Steel Soviet Union

The first ammunition rack at the rear of the turret and the five-round small ammunition rack on the inner wall of the turret on Kirill's right have all been polished!

Including a pre-loaded armor-piercing projectile that had been ready to fire in the gun breech before entering the battle, just over five minutes have passed since the Malashenko crew fired the first shot on the street and entered the melee, a total of 24 All the ammunition ready to be fired in the turret and breech had been fired.

If you still don’t understand what such fighting intensity means, you might as well put it another way.

Kirill completed the loading of a total of 23 artillery shells in a total of 300 seconds of 5 minutes rounded to zero. On average, the loading time of each artillery shell was about 13 seconds. It was almost as if he had rarely experienced such a high level. Kirill, who fought so hard, was so exhausted that he collapsed.

It takes an average of 13 seconds to load a fixed-load 85mm shell, and this is done with the reloading time bonus of the first ammunition rack of the turret.

There is no doubt that Kirill's performance in such a high-intensity combat state can only be said to be mediocre. Although it is not unqualified, it is indeed far from being an elite loader. However, this does not make Malashenko or Iraq the best. Ushkin's reason for scolding Kirill at such a time.

Although the gunshot wound in the back caused by trying to save Malashenko last time did not kill Kirill by chance, the physical sequelae of war trauma are real in this young man who has just stepped out of college.

Kirill's lungs were injured by shrapnel or bone fragments. Normally, there would be no problem. However, at critical moments during high-intensity physical labor, Kirill would inevitably suffer from shortness of breath and difficulty. Condition.

In the most serious state, Kirill was so suffocated that he couldn't even breathe. His flushed and uncomfortable look once made Malashenko worried whether Kirill would suffocate to death.

But this strong and stubborn young man still chose to persevere and stay in the No. 177 crew. He assured Malashenko, his uncle and his comrades in the crew that everything would be fine. After that, he forced himself to use it almost every day. The cannonball roll exercise is an effort to overcome this physical defect.

Malashenko once specifically asked Karachev, a top medical student who returned from studying in the United States, about this matter. The answer he received was that this situation is likely to be permanent, and will be accompanied by Kirill’s increasing age and organ aging. It will only get worse and worse, and as expected, when Kirill gets old, he may feel uncomfortable and unable to move even if he takes two steps.

Karachev said that when he was in college, he had met many injured American veterans who had returned from World War I, and many of their symptoms were similar to Kirill's, which can be considered a very difficult chronic disease.

"There is no specific medicine. There is no medicine that can effectively treat his condition in the United States. This is not asthma. Surgery to remove shrapnel or bone fragments may solve the problem. As long as the body is young, everything is possible, but I don’t recommend surgery in this war situation.”

"Not to mention a lung operation with such a large area of ​​internal organs exposed, even I am not sure. Under the field conditions with unspeakably poor sanitary conditions, there is a 50% chance that Kirill will suffer from postoperative infection. Die, or suffer from other more serious sequelae, my advice is to at least wait until the whole battle of Stalingrad is over before considering these things."

Kalachev's diagnosis report made Malashenko silent for nearly a minute, and the follow-up questions he asked did not get any good answers.

"Is it useful for Kirill to train himself like this all day long? He lifts cannonballs every day when he has free time. According to him, he is much better than when he just returned from injury. Now he can lift ten cannonballs in one go. Breathless, is this possible?"

In response to Malashenko's question, Karachev just smiled helplessly and shook his head in response.

"I can only say that I have witnessed too many miracles since returning to my motherland. Miracles that are impossible or even unimaginable in the United States."

"I do not rule out the possibility of the body's self-healing. "With a young body, everything is possible" was the last sentence my mentor gave me when I graduated. Now I will tell you this sentence. Maybe Kirill It might be the next medical miracle, and you and I will be the joint witnesses, Comrade Leader."

Karachev pinned his hopes for the miracle on Kirill's unyielding will and young, energetic body.

Judging from what Malashenko saw now, it can be said that Kirill did achieve a miracle on himself, but it can also be said that the so-called miracle did not happen at all.

Kirill, whose face was already slightly purple from holding back, was still holding on to the strength that he didn't know when he would be completely exhausted. He bent down and touched the car with movements that were almost like struggling but not too slow at all. On the reserve ammunition rack placed on the body, he picked up a fixed 85mm hooded armor-piercing grenade with both hands, held his breath and sent it into the breech in one breath!

"Well done, Kirill."

"Fire! Don't let Kirill's sacrifice be in vain, Iushkin!"

What responded to Malashenko's loud roar was not Iushkin's words, but the huge collision sound of the breech block immediately after the firing pin fired the propellant primer.

The smoke and dust from the propellant that had not been completely burned filled the turbid air in the turret space, exacerbating Kirill's discomfort. Even Malashenko and Iushkin, who had normal lung functions, were so smoked that the corners of their eyes were red and tears streamed down their eyes. .

The smoke filled the narrow turret where more than twenty cannons were fired in less than five minutes, but it was enough to make ordinary people lose their breath on the spot.

If he weren't worried that some unscrupulous German infantry might throw a grenade into the car through the skylight, Malashenko would have wanted to immediately push open the turret roof above his head and rush for ventilation.

Fortunately, Kirill's efforts, even risking his life, were not in vain due to Iushkin's full performance.

The 85mm armor-piercing grenade with a custom hood accurately penetrated the armor in the center of the front of the vehicle body. The unlucky No. 4 tank, which had already been stared at by Iushkin and was waiting for the shell to be pushed into the chamber, Immediately there was a violent explosion of ammunition with a terrifying momentum.

The soil and smoke raised by the strong explosion shock wave instantly spread into the surrounding air, vaguely forming a hemispherical "protective cover" with a radius of up to ten meters, filled with flames and death shrapnel.

What was completely destroyed by the ammunition explosion was not only this miserable Panzer IV tank and several nearby German infantrymen who were tragically killed, but also the morale of the German army, which was already pushed to the edge of the abyss and was on the verge of collapse.

Under the Soviet army's violent offensive, which was as desperate as a bloodthirsty beast, the German army, knowing that this wave of attacks was destined to fail, was the first to be unable to hold on. In front of the ruins of the tractor factory, more than 600 corpses and the burning remains of more than 30 tanks were dumped, and they retreated like a tide.