German Red Prince

Page 95

Ordinary people rarely have the opportunity to participate in military parades, so this event is particularly attractive to them.

Most of those invited were ordinary citizens of the Kingdom of Rhine. These people had almost no contact with the military in their daily lives, and their anticipation for this military parade was much stronger than that of the average person.

"Of course, miss, what flavor would you like?" the salesperson asked with a smile as he opened the box.

"Give me a bottle of orange flavor."

The salesman opened the bottle and handed the soda to Riefenstahl, who took the soda and asked who owned the soda company.

"It is Prince Thorne, Miss."

"interesting."

Leni Riefenstahl smiled, then walked over to a reporter who was taking pictures. "Could you please take a picture of me?"

These reporters, of course, knew who Riefenstahl was; she was even holding a Fanta soda in her hand—how could she miss such a good opportunity?

Before the event, the boss said that there would be a commission for taking photos, and if their photos were selected for publication in the newspaper, the newspaper would share a portion of the newspaper's revenue with them.

Of course, it wasn't just the Rheinische Zeitung reporters; journalists from different regions and countries also seized this rare opportunity.

This military parade invited reporters from all walks of life. With so many well-known figures present, those tabloid reporters probably won't encounter such an opportunity again in their lives. This event is a tremendous opportunity, and perhaps they can take this chance to soar.

While people were busy taking photos, security personnel were also busy. Thomas walked to the side, loosened his collar, and opened a bottle of chilled Fanta to drink.

It's January now, and although the temperature is alright today, it's not very hot in Mainz in January. I guess Thomas is the only one here who dares to drink iced beverages right away.

"What's wrong? You must be very busy?" Heydrich walked over with a bottle of Fanta soda in his hand, but his was orange flavored.

According to Heydrich, orange soda was more in line with his "sailor" identity because he had previously served in the navy.

The striking visual contrast between Heydrich, dressed in a black Gestapo uniform, and Thomas, dressed in a grey Stasi uniform, along with their tall and imposing figures, quickly caught Riefenstahl's attention.

Thomas, holding a soft drink, sighed. Checking foreign visitors was much more complicated than checking domestic visitors. They had to deal with people from all over the world, and just communicating with them was a huge problem.

"I really envy your Gestapo job; it's much easier than ours."

“We’re not having an easy time either,” Heydrich shrugged. “We just caught one who somehow managed to sneak in, and he was carrying weapons. He came from Berlin.”

"From Berlin? Whose people are they?"

Thomas was somewhat puzzled, because he was mainly in charge of foreign affairs and did not have as much knowledge of domestic intelligence as Heydrich did.

"We'll have to wait and see after the interrogation." Heydrich paused, then looked around and lowered his voice considerably.

"More and more people are coming from Berlin lately, and even people are coming from Munich."

"It seems these people care about us quite a bit." Thomas smiled. Things haven't been very peaceful lately, and he hadn't expected the other two companies to reach out to him.

"It's not clear what they're planning yet, but their surveillance of the kingdom is becoming more and more frequent, and the kingdom's security department has noticed it."

"The most important thing now is to ensure the smooth running of the parade; this matter can only be discussed after it's over."

Thomas nodded after listening. "His Highness Thorne is not here now. Let's report to him after the parade. His Highness should have a solution."

“That’s right, the most important thing now is the military parade.” Heydrich held up a Fanta in his hand.

"cheers."

"cheers."

Thomas also raised his drink to clink glasses, a moment that was captured on camera by Riefenstahl.

“What a wonderful photograph,” Riefenstahl exclaimed. Just as she was about to speak with the two men, a commotion suddenly broke out in the hall. His Highness Thorne had arrived with the French observation delegation.

"Let's go, Prince Thorne is back."

Alpha and Signal Flag, who were specifically in charge, also went over.

Thorne and the French delegation arrived in Mainz with less than an hour to go before the parade was to begin.

Chapter 153 Military Families

Brück came from a very ordinary small town in Koblenz. At the age of 20, he chose to join the army and served in the Rhine Army.

"One man joins the army, the whole family is honored"—this was the slogan that King Charlemagne used to encourage the people to resist Napoleon.

Germany, as a traditional militaristic country, has great respect for its soldiers, and the Kingdom of the Rhine is no exception.

However, it's not just active or retired military personnel who are taken good care of the military's families, and the kingdom also provides them with preferential policies.

If the relevant conditions are met, the children of military personnel can receive free medical care in the kingdom, and the parents of military personnel can also receive a considerable monthly allowance. Military personnel families can also enjoy various preferential treatments.

Brück's family was not well-off, and he had several younger siblings. He chose to join the army in order to ease the burden on his family.

Because Brück's parents ran a small bakery in the area, the other soldiers in the army also called him "Little Baker".

Although life in the army was tough, "Little Baker" persevered and, after going through layers of selection, Brück successfully became one of the 15,000 people in this parade.

Mainz Square is very large and can accommodate a large number of spectators, so the families of the soldiers participating in this parade were also invited by the Kingdom to attend the parade together. Moreover, they were given the best seats with the best views, which is a kind of preferential treatment given to the families of soldiers by the Kingdom.

Brück was a little nervous; this was his first time participating in such a major event, and he had also heard that the kingdom had invited their families to visit as well.

Brück's unit was located on the Franco-German border, a front-line force of the Kingdom of the Rhine. He hadn't been home for several years, and now he was both excited and nervous, waiting for the parade to begin.

"May we go in?"

A middle-aged man handed his certificate to the inspector, accompanied by a woman of similar age.

The woman was holding the hands of two small children. Old Brück seemed a little nervous, constantly rubbing his clothes with his hands and looking at the inspector uneasily.

This is their first time out here. They've spent half their lives baking bread in Koblenz. If it weren't for this son, he probably would never have come out.

Last week, two uniformed officers knocked on their door and asked if they were Brück's family. When the old Brück saw the two officers, he almost lost his footing, thinking something had happened to Lübeck.

After all, his troops are on the front lines in Germany and France. As a frontline unit, Lübeck may encounter many dangers. Moreover, the two countries have been quite turbulent recently. If some minor friction breaks out on the border, the Lübeck family will become the families of martyrs.

Thanks to the two officers' explanation, old Lübeck's mood calmed down. They had come to deliver good news and didn't want any accidents to happen.

"You mean my son was selected for the military parade?" Old Lübeck looked surprised as he received the certificate. He had baked bread all his life and never expected his son to be so successful.

"Yes, sir," the two officers replied with a smile.

"Your son has been selected for this military parade. The kingdom invites military families to attend. Welcome, sir."

"Can I bring my wife and children with me? She misses her children very much, and the children miss their older brother."

“Of course, sir. The parade will begin in a week. The Kingdom will send someone to pick you up to thank you for training such an excellent soldier for the Kingdom.” The two officers saluted old Lübeck.

Even after the two officers had left, old Lübeck was still in a daze, holding the certificate in his hand, completely forgetting the bread still baking in the shop.

Old Lübeck didn't recover from his shock until his wife saw the burnt bread and screamed. With trembling hands, he took out the certificate the officer had just given him; they had actually been invited by the Rhine royal family to watch the military parade.

This was the first time the old Lübeck bakery had closed early. The old Lübeck family hung up a "Temporarily Closed" sign, locked the bakery doors, and, under the watchful eyes of the entire town, were ushered into a car by officers sent by the kingdom to attend the military parade in Mainz.

"Welcome to buy bread from Old Lübeck. Their bread has nurtured an excellent army for the kingdom," the officer in charge of the reception said with a smile to the surrounding citizens.

When old Lübeck handed over the certificate, he still felt it was all a bit unreal, until the inspector smiled and returned the certificate to him, then saluted them.

"You are very welcome to Mainz to watch the military parade. Staff will take you to your designated location shortly."

The square was packed with people, and judging from their attire, there were clearly quite a few prominent figures among them. Old Lübeck was somewhat flustered; he had never seen so many people in the town before.

Looking at the clothes he was wearing, he suddenly regretted it. Would coming here embarrass his child?

"Dad, when can we see my brother?"

The children were not as flustered as old Lübeck. This was their first time leaving Koblenz, and they didn't have as many concerns, so they were very excited.

Holding soft drinks and wearing commemorative badges from the parade, they craned their necks, curiously looking around, trying to find their brother.

Johanna held their hands tightly, afraid that the curious children would run off and disappear in such a big place.

"Johanna, what do you think of my outfit? I should have gone to town and bought a nicer one," old Lübeck said, sounding somewhat regretful.

“You said I like to talk nonsense. Look at all this time, how many times have you mentioned clothes?” Johanna muttered. “This outfit is fine. I just want to see Lübeck as soon as possible. I wonder how my child is doing.”

Johanna ignored old Lube and just looked into the distance of the square, not knowing which group his children were in. She was worried that she had come all this way and would miss their children's performance.

"Hello, please follow me to the viewing platform." A staff member came over and invited the two to sit down.

He handed the two of them a form, saying, "This contains information about the various formations in this parade, and your children's specific positions are also marked on it. Please follow me to your designated seats to ensure that you and your children can see each other."

Old Lübeck was lucky; they were assigned to a relatively forward position where they could clearly see the marching troops. Many military families were already seated there, and seeing these people made Old Lübeck feel more relaxed. Being with them, he clearly felt less of the oppressive feeling he had when he first arrived.

Which military unit does your child belong to?

Old Lübeck was actually a very talkative man; after he sat down, he started chatting with the people around him.

"My child is with the Rhine Border Guard Regiment, what about yours?" The man chatted politely with old Lübeck.

"My family is the same. We never expected the kingdom to invite us to visit. I've never even left town in my life as a baker."

"Yes, I'm just a small vendor in Heidelberg. I was shocked when I received the notification that day, and I still feel like it's a dream."

As the two were reminiscing, the bell suddenly rang out. The loud sound silenced everyone present. The soldiers waiting outside for the inspection also heard the bell. Lübeck felt his throat become very dry and his breathing became heavy.

The Rhineland military parade has begun.

Chapter 154 Front Page

After visiting the parade in the Eastern Theater of the Commune, Thorne made a brief stop before accompanying Dukló to Mainz to invite him to attend the parade of the Kingdom of the Rhine.

Thorne also invited the lads from Legov's armored unit to participate in the kingdom's parade.

Duclos, of course, did not refuse Thorne's request. They were likely to encounter the enemy's armored forces on the battlefield in the future, and going there now would be a good opportunity to familiarize themselves with them beforehand.

With the parade date fast approaching, Fritz Lang was also anxiously arranging the positions of the photographers.

This will be the world's first sound film, and in addition to setting up the camera positions, they also need to set up the recording equipment, so they are very busy.

Fritz now has a truly impressive lineup, with photographers and sound engineers from various renowned German film studios at his beck and call.

The specific arrangements for this military parade were also handled by several famous German directors and screenwriters.

Fritz was incredibly happy to have a client who was both efficient and generous.

Thorne only gave Fritz a general idea and then let him do it. The team was also set up for him, and there weren't many requirements. Fritz was free to do his own thing.

He received unlimited production funding and the right to participate in the preparation and setup of the parade. Fritz also had a film crew of more than 150 people, consisting of 25 photographers, more than 30 drivers, and many Gestapo and Stasi members.

Fritz also had the privilege of having more than 35 cameras operating simultaneously for filming purposes, and the construction team even built special sloping bridges and camera towers.

This freedom of expression can maximize the preservation of unique characteristics and reflects Thorne's trust in him, but it also puts his fundamental skills to the test.

Because if something unexpected happens, then you really can't blame anyone else. If an accident occurs, Fritz's directing career may be over.

"Brand, you've put your camera in the wrong place!"

"Annas, didn't you see the camera was blocked? Did you only want to film half of your face?"

Fritz needed to ensure the camera crew could complete the filming smoothly, including their positioning and the walking routes for the subsequent shots. He had to arrange all of these things. There were also many directors and screenwriters present, and with so many colleagues there, Fritz couldn't afford to relax at all.

Riefenstahl watched the busy film crew. Although she was an actress now, she was also looking forward to directing and making a movie, especially after seeing the arrangements for this military parade. She hoped that one day she could also direct and make a similar documentary film.

Riefenstahl took many photos here, which she plans to organize when she gets back. She also plans to watch the film as soon as it is released to learn from the techniques used in it.

Kingdom officials also arrived one after another. Senior officers from the army, navy and air force accompanied King Otto to the viewing platform. Because this event was designed by Thorne, Otto was not very clear about the specifics.

Thorne simply gave him a speech and asked Otto to give a speech at the beginning of the parade to boost morale. To make it as perfect as possible, Otto also rehearsed many times in private.

These events were recorded by Thorne and later made into a short film called "The King's Speech," which was placed as a little Easter egg at the end of the movie.

Soon after, Thorne accompanied Durok to the parade ground, which immediately caused a sensation among the reporters, who rushed over to take pictures.

Alpha and Signal Flag security personnel cleared a safe passage for them, allowing Thorne and his group to pass through smoothly.

"The Rhine people are so hospitable," Duklo laughed. When Thorne came to the commune, there weren't this many people surrounding him.

"There are not only Rhine people here, but also journalists from all over the world. It seems that our arrival has, to some extent, brought the world together."

Thorne also jokingly told Duklo that these reporters were not very open when they were in the commune, and even when Thorne came, they only took pictures from a distance. Now that they are in the Rhine, they have no worries.

Reporters jostled and pushed their way to the front, afraid of missing a single detail. Perhaps people all over the world only show such unity when they're watching the drama unfold.

The French observation group was quite large because Thorne had also invited an armored division to accompany him. Thorne saw that the reporters present were busy taking pictures and knew that this was a good opportunity to promote his products.

He took out a bottle of soda and handed it to Duclos, while also offering sodas to the other members of the French observation group.

"Welcome to the Rhine, cheers to friendship, and may Germany and France maintain peace forever."

"Cheers to peace."

Duclos smiled and clinked glasses with Thorne, a classic moment that was quickly captured by reporters. Some reporters even had their film rushed out. This military parade kept the reporters very busy.