On the way back to the army headquarters, we passed near a hill.

“Comrade Commander,” Gorokhov pointed to the hills and said to Sokov: “On the hills, you can see the Kwantung Army’s defense area.”

 Learning that the Kwantung Army's defense area could be seen on the hill, Sokov suddenly became interested and quickly shouted: "Stop!"

 As the order was given, the convoy stopped. Gorokhov asked curiously: "Comrade Commander, why did you stop the car?"

“Comrade Military Commissar, I want to have a look on the hillside.” Sokov said to Gorokhov: “Can you send me a guide?”

Hearing that Sokov wanted to go up the hill to check the terrain, Yakov quickly agreed: "That's right, arrange a guide for us, and Misha and I will go to check the terrain together."

"Yasha, I just went to the hillside for a casual look. You'd better follow the military commissioners back to the headquarters first." Sokov said: "As the chief of staff of the group army, you should familiarize yourself with the situation of the troops as soon as possible."

"Okay," since Sokov said this, Yakov couldn't refute, so he could only nod and said, "Then I will go back with the chief of staff first, and you will come back early after you have seen the terrain."

After Gorokhov got out of the car, he waved to a staff officer at the reconnaissance office not far away and told him to be Sokov's guide to the top of the mountain to check the Kwantung Army's defense area.

Although he just went to check the terrain, the security work could not be relaxed. For this reason, Bezikov called Kasan and Michman over and asked them to be responsible for Sokov's safety.

 A few minutes later, a jeep broke away from the convoy and drove towards the hills not far away. In addition to Sokov and two guards, there were also a driver and a staff officer acting as a guide in the car.

Arriving at the top of the hill, Sokov walked to a mound twenty or thirty meters away from the jeep, raised the telescope handed over by his staff, and looked towards the distant mountainous area, trying to find where the Kwantung Army's defense zone was. .

The staff officer sent by Gorokhov was very talkative. When he saw Sokov looking at the mountains in the distance, he took the initiative and said: "Comrade Commander, in fact, the Kwantung Army only has a small force there, and There are no decent fortifications, at most there are one or two bunkers. If we launch an attack from here, they will not be able to withstand it at all."

Sokov put down the telescope and turned to look at the staff officer. He found that the other person was a stranger, so he asked curiously: "Comrade staff officer, when did you come to the 53rd Army?"

“At the beginning of this year, Comrade Commander.” the staff officer replied respectfully.

“Oh, that’s right.” Sokov nodded and said, “No wonder I’ve never seen you.”

After saying this, he continued to ask: "Comrade Staff Officer, you said that there was only a small team of the Kwantung Army at the entrance of the mountain. I wonder where you got this information?"

“Of course it’s based on the scout’s report, Comrade Commander,” the staff officer replied.

 “When was the report made?”

 “Probably, maybe two months ago.”

After Sokov waited for the staff to finish speaking, he smiled faintly and then said: "Two months ago, the Germans just surrendered. I'm afraid the Kwantung Army never dreamed that we would mobilize our troops and launch an attack against them. It is inevitable that the defense will be lax. But now that our army is gathering here, the Kwantung Army must know that our next target of attack is them, and they will definitely strengthen their precautions. I can say with certainty: there is definitely more than one squad of defenders at the Yamaguchi at the moment, and additional troops may have arrived long ago A squadron or even a brigade. If we still take it lightly, we may suffer huge casualties once the attack starts."

"I understand, Comrade Commander." The staff officer was also a smart man. After hearing what Sokov said, he immediately realized that he was not satisfied with the work efficiency of the Reconnaissance Division, and quickly said: "When I return to the headquarters, I will make arrangements immediately Manpower, go deep into the Kwantung Army’s defense area to conduct reconnaissance to find out their true defense situation.”

Regarding the expression of the staff officer, Sokov nodded with satisfaction, then handed the telescope back to him, and said at the same time: "Okay, we have seen what we need to see, let's go back."

Just as a few people were walking towards the jeep, a strange sound suddenly came from the air. Sokov, who has experienced hundreds of battles, immediately recognized the scream of artillery shells piercing the air, and quickly shouted: "Shelter, shelling!"

When Sokov was lying on the ground, Kasan, who was very responsive, also lay down on the spot. After the shell hit the ground and exploded, the two of them raised their heads and looked around, trying to figure out what was going on. Kasan looked around and shouted to Sokov: "Comrade Commander, it was a mortar attack."

As soon as he finished speaking, another artillery shell landed five or six meters ahead on the left and exploded, sending up a plume of black smoke. Michman, who was closest to the explosion point, immediately flew over, almost hitting Sokov, and then fell heavily to the ground.

Sokov quickly crawled over to check and found that the other party had blood bubbles in his mouth and was lying on his back. He was already dead. When Sokov saw this, blood suddenly rushed to his head. He wanted to shoot the enemy who fired the gun immediately. But he was unable to locate the enemy for a while. He could only suppress the anger in his heart and ordered Kasan beside him: "Kasan, help me carry him to the car."

“Comrade Commander,” the staff officer shouted to Sokov, “I’ll go over and ask the driver to bring the car over.”

　　After seeing Sokov nodding in agreement, the staff officer jumped up and rushed towards the jeep, preparing to ask the driver to drive over and take the wounded out of this **** place. Unexpectedly, just when he was about to run, the jeep suddenly turned into an orange-red fireball in front of him. Air waves and car debris rushed towards him, knocking the staff officer away. A sharp car fragment whizzed around and cut off the staff officer at the waist.

Sokov watched helplessly as the jeep was blown into a ball of fire, and the staff officer was cut in two by the car's fragments. He was stunned for a moment, then woke up from the shock, and shouted loudly to Kasan: "Kasan, stop dawdling, hurry up and drag Mickey Man back to the foot of the mountain, if you delay any longer, we will all die."

Kasan saw that two of his companions were killed and one was injured in an instant. There was no way to delay. He quickly dragged the unconscious Micheman back down the hillside, trying to get out of the shelled area as soon as possible. When they came to the reverse **** of the hillside, Sokov saw more than thirty commanders and fighters running down the hillside. The leaders were Bezikov and Gorokhov. He couldn't help but secretly breathed a sigh of relief and said to Kassan Said: "Kasan, our rescuer is here."

Bezikov and others rushed to Sokov and asked with concern: "Comrade Commander, what happened?"

"While we were looking at the terrain on the hillside, we were suddenly hit by unknown artillery fire." Sokov said with a heavy heart: "The driver and the staff of the reconnaissance department have died, and the guard Michman was also injured."

“Damn it.” Bezikov heard what Sokov said and shouted, “Where did this shelling come from?”

“Judging from the impact point and power of the shells, it should have been hit by a mortar.” Sokov looked at Gorokhov and asked: “Comrade Military Commissar, do you know where the shelling came from?”

How did Gorokhov know where the artillery fire from Sokov and others came from? He smiled bitterly and said: "Comrade Commander, it is obvious that the artillery fire you suffered should come from the Kwantung Army. Maybe they have sent people to conduct deep reconnaissance near us. When they saw someone on the hillside checking the terrain, they used the mortars they carried Cannon attack."

Sokov first ordered Kasan to bring two soldiers to carry Michman down, and then said angrily: "They are so arrogant that they should take the initiative to attack us. I will never let them go easily. Military Commissioner Comrade!"

Hearing Sokov calling him, Gorokhov quickly agreed loudly: "Here we come!"

“Immediately order the artillery of the group army to launch artillery attacks on the Kwantung Army’s defense areas in the distant mountainous areas.” Sokov gritted his teeth and said, “I want them to have a taste of the power of our artillery fire to see if they dare to be so arrogant in the future.”

"But, Comrade Commander." But after Gorokhov heard Sokov's order, a troubled expression appeared on his face: "According to the order of the Front Army Headquarters, before the offensive campaign begins, no one can arbitrarily The Kwantung Army clashed.”

"Comrade Military Commissar, didn't you see that they took the initiative to provoke us?" Sokov said: "Since others are riding on our necks to shit, can we still swallow our anger? Order the artillery to fire immediately , to implement artillery fire coverage on the Kwantung Army position at the mountain pass."

At this time, Yakov and several soldiers pushed Lukin's wheelchair up the hillside and asked Sokov nervously: "Misha, I just heard an explosion at the bottom of the hillside. What is going on? It's okay, you're not injured, are you?"

"No." Sokov shook his head and continued: "But the driver and the staff officer who led the way unfortunately died in the bombardment. Even the guard Michman was injured and is still awake."

When Yakov heard this, he became anxious. He shouted at Gorokhov: "Comrade Military Commissar, our commander was almost killed by enemy artillery fire. Are you going to let these **** enemies go so easily?" ?”

"But, Comrade Chief of Staff." Gorokhov said awkwardly: "The Front Army Headquarters has issued an order not to conflict with the Kwantung Army without permission."

"Comrade Military Commissioner, let me remind you one thing." Lu Jin, who was sitting in a wheelchair, suddenly said: "Now it is not that we are in conflict with the Kwantung Army without authorization, but that they are actively provoking us. Everything we have done, It was just for self-defense.”

"Yes, Comrade Deputy Commander is right, we should retaliate against the enemy." Yakov said to Gorokhov: "Now, three of the four army group leaders have agreed to retaliate against the enemy. Comrade Military Commissar, don't If you hesitate, hurry up and give the artillery the order to fire."

The reason why Yakov asked Gorokhov to order the artillery to fire was entirely because the three of them had not officially taken office yet and could not command these troops at all. Therefore, Gorokhov could only step forward to solve this problem. He and Gorokhov had worked together for a while, so they naturally knew that the other person's character was indecisive and he did not dare to make any decisions. At this moment, seeing that the other party was still hesitant, he said decisively: "Comrade Military Commissar, I am the commander of the group army. If something happens and the superiors want to hold them accountable, just let them find me."

 Since Sokov has spoken to this extent, it is obviously not possible to continue to disobey. Gorokhov sighed softly, called the communications soldier standing not far away, and ordered him: "Call the artillery director and ask them to implement artillery coverage of area 39."

Less than five minutes later, the scream of artillery shells piercing the air was heard in the sky, and then they fell in large pieces at the mountain pass. The smoke from the explosion soon enveloped the place. Looking at the area shrouded in gunpowder smoke, Gorokhov thought to himself: Although the shelling was so fierce, there were not many Kwantung Army troops there at all. No matter how dense the shelling was, I'm afraid it wouldn't cause much damage to the opponent. .

"Yasha." Sokov looked at the area that was being bombarded in the distance and said to Yakov: "When you return to the headquarters, you immediately arrange a few more reconnaissance teams to conduct reconnaissance deep into the enemy's defense areas. Know the enemy’s troop deployment and weapons and equipment situation. Do you understand?”

"Don't worry, Misha." Yakov said confidently: "As soon as I return to the headquarters, I will immediately arrange a capable reconnaissance team to conduct reconnaissance deep behind enemy lines."

The shelling of the mountain pass area lasted for ten minutes. Seeing that the anger on Sokov's face gradually dissipated, Gorokhov asked tentatively: "Comrade Commander, can we go back to the headquarters? I want those who want to see you The commanders should be impatient."

The Kwantung Army's outposts were shelled. Although it may not cause them much casualties, most of Sokov's anger disappeared. After hearing Gorokhov's proposal, he nodded in agreement: "Okay, let's return to the headquarters now."

When going down the mountain, Lu Jin asked the soldiers to push the wheelchair and walked side by side with Sokov. He said with a serious expression: "Misha, although this is our defense zone, you can't take it lightly. If you are really in the shelling just now, If something unexpected happens, the 53rd Army will lose an excellent commander. I hope something similar will not happen next time."

"Don't worry, Comrade Deputy Commander." Sokov felt quite regretful. He didn't expect that because of his whim, two soldiers died and another soldier was seriously injured. Faced with Lu Jin's criticism, he accepted it humbly and said respectfully: "I will learn from this lesson and will no longer take risks easily."

"That's right." Lujin was very satisfied with Sokov's statement: "It's not 1941 anymore. There is no need for you, the commander, to lead the charge and fight the enemy. As the commander of the group army, your combat position is In the headquarters, what you should be thinking about is how to better eliminate the enemy, rather than going to the battlefield to fight the enemy in person. Am I right?"

"Yes, yes, Comrade Deputy Commander, you are very right." Sokov said: "I will learn from this lesson."

At this time, he happened to arrive at the jeep. Sokov took the initiative and said to Lukin: "Comrade Deputy Commander, I think you should ride in the same car as us. If you find that I have adventurous intentions, you can stop me in time. This will prevent tragedies from happening again.”