a soldier and following the orders personally issued by the head of state. No matter how ridiculous and almost impossible this order seems now, an order is an order. All the soldiers have to do is to execute it like a machine. It's that simple.

Seeing that Weickert was speechless with a tangled look on his face, Stromermann, who had his hands in his pockets and began to wander alone, took over the words and spoke slowly.

"I will give everyone the power to choose their own destiny. They are not only German soldiers and soldiers of the Führer, but also the sons of their parents, the husbands of their wives, and the fathers of their children. For the sake of the so-called duty and honor, all this will be forcibly removed from them. I am permanently deprived of it, at least I don’t have this power, and neither does the head of state.”

Weickert, who thought he had already thought of what Strimmermann would say, was immediately stunned when he heard this. He never expected that what Strimmermann would finally do was something like this. "compromise" approach.

"General, this"

Before Weickert could think of what he was going to say next and finish his words, Stummermann, who had no intention of giving up the right to speak, continued to speak.

"All besieged troops can choose to continue fighting or break out of the encirclement, or surrender to the Russians. The power will be decentralized to every infantry squad and every soldier. Of course, including you, Weikert, follow your own rules Make decisions based on your true thoughts. From now on, I don’t have any orders for you to execute. You are a truly free person.”

""

This should have been the best news that Weickert had been waiting for for a long time. He could decide his own destiny instead of being forcibly tied up. What could be better for a man who is about to lose his life on the battlefield?

But Weickert was not sure that was what he was really thinking at the moment, and the tone and taste of what came out of his mouth changed accordingly.

"General, what about you? What are you going to do?"

Will Strimmermann surrender?

Maybe, there is a high probability that it will be. Weickert knew very well that Strimmerman was also a family man, and he also had relatives and family that he cherished. Since he can give everyone such an order of their own choice, there is no point in continuing to insist on it.

"Me? Well, maybe I need some time to think about it. I don't know what decision I will make."

""

Weickert had never felt like he was always speechless like tonight. In the past, he always opened his mouth to speak cleverly, but now it seemed that he had been thrown out of the sky and no longer existed.

No matter what Strimmermann and Weikert thought in their hearts, the last order issued as the commander of the besieged German army was eventually conveyed to everyone and every German soldier.

"Is this true? It's unbelievable! Didn't the general say during the day that the head of state would send an army to rescue us? I thought this was true."

"Army? Where did the army come from? Are you awake or are you dreaming? Clear your head! It's been so many days. If the head of state can really rescue us from here, we don't have to wait until now. What the big shots above said You have to learn to distinguish and listen. Some of them are just nice words and slogans. I have recognized them long ago, so I can survive until now. "

"It's better to wait, brothers, and see how others react. It's still not too late for us to wait and act."

"Whatever you want, anyway, I plan to surrender to the Russians. It's better to work for the Russians as a coolie than to be beaten to death in this hellish place. I still want to go back alive."

Several German soldiers sitting around in the low-lying area were discussing the explosive news that had just been learned and was now being spread everywhere.

Some people think this is a fabricated lie, but more people still believe it and plan to give up something for their own lives. Even wearing the uniform of the National Defense Forces does not mean that you must lose your life in the army. From the moment I joined the army, I have never heard this saying that it is necessary.

On the completely different side, in the headquarters jointly established by the SS Viking Armored Division and the Valoni Panzergrenadier Brigade. Herbert, the commander of the Viking Division who had just received the order from Strimmermann, was now furious with his glasses trembling on the bridge of his nose.

"Traitor! Shameless! Isn't he, Stromermann, ashamed of giving such an order!?"

"The Führer has just recharged our entire army. Stromermann, a coward who is afraid of death, actually wants to surrender to the Russians at night! This is impossible! I will never agree to and abide by this order! These traitors of the Wehrmacht There is never a time to be reliable. They stabbed the Emperor in the back during the last war, and this time they continue to stab the Führer, a bunch of German traitors! "

"We the SS will fight to the end, whatever the cowards of the Wehrmacht want to do. Get the troops ready, gather all the remaining armor, and we will break through tonight!"