Burning Moscow

"How long can our ammunition and supplies last?" I asked Kistyakov briefly after listening.

"According to today's fighting intensity, I estimate that the ammunition can last for about a week." Kistyakov solemnly said: "The materials will be more. If you save a little, it can be used for about half a month."

Kistyakov’s words remind me of the situation in Mamayev Hill last year. At that time, our ammunition and material consumption was also an alarming amount. The reason why we can maintain it normally, except in Mamayev Hill The secret warehouse on Shanghai stores a large number of weapons, ammunition and supplies, as well as the German supplies we seized from the battlefield. The most important thing is that I take advantage of the army’s defense zone to be close to the port, and from time to time people will be sent to the city to intercept supplies Part of it is to give priority to meeting the needs of our ministry.

The troops I command now are several times more than in Mamayev Hill. The consumption of weapons, ammunition and materials will naturally increase. If this problem cannot be solved, the Germans only need to surround us for ten and a half months. , The troops may fall apart.

To be honest, where did the weapons and equipment used by the troops come from? Where do the supplies that the commanders and fighters need every day come from? Such issues have never been within my consideration, because these are the responsibility of the logistics department. But the situation is different now. We may have to fight for some days in the encirclement of the enemy. If we don't stock up enough ammunition and materials, it will be difficult to maintain normal operations. So I looked up and asked, "Which direction did our ammunition and supplies come from?"

"Most of the materials we need come from Kiev, are transported by the transport team to Koroslav, and then distributed there and sent to the various troops." Bezikov now understands what he is in charge of. It was very clear. Hearing my question, he immediately replied unambiguously: "Of course there is a small part that was transported across the river from Cherkassy, ​​and then sent to us by the small road through Kosson."

"Comrade Chief of Staff, the transportation line of Kosson, I don't think it is necessary to use it as a last resort." Kistyakov said with a sad expression: "The roads there are rugged and difficult. Supplies are also very limited. And due to the complex terrain, the German army can easily cut off this transportation line even with only one or two companies. If any German commander has a whim, let his troops disguise themselves as ours and take advantage of the situation. A sneak attack will cost us a lot."

Regarding the concern expressed by Kistyakov, I said after thinking about it for a while: "Comrade Deputy Commander, the Germans may very well attack the area we are defending. Under the current urgent situation, I think We should transport ammunition and materials here through different transportation routes at the same time."

At this moment, Akhromeyev, who was not far away, suddenly called me: "Comrade Commander, Commander Tavart Kiradze of Zhytomyr, I have important information to report to you."

Hearing the sentence "Commander Tawart Kiradze's report", my whole body suddenly became nervous. He rarely took the initiative to call me, usually I called him to arrange tasks. I walked over and took the call from Akhromeyev, took a deep breath, prepared to hear the worst news, and said, "Comrade Commander, what do you want to report to me? ?"

"That's it, Comrade Commander." Tawart Kirazzi said on the phone: "According to the scout's report, in addition to the 7th Armored Division in the west, the German army is also gathering in the north and south. , It seems that they will launch a major attack on Zhitomir at the latest tomorrow."

After he finished speaking, I asked slowly: "Comrade commander, how did you prepare for the forthcoming German offensive?"

"In addition to letting the troops rush to repair the fortifications overnight, I also ordered the divisions to mobilize the main force to the forefront of the lot." Tavart Kiradze gave me a brief report and said to me: "Don't worry, no matter what. What a price I will pay, I will definitely defend Zhytomyr."

Although Tavartkilasze spoke convincingly, when I put down the phone, my heart was particularly unreliable. I still clearly remember that in the Battle of Kursk, the 51st guard under the command of General Tawartkilasze The division’s line of defense was the first to be broken by the Germans.

I stood by the telephone and thought for a while, then turned my head and said to Kistyakov: "Comrade Deputy Commander, according to the report of General Tavart Kiradze, the enemies in the north, west, and south directions are gathering. It seems that there will be a big attack on Zhitomir at the latest tomorrow."

"This situation should be reported to the Front Army Headquarters immediately." Bezikov said, without asking me for instructions, he picked up the phone on his own initiative and said into the microphone: "Operator, take me to the Front Army Headquarters. Find General Vatutin."

Seeing my unhappy look, Kistyakov quickly persuaded me: "Comrade Commander, this matter is of great importance. It should be reported to the Front Army Headquarters immediately so that Comrade Vatutin can make decisions based on the actual situation on the battlefield. Correct deployment."

After Kistyakov finished speaking, I did not speak, but stared at Bezikov to see if he had contacted Vatutin. After waiting for two or three minutes, Bezikov turned around and handed the microphone to me. At the same time, he said, "Comrade Commander, the front command is connected."

I wanted to report this incident to the Chief of Staff of the Front Army. I didn’t expect that the person who answered the phone was actually Vatutin. It seems that it is really like Zhukov’s evaluation: Vatutin, who was a staff member, almost took care of it. All the work of his chief of staff has made the chief of staff who should be responsible for these things idle. As a subordinate of Vatutin, I have no intention of commenting on whether his work method, which requires personal attention regardless of the size of the matter, is correct. I only know that he did this, which undoubtedly aggravated the pressure he was facing, and even caused physical conditions Deteriorating situation.

"Hello, Comrade General." I said politely into the microphone: "I just received information from Zhitomir. The enemy's troops in the north, west, and south directions are gathering. It seems that they are preparing for a short period of time. Within time, launch a big attack on Zhytomyr!"

"What, the enemy is about to attack Zhytomyr?" Vatutin was taken aback when he heard the news. After a moment of silence, he asked in a tentative tone: "Comrade Oshanina, I don't know this information. Is your credibility high?"

"Comrade General, this information was reported to me by General Tavart Kiradze, commander of the 23rd Guards Infantry Corps." In order to dispel Vatutin’s doubts, I also specifically explained the source of the information to him, "He is a An veteran commander with more than ten or twenty years of rich combat experience, I think the information he reports should be accurate."

"I knew Tavart Kiradze before the war. He was a commander with a brave fighting spirit. Since it was the information he provided, then I think it should not be false." Vatutin knew that the intelligence was the tower. After Valter Kirazzi provided it, his attitude has changed a lot. It can be seen that he still has a lot of trust in the older generation of commanders in these troops. After a pause, he asked: "Comrade Oshanina, what measures do you plan to take to resist the enemy's attack?"

"From the daytime battles of the 67th Guards Division, there is a strong fortification that can greatly reduce the offensive pressure on the troops. So I plan to rush to Zhitomir overnight to check the fortifications there."

"You are very considerate. As long as our troops can rely on solid fortifications and build a complete defense system, then it can still block the German offensive." After finishing these two sentences, Vatutin said casually. Asked: "Is there anything else I need to help you solve?"

"Yes, Comrade General." I had planned to wait until Zhitomir called Vatutin to talk about weapons, ammunition and supplies. I didn't expect that he would ask us if we had any difficulties first, so I immediately said smoothly. "I am worried that Zhytomyr might fall into the German siege after the battle begins. As long as the enemy cuts off the Kiev-Zhytomyr road, then we will lose supplies of weapons, ammunition and materials."

"Under the current situation, I think the German army may not be able to encircle your group army." After listening to me, Vatutin said disapprovingly: "You must know that there are 38th and 38th to the east of you. The two units of the 6o Army. As long as they exist, Fastiv’s German forces want to attack you from the east, and they must think about their fate when they are cut off by our army.”

Seeing that Vatutin did not arouse the necessary vigilance on this matter, I quickly reminded him: "However, Comrade General, judging from the current signs, it is entirely possible for the German army to treat the daycares we occupy from four directions at the same time. Mill attacked."

"It's all right, Comrade Oshaninna." Before I could finish speaking, Vatutin interrupted the words behind me, and said plausibly: "Don't worry, if the Germans really deal with you from the direction of Fastiv. To start an offense, I will immediately order the two armies on the west side of Kiev to attack the enemy’s rear, so that they cannot look at each other."

Vatutin's stubborn opinion left me speechless. After putting down the phone, I said to Kistyakov: "Comrade Deputy Commander, I want to rush to Zhytomyr overnight. You will be responsible here. If you have anything, you can go to the tower. **The command of General Kirazzi called." Then I told Bezikov, "Chief of Staff, later you will contact General Sivakov, commander of the 22nd Guards Corps, and let him organize forces. Bring us some of the weapons and ammunition stockpiled on the Cherkassy River. Remember, in order to prevent German attacks, let him send more troops to **** the vehicle."

When I went out, it was already eleven o'clock in the evening. I looked up at the sky. There was the moon in the sky, so the road should not be difficult to walk. In order not to expose the target, I only need two jeeps, one for me, and the other for the driver and four guards.

The driver was familiar with the route we were going to take. He drove the car quite fast and galloped on the snow-covered forest path. It took less than an hour before the car entered Zhytomyr. Although the driver carefully avoided the masonry and rubble on the road, he could not avoid the pits and pits covered by snow, which caused dangers from time to time.

I watched the city outside that was destroyed by German artillery and bombs. Although we have occupied it for a while, it still feels like a battlefield that has just ended the battle. You can see the darkened city everywhere. The wreckage of tanks and armored vehicles, burnt trucks, and some corpses that have not had time to collect.

When our car was driving forward, it bumped abruptly and then stopped abruptly. I quickly asked the driver: "Comrade driver, what's the matter?"

The driver turned to look at me, crying and said: "Comrade Commander, the car has broken down, I want to go and check it. Don't worry, it will take a few minutes at most." Then he pushed the door and got out of the car.

As the driver lifted the front hood to start the inspection, I looked out the window with some boredom. It happened to see two soldiers appeared on the street not far ahead on the right. Although the light is not very good, I still see at a glance that it is a man and a woman. The two may have been apart for too long, and when they came together, they hugged each other, and they did not let go.

Seeing how close they are, my heart said: This may be a couple on the battlefield, because the fighting is fierce and the two have no chance to be together, so they will be so close when they meet today.

At this moment, I saw further down the street, a five-man patrol appeared, walking along the street towards our side. When they walked to the couple's side ~www.wuxiaspot.com~ they stopped one after another. Then I heard a stern voice saying: "Hey, comrade commander, please pay attention to your images, what kind of style you can hug and hug on the street."

With this voice, the couple who had been hugging each other immediately separated, and then I heard a male voice saying apologetically: "I'm sorry, Comrade Sergeant, we haven't seen each other for too long, so I just got a little gaffe."

The patrol sergeant said coldly: "Please show your credentials and pass."

The couple very cooperatively took out the ID from their bodies and handed them to each other. After the sergeant's persistence, he did not return his credentials to the two immediately. Instead, he said strongly: "Comrade Commander, the city is under martial law after ten o'clock, but your pass is not in this area. I think you may want to Come with me."

"Comrade sergeant." The commander said in a pleasing tone: "Although my pass is not in this area, but my station is only a few streets away from here, please relax."

"No, you have to go to the Garrison Headquarters with us because of your pass." The sergeant of the patrol said reluctantly, "Comrade Commander, do you take the initiative to follow us, or I will let the soldiers Will we take you away?" (To be continued.)