red moscow

Chapter 2921

"Comrade Brigade Commander," Karsokov reminded Sokov, "The garrison of the 315th Division is still some distance away from the defense zone of the 1073rd Regiment. If we ask the officers and soldiers to run there, firstly, it will waste time, and secondly, after arriving at the place, I'm afraid everyone's physical strength will be greatly depleted. I'm afraid it will be difficult for them to immediately engage in battle."

"So do you have any good suggestions?"

"We will allocate all the cars in the brigade to them," Karsokov said. "Although there is no decent road leading to the 1073rd Regiment, it is faster to take a car than to run on foot. This way, when the soldiers arrive at their destination, they can immediately join the battle in high spirits."

"I think it's okay." Sokov agreed with the other party's suggestion: "Comrade Chief of Staff, you can arrange this matter."

The 315th Division had just completed assembly, and when Politic was about to give the order to move out, he saw a convoy appear nearby.

"Comrade, what's going on?" Seeing the sudden appearance of the convoy, Haranchuk asked in surprise, "Where did this convoy come from?"

"I don't know either." Politik shook his head, and then said to Haranchuk, "Let's go and see what's going on with this convoy."

At the front of the convoy was a jeep, which stopped not far from Politic and Haranchuk.

As soon as the car stopped, an officer whom both of them knew got out from the passenger side.

After seeing this man, Politik and Haranchuk looked at each other and said the same name at the same time: "It's Captain Popov, the quartermaster."

"Hello, two commanders." Popov came up to the two men, raised his hand to salute them, and said politely: "The brigade commander said that you are going to reinforce the defense zone of the 107th Regiment, so he asked me to take the convoy to take you there."

After figuring out what was going on, a smile appeared on Politic's face. "It turns out that this convoy was sent by Lieutenant Colonel Sokov. Comrade Captain, when you go back later, please convey my gratitude to your brigade commander for providing us with such a good means of transportation."

The convoy stopped not far from the queue. As the rear compartment barrier was lowered, the soldiers of the 315th Division began to board the vehicles in an orderly manner under the orders of their respective commanders.

After all the officers and soldiers were on board, the convoy drove along a dirt road in a nearby forest and shakily headed towards the defense zone of the 1073rd Regiment.

On the way, Politik, who was sitting in the back seat of the jeep, asked Popov, who was sitting in the co-pilot seat: "Comrade Captain, how long will it take us to reach the defense zone of the 107th Regiment?"

Popov half turned around and reported to Politik: "Comrade Colonel, if there are no accidents along the way, we can reach our destination in 20 minutes at most."

"That's pretty fast." Politik turned to Haranchuk and said, "Haranchuk, according to the original plan, we can reach the defense zone of the 1073rd Regiment after a -minute forced march. However, the soldiers will definitely be exhausted after running around, and they need to rest for a while before they can go into battle. Now that we have trucks to travel with, we can go into battle immediately after arriving at our destination."

"Yes." Haranchuk glanced at Popov and nodded, saying, "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov is very thoughtful." He paused for a moment and asked curiously, "By the way, in addition to intercepting the enemy's artillery fire and providing us with transportation, did Lieutenant Colonel Sokov take any other measures?"

"I'm sorry, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I don't know." Hearing this question from Halanchuk, Popov shook his head and replied with a wry smile: "I am just a quartermaster and have no right to ask about the combat deployment of the brigade. If you ask me how much combat supplies the troops have, I can still give you accurate data, but when it comes to what action the brigade commander will take next, I really don't know."

"Okay, Haranchuk, don't embarrass Captain Popov." Politik raised his hand to interrupt Haranchuk's next words, and then continued to ask Popov: "Comrade Captain, where are you going to let my troops get off?"

"Comrade Colonel, when the chief of staff conveyed the order to me, he said that the enemy's tanks and infantry had already rushed into the position of the 1073rd Regiment." Popov explained to Politik: "In order to avoid breaking into the battlefield of the battle and causing unnecessary casualties to the soldiers, I can only let you get off the car a few hundred meters away from the position. In this way, you can complete the assembly of the troops first, and then rush over to fight the enemy."

After hearing this, Politic didn't say anything, but just nodded to show that he approved of this arrangement.

Ten minutes later, the convoy arrived a few hundred meters away from the position of the 1073rd Regiment.

From here, you can clearly see the enemy and our own side fighting inside and outside the trenches ahead. A little further away is the area covered by artillery fire, where from time to time there are shattered weapon parts or limbs thrown high into the air by the blast.

Seeing this, Popov quickly ordered the driver to stop the car: "Stop, stop quickly!"

As the jeep stopped, the trucks following closely behind also stopped one after another.

Haranchuk opened the door and jumped out of the car. He strode to the back, waving his uninjured arm and shouting at the top of his voice: "Everyone get out of the car immediately and gather beside the car! I repeat, everyone get out of the car and gather beside the car!"

Politik leaned forward slightly and said to Popov: "Comrade Captain, after all my men get off the car, you will immediately lead the convoy away!" After that, he pushed open the door on the other side and got out of the car.

The officers and soldiers of the 315th Division jumped out of the carriage and quickly lined up beside the truck according to the orders of their respective commanders.

Politik walked up to Haranchuk and said loudly, "Haranchuk, the battle in the front is very fierce. Order the troops to rush over to reinforce in company units. They must help the friendly forces eliminate the enemies who broke into our defense line in the shortest possible time."

As the order was issued, the officers and soldiers of the 315th Division rushed quickly to the position where the fierce fighting was taking place in company units.

Popov led the convoy back. When he passed by Politik, he saluted him through the car window: "Comrade Colonel, good luck to you!"

Due to the artillery fire of the infantry brigade, the enemy attacking the 1073rd Regiment position was divided into two sections. Therefore, the German infantry who entered the Soviet position had long been isolated as the accompanying attacking tanks were destroyed. At this moment, seeing thousands of Soviet troops rushing up, they immediately lost their composure.

They wanted to turn around and run back, but the road behind them was blocked by Soviet artillery fire. They had no choice but to continue fighting, hoping that the Soviet artillery fire would stop soon so that their follow-up troops could rush up and they would have a chance of survival.

But what the Germans did not expect was that just as the Soviet artillery fire stopped, a Soviet troop rushed out from the flank and defeated the troops that were trying to come to reinforce. The German officers and soldiers who were fighting stubbornly in the fortifications saw that the follow-up troops were repelled and they were surrounded by the Soviet army with a numerical advantage. They knew that if they continued to fight, they would only die. So some German soldiers who were more active threw away their weapons and raised their hands to surrender to the Soviet army that rushed up.

As long as one person surrendered on the battlefield, others would follow suit, throwing away their weapons and raising their hands in surrender. Soon, more than 50 German officers and soldiers trapped in the trenches became prisoners of the Soviet army.

After the battle, when Politik was talking to the deputy commander of the 1073rd Regiment, Haranchuk came over and asked curiously: "Comrade Division Commander, are the troops that just rushed up from the enemy's flank also from the 1073rd Regiment?"

Politic did not answer, but turned his gaze to the deputy commander of the 1073rd Regiment.

Unexpectedly, the deputy regiment commander shook his head and said, "Comrade Colonel, that is not our unit. If I am not mistaken, it should be the friendly forces on the left wing." After saying this, he called a soldier next to him and ordered him to call the commander of that unit.

Soon, the soldier came over with a captain and several soldiers.

"Comrade Captain!" Politic asked the captain, "What's your name, and which unit are you from?"

"Report to Comrade Colonel." Nazorov didn't know Politik and thought he was the commander of the 1073rd Regiment. He quickly raised his hand to salute him and reported respectfully, "I am Captain Nazorov, the commander of the rd Battalion of the Infantry Brigade. I am here to rescue your regiment on the orders of the brigade commander."

"Captain Nazorov, you are wrong." Politik pointed at the deputy commander and said, "This is the deputy commander of the 1073rd Regiment. I am Colonel Politik, the commander of the 315th Division. I am also ordered to come to the rescue."

The deputy regiment commander stepped forward and shook Nazorov's hand, saying in a grateful tone: "Comrade Captain, thank you for coming to support us in time and defeating the German follow-up troops. Otherwise, the battle would have lasted longer."

After chatting with the deputy commander for a while, Nazorov said, "Comrade Deputy Commander, our battalion's mission has been completed. We need to return to our defense zone now. Can you allow me to leave?"

"Of course you allow it!" The deputy regiment commander said with a smile: "Comrade Captain, please convey my gratitude to your brigade commander when you return."

After Nazorov and the officers and soldiers of the Third Battalion left, the deputy regiment commander said to Politic: "Comrade Colonel, since the battle is over, can you come with me to the regiment command post? I want to report the situation here to the division headquarters."

"Of course, we should report the situation here to our superiors." After calling Haranchuk, Politik said to the deputy commander, "Comrade Deputy Commander, you lead the way."

After arriving at the regimental command post, the deputy regimental commander contacted the division headquarters by phone and reported the battle situation to Panfilov.

After listening to the deputy commander's report, Panfilov asked cautiously, "Is Colonel Politic of the 315th Division still here?"

"Yes, Comrade Division Commander." The deputy regiment commander quickly replied, "He is right beside me now. Do you want to say a few words to him?"

"Of course." Panfilov gave the deputy commander a positive answer: "Please give the microphone to Colonel Politic. I want to talk to him."

"Hello, General Panfilov." Politik took the microphone: "I am Colonel Politik, the commander of the 315th Division."

"Hello, Colonel Politic," Panfilov said politely, "Nice to meet you, thank you for bringing your troops to support us."

"Comrade General, if you want to thank someone, you should thank General Rokossovsky. We came here to reinforce him on his orders."

Panfilov chuckled twice and continued, "Comrade Colonel, you may not know that my defense zone was attacked by the German army in an all-out manner, and fighting was taking place almost everywhere. That is why when I learned that the situation in the 1073rd Regiment's defense zone had deteriorated, I could not spare any troops to reinforce it. Fortunately, you came with your troops and rescued us, allowing us to stabilize our defense line and prevent the enemy from passing through our position."

While the 1073rd Regiment's positions were still cleaning up the battlefield, Sokov and Karsokov already knew the outcome of the battle.

"Thank God, the timely appearance of the 315th Division crushed the enemy's attempt to break through the defense line of the 1073rd Regiment," Karsokov said with relief.

"Comrade Chief of Staff, the 1073rd Regiment was able to hold its position, in addition to the timely reinforcement of the 315th Division, of course it had a lot to do with it." Sokov said, "But our brigade also made a great contribution. First, we used artillery fire to cut the enemy attacking the friendly positions into two parts, making it impossible for them to respond to each other. After the shelling ended, the third battalion launched a charge in time and defeated the German follow-up troops, making the enemy who broke into the 1073rd Regiment's position isolated and forced them to stop resisting."

While Sokov was speaking, Rokossovsky called: "Misha, I have received a call from General Panfilov, saying that the enemy who broke into the position of the 1073rd Regiment has been completely wiped out. You and Colonel Politik are both great. It is because of your concerted efforts that we can stabilize the existing defense line."

Hearing what Rokossovsky said, Sokov was muttering in his heart: If he always chooses to defend, even if he repel the enemy's attack once or twice, the defense line will be breached sooner or later. It seems that he needs to make plans early, otherwise when the entire 16th Army retreats, he will be left with a poorly positioned defense zone, and he will suffer a loss.

Rokossovsky talked for a while, and suddenly realized that Sokov had not spoken, so he couldn't help but ask curiously: "Misha, why are you silent? What are you thinking about?"

"Comrade Commander, I'm thinking about a problem." Sokov hesitated for a moment, and decided to tell Rokossovsky what he was thinking: "Although we repelled the German attack today and crushed their plot to break through the friendly defense line. But the enemy will definitely not be reconciled to defeat and will definitely continue to launch new attacks. Our existing defense line may be able to block the enemy's attack once, twice, or even ten or twenty times. But if the Germans continue to attack, do you think we can still hold on?"

Faced with Sokov's questions, Rokossovsky remained silent.

After a long while, he said in a slightly hoarse voice: "You are right, Misha. If the Germans continue to attack relentlessly, our defense line will be breached sooner or later. If that day really comes, we can only choose to retreat and retreat to a suitable location to rebuild new defenses."

"So where do you think our new defense area is?"

"Lieutenant Colonel Sokov!" Hearing Sokov's question, Rokossovsky's tone suddenly became stern: "Our officers and soldiers will try their best to defend the existing positions. If you consider where to build new defenses too early, it will definitely affect the morale of the troops. Don't say such things casually in the future."

(End of this chapter)