For Rokossovsky, having a deputy who is both capable and familiar with the situation of the troops is very helpful for him to quickly control the troops, and Zakharov happened to meet this criterion.
The two successfully completed the transfer of command of the front army. After a night's rest, Zakharov accompanied Rokossovsky to inspect various defense areas and troops, and met with the commanders of the divisions under each group army.
After two days of traveling, Rokossovsky, accompanied by Zakharov, inspected all defenses and met with all regiment-level commanders in his subordinate units.
The two returned to the headquarters after completing the inspection. When Zakharov was busy pouring tea for Rokossovsky, suddenly the high-frequency phone on the table rang. Rokossovsky picked it up and listened. It turned out that
The call was from Chief of General Staff Antonov: "Is it Marshal Rokossovsky? I'm Antonov!"
"Hello, Comrade Chief of General Staff." Rokossovsky asked politely: "Do you have any latest instructions?"
"Yes, Comrade Marshal." Antonov said: "I am entrusted by the Supreme Command to formally announce to you a new personnel appointment."
Hearing what Antonov said, Rokossovsky couldn't help but feel a little in his heart, and said to himself: What kind of appointment? Are we planning to revoke the position of commander of our front army again and demote him to a lower unit to command a group army? He
With mixed emotions, he tried to use the same tone as usual and asked: "Comrade Chief of General Staff, what is the new appointment?"
Antonov heard the tension in Rokossovsky's heart and said quickly: "Comrade Marshal, this personnel appointment has nothing to do with you. It is about Comrade Zakharov's job arrangement."
"What, is it about Comrade Zakharov's personnel appointment?" Rokossovsky breathed a sigh of relief when he learned that it was not his demotion order. He raised his head and glanced at Zakharov who was bringing tea and said to
He picked up the microphone and asked: "I wonder how the Supreme Command plans to arrange for him?"
Zakharov, who had just come over with tea, was stunned when he heard what Rokossovsky said. He thought to himself that he had just been demoted to deputy commander of the front army. How come there were new personnel appointments just two days later?
, is he planning to demote himself to the commander of the group army?
Just listen to Antonov say: "After research by the Supreme Command, it was decided to send him to the 1st Belarusian Front Army as deputy commander of the front army and serve as Marshal Zhukov's deputy."
Rokossovsky then asked: "Comrade Chief of General Staff, I would like to ask, Zakharov was sent to the First Front Army as deputy commander, so who will be my deputy?"
"This is exactly the second appointment I want to announce to you." Antonov replied calmly: "The Supreme Commander himself believes that General Kuzma Petrovich Trubnikov is a suitable candidate.
The candidate, starting from today, he will take over the position of General Zakharov and serve as your deputy."
Although these two personnel appointments were both related to Rokossovsky, the Supreme Command failed to communicate with him beforehand, which made him feel a little uncomfortable. But considering that he was Stalin as early as
When he was the commander of the Grad Front, Trubnikov had served as his deputy for a period of time. He was a commander with rich combat experience and his character was impeccable. If he partnered with him,
, at least there will be no constraints.
Antonov heard Rokossovsky's silence and continued: "Trubnikov will rush to the headquarters of the Second Front this afternoon to take over Comrade Zakharov's duties.
After the handover is completed, the Supreme Commander himself hopes that you can come to Moscow as soon as possible, and he will personally assign you the next combat mission of the Second Front."
"What, rush to Moscow as soon as possible?" Antonov's words surprised Rokossovsky when he arrived, "I just took over the Second Front not long ago, and I am still familiar with the situation of the army. I may not be able to leave in the short term.
"
Unexpectedly, Antonov said reasonably: "Comrade Marshal, you can return to Moscow with Marshal Zhukov in three days. Therefore, the combat mission to be assigned by the Supreme Commander himself is about the coordinated operations of your two front armies."
Rokossovsky made some calculations in his mind. If Trubnikov could arrive at the headquarters today and complete the handover with Zakharov, he would have two days to get familiar with the members of the headquarters.
, knowing the situation of each unit, he can confidently and boldly hand over the troops to the other party. Thinking of this, he said into the microphone: "Okay, Comrade Chief of General Staff, I will fly to Moscow early in the morning three days later."
Putting down the phone, Rokossovsky raised his head and said apologetically to Zakharov: "Comrade Zakharov, I want to talk to you about your next work arrangements."
"Comrade Marshal, I heard it all." Zakharov put the tea cup in his hand in front of Rokossovsky, tried his best to squeeze out a smile on his face and said: "I didn't expect that I just got fooled by you.
I have been deputy for two days and am about to leave for a new unit. I feel really reluctant to leave. To be honest, if I want to serve as deputy commander of the front army, I can definitely stay. After all, I know the situation here better."
Rokossovsky stood up, put his hands on the opponent's shoulders, and said with regret: "Comrade Zakharov, although I also want you to stay, this is an order from the base camp, and we can only
Unconditional obedience. Do you understand?"
"Understood." After hearing what Rokossovsky said, Zakharov knew that there was no room for recovery, so he asked tentatively: "Comrade Marshal, may I ask who the base camp is planning to replace me with?
"
"Admiral Trubnikov." Rokossovsky was afraid that Zakharov would not be able to remember who the other party was, so he reminded him: "When I was the commander of the Stalingrad Front, he was
He used to be my deputy." Seeing that Zakharov's mood was stable, he promptly changed the subject, "How are the preparations for the new headquarters going?"
The headquarters of the Second Front Army is located in a small village in an open area. It has been bombed by German aircraft several times. After Rokossovsky arrived here, he suggested to Zakharov that the enemy should have noticed that the headquarters was here.
There is an important headquarters, so planes are constantly dispatched for bombing. If you continue to stay here, once the battle preparation stage is reached, the number of people and vehicles entering and exiting this area will increase significantly, and the enemy will be attacked more by then.
Large-scale bombing, so the headquarters must be moved.
Although Zakharov had been accompanying Rokossovsky on inspections of the troops below for the past two days, he handed over the relocation matter to Chief of Staff Bogolyubov. At this moment, Rokossovsky asked
When this happened, he quickly called the other party over and asked: "Comrade Chief of Staff, how are things going at the new headquarters?"
"Comrades commanders," Bogolyubov replied respectfully, "I think the best location for the headquarters should be in the forest area of the Dlugo Shedlo area."
"I agree." Rokossovsky had passed the place Bogolyubov mentioned during his inspections in the past two days. He felt that the geographical location there was hidden and difficult to be discovered by enemy planes, and the transportation was also convenient. He could do it at any time.
You can go to the defense area of any group army to inspect. "When can you move there?"
Bogolyubov reported to Rokossovsky: "We have erected four sturdy wooden houses in the forest and laid telephone lines. They will be put into use tomorrow at the latest. As for the security of the headquarters, I have also carried out
"We have made a careful deployment, in addition to arranging powerful air defense positions, checkpoints were set up on every road leading to the headquarters, and machine gun fire points were established in hidden locations."
"You have considered it very carefully, Comrade Chief of Staff." Regarding Bogolyubov's work, Rokossovsky gave great recognition: "I believe that such a command is the best for us.
The most suitable one." He turned to Zakharov and said, "Our superiors informed us that Trubnikov will take office in the afternoon. I think you should wait until the headquarters is moved to a new location before you can carry out the handover work.
Not too late."
In the evening, Trubnikov, escorted by the guard platoon sent by Zhukov, arrived at Rokossovsky's new headquarters. After entering, he saluted Rokossovsky: "Hello, Marshal.
Comrade, I have been ordered to serve as your deputy."
"Hello, Comrade Trubnikov." Rokossovsky stepped forward and held Trubnikov's hand, and said with a smile: "Welcome to work in the Second Front." Then he used
Pointing to Zaharov on the side, he said, "This is Comrade Zaharov. You two are old acquaintances, so I don't need to introduce you."
"Hello, Comrade Trubnikov." Zakharov also stepped forward and held Trubnikov's hand, and said with a smile: "We can start the handover work now."
In this way, the two completed the handover work in an extremely friendly atmosphere. After the handover work, Zakharov said goodbye to Rokossovsky and others, and got into the jeep that brought Trubnikov.
Rokossovsky felt much more at ease when he saw that what he was worried about did not happen. From the next day, he took Trubnikov to inspect several subordinate armies to let him get familiar with them as soon as possible.
Troops and defense area conditions.
In the early morning of the third day, Rokossovsky took a transport plane from the field airport under the jurisdiction of the front army to Moscow. This annoying transport plane was not comfortable at all. Rokossovsky, who had already suffered an injury to his back,
After several hours of flying, when I got off the plane, I was in so much pain that I couldn't straighten my back.
A colonel who came to pick him up from the Kremlin saw Rokossovsky being helped off the plane. He quickly ran over and asked nervously: "Comrade Marshal, what's wrong with you?"
Rokossovsky smiled bitterly and said: "Maybe the old injury on his back has recurred." He glanced at the colonel in front of him and asked, "Comrade Colonel, are you taking me to the Kremlin?"
"Yes, Comrade Marshal!" Seeing Rokossovsky's face turn pale, the colonel asked hurriedly, "Do you need me to take you to the hospital first?"
"There is no need to go to the hospital." Rokossovsky thought that Stalin must be waiting in the office at this moment, and why would he dare to go to the hospital to waste time? He shook his head and said: "Let's get to the Kremlin as soon as possible."
After the colonel helped Rokossovsky into the car, he asked a little uneasily: "Can your body support it?"
"No problem." Rokossovsky endured the pain in his back and replied, "Let's set off now, don't keep Comrade Stalin waiting."
Half an hour later, Rokossovsky arrived at Stalin's office with the help of the colonel. Poskrebyshev, who was sitting outside, saw that Rokossovsky was actually being helped in. He immediately
Taken aback, he quickly walked out from behind his desk and asked with concern: "Comrade Marshal, what's wrong with you?"
Rokossovsky smiled bitterly and said to Poskrebyshev: "The condition of the transport plane is too poor and the flight time is too long. It may be that the old injury has recurred."
"Comrade Marshal, since you are not feeling well, why don't you go to the hospital for treatment." Poskrebyshev said in a reproachful tone: "If the injury recurs, you must not be careless. If something happens, the consequences will be serious.
"Having said this, he quickly glanced at the closed door and asked in a low voice: "How about I go in and tell Comrade Stalin?"
"Thank you, Comrade Boskrebyshev." Rokossovsky waved to Boskrebyshev and said, "I think it's not too late to go back after the meeting."
Rokossovsky opened the door and walked into Stalin's office. He found Stalin sitting at the front of the long conference table, and three generals without military caps were sitting on the left. He heard someone push open the room.
When he opened the door, Stalin turned his head and saw clearly that it was Rokossovsky. He stood up with a smile and said: "We are waiting for you, Comrade Rokossovsky. Welcome to Moscow!"
After Stalin shook hands with Rokossovsky, he pointed at the three generals and said: "Comrade Rokossovsky, let me introduce these generals to you. Fedyuninsky of the 2nd Shock Group Army,
Grishin of the 49th Army, and General Volsky of the 5th Guards Tank Army. From now on, their troops will be placed under the command of your Second Belorussian Front."
After Rokossovsky stepped forward and shook hands with the three generals one by one, he turned to Stalin and said: "Comrade Stalin, General Volsky and I have known each other as early as 1930, when he was in the Cavalry Corps in Samara.
The 7th Division commanded a cavalry regiment; later we were transferred together to the Transbaikal Army Group, where he served as the tank brigade commander. Fedyuninsky was also an old acquaintance and old friend. When he was in the Kiev Special Military District, his troops were stationed there.
It is very close to Zhytomyr, where I serve as garrison commander. Only General Grishin, whom I met for the first time."
After Stalin asked everyone to sit down, he said to Rokossovsky: "I summoned you here today because I want to personally explain to you the direction of the Second Front's attack. You should start from the existing occupied area.
Launch an attack to the northwest... You don’t have to worry about the German East Prussian Group. I will hand over the entire task of crushing this group to the Third Belarusian Front. Remember, you and Zhukov’s First Belarusian Front
The closest coordinated actions must be maintained between the militaries."
Having said this, Stalin pushed a map on the table in front of Rokossovsky, drew an arrow pointing to the enemy's flank with a red pencil, and explained to Rokossovsky: "Rokossovsky
Comrade Vsky, since the troops of the 1st Belorussian Front are slow to move during the offensive, they can attack the German flank and provide Zhukov with help."
Rokossovsky stared at the map for a while and asked rhetorically: "Comrade Stalin, if we turn the direction of the attack to the northwest, the front of the attack will become extremely narrow, which is not conducive to the deployment of the troops."
"Comrade Rokossovsky, you can rest assured on this." After hearing Rokossovsky's concerns, Stalin further explained to him: "The dividing line of your Second Front will move south until the
The place where the Narew River joins the Vistula River, and at the same time, the troops occupying this area will be transferred to your front army. Among them, the 65th, 48th and 70th Group Armies."
Hearing what Stalin said, Rokossovsky began to calculate silently in his mind. The three armies of the original First Front, plus the two combined arms armies and a tank army just assigned to me, equaled the Second Front Army.
Six more armies were added, tripling the original strength.
When he was feeling happy, he suddenly heard Stalin say: "In addition, from your front army organization, General Tsvetaev's 33rd Army will be placed under the command of the Third Front Army."
Everyone can tell whether six armies are given and one is taken away, whether it is a loss or a gain. Rokossovsky naturally saw no meaning in Stalin's arrangement, so he nodded in agreement.
Stalin then talked about the current domestic and international situation, believing that the German army fighting on two fronts could no longer support it. If the Soviet army could continue to maintain a strong offensive, then at most one year, Germany would be completely defeated.
After Stalin finished speaking, he refilled his pipe with tobacco and asked Rokossovsky with a smile: "Comrade Rokossovsky, do you have any objections to my deployment?"
Hearing Stalin's question, Rokossovsky stood up in a hurry. Unexpectedly, before he could speak, his eyes turned black and stars appeared in front of his eyes. After a moment of dizziness, he fell directly on the conference table.
.
Rokossovsky fainted without warning, startling several people in the room. Fedyuninsky, who was the first to react, rushed to his side and helped him sit up again.
Those who pinched him with their thumbs shouted anxiously: "Konstantin Konstantinovich, what's wrong with you? Wake up, wake up!"
