red moscow

Chapter 2867 Strange Sound

The operation lasted until dawn and was still not over.

There were gunshots in the distance. Based on the direction of the sound, Sokov judged that his defense zone was attacked by the German army. Naturally, he could not stay here any longer. He could only say to Vera who had just come out of the tent to get medicine: "Vera, I have to go back to the headquarters now. If the operation is successful, remember to call me and let me know."

"Don't worry, Comrade Brigade Commander." Vera nodded and replied, "I will call you after the operation is over."

Sokov nodded to Vera, then turned and walked quickly towards the brigade headquarters.

As soon as he entered the tent, he couldn't wait to ask Karsokov: "Chief of Staff, what's the situation? Which part of our defense zone was attacked by the Germans?"

"The commander of the second battalion called and said that their defense area was under heavy enemy bombardment." Karsokov said, "It seems that the enemy will take the second battalion as the main target of attack."

"What's the situation of the other three battalions?" Sokov did not immediately comment, but continued to ask: "Did they find anything unusual about the enemy in front of their positions?"

Karsokov understood why Sokov asked this question, and quickly replied: "I have also contacted the other three battalion commanders, and no trace of the enemy was found in front of their positions."

Sokov nodded and said, "Tell them that even if they don't find any trace of the Germans, they should remain vigilant to avoid being caught off guard by the enemy."

"Okay, I'll remind them." After Karsokov said this, he couldn't help but ask about Chevaryanag: "By the way, Comrade Brigade Commander, how is Corporal Chevaryanag doing?"

"The operation is not over yet." When mentioning Chevaryag, Sokov's expression became serious: "He has dozens of wounds on his body. It is still unknown whether he can survive."

"Comrade Brigade Commander, do you think the hero who defended the position alone could really be him?"

If Sokov had to choose between Chevaryanag and Spinachsky, he would definitely choose the former without hesitation. He glanced at Belkin who was sitting opposite him and replied, "Although there is a high possibility that it is Chevaryanag himself, he is still undergoing surgery. Only after the surgery is over, we can go and ask him about the situation. The truth of the matter will then be revealed."

As they were talking, the phone on the table rang.

Karsokov thought it was a call from the front line, so he immediately grabbed the microphone and put it to his ear: "I'm Chief of Staff Karsokov!"

After listening for a moment, he handed the microphone to Sokov: "Comrade Brigade Commander, it's Comrade Military Commissar of the Army Group who called."

"Hello, Comrade Military Commissar, I am Sokov." Sokov said into the microphone: "May I ask what instructions you have?"

"Major Sokov, didn't I tell you yesterday that the superiors are going to commend the hero of your brigade?" Lobachev said with a smile on the other end of the phone, "Now that the commendation results are out, we have decided to award him the Order of the Red Banner, promote him to the rank of second lieutenant, and promote him within the army group."

When Lobachev announced the decision of the army group headquarters, Sokov was having a fierce ideological struggle in his mind. Although Chevaryanag was still being rescued, Sokov was already certain that the person who resisted the German attack alone should be Chevaryanag, not Spinachski. If he accepted the commendation from his superiors, it would be something worth boasting about that a hero appeared in his unit. But if he told the other party at this time that he was wrong and the hero was not Spinachski but someone else, he would probably be held accountable by his superiors, and the brigade commanders, including himself, would be criticized.

After Lobachev announced the headquarters' commendation decision in one breath, he heard silence on the phone. He thought there was something wrong with the phone line, so he shouted into the receiver: "Hello, hello, hello! Major Sokov, are you still there?"

"I'm here, Comrade Military Commissioner."

"Then why didn't you speak? I thought there was something wrong with the phone line."

"Comrade Military Commissar," Sokov decided to tell Lobachev the truth after repeated considerations. If Chevaryag's military exploits were real, he didn't want anyone to take credit for them. "Can the award be put on hold for now?"

Lobachev was stunned when he heard this. He thought to himself, when other troops have achieved some success, they want to publicize it all over the world. Now that the infantry brigade has such a typical example, it should be publicized even more. Why do you ask to postpone the publicity time? He asked puzzledly, "Why?"

"After I came back yesterday, I investigated and found that Spinachski might not be the real hero."

"What? Spinachski is not a real hero?" Lobachev asked sternly, "Then who is the real hero?"

"After some investigation, I found that the person who resisted the German attack alone should be Corporal Chevaryango, the deputy squad leader of the 8th squad who went missing after the battle."

"I remember that your brigade reported that after the battle, Spinachski was the only one left alive on the battlefield." Lobachev asked with some dissatisfaction, "Why did a missing Chevaryag suddenly appear? And since he is missing, how can you think he was the one holding the position?"

"Comrade Military Commissar, when I learned that Corporal Chevaryanag was missing, I arranged for the commander of the fourth battalion to lead people to search around the position." Sokov replied: "They were lucky. In the middle of the night, they found the missing Chevaryanag."

"Oh, you found him?" Lobachev asked in surprise, "How is he now?"

"Corporal Chevaryanag was wounded in more than 30 places and is still receiving emergency treatment."

"Are you really sure that the one who held the position was Chevaryag and not Spinachsky?"

"The possibility that Chevaryanag is the battle hero is far greater than that of Spinachsky." Chevaryanag is still in surgery. Sokov doesn't know whether he can survive or learn from him about the situation on the battlefield at that time. He can only answer cautiously: "But Corporal Chevaryanag is not out of danger yet. Everything can only be revealed after he wakes up. Therefore, I suggest that the time for awarding the medal be postponed."

Lobachev thought for a moment, then said, "Okay, Major Sokov, since you have doubts about this matter, then report to the headquarters after you have clarified it. I remind you that next time you report materials, you must not allow similar situations to occur again. Do you understand?"

"Don't worry, Comrade Military Commissar, this won't happen again." Sokov hastily assured Lobachev: "I promise you."

After hanging up the phone, Sokov glanced at Belkin and Karsokov, and then said, "Comrade Military Commissar called to inform us that we are going to award Spinachski a medal and promote him, but I have refused. Please postpone the medal and promotion ceremony for the time being. It will not be too late to report to your superiors after Corporal Chevaryanag wakes up and figures out what happened on the battlefield." "I have no objection." Belkin said in a hoarse voice, "Although Corporal Chevaryanag is still being rescued, I feel that I may have been wrong. I did not understand the situation clearly and hurriedly reported to my superiors, which resulted in us being in a passive position now. If the superiors want to hold them accountable, I will bear the responsibility."

"Comrade Deputy Brigade Commander," Sokov, as Belkin's superior, could not let him take the blame alone, so he said, "I am the head of the brigade. If the superior wants to hold me accountable, I will be responsible. Don't worry."

Just as Belkin was about to say something, the rumbling of artillery fire outside suddenly stopped.

"Comrade Brigade Commander," Karsokov quickly reminded Sokov, "The artillery fire outside has stopped. It looks like the enemy is preparing to launch an attack."

Sokov nodded, then picked up the phone and called the Second Battalion Command Post: "Captain Alexa? This is Sokov. I heard that the enemy's shelling has ended. What's the situation there? Has the enemy started the attack?"

"Not yet, Comrade Brigade Commander," Alexa replied, "I will report to the brigade headquarters as soon as I discover an enemy attack."

Sokov put down the phone, picked up the telescope on the table, and said to Belkin and Karsokov: "I'll go outside to take a look. Send someone to call me if there's any problem."

Coming out of the tent, Sokov entered the nearby woods, climbed up the narrow ladder fixed on the tree trunk, climbed up to the observation tower on the tree, raised the telescope and looked at the position of the Second Battalion in the distance.

Although the smoke on the position had not yet dissipated, some movements on the second battalion's position could still be seen clearly through the telescope.

As the bombardment ended, the soldiers came out of their hiding places and entered the firing positions in an orderly manner. Some soldiers who were injured in the bombardment, with the help of their comrades, moved along the trenches with difficulty, preparing to go to the medical point for treatment of their injuries. Some soldiers used engineering shovels to scoop up warm soil and put out the burning fire.

Sokov moved his gaze forward and looked towards the area where the enemy was, but it was quiet there, without any movement, and there was no sign of an attack.

Seeing this, Sokov could not help but frown slightly. The enemy bombarded the second battalion's position for more than half an hour, but after the bombardment, they did not launch an attack. What was going on? He turned the telescope to the positions of the first and third battalions. But there was still no trace of the Germans in front of the positions of these two battalions.

The results of his observation made Sokov a little confused. What was going on? It couldn't be that the German artillery carried too many shells and were just firing for fun?

Of course, this was impossible. You know, as the battle line stretched, the German army began to have difficulty in supplying troops. Their offensive against the Soviet army weakened in some areas because the weapons and ammunition needed by the front could not be delivered in time. In this case, how could they carry out aimless artillery bombardment on the positions of the Second Battalion?

Sokov put down the telescope, came down from the observation platform on the tree, and returned to the brigade headquarters.

As soon as he entered the tent, Sokov couldn't wait to say, "Damn it, it's been so long since the shelling ended, why haven't the Germans attacked yet?"

"Yes, it's quite strange." Karsokov nodded in agreement. "In addition to the Second Battalion, I also called the First and Third Battalions. They all reported that they did not find any signs of German activity in front of their positions."

"What about the Fourth Battalion?" Sokov thought that since no trace of the German army was found in front of the positions of the First, Second, and Third Battalions, the Fourth Battalion might have found something in front of its position, so he asked hurriedly, "Did they find anything?"

After Sokov's reminder, Karsokov said quickly: "I will call Major Vasya immediately and ask him about the situation there."

The call was quickly connected, and Karsokov asked straight to the point: "Major Vasya, this is Chief of Staff Karsokov. How is the situation there? Have you spotted any enemies?"

"It hasn't been found yet."

Sokov was standing next to Karsokov. He clearly heard a hint of hesitation in Vasya's tone and immediately felt something was wrong. He quickly took the microphone from Karsokov and said, "Major Vasya, this is Sokov. Is there really no movement in front of your position?"

Hearing Sokov's question, Vasya hesitated for a moment and then said slowly: "Although there is no trace of the enemy in front of my camp, a soldier reported to me that he seemed to hear some strange noises coming from the forest in the distance."

"Strange sound?" Sokov asked puzzledly: "What strange sound?"

"Maybe it's similar to the roar of a car, armored vehicle or tank engine?"

Sokov couldn't help but frown when he heard this. He said dissatisfiedly: "Comrade Major, if it was the sound of the auxiliary engine of the car, it would be understandable if we didn't hear it clearly and couldn't confirm it. But the roar of the armored vehicle and tank engine is so special. Can't your soldiers hear it clearly?"

Facing Sokov's criticism, Vasya said aggrievedly: "Comrade Brigade Commander, the nearest forest is about one kilometer away from us. In addition, when the sound appeared, the enemy's artillery was constantly bombarding the friendly positions. If someone with poor hearing is concerned, I'm afraid it would be impossible to hear the sound coming from such a distance amid the rumbling of artillery."

After listening to Vasya's explanation, Sokov realized that he had wronged him and quickly apologized: "I'm sorry, Major Vasya, I wronged you, I hope you don't mind."

"Of course I don't mind." Vasya quickly defended, "But in order to find out what's going on, I have just sent a reconnaissance team to the forest where the sound came from to find out what's going on."

Upon learning that Vasya had sent people to conduct reconnaissance, Sokov nodded with satisfaction and then instructed Vasya: "Once the scouts figure out what is going on, report to me immediately."

Seeing Sokov put down the phone, Karsokov asked eagerly: "Comrade Brigade Commander, what is the situation in the Fourth Battalion?"

"Just now, when the enemy was shelling the Second Battalion's position, a soldier with sharp ears vaguely heard strange noises coming from the forest one kilometer away from their position. He guessed that it might be a German car, armored vehicle or tank." Sokov said, "Vasya has sent out a reconnaissance team. After finding out what's going on, they will report to us immediately."

(End of this chapter)