The materials hoarded on the east coast were continuously transported to the Red October factory through the buoyancy bridge set up. After the materials were distributed here, they were soon transported to various areas where fierce fighting was underway.
Thanks to the replenishment of a large number of weapons and ammunition, Cui Kov was able to organize thousands of workers and residents, establish new combat troops, and incorporate them into the divisions that were fighting fiercely with the German army. After a long battle, the troops had become exhausted, and now they have been suddenly replenished. The division commanders all smiled and expressed their opinions to Cui Kov that since they were replenished by the soldiers, they would definitely stick to their positions and would never take a step back.
However, the subsequent battle situation did not improve as the commanders of each division imagined, but worsened. Although the number of troops increased, the workers and residents who had just replenished had no systematic military training and had no combat experience. Faced with the German attack, many people stood in the trenches and fired in a straight body, and did not know how to hide. When carrying out counter-charge, whether to be brave or for some other reason, twenty or thirty people rushed forward, but were knocked down in front of the position by the German machine guns.
In less than two days, all the troops who were reinforcing the troops were lost. In this case, the commander of the 37th Guards Division, who was standing in the Derrensky factory, had to call Cuikov again and ask him for new reinforcements.
After receiving a call from Ruolujeff, Cui Kev was shocked and asked back: "Comrade General, I just added more than 2,700 people to you the day before yesterday. In less than two days, you want me to ask for reinforcements again. What's going on?"
"Comrade Commander," said Ruolujeff with a bitter face in the face of Cui Kov's questioning: "You don't know that the enemy's attack is too fierce. And the recruits you added to us have not undergone special military training, have no combat experience, and do not know how to save yourself in battle, and end up having suffered heavy casualties on the battlefield."
"Comrade General," after hearing Jolujeff's complaints, Cui Kev said with a wry smile: "I don't have a reserve team in my hand. I have sent out all the soldiers you can send to you. What you can do now is rely on your existing strength and resolutely defend the Derrensky factory and prevent the enemy from occupying it. Do you understand?"
Although Cui Kev didn't say a lot, Ruolujeff knew very well that the Derrynsky Tractor Factory is the largest tank manufacturer in China today. Once occupied by the German army, the consequences would be unimaginable. Seeing that Cui Kev could not send reinforcements to him, Ruolujeff hesitated for a long time and asked tentatively: "Comrade Commander, Colonel Lyudnikov's 138th Infantry Division is stationed in the southwest of our division. Do you see if you can draw one or two regiments from the division to strengthen the factory's defense?"
"No, General Jorugev." Cuikov refused without hesitation about Jorugev's request: "Col. Lyudnikov's troops have been greatly weakened after the early battles. Now there are only more than 4,000 people left in the division. I have arranged them in the southeast of the barricade factory to prevent them from being able to block the Germans' way forward in time when the barricade factory cannot be kept."
Seeing that Cui Kev refused his request, Ruojeff felt disappointed, but he asked unwillingly: "Comrade Commander, can't we really send reinforcements? Even if we have an infantry battalion with combat experience, we will have greater confidence in defending the factory."
"No, don't mention a battalion, I don't even have a single hand." After rejecting Ruolujef's request again, Cuikov guessed what he thought, and quickly added: "Also, under the current circumstances, the defense area of ​​Colonel Sokov's 41st Guard Division is wide enough and has no strength to support you. It's better to rely on yourself than to rely on others. I think you should think about it carefully. I can protect your own defense zone."
After finishing the conversation with Jolujev, Trekov called Krelov, who had just finished the phone, and asked directly: "Chief of Staff, I want to ask you, where can we draw troops from now to strengthen the defense of the Derrensky factory?"
"Didn't we just added more than 2,700 people to them the day before yesterday?" Krelov frowned slightly and said unhappily: "Less than two days later, why did you call again to ask for someone?"
"We have many people to General Jolujeff," Cuikov lit a cigarette and said bitterly: "But among so many people, who are capable and have combat experience, how many people can there be? I think, I'm afraid there are less than one tenth. Even if we arm the workers and residents and hand them over to Jolujeff, it may be difficult to block the enemy's attack."
"What should we do?" Krelov asked.
"Comrade Chief of Staff, among the troops in the city, only Colonel Sokov's Guards 41st Division has the strongest combat power. When they face the Germans, even if their troops are at a disadvantage, they can often win, which is incomparable to other troops." Sokov finally spoke after a long silence: "But their defense area is too wide now. If they draw troops from them, they will inevitably weaken their strength. Therefore, I think this issue should be reported to the Front Command and ask them to send us reinforcements as soon as possible."
"Can this work?" Krelov narrowed his eyes and said seriously after hearing Trikov's words: "If they were willing to send us reinforcements, the three infantry divisions that arrived on the east coast would not stay there and do nothing."
Cuikov gently tapped the table with his fingers, looked up at Krelov and said, "If we asked General Yerionko for three divisions, he would definitely not give it to us. But what if we only have one division in his hand? Tell me, Comrade Chief of Staff, will he agree to our request?"
"This...is hard to say!...It may take a try. After he learned about the situation in the city, maybe..."
"Even if there is only one percent hope, we have to try our luck." Cuikov threw the cigarette butt in his hand on the ground and crushed it with his toes, and resolutely said: "I personally call Commander Yeliaumko, tell him the situation in the city, and ask him to send another army to us no matter what."
Unexpectedly, after receiving the order from Cui Kov, Yeliaomenko poured a basin of cold water on him: "I'm sorry, Comrade Cui Kov, I think I'm afraid I can't agree to your request."
Cui Kefu was shocked after hearing this and asked quickly: "Why?"
"According to the orders of the base camp, in order to prevent the troops gathered on the east coast from being air strikes by enemy forces, they have been ordered to stay away from the Volga River and retreat to the Akhtuba River." Yelemenko said helplessly: "Although I am the commander of the front army, if I want to mobilize these troops, I must obtain the authorization of the base camp in advance."
Yeliaumko's words made Cui Kov's heart chill. He didn't hear what the other party said later, and he couldn't even remember how he put down the phone.
Seeing Cuikov's insanity, Krelov guessed that he must have hit a nail. He quickly grabbed his arm and shook it a few times, and asked anxiously: "Comrade Commander, what's wrong with you?"
"There are no reinforcements, my chief of staff." Cuikov looked up at Krelov and said with a wry smile: "Commander Yelemenko said that according to the orders of the base camp, all the troops gathered on the east bank have retreated to the Akhtuba River."
"What, the troops retreated to the Akhtuba River?" Krelov said frowningly: "Comrade Commander, this means that the superiors will not send reinforcements to us for a long time."
"That's right, that's what it means." Cui Kefu said thoughtfully: "It seems that we should think of ways to draw strength from where to strengthen the defense of the Derrensky factory."
In order to defend the Barrier Factory and the Derrensky Factory, Cuikov deployed seven infantry divisions and several tank brigades in this area. Just listening to the numbers, it seems that there are still quite a few troops who are sticking to this area. Unfortunately, after a long battle, the divisions have severely reduced their personnel, and some divisions have only a few hundred people left. They can only perform small-scale defense tasks. Don't expect them to reinforce the 37th Guard Division.
"What should I do?" Krelov thought for a while and said to Cui Kev: "Comrade Commander, the only unit we can move at present is Colonel Tupichev's engineers. In addition to the original engineer troops, the front army also handed over the 44th and 106th Battalions of the Motorized Boat Bridge to him for command..."
"We cannot use engineers as infantry." Cui Kefu replied: "The combat effectiveness of engineers is not as good as that of infantry. If they are lost in battle, who will build pontoon bridges in the future? Engineers can be used as infantry, but infantry cannot become engineers in a short period of time."
Krelov felt a little disappointed when his proposal was denied by Cuikov again. "We cannot let the engineers act as infantry, and the temporary armed workers and residents have poor combat effectiveness. So how can we help the 37th Guard Division?"
Cui Kev thought for a while, and then proposed a solution: "Chief of Staff, go to the field hospital to see if you can mobilize some mildly injured soldiers to be discharged, and add them to General Jorugeff's troops?"
"This is a good idea." It is common to use wounded people discharged from the hospital to supplement the troops. However, it is not easy to mobilize the minor wounded people to be discharged from the hospital early. Krelov decided to turn this to military committee member Gurov to complete it: "I think it is better to leave it to military committee member comrades to take charge of the political work for the wounded."
Trekov did not object to Krekov's proposal. He thought that Grov was now in the Derzhinsky factory and it was perfect for him to do this work. He nodded and said to Krekov: "I agree with you and immediately call the military committee member to rush to the field hospital as soon as possible, mobilize the minor wounded wounded to be discharged early, and add General Jorulejoff's troops."
However, when Gurov received the order from Cuikov to go to the field hospital to find the wounded to do ideological work, an unexpected thing happened. A regiment of the 389th Division of the German army broke through the defense line of the 109th Regiment of the 37th Division of the Guards and advanced towards the bank of the Volga River.
Colonel Omelichenko, the commander of the 109th Regiment, personally led the regiment headquarters' staff and logistics personnel to fight fiercely with the enemies who broke through the defense line, and tentatively restored the occupied positions. After the battle lasted for two hours, the officers and soldiers around Omelichenko were injured and injured. Seeing that with his own strength, Omelichenko could only take the remaining officers and soldiers to retreat to the reserve position by the river.
If Lujeff learned that Omelichenko had lost his position, he was so angry that he shouted loudly at the microphone: "Col. I order you to organize your forces to fight back immediately, and be sure to take back the lost position. If you can't take back the position, you and I will wait to go to the military court. Do you understand?"
"I understand what you mean, comrade of the division command." Faced with the tough order of Rugeff, Omelichenko replied helplessly: "There are less than fifty people left in my regiment, and half of them are wounded. Even if all the people are dead, I am afraid that the position will not be able to be taken back."
Iflujeff covered the microphone with his hand and turned his head to ask his chief of staff Brushko: "Chief of staff, how many troops can we use in our hands?"
When Brushko heard Jolugeff's question, he shook his head and replied in a positive tone: "No, comrade in the division, we have no reserve force in our hands."
Although he heard Brushko's answer, Ruolujeff still asked unwillingly: "Even a hundred people can do it. I will hand them over to Colonel Omelichenko to restore the positions occupied by the German army."
"There is no one, comrade of the division commander." Brushko reminded Jolujeff: "In order to hold on to the factory, a few minutes ago, you sent the only guard squad left in the division to the finished workshop where the most intense battles were."
"What should we do? Just watch the Germans occupy the position of the 109th Regiment, and then use it as the starting point of the attack, and rush towards the bank of the Volga River?" Jorjeff roared, "If the enemy really rushes to the bank of the Volga River, it is our dereliction of duty. Without the commander sending me to the military court, I will pick up my pistol and shoot myself in the head."
"Comrade Commander, you can't be impulsive." Brushko was worried that if Lugeff saw that the battle was not good, he would really go to extremes. He hugged him and said to him: "The matter is not irreversible now, and we can find ways to remedy it."
"Remedy, how to remedy?" Ruojeff said with a sad face: "Even the Army Command does not have a reserve team. Where can we find the troops to recover the lost positions?"
"Comrade Commander, why did you forget Liumeng Street?" Brushko reminded Ruolujeff: "When the 109th Regiment was defending Liumeng Street, he suffered heavy casualties under the attack of the enemy. Colonel Omelichenko even personally led the troops of the regiment headquarters to fight with the enemy. It was not until Colonel Sokov's reinforcements arrived that the enemy was driven far away."
Chapter completed!