Empire in Progress

Chapter 363: Visit to the Soviet Union (4)

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As soon as Lin Wei got out of the car, he saw a man wearing glasses and with sparse hair, about forty years old, walking towards him. There were also several cadres of the People's Commissariat of State Security around him, but Lin Wei didn't know where this man was. Holy, so look at this person with vigilance.

Perhaps feeling the confusion in Lin Wei's eyes, the visitor introduced, "Are you Comrade Lampard? I am Beria. After Comrade Stalin learned that you came to the Soviet Union for inspection, he specially asked me to accompany you. The Soviet Union is everywhere!”

After hearing that the person who came was Beria, Lin Wei was shocked, but immediately smiled and said, "It turns out to be Comrade Beria!" As he spoke, he immediately gave Beria a bear hug and said, "Although we We have never met, but the distance cannot change our comradeship that will never fade!" That scene was so sincere and sincere, people who didn't know would have thought that the heads of the SS and the People's Commissariat of State Security were a good couple. Friends, but only the two parties involved can understand how much the smile comes from the heart.

Beria is not tall, and he looks so gentle with glasses. If they didn't know the identity of the person in front of them, no one would have thought that the leader who personally carried out the purge order actually had the appearance of an intellectual. Lin Wei and Beria have one thing in common, that is, they are both rare young figures in their respective countries. Beria, who was born in 1899, is also a rare young man among the top leaders of the Soviet Union. He is only seven years older than Lin Wei. Of course, this is also inseparable from Stalin's trust. If Beria had not been so arrogant and thought that no one could control him after Stalin's death, he would not have been killed by Khrushchev and Malenkov.

Beria seemed to be very interested in the young Lin Wei, and took Lin Wei's hand cordially and said, "Comrade Lampard, Comrade Stalin has been very happy after learning that you will come to the Soviet Union, and he specially told me , in front of the great German ally, the Soviet Union has no secrets at all! You can visit wherever you want to!"

"Then thank you very much, Comrade Stalin, but this time we are here simply to communicate with the comrades from the People's Commissariat of State Security of the Soviet Union!" While complimenting Beria, Lin Wei's mind suddenly changed, what exactly is Beria? mean? Talking about a great ally is all nonsense. Lin Wei does not believe that the Soviet Union will sincerely coexist peacefully.

As he spoke, Beria kindly took Lin Wei's hand and walked off the platform. As the two walked around, there were clearly distinguishable black and gray crowds. The black ones were the SS soldiers who followed Lin Wei, and the gray ones were. The ones are the internal security troops of the Soviet Ministry of Internal Affairs. As for the responsibilities of the Internal Security Forces of the Soviet Ministry of Internal Affairs, they were very similar to those of the SS. Looking at the Internal Security Forces of the Soviet Ministry of Internal Affairs, which were almost the same as the SS except for their clothing, Lin Wei almost had the illusion that this was not an enemy country. If the Soviet Union was not If it is so powerful, it is likely to be Germany's closest ally, because the two countries are so similar.

Lin Wei had very little information about these internal security forces, because compared to the SS, the Soviet internal security forces had just been established. Maybe the Soviet Union reorganized the new internal security forces after seeing the performance of the SS on the battlefield. force. Lin Wei only knew that in early 1941, in order to support the Red Army in the war and ensure domestic security, Stalin and his Politburo began to form new security forces. On February 3, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union split the original NKVD into the NKVD and the State Security Committee. At this time, the internal defense force was subordinate to nine bureaus of border defense, security, security, railway troops, military construction, airport construction, main roads, military supplies and local air defense. On February 28, the 10th Combat Bureau was established. As of now, there are about 300,000 people in the Internal Guard, which is equivalent to the armed SS at the same time in history. The summary of the Internal Security Forces by the German agents was only a hundred or ten words, which shows that it is not easy to figure out the secrets of the Internal Security Forces.

The city center of Kiev is on the right bank of the Dnieper River. On the south side of the city center is the Parliament and Government Building. During the short journey to the Parliament and Government Building, Lin Wei could already clearly feel the importance of Kiev. There are factories here almost all over the city. The city is most concentrated in the west of the city center and on the left bank of the Dnieper River. There are many types of manufacturing industries. Heavy industry mainly produces complete sets of mechanical equipment, precision machine tools and instruments, metal cutting machine tools, aircraft, chemical equipment. And from Beria’s introduction, the importance of Kiev is self-evident, but Beria is more and more important. If this is the case, Lin Wei becomes more and more suspicious. What does the Soviet Union or Stalin mean

"It is said that there is a Jewish district in the north of the center of Kiev?" While Beria was talking non-stop, Lin asked abruptly, "The talents of Jews in business are unparalleled. Is business allowed in the current Soviet Union?"

"No, these Jews have all gone through labor reform and have removed the residual poison of capitalism!" Beria replied. Although Beria's expression remained unchanged, after Lin Wei's interruption, the atmosphere fell into a long silence. . It can be seen that Lin Wei's sudden attack still made Beria a little depressed.

After Beria led Lin Wei to the place where he stayed, he left the hotel with Lin Wei's insistence. Gouberia said that he wanted to arrange the itinerary of the German comrades in the Soviet Union. So far, both parties have behaved very friendly, reflecting the close friendship between comrades. But as soon as Beria walked out, Lin Wei's smile immediately solidified, and he said coldly, "Check carefully!"

Although Lin Wei didn't say it clearly, the military police who followed Lin Wei knew what he meant, and they immediately carefully checked to see if there was any eavesdropping equipment. I have to say that the place Beria arranged for Lin Wei is indeed good. Lin Wei and his party, who live on the seventh floor, can see most of the city center of Kiev, and even some factories cannot escape Lin Wei's eyes. As for the hotel, The decoration can be called luxurious. At first glance, you would never think that this is the Soviet Union.

After a while, the military police who inspected came back one after another, and they all said that they found nothing. This made Lin Wei feel a little relieved. He did not expect that Beria really acted like a gentleman this time and had no intention of eavesdropping on Lin Wei and his party. But this is somewhat unreasonable. You must know that the Soviet spy culture began with Beria. Under Beria's teachings, the Soviets were not ashamed of eavesdropping at all, but considered it a glorious act.

The confusion only lingered in Lin Wei's mind for a minute before he was forgotten by Lin Wei. Lin Wei now wanted to know his subordinates' intuitive impressions of Kiev, "Let's talk about your feelings today!" Lawford, you speak first!”

Lin Wei originally thought that Crawford would talk about granaries, industry and other topics, but he didn't expect Crawford to think about it and said, "Leader, the transportation here is really developed. If we have this place as our rear, we must persist." Be militarily invincible!"

"Transportation, right? You said it very well!" Lin Wei praised it. Many people think that Kiev and Ukraine are just the granaries of the Soviet Union. In fact, in addition to industry and food, Kiev's strategic position is very important, and Kiev's transportation is well developed. , is a water, land and air transportation hub with railways and roads leading to Moscow, Kharkiv, Donbass, Southern Ukraine, the Port of Odessa, Western Ukraine and Poland. The navigation capacity of the Dnieper River is also high. It can be said that Kiev is connected to most big cities, many towns in Ukraine, and countries such as Romania and Bulgaria. If it is occupied, it will pose a major threat to the Soviet Union. Its significance is far beyond that of Minsk or Moscow.

"Skorzeny, what do you think?" Lin Wei asked with interest. Lin Wei had always wanted to find out the thoughts of this man who would later be known as the most dangerous man in Europe, but maybe the time of acquaintance with Skorzeny was too short. Erzne still often showed silence in front of Lin Wei, not at all as arrogant as when he was in the combat army.

"This is not a place suitable for fighting. If my troops enter here, it will be difficult to return safely. The Soviets can completely block the Dnieper River and wipe out all my troops!" Skorzeny still looked at it from a purely military perspective. Problem, and once Skorzeny's special forces are exposed, they will indeed be surrounded and annihilated by the superior Soviet Red Army.

Lin Wei still had no answer to the difficult question Skorzeny gave this time. If the Soviets had not started the chaos themselves, they would not have suffered a disastrous defeat in the Battle of Kiev, and 670,000 prisoners alone would have been captured. I believe Skorzeny will be ecstatic when he discovers the chaos of the Soviet Red Army after the war begins.

The conversation didn't last long. After all, everyone had been on the train for a long time. After arriving in Kiev, we were very tired and needed enough rest. Even Lin Wei, who had nothing to do, was very tired when he arrived, so after finishing his dinner, the seventh floor where the SS was located immediately fell into silence. Except for some military police who took turns to guard, everyone fell asleep.

Beria did not make a mistake, and actually led Lin Wei and his party to visit the factory in the Soviet Union the next day. What surprised Lin Wei even more was that the factory he visited turned out to be the T34 tank manufacturing plant in the eastern suburbs of Kiev. Lin Wei Otherwise, foreigners would never be allowed to visit the Krupp family's factory, but Beria didn't seem to care about this matter at all, and he didn't know what he thought about it. However, this matter finally made Lin Wei One thing is clear, that is, his group has attracted Stalin's attention. Even if Lin Wei is killed, he will not believe that Beria dares to let Lin Wei visit such a confidential factory. Beria does not have this power. There was only one person with power in the Soviet Union, and that was Stalin.

However, since the Soviet Union dared to release its military weapons, Lin Wei would be very sorry for the sincerity of the Soviet people if he did not look at it. After thinking about this, Lin Wei generously observed what this world-famous tank is. How to get off the production line, and ask yourself questions from time to time, like a curious baby.

"Comrade Lampard, do you know what stage Germany's tank development has reached?" After seeing Lin Wei's reaction, Beria asked seemingly unintentionally, "As we all know, Germany's armored forces are world-famous, and you definitely have the ultimate tanks, right?"

"Of course, the Panzer IV is a good weapon in every aspect!" Lin Wei's expression at this time was completely arrogant, with Germany's pride written all over his face, because until now Lin Wei Wei also understood what Stalin meant. He just wanted to scare Lin Wei and his party. No wonder he showed his tanks. It turned out to be this meaning. Our Soviet tanks are profitable. Our Soviet Red Army has a large number of people. Our Soviet military is very powerful. , in a word, don’t mess with me.

Sure enough, seeing Lin Wei's expression, Beria said with an expression of disbelief, "No way? Is the Panzer IV already the heaviest and most powerful tank in Germany? Comrade Lampard, don't you You could be lying to me!"

"Of course not, Comrade Beria!" Lin Wei said seriously, "Although your tanks are very powerful, Germany and the Soviet Union pursue different combat methods. Our tanks pursue speed and maximum range, and use armored forces to Open the way, and then use the powerful army to defeat the opponent, the Panzer IV is very suitable for the needs of the Imperial Army in these two aspects!"

"Oh, so that's it!" Beria whispered, not knowing what he was thinking about, but Lin Wei looked completely immersed in it, not paying attention to Beria's eyes.

"Comrade Beria, can I see the live-fire drill of this tank?" Lin Wei said expectantly, "Although Germany does not need this kind of tank at this stage, it also provides a development opportunity for the Krupp family. Direction, I really want to thank the Soviet comrades!"

"Of course, no problem!" Beria's reaction was obviously half a beat too slow. After Lin Wei said it a second time, he said unnaturally.

"That's great!" Then Lin Wei and Beria walked to the shooting range. After seeing the target being shattered to pieces under the T34 tank gun, no one understood what Lin Wei was thinking. After the visit to the tank factory, Lin Wei went to the fertilizer factory, tractor factory, and bearing factory. At the same time, we gained a deeper understanding of the Soviet Union's industrial capabilities. Germany used to be the second largest industrial country in the world after the United States, but now it has been surpassed by the Soviet Union in terms of scale. However, overall, the industrial strength of Germany and the Soviet Union is still similar, while the industry of Germany plus the occupied areas far exceeds that of the Soviet Union.

It seems that Germany has the upper hand, but the Soviet Union's industry can produce once it is fully powered, but Germany cannot. It is very simple. Germany has industry but no resources. This is not only Germany, but also the places in Europe occupied by Germany have this problem. The situation in Germany is now an example of how it is difficult for a clever woman to make a meal without rice. Although there is obviously strong industrial strength, it cannot be fully released due to lack of resources.

Lin Wei, who returned to the hotel, lay in bed unable to sleep. It was a bit funny to think that Stalin had hurriedly showed his strength and made Germany afraid to act rashly. How could Germany be so good that he could be frightened, but Lin Wei finally managed I understand a question, which is why the Soviet Union was not prepared for Germany's sudden attack. On the one hand, it may be that Germany is not ready for war. On the other hand, it may be that it has strong confidence in its own strength and believes that Germany does not dare to attack the Soviet Union. When he launched the war, I don’t know whether Stalin was too confident or too arrogant. Do you really think that Germany would not dare to go to war with the Soviet Union if half of Europe was swallowed up

Perhaps Lin Wei was aroused by today's stimulation. After tossing and turning for a long time, Lin Wei got up and ordered, "Call Mr. Chloe Peacock over!"

"Yes, leader!" There was a promise from outside the door. After a while, a middle-aged man wearing gold-rimmed glasses came to Lin Wei's room. Through the lenses, Lin Wei could also see Chloe Peacock's red eyes. , said, "Mr. Chloe Peacock, please sit down!" After saying that, he got out of bed and poured a cup of coffee for Chloe Peacock.

It makes sense for Lin Wei to treat Pecock so politely. Pecock is one of the people in charge of the Krupp family on the tank. Compared with those old people who are already in their 50s and 60s, Pecock is only 39 years old. , only five years older than Lin Wei. Gustav promoted Pecock from an ordinary engineer to the person in charge of the tank production line. This shows Pecock's talent. You must know that Lin Wei's father is a very serious man. How can he appreciate him so much? People must have their own merits. Originally, Lin Wei did not expect to be able to visit the Soviet tank factory. The purpose of bringing Pecock was just to let Pecock evaluate the imaginary enemy in Lin Wei's mind when he saw the Soviet Red Army's T34 tank. Unexpectedly, Bailey Beria is so generous, but this is also an opportunity for Lin Wei. Because of this, when visiting the tank factory, Pecock had been observing that most of the questions Lin Wei asked in front of Beria were admired. Cork wanted to know.

"Mr. Pecock, what do you think of today's situation?" Lin Wei now wanted to hear a professional answer, so that he could accurately judge the advantages and disadvantages of German tanks and Soviet tanks.

Pecock took a sip of coffee, pondered for a while and said, "Actually, since I came back, I have been thinking about this issue and comparing the advantages and disadvantages between the Panzer IV tank and the T.34 tank. Lampard, Although you designed the Panzer IV, I still want to say that the situation is not optimistic!"

When Pecock said that the No. 4 tank was designed by Lin Wei, Lin Wei's face turned red. Plagiarizing other people's designs is a disgraceful thing. And people always use this to praise you, which makes Lin Wei feel even more embarrassed.

"The 75mm cannon of the No. 4 and the 76mm cannon of the T34 are almost the same in power!" Pecock said; "Now the armor thickness of the two tanks can destroy each other within sight range! With our artillery Technology, the accuracy of the Panzer IV is higher, but the T-34 has better survivability against other anti-tank weapons. If we thicken the body armor, we can even gain a slight advantage against the T34, but That’s where it ends. The potential of the T34 tank is far beyond that of the Panzer IV. The longer time goes by, the gap between the two tanks will only widen!”