Chapter 163

1941, January 12th

The capital of the Soviet Union, Moscow – The Kremlin

Laughter was spreading through the Kremlin for the first time in a while.

"Haha, then let's bury the trivial grudges of the past."

"With this treaty as a start, I look forward to a deep friendship blossoming between the Great Japanese Empire and the Soviet Union!"

The Soviet Union's General Secretary Joseph Stalin and Japan's Foreign Minister Matsuoka Yosuke shook hands with a laugh.

The Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact was formally signed.

Japan formally acknowledged the Soviet Union's authority over North Sakhalin, relinquishing its territorial sovereignty, and would support the Soviet Union's advance into Afghanistan or Iran.

The Soviet Union had already temporarily suspended its support for the Republic of China before the treaty's signing, but with the official signing and the formal end of hostilities, Japan could now import the Soviet Union's abundant resources in addition to parts of the Malay Peninsula and the East Indies.

"It would have been even better if a formal alliance treaty had been signed…"

At the smiling words of Matsuoka, who had gone to great lengths to secure a Soviet-Japanese Alliance, Stalin stroked his mustache and grinned.

"Let's consider that a little more prudently.

Shouldn't deepening the trust between our two nations come first?"

Inwardly, Matsuoka cursed Stalin as a paranoid, but he wore a broad smile on his face.

"Of course! His Majesty the Emperor of the Great Japanese Empire and Prime Minister Konoe respect the Soviet Union.

However, should we discuss a formal alliance, we will actively consider partitioning China and India with the Soviet Union! Haha!"

From Japan's perspective, just signing the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact was a huge gain anyway.

"That sounds good. The Soviet Union always maintains an open stance regarding beneficial alliances."

Yet, Stalin, who had said as much, scoffed inwardly.

These guys were struggling to catch a single Jiang Jieshi, whose support had been cut off. What nonsense was this about partitioning China and India?

It was obvious they were just putting on a show, pretending to acknowledge Soviet rights as a ploy to lean on the Soviet Army.

But apart from that, the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact was a huge gain for the Soviet Union as well.

Although the formal treaty was only signed now, the two countries had already made a secret agreement where the Soviet Union would cease support for Jiang Jieshi, and Japan would guarantee the security of the Soviet Far East.

Thanks to this, Stalin was able to withdraw one million elite troops from the Far East and deploy them to the Finnish Front.

In the last Winter War, they had bled after deploying the Ukrainian Army, which wasn't used to the cold, but if experienced generals commanded the Far Eastern Army, which was accustomed to the severe cold, Finland was bound to collapse.

It would have been better to crush Finland before winter came, but the agreement with Japan took time, so the Far Eastern Army's arrival only in winter was a flaw.

"By the way, I don't see People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs Molotov…"

Stalin, lost in thought, smiled faintly, thinking he was paying attention to something useless.

"He is a bit busy."

"Ah, is that so…"

In reality, far from being busy, Molotov was idle.

Molotov had been acting like a loyal dog, pandering to Stalin, but after Beria, Stalin's suspicion of such people had flared up, and he was keeping Molotov severely in check.

All that man, the supposed second-in-command of the Soviet Union, had done was get mocked in Finland, with things being called Molotov Bread Baskets and Molotov Cocktails.

That's what Stalin thought.

The People's Commissar for Foreign Affairs, who oversaw Soviet diplomacy, couldn't even attend an important event like the signing of the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact.

Molotov must be burning up inside.

When I criticized him as a parliamentarian for holding too many meetings, he restrained himself and held almost none.

Should I criticize him as a bureaucratic formalist for not holding enough meetings this time?

Stalin smiled with satisfaction, imagining the stress Molotov was under. Indeed, subordinates should be tormented until they can't even breathe.

If he couldn't stand it and got other ideas, he was that kind of guy from the start. I'd just have the NKVD purge him, and that would be that.

No one can be trusted.

"By the way, what is your country's relationship with France like?"

At Stalin's probing question, Matsuoka slightly narrowed his brow.

"Ahem, hmm. They've shown a rather… disappointing course of action.

They're too busy holding the European Front to pay any mind to Asia…"

Stalin almost let out a hollow laugh. Wasn't it thanks to that very France that they were now running amok in Asia?

Expecting the Soviet Union, which was projecting immense manpower on the European Front, to intervene in China and India… it was clear these guys lacked information and interest in the European Front.

The pendulum of Stalin's mind swung once again toward peace negotiations.

France was bound to collapse soon anyway.

So, it would be best to inflict definite damage on Poland, Finland, or Germany in this offensive, demand a reasonable cession of territory, and call for an armistice.

If the Allied Forces accepted, he could recover his strength and then, when Japan was busy fighting them, he would stab Japan in the back of the head.

An alliance with Japan was something to consider only if the Allied Forces rejected the peace negotiations.

France was pinning its hopes on this Soviet offensive and expecting peace negotiations, but coincidentally, Stalin was thinking the same thing.

"Well then, I look forward to working with you."

"My deepest gratitude! The friendship between our two nations will last for a thousand years!"

Contrary to Matsuoka's extremely polite words, Japan's thoughts were even more outlandish than Stalin's.

'If France falls, we'll seize the opportunity to occupy French Indochina and pressure India and the Republic of China.'

This was the Imperial Japanese Navy's plan.

On top of that, the Imperial Japanese Army's plan was this.

'If the Allied Forces struggle against the Soviet Union, we will enter the war against the Soviets on the condition that the Allies recognize our currently occupied territories, declare an armistice, and stab the unsuspecting Soviet Union in the back to seize Sakhalin and the Far East!'

The Japanese rampage from the original history—attacking Pearl Harbor after a re-elected FDR sent the Hull Note as Hitler swept Europe—was now manifesting differently by securing the Southern Resource Area early in the war.

Stalin and Matsuoka, two men unaware of each other's true intentions, dreamed completely different dreams in the same bed as they laughed amicably.

-

1941, January 13th

The Polish-Soviet Front

The distance to Warsaw was now less than 50 kilometers.

With the Luftwaffe heavily committed to France, creating a gap in air superiority on the Eastern Front, the long-suppressed Soviet Air Force was deployed in massive numbers.

While they bought time, the Soviet Army's heavy artillery, which had been unable to act after losing air superiority, began to roar in unison, raining shells on the Allied Forces' positions.

As the rain of shells pounded the Polish and German positions, counter-battery fire soon began from the German lines, and the gods of war began to fight, pouring shells on each other.

"Long live the Soviet Union! Long live Comrade Stalin! Ura!"

"Ura, ura!"

A number of Soviet soldiers greater than the entire Allied force deployed on the Western Front began to charge toward the enemy lines, covering the horizon on the vast plains of eastern Warsaw.

The moment a grand offensive began, on a scale that made the Western Front look like child's play.

Marshal of the Soviet Union Grigory Kulik was seething with resentment at the headquarters in Lublin, a short distance from the front.

"Damn it, to think that I, a proud Marshal of the Soviet Union, have to take orders from a mere Colonel General…"

The Soviet Army had successfully defended against Rundstedt's offensive, but they failed to counterattack and thus could not achieve a decisive victory.

In the process, Kulik, who had suffered enormous losses from the beginning and was routed, had to give up his position as Commander-in-Chief to Georgy Zhukov and was demoted to a mere Army Group Commander.

"It's all the fault of those incompetent subordinates…"

That arrogant bastard Zhukov must have given him only incompetent subordinates. If not that, then it was the act of the General Secretary, who acted like a paranoid whenever a subordinate gained even a little power.

In this battle, his unit was facing the German Army Group Centre led by Fedor von Bock, but he still hadn't received any T-34s for his subordinate units.

Of all things, the very tank he had insisted could never be adopted had turned out to be a remarkably excellent tank.

To now praise the T-34 and beg the General Secretary for some went against his pride as a Field Marshal.

Still, he couldn't launch an offensive without an armored unit, so Headquarters had dispatched one, but…

"They only listen to Zhukov's orders? Hah! The insolent bastards…"

To think that Konstantin Rokossovsky, crippled by the Great Purge, and Enrique Líster, a foreigner experienced in Spain, those two bastards, dared to refuse his orders.

They are defending Warsaw with the main force of the Polish Army and have few troops, but the Polish Army has long since been weakened.

So, if he wins this time and his unit occupies Warsaw, he might regain the General Secretary's trust.

"Just you wait. I am a proud Marshal of the Soviet Union! I will be the key player in this battle's victory!"

If he could just gain the General Secretary's trust, he would definitely have that insolent Zhukov bastard dismissed.

Marshal Kulik, who would one day be called the Soviet Won Gyun in a country to the East, was burning with fighting spirit all by himself.

-

1941, January 14th

Northern Germany, Berlin, Berlin General Staff Headquarters

"Everyone, attention!"

"Thank you for your hard work! Everyone's busy, so I'll just accept the sentiment.

What's the war situation?"

Manstein once again showed his amazing feat of raising the corners of his mouth while his eyes rotted, then laid on the flattery.

"Ooh- As expected, when someone who knows the hardships of the front line goes into politics, things are different! Hahaha!"

Could you just tell me the war situation?

I don't know how he interpreted my gaze, but Manstein cleared his throat and pointed to the map.

"The Soviet Army has launched a general offensive on the Eastern Front and in Finland."

Well, that's something everyone knows.

Manstein pointed to Finland on the map and said.

"In Finland, 200,000 Finnish Army troops under Emil Gustaf Mannerheim are defending against Kirill Meretskov's one million Soviet troops."

No matter how skilled Mannerheim is, isn't Meretskov a competent enough general?

It might be different if the Soviets had thrown in hastily conscripted troops, but Stalin, who already failed once in the Winter War, didn't seem likely to make the same stupid mistake twice.

Seeing that the Soviet-Japanese Neutrality Pact was just announced, they could be the elite troops from the Far East. If so, things will get really tough over there…

"Finland is in real trouble."

"Indeed, it is."

Manstein just shrugged his shoulders without much enthusiasm.

This guy, it's so obvious he thinks Finland is just some small nation that can fall for all he cares.

"As you know, in Poland, 1.5 million of our troops and 1 million Polish troops are defending against 4 million Soviet troops."

I knew, but the difference in scale compared to the Western Front is just too severe…

"In the direction of East Prussia, General Günther von Kluge's Army Group North of 700,000 men is engaged with Ivan Konev's Soviet forces."

Ivan Konev, from what I know, is a capable person on par with Zhukov as a rival.

General Kluge is of course competent, but that's no easy opponent…

"In the south, in the direction of Kraków, General Sosnkowski's 300,000 Polish troops and General Johannes Blaskowitz's Army Group South of 400,000 men are engaged with Boris Shaposhnikov's Soviet forces."

"Shaposhnikov?"

"He was the Chief of the General Staff before Zhukov."

I'm not ignorant of the German-Soviet War in the original history, but I can't be expected to have all those generals memorized like an encyclopedia.

I don't know much, but if he was capable enough to be Chief of the General Staff, he's no pushover.

"And in the center, Warsaw, General Sikorski's 700,000 Polish troops and General Fedor von Bock's Army Group Centre of 400,000 men are engaged with Grigory Kulik's Soviet forces."

Huh? They're all illustrious generals, but there's a trap in there?

It's like a troll showed up in an all-star game…

"Isn't that the guy who got thoroughly trounced by General Rundstedt in the last battle?"

"Yes, that's correct. Perhaps that's why he, a Marshal, is under the command of Colonel General Zhukov."

Still, because he's a Marshal, he wasn't completely purged in one go?

In any case, the last battle can be seen as a tactical victory for the Soviets…

"What is the counterattack plan, Chief of the General Staff?"

Manstein grinned.

"Well, of course, we plan to counterattack in the center."

"Hmm…"

Indeed, Kraków requires crossing a river and the other side is hilly, making it quite ambiguous for an armored unit to operate.

The area between East Prussia and Poland is a vast forest, making air support difficult, and while a surprise attack might work, operating tanks in an all-out war there would have reduced breakthrough power, which is troublesome.

So what's left is to push through the center, a plains area where we must secure the safety of Warsaw, the heart of Poland.

Plus, the commander there seems like a pushover…

"First, we'll pretend to be pushed back, using Warsaw as bait to draw the enemy in close, then have our armored unit crush their offensive, bypass them, and encircle and annihilate a part of their Army Group Centre."

That's an operation not much different from what we deployed on the Western Front, isn't it?

"Hmm, will that be enough?"

Honestly, I'm a little anxious.

The enemy commander is clearly a pushover. But he's been placed in too perfect a spot.

Against the German Army, which has repeatedly shown its skill in utilizing armored units, they openly placed a proven incompetent in the center, a place perfect for armored units to operate?

The opponent, the Soviet Commander-in-Chief, is that Georgy Zhukov. Setting aside his personality, he's a great general who led the German-Soviet War to victory, so why?

"There is no problem, Vice-Chancellor. General Oswald Lutz will command the Armored Breakthrough Unit, and the Luftwaffe has promised to provide air support."

"Is that so…"

If it's Oswald Lutz, certainly, as Guderian's teacher, he is the right man for the job.

And the Luftwaffe is always reliable.

But something's bothering me…

"Ahem, Vice-Chancellor! Do you not trust me?"

"No, I trust you, Chief of the General Staff."

I might not trust other things, but I trust his ability.

It's also true that with the offensive coming right after Operation Winter Storm, there wasn't enough time to meticulously plan a counter-operation, so maybe it can't be helped.

In the end, the Eastern Front is becoming a showdown between Manstein and Zhukov.

In the original history, Manstein was merely a frontline commander, unlike Zhukov who oversaw the entire front, so we'll have to see them face off to know who will win.

The reason I keep worrying is probably because it's a contest where the lives of countless soldiers are the stakes.

As I let out a sigh, Manstein smiled faintly and added.

"Don't worry too much, Vice-Chancellor. I've taken out an insurance policy, just in case."

Insurance?

-

1941, January 14th

Near the Polish capital of Warsaw, a German encampment

"Wow, does this mean we don't have to march until our feet hurt anymore?"

"This is great!"

The 'former' Infantry Battalion Commander, Clemens Fleck, watched his delighted subordinates with blurry eyes.

"Battalion Commander. Aren't you happy? General Hube was also very pleased…"

Even at Adjutant Vinrich Behr's words, Clemens didn't open his mouth.

Lieutenant General Hans-Valentin Hube was promoted to General of the Panzer Troops for his military merit in the last battle.

Thanks to the amazing performance shown in the last battle, his unit was reinforced to corps-level, and the basic infantry unit under his command was reorganized into a motorized unit.

It was thanks to Manstein's order to ensure that the unit 'which proved its outstanding ability in defensive warfare during a crisis' could be deployed to the right place at the right time.

So, General Hube's corps was, for now, nominally a reserve unit.

The problem was that it was a 'Strategic Reserve Armored Fire Brigade'.

Clemens recalled the face of that damn Chief of the General Staff, Manstein, who had bared his shiny teeth and said he wouldn't have to worry about earning military merit, and stared off at a distant mountain.

Finally, a tear trickled from the eye of the 'seasoned veteran' Motorized Infantry Battalion Commander Clemens Fleck, who had been through the Spanish Civil War, the Polish Front, the coup suppression, and the Eastern Front.

"What's so great about a vehicle that'll deliver us to the most dangerous battlefield faster and differently than anyone else, you crazy bastards…"