Chapter 973

   "Absurd, this is simply too absurd." A few hours later, Sokov received the emissary sent by Kurzbach in his headquarters. After listening to the translation of the German lieutenant colonel's words, he couldn't help asking: "Mr. Lieutenant Colonel, what exactly does your commander Kurzbach want to do?"

  The German lieutenant colonel replied blankly: "Colonel Sokov, I don't understand what you mean."

"Mr. Lieutenant Colonel," Sokov said with a sneer, "According to the information that our army has, as early as the night of November 23 last year, General Kurzbach gave his subordinates the 3rd Motorized Infantry Division and the 94th Infantry Division He gave the order to retreat and gave up the area south of Erzovka without authorization, trying to force Paulus to disobey Hitler's order and command the main force of the Sixth Army to break through to the southwest of the encirclement. As a result, because Paulus gave up the breakout As a result, more than half of a full-staffed infantry division was lost."

"Colonel Sokov, you are right." The German lieutenant colonel said embarrassingly: "The commander of the army did issue such an order at that time, in order to force the commander to change his mind and let the main force break out from the southwest and rush to fight with the enemy. General Hoth's tank army joined forces. But after the troops who received the order withdrew from the zone of defense, the commander did not change his mind. As a result, one of the troops that stood still was severely damaged because the flank was exposed to your army. Loss."

   It was the first time for the other commanders in the room to hear what Sokov said. Sidolin even thought strangely: I am the chief of staff of the division, no matter what channel the information is fed back from, I have to read it myself, but why have I never seen the information that the division commander said?

"Mr. Lieutenant Colonel," Sokov didn't realize that Sidolin had doubts about him, and continued to say to the German Lieutenant Colonel: "General Kurzbach's starting point is good, but I'm worried that he might end up with another It will be self-defeating. You go back and tell him that if you really want to surrender, you can ignore Paulus and let him directly lead the 51st Infantry Corps to surrender to us."

   After finishing speaking, without waiting for the other party to speak, Sokov said to Samoilov who was standing at the door: "Comrade Lieutenant, take a few people and **** this lieutenant colonel back to their position."

After sending off the German officers, Sidolin asked curiously: "Comrade commander, I'm curious, how did you know that Kurzbach ordered the troops to withdraw from the defense zone? You know, the two divisions you mentioned The defense zone is not within our reconnaissance range."

"Chief of Staff," Sokov heard Sidolin's question, and immediately realized that he had slipped the tongue just now. Fortunately, the matter was not irreversible. After a moment of silence, he said in a relaxed tone: "I stayed in the When I was in Moscow, I learned about this matter through the battle reports sent back from the front. I was just asking casually, but I didn’t expect it to be true.”

  Sokov's statement was reasonable and impeccable, and Sidolin really believed it. He then asked: "Comrade Commander, do you think Kurzbach really wants to surrender?"

  Sukov is not familiar with the other commanders of the German army, but he is very familiar with this Kurzbach. If Vlasov was a rebel general of the Soviet army, then Kurzbach should be counted as "Vlasov" in the German army. After being captured, he proposed to Rokossovsky many times that a unit composed of German prisoners of war should be formed to assist the Soviet army in combat. But his proposal was ruthlessly rejected.

Because of this, after hearing Sidolin's question, Sokov replied without hesitation: "That's right, Comrade Chief of Staff, I think he should be one of the few generals in the German army who can objectively analyze the current situation." Therefore, it is completely reliable to surrender to our army."

   "This matter is of great importance," Ivanov reminded Sokov: "I think it should be reported immediately."

"That's right, I want to report this matter to my superiors immediately." Sokov knew very well in his heart that the German army sent representatives to negotiate with him in private, and it would not take long for the news to spread to it through other channels. If he didn't report it for a long time, he might cause unnecessary trouble, so he hurriedly ordered the communication company commander: "Maxim, connect me to the front army headquarters immediately. I have important information, and I need to report it to the commander immediately."

  After the call was connected, the person who answered the phone was still Malinin: "Colonel Sokov, what do you want?"

   "Comrade Chief of Staff," Sokov immediately asked respectfully after hearing Malinin's voice, "Is Comrade Commander there? I have something important to report to him immediately."

   "Didn't I tell you that Comrade Commander went to Moscow?" Ma Linin asked impatiently: "If there is anything, it is the same to report to me."

"That's right, Comrade Chief of Staff." Since Rokossovsky hasn't returned yet, he can only report to Malinin on such an important matter: "Not long ago, Kurzbach, commander of the 51st Infantry Army of the German Army, The general has sent an emissary to my headquarters to negotiate."

   "Negotiation? What is there to talk about?" Ma Linin said angrily: "All the Germans can do is surrender unconditionally. There is nothing to talk about between us and them."

Sokov waited for Malinen to finish before continuing: "Comrade Chief of Staff, according to the secret envoy, Kurzbach has summoned a group of senior German military officers and is planning to issue a coup against Paulus tonight, forcing him to order the troops to cease fire. Put down your arms and surrender to us."

   "What, what did you say?" After hearing what Sokov said, Ma Linin couldn't help but be surprised: "Kurzbach is going to remonstrate Paulus. How is this possible?"

"It's true, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov continued: "According to what the emissary said, General Schmidt, the chief of staff of the German Army Group Army, also participated in the conspiracy. The troops of the 100th Jaeger Division switched defenses. In a word, there are no cronies around Paulus at all, as long as Kurzbach issues an order, countless guns will be aimed at Paulus's head."

   "It's probably not that simple." Malinin was skeptical of Sokov's statement. "The ranks of the German army are strict. Even if Kurzbach wanted to mutiny, the officers and soldiers below would not obey his orders."

   "I think so too, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov remembered that Kurzbach in history was captured together with Paulus, which meant that his remonstrance was of no use. "I told the secret envoy that if General Kurzbach really wanted to surrender to our army, he could take his troops directly under him and surrender to us without dragging Paulus."

"Colonel Sokov, what do you think?" Malinin didn't ask about Kurzbach anymore, but turned the topic to attacking Paulus's headquarters: "Your troops will still attack the Paulus headquarters at the scheduled time. Was the department store attacking?"

"Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff. Tomorrow morning, my troops will formally launch the final attack on the German Army Headquarters entrenched in the department store." Sokov said: "Since we successfully recaptured the station and wiped out the occupied The 297th Division of the German Army here, I only need to leave one regiment to stand firm at the station, and transfer the other two regiments to participate in the attack."

  Malinin waited for Sokov to finish speaking, paused for a moment, and then asked: "The commander who attacked the Central Railway Station is called Merkulov, right?"

   "That's right, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov said: "The commander who directed the attack on the station is Colonel Merkulov, commander of the 67th Guards Division..."

  Unexpectedly, without waiting for Sokov to finish, Malinin interrupted him: "From now on, he is no longer a colonel."

   "Why, Comrade Chief of Staff?" Sokov shuddered, wondering if Merkulov made a mistake that made him dismissed by his superiors? In order to find out what was going on, he tentatively asked, "Did he make any mistakes?"

"He didn't make any mistakes." Hearing Sokov's question, Malinin was taken aback for a moment, and then tomorrow he must have misunderstood what he meant, and quickly explained with a smile: "On the contrary, in order to commend him for taking back from the enemy's hands Train station, and captured the German division commander's military exploits, the headquarters of the Supreme Command decided to award him the rank of major general. Please pass this good news to him."

"Understood, Comrade Chief of Staff." Knowing that Merkulov was promoted to major general, Sokov couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. In this way, there were two major generals and division commanders in the combat group he commanded, and he The group commander was carrying the Colonel's card.

Putting down the phone, he smiled wryly and said to Sidolin: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I just received a notice from my superiors. It said that in recognition of Colonel Merkulov's heroism in the battle to liberate the Central Railway Station, and The huge battle results he has achieved have decided to promote him to the rank of major general."

   "What, Merkulov was promoted to major general?" Several people sitting at the table were stunned by this unexpected news. After a while, Ivanov asked cautiously: "Comrade commander, have you been promoted?"

   "No." Sokov shook his head and replied, "This promotion has nothing to do with our division."

"Comrade commander, it's not fair." Anisimov, who was sitting next to him without speaking, defended Sukov and said, "There are two division commanders in the battle group who are major generals, but you, the commander of the battle group, are still The rank of colonel, this is too unfair."

   "Comrade Political Commissar." Not being promoted to the military rank, Sokov naturally felt disappointed in his heart. However, some things are very sensitive, and it’s okay to complain in your heart, but if you say it, the situation will be different. He quickly stopped Anisimov’s words and said in an official tone: “Whoever the superior wants to promote or not to promote, the situation will be different. There is an overall arrangement, we are subordinates, so don't question the arrangement of the superiors."

   "Comrade Commander," Sidolin tentatively asked Sokov in order to change the subject as soon as possible, "Should we still attack the department store according to the calculation?"

   "Yes." Sokov nodded, and replied: "First use troops to clear out the outer strongholds, and then launch the final attack on the department store from several directions at the same time."

   "Comrade commander, I have one more question." Sidolin said hesitantly.

   "If you have any questions, just ask." Sokov said impatiently: "You are my chief of staff, what questions can't you ask directly?"

   "It is like this," Sidolin said: "Suppose Kurzbach sends someone to contact us again before we attack, saying that he is willing to surrender, what about the area under the control of his troops?"

   "As long as the opponent doesn't lay down their weapons, they are still our enemies." Sokov said without hesitation, "We can fight as we please. Tell the commanders and fighters not to show mercy."

  The German lieutenant colonel who returned to the basement of the department store repeated Sokov's words to Kurzbach, and then asked: "Your Excellency, what should we do next, or continue to implement military advice?"

"Everything is arranged, and it is impossible to give up at this time." Kurzbach raised his hand and looked at his watch, and then said to the lieutenant colonel: "When it is ten o'clock, you take a guard company with us to command If your Excellency the Commander agrees to surrender, that’s all right, but if he doesn’t surrender, he will be arrested immediately, and then all armies and divisions will be telegraphed to tell them to stop their hostility with the Russians, lay down their weapons and surrender.”

  Although Kurzbach is an army commander, the lieutenant colonel under him doesn't think he has such prestige. But since the order had been issued, he could only agree, turned and left the room, and went outside to mobilize troops.

   When the appointed time came, all the officers involved in the premeditated plan came to Kurzbach's room. Schmidt asked bitterly: "General Kurzbach, if the Commander still refuses to change his mind, what do you plan to do?"

   "What else can I do?" Kurzbach said with a sneer: "I will let my guard company arrest him, and then we will jointly send a telegram to other troops, asking them to stop meaningless resistance, put down their weapons and surrender."

   "It's time, let's go." After Schmidt finished speaking, he took the lead and walked out of the room.

  Kurzbach and his accomplices, as well as more than a hundred German soldiers, walked forward along the corridor. The soldiers along the way were all from the 100th Jaeger Division. Seeing that their division commander was among them, instead of blocking the unit, they leaned their backs against the wall and raised their hands to salute them.

   In addition to Kurzbach, Schmidt and a few accomplices, there were five or six soldiers who broke into Paulus' room. When Paulus saw so many people rushing in, he couldn't help frowning, and said sharply, "What do you want to do with so many people coming in? Do you want to rebel?"

"I'm sorry, Commander." Kurzbach pulled out his pistol, pointed at Paulus, and said coldly: "We are not trying to rebel, but to save more people from death. Specially to remonstrate with you."

"Admonition?!" Hearing what Kurzbach said, Paulus smiled instead of anger: "You guys want to give me an admonition." He tilted his head to the side and shouted to the outside Said, "Come on, come on!"

  (end of this chapter)