It's 2 a.m. on April 10, 1940. Feng. Second Lieutenant Heinsberg-Hersmann began praying to God for good luck that he could meet an unlucky Ms.406 or H-G-75 or a hurricane. He was sure to deal with all three types of aircraft, and if it was a Spitfire, it would be a bit troublesome.

However, at this time, Rudolph Jr. did not know that these people who flew the plane were not actually the vanguard of the attack. At 2 a.m., a commando team of nine Brandenburg operatives had crossed the German-Dutch border – near a Heinsberg-Hersmann estate.

Leading the crossing was Wilhelm of the Brandenburg troops. Lieutenant Walser, who and two other members of the Limburg and Dutch-speaking team posed as Dutch policemen, while six other members of the Brandenburg team posed as disarmed German soldiers (the German-Dutch border was intertwined in the provinces of Limburg and Heinsberg, and in many places it was not clearly marked, making it easy to stray). Under the cover of night, they crossed the border into neutral Dutch territory and then walked to the town of Hennap, five kilometers away. There's a railway bridge over the Maas River, and that's what they're going to occupy!

Unlike the other plane, the Germans will not occupy the Netherlands this time, but will only "borrow" Limburg. Limburg is a province in the southeastern part of the Netherlands, with Maastricht as its capital. The province is located right between Belgium and Germany, and the narrowest point of the province is only a few kilometers - Wilhelm. Where Walser is now traveling, it is a few kilometers walk through the three countries.

They were walking through the countryside of Limburg, where the road passed through the vast fields of farmland, and in the distance they could see some very beautiful little houses, no different from those in Germany. There were no pedestrians on the road, and there were no Dutch soldiers on patrol. Although Europe was at war, the Netherlands was a "confirmed" neutral country, and Queen Wilhelmina was a benefactor of Kaiser Wilhelm, so few Dutch people now thought that Germany would invade, so there were few Dutch troops stationed in the province of Limburg.

However, there was a small detachment stationed at the bridge over the Maas in the town of Hennap - the Dutch, anticipating the passage of foreign troops from Limburg, loaded the bridge with explosives to blow up the bridge in the event of an invasion by foreign troops.

"It's so quiet here!" A man named Albert. Funk's Brandenburg team exclaimed in Dutch.

"Soon it won't be quiet!" William. Lieutenant Walser replied in a low voice, vaguely seeing the outline of the bridge. "If all goes well, in 15 minutes the vanguard of the attack on Belgium will have crossed the Maas bridge.

The vanguard of the invasion of Belgium - "Adolf. All the officers and men and weapons of Hitler's "Guard Banner" were loaded on several trains that stopped on the territory of Heinsberg County.

Kurt, who had played a role in the invasion of Poland and was promoted and awarded the Iron Cross of the First Class. Meyer (Armored Meyer) is now sitting on the body of a brand-new assault gun truck No. 3, waiting for the train to start.

The company in which he was in (originally belonged to "Adolf. Hitler's "Guards Banner" was assigned to the 3rd Panzer Division during the Polish campaign. After the Polish campaign, it was upgraded to an assault gun company and was equipped with 14 assault guns No. 3, which in 1940 were very powerful.

"Captain," said a platoon commander under Panzer Meyer, named Marx. The Winsher youth is also on a flatbed with Meyer. He was smoking, and he gave Meyer one. "This time it probably won't be as easy as fighting Poland, right?"

"Why?" Meier took a drag on his cigarette, "Is it because the opponent is a Frenchman?" ”

Marx. Wen She shrugged, "Isn't that obvious?" Poland is a big rural country, Britain and France are industrial powers, and they have a lot of tanks. ”

"But we've been training for a few months," Meyer said, "and we've been sweating for a few months, we're a lot better than we were in September last year!" ”

From the end of the Polish campaign last September until March of this year, Panzer Meyer and his men were rigorously trained. This was an intensive training after a life-and-death struggle on the battlefield, and every officer and soldier knew that when their training was over, it was likely that they would have a bloody and long struggle with the mighty British and French troops.

If they could win, the Third Reich would have become the leader of Europe and the world for a thousand years!

If they fail, then the country and the nation they love will come to an end!

"We're going to win," Panzer Meyer took a puff of his cigarette, "because we have leaders, and no one can defeat us!" ”

……

"Who are they?"

A Dutch officer standing outside the gate of the outpost by the bridge over the Maas River asked aloud. He was accompanied by several Dutch soldiers with rifles on their backs, all of whom were on the night shift tonight.

"Second lieutenant, a few German soldiers who strayed into the Netherlands, were disarmed by us." William. Lieutenant Walser clutches a loaded Manlischer M1895 rifle, the standard weapon of the Dutch border police.

"What kind of weapon do you know you have entered by mistake?" The Dutch officer said, "Why don't you just drive them away?" ”

"I've paid them all, I can't pay them back, right?" William. As Walser spoke, he pretended to escort six "unarmed" German soldiers closer. "It says that if you catch a foreign soldier who enters by mistake, you will be handed it over."

"Leave it to us?" The Dutch officer thought for a moment, as if there was an order: "All right, bring them here." Then he said in German to the German soldiers who were coming at him: "Don't worry, brothers, we Dutch are not hostile. It's just that you have to be taken into custody because of the Treaty of Neutrality, but it doesn't hurt you, at least you won't be killed by the French shells...... Hey, aren't you disarmed? Why are you still holding a gun? Why point the gun at me, it's not allowed......"

Before the hapless Dutch officer could react, a German Mauser pistol was already pressed against his head. Several Dutch soldiers who stood with him were also killed

"You, you're German?" As if he understood something, he looked at William in horror. Walser, in a voice that almost cried, asked, "You Germans are going to invade Holland?" ”

"No, we won't invade, we're friends with the Netherlands." William. Walser spoke and waved his hand, causing several Brandenburg team members to rush into the post to control the bomb detonator.

"Not an invasion?" The Dutch lieutenant asked, "So what's happening now?" ”

"Captain, we've cut the wires (detonating devices)." The voice of a Brandenburg soldier was heard from inside the outpost.

William. Walser exhaled and said to several Dutch officers and soldiers: "Nothing happened!" The best-case scenario for the Netherlands is that nothing is happening now! ”

As he spoke, he pulled out a flare gun and fired a red flare into the night sky.

……

"Hey, Rudolph, I heard that your dad is a minister?"

On a road near the Luxembourg border, at this time it is full of all kinds of vehicles, and there is no end in sight. On one of the Opel trucks, which belonged to the SS "Großdeutschland" flag team, Gustav Brown, who had worked as a gunner for Panzer Meyer. Schwarzenegger was talking to a rather handsome young man named Rudolph. This Rudolf, of course, did not have the surname Heinsberg-Hersmann, but Ribbentrop.

"Yes, my father was the Minister of Foreign Affairs." Rudolph. Feng. Ribbentrop replied in a low voice. His father was a minister, but he was now just an ordinary soldier - he was not a professional soldier who had graduated from an officer school such as the Lichtfeld Military Academy, but a supplementary soldier who had been drafted into the army before the start of the world war. Now he has just completed the training of recruits and was added to the 11th company of the "Großdeutsch" flag team.

Gustav. After the Polish campaign, Schwarzenegger returned to the SS Military Academy in Braunschweig (he had been in the academy before the outbreak of the war and had left the army on the way), completed his training as a platoon commander, and was now a second lieutenant platoon commander (SS Commando Squadron Leader III) in the 2nd Platoon of the 11th Company of the "Greater Germany" banner.

"You are the son of Minister Ribbentrop." Gustav. Schwarzenegger was slightly surprised - and only "slightly".

In today's Germany, it is only natural that the sons of big men go to war like ordinary people. Even the emperor's eldest grandson, William. Friedrich. Franz. Joseph. Christian. Olaf (who lost his inheritance due to intermarriage with commoners) is now also on the front line. Not to mention the children and grandchildren of marshals, generals, ministers, parliamentarians.

"Are you scared?" Gustav. Schwarzenegger handed a lit cigarette to the foreign minister's son. "Maybe in a few hours there will be a bloody battle."

"There will be no bloody battle in a few hours," said Rudolph. Ribbentrop took the cigarette and took a puff, "In a few hours we will only be torn apart in this Opel truck, and we will have to wait for the war to be in Belgium." The Belgians may fight us, but the Luxembourgers won't fight us...... They are one family with us Germans! ”

The Foreign Minister's son did a good analysis. Luxembourg was originally a member of the German Confederation until 1867, when it seceded due to the consequences of the Austro-Prussian War, but remained a member of the German Customs Union until 1919. Therefore, there have always been relatively strong pro-German forces in Luxembourg, and it is impossible to resist Germany desperately. And the Belgians would not actually have resisted the Germans in the desolate Ardennes Forest region in the south, and the so-called adventurous surprise attack actually passed safely through undefended areas.

The key to the success of the surprise attack was whether Army Group B's attack on Belgium could attract reinforcements from the Allied 1st Army Group in northern France. (To be continued.) )