The Rise Of A Billionaire 1943-Chapter 178 - 191: From London to North Africa

April 28, Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz, Hitler’s chosen successor, signed the instrument of surrender.

The surrender document stipulated that it would take effect at 1:00 a.m. on April 29, 1945.

Germany had surrendered.

For Europe, this meant the arrival of peace.

On April 28, as all of Britain celebrated the coming of peace, Li Yueying, Zhu Meijiao, and their group, like other Britons, were in London celebrating Victory Day. They had arrived in Britain a few days earlier to receive airplanes.

Old friends were sending generous gifts, and new friends were not to be outdone. Or rather, in the face of American generosity, "Fat Churchill" had no choice but to make a gesture as well.

On the 21st—the same day the Soviets raised the Red Flag over the Reichstag—Churchill magnanimously announced that Britain would provide military aid to China to strengthen its armed forces.

At the same time, he also provided the North Borneo Company with some military equipment, including 57 Lancaster bombers. It was certain that these were all second-hand, but for a bomber that could carry a 7,000-pound payload and still have a range of 4,072 kilometers, Pierre would definitely not refuse. After all, the Lancaster was capable of bombing the Japanese home islands!

In fact, Churchill was only pretending to be generous—now that the war in Europe was over, more than four thousand Lancaster bombers sitting at British airfields would become scrap metal, eventually to be dismantled, which would cost money as well.

So, better to send them where they’re needed.

Bombing the Japanese was not a bad idea, since the British Empire still had many colonies occupied by Japan.

Thus, as the most experienced pilots in the Borneo Air Force, Li Yueying and Zhu Meijiao flew to London ahead of time. After a brief crash course in piloting the Lancaster, the group planned to fly a bomber back to North Africa for training on the 29th.

After a night of wild celebration, the air force base was littered with streamers and empty bottles. Even in the heavily guarded base, last night had been one of indulgence and joy. For them, the war was over.

Even though the Royal Navy was still fighting in the Pacific, so what? For them, the war was already over.

"God bless you, Liz, Judy. Your war will be over soon too. After all, only Japan remains. When the war is over, let’s meet again!"

As Li Yueying and Zhu Meijiao were about to board the plane, Colonel Hudson, the British officer assigned to them, said:

"I believe we’ll meet again very soon."

Li Yueying smiled. Over the past few days, she and Zhu Meijiao had undergone training here.

As veteran pilots who had flown more than a dozen types of aircraft, they quickly mastered how to operate the Lancaster. In truth, there wasn’t much difference in flying the plane itself; the biggest challenge was training ground crew. Without well-trained ground personnel for maintenance, even the best aircraft would eventually become nothing but scrap metal.

Fortunately, the company had established a ground crew school in Tunisia, where thousands of trainees were undergoing instruction. In fact, this bomber’s flight was less about training pilots and more about providing hands-on experience for the ground crew.

Soon, with the British staff seeing them off, the "Judy" Lancaster bomber roared down the runway and took off, heading toward North Africa. Compared to the more than 4,000 Lancasters stationed at airfields across the British Isles, the Judy and the 600-plus Lancasters that would later fly to Asia were undoubtedly the lucky ones—in the following years, over 3,000 Lancasters were mothballed and then dismantled, their aluminum turned into pots and pans for British households.

A few hours later, after crossing the Mediterranean and approaching Tunisia, a pile of flight jackets at the rear of the cabin suddenly shifted, and a person unexpectedly emerged. A girl in an overcoat shook her head groggily, still not fully awake from her hangover, confused and disoriented.

"Where am I?"

The roar of the engines was like sharp blades, so piercing it felt as if it would slice through her eardrums.

"Is this a dance hall? Why is it so noisy?"

She rubbed her bleary eyes, her face full of confusion.

This didn’t seem like a dance hall.

"How did I end up here?"

She tried to stand, but was hit by a wave of dizziness. Before she could figure out what was happening, the jolt of the plane landing sent her tumbling into the pile of flight jackets, her head hitting the floor, and she passed out again.

The crew had no idea there was a "stowaway" on board. After the plane landed smoothly, the crew disembarked, and the ground staff began their routine maintenance and inspection. They were no strangers to the Lancaster’s Merlin engines—after all, the P-51 Mustang used the same model.

As night deepened, the ground crew finished all their work. By then, the girl had woken up and fumbled around the cabin for a while, finally finding an exit below.

"Hello, is anyone there?"

Her voice echoed across the empty tarmac, but there was no response. Standing at the hatch, she hesitated—the drop to the ground was five or six feet, enough to make her wary. She wanted to jump, but fear held her back.

Parched and hungry, she frowned and swallowed hard. After another look below, she took a deep breath and leapt. She landed successfully, but the impact sent her sprawling, and she hit her head again.

Dizzy and unsteady, she staggered forward, each step a struggle against gravity. She tried to keep her balance, but after only a few steps, her exhausted body gave out.

She collapsed onto the grass, fainting in this unfamiliar place.

Soon, a patrol found the girl on the grass. By the light of their lamps, one of the team members said,

"She’s a European girl. How did she end up here?"

Another replied,

"Maybe she’s one of the new nurses."

To support operations in Borneo, the company had been recruiting nurses in France and Germany. Since entering Germany, they had hired large numbers of doctors and nurses there—labor was cheaper, and they only had to pay in Reichsmarks.

For the company, it was a deal with no downside.

"Maybe. Let’s take her to the hospital first."

Soon, the girl was taken to the hospital. A few hours later, when she woke again, the sweltering heat made her uncomfortable.

"Lili..."

Calling her sister’s name, the girl looked around blankly. Where am I?

A hospital?

Why is it so shabby?

Just then, she heard a string of German. A doctor and nurse approached, and the doctor asked,

"How are you feeling now? Any headache?"

It’s German!

Why are they speaking German?

Could this not be Britain?

It didn’t seem like Britain... The weather was so hot, and there was a ceiling fan spinning overhead.

How did I end up here?

Why are these people speaking German?

Before she could figure it out, the doctor pried open her eyelids and shined a flashlight in her eyes, then held up some fingers and asked how many.

Because she had learned German as a child, she answered in German,

"Two."

"All right, no concussion. Miss, what’s your name, and which team are you with?"

"She’s probably from Team Three, the group that arrived yesterday. The team leader is Michelle, from the SS hospital..."

SS!

The girl’s eyes widened instantly, her hands clenching into fists as she looked at them... They—they were Germans.

The SS!

Didn’t Germany already surrender?

Why are there still SS soldiers? More importantly, how did I end up here, right in the middle of these SS men?

Oh my God!

What on earth is going on? Was I kidnapped?

Lily, where are you, Ellie...

Just then, someone asked,

"What’s your name?"

"Lily..."

The girl, who had been calling out for her sister, instinctively replied, then added,

"Lily Marlene."