"Yes, I can see it too." Shtemenko also felt the same way. Since Sokov took the initiative to talk about it, he said naturally: "How about we go to the frontier now?"
"I think it's okay." Sokov stood up and said to Afunin, who was standing busy at the table: "Comrade Commander, we are going to the front line now. You say hello to the troops in front to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings.
"
"Ah, are you going to the front line now?" Afuning said with some surprise: "But the fighting is still going on at the moment. Otherwise, when our troops reach the edge of the city, it won't be too late for you to go there."
"No, no, no," Sokov waved his hands and said, "Judging from the current situation, the troops are advancing very quickly. I believe that by the time our convoy reaches the front, the leading troops will be launching an attack on the city."
Now that Sokov had made a decision, Afunin could not stop him, so he sent a security company, together with the security company led by Koshkin, to escort Sokov and Shtemenko to the front.
The two Sokovs came outside and were waiting for soldiers from two guard companies to board the car. A major came to Sokov's car. After raising his hand in salute, he said respectfully: "Hello, Comrade Commander,
I am Major Rubimov, commander of the 2nd Artillery Regiment of the 3rd Guards Airborne Division."
"It turns out to be Major Rubimov." Sokov opened the car door, got out of the car and shook hands with him, and then asked with some surprise: "Comrade Major, why are you here? Why are you not with the main force of your division?"
"Comrade Commander, the situation is like this." Major Rubimov explained to Sokov with a bitter look on his face: "At first, we said that because of heavy snowfall, we were planning to carry out a sneak attack on the enemy's position, and there was no need for artillery at all. Therefore,
Our group will stay where we are and standby."
"Then where is your artillery regiment?" Sokov asked.
"It's not far from here."
Knowing that the artillery regiment was nearby, Sokov felt that they could be put to some use now, so he immediately asked: "Comrade Major, can you set off immediately?"
Major Rubimov hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said: "If there is an order to set off, it will only take a quarter of an hour at most to set off."
"The 3rd Guards Airborne Division has rushed towards the city of Uman at this moment. It may be necessary to attack the city next. It is really impossible without artillery." Sokov said to Major Rubimov: "Comrade Major, bring your artillery immediately.
Group, follow me and set off."
Hearing that Sokov asked him to act with him, Major Rubimov couldn't help but hesitate for a moment: "But, Comrade Commander, I haven't received the order from the division headquarters yet."
"Major Rubimov," Lieutenant Koshkin, who was standing aside, heard what the other party said and said coldly: "Aren't you even willing to obey the orders given to you by Comrade Commander himself?"
Major Rubimov stood at attention and replied resoundingly: "I resolutely obey the orders of Comrade Commander."
Sokov was very satisfied with Major Rubimov's statement. He nodded and said: "Comrade Major, I order you to return to your troops immediately and prepare to leave."
Rubimov agreed, turned around and walked away.
A quarter of an hour later, when Sokov's convoy headed towards Uman, Major Rubimov's artillery convoy followed closely behind.
The convoy drove forward for half an hour when it heard fierce gunshots and explosions.
Koshkin, who was sitting in the passenger seat, turned to Sokov and said: "Comrade Commander, the battle area should be ahead. Do you think we should stop here?"
"Okay." Although the heavy snow had stopped at this moment, visibility was still limited. Sokov was worried that if the convoy continued to drive aimlessly like this, it might plunge into the enemy's defense line, so he decisively ordered: "Stop the convoy.
.”
As a series of orders were issued, the convoy stopped, and the commanders and soldiers got out of the car and lined up beside the car, waiting for further orders.
"Major Rubimov," Sokov called to Rubimov who was standing not far away, called him in front of him, and asked: "How far is it from Uman?"
Rubimov didn't know how far it was from Uman. He replied with some embarrassment: "Comrade Commander, I will send someone to conduct reconnaissance immediately. I will report to you when I have news."
Just when Rubimov was about to send someone to conduct reconnaissance, an officer ran over with several soldiers and asked loudly from a distance: "Which unit are you from?"
"I am Major Rubimov, commander of the 2nd Artillery Regiment." Rubimov stepped forward and asked, "Which section are you from?"
After the officer clearly saw Rubimov's rank, he immediately stood at attention, straightened his body and reported to him: "We are from the 10th Airborne Regiment, comrade major."
"It turns out he is a subordinate of Lieutenant Colonel Tongjihe." Rubimov reached out and shook hands with the other person, then asked: "Where is your regimental commander?"
The officer casually glanced at Sokov and Shtemenko who were standing nearby. When he saw the other's military rank clearly, sweat broke out on his head. He hurriedly turned to face the two men and said with some embarrassment:
"Comrade generals, I'm sorry, I didn't see you just now..."
"It doesn't matter." Sokov waved his hand to the other party and asked: "Where is your regiment leader, Lieutenant Colonel Tongjihe?"
"In a forest about two hundred meters away from here."
"Very good," Sokov nodded, and then told the other party: "Take us there."
After hearing Sokov's order, the officer became hesitant. He had never seen the two generals in front of him. Is it appropriate to take them to the regiment headquarters rashly?
Seeing the officer standing there in a daze, Rubimov walked over and slapped him on the back of the head: "This is our commander, General Sokov. What are you doing standing there? Why don't you take him to see your regiment quickly?"
long."
When the officer learned that the general in front of him was Commander Sokov, his attitude became more respectful: "Comrade Commander, please follow me, and I will take you to the head of our regiment."
"Comrade Major," Sokov and Shtemenko specifically told Rubimov when they left: "Send someone to scout the nearby terrain as soon as possible and select a location where artillery positions can be built."
"Yes, Comrade Commander." Rubimov straightened his body and replied, "I will immediately send someone to reconnoiter the nearby terrain."
Unexpectedly, when Sokov and others arrived at the regiment command post, they unexpectedly met the division commander Colonel Konev who had just arrived.
"Comrade Commander," Konev raised his hand and saluted Sokov and said, "I received a call from the Army Commander. When I learned that you and Comrade Deputy Chief of General Staff were at the front, I ran over to say hello to Lieutenant Colonel Tongzihe in person.
, let him receive you well. Unexpectedly, you arrived as soon as I walked in."
"Hello, Colonel Konev." After shaking hands with the commander with the same name as Marshal Konev, Sokov asked: "How is the progress of your division?"
"After several hours of fighting, the officers and soldiers of the 2nd Regiment became exhausted, so I asked them to stop advancing and rest on the spot. The 8th Regiment took over their attack. Now the regiment has arrived less than two kilometers away from the city.
s position."
"It was a good fight." Sokov listened to the noise outside and asked Konev: "Comrade Colonel, is this the exchange of fire between the commanders and soldiers of the 8th Regiment and the enemy?"
"Yes, Comrade Commander." Konev nodded and said: "Now that the snow has stopped, the field of vision has become open again. The enemy's fortifications are built on the city walls. They can block our progress with firepower from a high position.
path of."
"Oh, the enemy built fortifications on the city wall?" Sokov asked: "Did you see it with your own eyes?"
"Yes, Comrade Commander." Konev replied in a positive tone: "I saw it in my observation post."
"How far is your observation post from the enemy's city wall?"
"About three kilometers."
"Comrade Deputy Chief of General Staff," Sokov waited for Konev to finish, then turned to Shtemenko and said: "The observation post three kilometers away from the front line is perfect for us. I wonder if you have any
Are you interested in going over there and taking a look?"
"No, no, Comrade Commander, you must not go." Hearing that Sokov was about to go there, Konev hurriedly waved his hands and said: "There are enemy shells falling there at any time. If you go, your life will be in danger.
of."
"Colonel Konev, please tell me." Sokov looked at Konev and asked: "How far is your division headquarters from the observation post you just mentioned?"
"Less than fifty meters, Comrade Commander."
"Comrade Colonel, your division headquarters is less than fifty meters away from the observation post. It must have been bombarded by enemy artillery sometimes, right?" Sokov said here, deliberately pausing for a moment to observe Konev's reaction. See
When he nodded in agreement, he continued: "You are not afraid of the enemy's artillery fire, so what do you have to fear from me?"
"But, Comrade Commander, your status is different..."
"Okay, no need to say anything." Sokov raised his hand to interrupt Konev's words and said to him: "Your divisional artillery regiment is outside. You can arrange a firing position for them, and the artillery will come."
Cover your infantry attack."
Knowing that the artillery regiment was outside, Konev's face showed an expression of surprise: "Comrade Commander, is everything you said true?"
"Of course it's true." Shtemenko smiled and said to Konev: "We came here with the artillery regiment of your division. The regiment leader, Major Rubimov, is sending people to reconnoiter the terrain and plans to deploy artillery nearby.
Where is the position?"
After hearing Shtemenko say Rubimov's name and rank, Konev realized that what Shtemenko said was true, and quickly called a staff officer and asked him to go outside to find Rubimov.
.
Not long after, Rubimov appeared in the headquarters. Seeing his appearance, Konev immediately said: "Comrade Major, come to me."
After Rubimov came to his side, he pointed at the map and said: "Comrade Major, our vanguard has arrived outside the city of Uman, but it is blocked by the city wall and the fortifications above. I order you to immediately
Establish an artillery position nearby, suppress the defenders with artillery fire, and cover the attack of our commanders and soldiers."
"Wait a minute, Comrade Colonel." Just as Rubimov was about to turn around and leave, Sokov suddenly asked Konev: "How far is it from the German city wall?"
"At least five kilometers."
"Five kilometers?!" Sokov repeated the number, and then said: "I don't think it is easy to destroy the enemy's fortifications on the city wall from such a distance."
"Then what should we do?"
"Move the artillery position forward." Sokov said: "Deploy the artillery near the observation post and use direct fire to destroy the German defenses."
"Direct-aim shooting?!" Although in the troops commanded by Sokov before, direct-aim shooting by artillery has long been commonplace, but in other armies, this use of artillery is rare, at least in Sokov at this moment.
Neither Konev nor Rubimov in front of him had ever used artillery in this way. Konev asked cautiously: "Comrade Commander, can this be done?"
"Whether it works or not, you will know if you try it." After Sokov said this, he urged Konev: "Comrade Colonel, I now order you to immediately deploy the artillery to a position closer to the city wall.
Use direct-aimed shooting to destroy the German defensive positions on the city wall."
Half an hour later, Sokov and Shtemenko arrived at the observation post of the 3rd Airborne Division. From here, they observed the battlefield situation through telescopes. At this moment, the attack of the 8th Airborne Regiment had been repelled by the German troops on the city wall. The commanders and soldiers
Spread out, bend down and run back with weapons in hand.
Seeing that Sokov had been observing the fortifications on the city wall, Shtemenko couldn't help but ask: "Comrade Sokov, it seems that the German fortifications on the city wall are very detrimental to our army's attack. They can use it from a condescending position.
The cross fires blocked the path of the attacking troops and caused huge casualties to our troops."
"Comrade Deputy Chief of General Staff," Sokov put down his telescope, turned to look at Shtemenko, pointed to the red city wall in the distance with his hand, and said: "If the Germans deploy the fortifications in other locations, it will have a negative impact on our army.
The threat may be greater. But now they actually set up fortifications on the city wall, which is simply asking for death."
Shtemenko asked in confusion: "How do you say this?"
"If we were still in the age of cold weapons, the defenders only needed to stand on the city wall, and they could use the height of the wall stacks and the city wall to kill their opponents with bows and arrows. But now in the age of hot weapons, fortifications and firepower points are placed on the city wall.
It can only be a joke. The tall city wall is simply the best target in front of our artillery. I believe that the divisional artillery regiment is enough to completely wipe out the city wall in front and the defenders on it."
When Shtemenko heard what Sokov said seemed to make sense, he nodded and continued to listen to the other party's opinions.
Just listen to Sokov continue to say: "If the Germans still have firepower points near the city wall, then when the city wall is destroyed by our artillery fire, the flying masonry and rubble can still kill the enemies exposed outside the fortifications."
"That's right, that's right," Shtemenko couldn't help but smile and nod his head after hearing this: "It's true, no matter how strong the city wall is, it can't withstand the bombardment of artillery fire. It doesn't even have to hit the target directly, as long as the city wall collapses
, then the defenders on the city wall will be buried alive under the rubble."
Sokov picked up the phone on the table, called Konev's division headquarters, and asked bluntly: "Comrade Colonel, is the artillery deployment in place?"
"Yes, Comrade Commander, the artillery is already in position and ready to fire at any time."
"I order all artillery to aim at the city wall in front." Sokov made a fist with his right hand, swung it downwards, and shouted loudly: "Fire!"
This chapter has been completed!