The sky has always been gray, the weather has turned cooler, and under the chilling north wind, dead leaves fall from time to time.
Belarus seems to have entered late autumn overnight. Fortunately, the military and civilians have enough clothing reserves. Although wearing all kinds of clothes, many people are bloated and have no sense of beauty. At least their bodies are warm and diseases are eliminated.
On August 25, the highest daytime temperature was only 15 degrees, and a cold wave came. Fortunately, it did not bring large-scale rainfall.
The wind is gradually increasing, and some members of the Communist Youth League who are involved in meteorology claim that the wind is at least Category 4.
The north wind of Level 4 was howling, but it could not dampen the enthusiasm of the military and civilians to build the new airport. Some people even didn’t know whether it was really hot or just showing off. They took off their coats, exposing their hairy backs, and pushed
The stone roller kept running quickly on the land.
An area two thousand meters long and one thousand meters wide is the future "Homnage Field Airport". After intensive construction yesterday and early this morning, the planned area has been completely crushed.
In the morning, the No. 3 assault gun walked over the area where the construction had been carried out. The still obvious rut marks fully demonstrated that ramming and rolling still had to continue.
After all, it is an airport for transport aircraft. I am afraid that it will also become an important air force base for the Soviet army during the strategic counterattack stage.
After receiving the commander's order, Chekov did not dare to neglect at all. His harshness made many sweaty workers very embarrassed. But, the order was an order, and they deserved to pound the ground harder.
The airport is under construction in full swing, the military and civilians are still strengthening their homes, and the pickling of fishing catches is also in progress.
However, tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians have mixed feelings. For no other reason, although after the airport is repaired, supplies will continue to arrive from afar, the respected comrade commander will also have to leave.
But before Yang Mingzhi left, some people were already packing their bags.
It has been more than three weeks since the Red October and Gypsy guerrilla groups arrived in the swamp. For more than 20 days, the grassroots guerrillas have eaten and drank enough every day, and their physical condition has recovered rapidly. Their troops have been reorganized, and some
Those who were really not suitable for fighting were recruited by the guerrilla republic, and their weapons and equipment were greatly strengthened.
For example, when the Red October Brigade rushed into Belarus, there was an average of one machine gun per 100 people, and there were even fewer bullets.
It's completely different now. Every ten people have at least one ZB6, and each machine gun is equipped with 500 rounds of heavy machine gun ammunition.
There is one RPG shooter for every thirty people, and there is one recoilless gun or mortar for every fifty people. There is actually not enough artillery shells, but at least they have to have strong attack capabilities.
Yang Mingzhi was very happy to help Red October and the Gypsy Gun people, but he was not willing to give support like he loved his son. Compared to these two brigades, Yang Mingzhi admired the Kovpak Corps more.
Among the three allies of the Guerrilla Republic, the one he admires the most is Kovpak. This is entirely because of the highly organized nature of the unit. In the final assault, their mobility made Yang Mingzhi truly feel that they were expected to become
"The 6th Army is Second". Shouldn't we strongly support this kind of unit that is particularly capable of fighting?
Boumazhkov and Karmanov wanted to get more weapons and equipment, but Yang Mingzhi politely refused, but on the other hand, he supported Kovpak Catfish rockets.
According to Stalin's order, the three guerrilla commanders must take a plane to Moscow with Yang Mingzhi. The tasks of each of them are different. For example, the biggest job of the three commanders is to go to the guerrilla movement headquarters building and report to the Bolsheviks.
Nomarenko reported on the work himself.
The commander has temporarily left, and it is time for his troops to set off to continue fighting in their own guerrilla zones.
The time for the evacuation of each unit was set, which was August 28th. In addition to the tactical courses for officers, the grassroots soldiers began to actively pack their bags.
The north wind outside the window is blowing, and nearly 15,000 guerrillas are about to leave. Their departure will instantly cause the national defense strength of the Guerrilla Republic to plummet.
They are guest troops, and of course they have to leave after completing their mission. Including myself, I will leave soon.
Yang Mingzhi suddenly felt guilty. After staying in the swamp for a long time, friendship would inevitably develop. Leaving here seemed to be abandoning his comrades.
There is nothing left to do...
Yang Mingzhi stayed idle in the commander's office. The north wind kept blowing outdoors, and the coolness of standing outdoors made his heart feel desolate. The briquettes were lit in the fireplace indoors, and the temperature remained at a comfortable 20 degrees.
He tapped Erlang's legs and smoked a cigarette, and after a while he looked at the map in a daze.
Fuming said with concern: "If you are really bored, maybe you can go to the airport construction site to inspect it."
"No need, I believe in their work! To be honest, when I think of the airport, I think of leaving. The day after tomorrow, our friendly forces will all leave."
"They have completed their mission and naturally returned to their respective guerrilla zones. They have received a large amount of supplies from us. When they return to their own territory, they will be able to better fight against the invaders."
"Of course." Yang Mingzhi sighed slightly, "In order to reinforce them, we are bleeding a lot."
"Our generous reinforcements are for the victory of the Patriotic War, and they also implement our strategic guidelines. I think that when air transportation becomes normalized in the future, we will have to continue to send supplies to areas controlled by friendly forces."
Yang Mingzhi shrugged: "This is inevitable, I'm afraid they will open their mouths when the time comes. I just hope that when I am gone, you will not be too generous, and at least give our troops enough to fight a month's war.
Weapons and ammunition.”
"You'd better talk to the deputy commander about this matter."
"Him? Forget it, that man likes to drink. He drank happily with the friendly commanders, and he might have enthusiastically sent out all the catfish rocket launchers in his inventory."
At this moment, the wooden door of the office opened.
"Hey, it seems our comrade deputy commander has arrived."
Yang Mingzhi intended to talk about these things with Yevlov, but he never thought that the person coming was actually Kovpak.
A full two weeks have passed since the Battle of the Raid. During these two weeks, Kovpak, as the commander, also ate a lot. His originally thin face became rounder, and the unreliable old feeling was gone.
"Oh, it's you, Comrade Kovpak. You came to the headquarters suddenly. What's the matter?"
"Let me get straight to the point. It's about salt."
"I thought you wanted more weapon support." Yang Mingzhi breathed a sigh of relief.
"Haha, if you are willing to continue to be generous, I will accept all my troops as ordered."
"Please spare me, guard!" Yang Mingzhi quickly changed the subject, "Bring me a water glass!"
It was the afternoon of August 26th. Kovpak had just been supervising the packing of supplies and equipment by the soldiers in his camp. According to the plan, his troops would evacuate early in the morning on the 28th. Political Commissar Rudnev acted as the corps
The duty of the commander is to lead the troops back.
Therefore, the time left for the Kovpak Corps to prepare was less than forty hours.
People's greed is always insatiable. Perhaps it is the lingering sense of crisis that is causing the problem? Unlike the Gypsy and Red October brigades, the guerrilla zone of the Kovpak Corps is far away from the swamps.
, it takes at least five days of walking to communicate with each other.
If ammunition is deliberately used during combat, the ammunition supplies obtained by the soldiers can supply the troops for a long time. There is only one thing, and it is probably more precious than food and ammunition.
After drinking a cup of cold water, Kovpak felt much better. He said sincerely: "Comrade Commander, I need salt, more salt! The more, the better."
"Huh? Wait, Comrade Kovpak, after reorganization, your army has a combat strength of nearly 5,000 people. They are all selected outstanding soldiers. I remember that each soldier was assigned a kilogram of salt. The total amount is
Five tons. On this issue, we also treat the other two guerrilla groups equally. The total number of personnel reaches fifteen thousand, but we provided fifteen tons of salt! Do you know what this concept is?"
"What is the concept?"
Looking into his eyes, Yang Mingzhi understood decisively that Kovpak had no idea that the salt refining plant was producing salt at its maximum capacity. Not only them, the fertilizer plant also set aside some equipment to start salt precipitation equipment. Even the collective farms all set aside equipment to produce salt.
He used various containers, especially clay pots, to start refining salt on a small scale.
"Comrade Kovpak, to be honest, except for necessary consumption, all the refined salt output of the salt refinery during these days will be delivered to you guerrillas who are about to go back. One kilogram of salt per person, which is at least six grams per person per day.
The standard of salt is enough for a soldier to consume for half a year! If you want more salt, we...we can't provide it."
"Things...is actually like this?!"
"The commander is right." Fuming left the desk and walked over with his hands behind his back. "Our salt refining efficiency is limited. If the guerrillas stay for a few more days, of course you can take away more salt. But
Your troops will leave the day after tomorrow, and we really cannot produce a large number of experiments in a short time. Dear comrade, please tell us why you need so much salt?"
"Alas!" Kovpak stomped his feet helplessly, "Why? Of course it is for those poor civilians. Our guerrilla zone is not like a swamp that is easy to defend and difficult to attack. Our food supply in the past was
Relying on secret supplies from villages in the guerrilla zone. Now the German army has increased its management efforts, especially restricting the transportation of experiments. It is not only the life of the troops left behind that is difficult, but also the civilians."
"So you want to give some salt to the civilians?"
"Yes! Alas, my requirements are too high."
Seeing a middle-aged and elderly man lowering his proud head with regret, a sense of guilt emerged in his heart, and Yang Mingzhi suddenly softened his heart.
"How about this? I will give the salt refinery an order to give it the right to produce. All the new output will be given to you."
Kovpak raised his head suddenly: "This... this is inappropriate."
"There's nothing inappropriate. If you think you shouldn't have to eat alone, then I will divide it among three guerrilla units according to the ratio of personnel."
"If that's the case, I don't feel guilty. I don't know much about the salt industry. Now I really want to know whether those rock salt ores can be used directly as table salt. If so, I might as well take the ore away."
"This...if you insist on taking away the ore, I have no objection. Indeed, the ore itself can be used as salt."
"real?!"
"Don't be too happy. There are bitter impurities in those ores. Apart from the bad taste, they are basically harmless to humans."
"That's good! That's good! Just provide the ore directly. There should be no problem with the ore supply. The bitter feeling really doesn't matter, as long as the ore contains salt."
Yang Mingzhi thought to himself that his requirements were really low. After all, rock salt ore was already highly salty, so he could get as much as he wanted.
However, I have already explained that tonight's salt production will supply the evacuated friendly forces. As a lieutenant general commander, I should be responsible for what I said.
He saluted Kovpak: "Don't worry, your troops will return happily with a lot of salt."
When the Kovpak Corps came, the entire army was almost only equipped with bolt-action rifles. On the way back, every soldier carried a heavy bag. If a soldier marches with a load of more than 20 kilograms, his physical energy will be consumed quickly. The Corps obtained
Some carts and a hundred horses were obtained, but most of the supplies still relied on the soldiers' backpacks and shoulders.
The average weight of the soldiers in the regiment exceeds 12 kilograms. Due to Kovpak's strong request, each soldier carries an additional five kilograms of rock salt ore. Everything is for combat and life. The road back in the future is faced by everyone.
There is a huge risk of sprained feet.
Their current efforts are all worth it. The average soldier does not care about the bitterness of rock salt ore. In the past year, we have been extremely short of salt, and our requirements are really low. All officers and soldiers of the Corps will carry an additional 25 tons of rock salt ore home. Everyone
I believe that by using salt as currency, it is easier to exchange food from civilians instead of forced expropriation!
On the issue of salt distribution, the Guerrilla Republic was indeed at the same time. Each of the three guerrilla groups was allocated a hundred horses, and refined salt was also distributed on a per-person basis. Since Kovpak was allowed to leave with ore freely, for the other two troops, permission was granted
The same goes for Ling. How much ore they can take away depends on their ability.
…
On August 28, after several days of continuous improvement, Chekov claimed that he could no longer see clearly the ruts of the assault gun. This showed that the ground had been compacted hard enough. After this step, the airport was completed.
More than half.
Yang Mingzhi has not yet gone to inspect it in person. He must see it with his own eyes before sending a telegram to Moscow to confirm that the airport is completed.
The airport construction site needs to be inspected. Before that, he must first see off the friendly officers and soldiers who have worked hard and made great contributions.
Early in the morning, a group of officers of the 6th Army gathered at the entrance of the headquarters. Officials such as Sarinchkin and Lyudbalev also gathered here, as did the three guerrilla commanders.
The troops leaving will line up neatly and walk past the headquarters, then pass through the widest dirt road in the Blacksmith Village and continue to move forward until they reach Missi Ferry.
By transforming a ferry line, the Soviet army spliced together a large number of rafts made of pine wood to create a narrow pontoon bridge on the Dnieper River.
The three guerrilla groups, totaling 15,000 people, will surely arrive at the ferry before noon. With this surprise pontoon bridge and other ferry lines, it is not impossible to cross more than 10,000 people in one day.
The ground began to shake, and the bugle suddenly sounded!
Some refugees were evacuated with their musical instruments. They were considered musicians. In line with the principle of making the best use of everything, these refugees turned into the military band of the 6th Army. There were only five people in the band, one could play the violin and two
They can play the clarinet, and two of them can play the traditional Russian accordion.
What song is most suitable for the current atmosphere?
They played the famous piece "Farewell to Slavic Women", followed by "Steppe, Steppe, Steppe", "Internationale", and so on, which the Cossacks liked, and played these songs repeatedly.
People living in Blacksmith Village were under the command of the village Soviet. Thousands of people gathered on both sides of the road, especially young children. They held small flags and cheered for the soldiers. (To be continued)