Chapter 643 The Third Attack (2)

Ps: The second update will be posted a little later...

Although Major Genscher, the commander of the Führer's personal guard, expressed concern about Hoffman's arbitrary request to stop and was worried about being attacked by Russian guerrillas, Hoffman did not take it seriously - he was protected by the most elite standard guard officers and soldiers, armored The train was not only accompanied by artillery but also several Tiger tanks. Not to mention the guerrillas with only dozens or hundreds of people, even 1-2 Red Army divisions could be dealt with.

After the train stabilized, he got off the train with Speer and others. He originally just wanted to have a casual understanding of grain production and the lives of Ukrainian people, but something unexpected happened. A young Ukrainian guy who was driving a tractor and harvesting noticed The stopped train paid more attention to the group of big shots getting off the train. He shouted at the top of his lungs: "Ah! The head of state! The head of state of Germany is here!"

This shout attracted more Ukrainians, who asked: "Where? Where?"

"No, that's not it?" So a bunch of people rushed towards where Hoffman was. This scene frightened Genscher and others so much that while he asked the guards to set up machine guns to guard the scene, he wanted to drag the head of state into the car and run away, but Hoffman quickly stopped his blind movement. He could see that This group of Ukrainians looked at him with curiosity and admiration, but no look of attack or hostility.

The young man who was the first to shout was quickly brought to Hoffman. He stood up straight and raised his hands respectfully.

Hoffmann was amused: "Young man, what's your name? Are you a member of the National Socialist Party?"

"My name is Yatov Shevchenko. I am not yet a party member, but I have seen them salute you in the movie."

"Movie?" Speer was a little surprised, "What movie."

Shevchenko scratched his scalp in embarrassment: "In the prisoner of war camp, the guard showed us a movie to introduce the situation in Germany. There were shots of the head of state reviewing the troops. To be honest, the movie was relatively blurry, and I wasn't sure whether it was true or not. You, but I have a portrait of you at home, and you look exactly like the portrait..."

Hoffman was amused by the words "You look exactly like the portrait": "Yes, you are really funny."

The other party was anxious, thinking that Hoffman didn't believe it, so he quickly said: "Really, I mean it. Many of us have portraits of the Führer hanging in our homes. We invited them back after going to church for mass. The priest said that the Führer was a good man. , He gave us fields, gave us freedom, oh, and gave us diesel..."

"Yes, the priests said that the head of state must be a saint..."

The idea of ​​being a saint made Hofmann and the people around him a little embarrassed, because strictly speaking, the National Socialist Party was not very interested in religion, and its relationship with the Holy See and the domestic church was also very average, and Germany was In a country dominated by Protestantism, Protestantism basically doesn’t talk about saints. But in the Catholic and Orthodox systems, saints are extraordinary figures. Although the Bolsheviks have been engaged in socialist revolution for many years, there is still a large market for relevant religious beliefs in rural Ukraine.

The Ukrainian authorities responded to this situation and lifted the religious ban. Hoffman had a relatively mild attitude towards this. He agreed with the new Ukrainian government's measures and even said that part of the religious property could be returned to ease the situation. He never expected that the Orthodox Church would preach He is a "saint" - what an irony.

He avoided the topic and asked instead: "The prisoner of war camp will be released soon? Judging from the way you drive the tractor, you are a tank driver?"

"I am a tank driver, and my brother is also in the army. He is a lieutenant." Shevchenko was a little embarrassed. "Although the superiors asked me to stay and serve, because the government divided the land, my father was not in good health. We We haven’t gotten married yet, so we finally discussed and decided that I would stay and farm, and help me farm my brother’s land as well—he is an officer and has more land than us, so it’s not okay to have no one to take care of it.”

Someone nearby shouted: "Shevchenko, you two brothers just need a wife..."

Everyone laughed.

Hoffman nodded: "Looking at it now, it seems that the harvest is good this year."

"It's really good, and God is helping me, but..." Shevchenko hesitated to speak.

Speer asked: "Any questions?"

"The government has posted a notice saying that it will charge a 30% agricultural tax in the next few years. Is this true?"

Hoffman did not answer directly, but asked: "Do you think this tax rate is high?"

"Not high, not high. The key is, is 30% enough?"

"Shevchenko, you understand policy, tell me, is there any problem with the 30% tax?"

"There is no problem. The government posted a notice saying that the tax is 30% during the war, 20% after the war, and 10% is an additional war surtax. However, in fact, the 10% surtax is not enough, because this year the government They provided diesel and tractors to help. Once the war ends and the tax rate drops, the villagers will have to find ways to organize it." Shevchenko said hesitantly, "We all understand the notices in black and white, and we are worried..."

"You want less?" Hoffman asked keenly. In fact, this tax rate is the result of joint discussions between Ukraine and Germany. As a country dominated by agriculture, agricultural taxes are the bulk of Ukraine's tax. In addition to maintaining the necessary food needs of urban residents and the defense forces of the Ukrainian government, most of the 30% in-kind tax has been used. The reservation was given to Germany, but of course it was not completely free of charge: on the one hand, Germany contributed to the liberation of Ukraine, and now it is helping Ukraine to provide garrison protection. This "thank you fee" still has to be paid, and it is in the name of military expenses settled in kind; On the other hand, during the reconstruction process of the Ukrainian Defense Forces, the German army provided a large amount of equipment, weapons and logistical supplies, which were all cost-effective, and Germany allowed the Ukrainian government to slowly repay them.

"Everyone hopes for stability." Shevchenko explained everyone's concerns, "In fact, we can afford 20%, 30%, or even 35%. The key is that the government must have credibility, and it will be whatever it says from the beginning. In addition, the purchase price of the remaining grain must be reasonable, and you cannot just take it away with worthless cents - the Bolsheviks implemented a surplus grain collection system, and the older people here remember this year because the policy was unclear at the beginning. Everyone is in a wait-and-see mood, so not all the fields are used, and they will be careless in later farming. If they really only harvest 30%, or even if they keep harvesting 30%, the farmers will definitely shout long live..."

"I hope everyone can grow more food. During the war, the 30% tax will not increase again, and your government will not go back on its promise. Besides, don't we still have it?" Hoffmann patted Spey beside him. Er, "This belongs to our Germany. He is in charge of all production in Germany. He has already thought about it. When the war is over, we will exchange watches, radios, and cameras with you for food. How about it?"

The crowd was all excited, as German products were highly praised.