Red Moscow

Sokov felt more at ease when he learned that Kurilivzi's attack in Murovani was going well. As long as one's own troops can occupy two cities at the same time, a salient can be formed on the right bank of the Transnistria, thereby destroying the German defense system.

After the call ended here, he immediately called Marshal Konev, preparing to report these results to the other party.

When Konev received a telegram from Sokov and learned that Sokiriani had already been captured, and that the liberation of Murovani Kurilivchi was only a matter of time, he couldn't help but be overjoyed: "Comrade Sokov, Your performance is really astonishing. I thought it would take a while after the formation of a new combat group, but I didn't expect to advance the front to the west so soon."

"Comrade Marshal," Sokov knew very well. Although his troops advanced again, they were far away from the rear supply point. To counterattack, troops with insufficient ammunition and supplies may have to choose to retreat. Therefore, he specifically proposed to Konev: "After repeated fierce battles, the troops have consumed a lot of ammunition. If they cannot be replenished in time, I am afraid..."

Before Sokov could finish speaking, Konev interrupted him: "Is Colonel Yakov with you?"

"Yes, he is with me."

"Didn't he have a hovercraft unit? The equipped hovercraft can provide timely supplies for your troops without being affected by the terrain." Konev said: "Now the supplies needed by the troops are an astronomical figure, and we can't supply them for the time being. Pull out the convoy and resupply them. In my opinion, you can only ask Yakov for help, and let his hovercraft unit continue to transport various weapons, ammunition and supplies for you."

"If Yakov's hovercraft unit can continue to be used, I will not specifically ask you for help." Sokov said with a wry smile: "The hovercraft is originally a kind of experimental product, and there are various problems in design, materials and manufacturing. Problem. These hovercraft are not far from being reimbursed due to prolonged overloading.”

He paused for a moment, then continued: "That is to say, after the hovercraft has been resupplied this time, if the engineer's repairs do not work, we can only declare that these hovercraft have been reimbursed."

When Konev heard this, the problem was quite serious: "So, before the new hovercraft is manufactured, they will not be able to deliver weapons, ammunition and supplies to you?"

"Yes, Comrade Marshal. That is indeed the case." Sokov said while the iron was hot: "According to Colonel Yakov, the manufacture of new hovercraft should be indefinitely."

"why?"

"It is said that some people raised objections, saying that the manufacturing cost of the hovercraft is high, and the range of use is not large." Sokov explained to Konev: "That is to say, the hovercraft project will be discontinued."

"That's such a pity." Konev thought for a while, and then said to Sokov: "Comrade Sokov, I think so. I will immediately order the engineering troops to restore the railway to your place. The transportation of some things , by rail than by road.”

Sokov agrees with Konev's statement. Regardless of the road conditions in Russia or Ukraine, not to mention now, even after half a century, it will still be "covered in dust on sunny days and covered in mud on rainy days". Coupled with the bombing and shelling of the German army, the situation on the road was even worse.

It is very difficult to transport the huge amount of supplies needed by the two armies through such a bad road. As the front line gets longer and longer, the supplies from the rear will come slower and slower, and the quantity will be difficult to meet the needs of the troops. If this happens, let alone attacking the German army, whether it can hold the occupied area is still unknown.

"Comrade Marshal, I don't know how long it will take to restore the railway traffic between us and the rear?"

"It's hard to say," Konev is not a professional, so he can only vaguely say, "I think the weapons, ammunition and all kinds of weapons and ammunition you need will be ready in a week at the earliest." The materials were shipped over."

"By the way, Comrade Marshal, there is one more important thing that I almost forgot to report to you."

"What important thing."

"It's about Colonel Yakov." Sokov believed that his troops were able to take down Sokiriani without bloodshed. Representative of Sokiriani, went to Sokiriani to negotiate with the Romani defenders, and successfully persuaded the other party to stop resisting and cooperate with our army. I think this is a great achievement, and I hope the Front Army Command can give him what he deserves award."

Konev knew about the friendship between Sokov and Yakov, and when he heard Sokov specifically mentioning this matter, he said with a smile: "Colonel Yakov has contributed a lot to the establishment this time. But he After all, he is not a member of our front army, whether it is a promotion or a reward, it is not our job."

Perhaps sensing that Sokov was a bit disappointed, he added: "Of course, since Colonel Yakov has made contributions to our front army and avoided the sacrifice of thousands of commanders and fighters, such a great contribution, the front army headquarters will In the form of a document, send it to Comrade Ustinov. As for what kind of reward he can give Yakov, I have no way of knowing."

Seeing that Konev was willing to help Yakov, Sokov couldn't help being overjoyed: "Thank you, Comrade Marshal, thank you very much. On behalf of Colonel Yakov, I would like to express my gratitude to you!"

While Sokov was on the phone with Konev, a force involved in the attack on Murovani Kurilivchi became extremely dangerous.

This force is the 1st Battalion of the 296th Regiment of the 98th Guards Division. The battalion commander, Major Yakuda, was ordered by the commander of the regiment, Shamrih, to detour from the flanks of the city, preparing to cut off the retreat of the defenders.

Unexpectedly, their compass was broken, causing the troops to lose their way in the forest, getting farther and farther away from the city, and unexpectedly entered a German defense zone by mistake.

Soon after the battle started, the radio station in the battalion was hit by a stray bullet and could no longer communicate with the regiment headquarters. Yakov had no choice but to organize manpower to resist the Germans from all directions, and at the same time sent a few signal soldiers to let them find a way to jump out of the German encirclement and rush back to report the matter to the regiment headquarters.

After repelling the German attack, Yakov immediately called the three company commanders in front of him and said to them: "Comrades, our battalion carries a limited amount of ammunition. When the Germans attack again, we must let the soldiers Save bullets. Once the bullets run out, we will have to fight the Germans with bayonets."

A company commander fought with bayonets on Mamayev Hill. Hearing what Yakov said, he immediately stood up and said loudly: "Comrades, battalion commanders, it's not like we haven't fought bayonets with the enemy. Back then in Mamayev Mayev Gang, when we are at a disadvantage in numbers, we still beat the enemy to pieces with the bayonet in our hands."

"Since we were able to repel them back then, why not now? Let me make a statement here. If the ammunition is exhausted, our company will take the lead in attacking the Germans and have a bayonet fight with them."

"Comrade Captain," Yakov knew that the company commander had bayoneted on Mamayev Post, but the situation at this moment was different from that at that time. At that time, it was condescending and took advantage of the terrain; now it is on the plain, except for some ravines, there is not even a trench. The opponents back then were the officers and soldiers of the slave country, and their fighting will must not be as good as the Soviet commanders and fighters who defended their home and country; but now they are facing the elite German army. Army troops, they will definitely do their best: "Don't underestimate the enemy, after all, the enemy we are facing is well-equipped and well-trained Germans, not the officers and soldiers of the slave country who did not have the same heart with them back then."

As soon as the meeting here ended, the German offensive started again. The Soviet soldiers hiding in the ravines or in the woods followed the orders of their superiors and did not shoot blindly, but shot precisely. These bullets, kill more Germans.

However, the firepower was insufficient, and the number was at a disadvantage, and the Germans quickly rushed to the front. The commanders and fighters of the Soviet army stood up one after another, raised their bayonet-mounted rifles, and greeted the Germans. The two sides soon collided fiercely.

The Soviet commanders and fighters, who were at a disadvantage in numbers, flew up and down with sharp bayonets in their hands, stabbing German soldiers one after another. Although the level of bayonet fighting of the German soldiers was not as good as that of the Soviet army, they were better in numbers. When a group of people fell down, more German soldiers came up again.

Yakuda in the crowd knocked down five or six German soldiers with a pistol. When he was about to change the magazine, a German soldier rushed towards him with a 98K with a bayonet attached. Seeing this, a soldier next to him hurried forward and pushed him away.

Just after Yakuda staggered back two steps to the side, he saw a German soldier stab a bayonet into the soldier's chest, and a bloody bayonet tip protruded from his back.

Seeing the soldier sacrificed to save himself, Yakuda couldn't help the blood rushing to his head. He smashed the pistol with no bullets in his hand at the German soldier, and while the opponent was dodging his head, he bent down and picked it up. He grabbed a rifle with a bayonet on the ground, rushed forward and fought with the German soldiers for the bayonet.

After half an hour of melee, the German army dropped nearly 200 corpses and retreated, while the Soviet army also paid the price of more than 130 sacrifices.

The company commander who fought with the bayonet on Mamayev Post asked Yakuda out of breath: "Comrade battalion commander, how long do you think we can last if we continue fighting like this?"

Yakov looked around, and then replied: "If we don't get reinforcements, at most it will be dark, and our entire army may be wiped out."

Watching the health workers in the battalion begin to treat the wounded, he said to the company commander: "Because the enemy will not attack for the time being, you and your company should move the wounded as soon as possible."

"Comrade battalion commander," the company commander was a little anxious when he heard that Yakuda asked him to transfer: "We sailors have never had the habit of running away. You should arrange other headquarters for sending the wounded away, and I will stay at the headquarters." Keep fighting here."

Hearing what the company commander said, Yakuda remembered that the other party was also a sailor before. In the sailor's dictionary, there is only "full speed forward", but there is absolutely no such thing as "full speed reverse". Therefore, he readily agreed to the other party's request: "Okay, Comrade Captain, since you are willing to stay, then let your deputy company commander transfer the wounded."

Hearing that he could stay, the company commander agreed, and ran to find his deputy company commander, preparing to let him lead the company to escort the wounded back to the rear.

But what he didn't expect was that the deputy company commander refused to carry out his order, and said plausibly: "Comrade company commander, you haven't retreated, how can we retreat? Do you want someone to point at our backs in the future?" Cursed, are these soldiers just a group of cowards who have abandoned their company commander and withdrawn secretly?"

The words of the deputy company commander aroused the support of the surrounding soldiers. After the hand-to-hand combat just now, many people saw their familiar comrades fall beside them, and their hearts were full of hatred for the German army. How could they withdraw at this time. Therefore, they all agreed with the deputy company commander's opinion and wanted to continue to stay and fight.

As for the wounded who were originally going to be sent to the rear, the slightly wounded found Yakuda and said bluntly: "Comrade Battalion Commander, I only suffered a slight injury, and I can continue to fight."

The seriously wounded who couldn't move also asked the health worker to convey his meaning to Yakuta: "I will not retreat. Although I can't move at the moment, as long as you give me a grenade, I can wait for the Germans to rush up and ignite the grenade." die with them."

The reactions of the soldiers and the wounded gave Yakuta mixed feelings. Originally, he thought that his troops were in a desperate situation. If there was a chance to retreat, many people would be eager to leave. But what he didn't expect was that so far, no one in the whole battalion wanted to leave, and they were all prepared to stay on the ground and continue to fight the Germans.

The deputy battalion commander came over to Yakuda and said: "Comrade battalion commander, since the Germans are not attacking at the moment, should we hurry up and build fortifications? If there are no fortifications, a shell from the Germans will hit us. Small loss."

Yakuda felt that what the deputy battalion commander said made sense, so he divided the labor in time. The lightly wounded who were not seriously injured were responsible for collecting weapons that could be used on the battlefield; while the soldiers who were not injured, took the time to dig trenches and repair .

It wasn't until the Soviet army occupied and controlled the entire Murowani Kurilivchi that Shamrikh discovered that the first battalion in Yakuda had lost its trace. He asked many troops, but they didn't know their whereabouts. He hastily ordered the radio to call, but unfortunately there was no answer at all.

Shamrikh was a little panicked, and a battalion of troops disappeared without a sound, and quickly reported the matter to the division commander Chuvashov: "Comrade commander, I have some bad news to tell you. .”

After hearing this, Chuvashov couldn't help but thump in his heart, wondering if any battalion-level commander died? Then he asked tentatively: "Lieutenant Colonel Shamrih, what happened?"

"I just found out that the 1st Battalion of Major Yakuta is missing." Shamrich reported to Chuvashov: "I originally gave them the order to go from the flank to the west of the city and cut off the Germans. retreat. But after the battle, I didn’t see them returning to Jian for a long time, and the radio station couldn’t be contacted. I asked the troops stationed in the west, but no one saw them. I have reason to suspect that they are missing.”