USSR 1941

"Shulka!" Seeing Shulka running out, Zhukov laughed and hugged Shulka enthusiastically: "I just heard that you are coming to Voronezh, and I happened to be having a meeting nearby, so I came to see you What? I heard you became an instructor?"

"Yes!" Shulka replied: "We are temporarily organized as the instructor regiment of the 11th Infantry Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs!"

"Do it well!" Zhukov patted Shulka's shoulder meaningfully.

Of course he also knew why Beria let the 82nd Infantry Regiment serve as the instructor of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. At the same time, Beria was the most powerful person besides Stalin at this time, so of course he had a bright future.

At the same time, Zhukov himself is an important minister of the military... In fact, he is not just an important minister. After the defense of Moscow and the defense of Stalin, Zhukov's prestige in the army has been unmatched.

Of course he also hoped to have a good relationship with Beria or the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

This made Shulka feel a little ironic, because one of the reasons why Beria would fall was that Zhukov finally chose to support Khrushchev, and even Beria was arrested by Zhukov.

But from time to time, from time to time, no one dared to say what the future situation would be before reaching that point, and Zhukov at this time was no exception.

"Comrade Zhukov!" At this moment, Sarayev greeted him hurriedly while adjusting his military uniform.

"Long time no see, Comrade Saraev!" Zhukov politely shook hands with Saraev.

"Long time no see, Comrade Zhukov!" Saraev was a little startled and stuttered: "Please come to my headquarters and sit down!"

Zhukov did not refuse: "I happen to have something to talk to you about!"

Walking into the headquarters, Saraev hastily ordered some good vodka to be served, and some nuts... This is already considered a good treat during wartime, especially on the front line.

However, Zhukov only took the vodga and did not touch the nuts. He raised the cup in his hand and said, "How about it, Saraev, is my brother qualified to be an instructor?"

Saraev couldn't help being taken aback, he didn't expect Zhukov to call Shulka a brother.

"Of course, Comrade Zhukov!" Sarayev replied: "In fact, Comrade Shulka gave me a lot of inspiration. Our troops have made great progress during this time. Under the training of Comrade Shulka and the 82nd Infantry Regiment ,

We are more confident to defeat those invaders! "

"That's good!" Zhukov nodded.

Saraev seemed to have heard some implication, and he asked suspiciously: "Comrade Zhukov, what do you mean..."

Perhaps it was because the Ministry of Internal Affairs had a very strict tone, or it was no longer a secret, Zhukov nodded and said, "Yes, you should prepare for the battlefield as soon as possible!"

Saraev was a little surprised by Zhukov's words, but Shulka looked calm.

Zhukov smiled and asked Shulka: "You guessed it a long time ago, why didn't you tell Comrade Saraev?"

Shulka replied with some embarrassment: "I'm just guessing, Comrade Zhukov!"

"Do you know where it is?" Zhukov asked again.

"Kursk, I don't know if I guessed right?"

Zhukov nodded in satisfaction: "Many people have guessed it. There is no doubt that the Kursk salient will be the first choice for the limited German offensive!"

Saraev asked from the side: "If we all guessed... I mean, will the Germans change their attack direction or battle plan while we are preparing?"

"No!" Zhukov shook his head: "The reason is that the Germans have insufficient troops, insufficient equipment, and material conditions. As you know, the Germans are fighting in three directions at this time. Africa, the Soviet Union, and the British are fighting against the Germans. Germany's bombing... Although the British's bombing was just scratching the surface, it at least contained part of the German air power! Coupled with the defeat of the Germans in the Moscow and Stalingrad battles that we suffered, it directly led to their Can’t make ends meet!”

Speaking of which, Zhukov stood up and walked towards the map, and then pointed to the Kursk area and said: "In this area, the Germans formed a semi-encirclement circle, which is not only conducive to the Germans' offensive, once they win, they can also shorten the front line. 250 kilometers, and save 18 to 20 divisions so that they can be sent elsewhere or used for attack. So, even if the Germans knew that we were prepared, they would not change their plans!"

In fact, there is another reason, that is, although the Germans had defeats in Moscow and Stalingrad, they can be said to be non-war defeats: Moscow was due to the cold weather, and Stalingrad was due to wrong command (mainly Hitler The troops were divided into two groups to attack Stalingrad and the Caucasus at the same time, and after the defeat, they were unwilling to accept the reality and prevent the 6th Army from retreating).

At the tactical level, the German army still has air superiority until now, which means that if they want to take down Kursk, it is still no problem, even if the Soviet Union is prepared.

"When will it be?" Saraev was eager to try.

This is the case with the troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. They are required to have a firm stand and a tenacious will, so they always rush to the battlefield... Shulka thinks he does not have such a mental outlook.

"It won't be far!" Zhukov said: "Go through this winter! You have a winter training time!"

Winter is indeed not suitable for attacking, but...

The historic Battle of Kursk didn't start so soon, at least not in spring, or even in summer.

Then Shulka understood what Zhukov meant.

"You mean...we will attack before the enemy attacks?" Shulka asked.

Zhukov nodded slightly, and said with a smile: "I can't hide anything from you, Comrade Shulka! This is one of the reasons why we need to call up troops to Voronezh urgently. We not only want to defend, but also prepare for counterattack! I can say There are only so many, and everything is still undecided..."

"I think it's wrong, Comrade Zhukov!" said Shulka.

"What?"

"Counterattack, we cannot counterattack before the enemy!"

"Why not?"

"It's like the Battle of Kharkov!" said Shulka. "If we counterattack before the enemy, we will cause a lot of casualties, while the Germans are waiting for work. Then, when they start to counterattack, we will fight back." Too tired to deal with it... This is a lesson, isn't it? I think this time, we should do it the other way around!"

"You mean...defend first?" Zhukov said.

"Yes! We should defend first!" Shulka nodded with certainty.