Before Sokov could speak, Chuikov said with a straight face: "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, if I remember correctly, you are from the 62nd Army, and the defense area is at Mamayev Hill. Why do you suddenly appear here?
Is it possible that your troops are now under the command of the 64th Group Army?"
"Comrade General," Sokov did not expect Chuikov to say this, and replied in a panic: "I heard that you lost contact with the army headquarters, so I brought troops here to search for your whereabouts..."
"I heard?!" Chuikov asked coldly: "How do you, the commander of the 62nd Army, know that I have lost contact with my headquarters?"
"Comrade General," Sokov looked at the other party and said without fear: "Have you forgotten that your chief of operations, Lieutenant Colonel Sidorin, is now my chief of staff."
What happened next shocked Sokov and the surrounding commanders and soldiers. Chuikov suddenly stepped forward and gave Sokov a bear hug. He leaned close to Sokov's ear and said with a little choked up: "Thank you, I
My friend. I really didn’t expect that when you heard that I was in danger, you would not hesitate to lead your troops to rescue me."
Chuikov let go of Sokov, took a step back, sniffed, and said, "Now that you are here, I have something I want you to help with."
"Comrade General," Sokov said without hesitation: "If you have anything to do, just give me your instructions?"
"Look, Lieutenant Colonel Sokov." Chuikov regained his composure. He pointed in the direction of the Aksay River and said, "According to the intelligence, the leading edge of the German army is only a dozen kilometers away from here, and we are not here yet.
There is no decent line of defense and no troops to defend it."
He saw Sokov open his mouth, guessed what the other party wanted to say, and quickly added: "Yes, although there are Lyudnikov's 138th Infantry Division and Kuropatenko's 157th Infantry Division here,
, and some other troops. But these troops are being transferred, and they will not have much combat effectiveness before they are regrouped. Therefore, while we are building fortifications, I hope that your troops can bear the vigilance
Task."
After Sokov gave him a positive answer, Chuikov turned to face Lyudnikov and Kuropatenko and said: "Two comrades, division commanders, you have retreated far enough. Order the troops to stop immediately.
Build fortifications on the north bank of the Aksay River to prevent the German army from rushing towards Stalingrad."
Lyudnikov readily agreed to Chuikov's order. But Kuropatenko hesitated and said: "Comrade General, we are affiliated with the 51st Group Army. Without the permission of our superiors,
, I feel that I cannot accept your order."
When Lyudnikov heard his friend say this, he quickly tugged on the corner of his clothes to stop him from continuing. His little move was seen by Chuikov. Chuikov smiled faintly and then said to Kuropatenko:
"Comrade Colonel, you are right. Under normal circumstances, as the commander of the 64th Group Army, I have no authority to issue orders to friendly forces. But now during the war, I think you and the 51st Group Army Headquarters have lost
Have you contacted me? In this case, your only choice is to obey my order and build a defense line along the Aksay River to prevent the Germans from rushing towards Stalingrad. As for your commander Kolomiets
Major General, I will personally explain it to him in the future."
Since Chuikov's words came to this, Kuropatenko knew that he could only choose to obey the order, so he agreed loudly, and then ordered the commanders around him to start gathering the troops and prepare to start building fortifications by the river.
While the two division commanders were gathering their troops, Chuikov walked up to Major General Dmitriev and asked: "Old man, what do you say? Should you continue to lead the retreat, or should you stay and beat Germany with me?
people?"
Major General Dmitriev turned his head and glanced at his scattered troops, sighed and said: "Anyway, even if we retreat to Stalingrad, our mission is to stop the Germans, so we might as well fight them here.
A battle. I have decided, General Chuikov, to stay and fight alongside you."
"This is really great." When Dmitriev made his choice, Chuikov held his hand and said excitedly: "I will form a Southern Group of the 64th Army here. If you don't
If you object, just serve as the artillery commander of the group."
For General Dmitriev, serving as the deputy commander of the group army artillery is similar in nature to serving as the group artillery headquarters, so he readily agreed: "I am very happy, General Chuikov."
After Chuikov appointed Dmitriev as the artillery commander, he came to Sokov again and asked tentatively: "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, my southern cluster is almost empty now, except for two serious
In addition to the understrength infantry division and a handful of artillery, there is also a Marine brigade that is about to arrive. I need someone to help me integrate these troops. I will let you temporarily act as chief of staff. Do you have any objections?"
According to Sokov's idea, Chuikov had already found it anyway. After the two infantry divisions were completed by the Aksay River, he would return to Mamayev Heights with the commanders and fighters of the third battalion. But now Chuikov actually proposed to let him act as his agent.
Chief of Staff Sokov replied in a panic: "General Chuikov, this is not appropriate. You know, I have never held a similar position, and I feel that it is difficult for me to be qualified for this position."
"I think you are suitable, and you are suitable." Unexpectedly, when Chuikov heard what he said, he said in an unquestionable tone: "That's it, from now on, you will be the acting chief of staff of my southern cluster.
Until there is a suitable candidate to replace you." He seemed to see Sokov's dilemma, and specifically emphasized, "If there is a battle in the direction of Mamayev Heights, I will let you return to the infantry brigade to continue commanding the troops.
of."
Regarding Chuikov's arrangement, Sokov was a little bit dumbfounded. He said to himself that I had not long ago sent Lieutenant Colonel Sidorin, the chief of your operations department, to the infantry brigade as the chief of staff. Only a few days later, he became the chief of staff.
Chuikov's chief of staff, this retribution is coming too soon. But since Chuikov has arranged it this way, it is useless even if he objects. Who wants others to be generals? He can only execute the orders he gave unconditionally.