In the Battle of Bilie Town, the 41st Guards Division once again made meritorious contributions.
When the news reached Rokosovsky's ears, he was happy and worried about the future situation of the Southwest Front. He stood in front of the map, staring carefully at the position where the battle had just ended not long ago, and was secretly analyzing the German army's possible next steps.
Seeing him standing in front of the map in a daze, Malining hurried over and asked with concern: "Comrade Commander, what are you thinking?"
"Chief of Staff, look here." Rokosovsky picked up the explanation stick, pointed to the location of Dnepropetrovsk on the map, and said to Malinin: "According to the information we have, the 15th German Division had just arrived here on February 20. As a result, they passed through our army's layers of defense lines in less than five days, and even had some troops. They took the train to reach the town of Bile 700 kilometers away. This shows how big the defense loopholes of the Southwest Front are?"
After hearing this, Malining sighed softly and said, "Comrade Commander, after this period of interaction, I found that General Vatujing is a very stubborn person. As long as it is something he believes, no matter how others persuade him, he will walk without hesitation until he is bleeding from his head."
"If you just have to touch your head and get bloody, it's fine." Rokosovsky sneered and said, "I'm worried that if he continues to be stubborn like this, it may cause heavy losses to the Southwest Front."
"What should we do?" Malining asked tentatively: "Are you just watching the friendly forces be wiped out by the enemy?"
"I also want to help Vatutin, but the current conditions do not allow it." Rokosovsky said thoughtfully: "According to the order of the base camp, our Don Front Army will be reorganized into the Central Front Army, leaving only the 21st, 65th and 70th armies, the 2nd armies of the Tank Army and the 16th armies of the Air Force. Several troops, including the 62nd armies, will be transferred to the base camp reserve team, and the 41st guard division commanded by Misha belongs to the 62nd armies, and may also be transferred."
"Comrade Commander, it turns out that you are worried about this." After Malining figured out what Rokosovsky was worried about, he comforted him and said, "Now the Sokov division has been away from Stalingrad. I think they can be transferred out of the 62nd Army and assigned them to the command of the adjacent 21st Army. After all, the new commander General Krelov once fought side by side with Sokov."
Hearing Malining's suggestion to call the 41st Guards Division out of the 62nd Army, Rokosovsky was heartbroken. But when he heard the following words, he shook his head: "I don't think I can hand over Misha's troops to General Krelov's command." Before Malining asked again, he took the initiative to say: "General Krelov's tactics tend to be conservative, and in the next battle, I hope that Sokov's troops can perform more dazzlingly. If they are handed over to Krelov's command, they will probably be restrained, making it difficult for them to achieve greater results in the battle."
"What did you think about it?" asked Malining.
"I think Sokov should be added to a few more infantry divisions, tank brigades and artillery regiments to strengthen his strength." Rokosovsky said this, and knocked Lugansk's position on the map with an explanation stick: "As long as you have enough strength, I believe that Sokov's troops can nail it here like a nail, so that the Germans can't move forward at all. And," he hesitated for a moment, and then continued, "maybe more defeated troops can be accommodated."
"But the troops of the 2nd Tank Army are 800 kilometers away from Lugansk." Malining reminded Rokosovsky, "Besides, the road conditions are so poor now that if the tanks carry out tracks, I worry that even one-third of the journey will not be completed, and all the tanks will have to lie down."
"You call Misha and ask if he has any good solutions?"
"Hello, Colonel Sokov! I am Malining." Malining quickly called the Sokov Division: "I have a question to ask you."
"May I ask, Comrade Chief of Staff of the Front Army."
"For example, I want to send several tank brigades to Luhansk. Is there any way for them to arrive in the shortest time?"
"Of course we use railways." Sokov didn't know why Malining asked such a question, but he answered truthfully: "Compared with highways, railways are more suitable for the rapid advancement of mechanized troops, especially tank troops. Once the railway is put into use, we can use carriages to send tanks, fuel and ammunition to the front line. It not only increases the speed of the troops' mobilization, but also reduces fuel consumption and prevents tanks from malfunctioning during driving. Basically, once we reach the front line, we can immediately enter the battle."
To convince Malining, Sokov also added: "According to my observations, German armored troops advancing along the railway line generally advance the fastest because they do not have to worry about the road becoming muddy. And when speed needs to be increased, they can even load directly at the station.
Fortunately, the enemy occupying Bilie Town had only transported a few tanks. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to eliminate the enemy occupying the town in a short period of time."
"I understand, thank you, Colonel Sokov." After putting down the phone, Malinin repeated what Sokov said to Rokosovsky.
After hearing this, Rokosovsky asked Malining: "Chief of Staff, where the 2nd Tank Army is located, is there a railway between Luhansk?"
"The location of the Tank Army is about twenty kilometers away from the nearest station." Malining said cautiously: "Under today's road conditions, it takes at least two hours for tank soldiers to drive the tank to the station."
"Call the commander of the Tank Army." Sokov, after Malining finished speaking, immediately ordered him: "Let him draw two fully equipped tank brigades, go to the station immediately, and take a car to Luhansk. In addition, it is necessary to draw four artillery regiments and two rocket artillery battalions to go to Luhansk together to strengthen the defense there."
When he heard Rokosovsky mention the Tank Brigade and Artillery Regiment, but did not mention the infantry, he reminded him: "Comrade Commander, what about the infantry? If it is the Tank Brigade and Artillery Regiment alone, I am worried that Colonel Sokov's strength will be a little weak."
"Then transfer the three divisions that once participated in the Sokov combat cluster: the 67th Guards Division, the 23rd and 321st Infantry Divisions to Misha." Rokosovsky said with a smile: "They used to fight side by side in the defense of Stalingrad, so in the next days, let them fight a good battle with the Germans."