Bismarck

"Yes, it's finally over." Lütjens also sighed. He and Bismarck stood silently on the bridge ear, and the fishy and salty sea breeze with a slight coolness quickly flowed around them. The neat and beautiful buildings before going out to sea are now all black shadows after being burned by smoke and fire, with a desolate feeling of broken walls and ruins. Even the bridge ear where they often stood to enjoy the scenery was hit by heavy artillery during the battle, causing it to break, and they had no choice but to hastily surround it with iron chains.

Lütjens lowered his head and carefully and slowly stroked the rough steel, which was full of scars of war.

"I'm really sorry for making you suffer this time." He turned to Bismarck and said apologetically, "But it seems that I have said this many times."

"It doesn't matter, as long as we all come back safely together." Bismarck patted his clothes and said with a smile.

She looked inside and saw Tizi sitting at the fire control panel, talking to Lindeman, and occasionally letting out sweet laughter.

I really don't care about the results. The only people I care about are the people I care about.

Bismarck silently took his captain's hand.

All lights were turned off all around due to air defense purposes, leaving only the dark warship in the darkness, with only the splashes of water and the roar of the engine echoing.

"Where am I going this time?" Bismarck raised his head and asked, "Wilhelm or Hamburg?"

"It needs to be overhauled when we get back and sent back to the original factory." Lütjens said after looking at Bismarck.

"Then we will have to separate from Tirpitz."

"Well, Lindemann is about to leave." Lütjens nodded. "Let's hold a farewell party for him then."

"Hey, okay."

A black car stopped in front of the German High Command, and a figure in a windbreaker hurried out.

The military police at the door subconsciously stopped him first, and were surprised to find that it was Marshal Reger of the Navy.

"Marshal, what can I do for you?" He looked at the person in front of him strangely.

"Where is the Führer now?" Reger asked quickly.

"The Führer is in the operations room with..."

"Okay, I know!"

Regel interrupted him and walked in quickly.

"Hey, Marshal! You haven't registered yet!"

The only answer he got was Marshal Reger's excited soliloquy, "Bismarck is back, Bismarck is back..."

"Excuse me, our marshal has an urgent matter to report to the Führer, so I'll register it on his behalf," Reger's adjutant stepped forward and said with a smile.

"Okay..." The military police looked at the marshal who had disappeared and had no choice but to agree, "Please hand over your gun."

--------

Ever since the Iceland operation, the German Admiralty has been living in fear. They stayed in the combat command room all night for several consecutive days. They were especially worried when Bismarck, who had already lost his turret, came into conflict with the backbone of the British fleet.

When he heard that the Bismarck was severely damaged and could not even maintain its speed and was besieged by two Nelson-class ships, Regel could not forget the deathly silence in the Admiralty.

Everyone had a solemn look on their faces and was thinking that Bismarck was doomed this time. This German flagship, which had just been launched and had created an impressive record, was doomed.

Even though Reger believed in the ability of his subordinate, Admiral Lütjens, many things were beyond human control...

However, God finally proved that he was on the side of the Germans. According to the combat records submitted by the Bismarck afterwards, Reger simply could not believe that the Bismarck could survive such a siege and torpedo sea!

All he knew was that when Bismarck successfully broke through, he excitedly smashed a cup given to him by the Führer.

Now, the Bismarck has reunited with Bonte who went to support it, proving that the danger has been lifted and Germany's strongest battleship is safe.

Reger decided to report this good news to Hitler immediately. After all, Hitler was very concerned about Bismarck's situation in the past few days. At his instruction, Goebbels did a lot of publicity for Bismarck, and the navy also benefited a lot and its status was greatly improved.

"Führer!" Raeder knocked on the door.

This was Hitler's special room in the High Command. After the Battle of France began, he spent the whole day with army generals to formulate strategies. In order for him to rest conveniently, the High Command specially cleared out an empty room.

After a long while, a tired voice came from inside.

"Come in!"

Regel quickly straightened his collar and pushed the door open.

"Reger, what's the matter?" Hitler slowly picked up his glasses from the table, with a hint of fatigue on his face, obviously he had just been resting.

"Prime Minister, I think I have good news for you." Reger said with a smile.

"Oh? What's the matter?" Hitler looked up at him.

Regel did not keep it a secret, "The Bismarck has broken through the British encirclement and is now reunited with Bonte's fleet and on its way back home!"

Hitler was stunned for a moment, then a look of ecstasy appeared on his face, and all his tiredness disappeared.

"Good, good, good!" He said three good words in a row, his lips trembling slightly.

"Didn't the British say that their navy was powerful?!" He immediately took the nautical chart, took a rough look at Bismarck's position, and muttered to himself.

"The British Navy has been humiliated this time! They were able to come back despite being besieged by so many warships," Reger said proudly. "The Bismarck has made history!"

"Yes, that's right! I'm going to ask Goebbels to continue to intensify the propaganda! Wait until the Bismarck returns... By the way, where is she going back to?"

"She went back to Hamburg for an overhaul."

"Oh, okay, when she returns to Hamburg I will take time to visit these brave sailors!" Hitler's eyes lit up.

"Yes, Führer! Your arrival is the pride of all the crew members of the Bismarck!" Reger saluted respectfully.

Hitler nodded in satisfaction. "But I am very busy now, so I cannot personally welcome her back to the port. I will leave this task to you. I know you are also very worried about Bismarck's situation."

"Yes." Regel nodded with a wry smile, "Our Navy Department hasn't had a rest for several days."

"But fortunately she came back safely." Reger smiled, and then deliberately added, "Thanks to Lütjens. If it weren't for an admiral like me, the Bismarck would have sunk there."

"I almost forgot about Lütjens. Indeed, he is a good captain." Hitler nodded. "I am very satisfied with his performance this time. I appreciate his tactical judgment and his thinking about the overall situation in Iceland. Let him come to Berlin when the time comes. I want to commend him!"

"I think Lütjens would be very honored!" Reger smiled.

"Very good." Hitler nodded.

"By the way, Führer, I have one more thing I want to report."

"what's up?"

"Regarding Zeppelin's carrier-based aircraft... Our navy's Zeppelin has now been launched, but the carrier-based aircraft has not yet arrived. Now it can only be hidden in Gdansk. This is a shame for our navy!"

"In fact, Lütjens has asked me many times to install the Zeppelin aircraft carrier, and even brought up this matter in the recent battle report. The torpedo on the Bismarck was hit by the British Swordfish aircraft, which directly led to the Bismarck being severely damaged. The Swordfish took off from an aircraft carrier, and now the aircraft can pose a huge threat to warships." In order to exaggerate the threat of aircraft and the role of aircraft carriers, Reger began to talk nonsense with his eyes open. In fact, the Bismarck was hit by a torpedo from a destroyer, and after the hit, only the torpedo compartment was damaged, and there was no other damage.

However, the threat from the sky was real, and Lütjens did propose a plan for the development of aircraft carriers (of course, this was the result of discussions between Bismarck and Lütjens).

"Is that so?" Hitler frowned. He was a man who believed in big ships and big guns, and he always felt uneasy about the newly emerging combat weapons such as aircraft carriers.

But since it was Reger and Lütjens who brought it up...

"Last time Goering told me that he had drawn up a specific plan for you. Didn't you receive it?" Hitler said after thinking for a while.

"In fact, I received the document, but I cannot accept such conditions."

"What conditions?"

"Marshal Goering did agree to allocate some aircraft to our navy, but he believed that the ownership of the aircraft still belonged to the Air Force. I think this unclear ownership will have an adverse impact on future operations!"

ps: The second volume ended in the previous chapter, and now we will officially start the third chapter [Song of the Rhine]. The war and Bismarck’s feelings will be further advanced, various character lines should also be laid, and the general direction has been planned.

Hood, a fateful encounter!

ps: Finally, I would like to ask for the monthly ticket and recommendation ticket every day! I hope I can be on the list this month~

Chapter 124: Hamburger

Because of the issue of troop ownership, Reger strongly opposed Goering's proposal and rejected it, believing that it would affect combat efficiency. However, Goering would not sit idly by and watch the naval aviation grow, nor would he make concessions, so the aircraft carrier-based aircraft plan was shelved again.

This made Hitler, as the head of state, feel embarrassed. Both parties were at the level of marshals, and he could not directly order Reger or Goering to make concessions. This would show that he favored one of the military branches. The people below were watching his every move, and such behavior would undoubtedly bring huge trouble to Germany's military balance.

Therefore, even if he thinks someone else's idea is more correct, he can only think about it in his mind and can only act as a negotiator on the surface.

"I will continue to help you negotiate this matter with Goering." Hitler sighed, and the joy of Bismarck's return was diluted a lot.

"Thank you, Fuhrer!" Reger nodded. It was not that he didn't know the balance of power in the upper echelons. To be honest, if he didn't know this, he wouldn't have such a high position. He didn't ask for Hitler to give a direct order, as long as he could make Goering feel the pressure.

After all, Goering's proposal seemed ridiculous to him.

Goering proposed that the navy was only responsible for ensuring Zeppelin's navigation, while the training of carrier-based aircraft would be the responsibility of the Air Force. He said that the navy would apply to the Air Force for fighter planes when needed, and the flying units would be responsible to the Air Force Command, but the navy could apply for command when there was a need for combat.

This is just treating the aircraft carrier as an airport at sea. How could Reger agree to this? Carrier-based pilots usually don't stay with the ship. The training methods of the Air Force and the tactics required by the Navy cannot be the same. The troops trained in this way are not only not well coordinated, but also go to die in battle! Even if Goering didn't care about the planes, he still cared about Zeppelin.

Moreover, although the Navy can apply to the Air Force Command for temporary command, the Navy and the Air Force are equal units. Applying to the Air Force? Doesn't this show that it is inferior?

As the pride of the navy, Regal could not allow such a thing.

"Well, if you have nothing else to do, go back first." Hitler shook his head and said.

"Yes, Führer!"

“When are you going to Hamburg?”

"I will leave early tomorrow morning to discuss the overhaul. The damage to the Bismarck this time is much more serious than the last time in Poland."

"Okay, then go as soon as possible and try to get her into the factory for an overhaul right away. I want to see a brand new Bismarck within half a year!"

Regler nodded. There should be no problem in completing the repairs within half a year. Even with the additional armor, it should be barely possible.

"Who is carrying out the current diplomatic warfare?" Hitler thought for a moment and asked.

"The battlecruisers Scharnhorst and Gneisenau replaced the Bismarck. They have already crossed the Atlantic."

"Very good, the British transportation lines must be harassed non-stop." Hitler looked at his Admiral with satisfaction. "Now there is nothing to do, you can go and get busy."

"Yes!"

After being escorted to the Baltic Sea by Bonte's fleet, most of the destroyers and Scherlutzov nodded and returned along the original route - because the Norwegian campaign was not over at this time, they could not leave there. Bonte left two destroyers to escort Bismarck to its destination to prevent Bismarck from being attacked by British submarines on the way.

Since entering the Baltic Sea, they were basically under German control. Lütjens felt relieved. All he did was sail. The return trip seemed a little dull. This was normal. When extremely tense nerves suddenly relaxed, people would inevitably become lazy.

The crew began to work in shifts and no longer had all personnel on duty. If it weren't for the scars everywhere reminding them of the past wars, the crew would have seemed to think that the war they had experienced was just a dream.

It was a rare good day with bright sunshine.

Bismarck stood outside the bridge, looking at the scenery boredly, and happened to see the merchant ship crew members he had captured also went up to the deck. Because of the continuous fighting, they had not been on the deck for a long time, so they took advantage of this period of time when the crew members went up to the deck to sort out and repair things, and they also came up to bask in the sun.

However, Bismarck discovered an interesting phenomenon. In the past, when the merchant ship crew saw their own crew, they would be like seeing a devil, wishing they could have a gun in their hands and fight to the death. But now, what is the situation of being so happy? Although they are not very close, some crew members even take the initiative to help their enemies do work, such as simply mopping the floor and wiping the deck.

Hehe, interesting.

Bismarck smiled, said hello to Lütjens and walked down the bridge.

"Hi, Mr. Francis."

"Oh, it's Secretary Bismarck. What can I do for you?"

Francis, the captain of the Apollo, was alone on the side of the ship at this time, bending down quietly with a wire brush to brush the stains on the railing.

However, railings and other things are also part of my body, so it always feels weird to wipe them so carefully.

Bismarck looked at it for a while, shook his head, and said with a smile, "It's nothing, I just came down to chat with you. Why are you doing this? Isn't this the job of the crew on our ship?"

Francis stood up, stopped what he was doing, sighed and said, "I have nothing to do anyway, so I'll help out a little. Thank you for taking care of me these days."

"This is what we should do." Bismarck nodded. "You should have seen that our German soldiers are not as terrible as those propaganda in the newspapers."

"But it is a fact that you sank my ship." Francis said calmly, "Now I can only try not to hate you personally, but you are still my enemy."

"This is the truth. I cannot refute it." Bismarck nodded in agreement. "This is a manifestation of the national will. We as individuals are indeed powerless."

"But then again, your crew and ours get along pretty well, don't you think? By the way, how many casualties did you suffer in the last battle against Nelson?"

"That's their personal choice. I have no right to interfere." Francis said, "During that battle, the restaurant where we were was hit by a shell. There were heavy casualties, but those who died were from other ships. My men were only injured. Thanks to the timely treatment of the military doctor, please thank the military doctor for me, Secretary Bismarck."

"I can still do this, but I think it would be better if you thank me in person," Bismarck suggested.

"Maybe." Francis nodded.

"By the way, I also want to ask, your ship is on its way back to Germany today, right?"

"Yes, we will arrive in Hamburg."

"Then what do we do?"

"In fact, I also want to discuss this matter with you." Bismarck looked apologetic.

"Please say."

"Originally our captain planned to find a neutral merchant ship on the way and drop you off. But our luck wasn't very good. There were no neutral merchant ships. Add to that the fighting in Iceland, and this matter has been delayed again and again. Now we are in the Baltic Sea. It looks like you can only go to Germany with us..."

"Do we have a choice?" Francis said with a wry smile.