Burning Moscow

The soldiers of the guard company had just put the bodies of the two dozen sacrificed female soldiers into the newly dug pit. Before they had time to fill the soil, a loud shout came from not far away: "Air strike! Air strike by enemy aircraft!" "

Li Jiya, who was standing next to me, heard the shout, only looked up into the air, and shouted at the female soldiers standing by the pit: "Girls, get ready to fight!" After shouting these words, she took the lead. Run to a nearby anti-aircraft gun. After a short period of hesitation, the female soldiers wearing only white military shirts also ran to their gun positions.

Basmanov walked to my side, touched me with his arm, and groaned into the pit, and asked with a little embarrassment: "Comrade Commander, what should we do? Now help the female soldiers bury all the martyrs. Yet?"

"No, wait a minute." Looking at the two enemy aircraft hovering over the pier, I slowly shook my head, and said flatly: "Don't worry, Comrade Captain, wait for the female soldiers to beat this wave of enemy aircraft. Retreat and talk.” The reason I say this is because I have an unclear premonition in my heart. Maybe the female soldiers will make sacrifices in the next battle. If the pit is filled now, it won’t be a while. Do you have to dig a hole? But I said to Basmanov in a high-sounding voice, "After the female soldiers have repelled this wave of German airstrikes, let them say goodbye to their comrades in arms."

I don’t know what the German Air Force commander thinks, every time they bomb the pier, only two enemy planes are dispatched, and this time is no exception. When the enemy plane passed over the Mamayev Hill, it did not immediately dive down for bombardment and fire. Instead, it continued to hover in the air. As the anti-aircraft machine guns on the dock fired for the first time, Li Jiya also decisively issued an order to fire the remaining six anti-aircraft guns when the crisp sound of the guns rang out.

The position of the anti-aircraft guns was too messy, and the firing boundary was affected by the surrounding buildings. After six rounds of artillery bombs exploded in the air. There was no impact on the two circling enemy planes.

I was deeply afraid that the inefficient shooting of anti-aircraft guns would attract revenge from the enemy plane, and quickly stepped forward to stop Li Jiya: "Comrade regiment political comrade. Stop, stop!"

Li Jiya did not expect that I would stop her suddenly. I couldn't help but stunned for a moment, and then asked coldly: "Comrade Colonel, are we just watching enemy planes bombing civilians on the pier?"

"Your style of play, not only can't destroy the enemy plane, it is estimated that you and your subordinates will be sacrificed in the end." I didn't care to explain more to her. After saying this, I immediately turned around and told Basman Nove: "Comrade Captain, take your people. Help the female soldiers drag the anti-aircraft guns to a wide view. Remember, after the anti-aircraft guns are in place, form a triangle and two triangles in groups of three. Fifty meters apart."

Regarding my order, although Basmanov was at a loss, he replied with a firm expression: "Yes, comrade commander, I will execute it right away." Then he turned to the guards who were coming here. Even the soldier shouted: "Hey, you all come to me. Move quickly, don't drag."

When the soldiers of the guard company dragged the anti-aircraft guns to the open area, I walked to Li Jiya who was angry. Before she could speak, she hurriedly yelled at me: "Comrade Colonel, what are you really doing? Why did you let your soldiers pull the anti-aircraft guns away? Didn't you see that the German plane was about to dive and bomb? ?"

While she was speaking, an explosion came from the direction of the dock, followed by shouts and crying. I smiled bitterly and said to the angry Li Jiya: "Comrade regiment political comrade, have you ever thought about your anti-aircraft artillery regiment and why it has suffered heavy casualties in the past few days. But the number of enemy planes shot down is so few?" A puzzled expression appeared on Li Jiya's face, and then she shook her head instinctively. Indicates that you don't know.

Seeing that she could calm down and listen to me, I went on to say: "Although your anti-aircraft artillery regiment has a lot of anti-aircraft guns and anti-aircraft machine guns on the pier. But when the enemy planes fly, they all do their own things. Fighting in different battles, dispersing firepower, is not the slightest threat to the enemy’s organization. I asked Captain Basmanov to place your anti-aircraft gun in a triangle, so that no matter which direction the enemy plane flies in, it can ensure sufficient firepower. Density, which provides the hit rate of downing enemy aircraft."

After listening to me, Li Jiya frowned and thought for a while, then nodded in agreement, and said at the same time: "Comrade Colonel, you make a lot of sense. I will let the girls try and try to knock down the enemy plane."

After the anti-aircraft gun was in place, it was placed in two adjacent triangles according to my deployment, and fired fiercely at the enemy aircraft that was pulled back to the sky. The artillery shells exploded around the aircraft, forming a black barrage. Blowing away in the wind.

When the enemy plane hovered at high altitude, six anti-aircraft guns looked after them; when the enemy plane began to dive, the anti-aircraft machine guns on the dock woven a dense fire net in front of it. When an enemy plane dived and dropped bombs, the bombs dropped destroyed an anti-aircraft machine gun, but when it was just pulled up high and was about to hover, it was hit by shrapnel from the anti-aircraft artillery, and a long line burst out suddenly under the wings. In the black smoke, the fuselage swayed and planted towards the east bank of the Volga River.

Seeing that the enemy plane was shot down, the girls manipulating the anti-aircraft artillery raised their hands and cheered in unison: "It's down, it's down! Ula! Ula!!!"

The remaining enemy plane saw that its comrade was shot down, and did not dare to dive and drop bombs anymore, but hovered in the air for a circle, then turned around and flew to the north. Unexpectedly, when the enemy plane flew over Mamayev Hill, its fuselage suddenly lost control, plunged downwards, slanted across the high ground position, and plunged directly to the north of the high ground. After a dull explosion, a puff of black smoke rose slightly.

How is this going? I saw the enemy plane that crashed inexplicably, and I thought to myself that it would not be so coincidental. Just as the enemy plane was about to fly over our army's position, a mechanical failure occurred, which directly caused the crash?

But before I could understand, Lieutenant Colonel Oleg ran over with a telegraph operator and shouted at me from a long distance away: "Comrade Commander, the number of the group army headquarters says that he wants to talk to you immediately. "

I took Oleg and the radio operator to the wall of the building, then took the headphones and put them on, and shouted into the microphone: "Hey, hello, I’m Colonel Oshanina, I heard please answer."

General Krylov’s voice soon came from the headset: "Hey. Colonel Oshanina, this is Krylov. How is the situation on your side? Have the Germans attacking the dock been repelled? "

"Yes. Comrade Chief of Staff, we wiped out all the German troops attacking the dock." I replied loudly.

"Good job." The chief of staff praised me loudly, and then asked: "Are there any outstanding commanders? Report their names to me, and I will ask for their credit."

"Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff. The 101st Regiment of the 35th Guards Division came to support our anti-tank company. Although they only had eleven men and ten anti-tank guns, they eliminated 12 German tanks in the battle. "

"What, a troop of eleven people. It is amazing to have eliminated 12 tanks. What's their commander's name?" Krylov was also stunned by the results, and he immediately asked. The name of the commander of the company.

I thought for a while and replied: "The commander leading the team is the political instructor Gerasimov."

"Well, I wrote down the name. Is there anything else to report?"

"Also, Comrade Chief of Staff." Thinking of the sacrificed girls who were still lying in the pit, I immediately reported to Krylov: "The 1077th Anti-aircraft Artillery Regiment also performed exceptionally well in the battle. They at least destroyed it. They defeated five German tanks. But at the same time they paid a great price. Two anti-aircraft guns were destroyed by German tank shells, and more than 20 girls died heroically. Just two minutes ago, they shot down one. Enemy planes bombing over the pier."

Krylov was silent for a moment. Then he asked: "The commander of this regiment was killed in the airstrike yesterday. Who is in command of this unit now?"

"The current commander of the anti-aircraft artillery regiment is Li Jiya, political commissar of the regiment. She is a commander with great fighting spirit."

"Well, I took it down. Is there anything else?"

"Comrade Chief of Staff," I hesitated when I heard that he was about to hang up, and still asked decisively, "I want to ask if the counterattack carried out today was successful?"

"Don't you feel it yet? Colonel Oshanina." Krylov said in a harsh tone: "If our counterattack goes well, then German tanks will rush into the city and try to capture the pier. ?"

Listen to Krylov saying that. I just remembered that the Germans were two troops, one after bypassing the 107.5 height. Pounced towards the city from north to south; while another one tried to seize the wharf from west to east, but it was wiped out by us.

"The German armored units that attacked the city. Was it destroyed by us?" In order to learn more about the enemy, I asked cautiously.

"Not yet." Krylov said very quickly: "The German army is launching a fierce attack on the Central Railway Station. The remnants of the 10th Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the 35th Division of the Guards are fighting stubbornly against them. By the way, the fourth regiment of your independent division is also dispatched. They are launching an attack from behind the German army. The commander has now personally rushed to the train station to direct the troops to resist the attacking German troops."

After returning the headset and microphone to the operator, I looked up and asked Oleg: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, did Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar send someone to support you when you attacked the German flank attacking the dock just now?"

Oleg nodded vigorously, and said affirmatively: "Yes, Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar has transferred a battalion of the third regiment to me, so that I will have enough strength to launch an offensive from the rear of the German army."

I nodded in satisfaction, and said to him: "Well, comrade colonel, now you and Captain Prokop of the 10th Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs are responsible for the defense of the dock. I will just say one thing, and hold on firmly at all costs. The wharf, because this is the main artery of Stalingrad, once it is cut off by the German army, the troops standing in the city will be in a desperate situation, and we will all be thrown into the Volga by the Germans. Understand?"

"Understood!" Oleg answered me loudly.

I just wanted to lift my leg and leave, when I suddenly thought that his troops used to stick to the south of the settlement. If they were all transferred here to guard the pier, wouldn't there be air strikes over there. So I added another sentence: "By the way, you can't give up in residential areas. You have to send the most capable people to stick to it."

"Commander, please rest assured. Comrade Vellore, political commissar of the regiment, is there, and she still has three companies in her hand. Even if it encounters a German attack, she can stand up for a while. Moreover, we can still get the third regiment at any time. Support, comrade commander. Please rest assured that we will stick to the residents' point and there will be no problems at all."

After receiving Oleg's promise, I was relieved to return to the division headquarters with Basmanov and the guard company.

When passing by the hill where the main position is located. Suddenly I remembered the enemy plane that had fallen inexplicably, and I beckoned Basmanov to turn around and walk towards the high ground.

Encountered a second lieutenant on duty on the road. He heard that I was going to find Lieutenant Colonel Sergeikov, and immediately called a soldier, let him be a guide for us, and guide us to find Lieutenant Colonel Sergeikov. In order to prevent the crowd from exposing the target, I only left Vera and the others, and the remaining fighters asked Basmanov to bring them back to the division headquarters.

I followed the trenches to the command post of Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov, let Vera and the others stay at the door, I opened the curtain and walked in. Sergeikov was holding a kerosene lamp at the moment. Lie down at the table and look at the map. Seeing someone coming in, he turned his head and looked at me. Maybe it was because he was thinking about something. After looking at me for a long time, he remembered that I put the kerosene lamp on the table and stood up straight and bowed to me.

I walked to him and sat down, looked up at him and asked, "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, are you hostile here?"

Sergeikov shook his head and replied, "No, not at all. Neither was he bombed by German artillery. Nor did he see the ground offensive launched by the Germans. Maybe it was the counterattack we launched at dawn today, reducing their strength. They are all attracted to other directions, so they can't squeeze out the strength to attack us."

"Although the enemy is not attacking. But we can't relax our vigilance." I heard Sederikov say this, and I was afraid that he would take it lightly, so I quickly reminded him.

"Before dawn, I sent scouts to lurch five kilometers north of the high ground. According to the information they sent back, the Germans did not move and it seemed that they would not launch an attack."

Hearing that, I feel a little relieved. Then I thought of my purpose here, and said to Sergeikov: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel. I just saw an enemy plane flying over your position and it suddenly went out of control and carried it down. It exploded on the north side of the high ground. It caught fire. I wanted to see what was going on and figure out why the plane fell inexplicably."

My voice just fell. Xiejielikov laughed happily. Confused by his laughter, I asked inexplicably, "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, what are you laughing at? Did I say something wrong?"

Sergeikov waved his hands repeatedly and explained: "That's not the case, comrade commander. The enemy plane crashed not because of some mechanical failure, but because it was shot down by us."

"Shot down?!" Sergeikov's words surprised me. There is no anti-aircraft weapon in the regiment, so what was it used to knock down the enemy plane? "Comrade Sejerikov, you have confused me, what is going on, let me hear it."

Sederikov did not answer me right away, but made a gesture of please, and said politely: "Comrade Commander, please come to me, I will let you see with your own eyes how the enemy plane was beaten down."

I stood up confused, followed him out of the headquarters, left the trenches, and came to the hillside overgrown with bushes and weeds. Sederikov stopped, smiled and said to me: "Comrade Commander, here it is, right here."

"It's here?" I looked around for a long time. Except for bushes and weeds, I didn't even see an anti-aircraft gun, let alone an anti-aircraft gun. I asked dissatisfiedly: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, what do you want to do? What am I looking at?"

Sederikov took two steps earlier and shouted at the hillside: "Second Lieutenant, Second Lieutenant, where are you?"

As he shouted, seventy or eighty commanders stood up from the bushes and grass. One of the commanders trot to Sederikov, raised his hand to salute him, and reported: "Ensign Kuo Elson reports to you and awaits your orders."

Xiejielikov pointed to me and said: "Comrade commander wants to figure out how the enemy plane fell just now. You can show it for her."

The second lieutenant agreed and turned and shouted at the soldiers on the hillside: "Air strikes, all be prepared for air defense."

Following his command, the soldiers lay on their backs on the ground, raised their guns in the air, and made a gesture of preparing to shoot.

Seeing this scene, I couldn't help but surprised me again. I curiously asked Sederikov: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, how did you bring down the enemy plane?"

Sejjerikov nodded vigorously and said affirmatively: "Our regiment does not have air defense weapons. Every time we see enemy planes skimming over our high ground and bombing the pier, the commanders and fighters are all heartened when they see that the civilians are killed and wounded in the bombing. Like a knife twist, in the end, Lieutenant Coulson had a brainstorm and came up with a way to fight the enemy plane. Originally, I just agreed to his style of play with the idea of ​​giving it a try. I didn’t expect that the enemy plane would really be defeated today. Hit it down."

Listening to Sergeikov's words, I nodded, thinking that this style of play, if you want to knock down the enemy aircraft, there will be more luck. It seems that we should consider letting the group army headquarters add some high shots to our division. If the machine gun is really not good enough, just move all the anti-aircraft machine guns from the dock.

When I returned to the division headquarters, I received another call from the group army headquarters. This time it was no longer Krylov, but Trikov himself. He said relievedly: "Colonel Oshanina, thank you. If you don't send troops to attack from the rear of the German army in time, it is really not an easy task to destroy this German armored unit that has penetrated into the city. "

I kept thinking about the anti-aircraft machine gun in my mind, so I ignored what Cui Kefu said to me and said straightforwardly: "Comrade Commander, can you provide part of the anti-aircraft machine gun for our division?"

"Anti-aircraft machine gun?!" After repeating my words, Cui Kefu asked puzzledly: "What do you want an anti-aircraft machine gun for?"

"The enemy planes skimmed over the high ground every day ~www.wuxiaspot.com~ and then went to bomb the pier. If the anti-aircraft machine guns are arranged on the high ground, when they pass the high ground, we can inflict heavy damage on them and reduce the air defense pressure on the pier ."

After thinking about my proposal, Cui Kefu simply agreed: "This is easy to handle. I will arrange for the anti-aircraft machine gun to be sent to you as soon as possible. Do you have any more requests?"

"Yes, Comrade Commander." There is a rare opportunity to make a request to Cui Kefu. I naturally will not let it go. I speed up my speech and said: "In order to strengthen the leadership of the independent division, I hope you can send me a political commissar and The chief of staff is here."

Hearing what I said, Cui Kefu laughed, and then said: "Political commissar, I have prepared it for you a long time ago. If you don't ask, I will send it to you tomorrow. But the chief of staff is the candidate. Well, it’s a bit troublesome, it may take a while."

"The political commissar will come tomorrow? Who is he, do I know him?"

Unexpectedly, Cui Kefu didn't answer me directly, and he sold me: "As for who it is, when you see it, you will naturally know. I have something to talk about next time. Good luck!" (to be continued)