Chapter 1289 Ending (Part 1)

   Annihilated the 19th Armored Division and captured the division commander, General Schmidt. This is not only exciting news, but also a brilliant result.

When Sameko learned that Schmidt had officially become a prisoner of the Marine Brigade, he specifically asked Sokov for instructions: "Comrade Commander, how should we deal with this German general? Should we keep him or send him to the Front Army?" headquarters?"

"Comrade Chief of Staff," Sokov frowned at Sameko's proposal: "Send it to the Front Command, which Front Command? Is it General Konev's Steppe Front Command, or General Vatutin? Where is the headquarters of the Voronezh Front?"

  Sameko didn't expect Sokov to ask such a question, and for a while, he didn't know how to answer.

  Seeing that Sameko didn't speak, Sokov continued: "And the road is not safe now. If someone comes to rescue during the **** process, what should we do?"

  Sokov's words reminded Sameko that at the beginning of the year, Simon, the acting commander of the Skeleton Division, had been captured. However, on the way to Moscow, the escorting troops were attacked by the remnants of the Skeleton Division, causing Simon to be kidnapped by the Germans. Although this matter has little to do with me, it cannot be taken lightly.

Sameko frowned and thought for a while, and finally proposed a plan: "Comrade Commander, let's lock Schmidt and Simon in the headquarters, and wait until the battle is over before considering how to deal with them. "

   "Whose hands is Simon in?" Sokov heard Sameko mention Simon, the commander of the Skull Division, and couldn't help asking: "Is it us, or is it in the hands of the 5th Guards Tank Army?"

   "In our hands." Sameko replied in an affirmative tone: "Not long after you came back from the front, the commanders and fighters of the 254th Division captured General Simon."

Seeing Sokov's bewildered expression, Sameko quickly added: "At that time, Comrade Asiya was taken away by the enemy, which may have affected your mood. I have reported this to you, but you seem to have nothing to do with it." reaction."

After Sameko’s reminder, Sokov immediately realized that there seemed to be such a thing, so he nodded and said: “Hearing what you said, I seem to have a little impression that it is indeed Colonel Shechtman’s troops. Catch him. Now that General Simon is in our hands, the matter will be easy, let them send someone to bring Simon to the headquarters immediately."

   "When the two generals Simon and Schmidt arrive, do you want to meet them?"

"No, I don't want to see them." Even though the two prisoners were German generals, Sokov was still not interested in seeing them. He waved at Sameko and said, "Find a suitable place to detain them and let Xie Liao Sha personally led the guard company to take care of them. As for their demands, as long as they are not excessive, they can be satisfied."

After Sokov finished speaking, he turned his attention to the map again. He knew very well that he had wiped out the 19th Armored Division shortly after he annihilated the Skeleton Division. Manstein must have hated him deeply and would definitely send troops to attack own defense zone. In order not to be caught off guard by the German army, Sokov began to think about how to deploy troops.

"Comrade Commander," while Sokov was looking at the map, he suddenly heard Lunev ask next to him: "Since we have annihilated the 19th Armored Division, should we report this good news to the Front Army Command?" Woolen cloth?"

   "Ah, haven't we reported to our superiors about the annihilation of the 19th Armored Division?" Sokov asked in surprise.

"No." Lunev shook his head and replied bluntly, "After you got the news that the 19th Armored Division was annihilated, you and the chief of staff were studying how to deal with the prisoners, and you haven't reported this situation to your superiors at all. "

   "Comrade Commander," Hearing what Lunev said, Sameko came over to Sokov for instructions: "Which Front Command should we report this good news to?"

  Sokov started to run into trouble again. He was like a servant with two masters at the moment. It seemed a little inappropriate to report to the front army headquarters first. After weighing the relationship, he ordered Sameko: "Chief of Staff, order the operator to send reports to the two front army headquarters at the same time, and report to them the news that we have annihilated the 19th Armored Division."

   "This is a good idea." Sameko nodded and said, "Send a report to the two front army headquarters at the same time, so that no one can find anything to say, and I will arrange it immediately."

"Comrade Commander, with the destruction of the 19th Armored Division, we have separated the German troops on the southern front into two groups, East and West." Lunev took advantage of Sameko's phone call and humbly asked Sokov for advice. : "Which direction do you think the superior will order us to fight in next?"

"I don't know." Sokov couldn't figure out Vatutin's details, so he naturally couldn't guess what the other party's next plan would be, so he could only answer truthfully: "After our army has gone through a series of battles, the troops' The casualties are not small. If we continue to fight, not only will the physical strength of the commanders and fighters not keep up, but even greater casualties will be caused. The ideal result is for us to rest for three to five days in the existing area and replenish some Soldiers and technical equipment to ensure that the troops are capable of dealing with the next stage of combat."

"Yes, after this period of fighting, our troops have indeed paid a considerable price." Hearing what Sokov said, Lunev immediately agreed: "It is indeed possible to make such a supply request to the superior. "

Seeing that Lunev echoed his thoughts so readily, Sokov asked a little puzzled: "Comrade Military Commissar, you should know that all troops need to be replenished due to fighting. Do you think the superiors will agree with us?" A resupply request?"

"If it is another army that makes such a request to their superiors, even if they are not rejected, they can only wait patiently for the supplies according to the order of supplies assigned by their superiors." Lunev said with some pride: "But what about us? But it was a heroic unit that saved the Oboyan defense line and wiped out the Skeleton Division and the 19th Armored Division. As long as we make a supply request, I think the superiors will give us priority in supplying soldiers and equipment."

   When Sokov heard it, it seemed that this was really the case. In this battle of Kursk, his own troops can be regarded as shining. If he hadn't led the troops in time to block the enemy who broke through the Oboyan defense line, the German army might have rushed outside the city of Kursk at this moment.

   While Sokov, Lunev, and Sameko were carefully calculating the number of troops and technical equipment that should be supplemented by each division and brigade, Vatutin received a telegram from Sokov. After reading the above content, he hurried to the small room where Zhukov and Vasilevsky were staying, and reported to them: "The two marshal comrades have just received a telegram from Major General Sokov that his The troops have successfully annihilated the 19th Panzer Division and captured Division Commander Schmidt."

Zhukov, who was talking to Vasilevsky, after listening to Vatutin's report, clenched his right fist and slapped it on the palm of his left hand. He said excitedly: "Misha wiped out the 19th Armored Division so quickly. , did a really good job."

"Yes, Comrade Marshal." Vasilevsky also said with a smile: "With the destruction of the 19th Armored Division, the German army on the southern front was divided into two parts by our army, making the situation more favorable to our army. direction of development.”

   "Comrade Vatutin," Zhukov asked Vatutin with a smile on his face: "What are you going to do next?"

"Judging from the current situation, the northern line is basically stable. Even if the German army breaks through from the direction of Oboyan, it will not have much impact on the overall situation." Vatutin pointed to the map and told the two marshals about his plan: "So I think what we need to do now is to eliminate the enemies outside the city of Prokhorovka. As long as their attack on the city is completely smashed, we can safely and boldly mobilize our troops and rush to Oboyan in the west. Completely defeat the 48th Panzer Corps active there."

"Comrade Marshal," Vasilevsky waited for Vatutin to finish his speech, and reminded Zhukov: "Since there are no organized German troops near Sokov's troops, can we mobilize them to participate in one of the directions?" attack?"

Regarding the plan proposed by Vasilevsky, Zhukov stared at the map and thought for a while, and then said: "I agree with Comrade Vatutin's opinion, first concentrate our forces and eliminate the enemies outside the city of Prokhorovka. Only when we attack the 48th Panzer Corps in the Oboyan area will we get rid of the unfavorable situation of fighting on two fronts."

"Let me add one more thing," Vasilevsky saw that Vatutin seemed to have something to say, so he rushed ahead of them and said: "At noon tomorrow at the latest, the 53rd Army of the Steppe Front and the 53rd Army with more than two hundred The 1st Mechanized Tank Corps can cross the Pushol River and reach the north of Prokhorovka. In this way, not only in terms of strength but also in technical equipment, we are far superior to the German army.”

  Although Vatutin knew that more and more troops were coming towards the outside of Prokhorovka, but at this moment he received confirmation from Vasilevsky, and he couldn't help feeling ecstatic. He thought to himself: Sokov's troops wiped out the Skeleton Division in the west of Prokhorovka City, and caused certain losses to the Banner Guard Division in the southwest of the city. They were all gradually at a disadvantage, and when the new troops arrived, they could launch a full-scale counterattack again, completely smashing the German troops outside the city, and driving them away from the city.

"Comrade Vatutin!" After Zhukov called Vatutin, he found that there was no response from the other party, so he yelled again with his voice, and Vatutin woke up from his reverie, and asked in a panic: "Comrade Marshal, Do you have anything to do?"

   "I want to ask you, once the new reinforcements arrive, how many days will it take you to drive the enemy away from Prokhorovka?"

Vatutin thought for a moment, then stretched out three fingers, and said resolutely: "Comrade Marshal, three days, you give me three days, I will definitely drive out all the Germans outside Prokhorovka. "

"No, three days is too long." Zhukov was very dissatisfied with the time proposed by Vatutin. He shook his head and said, "I hope that before the day after tomorrow, there will be no more people outside the city of Prokhorovka." An enemy."

  Hearing the time limit given by Zhukov, the muscles on Vatutin's face twitched violently a few times: "Comrade Marshal, the time is too tight, unless..."

  Zhukov looked at Vatutin who hadn't finished speaking, and asked strangely: "Unless what?"

"Unless I can transfer Major General Sokov's troops, I will be able to complete the tasks you assigned within the stipulated time." Vatutin said decisively, "His troops have strong combat effectiveness. It can be used as our two divisions. If he is willing to mobilize the strength of two divisions to assist us in our attack, I think it is entirely possible to clear the enemy outside the city in the evening of the day after tomorrow."

   "Let Sokov deploy two divisions to help you drive away the Banner Guard Division and the Kenf Combat Group?" Zhukov asked back.

   "Yes, Comrade Marshal." Vatutin nodded vigorously and said, "I hope you can grant my request."

  Zhukov remained silent, tapping his fingers lightly on the table. The brutality of the Kursk battle this time far exceeded his imagination. The Soviet army had a complete defense system and solid fortifications, but was still defeated by the German army. If it weren't for the superiority in numbers of soldiers and weapons and equipment, it would be basically impossible to contain the German offensive.

   Sokov, who shined in this battle, his troops also went through several fierce battles. Even if they can fight again, they will definitely pay a huge price to wipe out the two elite German troops. At this moment, I asked Sokov to transfer two divisions to the outside of Prokhorovka to assist the friendly forces in attacking the enemies here. Would Sokov agree?

  After repeated weighing, Zhukov decided to call Sokov himself to see what the other party thought.

After the call was connected, Zhukov asked straight to the point: "Misha, this is Zhukov. Our next operation is to concentrate our forces and drive out the German troops outside Prokhorovka. How many troops can you draw to participate in this operation?" attack?"

  Sokov heard Zhukov say this, and his heart skipped a beat. He was worried about the lack of troops. If he really wanted to transfer troops to the outside of Prokhorovka, it would inevitably weaken the existing defense forces. Once Manstein concentrated his superior forces and launched a counterattack on his own defensive area, whether he could hold his position was a big problem.

  Seeing that Sokov didn't speak for a long time, Zhukov was not angry, but asked kindly, "Misha, does my proposal embarrass you?"

Now that Zhukov has asked such a question, Sokov no longer hides it, and tells the truth: "Yes, Comrade Marshal, after many hard battles, my troops have suffered a very serious reduction in personnel. Now that our defensive front is forty or fifty kilometers wide, if Manstein draws troops from the troops attacking Oboyan to attack us, I am afraid that it will be difficult for us to stop their attack."

   "So, you can't mobilize troops to participate in the decisive battle outside Prokhorovka?"

"Comrade Marshal, it's not impossible for me to send troops outside the city of Prokhorovka." Sukov realized that this was an opportunity to bargain with Zhukov, so he took the opportunity and said, "But if you can give us more A batch of soldiers and weapons and ammunition, then I can still find a way to mobilize troops to participate in the battle outside the city of Prokhorovka."

  (end of this chapter)