Chapter 185 Hesitant Navy

"Congratulations, Marshal Rundstedt." Wilhelm handed the red marshal's baton, a symbol of honor and power adorned with precious gems and metals, to Marshal Rundstedt. Even if it wasn't just a symbol of status, it was a valuable item. "I hope you can lead everyone to continue winning the war and march towards the final victory!"

The entire banquet hall was instantly overwhelmed by the sound of cameras and flashing lights. Amidst the cheers and continuous applause, Rundstedt, receiving the baton, was excited and somewhat choked with emotion. "Please rest assured, Your Highness! I will do my best to secure victory for you!!"

Next was the victory celebration, with various delicacies emitting enticing aromas. However, few people were there just for feasting, considering the military high-ranking individuals present. This kind of gathering was primarily about "socializing," with numerous people coming forward to celebrate or curry favor. The intoxicating atmosphere, combined with the captivating scent, easily induced a sense of happiness. For Rundstedt, this night was undoubtedly a memorable one.

Meanwhile, Wilhelm engaged in a conversation with General Guderian. "General Guderian, I heard you were almost bombed by your own troops on the front lines?"

"Yes, Your Highness," Guderian replied nonchalantly. "It was heavy artillery."

On the first day of the Polish offensive, as the ground was covered in thick fog, the 3rd Armored Division encountered the enemy in a small-scale battle on the eastern outskirts of Zemperburg. In the haze, the heavy artillery of the 3rd Armored Division began firing randomly.

The first shell landed about 50 meters in front of Guderian's command vehicle, which was advancing with the 3rd Armored Division. The second landed 50 meters behind. Anticipating that the next shell would blow them away, Guderian quickly instructed the driver to turn right.

However, the startled driver, frightened by the sudden explosion, stepped on the gas, using full horsepower to drive the vehicle into a ditch.

"That was close!", Wilhelm couldn't help but exclaim. "I almost lost a formidable armored commander. It seems we need to pay attention to this issue."

Some say human history is a history of war, with countless wars occurring over thousands of years. However, one problem has consistently plagued all sides of war, remaining unsolved until the 21st century – friendly fire incidents.

Though such incidents occurred in ancient times, they were more common in ground-based warfare using cold weapons. In modern times, with warfare becoming three-dimensional, expanding from land to sea and sky, incidents of friendly fire increased.

For instance, in World War II, General McNair of the U.S. Army was accidentally bombed by his own aircraft, becoming the highest-ranking officer to sacrifice his life in the war. At that time, the Allies were executing the "Resolute" deception plan, with General McNair disguised as Patton inspecting the front line.

As the carpet bombing commenced, thousands of bombs fell on German positions, obliterating the German fortifications. Unfortunately, due to the overwhelming size of the aircraft formation, some bombs landed in the American positions, resulting in nearly 600 casualties. Among them, one bomb directly hit General McNair, who had come to observe the battle.

As the smoke cleared, soldiers could only identify him by the three stars on his uniform. He became the highest-ranking officer in the U.S. military to die in combat during World War II, killed by his own Army Air Forces.

On the other hand, the German military typically placed a German flag in the direction of their advance, and their armored vehicles displayed the German flag on the roof, allowing pilots to identify them from the air. When pilots couldn't determine the allegiance of armored vehicles below, they often requested "smoke identification", and nearby German armored units usually responded quickly.

However, this could only prevent friendly fire from the air. Incidents like Guderian's encounter with ground artillery couldn't be avoided.

The only solution to this problem was to enhance training for all aspects of joint operations and maximize efforts to prevent such incidents.

After chatting for a while, Wilhelm suddenly noticed the group of navy officers gathered in a corner. Each of them looked disheartened, resembling a group of mistreated daughters-in-law, in stark contrast to the triumphant army and air force officers. After all, in this battle, the navy only had an old battleship, the Schleswig-Holstein, bombarding the Westplatte fortress, with no other accomplishments at sea.

Wilhelm felt a mix of frustration and amusement, exchanged greetings with the people around him, and walked over to them.

When the navy officers saw Wilhelm approaching, they hastily stood up. "Your Highness."

"What's the matter? Do you feel embarrassed, or are you envious? Honestly, your navy disappoints me a bit." If the ocean only covered 20% or even 30% of the Earth, with the navy's timidity, Wilhelm wouldn't be able to build even one warship. Allocating all those resources to the army and air force would be more satisfying.

Unfortunately, the reality was that 75% of the Earth was covered by oceans. Sea routes could reach any place in the world, making naval power as crucial as air supremacy. This compelled him to vigorously develop the navy.

Everyone looked down in shame. Compared to the army and air force, the German navy was always in an extremely awkward position. On one hand, they were highly valued by His Highness; on the other hand, they were uneasy about their development path. In contrast to the army's anticipation of war and the air force's confidence in the future, the German navy harbored a deep-seated inferiority complex under the shadow of the British Royal Navy, filling them with fear for the upcoming war.

"Your Highness, our navy's preparation is still not comprehensive enough." Rödel quietly explained.

Wilhelm snorted. "What do you mean by 'not comprehensive enough'? Do you want to wait until the Bismarck battleship is launched? Or the two Essex-class aircraft carriers? Are ten battleships enough for you? Twenty aircraft carriers enough?!"

Looking at these people, who were all silent, Wilhelm sighed lightly. "No matter how many battleships or carriers I give you, it will never be enough. Because what you lack is not warships but the courage to meet bravely on a narrow path. Ah, I'm starting to miss Admiral Reinhard Scheer. At least he had the courage to fight the Royal Navy. If he were still alive, I would even consider appointing him as the navy commander."

Everyone has their own dignity, especially the head of a country's navy. Rödel's face turned red as he assured, "Your Highness, we will definitely not disappoint your expectations in the next engagement!"

"I'll be waiting with anticipation." After a casual response, Wilhelm looked to the side at Dönitz. "Is the submarine force well-prepared?"

Dönitz immediately straightened his posture. "Your Highness, the submarine force is ready to deploy at any time!" Even though he felt equally frustrated, supervising the manufacturing of submarines with overtime work and producing submarine forces like crazy, he hoped the navy could restore its former submarine force scale. However, building submarines was not like assembling building blocks; it couldn't form a sizable force in a short period.

Fortunately, submarines had an incomparable advantage over surface vessels – if they couldn't win, they could dive into the water.