Chapter 2284

  In mid-May, Sokov suddenly received a call from Rokossovsky: "Misha, this is Rokossovsky."

   "Hello, Comrade Marshal." Sokov thought that Rokossovsky was going to assign him some tasks, so he asked politely, "What instructions do you have?"

"Come to my headquarters immediately, I have something important to see you." Rokossovsky said briefly: "As for what it is, don't ask, you will know when you arrive of."

   Rokossovsky's words blocked what Sokov wanted to ask: "Comrade Marshal, should I go to the Front Army Command alone, or should I bring the military commissar and chief of staff with me?"

   "Just come alone."

After Sokov put down the phone, he said to Lunev and Sidolin who were sitting next to him: "Military Commissar, Chief of Staff, Comrade Marshal just called me and asked me to rush to the headquarters of the Front Army immediately, saying that there are important Tell me the matter. I asked if I wanted to call you two, but he refused."

   "Comrade Commander, what will happen if the Marshal calls you over at this time?" Sidolin asked.

Before Sokov could answer, Lunev said first, "If I'm not wrong, it should be that Misha wants to go to the Far East. Comrade Marshal asked him to go there at this time to explain the matter to him. "

  Sokov also felt that Rokossovsky's call to him was probably because of his going to the Far East, so he didn't dare to neglect, and immediately drove to the headquarters of the Front Army.

  As soon as he saw Rokossovsky, he asked urgently: "Comrade Marshal, you asked me to come over, is there anything important?"

"It's like this, Misha." Rokossovsky said to Sokov: "According to the agreement at the Yalta Conference, our army will take combat operations against Japanese pirates in the Far East within two to three months after the war in Europe ends. .”

   Hearing what Rokossovsky said, Sokov couldn't help but smile, and asked urgently: "Comrade Marshal, is the Supreme Command planning to dispatch troops from Germany to the Far East?"

"You're right." Rokossovsky agreed with Sokov's statement: "Now our total strength in the Far East is less than 40 divisions. Combat is obviously not enough. Therefore, the Supreme Command established the Far East Command with Marshal Vasilevsky as the commander, intending to gather 1.5 million troops in the Far East to carry out the final blow to the Japanese pirates.

  Since our original combat target was the Germans, most of our technical equipment and troops were deployed on the Western Front. From now on, the troops drawn from the western front will be rushed to the Far East by car one after another. "

   "Comrade Marshal," Sokov asked tentatively, "I don't know which troops the Supreme Command plans to transfer from the Western Front to the Far East?"

"Among the troops mobilized this time, there are the 5th Army and the 53rd Army of the Ukrainian Second Front Army." Rokossovsky said: "The troops mobilized by our Front Army are the 19th Army and the 6th Guards Tank Army. , as well as a large number of independent units such as artillery, aviation, engineering, and communications.”

   Hearing that the troops transferred to the Far East did not have his own 48th Army, Sokov asked a little surprised: "What, the troops transferred to the Far East do not have my 48th Army?"

   "Yes, Misha." Rokossovsky nodded and said, "The superior intends to keep your troops in Germany to be responsible for the reconstruction of the city."

   Sokov learned that his 48th Army would stay in Germany and engage in the reconstruction of the city, and he couldn't help but feel cold. Attacking Berlin has no place of its own; now it has no place of its own to fight the Kwantung Army in the Far East.

   Just when Sokov was discouraged, he suddenly heard Rokossovsky say: "If you want to go to the Far East to participate in the war, it is not impossible, but it is a bit wronged for you."

   "Comrade Marshal," Sokov, who was on the brink of despair, immediately realized that there was a turning point in the matter after hearing what Rokossovsky said, and asked quickly, "I don't know what I should do to go to the Far East?"

"It's very simple." Rokossovsky looked at Sokov and said: "You and Lieutenant General Romanovsky will switch, he will be the commander of the 48th Army, and you will replace him as the commander of the 48th Army. Commander of the 19th Group Army."

After listening to Rokossovsky, Sokov hesitated a little. You must know that the 48th Army now has 7 infantry divisions, 3 infantry brigades, plus several tank brigades and artillery divisions. The total strength has reached ten. Tens of thousands of people. And what about Romanovsky's 19th Army? There are only 2 infantry divisions, 1 marine brigade, 1 ski brigade, and several directly affiliated troops. At best, it is equivalent to the organizational system of an army, and the total strength is not 30,000 to 40,000. After the swap, I really suffered a big loss.

After Rokossovsky finished speaking, seeing Sokov not speaking for a long time, he thought that the other party was secretly regretting, so he continued: "If you disagree, then I will not force it, after all, you have never had hundreds of thousands of people. The group army that was transferred to the group army with only 30,000 to 40,000 people, people who don't know the inside story, think you made some mistakes and were punished by demotion."

  Sokov did not immediately give Rokossovsky an affirmative answer. After all, this matter is of great importance. He has to think carefully before deciding whether he should agree to the other party. After being silent for a while, he tentatively asked Rokossovsky: "Comrade Marshal, I would like to ask, how many fronts will the troops going to fight in the Far East this time be divided into?"

"As far as I know, it is divided into three fronts." Rokossovsky replied: "The 1st Far Eastern Front commanded by Marshal Meretskov, and the 2nd Far Eastern Front commanded by General Pulkayev." , and the Transbaikal Front commanded by Marshal Malinovsky."

After listening to Rokossovsky's words, Sokov began to ponder. He repeatedly weighed in his heart that if he switched with Romanovsky, he could indeed satisfy his desire to go to the Far East to fight the Kwantung Army. However, the strength of troops in the army has been reduced by two-thirds, so the role it can play on the battlefield will be greatly reduced.

"General Sokov," Su Bojing, the military commissar of the Front Army, comforted Sokov when he saw Sokov's frowning look, "If you really want to go to the Far East, then there are only 30,000 to 40,000 troops under your command. Man, I really wronged you too much. So I suggest that you seriously consider this matter and don't make a decision lightly."

After expressing his gratitude to Subbotin, Sokov got up and said to Rokossovsky: "Comrade Marshal, please forgive me for not being able to give you an accurate answer now. Can you give me two days to have a good understanding?" Think about it?"

   "Yes." Rokossovsky said reasonably: "Then I will give you two days, and when the time is up, you will give me a final answer."

   Sokov raised his hand to salute Rokossovsky and Subbotin, then turned and walked out of the headquarters.

  As soon as he returned to his headquarters, Sidolin greeted him, and asked impatiently, "Comrade Commander, what does the Marshal say?"

   "The Supreme Command has made a decision. In order to abide by the agreement of the Yalta Conference, it is preparing to transfer troops from the Western Front to the Far East. After two to three months, it will launch a final attack on the Kwantung Army entrenched there."

   "Comrade Commander, this is a good thing." Hearing what Sokov said, Sidolin couldn't help applauding: "In this way, you can go to the Far East."

"It would be great if things were really that simple." Sokov shook his head and said: "According to the order of the Supreme Command, this time three combined armies and one tank army were dispatched from the Western Front, but it is regrettable Unfortunately, our army is not among these four armies."

   "What, our group army is not among the troops transferred to the Far East?" Sidolin asked in surprise, "So which troops have been selected?"

"The 5th and 53rd Army of the Ukrainian Second Front Army, the troops drawn by our Front Army are the 19th Army and the 6th Guards Tank Army." Sukov said bitterly: "Comrade Marshal said, if I still insist on If you want to go to the Far East, then you need to exchange positions with Lieutenant General Romanovsky, commander of the 19th Army Group.”

  When Sidolin heard this, his eyes widened in surprise: "Comrade Commander, that means, if you still insist on going to the Far East to participate in the war, you can only go there as the commander of the 19th Army?"

   "That's right, exactly."

"No, no, no, no." As soon as Sukov finished speaking, Sidolin waved his hands desperately and said, "Our 48th Army has about a hundred thousand troops, while the 19th Army has only 30,000 to 40,000 troops. It’s a level swap, but you’ve been demoted. If others know about it, they’ll think you’ve made a mistake and been demoted by the Supreme Command.”

   "Misha, if you want to go to the Far East, can you only go there as the commander of the 19th Army?" Lunev asked from the side: "Is there no room for maneuver in this matter?"

  Sokov smiled wryly and shook his head, "I don't think so."

"That's not necessarily." But Lunev said with a smile: "Misha, have you forgotten that you were also the commander of the 53rd Army. Since the troops transferred to the Far East this time have the 53rd Army, why did you Can't you go to the Far East to fight as the commander of this group army?"

"That's right, why didn't I think of this question." After listening to Lunev, Sidolin slapped the table with his hand and said excitedly: "Comrade Commander once served as the commander of the 27th and 53rd Army Moreover, there are still many old subordinates in these units. If you can really lead the troops to fight in the Far East as the commander of the 53rd Army, the old subordinates of the army will definitely help you."

The words of Lunev and Sidolin made Sokov's thoughts come alive. Yes, he had served as the commander of the 53rd Army before, and there were many old units in the army. If he had served as the commander in the past, Presumably, you will be able to familiarize yourself with the troops soon. But if he is transferred to the 19th Army, there are no subordinates he is familiar with, and everything has to be started from scratch. Maybe the war is over before he has had time to familiarize himself with the troops.

  After thinking about this, Sokov felt a lot better immediately. He got up, picked up the phone, and called the Front Army Command. After hearing the voice of Chief of Staff Bogolyubov, he said politely: "Hello, Comrade Chief of Staff of the Front Army, I am Sokov. I have something urgent to call Comrade Marshal, please let him answer the phone."

   Soon, Rokossovsky's voice came from the receiver: "Misha, I'm Rokossovsky, what do you want?"

   "Comrade Marshal, I have already considered it." Sokov said: "I want to tell you the answer now."

"Misha, didn't I give you two days?" Rokossovsky said with some displeasure: "This matter is of great importance, so don't make any decisions so hastily, lest you will be impulsive for today in the future." And regret it."

   "Comrade Marshal, please listen to me, I have a new idea and would like to ask for your opinion."

   "What do you think, tell me."

"Since I want to go to the Far East, I have to switch with the commanders of other troops, why can't I switch with the commander of the 53rd Army?" Sokov said: "You know, I went to Belarus on the 1st Before the Front Army, I was the commander of the 53rd Group Army, which has a large number of my old subordinates. If I go there, I can shorten the running-in between commanders at all levels. What do you think?"

Rokossovsky did not expect that Sokov wanted to go to the 53rd Army, and he couldn't help but feel embarrassed: "Misha, it is not up to me to decide which army you go to. I am just a messenger. The order will be communicated to you, and then your feedback will be reported to the superior."

"Comrade Marshal, this is how I think about it." Sokov said: "If I go to the 19th Army Group, the strength of the troops will be greatly reduced, and there are no familiar people around me. Even if I assign combat missions, the next It is still unknown whether the commander will obey my order.

  The situation of the 53rd Army is different. I have been in that army for a long time, and I am very familiar with the commanders at all levels. If I'm really transferred there, maybe I'll be familiar with everything about the army soon. Sokov said cautiously: "Comrade Marshal, you should know that the more familiar the superior commanders are with the cadres and soldiers at the grassroots level, the more tacitly they will cooperate on the battlefield." There are many old subordinates in this unit. Seeing that I have returned to the 53rd Army, I believe these commanders and fighters will definitely assist me with all their strength. "

  After listening to Sokov's words, Rokossovsky fell silent. If the other party didn't mention it, he almost forgot that Sokov had served as the commander of the 53rd Army, but it was the intention of the Supreme Command to ask Sokov to switch the commander of which army, and he couldn't do it at all. host. After thinking for a while, he said slowly, "Misha, I will pass your opinion on to the Supreme Command and see how they plan to arrange it."

  (end of this chapter)