Now that the most stubborn Captain Augusta Ernst is ready to surrender to the Russians, the remaining soldiers will have no objections. They know very well that if they continue to resist, they will only die. On the contrary, if
Lay down your arms and surrender, and once the war is over, you will still have the chance to go back and reunite with your family.
Seeing the German army flying a white flag, it was an announcement of surrender. The hidden Soviet commanders and soldiers cheered and rushed out of their hiding place, holding weapons and stepping forward to capture the prisoners.
Hundreds of prisoners were quickly gathered and supervised by some soldiers of the Guards Division. The remaining soldiers stayed to clean the battlefield, collect the bodies of the dead and collect weapons that could still be used. Countless soldiers were there
They stepped on the area and soon turned the ground into a quagmire.
Seeing that all the enemies had been destroyed, Sokov came out of his hiding place and strode forward with Runev, Merkulov and others. The soldiers who were busy might not know Sokov, but they knew him
Their division commander quickly stopped what he was doing and stood at attention to salute the three of them.
Hundreds of people stood at attention and knocked their heels at the same time, and mud and water suddenly splashed everywhere. Although a lot of mud and water splashed on Sokov's body, he was not angry at all. On the contrary, he waved to the soldiers.
When they arrived at the place where the prisoners were being guarded, many German soldiers sitting on the ground stood up and looked curiously at the three Russian generals who were walking over without waiting for the soldiers guarding the prisoners to shout. Several of the officers guessed Sokov's name.
They took the initiative to raise their hands to salute him, but Sokov ignored them and asked an officer guarding the prisoners of war: "Where is Major General Val?"
The officer heard Sokov's question and quickly replied: "Report to comrade commander that Major General Val is not locked up here, but in a nearby wooden shed."
"Take me over there and have a look."
The officer led Sokov and others to a wooden shed not far away, and saw Major General Val sitting inside. "Major General Val," he said to Major General Val standing outside the wooden shed: "We
meet again."
Hearing Sokov's voice, Major General Val came out of the wooden shed and stood in front of Sokov with a face of shame: "General Sokov, I really didn't expect that we would meet again under such circumstances."
Sokov knew that Major General Val would definitely have a psychological shadow after being kidnapped by his subordinates, so he said to him: "I will now order you to be sent to the rear, where you will be treated as a prisoner of war consistent with your status."
If it was a few hours ago, Major General Val led the remaining troops to surrender in an organized manner, he might still be confident at this moment, but after experiencing the betrayal of his subordinates, he felt that he had become a lost dog, and he was even worried about Soko.
If the husband feels that he has no use value, will he just order someone to shoot him?
Until this moment, after he heard what Sokov said, his heart hanging in his throat finally returned to his stomach. Although being captured was a disgraceful thing, as far as he knew, the captured German general
The treatment he enjoyed was pretty good, and he could wait quietly in the prisoner-of-war camp for the day when the war ended.
"General Sokov," Major General Val said cautiously, "I have a request."
"What request?"
"I heard that Colonel Shimon, the commander of the Skeleton Division, was also captured by you." Major General Val asked cautiously: "Can you lock me up with him?"
Sokov originally thought that Major General Val would make some excessive request, but he didn't expect that the other party just wanted to be locked up with Colonel Shimon, so he said carelessly: "No problem, I can fulfill your wish."
Although the final statistical results have not yet come out, Sokov knows very well in his heart that the Imperial Division can basically be said to have been completely destroyed. The next thing he has to do is to return to the headquarters and report this matter to Roko
Fsky reported, and at the same time, learned more about the issue of encircling and suppressing the remnants of the Skeleton Division.
Sokov returned to the Army Headquarters and was about to order the communications soldier to connect him to the Front Army Headquarters when the phone on the table rang first. Witkov picked it up and listened for a moment, then quickly handed the phone to Sokov.
Cove: "Comrade Commander, this is a call from the Chief of Staff of the Front Army."
Sokov took the phone, put it to his ear and said politely: "Hello, Comrade Chief of Staff, I am Sokov."
"Hello, General Sokov!" Malinin said in a businesslike tone: "I have something to inform you formally. As of today, the designation of our front army has been changed from the original Don River Army to the Central Front.
And we can move our defenses in the direction of Moscow."
Sokov took a look at the map and calculated the intention. If the main force of the front army moved towards Moscow, they would soon reach the north of Izyum and control the Kursk area, thus attracting the enemy's attention and providing opportunities for his own troops.
Reduce defense pressure.
After Malinin said a few more words, he heard there was no movement from Sokov's side and thought the phone was disconnected. He quickly raised his voice and asked: "General Sokov, why don't you speak? What happened?"
"Comrade Chief of Staff, I am considering that if the main force of the front army reaches the north of Ijumu, the enemy will probably concentrate the main force in your direction. In this way, the pressure we bear here can be greatly reduced."
"Yes, the situation will indeed develop as you said." After Ma Lining said this, he asked: "A few hours ago, you told me that you were launching the final attack on the Imperial Division. I think
Ask, what is the result now?"
"Report to Comrade Chief of Staff," Sokov quickly replied when Malinin asked about the attack on the Imperial Division: "After a fierce battle, our army completely annihilated the Imperial Division. The division commander, Major General Val, and his more than 300 men
Officers and soldiers were captured."
"What, you even captured Major General Val of the Imperial Division?" Malinen asked excitedly.
"Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov replied: "In fact, before the final offensive began, Major General Val had negotiated with us and was preparing to lead the remaining more than a thousand officers and soldiers to surrender to us, but something happened.
Accident."
"Accident?" Ma Lining asked in surprise: "What accident?"
"Major General Val was very aware of the situation and knew that if he continued to fight, his troops would not be able to escape destruction, so he prepared to lead his troops to surrender." Sokov explained: "But because the Imperial Division he took over was too short, there was not enough time.
He established prestige in the division. So before he was about to issue the order to surrender, he was kidnapped by a group of fanatical officers and soldiers. Those officers and soldiers not only prevented Major General Val from surrendering, but also called on the remaining officers and soldiers to continue to resist. As a result, our battle continued for a while.
.”
"That's really strange." Malinin heard Sokov say this and couldn't help but muttered: "The best way to deal with such fanatical enemies is to eliminate them all." He paused for a moment, then continued to ask, "What about the last step?
How did the enemy surrender?"
"I accidentally discovered that the German officer who held Major General Val hostage and a surrendered translator in my unit were actually brothers. So I sent the translator to persuade him to surrender, thus using a bloodless method to get the remaining German officers and soldiers to lay down their weapons.
surrender."
"General Sokov, what did you just say?" Ma Linin couldn't help but frowned when he heard this. "In your army, there is a translator who surrendered and a brother who is an SS soldier? Have you reviewed it?
If you look at this translator, could he be a spy arranged by the enemy within our army?"
"No, Comrade Chief of Staff." Seeing that Malinin was suspicious of Corporal Ernst, Sokov quickly defended him and said: "Corporal Ernst surrendered to our army when our troops attacked the Istria Reservoir.
He has been in my army for more than a year. If he was a spy, we would have discovered him long ago."
"Since he has an older brother who is an SS soldier, I don't think he is suitable to stay in your army anymore." Out of caution, Malinin specifically reminded Sokov: "I think it's better to transfer him somewhere else.
.”
"Comrade Chief of Staff, I can vouch for him. There is absolutely nothing wrong with him." Sokov became a little anxious when he heard that Malinin wanted to transfer Ernst: "When I went to persuade Paulus to surrender, he also said
He once went with me as a translator, and he was absolutely loyal to us."
Seeing that Sokov repeatedly said good things for his subordinates, Malinin could no longer force him to drive the translator away. He could only say politely: "General Sokov, your military commissar is the deputy minister from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
, how to deal with this translator, I suggest you communicate with him to avoid any unpleasant things happening in the future."
"I understand, Comrade Chief of Staff." Seeing that Malinin no longer pursued the matter, Sokov felt more at ease, and quickly replied: "I will communicate this matter with the Military Commissar."
"General Sokov, there is one more thing I want to tell you." Malinin continued: "I heard from the commander that due to the amazing combat effectiveness of your group army in the battle to eliminate the Imperial Division and the Skeleton Division, let
Many front commanders are covetous of you. They have asked the Supreme Commander himself to transfer you and your troops to their fronts to fight the enemy."
Sokov knew very well that where he was now, in a few months, the Battle of Kursk, which would change the pattern of world wars, would take place. If he went to other fronts at this moment, the results that could be achieved would be greatly reduced.
He was unwilling to leave his current army, but in order to find out who wanted him to go there, he still asked: "Comrade Chief of Staff, can you tell me what the fronts are?"
"General Govorov of the Leningrad Front, General Sokolovsky of the Western Front, and General Konev who just took over as commander of the Steppe Front." After Malinin announced a few names, he said to Sokorovsky
Kove said: "They all applied to the Supreme Commander himself, hoping to allow your troops to go to their front. General Konev even said that even if his superiors did not agree to assign the Sixth Army to him, even if he only sent you alone
It’s also possible to transfer him there.”
Sokov secretly thought that if his superiors really planned to transfer him to other units, the best choice would be to go to Konev's Steppe Front. In the eyes of others, Konev's luck was really bad. As early as before the war,
It is the rank of general. After two years of fighting, Zhukov and Vasilevsky became marshals. Rokossovsky and Vatutin, who were lower than him, have now become generals, but he still carries the
Admiral's shoulder insignia.
The reason why he was transferred to the post of commander of the Steppe Front was entirely because he felt that the current fighter planes were immature and did not follow Stalin's orders to easily attack the German defense line. As a result, he was dismissed from his position as commander of the Western Front.
Demoted to the grassland front army, which is a reserve force.
However, this demotion is not a bad thing for Konev. The troops he previously commanded were mainly infantry. In addition to the four infantry armies of the Steppe Front, there is also Rotmystro
General Husband's 5th Guards Tank Army was a steel army that made the German army fearful. It established outstanding achievements in the Battle of Stalingrad.
After the Battle of Moscow, the center of gravity of the Soviet-German war had moved to the southern front, where the two sides had assembled heavy troops to prepare for the main decisive battle. This transfer moved them from the central battlefield to the southern battlefield, which enabled them to possess powerful armored mechanization for the first time.
Konev, who was in the army, had the opportunity to make meritorious deeds.
"Comrade Chief of Staff," Sokov asked tentatively after weighing the situation in his mind: "I would like to ask what the Supreme Commander himself wants. Will he move us in other directions?"
"It's hard to say." Ma Lining would not express his opinions easily on matters like trying to figure out the Holy Will. Instead, he said tactfully: "But if I really want to transfer you, I will definitely inform you in advance."
Sokov secretly made up his mind that if his superiors really planned to transfer him to work, they must find ways to get to Konev's troops. In any case, in the final stage of the war, the time it took for them to enter Berlin was no longer than that of Zhukov's Belarus.
How much slower is the first front army?
To be on the safe side, he asked cautiously: "Comrade Chief of Staff, if my superiors really plan to transfer my job, can I freely choose where I want to go?"
"General Sokov, I just said that casually." Malinin continued: "Unless your army group is assigned to other troops, it can only be the Southwest Front Army or the Voronezh Front Army; if you are to be transferred to other fronts, the troops
You definitely can't take him away, there are only a few commanders you can trust who can follow you."
After hearing what Malinin said, Sokov began to think again. If he could only take a few commanders with him when leaving, what should he take those people away with? Because he was so absorbed in thinking, what did Malinin say next?
He didn't even hear it clearly.
Fortunately, Malinin guessed that Sokov would be distracted and raised his voice twice to call him. Sokov woke up from his meditation and asked quickly: "Comrade Chief of Staff, do you have any other instructions?"
"I will send a plane to your place immediately." Ma Lining said on the phone: "Bring back the two captured commanders of the Imperial Division and the Skeleton Division, so as not to have a long sleepless night and be rescued by the enemy."
"No problem, no problem." Regarding the matter of taking the two captured division commanders to the front army headquarters by land, Sokov was not at ease. He was worried that he would be ambushed by the Germans along the way and the two prisoners would be captured.
It would be difficult to explain to the superiors if they were lost again. Now Ma Lining offered to send a plane to pick up the prisoners. He quickly followed suit and said: "I understand, Comrade Chief of Staff, I will immediately order someone to send the prisoners to the airport."
