Red Moscow

Since Rokossovsky was the endorser, Sokov knew in his heart that it was a rare opportunity for him to let Kirillov escort the gold to Moscow this time. Maybe the superior will be happy and stop pursuing the matter of his capture that year, and maybe even promote him directly to general.

After putting down the phone, Sokov couldn't wait to order Sidolin who was standing aside: "Comrade Chief of Staff, you immediately arrange for manpower to escort Colonel Kirillov and his men to the Front Army Command."

"Okay, Comrade Commander." Sidolin agreed very readily: "I will do this right away."

Kirillov, who stayed to guard the jewelry, never dreamed that his confidant, Captain Koshkin, would appear in the room within a quarter of an hour after Sokov left.

Kirillov hurried forward and asked politely: "Comrade Captain, does the commander have any instructions?"

"Comrade Colonel," Koshkin explained to Kirillov: "Comrade Commander has already agreed with General Rokossovsky to take your jewels and rush to the headquarters of the Front Army, and then fly directly to Moscow. Are you ready? If so, we are going now."

"It's already ready, Comrade Captain." Kirillov naturally knew that this was an opportunity for him. Hearing Koshkin's question, he nodded quickly and replied, "You can leave at any time."

"The truck is outside," said Koshkin. "I'll send a platoon of guards to escort you to the front headquarters."

After Kirillov set off, Koshkin came back and reported to Sokov: "Comrade Commander, the vehicle in which Colonel Kirillov is riding has already set off."

Sokov asked with some concern: "Koshkin, only send one guard platoon to escort, will there be too few people?"

"Don't worry, Comrade Commander." Koshkin replied: "Colonel Kirillov and Jewel are in the armored vehicle. Even if they encounter a small group of enemy attacks, they will be able to escape safely."

"That's good."

"Comrade Commander," Sidolin asked tentatively, "Tell me, what kind of rewards will the superiors give Colonel Kirillov to Moscow this time?"

"What kind of reward, I can't say." Sokov said with a smile: "But when he comes back, the rank on his shoulders will definitely no longer be a colonel. Okay, let's stop here, let's talk about it." Let's get to the work in front of us."

"Comrade Commander, there is one more thing that I forgot to report to you."

"whats the matter?"

"Here, look here." Sidolin pointed to the map and said to Sokov: "According to the scout's report, the enemy has planted a large number of mines here to prevent our army from entering this area."

"How many mines are there, and what area do they occupy?"

Knowing that the German army had planted landmines on the edge of the swamp, Sokov's expression became serious. If the landmines laid by the German army were not cleared in advance, let alone infantry charges, even if they used hovercraft to charge, they might be blown up by the German landmines. unspeakable. He asked: "Comrade Chief of Staff, what are you going to do?"

"I plan to organize several engineering squads to sneak into the enemy's defense area quietly, and open up a few paths in their minefield for the infantry to charge."

"This is a good idea." Ponegerin raised his own doubts: "But how should we dispose of the dug mines? If they are left aside, they will be easily detected by the enemy."

"Comrade Deputy Commander, in order to avoid being detected by the enemy, the number of engineers we sent is limited." Sidolin said rather helplessly: "It is impossible to bring back so many mines, I am afraid we can only leave them in the minefield."

"No, it's not okay to stay in the minefield." Pornegerin shook his head and said firmly: "If the Germans find these mines, they will understand that our army intends to find an attack in this area, and they may deploy from other directions. Troops to strengthen the defense, thus exposing our offensive intentions."

"If it's really not possible, we can only start demining a few hours before the offensive." Sidolin said: "In this way, even if the enemy is aware of our intentions and wants to take any measures, it may be too late."

"Deputy commander, chief of staff, you don't need to worry about this kind of thing." Belkin, who was sitting beside him silently, suddenly interjected, "Maybe your commander already has a good idea."

After being reminded by Belkin, the two immediately thought that Sokov had always been resourceful, and such things must not be difficult for them, so they both set their sights on Sokov, hoping to get a reasonable plan from him.

Seeing that everyone's eyes were on him, Sokov couldn't help grinning and said, "I'm not a girl, what are you all staring at me for?"

Sokov's joke immediately caused a burst of laughter.

Then Pornegelin said: "Comrade Commander, I think Colonel Belgin is right. You have always been resourceful. You can always come up with good solutions to problems that we can't figure out. Tell me, you How to deal with the landmines planted by the German army can not only open up a channel for our army to attack, but also prevent the enemy from being aware of my intentions."

"Comrade Deputy Commander, aren't you embarrassing me?" Sokov deliberately pretended to be embarrassed and said, "You can't think of a good way, but I can think of a way?"

"Okay, Misha, don't tease them." Belkin said, "If you have any good ideas, tell them quickly, so they can make preparations sooner."

Sokov nodded, restrained the smile on his face, and said sternly: "Deputy commander, chief of staff, since our engineers raised the mines, why did they bring them back? It would be better to bury them in another place." Okay?"

These words confused Bornejelin and Sidolin. They looked at each other, and they both saw doubts in each other's eyes. Then Ponegerin turned his gaze to Sokov again, and asked inexplicably, "Comrade Commander, you buried the dug mines again. What's going on? Can you explain to us?"

Sokov knew very well in his heart that the way he said would probably be beyond the imagination of the two of them, so he patiently explained to them: "When I say re-burying the mines, I don't mean digging out the mines from somewhere." , just re-bury it in some place, in that case it is better not to dig.

What I mean by re-burying is to let the sappers bury the mines around the enemy's positions and block them. Especially on the road they must pass every day, they have to plant landmines. After a few bombings, they will become honest, stay in their positions obediently, and dare not go out easily.

In this way, as long as the enemy stays on the high ground honestly and does not move around every day, we can ignore them and let the engineers continue to open up roads in the enemy's minefield without worrying about being harassed by the enemy. "

"This method is really good." After hearing what Sukov said, Sidolin waved his fist excitedly, and said happily: "Let our engineers lay mines around the enemy's highlands. As long as the Germans dare to go down the mountain, they may trample on them." Put on the mines, blow them up a few times, and they'll be honest."

"Also," Sokov added: "If you see a telephone line leading to a high ground, cut off all of them, so that the defenders on the high ground cannot communicate with the rear and cannot obtain various supplements in time. I know that the German army stationed on the high ground probably does not have any engineers, if their communication lines are cut off, they will not be able to communicate with the outside world, even if our army makes some small moves, they will not be able to report to their superiors in time."

"Be sure to plant landmines under the poles after destroying their telephone lines." Sukov said with a sneer: "This way, some of their communications soldiers can be reimbursed by the way, so that the distance between the highlands and the German headquarters will be reduced." The connection is even more unsmooth.”

After hearing Sokov's method, Ponegerin couldn't help applauding: "Comrade Commander, your method is really great. Use enemy mines to trap the enemy on high ground and cut off their communications and supplies. , this trick is really wonderful."

Hearing Pornegelin's praise, Sokov didn't speak, but just smiled. He thought to himself: If he wants to deal with the Germans on the high ground, he has a lot of ways, if he is not afraid of affecting the upcoming Operation Bagration , I am afraid that people have been sent to squeeze away the enemies on the high ground opposite the swamp.

Seeing that Sokov's plan was good, Sidolin quickly picked up the phone and called the engineering unit, told their commander what Sokov meant, and finally said: "...you tell those engineers, dig out I planted all the landmines around the enemy's highlands, especially on their way up and down the mountain, to cut off their supplies; also, after destroying the communication lines, I had to ambush mines under the telephone poles to blow up their communication soldiers... "

"Misha," said Belkin, who heard Sidolin's call, shaking his head, "I have to say, your method is really vicious. I think that if the German army on the high ground is really cut off from supplies, they will be killed again." If you can’t get in touch with your superiors, it won’t be long before you will voluntarily abandon these high grounds and move to a more rearward position to re-establish your defense.”

"Operation Bagration will start in about ten days," Sokov said with a sneer. "Even if the Germans wanted to abandon the high ground and retreat to the rear to rebuild a new line of defense, it would be too late in time."

Although Belkin did not know the details of Bagration's actions, it did not prevent him from seeking Sokov's opinion and understanding Sokov's views on this large-scale battle.

"Belkin, I tell you with great confidence." Knowing the final result of Bagration's operation, Sokov said confidently: "Once the battle begins, the enemy will suffer a disastrous defeat. At most two to three In a few months, we can eliminate all enemies in Belarus."

Although Ponegerin had heard Sokov say such things more than once, hearing him say the same to Belkin at this moment, he couldn't help but feel worried. After all, Sokov said these words too confidently. The Soviet army fought in Ukraine for more than half a year, and only recovered half of the country. It was temporarily unable to drive the Germans out of Ukraine. However, the campaign launched in Belarus could drive the enemy out within two months. , This sounds like a fantasy.

Although she thought so in her heart, Ponegerin couldn't say it out of her mouth. He turned his head to one side, pretending to look at Sidolin who was talking on the phone, in fact to avoid embarrassment.

Sokov saw Ponegerin's every move, and he knew about Ponegerin's reaction, but he didn't give any further explanations. After all, facts speak louder than words. After the battle started, these people would naturally understand whether what they said was true or false.

Belkin personally participated in the battle for the liberation of Ukraine, and naturally knew the level of the enemy's combat effectiveness. Hearing Sokov speak so confidently, he tentatively asked: "Misha, do you really think that our army can completely defeat the Germans in Belarus within two months?"

"Of course, I must have my own reasons for saying this." Sokov felt that if he didn't come up with something dry, Belkin might not believe his statement: "First of all, in this battle, we will A large number of troops have been mobilized, and they are at an absolute advantage in terms of strength and equipment;

Secondly, the enemy placed the main force and equipment in the direction of Ilich, which inevitably weakened our army's defense force in the main attack direction, so that our army could quickly break through the enemy's defense after the battle started;

Finally, before our operation begins, partisans in Belarus will actively act to destroy roads, bridges, and enemy communication lines behind enemy lines. Attack military depots, material transfer stations, and some important targets, turning the enemy's rear into a mess. "

"Misha, I think our slow progress in Ukraine may have something to do with the lack of cooperation of the guerrillas." Belkin said with emotion: "As far as I know, the guerrillas in Ukraine are divided into three forces: one is the The pro-Soviet guerrillas were formed by the commanders and fighters who were dispersed by our army; the second was supported by the Germans, and the guerrillas supported the Germans; People, also attack our troops.

It is precisely because of the complex composition of the guerrillas in Ukraine that they cannot provide us with effective help. Therefore, in our battle to liberate Ukraine, although the commanders and fighters were extremely brave and had an advantage in terms of strength and equipment, they were still unable to drive the enemy out of the country. This is probably the main reason. "

"Belkin, you are right." Sokov agreed with Belkin's statement: "The guerrillas in Ukraine not only did not help us in the battle to liberate Ukraine, but on the contrary They are still trying their best to hold back. They even helped the enemy to deal with us. For example, General Vatutin, the commander of the Ukrainian First Front Army, was wounded by the Bandera elements, and finally died of wound infection.”

As soon as Vatutin was mentioned, Belkin couldn't help but sigh with emotion: "It was a pity that his injuries were improved, but unfortunately he died due to wound infection. He is a good man. The news of his death spread to the army. We I heard that many commanders and fighters shed tears for it."

Sokov didn't say a word, although he felt that Vatutin would be able to come, if he was allowed to continue to command the Ukrainian First Front Army, I am afraid that it would be difficult for the Front Army to achieve any impressive results in the next few days. But the dead are the big ones. Hearing what Belkin said, he could only echo, "That's right, he's a good man."