Thanks to the normal roads, Yang Mingzhi's motorcade arrived at Catfish Village in only one and a half hours. The troops on foot did not arrive until ten in the morning.
Boboski had been standing at the east intersection of the village since the morning fog filled the air, waiting for the commander to arrive. In order to show that the people left behind in Catfish Village were ready for battle, he actually ordered all militiamen, regardless of gender, old or young, to
People stood on both sides of the road to allow the commander to review the troops.
According to Yang Mingzhi's estimate, there should be 4,000 current villagers in Catfish Village. Because the headquarters was transferred to Blacksmith Village, the strategic value of Catfish Village was severely weakened. Before the military operation, there were only 8,000 people including the garrison here.
.Currently, there are only 3,800 people left behind in Catfish Village.
The jeep stopped in front of Boboski, who had been waiting for a long time. Yang Mingzhi got out of the car ably and twisted his legs.
"Comrade Bobosky, I see you have gathered people here? What are you doing? A military parade?"
"Yes, Comrade Commander. It is necessary for me to show you our strength. You...what do you think?"
"How?" Yang Mingzhi clasped his hands behind his back and walked a few steps. The armament situation in Catfish Village was nothing special. Many young women were even incorporated into the female corps, and its headquarters was also moved to Blacksmith Village. Some female soldiers from Catfish Village,
Already sacrificed in the battle on the left bank of the Dnieper River.
Yang Mingzhi noticed that the peasant women in their forties were wearing white scarves on their heads and dressed like traditional Russian peasants. They had captured Mauser rifles on their shoulders and armed belts on their waists.
The image becomes abrupt.
He turned to Bobosky who was following him and said: "It is difficult to win with these people. I have seen your report and your suggestion that it is feasible to carry out Sparrow War. How many people do you have armed now?"
"
"Including me, there are 3,800 people. But, as you know, I have armed all the women."
"Okay, soon the strength of Catfish Village will reach 10,000."
"What? Ten thousand people?!" Boboski was shocked, "We still have so many troops?"
"I have transferred female soldiers from the northern front line. Those female soldiers are very powerful in combat. In addition to them, the cavalry battalion that has made great achievements in combat will also arrive here today. Let's not talk nonsense. Our former headquarters, you still often
Send someone to clean it?"
"Oh yes, Comrade Commander, there is even your former residence."
"Huh? My residence should be changed into a dormitory."
"This... I heard that you were coming, so I quickly restored it to its original state."
"Forget it." Yang Mingzhi waved his hand, "I will spend the night at the headquarters tonight, and I will do the same in the future. Soon Catfish Village will become a military camp again, so you send Ran to make some plans."
We arrived at the familiar headquarters office. Since the headquarters moved to Blacksmith Village, the office has been under the responsibility of Fu Ming, who stayed behind. Times have changed, and Fu Ming has also been transferred, so the office has no more use and has become a conference room for the troops left behind.
Yang Mingzhi came back and stood in the office. The photos of Marx and Engels were still posted on the wooden wall. The objects in the room had not changed much. Only some broken military flags of the 284th Division were taken to Catfish Village.
Already.
A sense of desolation arises spontaneously.
"Hey! I have to be here again, leading troops who are not elite, to fight against the fascists."
Bobosky asked curiously: "Commander, you seem a little worried?"
"Of course there are worries. It's really bad. I didn't expect that we would also face the embarrassing situation of fighting on two fronts! The Germans are really good at timing their flank attacks. I have already drawn up a combat plan for the northern frontline troops, and they will implement it.
But here, I am really at a loss what to do. Abram!"
"arrive!"
"You spread the map on the table. There is no time. I have to figure out a strategy quickly."
At the end of April, the troops passed here and went to the northwest to launch a comprehensive attack on the railway lines controlled by the 734th Division. The troops were advancing along the original dirt road, but even so, the troops still had to pass through a fifteen-kilometer-long muddy field.
The so-called muddy ground is completely frozen in winter and is completely a road. However, as the weather gets warmer, the temporary groundbreaking turns into mud again. The situation in July will only be worse than in April, and the mud will be more serious.
These harsh natural environments will certainly bring great resistance to the advancement of the German army. It is really fanciful to expect nature to defeat the German army. All the troops in Catfish Village must find a reasonable combat mode.
How to fight fascism?
Yang Mingzhi bit his fingers and stared at the map. He had no staff around him, and he really didn't need them. Bobosky and the guards were also sensible enough not to disturb the commander's thinking.
In the early morning of the 17th, the Soviet army received another telegram from the 21st Guerrilla Brigade. They claimed that the German troops spent the night in the village of Drovla. The villagers in the village were forcibly taken away and the village was burned and turned into ruins. 21 Guerrilla Brigade
It was only at night that the brigade figured out the exact location of the main force of the German army, and took the risk to adjust the radio it carried to the band used by the Soviet army. After the German regiment leader fell asleep, the correspondent found the Soviet army's code book and sent a message.
In fact, the 21st Guerrilla Brigade was taking a huge risk by doing this. If the code book was discovered by the German army, the German army's top brass would probably use this to instantly figure out the current code used by the Soviet army. Ponomarenko was very ambitious. Since he had an extra
If you have a new force, you should make good use of it. Even serious adventures are feasible.
The map in Yang Mingzhi's hand marked the location of the village of Narovla. It was obvious that the German army was moving along the narrow dirt road along the Pripet River. Yang Mingzhi outlined a marching route of the German army based on the direction of the dirt road.
"Haha, the enemy has to travel another seventy kilometers without encountering any obstacles before they can reach our Catfish Village."
This was the first thing Yang Mingzhi said after being dull for a long time. Bobosky asked urgently: "So, the German army will march 70 kilometers today?"
"Haha, do you believe it? I don't believe it anyway. I can only think that a few of our elite troops are capable of accomplishing such a feat. As for the Germans, they started to enter the swamp area after advancing another thirty kilometers. The ground they stepped on
The roads should be muddy up to their knees. But they will overcome these difficulties. In my opinion, the German army will advance up to fifty kilometers today. If we want to fight them fiercely, it will be around the evening of the 18th. The most likely time is around the evening of the 18th.
A battle broke out on the 19th."
"So, we still have plenty of time?"
"It can be said that we have enough time to organize defense. You suggest that the troops take the initiative to harass the enemy. I think it is feasible."
The Soviet settlement on the right bank of Pripet is currently half-empty, but its location is on the path that the German army must pass through. The German soldiers have been marching hard for a long time, and they will definitely be excited when they see the buildings.
Yang Mingzhi pointed to the camp on the right bank and said: "This is still ten kilometers away from Catfish Village. Since the Germans did not bring long-range artillery, I am not worried at all that they will use artillery shells to bomb us. Boboski, have the settlements been evacuated?
?”
"Yes."
"Oops, you acted too fast. I decided that we can do the same thing again. We need to fill the settlement with some daily necessities to create the illusion that the residents are evacuating in a hurry."
Boboski seemed to have been pricked by a needle, and he suddenly became interested. He asked with piercing eyes: "You mean, an ambush?"
"To be specific, it is a night attack. The most reasonable time for a night attack is the early morning of July 19th. To achieve this time, I need troops to delay the German army's march, and also to attract the German army and lure it to
Settlement.”
"Oh! How wonderful! How wonderful! Commander, you are truly a genius!"
The feeling of being flattered was very refreshing. Yang Mingzhi smiled: "I am not a genius, I just used the tactics of my predecessors. This is like catching an old turtle in a big clay pot. Everything is under control. I have no worries at all."