Red Moscow

Seeing that Mustache left without giving him any instructions, Zeitzler seemed a little at a loss, thinking about how to answer Model on the other end of the phone.

Model didn't know that Mustache had left the headquarters, and kept saying into the microphone: "My head of state, I think it is very unwise to continue to attack Minsk. Our top priority is to find a way to get rid of Besieged troops, rescued from the Russian encirclement."

"Marshal Model," Zeitzler watched the back of the mustache disappear from the door, and then said into the microphone: "The head of state has left."

"What, the head of state has already left?!" Model asked in surprise: "Then I cancel the suggestion to attack Minsk, I wonder if he will accept it?"

"The head of state didn't say anything when he left." As a loyal follower of Mustache, Zeitzler knew the character of Mustache very well. You understand the situation better than us, so you can deal with it as you think.”

"What does the head of state mean?"

"Although the head of state did not express his position, he did not clearly express his opposition." Zeitzler said into the microphone: "This shows that he acquiesced in your proposal to abandon the attack on Minsk."

"So, I can concentrate my forces and do my best to rescue the troops besieged in the Minsk area."

"Exactly, Your Excellency the Marshal." Zeitzler said respectfully on the phone: "The current priority is to rescue all the troops trapped near Minsk from the brink of annihilation." He looked at the people in front of him. The map added, "After the troops are freed, immediately withdraw to Baranovich, strengthen the defense there, and prepare to accumulate strength to launch a counterattack against the Russians."

After receiving clear instructions from Berlin, Model put down the phone and said to his chief of staff Krebs: "Chief of staff, I have obtained the authorization from Berlin to stop the attack on Minsk and concentrate all troops Rise, and go to rescue the besieged 4th and 9th armies."

Seeing that Model had finally made up his mind, Krebs showed a relaxed expression on his face: "Your Excellency, what should we have done a long time ago. The total strength of the Russians far exceeds ours. We are attacking Minsk." At the same time, our other troops were also attacked by the Russians frantically.

The Russian general who sticks to Minsk today is Sokov who gives us headaches. Not to mention that our offensive forces are at a disadvantage, even if we have the upper hand, I am afraid that we will not be able to recapture the city in a short time. So it's better to use these troops effectively to rescue our trapped troops. "

"Chief of staff, I think so too." After Model agreed with Krebs, he ordered him to say: "Contact the commanders of the two infantry divisions immediately and ask their troops to stop attacking Minsk and turn around. Reinforce the beleaguered troops."

After the German attack on Minsk stopped, Sokov quickly noticed it. He said to Sidolin: "Chief of Staff, more than half a day has passed since the last attack. Why didn't the Germans attack again?"

"Comrade Commander, I called and asked the commanders at the front." Sidolin replied, "The enemy on the opposite side of them hasn't moved at all, but shows signs of retreating."

"What, there are signs of retreat?" Sokov asked in surprise after hearing this: "Is the news reliable?"

"Absolutely reliable, Comrade Commander." Sidolin said: "From the current situation, the Germans will not be able to take Minsk in a short time. If they continue to invest a large amount of troops here, then they will have no strength to rescue the victims. The 4th and 9th armies besieged by our army can only watch helplessly as this enemy is eaten up bit by bit by our army."

"So the Germans have completely stopped their attack on Minsk and are ready to devote their forces to the relief of the besieged 4th and 9th armies."

"It should be like this, Comrade Commander." Sidolin nodded in recognition of Sokov's statement: "In a word, we have defended Minsk! According to the current battle situation, if they want to relieve the besieged troops, then You won’t be able to spare the strength to attack the city.”

When Sokov heard Sidolin's words, he immediately had an idea in his mind. Judging from the current situation, the Germans must think about rescuing the besieged 4th and 9th generals and let them retreat to Baranovi Odd territory, where new defenses were reorganized to thwart our efforts to liberate Belarus.

"Comrade Chief of Staff, although the enemy has stopped its military operations against Minsk, we cannot be silent." Sokov told Sidolin: "Order the 109th Infantry Brigade and the 284th Division from the area where they are located. , launched an attack on the German flank and rear, disrupting their reinforcement plans."

The German attack in the past two days made Sidolin feel very uncomfortable. Now that there is a chance for revenge, how could he let it go so easily? He quickly followed Sukov's order and called the two commanders. Let them immediately throw their troops into the attack on the German army outside the city.

While Sokov launched a counterattack outside Minsk, the battle in the Baranovich area was also in full swing. Leaving the infantry brigade in reserve, Pornegerin then commanded two other divisions to storm the depths of the German defenses.

The attack was smoother than expected. This is because the Baranovich Group of the German Army used its main forces to deal with the attack of Batov's troops, while the forces blocking Sokov's assault troops appeared to be relatively weak. .

After two days and two nights of fierce fighting, the assault force reached the outskirts of Baranowicz City.

Ponejelin, who was staying at the forward command post, heard the explosion from the other side of the city and watched the rising smoke. He knew that Batov's troops were attacking the city from the other side of the city.

He quickly summoned all three division commanders and said to them: "Comrade commander, after two days of fierce fighting, we have successfully reached the outside of the city of Baranowicz. Now the other side of the city is undergoing fierce fighting. The battle was supposed to be the attempt by General Batov's 65th Army to take the city from the enemy."

"Comrade Deputy Commander," just after Pornegerin finished speaking, Victor, the commander of the infantry brigade, said, "The 65th Army has stronger troops than us, and their attack will definitely attract the attention of the German army. I estimate that the enemy will place the main defensive force on the road of friendly attack, while our defense line will appear weak because the main force has been transferred away. This is really a good time for us to attack. "

"That's right, Lieutenant Colonel Victor." Ponegerin agreed with Victor's statement, "Since the main force of the enemy is used to deal with General Batov's troops, then we should take good care of it. Take advantage of this opportunity and quickly take Baranovich."

"Comrade Deputy Commander, please give an order." Onuprienko volunteered and said, "Our division is willing to undertake the main offensive task and liberate Baranovich from the Germans as soon as possible."

Regarding Onu Priyenko's request, Ponejelin shook his head and said, "I'm sorry, General Onu Priyenko, but I cannot agree to your request. You know, after a series of fierce battles, your troops , The reduction in staff is very serious, and I am afraid it will be difficult to complete the task of liberating the city."

Seeing Onuprienko's request, Tolstikov was rejected by Ponedelin. He felt that this was a rare opportunity for his troops, so he continued: "Comrade Deputy Commander, since you If you feel that the 6th Guards Division cannot complete this glorious task, then hand over the task of liberating the city to my 1st Guards Division to complete!"

Unexpectedly, Ponejielin still did not agree: "General Tolstikov, I understand your mood at the moment, but I cannot entrust your division with the task of liberating the city. As for the reason, it is the same as before. After a long period of fighting, the troops have been reduced by nearly half, and taking on the main offensive mission will cause the troops to lose their combat effectiveness. Therefore, I decided to hand over this glorious and arduous task to the 122nd Infantry Brigade under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Victor .”

Although the Tolstikovs had already guessed such a result, they were still a little disappointed when they heard Ponedelin say it himself. After Victor heard this, he expressed his attitude to Ponegelin excitedly and said: "Comrade Deputy Commander, don't worry, we will never disappoint your trust, I will definitely, in the shortest possible time, Occupy the whole city."

Just as the 122nd Infantry Brigade was preparing for the attack, the 65th Army, which was attacking from the other side of Baranovic, had stopped its attack. Commander Batov felt that his troops were exhausted, so he ordered them to withdraw to rest and recharge their batteries before attacking the city.

After giving such an order, Batov returned to his headquarters, wanting to have a warm meal, take a hot bath, and have a good night's sleep. After regaining his strength, he commanded the troops to attack Barano. Vicky launched a new attack.

As soon as the food was put on the table, before he could move the knife and fork, there was the sound of a car suddenly braking outside the window. He first heard the sound of the car door opening and being closed again, and then heard Zhukov's loud voice: "Batov, where is Batov?"

Hearing Zhukov calling himself, Batov didn't dare to neglect, and hurried out of the house to greet him: "Comrade Marshal, you came just in time. I'm going to have dinner, you can have some together."

Unexpectedly, Zhukov said furiously: "General Batov, I thought you were outside the city of Baranovich at the moment, commanding troops to attack the city, but you ran back to the headquarters to eat and drink. "

"Comrade Marshal," Batov, who was scolded, justified himself: "The commanders and fighters have already become exhausted after a week of fighting. I think it is necessary for them to take a rest before attacking Baranovic It's not too late to attack."

"Do you know that when your troops are resting, the Germans in the city are using the time you give him to desperately strengthen the fortifications and consolidate their defenses." Zhukov said angrily: "When you attack again , the enemy can rely on the reinforced fortifications to consume more of your vitality."

Although Batov tried his best to explain to Zhukov, the latter didn't listen at all, and just kept criticizing the opponent for delaying the fighter, which would lead to a higher price for seizing the city.

Lieutenant General Rajecki, the military commissar of the group army, saw that his commander had been severely criticized by Zhukov, so he wanted to help out. Unexpectedly, as soon as he opened his mouth, Zhukov cast a stern look at him, forcing him to shut his mouth obediently.

After Zhukov gave Batov a hard lesson, he slowed down and said, "Now there is a chance to save, I wonder if you are willing to seize it?"

"What chance?" Batov asked hastily.

"This opportunity is for you to immediately go outside the city of Baranovich and command the troops to attack the city. If you don't take this city, you don't come back." After finishing speaking, before Batov could speak, he turned and went outside go. When a stool tripped him, he stood up straight and kicked the stool into a corner.

Looking at the back of Zhukov leaving, Rajetsky said nervously to Batov: "Comrade Commander, it seems that Marshal Zhukov is really angry this time. What should we do?"

Batov took a deep breath, and then said: "Marshal Zhukov is right. Now that we have reached the outside of Baranovich's city, we should continue to attack until the city is taken down. Now the people outside the city The troops stopped attacking, which is equivalent to giving the Germans a chance to breathe. They will use this time to strengthen their fortifications and consolidate their defenses. When we complete the construction and launch an offensive again, the German fortifications will cause us huge damage. casualties."

He walked to the table, grabbed a few slices of bread from the plate, stuffed it into his mouth, and said vaguely: "I want to return to the front immediately and command the troops to attack Baranovich. take the city in as little time as possible."

Unexpectedly, before he could walk out of the headquarters, he heard the sound of rumbling guns coming from Baranovic's direction. He stopped, tried hard to swallow the bread in his mouth, and then asked his chief of staff: "Chief of staff, What's going on here, how can there be gunfire in Baranovic's direction, could it be that some army launched an attack on the enemy without authorization?"

"Comrade Commander, I don't know either." The chief of staff said, picking up the phone on the table: "I'll call the front line to find out what's going on."

A few minutes later, the chief of staff put down the phone and said to Batov with some surprise: "Comrade commander, I asked the forward observation post, and they said that the sound of artillery came from the other side of the city. It seems that friendly forces are attacking." city."

Knowing that a friendly army was attacking Baranovich, the expression on Batov's face suddenly became serious, because he knew that his superior ordered his own army and a part of the 48th army to attack the German army's Baranovich. The heavy army group launched an attack. Now that my troops are still on standby, the attacking troops, needless to say, are Sokov's 48th Army.

Thinking of the various prices his troops had paid in these few days of fighting, Batov couldn't help feeling a little anxious. His troops had already arrived outside the city of Baranovich. Where do you put your face?

After thinking about this, he immediately ordered the chief of staff: "Chief of staff, call the forward troops and order them to launch an attack immediately. Be sure to break through the German fortifications before the friendly forces rush into the city."