Steel Soviet Union

Since some friendly forces in other directions were still fighting and had not yet achieved a complete victory, Malashenko, who was obviously one step ahead of others in the battle rhythm, was not worried that the Romanian troops in other directions who were busy with their own affairs would take the opportunity to surround and eat him.

Those Romanian troops who had already been defeated were probably just regretting that their mothers had given them two less legs and could not run fast enough to escape. How could they have the mind to gather their fighting will to get rid of him? It was impossible.

What Malashenko was really worried about was that if he blindly advanced alone, he might be blocked halfway by the German armored group that was coming head-on and turned into an encounter battle.

After pulling in the Romanian armored division as a foil, the number of tanks of the enemy was not much less than that of his First Guards Heavy Tank Brigade, and there might even be more.

If the German army that was still hiding in the city and could be mobilized at any time was taken into account, Malashenko was worried that the tank encounter that would be difficult to determine the winner in a short period of time might eventually turn into a messy battle in which the German army attempted to encircle and counter-encircle the Soviet army.

If this really happened, it would not only disrupt the overall strategic deployment of the party, but the First Guards Heavy Tank Brigade, which failed to steal the chicken and lost the rice, might also become the target of public criticism and be trapped in the center of the war zone by the crazy attack and encirclement of multiple German troops.

Considering that this first batch of IS1 heavy tanks had an extraordinary significance and mission for him, Malashenko finally chose a more conservative tactic of holding his position and waiting and watching. He decided to see what the Germans were going to do first, and then decide on the next specific tactical action, so as to respond to changes with the same.

The weather above his head had basically cut off the possibility of air support, and no matter how capable the Germans who had already suffered serious damage were, they could not cause much trouble.

With the support of the entire Southwestern Front, thousands of heavy artillery can be deployed at any time, and there are plenty of reinforcements around, how could he be afraid of this half-dead Paulus?

Malashenko, who was looking into the distance with a telescope in his hand, couldn't help but raise his mouth slightly. The battle had completely turned to his advantage.

Now, as long as the large circular encirclement outside Stalingrad was closed, the damn Paulus and the remnants of the entire Sixth Army could be put into the pocket and suffocated to death. Malashenko wondered whether he should tell Paulus the fairy tale of Uranus in person at that time.

The heavy white snow blown by the strong wind had reduced the visibility in the air to just over one kilometer. Malashenko, who had been looking at the front-line observation post for a long time with a telescope in his hand, couldn't see anything.

Feeling a little thirsty, he simply put down the telescope in his hand and turned to the side. He came to the table left by the Romanians and was about to grab the kettle to take a sip. Unexpectedly, as soon as his right hand touched the kettle, he was stopped by a sudden voice.

"Drinking ice water at minus 30 degrees, be careful of diarrhea and you can't even climb into the tank."

Political Commissar Petrov, who was reviewing the war damage report that had just been sent, pointed to the iron cup on the table. The cup mouth was just the right size and steam was coming out.

"It's just boiled. Drink it while it's hot. It will be cold again in less than two minutes."

Malashenko hesitated for a moment and finally picked up the military water bottle at hand. It was a pity that the water in it had frozen into a big ice block at some point. The heavy weight in his hand was like a brick. If he hit it hard, he would definitely kill a German stick in one hit. Malashenko put down the brick-like military kettle with a helpless smile, and picked up the cup on the other side of the table and prepared to put it into his mouth, but when the cup reached his mouth, he hesitated and stopped and spoke slowly.

"Sometimes I think that if you were gone, I might not even know what to do when I'm free, just like a child who hasn't grown up."

Political Commissar Petrov, who was sitting on the chair, lowered the report in his hand and revealed his face. After glancing at Malashenko, he smiled faintly.

"Children are always children, don't you know? Children have to listen to adults honestly, and the elders are always right."

Being made a big joke by the political commissar who was also a teacher, friend and half father, Malashenko, who didn't say much, smiled and shook his head, and then raised his head to put the cup into his mouth.

Dong, dong, dong——

"Damn it! It's so cold outside! I'm almost freezing. Drink one cup, give me this one first"

Pah——

Before he could react to what happened, Malashenko, who was completely confused, just stood there and stared at Lavrinenko who was running in with loud footsteps. He snatched the cup from his hand and poured it down his throat. He was drinking like a cow. He was so happy.

"Ahem, ahem, how can you drink water in this weather? It's time to drink vodka. Bring me some wine, Malashenko! I'm almost freezing. Let me drink a bottle to warm myself up!"

Lavrinenko, who had put down the upside-down cup in his hand, had not yet realized the seriousness of the matter.

Malashenko, who couldn't get angry in front of him, pointed at Political Commissar Petrov who was sitting in Lavrinenko's blind spot with his eyes, and the meaning of "If you are caught drinking in wartime by the Political Commissar, you will see what happens to you" was obvious.

"Drinking in any form or under any pretext is prohibited when the First Guards Heavy Tank breaks through a group battle." This was a decision that Malashenko approved earlier at the initiative of Petrov's political commissar. After all, no one wants to see a group of drunkards. The lunatic behind the wheel turned the tank battle into a bumper car fight.

There are many strong men in the First Guards Heavy Tank Breakthrough Regiment, Petrov. The political commissar also took precautions for safety reasons.

Although it has been upgraded to the 1st Guards Heavy Tank Brigade, the old rules established in the past are still there.

Comrade Deputy Brigade Commander took the lead in violating military regulations. He tried to drink alcohol during the war and was caught by his political commissar comrade.

Lavrinenko looked at Commissar Petrov with a slightly frightened expression, and almost had "Why is Comrade Comrade Comrade here?" written on his face.

What neither Malashenko nor Lavrinenko expected was that Commissar Petrov, who was still threatening others with a poker face, then looked at each other and smiled, slowly shook his head and took something from the box that had been prepared at the foot of the table. He took out a bottle of vodka and put it on the table.

"It's half a glass per person, and you're not allowed to drink from the bottle! Special approval for winter, do you understand?"