Red Moscow

"What, your first battalion is missing?" Chuvashov couldn't help being surprised after hearing this: "When did this happen?"

Shamrih could only repeat what he said just now, and finally said: "According to my experience, they should be in the process of interspersed, because they are not familiar with the road, and unfortunately lost their way."

"Lost?!" Chuvashov scratched the back of his head and said with a look of embarrassment: "If you are really lost, it is really a troublesome thing. In such a large area, there is only one battalion. Where can we find it?" them?"

"There are nearly 500 people in the first battalion. They can't just disappear for no apparent reason." Seeing Chuvashov's delay in making a statement, Shamrikh was a little anxious: "Comrade commander, hurry up and send someone to conduct a search nearby." .I'm afraid that if it continues to delay, something will go wrong."

"What about the radio station?" Chuvashov suddenly remembered an important question: "Didn't you use the radio station to contact them?"

"Our regiment's radio station has been calling, but we can't get in touch." Shamrih said with a serious expression: "I think the radio station may be damaged, so we can't get in touch."

"This matter is very serious. I need to report to the commander immediately." When Chuvashov picked up the phone, he suddenly remembered that his troops had now been placed under the temporary command of Ponyedelin, so he changed his mind and let the communication The soldiers connected to the headquarters of the 41st Guards Division and were going to report the matter to Ponejelin.

When Ponederin received the call from Chuvashov, he couldn't help being taken aback. You know, in a fierce battle, it is normal for a battalion to be wiped out. But now the missing troops are performing interspersed missions, so finding them is the top priority.

Thinking of this, he quickly asked: "General Chuvashov, I wonder what measures you have taken? Have you called them through the radio, and have you sent troops to search?"

Hearing a series of questions from Ponedelin, Chuvashov quickly replied: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I have already asked Lieutenant Colonel Shamrich, and he said that the radio call has not been answered. It should be that the radio station of the 1st Battalion is damaged. Yes. As for sending personnel to search, I haven't done it yet, after all, the area where they disappeared is too large, and the strength in my hands is far from enough."

"Comrade General, the disappearance of a battalion is no small matter." Knowing that Chuvashov did not take any effective measures against the missing troops, Ponejielin couldn't help being a little angry: "You can send more reconnaissance teams to find them. If we search for the missing area, we may be able to obtain effective clues."

"But……"

"Nothing to worry about!" Don't see that Bonegelin only holds the rank of lieutenant colonel now, but he was the commander of the group army after all. At this time, the aura of the former senior commander came out: " Send someone to search immediately. If you can't find them before dark, you will be punished."

Pornegerin put down the phone, thought for a while, and felt that this matter should not be taken lightly. After all, the troops are now fighting in unfamiliar areas. If a battalion goes missing and they don't search for it, it won't be long before several division commanders will become Commander of Light.

After thinking about this, Ponejielin called Sokov and reported the matter to him.

This news also surprised Sokov, and he quickly asked, "Lieutenant Colonel Ponejelin, who is the commander of the missing battalion?"

Fortunately, Ponedelin asked Chuvashov specifically, so he could easily answer Sokov's question: "The battalion commander is Major Yakuta."

"Major Yakuda? It turned out to be him." As soon as he heard the familiar name, Sokov immediately contacted the scene where Shamrikh led a group of sailors to bayonet the enemy on Mamayev Hill. The major happened to be one of them. Now that there are not many sailors and soldiers left, Sokov couldn't bear to watch Yakov die, so he ordered Ponejielin: "Send troops immediately to search for them where they disappeared. Be sure to find them." They. Execute."

"Yes!" Ponegerin agreed, "I'll pass on your order immediately."

Just after finishing the call with Ponyjelin, the phone rang again.

Sokov picked up the microphone, put it close to his ear and said, "I'm Sokov, where are you?"

"Hello, Comrade Commander." General Afunin's voice came from the receiver: "I have something important to report to you immediately."

"Important matter?" Sokov thought to himself that Sokiriani, who was in charge of the attack by the 18th Guards Army, had been taken down without bloodshed. What else could be important? But he still asked calmly: "Comrade General, what is important."

"Rumantsev, the commander of the 4th Guards Airborne Division, reported to me," Afunin said on the phone: "He said that the 15th regiment of Lieutenant Colonel Pavel, while searching the north of the city, accidentally found two Allied soldiers."

"Two friendly soldiers?" Sokov couldn't help being taken aback, and then asked, "Where did these two soldiers come from, and which army did they belong to?" He thought there were deserters in the army, so his tone of voice was naturally a little fiery .

"After interrogation by Lieutenant Colonel Pavel, he learned that they were soldiers from the 1st Battalion of the 296th Regiment of the 98th Guards Division."

Sokov couldn't help being shocked when he heard this, and then raised his voice and asked, "Comrade General, what did you just say, can you say it again?"

Afunin thought that Sokov really didn't hear clearly, so he repeated what he just said, and finally said: "Comrade Commander, although I don't know where the 98th Guards Division is fighting. But according to the two One soldier said that their battalion entered the German defense zone by mistake, and is now surrounded. If you don’t send troops to rescue as soon as possible, there is a danger of the entire army being wiped out.”

Through Afunin's narration, Sokov can already conclude that the missing Yakuda Battalion is near the defense zone of the 4th Guards Airborne Division, and quickly said: "Comrade General, I just received information that the 98th Guards Airborne Division A battalion of ours went missing on a mission to penetrate from the south of the city. I have ordered them to send troops to search and find out what happened."

"However, since the fighters they sent for help have appeared near the area where you are active, you might as well ask them to be your guides and lead a regiment to rescue the besieged friendly troops."

"Okay," Afunin said briskly, "it happens that Pavel's 15th Regiment is nearby, so I'll send them there to rescue them."

Sokov put down the phone and immediately looked north of Sokiriani to analyze whether the missing first battalion was in the area mentioned by General Afunin.

"Comrade Commander," Smirnov came over and asked Sokov curiously, "Are you looking for the area where the missing troops might appear?"

"That's right, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov nodded, and replied truthfully: "In the middle of the two cities, there is a German defensive position. I'm wondering if they lost their way in the forest , and finally accidentally broke into the German defense zone?"

Smirnov stared at the position of Sokov's finger for a long time, then nodded slowly, and said, "I think this is very likely. Now that General Afunin has sent the 15th Regiment, why don't Bo Lieutenant Colonel Nedelin also moved and sent a regiment to search in this direction. If the missing battalion really encounters the German army here, the reinforcements of the two regiments can still be of great use.”

After agreeing to Smirnov's suggestion, Sokov picked up the phone, connected to Ponederin's headquarters, and said straight to the point: "Lieutenant Colonel Ponederin, I just received a call from General Afunin. , he said that two soldiers were found on the north side of Sokiriani. The soldiers told him that they belonged to the 1st Battalion of the 296th Regiment of the 98th Guards Division. Because the troops were fighting with the superior German army, they were ordered to come out for help. .”

"What, to the north of Sokiriani?" Ponejielin quickly took a map, carefully checked the location that Sokov said, and then replied: "Comrade commander, the distance between the two cities is less than Twenty kilometers, but the forest covers an area of ​​more than one hundred square kilometers, and an army that is not familiar with the terrain may indeed lose its way."

Having said this, he intentionally paused, reorganized the vocabulary in his mind, and continued: "I will immediately notify General Chuvashov and ask him to send troops to search in that direction. At the same time, I will also draw near The 126th Regiment of the 41st Division of the Guards is also heading to the area."

Sokov was very satisfied with Ponegerin's arrangement. After humming, he ordered: "Lieutenant Colonel Ponegerin, since you have made the right decision, let's execute it."

When Chuvashov received the call from Pornedelin, he was studying with Shamrich the possible location of the 1st Battalion. After he finished answering the phone, he found that his analysis was very close to his own, so he said to Shamrih: "Lieutenant Colonel Shamrih, just now Commander Pornejelin called and said that Comrade Commander analyzed that the missing one The battalion may have strayed into the German defense zone to the southwest of the city, and we need to send troops to rescue immediately."

Knowing that the first battalion might be encircled by the German army, Shamrikh couldn't help being anxious. After saying goodbye to Chuvashov, he hurried back to the regiment, assembled troops urgently, and took them to rescue the trapped first battalion.

While the Soviet army was mobilizing its troops in full swing, the first battalion trapped in the German defense zone was attacked by the German army again. It may be that the Germans suffered a great loss in the bayonet fight last time. This time they learned to be clever. First, they bombarded with artillery, and then the infantry, under the cover of machine guns, launched an attack on the area controlled by the 1st Battalion.

Fortunately, Yakuda took precautions, ordered people to dig trenches urgently, and barely established a defensive position. The enemy's shelling caused them little casualties.

At this moment, seeing the German infantry rushing towards his position under the cover of machine gun fire, he smiled and said to the trainer: "Comrade trainer, fortunately, tanks cannot be used here, otherwise we will not be able to stop their attack at all."

"That's right, Comrade Battalion Commander." The instructor agreed with Yakuda's statement; "We don't carry anti-tank weapons, and there are not many grenades around the soldiers. If the Germans really dispatched tanks , I really can’t think of any weapons to deal with.”

"But even so, the situation is not optimistic." Yakuda frowned and said, "We are running out of ammunition, and the enemy rushed over, so we can only bayonet them again. I am worried that once the Germans know that we have no ammunition , the attack will be stopped and bombardment of our position will be replaced by artillery fire, and the troops will definitely suffer heavy losses."

"Comrade battalion commander, maybe all of us will die here today!" The instructor looked at Yakuda and asked solemnly, "Are you afraid?"

"Death is something that everyone is afraid of." Yakov looked at the approaching enemy, and said seriously: "But in order to defeat the invaders, even if it is all sacrifices, it is completely worth it."

The German infantry quickly rushed to the front of the position, but the soldiers in the trenches kept silent except for a few sporadic shots. They were not frightened by the rushing Germans, but because there were few bullets in the guns and they could not be easily wasted.

The next moment, hand-to-hand combat began again.

This time, the Soviet commanders and fighters used bayonet-mounted rifles. On the contrary, the MP40 submachine guns held by the Germans and the 98K rifles without bayonets did not have an advantage in hand-to-hand combat.

The weapons are not dominant, and the stabbing technology is not as good as that of the Soviet army. The casualties of the German army this time are much heavier than last time. As they retreated, they dropped nearly three hundred more corpses.

Yakuda couldn't help but smile when he saw the corpses of the German soldiers lying on the ground. He said to the instructor: "Instructor, you see that the Germans have dropped so many weapons again, we can hold on for a while longer." Immediately, he issued an order to the soldiers to seize the time to collect usable weapons.

While the soldiers were collecting weapons, the instructor asked Yakuda in a low voice: "Comrade battalion commander, I have made a rough count. There are still 219 people left in the whole battalion including the wounded. Among the 182 wounded, some 33 critically wounded immobilized. I fear that if we are all killed, the Germans might do something bad to these wounded?"

Yakuta has never considered the problem that the trainer is worried about. But there is no way, now that I have limited troops, even if I want to transfer them, I can't mobilize them. Besides, even if there were enough manpower to transfer the wounded, he still had no idea which direction he should go in order to escape the encirclement of the German army.

When the Germans attacked again, they were still more than 100 meters away from the position, and there was intensive gunfire on the position, immediately knocking down more than a dozen soldiers who rushed to the front, and the remaining soldiers lay on the ground in a hurry .

But the German machine gunners quickly suppressed the Soviet firepower with intensive firepower. Seeing this, the German soldiers lying on the ground got up from the ground one after another, and quickly approached the Soviet position by making short leaps.

At this moment, a dense sound of gunfire came from the south. For a moment, Yakuda thought he heard it wrong, and took the voice in front of the position as coming from the south. But he soon discovered that the gunshots became clearer and louder.

"Battalion Commander, look quickly." The instructor beside him suddenly shouted excitedly: "Reinforcement, our reinforcements are here!"

Yakov looked in the direction of the gunshots, and he saw hundreds of Soviet commanders, armed with weapons and shouting Ulla, rushing over from the side of the Germans. The German soldiers who were still charging saw the Soviet troops appearing from the side. Some fell down on the spot, and some turned around and fled. The scene suddenly fell into chaos.