"Don't worry, Comrade Colonel." Sokov knew very well that the outstanding performance of his troops in the Battle of Kursk and the Battle of Kharkov had made the people of the Supreme Command realize the impact of sophisticated weapons on the troops.
Importance, as long as your unit does not lose its chain in the later stages of the battle, it is not impossible to become the first unit to equip all members with assault rifles. "There will be bread, there will be milk, there will be everything."
."
Weisbach couldn't help but grin when he heard Sokov casually uttering lines from the movie "Lenin in 1918."
"Comrade Colonel, don't be too happy." Sokov continued: "Now that the high ground has been taken, if you can't stop the Viking division's attack, I won't let you off lightly."
"Don't worry, Comrade Commander." Perhaps because he has heard too many legends about Sokov, Weisbach has a honey-like trust in him. He feels that as long as the troops under Sokov's command, they will face no matter how powerful the enemy is.
, can achieve the final victory, he said confidently: "No matter how powerful the enemy is, we will definitely be able to stop them."
When Sokov heard what Weisbach said, he felt even more uneasy. He listened to the sound of gunfire from behind the high ground, and thought to himself: "Half of the 73rd Infantry Brigade is here now, why not put it there?"
The remaining troops will also be transferred here to strengthen the defense force here."
Thinking of this, he said to Weisbach: "Comrade Colonel, although I say so, there is only one division of yours here, plus a tank brigade, and I have to deal with the elite Viking division of the German army. I still feel a little uneasy. Otherwise,
How about I transfer Guchakov’s 73rd Infantry Brigade to assist in defense?”
Weisbach felt that the most frustrating days for him were when he served as deputy brigade commander under Guchakov. He was a colonel, but he had to obey the command of a major. Now he finally got rid of him and became
Commander of the 300th Division. If Sokov really transfers the infantry brigade, who has the final say between the two units?
It was precisely with this in mind that he said with some emotion: "Comrade Commander, there is no need to transfer the infantry brigade over."
"Why?" Sokov asked in surprise.
"Comrade Commander, according to the information I have, not only are my 300th Infantry Division and Major Bunch's 37th Tank Brigade near the Fesky Collective Farm, but also the 5th Assault Army and the 7th Tank Corps.
The main force. If the fighting here becomes tense, I can definitely ask for help from friendly forces and get their support."
Weisbach was deeply afraid that Sokov would not agree with his proposal, so he emphasized: "Comrade Commander, our army is attacking Kharkov now. The strength of our army is already very surprising. If you transfer the infantry brigade here again, it will be inevitable."
It will weaken the troops' offensive strength, which will be very detrimental to the subsequent battle."
Sokov was moved by Weisbach's words. Although he now has several divisions under his command, if he wants to use them to attack Kharkov, his strength is still a bit weak. If the infantry brigade is really transferred to assist in the defense
, he has no reserve team at all, a situation Sokov does not want to see.
He pondered for a moment, then nodded and said: "Comrade Colonel, what you said makes sense. I will go see the commander of the 5th Assault Group Army and discuss with him the matter of assisting in defense."
After Sokov finished speaking, he said to Weisbach: "You will handle the aftermath here." He was about to leave, but was stopped by Weisbach.
"What's going on?" Sokov stopped.
"Comrade Commander, is it appropriate for you to meet with General Tsvetayev at this moment?"
"What's inappropriate?"
"You used Marshal Zhukov not long ago. You just got the 300th Division from the 5th Assault Army. I think the leader of the army is full of hatred for you at this moment." Weisbach said worriedly: "You
If you go to see General Tsvetayev now, he will definitely not look down upon you."
"I believe General Tsvetaev is a reasonable man." Although Sokov knew that Weisbach was right, there was a high chance that he would be challenged if he went to see Tsvetaev at this moment. But for the sake of
After being able to win the final victory, Sokov decided to put aside his personal dignity and have a serious talk with Tsvetaev.
After the negotiation is concluded, everyone is naturally happy. If the other party ignores us at all, we can only bring out Zhukov and Vatutin to solve the problem of assisting defense.
Sokov took Samoilov and his guard platoon and drove to the location of the assault group army headquarters more than 20 kilometers away.
There was a checkpoint outside the camp with more than a dozen officers and men on duty. Seeing a convoy consisting of two jeeps and three trucks, the sergeant leading the convoy quickly sent a signal to stop the convoy.
Seeing the convoy stop, a sergeant and a soldier came over to greet them. Samoilov, who was sitting in the passenger seat, turned to Sokov and said: "Comrade Commander, let me negotiate with them."
After getting Sokov's permission, Samoilov opened the door and got out of the car, walking towards the sergeant and his men.
"Comrade Lieutenant," the sergeant saw Samoilov walking towards him, he quickly stopped and asked politely: "What section are you in? What's the matter here?"
"Hello, Comrade Sergeant." Samoilov said politely: "We are from the 27th Army. We have something to see your commander, Comrade General Tsvetaev." He gestured towards the jeep behind him.
Shaking his head, "Our commander, General Sokov, is in the car."
When he learned that Major General Sokov, the commander of the 27th Group Army, was in the visiting convoy, the sergeant was immediately startled. He said in a panic: "Comrade Lieutenant, please wait a moment, I will call my superiors."
."
Samoylov nodded slightly and said, "Go ahead, I'll wait for you here."
After the sergeant and the soldiers left, Samoilov trotted back to the car, leaned in through the open door, and Dusokov said: "Comrade Commander, the soldiers on duty said they were going to call their superiors.
"
"I know." Sokov replied calmly: "Let's just wait patiently."
"Comrade Commander, I have a question." Samoilov turned his head and glanced in the direction of the checkpoint, and asked cautiously: "Do you think the soldiers on duty can let us in?"
"Why don't you let us in?" Sokov said disapprovingly: "Even if we take away their 300th Division, now that I have reached General Tsvetaev's defense area, he will not let me in. Otherwise he will
It will leave a bad influence on the superior, which will be very detrimental to him in the future."
Hearing what Sokov said, Samoylov nodded as if he understood, and did not ask any more questions. He turned his head and glanced in the direction of the checkpoint. Seeing that the sergeant had come out of the guard box after making a phone call, he asked the question
Cove said: "Comrade Commander, the sergeant seems to have finished his phone call. I'll go over and ask how the situation is."
Samoilov came back to the sergeant and asked politely: "Comrade Sergeant, how is the situation? Does your superior allow us to enter?"
"Look what you said, Comrade Lieutenant." The sergeant smiled and said to Samoylov: "I have reported the situation to my superiors. Please wait a moment. Someone will come out to pick you up later."
After waiting for a few minutes, a three-wheeled motorcycle drove over from the inside of the checkpoint. Seeing this, the sergeant quickly ordered someone to lift the crossbar. The motorcycle came to a stop in front of Samoilov and took off the sidecar.
A lieutenant came out, raised his hand to salute Samoilov, and said politely: "Hello, comrade lieutenant. I am the combat staff officer of the group army. I have been ordered to pick you up. Please come with me."
In this way, the convoy followed the lieutenant's motorcycle, passed the checkpoint, and entered the headquarters of the assault group army.
Under the leadership of the lieutenant, Sokov walked into the temporary headquarters of the group army. As soon as he entered the door, he saw a group of general-looking people standing against the wall with their backs to the door, looking up at the nails nailed on the wall.
A big map.
The lieutenant came behind the group of people and reported loudly: "Comrade Commander, friendly General Sokov has arrived!"
Hearing the lieutenant's voice, the generals turned around in order and looked at Sokov standing in the middle of the room. No one said a word.
Sokov looked at the seven or eight generals in front of him and couldn't help but murmur in his heart: "With so many generals, who is Tsvetaev, the commander of the assault group army?"
Fortunately, this embarrassment did not last long. A tall lieutenant general with a mustache walked out of the crowd, reached out to Sokov and said politely: "Hello, General Sokov, I am
This is Lieutenant General Tsvetaev, commander of the Assault Army. Welcome to my headquarters."
The expected outburst or cynicism did not appear. The enthusiasm shown by Tsvetayev made Sokov feel a little surprised. However, he quickly reached out to hold the other person's hand, shook it vigorously twice, and smiled.
He said: "Hello, General Tsvetaev, nice to meet you. I learned that your troops are on my flank, and I rushed over to visit you immediately."
While shaking hands with Sokov, Tsvetayev shook his head and said: "General Sokov, the time you chose to visit was not very good. You know, this time period is when everyone is sleeping soundly."
"General Tsvetaev, you haven't rested yet. I think I came just in time."
Tsvetayev laughed, let go of Sokov's hand, and made a gesture of invitation: "General Sokov, please sit down quickly." Then he said to the lieutenant who was leading the way, "You are still stunned.
What are you doing here, why don’t you hurry up and pour tea for General Sokov!”
The lieutenant hurriedly agreed, then turned and left.
"General Sokov," Tsvetayev asked Sokov curiously after sitting down, "Why are you still wandering around outside so late?"
"General Tsvetaev, I am not fooling around." Faced with Tsvetaev's question, Sokov politely replied: "I just commanded a battle, and I rushed out before the battle was over.
coming!"
Tsvetayev had a surprised expression on his face: "I wonder where the battle took place?"
"It's just to the west of the Fisky collective farm where the 300th Division is stationed." Sokov came to discuss defense matters with Tsvetaev this time. He felt that the Viking Division was building a defensive position on the high ground to the west of the farm.
It is necessary to truthfully tell the other party: "The German Viking Division has built fortifications on the high ground there. The battle I am commanding is to capture the high ground and establish a reliable line of defense there."
"What, the Viking division is on the high ground to the west of Feski collective farm?" A major general couldn't help but exclaimed when he heard this, "We only have one infantry division and one tank brigade in the farm. Can we block the enemy's attack?"
?”
"Comrade Chief of Staff, you are mistaken." When Tsvetayev heard what the major general said, he immediately corrected him with a straight face: "The 300th Infantry Division and the 37th Tank Brigade belong to the 27th Group Army," he said.
After saying this, the smile returned to Tsvetaev's face, "General Sokov, I forgot to introduce you, this is my chief of staff."
Knowing that the other party was the chief of staff of the group army, Sokov quickly stood up, shook hands with the other party, and said friendly: "Hello, comrade chief of staff, nice to meet you."
The chief of staff of the group army was eager to know the fighting situation near the Fesky collective farm. After a few polite words with Sokov, he eagerly asked: "What is the situation now? Has the enemy launched an attack on the farm?"
"On the contrary, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov replied with a smile: "We took the initiative to launch an attack on the high ground occupied by the enemy. After several hours of fierce fighting, we have successfully occupied the position on the top of the mountain and driven away the remaining enemies.
Stay far away."
"I know the terrain there." Tsvetayev interjected: "The west side of the highland is gentle, which is conducive to offense but not conducive to defense; while the situation in the east is just the opposite, and it is not conducive to offense. I think you want to
Seizing the high ground must have cost a lot."
"You are right." Naturally, Sokov would not conceal the heavy price paid in the process of seizing the highlands. He said truthfully: "In order to seize the highlands, our army suffered nearly three thousand casualties."
Sokov's words made the generals present take a breath. The chief of staff frowned and said: "The total strength of the 300th Division is 8,000 people. It suffered 3,000 casualties at the beginning of the battle. Then the next battle will be terrible."
What should I do?"
Sokov was originally thinking about how to ask the other party for assistance in defense. At this moment, when he heard what the chief of staff of the group army said, he said smoothly: "This is exactly the purpose of my coming here." He turned to Tsvetayev, "
General Tsvetayev, since the main force of our unit will be used to attack the western suburbs of Kharkov, we cannot mobilize the necessary troops to support the 300th Division. I wonder if you can send troops..."
Before Sokov could finish speaking, Tsvetayev interrupted him: "General Sokov, I understand what you mean. If you hadn't taken over the 300th Division, the Fesky Collective Farm would have been
Our defense area. Even if the 300th Division is not my unit now, it is natural to support friendly forces."
Sokov felt very deeply about Tsvetaev's reasonableness. He quickly stood up, held the other person's hand, and said excitedly: "General Tsvetaev, thank you so much. With your support,
I believe that the 300th Division will have no big problem in blocking the Viking Division's attack."
"This is what we should do." Tsvetayev raised his head and said to the chief of staff standing aside: "Comrade chief of staff, immediately call the commander of the 87th Infantry Division and inform them to rush there immediately after dawn.
Fisky collective farm to assist friendly forces in their defense."
"Yes, Comrade Commander." The Chief of Staff nodded and said, "I will call their division commander right away."
