Chapter 9

When Hessmann sent the telegraph to Berlin that night, detailing his meeting with Lenin and the report he wrote based on Lenin's performance (agreeing to cede Poland and Finland, and accepting German dominance over most of Europe), he received an order from Ludendorff: to immediately carry the original report to the General Staff for a meeting.

Clearly, Ludendorff and Hindenburg were eager to end the Eastern Front operations to focus their forces on defeating the enemy in the West.

Hessmann was also racing against time. After receiving the order, he left his assistant, Karl Stockhausen, behind and set off that night, heading straight for Zurich with Kloi, then took a train back to Berlin.

Upon returning to Berlin, Hessmann went directly to the office of the First Quartermaster General. Ludendorff, with his stern, marble-like face, listened to his report, only showing interest when Hessmann mentioned that the Bolsheviks would dissolve the Russian army.

"I know the combat capability of the Russian army. Although their tactical and operational levels are low, these gray beasts are not easy to dissolve. Captain, on what basis do you judge that the Bolsheviks can achieve this?"

"General, Lenin personally guaranteed it (in fact, Lenin did not give any guarantees), and based on the Bolsheviks' consistent stance: converting the world war into a civil war and defeating the Tsar. I believe he and the Bolsheviks will do their best to fulfill this guarantee."

"Does that mean you are not entirely certain?"

"General, I am very sure that Lenin and the Bolsheviks will try to dissolve the Russian army. However, I am not certain whether their efforts will succeed. But I believe this is our only chance. Apart from the Bolsheviks and Lenin, there is no other force in Russia that will cooperate with us. If we miss this opportunity, victory on the Eastern Front will be a long way off."

"Very well, Captain." At this point, Ludendorff stood up and walked to a map of the European theater of war. The Eastern Front was marked with several arrows pointing directly to Riga, Brest-Litovsk, and the eastern bank of the Dniester River. It was clear that Ludendorff was planning a major offensive on the Eastern Front, but even if his plan was fully realized, it would not be enough to resolve the Eastern Front militarily. This offensive plan would only be implemented as a last resort (if all hope of negotiating peace with the Russian Provisional Government was lost).

Hessmann immediately stood up and followed behind Ludendorff, holding his breath, waiting for the First Quartermaster General's decision.

"Your research on the Eastern Front and the internal situation in Russia is expert-level, and your conclusions are almost identical to those of the Political Department's Russian section! They also believe that supporting the Bolsheviks is the only way to dissolve the Russian army in the short term, as the Bolsheviks have no concept of a homeland and would sell anything to achieve their ambitions. However, they do not believe the Bolsheviks will become friends of the German Empire."

"General, I believe that in the minds of the gentlemen in the Political Department, no Russian can be a friend of the German Empire, except for dead Russians."

"Ha ha, that's an interesting statement, and I agree! Every Russian is a scoundrel, and the Russian Bolsheviks are even more so!"

"But the Russians will not die out!" Hessmann looked at Ludendorff's back, "This is certain. In our East, there are 160 million Russians, and they will always be there, unchanged even a hundred years from now. We Germans do not have the ability to eliminate them... Napoleon tried once and lost his empire, being exiled to St. Helena, where he spent the rest of his life in misery. Our empire has been fighting the Russians for nearly four years and has not even reached Minsk and Kiev. Destroying Russia seems impossible. Since we cannot eliminate them, we must live with them as neighbors. Considering the irreconcilable conflict between the empire and Britain, we must maintain at least a friendly relationship with Russia, and if we can form an alliance, the empire will be secure. Even if the Russians are all devils who believe in Satan, for the sake of the empire, we must be friends with them."

"Oh, that sounds like something Prince Bismarck would say... I think you must be a great admirer of the Prince?"

"Yes, General, I believe that nearly four years of bloody war have proven the foresight of Prince Bismarck and the Great Emperor (referring to Wilhelm I). Everything can be abandoned, but the alliance with Russia must not be forgotten!"

Hessmann's final words were the basic national policy that the Great Emperor Wilhelm I had entrusted to his son, Frederick III, before his death. Unfortunately, Frederick III died of illness after only 99 days as emperor. His son, Wilhelm II, in his youthful arrogance, discarded the national policies of his grandfather and Prince Bismarck, adopting a policy of enmity towards Russia... At the same time, Wilhelm II pursued a policy of challenging British world dominance, rejecting the British Foreign Secretary Chamberlain's proposal for an Anglo-German alliance in 1902. At that time, Britain and France, as well as Russia, were in a state of hostility due to colonial disputes, and France and Russia had already formed an alliance, while Germany was Britain's traditional ally. It was Wilhelm II's erroneous policies that led Germany into the encirclement of Britain, France, and Russia, making it difficult to break free.

The Russian Revolution clearly offered Germany one last chance to escape this predicament. If Germany could form an alliance with Bolshevik-ruled Russia and the Bolsheviks could rely on German support to quickly gain power and establish a relatively stable rule in Russia, the Second German Empire would be invincible—this was the core spirit of the report on Lenin and the Bolsheviks.

Ludendorff, with his thick brows furrowed, shifted his gaze from the map back to Hessmann. "Your report may be correct. If we cannot achieve a quick victory on the Western Front and the United States joins the war, we will need a stable and friendly Russia... But this also means we must be lenient towards Bolshevik-controlled Russia, which would devalue our hard-won victory."

"General, we do not need to be lenient towards them. We can obtain a lot of gold, treasures, and food from them. We can even get the main warships of the Russian Navy. This will greatly strengthen the High Seas Fleet and the Ottoman Navy."

In his report, Hessmann also mentioned what the Bolsheviks would need to pay—gold from the Kazan Bank (which housed the Russian Central Bank's gold reserves), some treasures belonging to the imperial family, the main warships of the Baltic and Black Sea Fleets, and a large amount of wheat once Russian agricultural production recovered.

Of course, the Bolsheviks would also need to cede some territory, but Hessmann's demands were not high, only requiring the independence of Poland and Finland.

Ludendorff walked back to his desk. "Captain, if Prince Bismarck were the Chancellor of the Empire now, he would certainly strongly support this report. But unfortunately, the Prince has been dead for many years... The current German Empire is not the same as the German Empire of the Great Emperor's time. His Majesty's appetite is large. If the Russian Provisional Government is willing to negotiate now, we would not demand too much. But if the Bolsheviks really dismantle the Russian army and cause greater chaos in Russia, what reason do we have not to seek the greatest benefit?"

A captain cannot save an empire that is about to fall! Captain Hessmann was not surprised. Although Hindenburg and Ludendorff were outstanding commanders, they were not strategic masters, and the German Emperor Wilhelm II understood even less about strategy. The dissolution of the Russian army might just be an opportunity for them to severely punish their long-standing enemy, Russia.

Ludendorff had already sat down in his chair, his hands on the desk, silently staring at Hessmann for about two minutes. "To be honest, most of your report is excellent. For a captain who has not yet attended the Berlin Military Academy (General Staff College), to have such insight is no small feat. Since you are very familiar with Russia and the Bolsheviks, I will give you a chance to partially implement the report on Lenin and the Bolsheviks.

The General Staff and the Foreign Ministry are jointly formulating a plan to help the Bolsheviks come to power, called the 'Tol Plan.' You have already been involved in this plan, and now I will have you take a more active role. You will escort Lenin back to Russia, serve as a liaison between Lenin and the General Staff, and also be responsible for evaluating the Bolsheviks. Do your best, young man, perhaps your chance for advancement lies in Russia!"