red moscow

Chapter 2910

In just a few minutes, hundreds of shells fell into the forest area where the German troops were assembled.

The dense artillery fire blew the German infantry who were waiting in the forest to attack to pieces. Even some of the tanks used to cover their attack were destroyed on the spot and burned where they were. There was even a tank whose ammunition exploded, and the flying shrapnel cut down a large number of German soldiers who were running around.

Some of the German officers and soldiers who were dazed by the artillery fire fled deep into the forest, but more of them escaped from the forest and fled in panic to the location of the Second Battalion's position.

Politik stood in the trench, looking at the fleeing German soldiers rushing towards the position, and turned to the second battalion commander Alexa next to him: "Comrade Captain, have you opened a passage in the minefield?"

Alexa immediately shook her head and said, "Comrade Colonel, after our battalion was hit by fierce artillery fire from the German army, not only were most of the fortifications destroyed, but even most of the mines in the minefield ahead have been detonated. If the enemy really rushed towards our position like this, they should be able to pass through the original minefield smoothly."

After finding out that most of the mines in the minefield were detonated by the German artillery fire, Politic suddenly felt confident. He turned around and ordered Haranchuk who was standing on the other side: "Lieutenant Colonel Haranchuk, I now order you to lead the troops to attack immediately and teach those enemies who are fleeing to us a lesson."

Haranchuk answered loudly, climbed out of the trench with his hands and feet, raised his pistol above his head, and shouted to the officers and soldiers in the trench: "Brothers of the 315th Infantry Division, for the motherland! Forward!!"

Seeing Halanchuk leading the charge, the officers and soldiers of the 315th Division in the trenches also climbed out of the trenches, holding their weapons, chests held high, and shouted as they rushed towards the oncoming enemy.

The German officers and soldiers who escaped from the forest looked at the Soviet officers and soldiers rushing towards them and wanted to turn around and run away, but it was obviously too late. They hurriedly stopped, raised their weapons, and shot at the rushing officers and soldiers.

The officers and soldiers who were charging probably didn't expect the Germans to shoot first. The soldiers at the front fell down immediately, and even Haranchuk was shot in the arm. He covered the bleeding wound with the hand holding the pistol and shouted loudly: "Shoot, shoot quickly!"

The soldiers around him who heard his shouting hurriedly slowed down their pace, raised their weapons, and shot at the enemy in front of them.

The soldier holding the rifle raised his hand and fired, then continued to move forward. After pulling the bolt to eject the shell while running, he stopped and shot at the enemy in front of him. The soldiers holding submachine guns and rotary machine guns stood in place and fired crazily at the enemy.

Soon, the battlefield was littered with the bodies of officers and soldiers from both sides, and the remaining bodies were still approaching rapidly.

When the two sides were only ten meters apart, they began throwing grenades at each other. For a moment, countless grenades were thrown like raindrops, raising walls of smoke, and the exploding shrapnel intertwined and killed soldiers on both sides.

Alexa, the second battalion commander who was on the battlefield, was stunned when he saw all this. In his impression, the infantry brigade had never fought such a battle since its establishment, killing one thousand enemies and losing eight hundred of its own. He turned his head and asked Politic: "Comrade Colonel, if we continue to fight like this, won't the casualties of the troops be too great?"

But Politic said disapprovingly: "Comrade Captain, there are always casualties in war. As long as we can destroy the enemy, it is worth it no matter how great the price we pay."

After hearing what Politic said, Alexa didn't know what to say. She could only sneak back to the command post when the other party wasn't paying attention, and report what happened here to Sokov in detail over the phone.

Sokov was shocked when he heard this and asked quickly, "Comrade Captain, how many casualties did the 315th Division have?"

"Comrade Brigade Commander, the battle is not over yet, so I cannot tell you the exact number of casualties." Alexa said, "But according to my observation, the 315th Division has suffered at least two to three hundred casualties so far."

"I understand." The corners of Sokov's mouth twitched, and then he put down the microphone in his hand.

Karsokov saw Sokov's strange expression and couldn't help asking, "Comrade Brigade Commander, what happened?"

Sokov turned his head to look at his chief of staff and said solemnly: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I may have made an irreparable mistake in asking the 315th Division to assist us in the battle."

Karsokov was shocked when he heard this and asked quickly, "Comrade Brigade Commander, what happened?"

Sokov then told Karsokov what Alexa had reported, and finally said in annoyance: "It hasn't been long since the battle started, and the 315th Infantry Division has suffered two to three hundred casualties. By the end of the battle, the number of casualties will increase."

"Comrade Brigade Commander, this may be due to different combat concepts." Karsokov comforted Sokov and said, "What we learned in the military academy before was to win by attacking and charging. The tactics used by Colonel Politic are exactly what I learned in the military academy, and it seems to be understandable."

Just as Sokov was about to say something, Morozova, who was sitting in front of the radio, suddenly shouted excitedly: "Comrade Commander, the search team is calling!"

Sokov walked quickly behind Morozova and told her, "Comrade Morozova, connect the line immediately and see if they have any important information to report."

Soon, a voice came from the headset: "Command! Command!! This is the search team, please answer if you hear me! Please answer if you hear me!"

Morozova turned her head and glanced at Sokov. Seeing him nod at her, she said loudly into the microphone: "This is the headquarters, this is the headquarters, please speak!"

According to formal regulations, radio stations should use codes and secret phrases when conducting direct communications, rather than speaking plain language so blatantly.

Zhukov's voice soon came through the headset: "Is this Comrade Morozova? I'm Second Lieutenant Zhukov. Can I have the brigade commander speak?"

Sokov put on his headphones, took the transmitter from Morozova, and said loudly: "I am Sokov! Lieutenant Zhukov, do you have anything to report to me?"

"Yes, Comrade Brigade Commander." Zhu Kewen reported excitedly: "Under the guidance of Comrade Khabarov, the search team successfully discovered a hidden arsenal. The ammunition stored in it is enough to equip an infantry division."

Upon learning that they had found an arsenal, Sokov smiled brightly. He remembered that in order to drive the enemy out of the forest, the Second Artillery Battalion had already used up all its ammunition. If it could not replenish it in time, then in the next battle, the Second Artillery Battalion would have to watch its comrades in the First Artillery Battalion attack the enemy. So he asked tentatively, "Do you have any ammunition?"

"Well, I didn't see that." Zhu Kewen asked in confusion: "Comrade Brigade Commander, why are you asking about the shells?"

"The Second Artillery Battalion has run out of ammunition. If they can't get a replenishment, the heavy artillery they have will become useless."

"Comrade Brigade Commander, I'm very sorry, but we have indeed found no artillery shells in the arsenal we have discovered so far." "What about Anton, where is he?" Sokov asked bluntly.

"He's not here."

"No, where did he go?"

"Comrade Brigade Commander, the situation is like this." Zhukov explained to Sokov: "After we found this hidden arsenal, Comrade Khabarov said that there seemed to be another one nearby, so he took half of his people to look for it. And I, after completing a general inspection of the arsenal, immediately continued to contact you via radio."

"I see." Sokov then asked, "Where is the arsenal you found? I will immediately send someone to retrieve the weapons and ammunition."

"It's about five kilometers away from the brigade headquarters," Zhu Kewen said, "Comrade Brigade Commander, I will report the specific coordinates to you right away..."

"Wait a minute." Sokov thought that Zhukov and his men were only five kilometers away from the brigade headquarters, and worried that the conversation would be eavesdropped by the Germans, so he quickly stopped him from continuing: "We are talking in plain language, which is not safe. In order to prevent being eavesdropped by the Germans, you'd better send someone back to the brigade headquarters to report the specific location. Do you understand?"

"Okay, Comrade Brigade Commander," Zhu Kewen said, "I will send a soldier back to report to you immediately."

Half an hour later, when Politic was calling Sokov to tell him about the battle, a voice came from the door. Karsokov immediately said to the door, "Come in!"

Soon, Chulsin walked in from outside.

After he entered the tent, he raised his hand to salute Sokov and Karsokov, and said respectfully: "Comrade Brigade Commander, Comrade Chief of Staff. Lieutenant Zhukov sent me back to report the exact location of the arsenal to you."

Karsokov glanced at Sokov, who was still on the phone, and said to Chulsin, "Tell me, where is the arsenal?"

Churxin stared at the map for a while, then pointed to a location and said in a positive tone: "Comrade Chief of Staff, it's here!"

"How much ammunition is stored in the armory?"

"According to Lieutenant Zhu Kewen, it can at least equip a fully staffed infantry division."

"you sure?"

"Comrade Chief of Staff," Chulxin explained when he saw Karsokov question his report, "The arsenal is a concrete building buried underground. It's obvious that it took a lot of effort to build. I went in with Lieutenant Zhukov and felt that the equipment for a division was a bit conservative."

After Sokov finished the call, he happened to hear what Chulxin said next, so he ordered Karsokov: "Chief of Staff, call the quartermaster and ask him to lead the convoy with Chulxin to the location of the arsenal and transport the weapons and equipment and various supplies inside to replenish the troops in time for the consumption in the battle."

"Okay, Comrade Brigade Commander, I'll call Captain Popov right away."

After Karsokov finished the call, he said to Sokov, "Comrade Commander, I immediately informed Captain Popov of the situation. Now, can Comrade Chulsin go over and act as a guide for Captain Popov and his men?"

"Of course, of course." Sokov readily agreed to Karsokov's proposal.

After Chulsin left, Sokov began to tell Karsokov about the conversation with Politic: "Colonel Politic just said on the phone that their division suffered nearly 700 casualties, including more than 230 deaths."

Karsokov was shocked when he heard this: "Ah, so many casualties?"

"Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff." Sokov nodded and said seriously, "It was mainly because of improper use of tactics and a head-on confrontation with the enemy that resulted in unnecessary casualties."

"As a result, the 315th Infantry Division may not be able to participate in the next battle for a long time."

"That's right, Comrade Chief of Staff, you are right." Sokov agreed with Karsokov's statement: "After today's battle, they only have more than 2,000 people left, and the officers and soldiers have been exhausted after a long battle and can't continue fighting. I believe they need at least three to six months of rest and replenishment before they can regain their combat effectiveness."

"What a pity," Karsokov said regretfully. "If our superiors transfer them away, it will be a big loss for us."

Sokov raised his hand to check the time and said, "It's still two hours until dark, but I don't think there will be any more fighting. I'm going to go to the army headquarters now to see what the commander wants to talk to me about."

"Comrade Brigade Commander, you can go there without any worries," Karsokov said. "I will take care of the brigade's affairs. You don't have to worry."

After handing the work over to Karsokov, Sokov took a few guards and drove to the army headquarters.

When Sokov walked into the army headquarters, Rokossovsky was stunned. He turned his head and looked out the window. Seeing that it was not dark yet, he asked in surprise: "Misha, didn't I tell you to come after dark? Why are you here so early?"

"The enemy has stopped attacking us, and it seems that they will not launch any new attacks today." Sokov briefly explained to Rokossovsky, and then explained his purpose: "I thought there was nothing serious, so I came here early to see what you wanted to talk to me about."

Before Rokossovsky could speak, Malinin interrupted and said, "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, according to what I know, you used artillery to bombard the enemy gathered in the forest in front of your position, and Colonel Politic's 315th Infantry Division launched a frontal attack on this enemy. Is that true?"

Sokov remembered that he had not reported this to the headquarters, which meant that Malinin had learned about it from other sources. He did not hide it, but nodded and said in a positive tone: "Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff, I did ask Colonel Politik's troops to assist us in attacking the enemy in front of the second battalion's position."

Hearing Sokov's words, Rokossovsky couldn't help but frown. He didn't expect Sokov to mobilize the troops that were about to retreat for rest and replenishment without asking for his permission. He asked in an unhappy tone: "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, you mobilized friendly troops to counterattack the enemy. Why didn't you report such an important matter to the army headquarters?"

(End of this chapter)