After receiving Sokov's reply, Kahn immediately returned to his own position and reported to the colonel's adjutant waiting there: "Mr. Colonel, General Sokov said, let us use 300 prisoners of war to fight in front of their position.
Two hundred meters away, the exchange ceremony will be held."
"I can't make the decision on this matter." After hearing this, the adjutant said coldly: "I need to ask Marshal Manstein for his permission."
The adjutant came to the command cabin of General Knobelsdorf and reported to Manstein through his telephone line the exchange conditions proposed by Sokov. After hearing this, Manstein said without hesitation: "Promise him.
Pass the microphone to General Knobelsdorf, I have something to say to him."
Hearing Knobelsdorf's voice coming from the receiver, Manstein immediately said: "General Knobelsdorf, select five hundred people from the prisoners of war you have captured."
"What, pick out five hundred people?" Knobelsdorff couldn't believe his ears. Sokov only proposed to exchange 300 prisoners of war for Hornadorff's body, and Manstein agreed in one breath.
To give five hundred prisoners to others must have been misheard: "Marshal, are you talking about taking five hundred prisoners of war in exchange for the body of General Hornedorff?"
"Yes, that's what I mean." The reason why Manstein offered to exchange 500 prisoners of war for Hornadorff's body was not out of good intentions: "As far as I know, the Russians captured by you
A considerable proportion of the prisoners are the sick and wounded. We don’t have that much medicine now to treat our enemies. Since Sokov wants their people, then give them to him, preferably as many as possible.
The better.”
"I understand, Your Excellency Marshal." After understanding Manstein's wishful thinking, Knobelsdorf said happily: "The Russian prisoners of war used for the exchange are definitely the sick and wounded."
"And." Manstein continued before the other party put down the phone: "When the exchange ceremony is over and our people return to the position with the body of General Hornerdorf, focus all your artillery on them.
Bombard the Russian positions and destroy them with our steel and fire."
After listening to Manstein's order, Knobelsdorff couldn't help but feel stunned. He knew that this decision was very cruel. If the Russian prisoners of war released were all wounded, then everyone would not wait until they returned to the opposite position.
, a sudden artillery fire can wipe them out.
In order to effectively implement Manstein's order, General Knobelsdorf immediately called his chief of staff and said to him: "You immediately took care of the commander of the Russian prisoners of war and selected five hundred of them.
No, eight hundred sick and wounded, preferably seriously wounded, to be exchanged with the Russians."
The chief of staff heard the phone call between Knobelsdorf and Manstein and knew that this was a plan by Manstein. He planned to use the two parties to conduct an exchange ceremony and catch the other party off guard. The seriously injured person could not move and had to lie on a stretcher.
They were carried by people, and the more people there were, the slower they moved. After General Hornadorf's body returned to their own position, they immediately opened fire on the Russian position. It is estimated that these injured prisoners of war will be intensively packed.
destroyed by artillery fire.
In order for Manstein's vicious plan to succeed, when the army chief of staff arranged for personnel to select prisoners of war for exchange, he specifically told the commander in charge of the prisoners of war: "Remember, the more seriously injured the wounded for exchange, the better, and the greater the number."
The more the merrier.”
Although the commander did not understand what the military chief of staff meant, he still faithfully carried out his order. He selected 813 sick and wounded patients from the place where prisoners of war were held, and escorted them with the colonel under the escort of more than a hundred soldiers.
Behind the adjutant and Second Lieutenant Kahn, they marched toward the exchange location with difficulty.
The Soviet commander in charge of the exchange was the commander of the 564th Regiment. Since what he wanted to hand over to the Germans was only a coffin, he only brought a translator and a squad of soldiers and waited at the exchange location early.
However, in order to conveniently report the situation to the rear, he also had a telephone next to him.
Sokov and Koida stood in front of the lookout of the observation post, raising their telescopes and observing the exchange ceremony that was about to begin. After waiting for a long time, there was still no trace of the Germans. Koida was a little worried.
Unable to remain angry, he picked up the phone and asked: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, are the enemies coming?"
"Reporting to Comrade Division Commander," the regiment leader thought, your observation post has a wide field of vision. Can't you see if the enemy has appeared? However, since it was Koida who asked about this, he still replied patiently: "Not yet.
Found traces of the enemy..."
Before he finished speaking, the translator standing beside him exclaimed: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, look quickly, the enemy is coming."
The regiment leader holding the microphone looked into the distance and saw hundreds of people emerging from a trench. After they came out of the trench, they moved slowly in the direction where they were. From those
Judging from the people's clothes, the regiment leader knew that these must be the prisoners of war used by the Germans in exchange for Hornerdorff's body.
Sokov, who was staying at the observation post, also saw this scene through a telescope. Seeing that the number of people wearing Soviet uniforms far exceeded the number he requested, he couldn't help but be stunned. He felt that with his prestige, he might not be able to
There was no way that Manstein could be so willing to exchange so many prisoners of war for a corpse. There must be something wrong with it.
But Koida didn't think so much. He saw so many prisoners of war coming out of the German defense zone and counted them with great interest. After counting for a while, he turned his face sideways and said to Sokov: "Comrade Commander
, the number of prisoners of war that the enemy used for our exchange is at least six to seven hundred."
"Comrade Colonel," Sokov frowned and said to Koida: "Tell me, what is going on? I asked Manstein to exchange 300 prisoners of war with us, but he took out
There were six to seven hundred people in attendance, and I always felt like something was wrong."
"Comrade Commander, you are so humble." Koida said flatteringly: "You have a great reputation in the German army. After hearing your name, the second lieutenant became respectful, as if you were his superior.
Generally. I think you taught Manstein a lot of lessons in previous battles. He was afraid of you, so he took so many prisoners to please you."
"Manstein needs to please me?" Sokov knew very well in his heart that trying to intimidate Manstein with his own prestige was simply a fool's errand. But now the Germans have exchanged six to seven hundred people.
What's going on? In order to figure out what's going on, Sokov raised the telescope again and continued to observe.
Koida did not notice anything strange about Sokov. After raising the telescope, he continued: "Comrade Commander, I saw the open barrel truck that Second Lieutenant Kahn was riding in. The German soldier wearing a colonel's uniform next to him
The military officer should be the highest commander in charge of this exchange."
Koida looked at it for a while, shook his head and said, "It's a pity that we are exchanging with the enemy. Otherwise, if such an important target appears in front of me, I will definitely call a sniper to kill him."
When he heard Koida say that he wanted to order snipers to kill the German colonel who was in charge of the exchange, Sokov seemed to have thought of something, thinking that it had something to do with the German army exchanging more prisoners of war than he required. But in a hurry, his mind
It was like a mess, and I couldn't figure out what was going on.
"What the hell," just as Sokov was thinking hard, he suddenly heard Koida yelling beside him: "Why are the prisoners of war that the Germans used to exchange with us all wounded?"
"Are they all wounded?" After hearing what Koida said, Sokov quickly observed carefully with a telescope and found that not only were there more than twenty stretchers in his field of vision, but there were also seriously injured people lying on them who could not move.
Even the people carrying them were still wounded with bandages on their heads or arms.
"Damn it, we were fooled." Seeing this, Sokov slammed his fist on the wall and said angrily: "What a cunning Manstein, he actually came up with such a vicious plan."
Koida asked Sokov in confusion: "Comrade Commander, what do you mean, why can't I understand you at all?"
"Comrade Colonel, have you seen the prisoners that the Germans used to exchange with us?" Sokov raised his voice and said to him: "They are all wounded, and there are many seriously wounded who cannot move."
"I saw it." Koida had been carefully observing the group of prisoners of war that appeared, and naturally saw clearly that the hundreds of people who came were all wounded. When he heard Sokov said that this was Manstein's poisonous timing, he
He also echoed: "Damn Manstein, throwing so many wounded people at us will make the medicine we are already nervous about become even more nervous."
"Manstein gave us so many wounded people, it is inevitable that there will be a shortage of medicines in a short period of time." Sokov frowned and gritted his teeth and said: "In fact, Manstein must be brewing something bigger.
conspiracy."
"Conspiracy, what conspiracy?" Koida asked in confusion.
"Look, how slow our wounded are moving." Sokov pointed at the troops in the distance and said to Koida: "Although the exchange location is only more than two hundred meters away from our position, they need at least
It took ten minutes to complete the walk. If the enemy carried Hornadorf's body, returned to their position, and immediately shelled our position, how many of the wounded do you think would survive?"
Sokov's words made Koida think deeply, and he hurriedly asked: "Comrade Commander, what should we do? Should we just watch our wounded die under the enemy's fire?"
"Don't worry, since we have guessed the enemy's evil plan, we still have enough time to deal with it." Sokov told Koida: "Comrade Colonel, you immediately call the lieutenant colonel in charge of the exchange and order him to leave the position.
Deploy two more companies of troops to assist in the transfer of the wounded."
Koida grabbed the phone and asked nervously: "Comrade Commander, is there anything else you should pay attention to?"
"And..." Sokov stopped just as he started. He felt that if he wanted to save the lives of these sick and wounded, he had to take action himself: "I think it's better for me to host the exchange ceremony in person.
Bar."
Knowing that Sokov was going to the front in person, Koida quickly grabbed him and said nervously: "Comrade Commander, you can't go there because it's too dangerous."
"Comrade Colonel, I know it is very dangerous there. If possible, I am not willing to take risks." In order to save these sick and wounded, Sokov could only bite the bullet and take risks: "But now I am the only one who takes action personally.
, can we break Manstein’s poisonous plan.”
"Okay, Comrade Commander." After several months of getting along, Koida knew Sokov's character very well and knew what he had decided. No one could make him change his mind, so he could only sigh softly.
, warned him: "Then you must pay attention to safety."
Sokov took Samoilov's guard platoon to the command post of the 564th Regiment, where they met the deputy commander and chief of staff. The two did not expect that Sokov would suddenly appear here, and they quickly stood at attention.
, raised his hand and saluted him: "Hello, Comrade Commander! How come you are here?"
"I'm here to take over as your group leader and preside over the exchange ceremony."
When the two commanders heard what Sokov said, they couldn't help but look at each other in confusion. The deputy commander asked tentatively: "Comrade Commander, did something happen that made you decide to host the exchange ceremony at short notice?
"
"I just saw in the headquarters that the prisoners of war of our army used by the enemy to exchange were all lightly or seriously wounded." What happened next required the full cooperation of the two people, and Sokov did not hide it from the other party: "I guess this
It's a German conspiracy."
"A conspiracy?" Sokov's words made the two commanders even more confused, but they did not dare to ask casually.
Sokov continued: "Our wounded are slow to move, despite the fact that the exchange point and the trench are only two hundred meters away. Maybe by the time the Germans drag Hornadorf's body back to their defense zone, our wounded have not yet entered the position.
.If the enemy launches a sudden round of artillery fire at this moment, how many people do you think can survive?"
Sokov's words suddenly shocked the two of them into a cold sweat. They thought about it carefully and found that it was really possible. If there were only two or three hundred wounded, they only needed to send a group of people out of the position and it would take a few minutes.
Let them return to the trenches. But with the six to seven hundred or even more wounded coming in front of them, it will really take a lot of time to get them all into the trenches.
"Comrade Commander," the Chief of Staff asked, "Then what should we do?"
"The first battalion followed me to move the wounded into the trenches, while the second and third battalions, as well as the troops directly under the regiment, all withdrew to the second line."
"Why should the troops be withdrawn to the second-line position?" the deputy regiment leader asked puzzledly.
"The reason is very simple. I think the Germans may carry out violent artillery bombardment on your position." Sokov looked at the deputy commander and said: "Do you think your current position can withstand the intensive artillery bombardment of the German army?
?”
"No." The deputy regimental commander answered honestly, and then said: "Then I will immediately notify the second and third battalions and the troops directly under the regiment to withdraw to the second-line position in an orderly manner."
"Comrade Commander," the chief of staff considered the issue more comprehensively than the deputy commander. He asked tentatively: "The troops can withdraw to the second-line position in time before the enemy's shelling, but what about the wounded who have just been replaced? We just watch.
Do you want to watch them stay on the position and be killed by enemy artillery fire?"
"Don't worry, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov said solemnly: "Now that I'm here, I won't let this tragedy happen. It's getting late. You should arrange for the troops to withdraw from their positions quickly."
