"Hurry up and invite Director Peter in!" Cui Kev ordered the staff officer: "We have been waiting for him."
Less than a moment when the staff officer went out, Peter, wearing a black mink round hat and a black woolen coat, hurried in. He reached out to Trikov who was coming up and said in a friendly tone: "Hello, General Trikov, we are meeting again."
"Hello, Director Peter!" Cui Kefu held the other party's hand and said with a smile: "Welcome to us to visit us. Do you need a cup of hot tea?"
"It's no need to drink tea." Peter knew that the war was urgent now, and if Cui Kefu had no important things, he would not take the initiative to invite himself to the Army Command, so he didn't go around in circles. Instead, he asked directly: "General Cui Kefu, do you ask me to come here? Is there anything important?"
"That's right, Director Peter. We will soon launch a new counterattack against the enemy." Considering that the troops involved in the counterattack will attack from Mamayevgang and Red October factories, Cuikov did not intend to keep Peter secret: "The departure locations of this counterattack force will be in Mamayevgang and your Red October factory respectively."
"Is it going to launch a counterattack again?" Peter was surprised to learn that a new counterattack was going to be launched, "But your counterattack has just ended for two days, why are you going to take offensive actions against the enemy so quickly?"
"Chief Peter, what's going on in Stalingrad City? Even if I don't say it, I believe you know it very well." Cuikov explained to the other party: "The enemy's strength is stronger than ours at present. If we only conduct negative defenses, the enemy will probably break through our remaining defense lines one after another. Therefore, we can only take uninterrupted attacks to disrupt the enemy's strategic deployment and prevent them from taking the initiative on the battlefield."
Peter was silent for a while before asking, "General Cui Kefu, can you tell me truthfully whether our army is now equipped with the conditions for counterattack?"
Peter's problem made Cui Koff look very embarrassed. In fact, he was not willing to launch a counterattack without any chance of winning again at this time. However, since the superior issued such an order, even if he knew it was impossible, he had to find a way to implement it. He was silent for a long time before he solemnly said: "Director Peter, I will not hide it from you. If we launch a counterattack in these two days, we will have no chance of winning at all, and we will even consume all the precious living power."
After listening to Cui Kefu's reply, Peter asked in confusion: "Since you know that you have no chance of winning, why do you still have to attack?"
"We can only implement the orders issued by our superiors unconditionally." Cui Kefu said helplessly: "If we do not take the initiative to launch a counterattack, the Germans will take the initiative on the battlefield, and then our situation will become worse."
"Then what can I do for you?" Peter heard this and realized that this counterattack without any chance of winning was imperative, so he instinctively asked: "Do I need to draw workers from the factory to cooperate with your actions?"
"No, your workers need to be used to protect the factory. They don't need to participate in this battle." Cui Kefu knew very well that the workers' combat effectiveness was not strong. If they were incorporated into the counterattack force and put into battle, they would have to sacrifice themselves in vain. So he decisively rejected Peter's proposal and expressed his intention to call Peter over: "I hope you can provide us with a batch of tanks to strengthen our chances of successful counterattack."
Since Peter knew that there was no hope of success in the counterattack, he naturally knew that he would hand over the newly produced tanks to Cui Kov, which was to kill the dogs with meat buns and go back. He waved his hand and said, "General Cui Kov, last time you came forward, you had to leave more than 40 tanks from me. I don't know how to write a report to your superiors. You still want tanks today. No, this is absolutely not possible! If you really want tanks, you can go to Lieutenant Colonel Sokov and let him hand over those tanks to you."
After Peter finished speaking, Cuikov nodded to Sokov, who was standing beside him, and said, "Here, Colonel Sokov is there. Can you ask him, can he still take out the tank?"
"Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, is it you?" After Cuikov's reminder, Peter found out that Sokov was standing aside, quickly walked over, and asked loudly: "I want to ask you, where are the tanks I handed over to you?"
"Sorry, Director Peter." You have to face what you should face, and you can't escape it. Seeing that Peter discovered himself, Sokov could only say hello to him and replied awkwardly: "The tank you handed over to me is gone except for ten left in the factory."
"What, nothing else is gone?" Peter was excited when he heard Sokov say this. He grabbed Sokov's clothes with both hands, shook it hard, and asked loudly: "Where did you get my tank? Also, that ball tank is one of the only prototype cars in China. Even if it is just a wreckage in the hands of the Germans, you should want to get what consequences it will bring."
Because Peter tried too hard, Ledesokov was a little breathless. He tried hard to break his clothes out of Peter's hands, and after coughing violently, he said in a daze: "Do not be excited, please listen to me explain it to you slowly."
"Tell me!" Peter looked at Sokov with wide eyes and said viciously: "Where did you get my tank? If you can't explain it clearly, I will never finish it with you today."
Before answering Peter's question, Sokov looked at Cuikov first and asked him with his eyes whether he should tell the truth. When he saw the other party nodding slightly, he spoke: "Director Peter, you should know that I led a unit and the tank battalion north a few days ago, right?"
"I know." Peter nodded and said angrily: "It is said that General Guriyev's 39th Guard Division has encountered some trouble. You have led your troops to support him."
"Comrade Director, we are not just supporting the 39th Guard Division." Sokov replied: "Our main task is to go forward to Orlovka area and meet with friendly forces from outside the encirclement."
Peter was from Stalingrad, so he naturally knew what the two troops met in Orlovka, which meant for the current critical city. When he heard this, he did not care about the whereabouts of the tank, but asked nervously: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, have you met with friendly troops?"
"No." Sokov smiled bitterly and shook his head, and continued: "Although my troops successfully occupied Orlovka, not long after, our retreat was cut off by the enemy, and we became an isolated army trapped in the encirclement. The friendly troops who came to meet with us were also blocked by the enemy and could not achieve the goal of meeting. At this time, I could only choose to break through decisively to avoid the end of the destruction of the entire army."
When Peter heard this, he couldn't help but interrupt and asked, "So, the tank I handed over to you was lost on the way to break through?"
"Most of the tanks in the Tank Battalion lost their losses in the process of breaking through the German defense lines. The remaining dozen tanks were exhausted due to the exhaustion and ammunition. After completing the breakthrough mission, I handed over these tanks to the comrades of the Don River Front. As for the spherical tank you mentioned, I have sent someone to hide it. Comrade Director, don't worry, knowing that there are only a few tank soldiers in the hidden tank location, and they will definitely keep it secret, so you don't have to worry that this prototype car will fall into the hands of the enemy."
In fact, the reason why Peter was so excited just now was nothing more than worrying that the ball tank would fall into the hands of the Germans, and he would not be able to take it and leave. At this moment, he learned that the prototype car had been hidden well, and his heart, which was hanging in his throat, was put back in his stomach.
Seeing that Peter's mood stabilized again, Cuikov smiled and said, "Director Peter, you have heard it all. Colonel Sokov used the tanks you handed over to him to successfully break through several enemy lines of defense and successfully advanced to the Orlovka area. If it weren't for the exhaustion of ammunition and fuel in the end, I believe he would have achieved greater results."
I heard that the tank battalion under Sokov had achieved great results in the battle some time ago. As the person who provided the tank, Peter was naturally honored. As soon as Cui Kov finished speaking, he immediately agreed: "No, the German tanks No. 3 and No. 4 are not opponents of our T-34. In the case of equal numbers, they can easily beat them to a fallen water."
"People Director Peter," Sokov took the opportunity to ask Peter again: "Do you see if Colonel Sokov can provide another batch of tanks to rebuild the tank battalion so that he can teach the Germans a lesson in the next counterattack."
When Cuikov first called Sokov the colonel, Peter had not noticed it yet. When he heard the other party repeatedly using the same title, he couldn't help but ask Cuikov curiously: "General Cuikov, I seem to hear you call Comrade Sokov the colonel. When did he get promoted to the rank of military? Why don't I know?"
"It was two days ago." Cuikov replied with a smile: "In order to commend his military achievements, the leader of the Front Army not only promoted him to the rank of colonel, but also awarded him a Red Flag Medal." Speaking of this, he carefully looked at Sokov and reminded him, "Col. Sokov, it is a very honorable thing to promote the rank and obtain the medal. There is no need to hide it. Remember to add a fourth bar to the medal later, and don't forget to wear the Red Flag Medal."
"Col. Sokov," Peter said to Sokov with a full face: "For you to receive a higher rank and the Red Flag Medal, please accept my congratulations."
After shaking hands with Sokov, he turned his head and said to Cuikov: "General Cuikov, I have figured it out. I still have about twenty tanks in my hand, and I will give them all to you. If you need more tanks, I can contact the director of the Derrensky Factory and transfer a batch of tanks from him."
Chapter completed!