Chapter 39: Target Cairo

  There is no other art or science than the art of war and the science of war. — Lloyd

  In the years that followed, various journalists asked the 7 German and Italian soldiers who were under the command of 'Ah Lai Man' about how they managed to calculate the trajectory of the artillery shells with such accuracy. They also asked why they were able to stop firing immediately when needed, allowing the British to surrender safely.

  Two German SS men replied, "We didn't know either. At the beginning, we didn't even know how to fire the cannons. It was just that those Italian soldiers were looking at us after loading the shells, so we had no choice but to order the start of the bombardment. We only gave orders at first."

  "Why did you change the target of the artillery fire after the first round was over? Did you see that the first round landed on your own people's heads?"

  "Oh, well, it's not that there isn't any. It's just that after the first round of shelling, some problems appeared with the base of our cannons."

  "Oh, what's wrong with the base? Can you explain?"

  "It wasn't a big problem, we just didn't nail the cannons to the ground with anti-recoil spikes. After the first round of fire, we found that the cannons had rolled back into our own ranks and injured several soldiers." said two SS officers.

  "What, you haven't even secured the mooring pins on the ground. God bless, it's fortunate to see you now."

  "In silence..."

  "Then please tell me, what about the artillery coordinates you gave to the soldiers later? As far as I know, none of you have studied artillery knowledge, how can you calculate the position of the enemy's fortifications so accurately? It was accurate to centimeter-level coordinate instructions."

  "This story is long, it has to start from our childhood prodigy in math, when we were 3 years old...". Two SS officers talked non-stop starting from the age of 3 and after two hours they finally reached the age of 5 where they had a fiery passion for various mathematical operations. The interviewer was completely stunned.

  "Halt, halt, now let's hear what the 5 actual operators have to say." Listening to those two SS officers' tone, it seemed that they were going to get a free meal, and not just one. The interviewer hastily handed over the topic in his hand to the 5 high-ranking Italian military officers.

  "We also had nothing to say, at that time the domestic artillery we were in contact with was not of this type. We didn't even have a grip on whether this 40 infantry cannon could fire," said an Italian officer.

  "But we all know that any shell is made up of a warhead and a casing. Just load the shell into the barrel, then wait for the commander to give the order to fire." Another Italian officer added.

  "When the precise coordinates of the target are reported, how do you operate the 4 guns like one gun, so that all shells can hit within a coordinate?" The reporter asked another profound and professional question.

  "Haha, this question is also very simple. We 5 grew up together since we were young. At the age of 3, we were in the same kindergarten, and at that time, we had already established a deep friendship. Every day, we took baths together, ate meals together, and...". Several Italian officers' faces were filled with fond memories of their childhood as they spoke.

  The reporter saw that if this continued, the midnight snack would have to be included, and hurriedly stopped him, "Okay, last question, what you can do is stop firing immediately when needed, allowing the British to surrender safely. But at that time, it was impossible for you to contact Colonel Andri several kilometers away. Please tell me how did you manage to do that."

  At this time, the two SS officers and Italian officers exchanged a smile and said, "Actually, we didn't plan to stop shelling, it's just that all the shells we brought were fired. We also didn't receive any other orders from Major, so we can only wait in place."

  This crushing reply left almost all British soldiers speechless. The last straw that broke the camel's back was actually gone, but the camel had already given up from the first straw, its legs went soft.

  Liu Qi let the troops sleep soundly, as he clearly saw from the British command's operational map that all troops had crossed the original defense line of the German and Italian armies and were advancing in the vast desert. The command center did not give them a withdrawal order, so they would not retreat even if they died. Liu Qi was not particularly worried because the surrounding area near El Alamein was 106 kilometers away from the garrison troops at Alexandria Port, who were responsible for defending the naval base and would not easily leave their posts.

  After nearly 10 days of marching and fighting, the German-Italian troops had exhausted their physical strength to the limit. Except for a small number of sentry units, everyone else fell into a deep sleep.

  The soldiers all went to rest, but Liu Qi and several SS officers and Italian officers did not rest. Now we have to study the next plan. Ah, Leman has been knocked down, but what should be done next?

  After everyone had taken all the cigarettes from the British military command, there were 3 plans left in front of Liu Qi.

  The first is to raid Alexandria Port, because it's closest to 'Alam Halfa'. The German and Italian troops dressed in British uniforms can disguise themselves as supply transport convoys, with a strong element of surprise. The unfavorable factor is that the navy might discover them, and the large-caliber naval guns would likely finish them off in just a few shots. The risk is great, but the potential reward is also high, it's possible that if Rommel attacks, they can block the British retreat route. Then they can wrap up the British like a rice ball.

  The second is to stay put and not move, while the British army that was advancing on the front line can't retreat. Rommel isn't someone who has been idle either. Liu Qi doesn't believe it, in the face of the disunited command of the British army, Rommel won't be able to find a weakness. If that's the case, then Rommel might as well not be called the Desert Fox, but rather the Desert Tiger instead. Look at how "tiger" has become. This plan is the most energy-efficient, nothing needs to be done, just wait. Wait until Rommel arrives and it will be fine.

  The third and most daring plan was to attack Cairo, after the Battle of El Alamein, German and Italian troops had a blind trust in Rommel. Who wouldn't believe in a messenger of God? The continuous display of divine signs filled the German and Italian soldiers with confidence in victory. According to the map, there was a British division stationed in Cairo, assisted by some local Egyptian armed forces. The number of British troops alone was around 8,000. Perhaps it wasn't necessary to attack Cairo, on the way to attacking Cairo, they could encounter the British troops sent from Cairo to surround and annihilate Rommel's army. Near Cairo, there were several military airfields, where nearly 1,000 aircraft of the Mediterranean Air Force were stationed for defense and patrol missions.

  Liu Qi deeply understood the principle that "the bigger the risk, the greater the reward." Now the most impossible thing to do was to wait for Rommel's arrival in El Alamein. Only by thoroughly occupying Cairo and cutting off the Suez Canal of the British Empire could they truly achieve a great victory. However, this was extremely difficult. To say nothing of the current 800 people, even 10 times that number, 8,000 people, might not be able to do it. In fact, Liu Qi also had the 200 men led by Major Dok and Captain Fred in the Indian Fourth Division's garrison. However, on one hand, those 200 men were just a drop in the bucket and couldn't make much of a difference; on the other hand, the Indian Fourth Division's garrison was nearly 100 kilometers away from El Alamein, and it would take at least two days to wait for them, not to mention the British checkpoints and scattered soldiers along the way.

  Liu Qi from the future doesn't know what fear is, anyway, it's all going to end in death. Rather than being quietly eliminated by the energy body of unknown space, he'd rather have a fierce battle with the British army. Let the British come and destroy themselves. And take the opportunity to experience what a world war is like.

  When Liu Qi proposed the plan to attack Cairo, not a single German and Italian officer in the room objected. These guys who didn't even know the term "high-level combat" were all pointing and gesturing on the map, without considering the defenders of Cairo as opponents. It was as if they thought they could enter or leave like it was their own backyard.

  Within 3 hours, a detailed plan for an all-out attack on Cairo was born out of the chaos.

  As soon as the sky brightened, Liu Qi led more than 800 people to drive towards Egypt's capital in a mighty manner. The entire British army of Alamein was not even guarded by Liu Qi, but all weapons and vehicles were destroyed, leaving behind some clean water and food for the over 1,000 British soldiers.

  "Liu Qi said to the two commanders of the British Eighth Army Headquarters, 'Respected generals, we are now going to carry out an important combat mission. As our prisoners, you should have received good treatment, but I am currently short-handed and cannot spare personnel to manage your soldiers. So I temporarily appoint you two as the administrators of this temporary prisoner-of-war camp. You can choose to leave, but I advise you not to do so. Because if you are captured again, you will not receive such good treatment. Alright, you can go and manage your troops now. By the way, our Marshal Rommel is leading a large army on his way here.'"

  The two British lieutenant generals suddenly turned black in front of them. Does MLGBD treat prisoners of war like this? Can't you not do this, others want to be a good prisoner.

  However, the two British major generals still had a strong sense of becoming prisoners of war. They commanded the British soldiers to quietly wait for the arrival of the Germans in their barracks, with regular routines of getting up, eating, sleeping, assembling and dispersing every day. But after all, they were still fooled by Liu Qi until the 6th day when a small group of German troops passed by here, and the two generals who had been eager to become prisoners of war finally achieved their wish.

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