Red Moscow

After Zhukov inspected all the troops of the 27th Army, he agreed to Sokov's proposal, instead of spending a lot of manpower and material resources to build fortifications that were not useful at all, but to concentrate on training troops in order to improve in a short period of time. combat effectiveness of the troops.

In the days that followed, Sokov concentrated his energy on training, and unreservedly passed on the tactics and training methods he knew to the division commanders. Sokov knew that it would be very difficult for commanders and fighters to master these technical and tactical levels in such a short period of time, but in order to prevent his troops from being overwhelmed by the Germans in the next battle of Kursk Looking for a tooth, this is already the limit of what he can do.

Just as the training work in the Koski area was in full swing, the German army began to use the railway to gather troops in the direction of Kharkov. One of the troops was the Imperial Division that had just been rebuilt and was headed by Banner Captain Tansen. Due to the strict secrecy of the German army, the Soviet army only knew that there were a large number of German troops assembled, but they did not know that there would be enemies of their own among these German troops.

After Sokov was transferred from the Sixth Army, the Supreme Command appointed Lieutenant General Shilemin to take over the post of commander. However, after receiving the appointment, Shi Lieming suddenly contracted a cold and has been receiving treatment in a military hospital in Moscow. The internal work of the group army was temporarily represented by Vitkov.

While Vitkov was acting as the commander of the group army, he also received another order from the Supreme Command: to build complete and strong fortifications in the existing defense zone to prevent possible German attacks.

After receiving this order, Witkov ordered the divisions to rush to repair fortifications on existing positions to prevent possible German attacks. Naturally, a lot of manpower and material resources are needed to repair the fortifications, so Witkov ordered the divisions to devote themselves to the construction of the fortifications, except for a small number of troops to serve as guards.

Knowing that his troops were going to start building fortifications, Merkulov, the commander of the 67th Guards Division, also asked him specifically: "Comrade Chief of Staff, the superior ordered us to build fortifications in the existing defense area, so we need to send small teams to the enemy's rear Reconnaissance and sabotage?"

"Comrade General," Vitkov immediately replied upon hearing Merkulov's question, "since the three SS divisions of the German army were hit hard by us, the remaining German troops are hiding in the Barvinkovo ​​area. If you dare to move, even if we send a small team to go deep behind the enemy lines, I am afraid it will be difficult to achieve any results. I think it is better to forget it. The current priority of your division is to hurry up and repair the fortifications to prevent possible German attacks."

"Okay, Comrade Chief of Staff." Merkulov also felt that the victory some time ago had broken the Germans. I am afraid that they would not dare to act rashly before the arrival of summer. "I will immediately start to arrange the construction of the fortifications. Work."

Since then, both Vitkov and Merkulov regretted their hasty decision. If the 67th Guards Division still followed Sokov's original order and sent people to the enemy's rear for reconnaissance and destruction at any time, they would definitely find the Skeleton Division and Banner Guard Division stationed in Barvinkovo, quietly heading towards Kharkov mobilize.

Although the Soviet army stationed in Kharkov has recruited a lot of soldiers from the rear, they are all recruits who have not undergone any military training, and after arriving in the army, quite a few of them don't even have weapons. But the commanders in the army didn't care about this. They thought that the German army had just suffered heavy losses not long ago, and it was impossible to launch another attack in a short period of time. As many soldiers had no weapons, that just allowed them to concentrate on repairing the fortifications.

But when the Soviet army never dreamed, in the early morning of April 28, the German troops stationed in the south and west of Kharkov suddenly bombarded the Soviet army's positions with fierce artillery fire. For a while, all forward positions were destroyed. Shrouded in smoke.

After the Soviet commanders and fighters who were still asleep were awakened, they immediately exposed the shortcomings of lack of training. If you are a veteran, if you find that your position is being bombarded by the enemy, you must hide in the shelter and cannot come out; soldiers on duty outside must hide in the nearby artillery hole. But now the soldiers on the battlefield are all new recruits who have not received any training. When they heard the gunfire, they panicked immediately. They rushed out of the shelter and ran around in the trenches like headless flies until they were killed. The falling cannonballs were thrown away, or the flying shrapnel cut down.

After the intensive shelling ended, the German army launched an attack on the Soviet positions under the cover of tanks. The three SS divisions of the German army rushed to the forefront. The Imperial Division first broke through the Soviet defense in the west of the city, followed by the rout and rushed towards the city.

The Banner Guard Division and Skeleton Division attacking from the south encountered tenacious resistance from the Soviet army, and the battle fell into a stalemate for a while. If it was a month ago, the Soviet troops standing south of Kharkov would definitely not be able to resist the attack of the two German SS divisions. However, because the Skeleton Division suffered heavy losses not long ago, Hausser reduced the original officers and soldiers of the division into a regiment, and added two infantry regiments of the Wehrmacht to the army, forming a nondescript Skeleton Division.

Although the Banner Guard Division was not hit hard by Sokov's troops, after a long period of fighting, they also suffered serious downsizing, which affected the combat effectiveness of the troops. It is for various reasons that the troops standing in the south of the city can barely withstand the German attack.

It is naturally impossible for Sokov, who is far away in the Kosky region east of Moscow, to know that the German army launched another attack in the direction of Kharkov. At this moment, he is chatting with Chief of Staff Sameko.

"Comrade Commander," Sameko asked Sokov with a smile, "I wonder if you have seen a military parade on Red Square?"

"No." Sokov shook his head and said with regret: "During the military parade on Red Square on November 7, 1941, I was still a corporal, and I was stationed in the town of Khimki with a squad of soldiers. I am not eligible to participate in the military parade; during the military parade in 1942, I was commanding troops to fight against Paulus’ troops on Mamayev Hill, let alone participating in the military parade. There will be a new round of military parade in half a year, I don’t know Will there be a chance to participate in the military parade then?"

"You don't have to wait another half a year," Sameko said. "In two days, it will be May Day. There are two military parades on Red Square every year. One is the 'May Day Parade' on May 1 and the other is on November 7. 'October Day military parade'. I heard that some commanders may be transferred from our front army to watch the military parade from the viewing stand."

Hearing Sameko say this, Sokov showed a surprised expression on his face: "Really?"

"Of course it is true." Sameko nodded and said, "I went to a meeting at the Front Army Command yesterday, and a friend told me secretly."

Sokov still had some expectations in his heart at first, wondering if he would be invited to the viewing platform to watch the ceremony, but then he thought about it, the military parade will be held the day after tomorrow, but he has no news at all, it seems that there is no hope.

Sokov did not have any hope of participating in the military parade, but Sameko did not give up. He tentatively asked Sokov: "Comrade Commander, do you think it is necessary to call General Konev and ask about this time?" Will those people be transferred to participate in the military parade on the Red Square the day after tomorrow?"

Regarding Sameko's proposal, Sokov seemed very hesitant. He felt that if his superiors really planned to let him go to the Red Square to watch the ceremony, they would have called him to inform him a long time ago. How can he be sure that there has been no movement until now? Thinking of this, he had already held the microphone's hand, but retracted it again.

Just when Sokov was hesitating, the phone on the table rang. He grabbed the microphone, put it close to his ear, and said nervously, "I'm Sokov."

"Major General Sokov, I'm Konev." Konev's serious voice came from the receiver: "I have something urgent to tell you."

When Sokov heard this, his heart beat faster, and he thought to himself: Could it be that Konev told himself to attend the Red Square ceremony later, so that he could prepare in advance? Thinking of this, he pretended to be calm and asked: "Comrade Commander of the Front Army, what instructions do you have?"

"I just got the battle report from the General Staff." Konev said in a stern tone: "The German army suddenly launched an attack on Kharkov. After more than five hours of fighting, the German army attacking from the west, It has already broken through our army's defense zone and rushed into the city to start a battle with our army. And the troops holding on to the south are now struggling to hold on, and I believe they will not last long."

Sokov, who was still smiling, suddenly became furious after hearing the bad news. She kicked a chair in front of her to the ground and cursed: "Idiots, they are all a bunch of idiots!" , I fought for them for such a long time, and the fortifications I built couldn't even stop the enemy's attack."

Sokov was angry for a reason. In real history, Kharkov was lost in mid-March. However, due to Sokov's active attack, the German army's attempt to capture Kharkov was shattered, and even the three SS divisions that captured Kharkov were severely damaged. He originally thought that this new situation between the enemy and the enemy could be maintained until the original Kursk battle broke out, but now it seems that he is too naive and thinks the problem is too simple.

Konev heard that Sokov was angry, so he could only smile wryly and said: "Yes, I also think that it is a bunch of idiots who stick to the Kharkov army. In the past two months, the base camp has been non-stop. However, in the face of the powerful German offensive, their resistance was unsatisfactory. I am calling you just to ask, is there any way to remedy it?"

"Remedy, is there any other way to remedy it?" The German army was approaching the city, and even if reinforcements were to be sent at this moment, it would not be able to quench the near thirst. He said angrily: "The only way is to let the Sixth Army attack decisively and assume the posture of attacking Barvinkovo ​​to attract the attention of the German army."

Konev really listened to Sokov's proposal: "Major General Sokov, what you said is a good idea. As long as the Sixth Army makes a move, the German army attacking Kharkov will definitely be worried." If my rear is under attack, I will definitely temporarily stop the attack on Kharkov. I will immediately report your method to the General Staff."

"Comrade Commander of the Front Army," Sokov felt that it was very inappropriate for the Sixth Army to launch an attack without knowing the strength of the enemy. Husband's German unit number?"

"The one attacking from the west is the Imperial Division..."

"What, what did you say?" Sokov was stunned when he heard the number of the Imperial Division: "Didn't the Imperial Division be completely wiped out by us? Now, another Imperial Division has emerged from somewhere?"

"According to General Golikov's report, after interrogating the prisoners, they learned that this is the new Imperial Division reorganized not long ago. The division commander is Banner Captain Tansen. Went to Berlin for treatment." In order to let Sokov figure out what was going on, Konev explained to him all the situations he knew: "Since you wiped out the Imperial Division, the German In order to save face, people appointed Tansen who had just recovered from the hospital as the new division commander, and recruited manpower from the Berlin SS, and some wounded soldiers from the former Imperial Division who had just recovered from the hospital to rebuild the Imperial Division."

"So that's the case," Sokov learned that the German army had rebuilt the Imperial Division, so the German troops attacking from the south must be the other two SS divisions that were severely damaged by him. He tentatively asked: "Comrade Front Army Commander, if I'm not mistaken, the enemy attacking Kharkov from the south should be the Skeleton Division and the Banner Guard Division?"

"Major General Sokov, you guessed right." Konev nodded and said, "The enemy attacking the defense line on the southern side of Kharkov is indeed the Banner Guard Division and the newly replenished Skeleton Division. But they During the attack, they encountered tenacious resistance from our army, so far, they have not yet broken through our defense..."

Sokov remembered that in the real history, when the German army attacked from the south of the city, it was stubbornly resisted by an infantry division of the Soviet army. It took a full 48 hours to make no progress. If it hadn't been for the loss of that division's men and ammunition, the Germans attacking from the south would have to pay a heavier price if they wanted to break through their defenses.

I have won precious time for the friendly army for a month and a half, and I don't know if General Golikov has given priority to supplying the infantry division in the south of the city. If they get enough ammunition and supplementary soldiers, I believe that with the bravery and tenacity of the commanders and fighters, it is possible to block the German army south of Kharkov for two days or even longer.

"Comrade Commander of the Front Army, I think it is not enough for the Sixth Army to take the offensive behind the enemy." Sokov was the commander of the Sixth Army not long ago, so he naturally knows how to fight in order to pose a greater threat to the German army. , and said to Konev euphemistically: "They still need the cooperation of friendly forces, such as the 64th Army on their right flank, and the Southwest Front Army further north. It will certainly cause panic in the German army."

After quickly recording what Sokov said, Konev said to him: "Major General Sokov, your proposal is very constructive, and it is very helpful to rescue our friendly forces from the current predicament." Help, your opinion, I will immediately report it to the General Staff, let them find a way to defuse the danger in the Kharkov area."