The Rise of the Third Reich

A week after Hersmann and Jisaburo Ozawa reached an agreement to "assist the pilots," Captain Rudolf von Heinsberg-Hersmann suddenly returned home to Zossen from the army. He told his father and mother that he was going to Japan.

"Rudolph, are you going to Japan?" Hersman was stunned for a moment and immediately thought of the reason. "It was the Japanese Navy Vice Admiral who selected you... That's not bad. You can see the world, which will be very good for your future promotion."

This is natural. Little Hersman is a carrier-based aircraft pilot with the rank of captain. He has won the Blue Max Medal and has outstanding skills. He can not only fly the Fokker Zero but also the Fokker 99 dive bomber.

In addition, little Hersman is an elite pilot from a military academy. He has received the most rigorous military training and can speak fluent English. This is actually the reason why Ozawa talked to these pilots. Because no one in the Japanese Navy can speak German, but there are many people who can speak English. Therefore, Ozawa cannot find pilots who do not understand English and cannot communicate to go to Japan.

"Go to Japan? God, that's too far." Chloe shouted immediately after hearing the conversation between father and son.

Of course she doesn't want her son to travel far away. Rudolf, as the heir to the Heinsberg-Hersmann family, has yet to find a well-matched aristocratic lady to become his lifelong partner. How can I go all the way to Japan? There are no suitable marriage partners in Japan...

"Mom, I have to go." Rudolph sat at the long dining table in the restaurant, enjoying the delicious food at home while discussing the general trend of the world. "Because this is my mission. If the German Empire wants to lead the world, it must make full use of Japan."

This is well said! If Germany now wants to become the world's hegemon, it must defeat the United States, and to defeat the United States, it must use Japan to contain part of the U.S. naval power. The better Japan fights in the Pacific, the less pressure Germany will have on the Atlantic.

If Japan can really capture Hawaii, it will wipe out the main force of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. Then the "Polar Night Decisive Battle" in Hessman's plan will probably not be fought. Because it is impossible for the Americans to use up their remaining main force of the navy to compete with Germany - that is the seed for the revival of the US Navy. If they are all used up, there will be no qualified officers and sailors when the newly built large warships are launched. Operated.

If the U.S. Atlantic Fleet shrinks and becomes an existing fleet, then the control of the Atlantic Ocean will belong to Germany for a long time. With sea power in the Atlantic Ocean, Britain is the turtle in the urn, and it can easily seize territory in Africa. South America can also be penetrated with the help of pro-Germans and Catholics.

Chloe frowned and glanced at her husband Hersman, as if she wanted Hersman to ask her son to stay in Europe.

"Chloe, Rudolph should go, it's a very nice place." Hessman said with a smile.

As a father, he felt that it would not be more dangerous for his son to go to Japan than to stay in Europe, because Ozawa Jisaburo had promised not to send escort missions to German pilots. It was safer to serve as a direct cover than to escort. It would be safer to work as an instructor in a school. .

And by the time Rudolf completed his trip to Japan and returned to Germany, it was probably 1943 or 1944. The war will be almost over by then, and since Rudolph has experience in the Pacific War, he will probably not be sent to the battlefield again. He will probably become an instructor, and when the war is over, he will go to the Air Force Staff College for further studies. His future should be very good. .

Hersman said: "I don't think he will stay there for long... Maybe he can come back in 1943. By then he will become a national hero, and maybe he will bring a Japanese girlfriend back."

"Japanese girlfriend?" Chloe shook her head quickly and said to her son seriously, "Rudolph, this is not allowed. You are the heir to a marquis, and you may soon be the heir to a duke! You must have a wife who matches your family. "

In this era, European nobles and commoners would lose their inheritance rights if they married, so Chloe was so nervous. Moreover, in Chloe's circle, there are already many prominent figures who want to introduce Rudolph to girls of very noble backgrounds. Some even hold the title of duchess or princess. Chloe couldn't help but bring home one of them, a particularly beautiful duchess from the Westerbach dynasty (a relative of Princess Sissi) to introduce to her son.

Hessman smiled at his son: "You can only be your girlfriend or lover, but you can't marry him back home. Do you understand?"

"Father!" Little Rudolph's face turned red and he actually looked shy, "What are you talking about?"

"Ludwig!" Chloe also glared at her husband. "Your son is a Prussian noble officer!"

The Prussian aristocratic officers were a very conservative group, and playboys were not welcome in this group. The more mainstream one is like Hersman, who marries a woman with a noble birth and a generous dowry, and then stays together for the rest of her life and has a family of children.

"Okay," Hessman shrugged and said to his son, "I'm kidding you... But as far as I know, the Japanese will definitely arrange a woman for you. That's what they do there. That's Japanese. Culture. Just play it, but don’t take it seriously.”

Little Rudolph's face turned redder, he lowered his head and began to eat the steak that his mother had fried...

While Herschmann was teaching his son Rudolf the "diplomatic etiquette" after going to Japan, the other Rudolf also received the order to pack up and go to Japan.

"Go to Japan?" Second Lieutenant Rudolf von Ribbentrop, who served as a platoon leader in the tank destroyer battalion of the Waffen-SS "Greater Germany" motorized infantry division, was suddenly summoned to the company headquarters this morning and received a transfer order from the company commander Schwarzenegger.

According to the order, he will go to the "Military Advisory Group to Aid Japan" led by Lieutenant General Paulus to serve as an anti-tank technical advisor.

"Lieutenant, why me? I'm just a second lieutenant." Rudolf Ribbentrop didn't quite understand.

In this time and space, because the Hungarian Revolution was quite big, Germany retained the General Staff after World War I. Therefore, the training system for elite officers was also retained. Officers like little Hessmann who entered the military academy in their youth and received more than 10 years of military education are the real elites. Rudolf Ribbentrop was just a non-elite officer promoted from the soldiers, and his military quality was not as good as the former.

"Because you are an expert in anti-tank operations and can speak English." Lieutenant Schwarzenegger patted Rudolf Ribbentrop on the shoulder and said, "What is needed is an officer with practical experience in anti-tank operations and skilled in using various light anti-tank weapons including the 'Iron Fist'. You are the most suitable candidate in our 'Greater Germany' Division. And this is a very good mission. There will definitely be opportunities for promotion after returning from Japan."

The Japanese are going to get the "Iron Fist" from Germany. This anti-tank weapon that is easy to produce and use is obviously suitable for Japan. Moreover, the sample of the "Iron Fist" is also easy to carry and can be taken to Japan as luggage by the German military advisory group - the military advisory group is considered a diplomatic personnel and has diplomatic immunity. The Soviet customs cannot search their luggage.

Of course, they can't take a Panzer IV tank or an 88mm anti-aircraft gun as luggage.

"Imperial Marshal!" Lieutenant General Paulus saluted Hessmann and walked quickly to Hessmann's desk.

"Sit down." Hessmann looked up at his former adjutant, now Lieutenant General of the Army Paulus. In this time and space, Paulus would definitely not get the marshal's baton, he was just an office general.

"Are you ready?" Hessmann asked, "When will you leave?"

"Yes, it's ready. It will leave on September 26 and arrive in Japan on September 27." Paulus replied.

The "Paulus Advisory Group" will take a Lufthansa plane to Japan, and will land in the Soviet Union for refueling, but all passengers cannot get off the plane and set foot on Soviet soil.

"Have you studied the situation on Oahu?" Hessmann asked again.

"It has been studied." Paulus replied, "There are many large-caliber coastal artillery and a large number of aircraft on Oahu. There are also two divisions of the US Army, and many Marines and Navy personnel. The total number of defenders may be as high as 50,000-60,000. In addition, there are 100-200 tanks on the island... I believe the Battle of Oahu will be very tragic, and the casualties of the Japanese army may exceed the Battle of Port Arthur."

The Port Arthur Battle that Paulus mentioned is of course the Port Arthur attack and defense battle in the Russo-Japanese War. The Japanese fought for 5 months and suffered 59,000 casualties before they finally captured the fortress. The deployment of the US military on Oahu is no less than that of Russia in Port Arthur in the past. The loss of about 60,000 people is likely to be borne by the Japanese army. However, 60,000 people in exchange for one Oahu is definitely a very cost-effective deal. However, Oahu is not Port Arthur after all. It is thousands of kilometers away from the Japanese mainland. If it takes 5 months to attack, the Japanese will definitely be dragged down by their own logistics line. In order to capture the island in a short period of time, the only way in Hessman's view is to sacrifice the super battleships such as the Yamato with thick skin and heavy guns to destroy several important artillery positions south of Oahu. At the same time, it is necessary to land on the beachhead on the north coast of Oahu where heavy artillery cannot take care of, and fill it all the way to Pearl Harbor with mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Considering that Japan has no tank landing ships and the United States has deployed tanks on Oahu, Hessman provided Japan with the cheap and good secret weapon "Iron Fist" anti-tank grenade launcher, which is also a benevolent act. Now it depends on whether they can seize the opportunity.