Due to time differences, London, England, is 5 hours ahead of Washington, D.C., USA.
When paratroopers descended en masse onto British soil, night was just beginning to fall in Washington, D.C.
President Roosevelt, who was in discussion with General Leslie Groves, the Army Chief of Staff, and General George C. Marshall about the situation in Europe, received news of German paratroopers being dispatched. His expression turned grave. "The Germans have launched a landing operation, they're really in a hurry." It was only late February, still quite cold, yet the Germans eagerly started their landing operation.
Marshall sighed. "The Germans are worried about changes if they delay, I suppose."
General Groves seemed to mutter to himself. "How long can the British hold out?"
Marshall couldn't help but give a bitter smile. "How long does it matter? If I were the British Prime Minister, I'd surrender immediately. Of course, with Churchill's temperament, he'd fight to the bitter end, to live or die with Britain. But as for the others, it's hard to say."
Churchill's last speech left quite an impression. "We shall fight on the beaches; we shall fight at the landing grounds; we shall fight in the fields and in the streets; we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender!"
"Never, never, never give up!!"
Marshall didn't doubt Churchill's resolve to resist to the end. Moreover, Churchill's character was questionable; he would stop at nothing for victory, trampling over any legal or moral boundaries without hesitation, showing no human decency whatsoever.
The Germans, understanding Churchill's character well, had specifically issued a warning on the radio, stating that if the Churchill government dared to use poison gas, the German army would retaliate with tenfold, a hundredfold more violent measures, dropping dozens to hundreds of tons of super poison gas. The Germans also emphasized that the toxicity of these gases could kill tens of thousands with just one gram, and even gas masks would struggle to offer protection.
No one believed the Germans would be merciful in this matter, and under such threats, even if Churchill did order the use of poison gas, his subordinates might not comply; after all, who doesn't have family and friends? No one would sacrifice the lives of their loved ones just to kill a few German soldiers.
Now, Britain was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot; the more Churchill resisted, the heavier the price Britain would pay after defeat.
However, what price Britain would pay wasn't his concern; what he cared about was that if Britain fell, it would be difficult for the U.S. to intervene in Europe. At this moment, Marshall once again deeply understood the profound meaning of the phrase, "Truth is only ever grasped by a few, while the majority are mediocre." Everyone present knew that America could not afford to lose Britain, but alas, few of the public would consider the long-term benefits, focusing only on their immediate needs and stability.
As Marshall sighed inwardly, the President's secretary entered to inform Roosevelt that Secretary of State Cordell Hull had arrived.
Roosevelt nodded. "Let him in."
Cordell Hull entered, greeted everyone, and reported to Roosevelt. "Mr. President, Ambassador Lucas in Madrid has just sent a message regarding intelligence on the German 'flying bombs'."
"Oh? Tell me more."
In recent months, the German army had been bombarding London with a type of "flying bomb," which naturally caught the attention of the U.S. high command. Unfortunately, these "flying bombs" were always launched at night, and aside from knowing they resembled an aircraft in shape, no useful intelligence had been gathered. Moreover, these bombs seemed to have multiple safety mechanisms, ensuring that even if one malfunctioned mid-flight, it would still explode.
Seeing all eyes on him, Cordell cleared his throat and continued. "This is the situation; the intelligence on these 'flying bombs' was originally discussed secretly between Spain's Vice Premier Salazar and the British Ambassador in Madrid, Samuel Hoare. But now that the German landing operation has commenced, even if Britain acquired the intelligence, it wouldn't be very useful. So, Samuel Hoare introduced our Ambassador Lucas to Vice Premier Salazar; Salazar said he could provide the full set of design blueprints."
"That's good news." However, Marshall was puzzled. "But how could Vice Premier Salazar get his hands on the designs for such a bomb? It's a German secret weapon."
Cordell shrugged. "It's said that several Spanish engineers were involved in the design and production of these 'flying bombs'."
Marshall nodded silently; that made sense. "But the Spanish won't provide this design for free, will they?"
"Of course not, the Spanish want to do business. But their price is outrageously high; the British have been negotiating for months without success."
"How outrageous? What price did the Spanish set?"
Cordell held up five fingers. "500 tons of gold."
"Wow!" Everyone sharply inhaled; 500 tons of gold? These Spaniards sure knew how to ask for a king's ransom! At the current price of about $1.2 million per ton, 500 tons would be $600 million, enough to build five or six super battleships!!
President Roosevelt, in anger, laughed. "Have these Spaniards gone mad for money?! Does Samuel Hoare, the British Ambassador, want us to pay? Has he gone mad too?! Does he think we're a gold mine?!"
Cordell explained. "Ambassador Hoare's concern is that in the future, Germany might use these to attack the U.S. With these designs, we can prepare in advance."
Marshall, however, was dismissive. "These German 'flying bombs' seem powerful, but their range doesn't exceed 200 kilometers; how could they threaten us?"
Cordell looked very serious. "Vice Premier Salazar said that's just a German diversion; the actual range of these 'flying bombs' exceeds 1200 kilometers. They can be launched not only from land but also from warships, or even be mounted on bombers. Their maximum speed can reach 750 kilometers per hour."
"What?!" Everyone was shocked.
If the range exceeded 1200 kilometers, in any future conflict between the U.S. and Germany, the Germans could launch these bombs from outside the U.S. defense perimeter. And with a speed of 750 kilometers per hour, interception would be nearly impossible.
"These cunning Germans!" Roosevelt slammed his hand on the table, cursing. Had they known Germany possessed such a weapon capable of threatening the U.S., they should have supported Britain at all costs, even if it meant going to war with Germany.
But it was too late now; not to mention the prevailing isolationist sentiment at home, even if there were full public support for war against Germany, there wouldn't be enough time. Just mobilizing and preparing would take considerable time, and by the time America was ready, Britain would have already fallen.