Red Moscow

After dark, Vanya set off with the commanders and fighters of the first battalion. Before he set off, he made a special call to Sokov: "Comrade Brigadier, we are leaving soon. Do you have anything else to ask?"

Hearing Vanya's question, Sokov was silent for a while. He thought to himself, as if he had already explained everything that should be explained, and there was no need to repeat it. Thinking of this, he said into the microphone: "Comrade Captain, I am here waiting for the good news of your victory. I wish you good luck!"

Although after entering July, the days began to grow longer and the nights became shorter, but it still didn't get dark until after nine o'clock, and it was dawn at five o'clock in the morning. In other words, Vanya's troops had to find a suitable location, cross the Tenebra River within eight hours, and rush to the vicinity of the German camp before dawn.

In order to ensure that the troops did not attract the attention of the Germans when they were in action, the first battalion implemented radio silence, so that Sokov could not know where they were, whether they were ready for battle, etc. before the battle started.

Belkin saw Sokov walking back and forth in the headquarters restlessly with his hands behind his back. He raised his hand and looked at his watch. Seeing that it was already one o'clock in the morning, he said to him: "Comrade Brigadier, listen Listen, how quiet it is outside. This means that the first battalion was not spotted by the enemy during the process of crossing the river and approaching the enemy camp. You must be hungry after walking in the house for so long. I will send you Bring some food." After speaking, Belkin called a staff officer, leaned close to his ear and whispered a few words. The staff officer nodded after Belkin finished speaking, turned around and walked out of the headquarters.

Sokov walked around the house for a long time. He was really tired and hungry. After sitting down at the table, he looked at Belgin and said, "Comrade Commissar, although Vanya's counterattack is completely It was unexpected by the German army, but before the battle started, I was still a little uneasy in my heart."

The staff officer who was ordered to find food returned to the house not long after. Looking at the food put on the table by the staff officer, Sokov asked curiously: "Why, Comrade Political Commissar, is there still corn in July?" Because of climate and latitude, corn will not mature until at least September.

"When I went out to inspect today, I saw a corn field next to the forest in the north of the city, so I asked someone to pick a few and come back to try something new." Belkin picked up a corn, handed it to Sokov, and said with a smile : "Comrade Brigadier, have a taste."

When Sokov took the corn and was about to start nibbling, Belkin handed over a small dish containing salt, "Sprinkle some salt." Sprinkling salt on food has always been a Russian tradition: bread should be sprinkled with salt. Salt is a gift to entertain distinguished guests; tomatoes sprinkled with salt are the best appetizers. As for the salt on the corn, Sukov's understanding is that the taste is so bad that it must be covered with salt.

Belgin looked at Sokov who was gnawing corn, and asked curiously: "Comrade Brigadier, do you think that after the main force arrives, the superiors will order us to launch a large-scale counterattack?"

counterattack? ! Hearing what Belkin said, Sokov stopped quickly, looked at Belkin dumbfounded, and said to his heart, brother, stop joking, okay, if you want to launch a counterattack from the Kursk area, let alone a few infantrymen Division, even if there are several group armies, it is also useless. You must know that in the Battle of Kursk a year later, the reason why the Soviet army was able to win the final victory was not only that they used four front armies, but also because the Allied forces launched a landing operation in Sicily, forcing the German army to move to Sicily. Some of the main force was transferred away.

Sokov took a deep breath, and then said to Belkin: "Comrade Commissar, regardless of the reinforcements sent by the headquarters, they will soon arrive at Kursk, but with the strength of our army, we can barely hold the city. , and I am unable to launch a large-scale counterattack at all. The reason why I decided to launch a counterattack in the south of the city is simply because the enemy forces there are weak and have not taken precautions, so our surprise attack can achieve results."

While the two were talking, the communication company commander Maxim suddenly hurried in and handed a telegram to Sokov: "Comrade Brigadier, this is an urgent telegram from the first battalion."

When Sokov received the telegram, he glanced at the watch on his wrist and found that it was not yet two o'clock, and there were still three hours before the start of the attack. And Vanya broke the radio silence, something unexpected must have happened. After he read the contents of the telegram, he couldn't help showing a shocked expression on his face. He really didn't expect that the enemy's situation had an unexpected change.

Seeing Sokov's frightened look, Belgin asked hastily, "Comrade Brigadier, what happened?"

"Look at this telegram," Sokov handed the telegram to Belkin, and said hastily, "Vanya reported that the scouts found a convoy heading in the direction of the German camp. According to the analysis, this may be the reinforcements of the Germans. Many of the trucks are still towing artillery..."

After Belkin read the contents of the telegram, his expression also became serious. He said with a serious expression: "Comrade Brigadier, if Captain Vanya's information is correct, the enemy's reinforcements have almost two battalions, and there are also artillery. Look, should we cancel this counterattack mission?"

"No," Sokov rejected Belkin's proposal without hesitation: "Our troops finally crossed the Tenebra River and approached the enemy's camp. If we retreat at this time, everything will be destroyed. It’s all gone.”

"But, Comrade Brigadier." Although the weather was cold in the early morning, Belkin was in a cold sweat: "The first battalion only has more than 1,300 people, and after the German army received reinforcements, the total strength exceeded them by more than twice. There are so many, and there are so many artillery pieces, I am worried that our troops will suffer!"

"Before the First Battalion set off, I sent a telegram to the Front Army Command, requesting the superior to send the air force to support us." Sokov tapped his finger on the table lightly, frowning and said: "Rokosovs General Key agreed to send us two air groups, but if the Germans increase their troops, this air power will be insufficient."

After waiting for Sokov to finish speaking, Maxim asked cautiously: "Comrade Brigadier, do you think it is necessary to send a report to the Front Army Command immediately and report our information to them?"

"Time is running out," Sokov shook his head and said, "Fortunately, in General Rotmistrov's headquarters, there is a dedicated phone line that can be used to contact the Front Army headquarters. I think I should rush to him immediately. Go and call the Commander."

"Captain Vanya, how should I reply to them?" Maxim asked briefly.

"There is no need to give them any answer for the time being. I will call them back after I report the situation here to the Front Army Command." After Sukov explained to Maxim, he turned to Belgin and said, "Comrade Commissar, I Now rush to General Rotmistrov's headquarters immediately, and you will be in charge of everything here."

"Don't worry, Comrade Brigadier." Belkin told Sokov: "If you make any decision, please call me immediately, and I will convey it to Vanya by telegram."

Five or six minutes later, the jeep in which Sokov was riding stopped at the gate of the tank army headquarters. The officer on duty at the gate knew Sokov, and although he felt strange seeing him coming here late at night, he trotted over to salute him immediately, and said politely, "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, hello! Could you please come over at this time? Is there anything important?"

Sokov nodded at the other party, and then asked, "Where is General Rotmistrov?"

"Comrade Commander is sleeping." The officer quickly replied, "Is there anything urgent you want to see him?"

"Since Comrade General is resting, let him continue talking." Sokov asked the officer politely: "I have an important situation and I need to report it to the Front Army Command immediately. May I borrow your special line?"

Facing Sokov's question, the officer smiled wryly and said, "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I'm just an officer on duty. I really can't help you with communication matters."

"Take me to the general's office," Sokov said to the other party, "I need to use his phone to report to the front army headquarters immediately!"

"Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, please wait here for a while, I will report to the leader on duty immediately." After the officer finished speaking, seeing Sokov nodding in agreement, he rushed to the duty room at the door and called the superior to report .

Not long after, the officer returned to Sokov and said to him politely: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, the officer on duty has notified the general, and he will go to his office soon, please come with me." .” Sokov followed the officer into the building and went to General Rotmistrov’s office.

When he came to the door of the office, the door was open, and Sokov could see everything inside clearly from the door. He saw General Rotmistrov sitting behind his desk, putting on his clothes in a hurry. Sokov raised his hand and knocked twice on the open door, then asked Rotmistrov who was looking up at him, "Comrade General, can I go in?"

"Come in, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel." Rotmistrov said with some displeasure, "I want to know what happened when you woke me up in the middle of the night."

"Comrade General, can I borrow your phone?" Sokov asked politely, "I have important information that needs to be reported to the Front Army Command immediately. I can't tell in the telegram, so I can only borrow your dedicated phone number." .”

General Rotmistrov muttered, picked up the microphone, and said, "I am General Rotmistrov. Get me to the Front Army Command immediately. I have important information to report."

The staff officer on duty at the Front Army Command heard that it was General Rotmistrov's call, thinking that something serious had happened, and quickly woke up Malinin who had just fallen asleep. The sleepy-eyed Malinin walked to the table, picked up the receiver and pressed it to his ear, and asked feebly, "I'm Malinin, General Rotmistrov. You're calling at this time. Is there anything important?"

"Comrade Chief of Staff, I'm sorry to disturb your sleep." Rotmistrov glanced at Sokov standing in front of him, and said dryly: "It's Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, he said there is an important I need to report to you immediately. Because it is not clear in the telegram, I can only borrow a special line from me."

"Give him the phone." Malinin knew very well in his heart that Sokov was definitely not the kind of person who would call his superiors just for trivial matters, and quickly ordered Rotmistrov to hand over the phone to Sokov. Cove. When he heard Sokov's voice coming from the receiver, he immediately asked straight to the point: "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, is there anything urgent?"

When Sokov heard Malinin call his surname and position, he replied in a businesslike manner: "Comrade Chief of Staff, the situation is as follows. The counterattack force I sent found a large number of German reinforcements on the way and was rushing to the south of the city. The direction. The total force is about two battalions, and there are also many artillery pieces."

After listening to Sokov's report, Ma Linin was shocked: the German army had more troops than the Soviet army. Two battalions amounted to more than 2,000 people. Including the original garrison, the total strength of the German army was at least 4,000. He hurriedly asked Sokov: "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, how many people are there in the infantry battalion that you counterattacked, and what kind of equipment does it have?"

"The first battalion now has more than 1,300 people, equipped with more than 20 MG34 general-purpose machine guns, and five 50mm mortars..." After briefly explaining the amount of heavy equipment, Sokov emphasized to Malinin : "Not only are we at a disadvantage in terms of numbers, but our equipment is not the enemy."

Malinin knew Sokov very well, and knew that he must have his own thoughts when he said this to himself, so he asked tentatively: "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, what do you need us to do for you?"

"That's right, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov waited for Malinin to finish speaking, and quickly continued: "According to the original plan, the superior will send two flying brigades to provide air cover for our attack. But now it seems that This air power is far from enough, see if you can give us more help."

"Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, I can't decide this matter. I need to ask Comrade Commander for instructions." Ma Linin asked slowly: "Now that the enemy situation has changed, what do you plan to do?"

"It's very simple, order the troops to launch a sudden attack on the German reinforcements when they are not stable." Sokov said with confidence: "The enemy's reinforcements have arrived, and they have to figure out the situation. It will fall into chaos. When they barely regained their senses at dawn, the air force that rushed to the battlefield can bombard them indiscriminately, thus throwing the enemy into complete chaos..."

After listening to Sokov's plan, Ma Linin nodded and said: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, since you have a complete plan, go ahead and execute it. We will provide you with more air support by dawn." .”