Battlefield Priest's Diary

Chapter 161 Göring's Little Secret

As dawn approached, the train began to slow down.

Qin Hao is making final preparations.

Getting off the train is a crucial step; the slightest mistake could ruin everything.

But there is still one problem that must be addressed.

Anna, whose body temperature had already dropped, was quietly leaning against the corner of the carriage.

Anna was very well-behaved throughout the journey and did not cause him any trouble. However, objectively speaking, she was, after all, a child with the mental age of only 6 or 7. If unexpected changes or stimuli occurred, it was hard to guarantee that other situations would not arise.

The end of the cross rotated open, and from an angle out of the girls' sight, a small white granule fell into Qin Hao's hand. He picked up the granule and took out his water bottle.

But at the last moment before inserting the pill, Qin Hao hesitated.

What I have in my hand are sleeping pills, the kind that take effect very quickly. Once you drink them, they can put an average person into a deep sleep for about 8-10 hours.

However, this kind of thing is a burden on the body, and Anna herself is a patient.

After some hesitation, Qin Hao finally removed half of the medicine and dissolved it back in the water.

"Qin, the ice pack method works very well to cool her down; Anna is asleep," the caretaker whispered, unaware that Anna's current state was a result of taking sleeping pills.

"Okay, let her sleep a little longer."

Qin Hao took Anna out of the wooden box and then began to look around, as if searching for something.
"What are you looking for?" the girl next to me asked.

"Let's find a good place to hide, preferably one where the guards can carry us all together." Qin Hao began tapping on the wooden crate beside him, trying to find the most suitable hiding place.

Miss de Gaulle tapped her chin with her finger. "If that's the case, I think I know a place."

"Qin, come and help me." The caretaker came to an antique cabinet and instructed Qin Hao to exert force in a specific spot.

Click! With a soft sound, a spacious area was revealed on the back of the cabinet, just big enough for a person to sit and lean back inside.

"How did you know there were traps here?" Qin Hao was surprised for the first time.

“That’s one of the perks of working in a library,” Miss de Gaulle said with a playful wink.

"This kind of thing is called a treasury, and it was very popular before the 17th century. Louis XV, Catherine the Great, and Frederick the Great all used similar items. It is..."

At this point, the girl blushed slightly. "It's used by nobles to hide their lovers at home."

There were three cabinets of different sizes in the room.

Qin Hao picked up Anna and put her into one of the cabinets. Since the cabinet was originally designed for hiding people, Anna leaned against it and slept very comfortably, holding her favorite storybook in her hand.

Her quiet and sweet appearance made people want to take care of her, and Qin Hao's face also showed a gentle look.

"You stay here and take care of him, I'll go get some more ice."

Flutter~~~ Flutter~~~
A black crow flapped its wings on top of the train, leading the way, its red eyes watching everything ahead.

Qin Hao crouched low behind him, following at a distance. With Odin as his sentinel, he could safely reach the food truck.

Before dawn, the dining car was empty. Qin Hao, familiar with the place, arrived at the wine storage area.

However, he wasn't very lucky today; when he opened the ice bucket, most of the ice inside had already melted.

To his disappointment, Qin Hao made an unexpected discovery: a case of red wine next to the melting ice had been frozen solid.

Holding the bottle up to the moonlight, I realized it was a high-end product that had been looted from France. Gently shaking it, the wine inside turned a blood-like color.

If you don't have ice, this seems to work just as well for cooling.

Thinking of this, Qin Hao began collecting the frozen wine bottles, but when he was halfway through his work, Odin's warning sounded outside the window. Someone was coming.
-
On the other side of the train.

Göring had regained his former air of confidence. The Reich Marshal, holding his cane, paced around the room, personally addressing several high-ranking SS officers.

Strictly speaking, security work here was not within his job scope, but in order to demonstrate his loyalty to the Great Leader, His Excellency the Imperial Marshal decided to take charge personally.

"Inspect the French delegation's belongings; absolutely no weapons are allowed!"

"In addition, it is essential to thoroughly inspect the surrounding environment! Do not give any suspicious individuals a chance to hide!"

"Mobile patrols must be deployed within a 5-kilometer radius—no, an 8-kilometer radius! Only such security measures are befitting a head of state!"

One meaningless sentence after another came out of the Imperial Marshal's mouth, while the officers standing opposite him stood tall and listened attentively.

To be honest, standing there blankly like that looks a bit silly. I wonder if it would look better if everyone had a notebook in their hand.

Faced with Göring's request, the SS officers looked at each other, and finally the most senior, Joseph Dietrich, stepped forward.

He had been the head of the SS Führer's Guard and joined the Nazi Party in 1928. In terms of seniority, he was not much less than Göring, holding the rank of general. In the current situation, only he dared to stand up and speak out.

“Sir, may I report some information to you privately?” Joseph Dietrich straightened his back, neither appearing impolite nor overly obsequious.

Looking at the other man's chiseled face, and considering Sergei Dietrich's influence in the SS, Göring decided to give him face.

“The rest of you wait here. Joseph and I will come.” Goring swung his marshal’s cane and walked toward the back of the carriage.

The two people, one after the other, arrived at the connecting area of ​​the dining car.

“You may speak now, my general.” Göring maintained his peculiar verbal tic.

Joseph Dietrich frowned, choosing not to respond in the same way as Manstein.

"Your Excellency Marshal, as planned, the security of the Führer is jointly handled by the SS and the Wehrmacht. Our SS is responsible for internal security within a 3-kilometer radius, while the Wehrmacht is responsible for external security."

"If we expand the perimeter without authorization, it may actually weaken the internal security density."

Goring looked at the general with a serious expression and suddenly laughed.

“Only the SS and the Gestapo are the most loyal armed forces to the Führer, and the strongest shield of the Third Reich. Do you agree with me?” Göring asked with a smile, picking up his cane.

“I have no doubt about it!” Joseph Dietrich replied in a deep voice.

“My general, it seems you agree with my point of view. Although everything I said is true, the most important thing now is that we need to make the Führer aware of this as well.”

"Am i right?"

Joseph Dietrich understood at that moment that Göring was clearly implying that he was directing the SS and Wehrmacht to steal credit.

A few days ago, Göring ran into a snag with Manstein, a "secret" known to the higher-ups. Clearly, the marshal was using his power to win back his own interests and, incidentally, to get revenge on Manstein.

"Your Excellency, I understand your good intentions, but..."

"But what? My general?" Göring's plump face broke into a distinctive smile.

Joseph Dietrich hesitated for a moment before expressing his concerns: "Your Excellency, if the SS's duty area is expanded, it will cause the SS and Wehrmacht's defense zones to overlap, which will cause some confusion in coordination and command."

Göring waved his scepter indifferently. "It doesn't matter. In fact, our valiant SS is more than capable of protecting the Führer's safety."

"As for Manstein and Rommel's infantry, as long as they recognize the Führer's car, they can open the gate, salute him, and see him off to the plane."

“That doesn’t sound difficult, does it, my general?” Goring said, then burst into laughter.

What the marshal didn't know was that a third person had overheard the conversation inside the seemingly enclosed carriage.

(End of this chapter)