After Malining finished speaking, the air inside seemed to solidify. Sokov looked at Malining and widened his eyes in surprise, thinking to himself: "The hallucination must be an hallucination. What I just saw and heard must be an hallucination. I am just a small major. How could I be the acting division commander, but an infantry division commander who is about to be awarded the title of Guard."
Malinin probably knew the shock that his words brought to Sokov, so after he said this, he did not speak anymore. He just picked up the tea cup in front of him and took a sip, then stared at Sokov and quietly observed the other party's reaction.
I don't know how long it took, Sokov finally woke up from his shock. He rubbed his face with both hands, and then said with a wry smile: "Comrade Chief of Staff, what you just said, I didn't hear clearly. Can you repeat it again?"
Malining couldn't help laughing at Sokov's reaction. He pushed the teacup in front of him aside, looked at Sokov and called his nickname and said, "Misha, you heard it correctly. After research and decision, the leaders of the group army will appoint you as the commander of the 328th Infantry Division and start preparing to attack the German army on the other side of the Juzdra River as soon as possible. However, since they are only acting division commanders, your rank will not be adjusted for the time being, and they will still have the rank of major."
"Comrade Chief of Staff," although his superior appointed himself as the acting division commander, Sokov was not at ease. He said with some embarrassment: "The chief of staff and three regiment commanders of the 328th Division should be the worst rank of lieutenant colonels, right? Let me be a major and command a group of colonels and lieutenant colonels. I am worried that they will not obey my orders."
"Misha, you're overconfident." Seeing Sokov's uneasy look, Malinin smiled and said, "In the army, the important thing is position rather than rank. In the past few years, there were many major division commanders and captain commanders. They still managed the troops well."
When Malining said about the major division commander and captain commander, Sokov couldn't help but mutter in his heart: That's because the Great Purge has cleaned all the middle and senior officers in the army. In order to command the army, he can only be promoted from low-level officers, which is why such a strange phenomenon of low-ranking ranks and high-end officers appeared.
However, Malining had already said this, and it was obviously impossible for Sokov to refuse this special appointment. He suddenly realized that the Kharkov battle, which ended in failure, would break out in another month. If he continued to serve as the battalion commander of the Istrian Battalion, then the possibility of the troops being transferred to the Southwest Front Army was relatively high. If he acted as the commander of the 328th Division, Marshal Temuxin would not agree so much if he wanted to mobilize himself.
After a fierce ideological struggle in my heart, Sokov nodded and said, "Okay, Comrade Chief of Staff, since my superiors trust me so much, I cannot let you down your trust in me. I am willing to try this acting commander. I wonder who you plan to send to accompany me to take office?"
"I want to accompany you to take office, but unfortunately there are too many things in the Army Command, and I can't get rid of it." When Malining said this, seeing a disappointed expression on Sokov's face, he quickly added: "But when you go to the 328th Division, military commissioner Lobachev will personally send you to take office."
When Sokov heard that Malining could not accompany him to take office, he felt very disappointed. He thought that if the only one who accompanied him to take office was a staff officer, it would be difficult to establish his prestige in a short time after reaching the 328th Division. When he was disappointed, he suddenly heard Malining say that Lobachev would accompany him to take office. He couldn't help but ask in surprise: "Comrade Chief of Staff, is this true?"
"It is true to be responsible," before Malining replied, Lobachev had already walked in from outside. He came straight to Sokov and said with a serious expression: "Major Sokov, I will accompany you to the 328th Division in person."
As Lobachev spoke, Malinin looked at the door. Seeing Belkin, who was following Sokov, standing at the door, he waved to him, called him to him, and said to him: "Comrade Deputy Battalion Commander, I want to tell you one thing. Since the headquarters decided to appoint Sokov as the acting commander of the 328th Division, from now on, you are the acting battalion commander of the Istria Battalion. Are there any problems?"
"No problem." After hearing that he was appointed as the acting battalion commander of Istria, Belkin, who was somewhat excited, agreed loudly, turned to face Sokov, and extended his hand to the other party, saying, "Battery Commander, no, he is the acting commander. Please accept my congratulations to you and congratulate you on your position as a commander."
Lobachev and Malinin whispered a few times, and then said to Belkin: "Comrade Belkin, you should return to the camp now with the medal and send the medal to every soldier who has established meritorious deeds as soon as possible. At the same time, we should also tell everyone the news of Major Sokov's acting division commander, hoping to boost morale." After he finished speaking, he said to Sokov, "Major Sokov, it's getting late, I'll accompany you to the headquarters of the 328th Division."
On the way to the 328th Division headquarters, Lobachev told Sokov: "Major Sokov, this division lost a lot of troops in the battle some time ago, and the division commander left the army with injuries, so the morale was a little sluggish. After you take office, you have to find a way to improve the army as soon as possible. How about it, are there any difficulties?"
Because Sokov did not understand the situation of the 328th Division, he did not immediately give a positive answer to Lobachev's question. Instead, after hesitating for a while, he replied: "Military Commissioner, I will do my best to improve the morale of the troops in the shortest time."
"Very good!" In response to Sokov's reply, Lobachev nodded with a smile and said with satisfaction: "Major Sokov, I believe you are fully capable of improving the morale of the troops in a short period of time, and after completing the replenishment, quickly restore the combat effectiveness of the troops and prepare for the next stage of battle."
The division headquarters of the 328th Division was located in a small village near the forest. The driver was familiar with the road and stopped at the entrance of the division. After the car stopped, he turned his head to Lobachev and Sokov who were sitting in the back row and said, "Two commanders, we have arrived at the place."
Chapter completed!