Chapter 995 Departure (Part 1)

  The sudden addition of soldiers confused Sokov.

  He thought that the replenishment of troops might benefit Chuikov, so he took the initiative to call and ask: "Comrade Commander, I would like to ask, why are you adding troops to me at this moment?"

"Supplementary soldiers?" Since Malinin did not communicate with Cuikov on this matter, he knew nothing about this matter. Hearing Sokov's question, he asked in wonder, "Did I not give you additional soldiers? You must know that the remaining troops of the group army are now only half of the people left, and some even have a third of them. If I want to replenish troops, I will give priority to them."

  Seeing that Chuikov didn’t know anything about it, Sokov couldn’t help but mumbled to himself in a daze: “Damn it, who sent us recruits?”

   "Comrade Commander," fortunately, Sidolin considered the issue more comprehensively than Sokov, and he quickly reminded: "You can ask the commander who sent the troops, they should understand the specific situation."

  The commander in charge of sending troops, when he heard Sidolin's question, laughed a little embarrassedly, and then said: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, don't you really know where we came from?"

   "I don't know," Sidolin shook his head and asked, "Who arranged for you to bring the recruits here?"

"Who else, of course, is the Front Army Command." Since this involves confidentiality, the officer told Sidolin readily: "We are ordered by the Front Army Command to bring this group of soldiers to supplement you. "

  No other troops were replenished, but only our division was replenished. Sokov thought to himself, is it possible that the superior plans to send his troops to difficult and dangerous areas immediately after the repair is completed?

But these words, he did not tell the officer standing in front of him, because he knew very well that even if he continued to ask, the other party would not be able to give him a satisfactory answer, so he nodded at the other party and said: "Comrade Captain , I think you are also exhausted, why don't you go back to the guest room to rest?"

   "No." The officer shook his head like a rattle and said, "I haven't finished my task yet, how can I go upstairs to rest."

After dismissing the officers, Sokov gathered Sidolin, Ivanov, and Anisimov, and said to the three: "comrades commanders, judging from the current situation, the reason why we can It must be the commander of the front army who got the supplies from the soldiers."

   "What is the purpose of General Rokossovsky doing this?" Sidolin asked puzzled.

   "Chief of Staff, do you still remember the content of my call with the Commander of the Front Army a few days ago?"

   "I remember," Sidolin nodded, and replied affirmatively, "You reminded him that General Vatutin's Southwest Front Army is in danger of being encircled by the German army."

"That's right." Sokov began to analyze the current situation to Sidolin and others: "Now General Vatutin's troops are attacking Zaporozhye, where Manstein's headquarters is located. If they are attacked at this time When the German army attacks, there is the danger of the entire army being wiped out. Once our army's offensive fails and the German army turns to a counter-offensive, the troops of the Southwest Front Army will definitely be defeated.

  In order to avoid this kind of situation, I think the superior intends to deploy our division in the rear of the friendly army. Once they are attacked, we must block the enemy and prevent them from rushing towards Stalingrad. "

   "So that's how it is." After hearing Sokov's explanation, everyone suddenly realized.

"But Comrade Division Commander," Ivanov interrupted and asked, "If the troops of the Southwestern Front successfully break through the German defenses and occupy Zaporozhye, where Manstein's headquarters is located, what will happen next?" Condition?"

   "It's very simple." Before Sokov could speak, Sidolin rushed to reply, "Our army will continue to charge forward until the enemy is completely wiped out across the Dnieper River?"

"Comrades," Seeing that everyone's discussion was off topic, Sokov interrupted them, "As a commander, we always consider the worst-case scenario when formulating a battle plan. Even if our army's offensive is like a rainbow, But we still have to take precautions to prevent the enemy from suddenly launching a counterattack, and it will be too late to organize defenses at that time."

"I don't know where the superiors will place us." Sidolin said with some concern: "Is there any terrain like Mamayev Hill there, so that we can dig another similar underground fortification? If not, what? How can our infantry withstand the onslaught of enemy tanks?"

"Even if there are no fortifications and no matter how bad the terrain is, we still have to find a way to build a complete line of defense in a short period of time." Sukov was afraid that everyone would not care what he said, and he specially emphasized: "Because behind us is Stalinger. Le, even if we sacrifice our lives, we must not allow the enemy to charge into the city again."

   "Comrade Commander," Ivanov asked, "How do you plan to deploy the three regiments?"

"Although I don't know where the superiors will deploy our division," Sokov said to the three, "but I plan to put the 122nd and 124th Guards Regiments on the front line, and the 125th Guards Regiment And the tank brigade will be deployed as the second echelon."

After Sokov finished speaking, he picked up his teacup and took a sip of water, then said: "I took a rough look at the recruits added today. At least half of them are rookies who have not received any military training. You must find a way to let the recruits Quickly familiarize yourself with the environment and improve the combat effectiveness of the troops in the shortest possible time."

   Everyone knows that the last sentence Sokov said is the most critical. If the army loses its combat effectiveness, even if its strength and technical equipment are superior to the enemy, it is still a dream to win the battle.

The phone on the table rang, and Sidolin went to pick up the receiver, and heard Malinin's voice from inside: "I am Malinin, and I am announcing on behalf of the commander, General Rokossovsky. Your division is in three days. Within, head towards Lugansk. Are there any more questions?"

   "Comrade Chief of Staff, of course there is a problem." Sidolin waited for Ma Lining to finish speaking, and immediately asked: "I would like to ask, what kind of transportation does our troops take, cars or trains?"

   "During the **** months of fighting, roads and bridges have been severely damaged, and we are temporarily unable to provide convoys that can transport so many troops..."

   "What about the train?" Sidolin learned that he couldn't take the road by car, so he hurriedly asked: "Our division only needs a few dozen wagons to fit them all."

   "The railway is not working either." Ma Linin continued shaking his head and said, "Our railway workers are still rushing to repair the road, but this time should be very long, and your division probably won't be able to keep up."

   "There are no cars and no trains." Sidolin said a little bit dumbfounded: "Then how do we get to Lugansk?"

  (end of this chapter)