World War II: Starting with the defeat of the Desert Fox

What Thorne didn't know was that the propaganda surrounding this battle in Britain was even more intense and exaggerated than in Egypt, to the point of being described as "crazy."

This propaganda campaign was spearheaded by Churchill.

Churchill was overjoyed to learn that Thorne had buried a German armored regiment in the salt marshes.

"That's fantastic!" Churchill exclaimed, pumping his fist as if punching an art student in the chin.

"Do you know what this means, Peck?"

"All our troubles are over, they've vanished!"

"Yes, Your Excellency the Prime Minister." Peck bowed slightly.

Churchill's "dilemma" refers to the fact that he has not won a single hard battle since he became prime minister.

Therefore, Parliament moved a motion of no confidence against Churchill, with members believing that Churchill had "won the debate but lost the war."

Just when Churchill was about to be ousted from office, Thorne fought a brilliant battle at this crucial moment.

This practically pulled Churchill out of the mire of crisis.

However, Peck added, "But we should put it another way."

"Oh, yes." Churchill, caught up in his smugness, calmed down a bit. He took the whiskey Peck offered, took a sip to relax, and then changed his demeanor:

"I have never cared about my own political interests, but about the people and the soldiers who are fighting bravely on the front lines."

"I will never forget that the British people have only 4 ounces of butter and a pound of sausage per week."

"We will never forget the soldiers who fought valiantly against the enemy on the front lines!"

Peck nodded:

"Yes, Your Excellency the Prime Minister."

"At the same time, in order to inspire the Imperial military and civilians to continue fighting the enemy in such harsh conditions."

"We should publicize Captain Thorne's deeds as much as possible, so that everyone can see hope, see the dawn of victory, and see that the war is developing in our favor."

"Of course." Churchill set down his glass. "Hold a press conference, Peck. I can't wait to tell everyone the good news."

As a result, Churchill made a mistake at the press conference.

A reporter asked Churchill:

"Your Excellency the Prime Minister."

"You once said that we would be very lucky if Rommel were our general."

"Now that we have a captain like this, would you promote him beyond the usual ranks?"

Slightly intoxicated, Churchill confidently replied, "Of course, we've promoted him to captain. Just yesterday, he was an oil salesman."

The whole place was in uproar.

The reporters paused for only a second, then, amidst the clicking of their cameras, rushed to ask more questions:

"Your Excellency, do you mean that Thorne achieved all this as an oil salesman before being promoted to captain?"

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, does this mean Thorne wasn't a soldier before?"

"Do you know which oil company he's a salesman for?"

……

Churchill was filled with regret, but since he had already spoken, he had no choice but to admit it.

The next day, newspapers spread the news like snowflakes:

"An oil salesman with no combat experience actually defeated Rommel."

"He not only buried an armored regiment, but also tampered with the German fuel, causing a large number of German tanks to malfunction."

"Unbelievable! An oil salesman actually saved the entire British army from collapse due to German infiltration!"

……

The Daily Mirror, a staunch opponent of Churchill's government, analyzed in its headline:

"I believe Thorne saved not only the British army and North Africa, but also the incompetent Churchill government."

"Even worse, this includes corrupt officials."

"I believe that without Thorne, this oil salesman, they might have collapsed due to yet another defeat on the battlefield!"

……

Public opinion in Britain was beyond Churchill's control; he could only try his best to prevent the news from reaching Egypt.

--------

About 60 kilometers from the front line of El Alamein, in the wilderness to the northwest of Matru, there is a U-shaped cave.

(The image above shows the cave that Rommel used as his command post in Egypt during World War II, which is now the Rommel Museum open to the public.)

In the dim light, Rommel sat at his desk looking at the intelligence coming from the front. He was expressionless, and his sharp eyes were like a newly drawn military dagger.

Colonel Müller, standing before him, knew that Rommel's expression meant he was truly enraged, even harboring murderous intent.

Finally, Rommel spoke.

He stared coldly at the disheveled Colonel Muller before him, his former favorite general:

"In other words..."

"I gave you my best soldiers and equipment, and you buried them in the quicksand?"

"And yet you abandoned your men and fled back alone?"

Colonel Muller shuddered. The subtext of his words was: If I let you live, how can I face the officers and soldiers of the 5th Armored Regiment who sacrificed their lives on the front lines!

"General," Colonel Muller explained.

"That's not ordinary quicksand; I wouldn't make such a basic mistake."

"That's more like a British trap..."

Rommel angrily interrupted Colonel Muller: "Stop your excuses, Colonel. What kind of trap could swallow an entire armored regiment? Do you take me for an idiot?"

Colonel Muller's heart sank. He knew that no amount of explanation would help, and only one fate awaited him: execution!

however.

At that moment, a communications soldier outside the door called out a report, and after receiving permission, delivered several newspapers to Rommel.

Rommel initially paid them no attention, but after just one glance, he was captivated.

Then he read another one, his facial expression constantly changing, sometimes appearing bewildered, sometimes angry, and sometimes even showing an incredulous expression. Finally, he suddenly stood up and slammed his fist on the table.

"These bastards!" he cursed, pacing back and forth in the open space beside him with his hands behind his back.

After a while, he stood before Colonel Muller, his tone much calmer: "Sit down, let's talk about this in detail."

"General, General." Colonel Müller was flattered and confused by Rommel's sudden change of heart.

"None of your business." Rommel tossed his head toward the newspaper on the table. "They make it very clear: it's a salt marsh."

Muller said "Oh," picked up the newspaper and looked at it under the light, then understood the cause and effect of the matter.

however……

Knowing the truth was more painful than killing him.

"I actually lost to an oil salesman." Colonel Muller swallowed bitterly.

Rommel sat back in his chair, his tone full of helplessness:

"It's not just you who lost to him, Müller, but me too."

"Didn't you see?"

"The fuel we used was tampered with, which is why the tanks malfunctioned simultaneously."

A self-deprecating, bitter smile curled at the corner of his lips:

"Even more serious is that we will no longer be able to use fuel retrieved from the sea."

"Because we can't tell which oils have been tampered with and which haven't."

"This guy is definitely not your average oil salesman!"