In this banquet hall, Yang Mingzhi attracted Zhukov's attention. There were several other people in the room.
Especially Konev!
It was only 1942, Zhukov's hair was not even bald, and Konev already had a bald look that reflected light.
Yang Mingzhi was already very clear about the images of Zhukov and Konev. On the other hand, he had no impression of Pulkaev, the other commander of the Kalinin Front.
After all, there were many famous Soviet generals who stood out in the Soviet-German War, but the most famous ones were those ten people.
Standing here, Yang Mingzhi didn't have any arrogance at all, especially after meeting Zhukov himself, who was as humble as a private soldier.
Yang Mingzhi had already started talking to Konev. Konev's words were obviously more approachable, but Yang Mingzhi's serious expression made people uncomfortable.
He quickly and passively started talking to Zhukov, just like a soldier meeting his superior, Yang Mingzhi answered Zhukov's questions mechanically. This was completely a superior's question about Xia Tian, which made Zhukov extremely dissatisfied.
"Comrade Berekov, I am not your superior, and you are not a recruit! You are a hero of the Soviet Union, I am a hero of the Soviet Union, you are a general, and I am a general. But in the final analysis, we are all Bolsheviks. Can't we calm down?
Talking to the ground?!"
"No! Comrade Zhukov." Yang Mingzhi said still seriously: "I am Belekov, commander of the 63rd Army. We belong to the Southwest Front Army. My superior is Comrade Timoshenko, and you, you are Timoshenko."
Comrade Xinge is the superior. Therefore, you are my superior."
"you……"
Yang Mingzhi's continued seriousness made Zhukov feel that the conversation was dead.
Yes! What the Chinese said is indeed correct. Zhukov shrugged: "Well, legally I am indeed your superior. You should know what we are going to do in the afternoon. It is your honor and my honor that you can participate.
"
"Thank you, Comrade General."
"Don't call me General, it seems too harsh. We are all gathered here for victory. We are Comrade Davarich Berekov. You also have an understanding of strategy and tactics. Objectively speaking, in August, everyone present
Everyone, we have fought side by side and achieved major victories. Comrades, we are gathered here not only to enhance the friendship between comrades, but also to plan the next battle. I hope to hear your unique insights, and I hope that during the meeting, you will
Be able to stand up and speak bravely.”
"this……"
Yang Mingzhi was really flattered.
Zhukov and Konev are both showing themselves to be approachable. Maybe they are showing respect for them by showing caution and seriousness, but it is a kind of disrespect?!
However, facing them...
In Yang Mingzhi's mind, Stalin was a complex person. Stalin was a politician, and sometimes resorting to conspiracy to stabilize his position or stabilize the alliance was also a necessary evil for him. Yang Mingzhi could understand Stalin, but he could not.
Accept the cruelty based on this reason.
Zhukov is not the case. In Yang Mingzhi's view, Zhukov was the Soviet Union's number one general during World War II. Then, such as Konev, Timoshenko, Vatutin, Chuikov, etc., they are all pure soldiers and resourceful.
Famous general.
Being in the company of these people is what a man should do.
Zhukov's brilliance is so dazzling! Faced with his attempt to maintain a peaceful attitude, Yang Mingzhi still needs some time to adjust his attitude and become Zhukov's "little brother" rather than a "recruit under the company commander".
.
Zhukov didn't want to continue the useless pleasantries, so he started talking about the battles that had already been fought.
"Comrade Berekov, I think with your wisdom, you should be very aware of our army's offensive posture around Vyazma."
The meeting hasn't started yet. Could it be that Zhukov already plans to elaborate on his plan in advance?
Yang Mingzhi replied seriously: "Yes, I know the current war situation, and I do have my own opinions."
Zhukov raised his head and looked at the young man in front of him with a pair of wise eyes: "We must solve the northern problem and completely annihilate the German military power in the northern battlefield. We are going to launch an offensive to solve this problem. If you can serve as the highest military commander,
How will you plan the campaign?"
"You..." Yang Mingzhi was surprised and said humbly: "My military rank is only Lieutenant General..."
"No! It's okay. This is not a formal meeting. You can say it boldly."
Look at the current situation! The two front commanders, the highest-ranking military commander, the three of them, and their entourage all looked at us with a mixture of expectation and suspicion.
Zhukov was testing General Berekov's military level.
They are pure Soviet-style soldiers. A soldier they can admire must be brave and good at fighting, as well as good at drinking.
Yang Mingzhi composed himself, how should he answer? It was really hard to say the words.
After all, Yang Mingzhi could not give up without a fight. The Mars Operation in that dimension was a failed battle. Although objectively this failure prevented the German army from rushing to the rescue of Paulus. Even so, it was still a disastrous defeat in the military sense.
After hesitating for a while, in the face of their doubts, Yang Mingzhi finally said: "Dear Comrade Zhukov, you should know that I am Chinese. There is a proverb in the far East, which is called hitting the snake seven inches. In other words, you have to hit the snake seven inches.
To kill a snake, don't fight with its head. You should focus on hitting the heart behind the snake. So, if the German army in Vyazma is the head of the snake, and Smolensk is the heart. We will focus on attacking the heart, then,
The whole head slowly dies."
To Zhukov, Berekov's metaphor sounded childish, but upon careful consideration it was very vivid.
The most important thing is that this young man talked eloquently, and his thoughts coincided with his "imagination" last night.
Stalin has not yet arrived, and Zhukov knows the leader's routine very well. After all, Stalin is over sixty years old, and it is relatively rare for a Russian to live to this age.
The leader is an old man. He has worked hard for the survival of the Soviet Union. He needs more time to rest.
Except for Stalin and Beria, all the participants were here in the afternoon.
"So, we should focus on attacking Smolensk?" Zhukov asked knowingly.
"Yes! You asked me to speak boldly, and I said that it was my idea to storm Smolensk."
Zhukov nodded, seeing uneasiness in Berekov's eyes.
So how did Yang Mingzhi feel? He estimated that Zhukov would not consider his own ideas. In this case, he had the courage to boldly say that everything was just talk on paper.
"Comrade Berekov." Zhukov tightened his eyes, "Do you know why our army did not invade the city of Smolensk in August?"
"This...I don't know."
"There are two reasons. Our army has been exhausted after hard fighting. The German army built a large number of fortifications, which effectively blocked our army's attack. Even so, our army is still close to reaching the city. It's just... just a little bit close.
"
Zhukov, he really regretted the war situation in August. The Soviet army was not afraid of fierce street fighting. Even when street fighting broke out in Smolensk, the Soviet army took advantage.
Zhukov could conclude that the Soviet army was better at street fighting than the German army. Otherwise, the street fighting in Stalingrad would not have lasted for a month. Instead, the Soviet army would backfire little by little.
So Zhukov regrets this. Now that he has a new opportunity, will he still regret receiving the goods this time? Never!
In the previously prepared document, Zhukov summarized the causes and consequences of the August battle failure.
The root cause of the army's lack of ability to attack fortresses lies in the lack of heavy weapons for attacking fortresses.
During his detailed discussion with Stalin last night, Zhukov thought of the new weapons invented by Berekov.
Now, is it possible for the Soviet army to use new weapons to assist and turn quantitative changes into qualitative changes? Zhukov is very happy to accept new weapons. Since Berekov won the title of Soviet hero by using new weapons in combat, why can't he repeat it?
What Zhukov was thinking of was the ultra-long-range "Flying Fish" rocket launcher. This rocket launcher was successfully tested in Novosibirsk and has begun production, but the production capacity is completely confidential.
In addition, Berekov used their own RPG weapons produced in the swamp to destroy all attacking German armored vehicles.
A group of militiamen whose quality is not as good as that of conscripts used new weapons to completely destroy the German tank army. If they were replaced by elite Soviet troops, wouldn't their combat effectiveness be stronger?
"After a month of tug-of-war, the German army has consolidated their defense lines. There is no conspiracy now. The general should be very clear about the current situation."
Lieutenant General Purchakov, who had listened for a long time, finally had a chance to speak. He now serves as the commander of the Kalinin Front and of course knows the situation best.
"My frontline troops are now only a hundred kilometers away from Smolensk. If there are no obstacles, the tanks will inevitably enter the city in five hours. Unfortunately, the German defensive positions are very strong."
"But this is not a reason for us to delay our attack." Zhukov said, "Our previous strategic goal was to capture the Rzhevsechovka Railway. We succeeded. According to the original plan, the next step was to liberate Vyazma.
Vyazma is a terrible place, and in the fighting around that area we have lost more than 600,000 troops this year alone."
Zhukov is absolutely right.
In the major counterattack at the beginning of the year, the Soviet army was bound to capture Rzhev and Vyazma. The Soviet army did its best to invest its troops, and a large number of cavalry from the backward era were also invested.
As a result, the Vyazma region is a huge meat grinder!
Vyazma was already poisonous, and Zhukov concluded that because the German troops were compressed in their scope of activity, they would be able to build more crazy fortifications.
Zhukov is not the kind of general who fights stupidly and commands the troops. Besides, modern wars involving millions of people basically encircle each other and use pincer offensives to make dumplings.
With the war situation like this, the strategic situation of the Soviet Union and Germany was almost semi-public. What the two sides didn't understand was basically the location and equipment logistics of each large combat unit.
The German army was unable to counterattack, so they dug deep pits to defend against the Soviet counterattack.
And German spies are by no means stupid!
Model was always dissatisfied with the current situation of the German army. He felt that he had a rope tied around his neck and a stool that was about to break on his feet.
Model believed that although the Soviet army might launch a large-scale offensive, he desperately called for reinforcements throughout September.
The Imperial Division is now under the command of Model. However, these 30,000-strong army, which pride themselves on being noble, are very opposed to Model's mobile defense strategy of breaking up into pieces.
Model felt that this was internal and external troubles. Once the Soviet army counterattacked, the Imperial Division would still be a group of masters who had their own way of doing things, and the defense line would still have to collapse?
In September, the Soviet army was fighting in the direction leading to the Vyazma area. Anyone with a discerning eye could see that Vyazma was the first point of contention.
However, the conclusive intelligence obtained by German spies showed that capturing Rzhev first, and then Velikiy Luki and Vyazma was the Soviet northern army's combat plan in the second half of 1942.
The information the spies got was absolutely correct!
Originally, Zhukov's sudden return this time was to formulate a campaign plan and complete the Soviet Union's 1942 Northern Theater Strategy.
Now, the situation has changed.
Zhukov talked for a long time, saying that the Vyazma battlefield was no less than Verdun in World War I.
Suddenly, Zhukov said: "It seems that we really need to adjust our strategy and attack Smolensk."
As soon as this statement came out, everyone was shocked.
Originally, there was almost no heated discussion when everyone got together. Although the campaign plan had not been formulated, it was actually almost completed.
The main direction of attack of the troops has actually been known for a long time. At present, it is how to deploy the positions of various units and the detailed mission plan of each unit.
Konev could not help but be surprised by Zhukov's words, "Comrade Zhukov, are we going to revise our strategy?"
Pu'erchikov of the Kalinin Front was even more worried and said: "Is your plan to storm Smolensk? If you order this, I will bravely carry out it. However, we will inevitably suffer heavy casualties! Please be sure to consider this."
"Don't we have small casualties in previous battles?" Zhukov shrugged helplessly: "It seems that I need to listen more to Comrade Berekov's ideas."
Zhukov did not immediately answer Purchakov's surprised question, nor did he mention the possibility of attacking Smolensk again.
He didn't talk about military matters anymore and said frankly that he was waiting for Stalin's visit.
However, the generals present realized that Zhukov wanted to liberate Smolensk now.
Especially Yang Mingzhi, his whole body was shaking with excitement.
It seemed that it was his irresponsible paper talk that gave Zhukov a crazy idea.
Are you going to storm Smolensk in the winter of 1942? Could it be that you gave Zhukov the courage?
In the history of another dimension, the Soviet Army's Operation Mars was a major military defeat. After several months of high-intensity fighting, the Soviet Army suffered another 500,000 casualties and 200,000 people were captured. It was a sacrifice.
Even at such a high cost, the Soviet army did not recapture Vyazma with military force, so it did not use military force to crush the German army and liberate Smolensk.
It was because of the collapse of the German army's strategy in the Don River Basin and Stalingrad that the German army had to retreat to the Kursk area. In terms of macro strategy, the Smolensk area occupied by the German army was a narrow protrusion. In order to avoid the total annihilation of the army, Model
Finally received the order to retreat. The German army almost voluntarily abandoned the position they had defended for nearly two years. Although the Soviet army achieved the ultimate strategic goal, could it be said that this was captured by the Soviet army with pure strength?
Now the situation has completely changed. Zhukov intends to attack Smolensk directly. This is like a tank hitting a steel city wall. It is a battle that is stronger than the offensive spear and the defensive shield.
Yang Mingzhi can at least be sure that no matter how the Mars operation in this plane ends, a terrible meat grinder-like battle in the north is about to happen, and he is actually involved in the direct planning of this battle.
Historical honor?
Not only that, but also a huge historical responsibility! And responsibility for the lives of millions of Soviet soldiers!