Red Moscow

Sokov never dreamed that what Golikov wanted to talk to him about was that Rokossovsky wanted to transfer him to his army. This was so sudden and unexpected that Sokov For a while I didn't know what to say.

After a long silence, Sokov finally spoke, but he did not immediately give Golikov an accurate answer, but asked tentatively: "Comrade Deputy Commander, hasn't our army already abolished the military system? "

"That's right, shortly after the war broke out, in order to better command the troops, the base camp did cancel the army's organizational system." Golikov replied: "But with the expansion of the army's scale, it is imperative to restore the army's organizational system." It must be done. Therefore, the base camp has made a decision to officially restore the military system at the end of October."

Sokov vaguely remembered that the Soviet Army seemed to have restored the military system at the end of 1942 when the military rank reform was carried out. Unexpectedly, Rokossovsky was quite generous to him, and he was a military commander when he made a move. But now there is only one month left before the big counter-offensive, and going to the Don River Front Army at this moment, wouldn't everything I have done before be in vain?

Thinking of this, Sokov looked up at Golikov on the opposite side and said: "Comrade Deputy Commander, I have already considered it. Please help me decline General Rokossovsky's kindness. I will continue to stay in the city." Here, strike hard at the enemy attacking the city."

Before meeting Sokov, Golikov had been thinking in his heart whether he would agree to Rokossovsky's request if he were in Sokov's position. After thinking over and over again, he felt that he couldn't find any reason to refuse. This transfer not only improved his position, but also allowed him to withdraw from the precarious city. How to choose was self-evident.

But Sokov rejected Rokossovsky's kindness without hesitation. Golikov was taken aback when he heard this reply, and then his face showed joy. But just to be on the safe side, he still asked: "Colonel Sokov, do you really decide to stay in the city?"

"Yes, Comrade Deputy Commander." Sokov felt that if he stayed in the city, as long as he was more careful, his safety could still be guaranteed, so he replied in an affirmative tone: "I am willing to stay in the city." , command the troops to fight the enemy until the day they are defeated."

"Very good, very good!" Golikov was very satisfied with Sokov's answer. He felt that since the other party rejected Rokossovsky's invitation, he should express his position on behalf of the Front Army Command : "Colonel Sokov, for those who performed well in the battle to defend Stalingrad, we will not only give rewards, but also make reasonable arrangements for personal use. Do you understand what I mean?"

From Golikov's words, Sokov heard that the other party was implying himself that as long as he stayed in the Stalingrad Front Army, he could consider promotion of military rank and position in the future. After expressing his thanks to Golikov with a smile, he then asked, "Comrade Deputy Commander, where do you plan to go next?"

"I'll go to Chuikov's headquarters later and ask him about the actual situation in the city." After Golikov finished speaking, he said to Sokov in an official tone: "Colonel, you have nothing to do here. Now, you can go." Sokov raised his hand to salute him, then turned and walked out of the command post, walking towards the ferry.

On the way, he met Zinoviev who was coming towards him, and quickly stopped him and asked him: "Comrade Major, have all the goods on board been moved?"

Naturally, there were not only a few hundred boxes of ammunition on that ferry, but also a lot of food and medicine. However, since the superior has said hello, the batch of things belonging to Sokov and the others will be unloaded first. Hearing Sokov's question at this moment, Zinoviev nodded quickly and replied: "Comrade Colonel, all your things have been unloaded from the ship. I was going to look for you, but I didn't expect to meet you here." .”

Sokov originally thought that Zinoviev rushed over to report something to Golikov, but he didn't expect that the other party came to find him. Hearing that everything had been unloaded, Sokov hesitated for a moment, and said to Zinoviev: "Comrade Major, I want to transport this batch of ammunition back to Mamayev Post as soon as possible. As for the guard who lent you Platoon, after the deputy commander leaves, let them return to the building as soon as possible."

Zinoviev came to see Sokov because he was worried that he would take away the platoon that he lent to him when he transported the rocket back to Mamayev Post. He planned to discuss with the other party whether the platoon could continue Stay and return to Jian after Golikov leaves. Unexpectedly, before he spoke, Sokov had already expressed his willingness to leave the guard platoon and continue to cooperate with him in carrying out the mission. Zinoviev couldn't help being overjoyed, thanked Sokov repeatedly, and said that he would immediately send a transport team to transport the rockets to Mamayev Gang.

An hour later, Sokov reappeared at the division headquarters. Seeing Sokov coming back, Sidolin immediately went up to meet him and asked with concern: "Comrade commander, have all the rockets been brought back?"

"Yes, the rockets have been put into the underground warehouse." After Sokov finished speaking, he asked casually, "Did anything happen while I was away?"

"No, Comrade Commander." Sidolin quickly replied, "Everything is peaceful, nothing happened."

Sokov looked left and right, saw that Ivanov was not among the staff officer and the radio operator, and then asked, "Where did the deputy division commander go?"

"He saw that there was nothing to do at night, so he went back to rest." Sidolin was worried about what Sokov would think, and added specifically: "It will be the turn of Comrade Deputy Commander to be on duty tomorrow night, so today he can go back to rest. Need Shall I call him over?"

"No, no." Sokov waved his hand and said, "I'm just asking casually. By the way, Chief of Staff, what's the recent record of the squad we sent to the enemy's rear?"

"Comrade commander, I am planning to report this matter to you." Sidolin picked up a small book on the table, flipped through a few pages, and said to Sokov: "Except for the small team sent by the downsizing regiment , have achieved some battle results. The other small teams not only failed to achieve any battle results, but fell into the enemy's siege. If they do not evacuate as soon as possible, they will be in danger of being annihilated."

"Since this is the case, let's withdraw them." Sokov heard that the situation of the enemy's squad was not good, so he decisively said to Sidolin: "After they come back, we will send the elite squad again. Go to the enemy's rear."

"Comrade Commander," Sidolin was still nodding when he heard Sokov decide to withdraw the squad from the enemy's rear, but he couldn't help being stunned when he heard what Sokov said next: "I think sending the squad to It is not suitable for the enemy's rear, they can only do a little damage at best, it is difficult to pose any major threat to the enemy, and they may be wiped out by the enemy at any time."

"Comrade Chief of Staff, I plan to let the troops that go deep behind the enemy this time carry rockets." Sokov didn't wait for Sidolin to finish, and interrupted him: "With the rocket squad, we will It will be a nightmare for the Germans."

Knowing that Sokov planned to let the new squad sent to the enemy's rear carry rockets this time, Sidolin couldn't help but his eyes lit up. You must know that so many squads have been dispatched to the enemy's rear. As long as they carry rockets, they can kill the enemy. They were beaten so badly that they cried and howled. In particular, some time ago, the ammunition depot set up by the German army in the town of Gorodishe was destroyed, using the rockets left by the enemy's rear squad in the early stage.

Thinking of this, Sidolin quickly expressed his opinion: "Comrade commander, if our squad really carries rockets, can we consider letting them attack the enemy's regiment-level and above headquarters, causing the enemy's command system to fall into chaos. "

"Comrade Chief of Staff, I also want the squad to do this, but it can't be done." Sokov didn't want to use rockets to directly bombard Paulus's headquarters, but this kind of thing can only be thought about, and it is impossible to change. Reality: "The enemy's commanders are all cowards. The regiment-level headquarters is more than ten kilometers away from the front, and the division-level headquarters is even 30 kilometers away. If the squad goes deep into the enemy's rear so far, it will be exposed. Dangerous. Once the enemy discovers their whereabouts, if they try to surprise the enemy, the effect will be compromised."

Sidolin saw that Sokov had considered the question very carefully, so he asked, "Which army do you plan to send to carry out this task?"

"The small units that went deep into the enemy's rear and achieved major results were almost all under the command of Lieutenant Grisa." Sokov said thoughtfully: "I plan to entrust him with this important task. "

"But Lieutenant Griza is currently in the archives building." Sidolin thought that Sokov had forgotten where Grisa was, so he quickly reminded him: "Are you sure you want to transfer him back to perform the mission?"

"Yes, I'm more at ease in entrusting him with such an important task." After Sokov finished speaking, he told Sidolin: "Chief of Staff, you immediately call the archives building, and I want to call Commissar Belkin. Call and ask him to call Griza back as soon as possible."

The call was quickly connected. Sokov took the receiver from Sidolin's hand and said, "Hello, Comrade Commissar! I'm Sokov. I'm calling you so late. I don't have any news to disturb you, right?"

"No, no." Belkin and Sokov had been partners for a while, and they knew very well that the other party had nothing important to do and would not call him so late, so he asked quickly, "Misha, what happened?" ?”

"That's right, Comrade Political Commissar." Sokov said, "I'm going to let Grisa lead a small team deep behind the enemy's rear, and give the Germans a hard lesson. Let him rush to the division headquarters as soon as possible."

"Misha!" After hearing Sokov's words, Belkin said hesitantly: "Didn't we send a few small teams to the enemy's rear, why did we send a new small team? Could it be that they met What danger?"

"Yes, Comrade Political Commissar." Sukov didn't intend to hide some things from his old partner, "Except for the squads sent by your regiment, which achieved some results, the rest of the squads not only failed to achieve results, but were on the contrary. The Germans are struggling, and I have ordered them to withdraw."

"Misha, please forgive me." Belkin said tactfully on the other end of the phone: "Since the squads sent before have not played any role in the enemy's rear, even if we send a new squad, I am afraid it will be difficult to obtain them." What a result."

"The superior has just shipped us new rockets," Sokov said to Belkin: "I plan to let Grisa's squad carry rockets to attack the German headquarters, warehouses and barracks, and completely destroy the German army. Mess with their offensive steps."

Belkin dissuaded Sokov because he was worried that the team that went deep behind the enemy would be in danger. But as soon as he heard that the superior had brought in a new rocket, he immediately changed his mind. He had seen the power of that thing with his own eyes, so he said without hesitation: "Okay, Misha, since the superior We have sent so many rockets to us, we have to find a way to let them play the biggest role to hit the enemy hard. I will immediately notify Griza and let him rush back to the division headquarters to report to you as soon as possible."

After Sidolin waited for Sokov to put down the microphone, he asked him for instructions: "Comrade commander, how do you plan to distribute the 500 rockets that your superiors brought us, how much do you allocate to each regiment, please get a charter as soon as possible." come out."

Unexpectedly, Sokov shook his head after hearing this, and said: "Chief of Staff, the original three regiments of the Guards Division have never been exposed to this new type of rocket before. Even if they are assigned, I am afraid it will not play much role I think it's better to leave it all to the Belkin regiment."

"What, give them all to the Belkin Regiment?" Sidolin was taken aback by Sokov's words: "Comrade Commander, all the five hundred rockets were handed over to the Belkin Regiment. Am I right?"

Seeing that Ivanov and Anisimov, the political commissar of the division, were not there, Sokov said without so much scruples: "Chief of Staff, I think so. In a day or two at most, the troops of the 45th Infantry Division It will take over the defense of the Belkin Regiment. After they withdraw at that time, we can't let them continue to squat in the tunnel and do nothing, right? I plan to let them carry this batch of rockets as a company and freely choose between the south and the north of the city. Combat areas, to hit the enemy hard, to help friendly forces to better defend the city."

After listening to Sokov's words, Sidolin stared at the map in front of him and fell into deep thought. After a long period of consideration, he felt that Sokov's multifaceted tactics would definitely disrupt the German army's offensive rhythm, so he nodded and replied, "Okay, Comrade Commander, I agree with you, Let the newly arrived batch of rockets be handed over to the Belkin Regiment for use."

The two chatted a few more words, and the phone on the table rang. Sidolin picked it up and listened for a while, with a panicked expression on his face. He looked at Sokov and said, "Comrade Commander, something has happened. Lieutenant Griza stepped on a landmine shortly after leaving the archives building, and was seriously injured. It's serious, I'm afraid it's..."

Knowing that something happened to Griza, Sokov's heart sank suddenly, thinking to himself, Griza wouldn't just hang up like this. He quickly ordered Sidolin: "Chief of Staff, quickly call the health team and ask them to send people immediately to bring Griza back for rescue."