Red Moscow

The black smoke that Sokov saw on the ground of the first battalion was exactly the black smoke that rose when the German army burned supplies and military coats. His decision to switch from offensive to defensive was also a mistake. However, the troops switched from the defensive state to the offensive, and there were still many things to prepare. After explaining a few words to Starcha, Sokov returned to the division headquarters with Samoilov and the guard platoon.

As soon as Sokov entered the headquarters, Sidolin put down the folder in his hand, walked towards him quickly, and said, "Comrade commander, you are back!"

"How are you getting ready?"

"The tanks of the tank brigade have been activated, and after about 20 minutes of warm-up, they can be put into the battlefield." Sidolin reported: "In addition, the three infantry regiments are all ready to attack, and only wait for the tanks to pass through their defense zone , you can launch an attack on the enemy.”

Sokov looked around and saw that Ivanov and Anisimov were there, but he didn't see Golikov, so he asked curiously: "By the way, where is Comrade Deputy Commander of the Front Army going?" place?"

"Before you came back, Comrade Front Army Deputy Commander received a call from the Front Army Headquarters, saying that there was something important and asked him to rush back immediately." Sidolin finally emphasized: "In order to ensure his safety, I sent escorted by a platoon of guards."

"Ah, Comrade Deputy Commander of the Front Army has left?" With a great god like Golikov by his side, not only can he keep abreast of the latest developments on the entire battlefield in a timely manner, but he can also get some convenience in some aspects. Knowing that the other party had left, Sokov couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. He asked absent-mindedly, "Did he explain anything before he left?"

Sidolin heard Sukov's implication, and quickly said with a smile on his face: "The superior agrees to send two flying brigades to provide air support for our attacking troops."

"Great, this is really great." Sokov was worried that if Golikov left like this, his superiors might not provide air support for his troops. Unexpectedly, before Golikov left, he would Really got it done. "With the support of the air force, we can increase the distance of our counterattack to ten to fifteen kilometers."

Sidolin, who was still smiling, became stiff when he heard what Sokov said, and after a while, he tentatively asked: "Comrade commander, why do you need to set the distance for counterattack? If the enemy is really vulnerable, we can go all the way to the Don River."

"Yes, Comrade Commander." Ivanov also echoed: "If the situation is really as you said, the Germans are trying to escape, our advance will make them even more confused, and we can advance in one go. Go to the Don River and join forces with the friendly troops going south or north."

"Let me ask you." Seeing that the two looked at the situation so optimistically, Sokov reminded them: "From yesterday to now, apart from my division's troops, have other troops in the city started to launch counterattacks against the enemy? ?”

"There should be." Sidolin said in an uncertain tone: "However, their strength is weak, and even if they launch a counterattack, it will be on a small scale. I am afraid that they will not pose any threat to the enemy's defense."

"That's right, the other troops in the city are weak, and even launching a counterattack will have very limited effect." Sokov pointed to the red and blue lines on the map, and said to the two: "Look, where our division is located The position has become a salient. If we continue to advance, not only will our forces be dispersed, but the supply line will also be extremely long. The German army can easily cut off our counterattack forces from both wings. Once this happens, we will attack It won't be long before the troops will be in a desperate situation due to the exhaustion of ammunition, and then we will wait for the fate of our commanders and fighters, either to die in battle or to be taken prisoner."

Having said that, Sokov intentionally paused to observe the reactions of the two of them carefully. Seeing that they were all frowning and thinking hard about what they said, they continued: "According to my estimation, the battle to defend Stalingrad will soon be over. It will be a huge blow to the morale of our army if the troops who have built meritorious deeds are wiped out by the enemy."

Although Sokov has said many times before that if his troops go deep alone, they are likely to fall into the encirclement of the German army, but neither Sidolin, Ivanov and others seem to take it to heart. They felt that even if the troops were encircled, as soon as the troops from the north or south arrived, they might be able to open a center and annihilate more enemies. Hearing Sokov's heartfelt words at this moment, he couldn't help but fell into deep thought.

Seeing that the two were silent, Sokov struck while the iron was hot and said, "Think about it, if we can fight steadily, occupy an open area, and wait here for friendly troops to come and join us, what kind of honor can we get then? If the army really fell into the enemy's siege and suffered heavy losses, then we will not only have no credit, but may be sent to a military court."

"Comrade Commander, you don't need to say any more." Ivanov raised his head, looked at Sokov and said, "I understand what you mean. In order to win the final victory, we need to control the rhythm of the attack so that the victor does not become the enemy. I have become a loser. Comrade Chief of Staff, I agree with the division commander's plan, what do you think?" He asked Sidolin what he said later.

After thinking for a while, Sidolin looked at Sokov and asked, "Comrade commander, where do you think our counterattack should go?"

"Our troops are about to launch an attack on the original third line of defense of the German army." Sokov pointed to the position of the German army's defense line: "After breaking through the enemy's line of defense, we will move forward appropriately for five to eight kilometers , and then ordered the troops to switch to defense on the spot. Do you understand?"

"Understood." Sidolin nodded, and then asked: "Do you need to notify the heads of the regiments?"

"Yes." After Suokov agreed with Sidolin's opinion, he thought for a while and added: "Chief of Staff, you have to specifically tell Lieutenant Colonel Papchenko of the 122nd Regiment not to charge too hard. After completing the breakthrough, select a suitable location to build fortifications to prevent possible counterattacks by the Germans."

Regarding Sokov's order, Ivanov felt very puzzled: "Why do you have to remind the 122nd Regiment separately?"

"Colonel Bely and the first battalion of tanks under his command are now in the defense zone of the 122nd regiment." Sokov explained to Ivanov: "The equipment and tactics used by this tank battalion are different from those of other tanks. The battalion is different, if they are allowed to rush forward, there may be tanks that can really rush to the bank of the Don River in one breath."

If Sokov hadn't said those words just now, Sidolin and Ivanov might have felt ecstasy when they heard that the troops could rush to the Don River, but at the moment they were worried that if they rushed forward, they might die. Dive into the middle of the enemy. Before the friendly troops from the periphery arrive, the aggressive troops will become lambs waiting to be slaughtered, and what awaits them will be the fate of the entire army being wiped out.

Half an hour later, the three infantry regiments deployed in front, under the cover of the tank brigade, rushed towards the German defense line. The German officers and soldiers who were retreating hastily never dreamed that the Soviet army would launch an unexpected attack at this moment. Some troops who were withdrawing had to return to the trenches to block the attacking Soviet army.

And Paulus, who was far away in the Gumrak area, was very surprised to learn that Sokov's troops had turned to the offensive again. According to his thinking, the Russian army's tactics were dull. The enemy retreats, and they will not attack easily without an order from their superiors. As for the retreat orders of the 71st and 76th Infantry Divisions, I had just issued them a few hours ago, not to mention that the Russians didn't know about them, even the commanders under me didn't know about them. In such a short period of time, it is impossible for the higher command of the Russian army to issue an order to switch to the offensive. Unexpectedly, Sokov's troops seized the opportunity in time and launched an attack on the retreating troops.

What is happening right now is beyond Paulus' knowledge. After staring at the map on the wall for a while, he turned around and asked Schmidt: "Chief of Staff, what's going on? Why did the Russians react so quickly? Our troops just retreated, and Sokov's troops just retreated." Launched an attack? Could it be that there are Russian spies inside us?"

"Your Excellency, Commander, I think it is impossible for us to have Russian spies inside." After Schmidt denied the possibility of Russian spies in the headquarters with an affirmative tone, he analyzed to Schmidt: "According to the rest According to regional reports, except for the attack by the 41st Guards Division stationed on Mamayev Hill, the Russian troops in the rest of the area had only small-scale battles with our army. According to my analysis, in Mamayev Hill The offensive in the area must be the personal behavior of Colonel Sokov."

After all, Paulus was a famous general in the German army. He had received a good military education, and he quickly calmed down his emotions. After listening to Schmidt's analysis, he nodded and said, "Chief of Staff, you are right. This Colonel Sokov has always played cards against common sense and caused our troops a lot of losses. Sometimes, I don't even feel like he's Russian, or even from this world, because I don't feel like he's anything like the Russians I know."

"Your Excellency, Commander." Schmidt waited for Paulus to finish speaking, and quickly asked for instructions: "What should we do, should we let the troops continue to retreat, or should we stop and block the attack?"

Paulus turned around and stared at the map for a while, and said to Schmidt: "Chief of Staff, you should immediately send a telegram to General Roskey to tell his troops to stop the transfer and switch to blocking on the spot. Men rushed to the banks of the Don to join forces with their troops heading south or north.

As for General Rodenburg's 76th Infantry Division, since they were not attacked by the Russians, they were allowed to continue to move to the Don River Basin according to the original plan. "

When Paulus's order came, Roskai was heading towards the Don in his barrel wagon, escorted by an armored car and three trucks full of soldiers. A three-wheeled motorcycle chased up from behind and stopped not far from the barrel cart. An officer in a wide-brimmed hat jumped out of the sidecar and trotted over to the barrel cart.

Seeing the officer appearing suddenly, Roskey ordered the driver to stop. After the car came to a complete stop, the chief of staff of the division sitting next to Roskai opened the door, and the officer rushing over asked, "What's the matter?"

"Report to the Chief of Staff!" The officer quickly replied, "I just received a telegram from the headquarters of the Army Group, ordering our division to stop retreating and turn to defense on the spot to stop the attacking Russians."

"Bring me the telegram." After receiving the telegram from the officer, the chief of staff of the division quickly browsed through the content, then turned to Roskel and said, "Your Excellency, it is indeed a telegram from the Army Group Command , ordered our division to stop the transfer and switch to defense on the spot."

After hearing this, Roskey asked casually, "Since our division is ordered to go on the defensive, what about General Rodenburg's 76th Infantry Division? Is it going to go on the defensive too?"

"No." The chief of staff of the division shook his head and replied: "According to the order of the headquarters, the 76th Infantry Division continued to move to the Don River Basin, and only our division turned to defense on the spot."

"Damn bastard, isn't this asking our division to stay and die?" Roskai cursed in a low voice, and then said to the division chief of staff: "Leave one regiment for the blocking mission, and the rest of the troops will continue to follow the original order. Retreat to the Don River valley."

"However, Your Excellency, Division Commander, the commander ordered our division to go on the defensive. If we continue to retreat, I'm afraid it will be difficult to explain in the future." The division chief of staff reminded Roskey: "Do you want to think about it again?"

"Don't think about it, just give my order like this." Roskel waved his hand and said carelessly: "If Shangfeng pursues the matter, I will say that I will continue to send to the division headquarters so that the division headquarters will not be attacked by the Russians." Transferred from the Don River Basin."

The convoy moved on again after the officer departed with Rosskai's orders. Roskey said to the division chief of staff: "Chief of staff, according to the usual practice, our division headquarters must be at least 30 kilometers away from the front. But now we are only two or three kilometers away from the front. If the Russians break through our division In less than ten minutes, their tanks will appear outside my headquarters."

"You are right." The chief of staff of the division echoed: "As the leader of the first division, there is really no need for you to establish the headquarters so close to the front, which poses a great threat to your safety. Division headquarters moved to safer location."

Seeing the chief of staff agreeing with him, Roskai nodded with a satisfied smile on his face. As long as the division chief of staff agrees with him, even if Paulus pursues it later, he can handle it with ease.

While the two were talking, the roar of an aircraft engine suddenly sounded in the air. The armored vehicle that opened the way in front suddenly deviated from the road and drove towards the woods on the side of the road. The driver of the bucket truck slammed the steering wheel and drove towards the side of the road.

The ground on the side of the road was potholed, and the driver drove the car so fast that he jumped out of the seat and hit his head hard on the roof of the car. The pain made him almost cry. He grabbed the back of the front seat and yelled at the driver: "What are you doing, why are you driving the car towards the side of the road?"

"Your Excellency, an air strike, it's an air strike!" The driver replied without turning his head while driving, "Russian planes appeared in the sky, and they will soon swoop down and drop bombs and strafing us. If we don't leave the road as soon as possible, We would be their targets."