red moscow

Chapter 3014

On November 27, Taiyangshan City fell.

Sokov personally led a battalion to cover the rear and block the enemy from rushing into the city.

Sokov had long possessed a set of effective tactics for urban warfare. He would have combat teams, primarily composed of anti-tank soldiers, ambush German tanks on the second floor or rooftops of buildings along the streets. When German tanks drove by, the anti-tank soldiers would immediately throw anti-tank grenades or Molotov cocktails at them. Taking advantage of the enemy's confusion, machine gunners or submachine gunners following behind the tanks would mow down the infantry. After emptying a magazine, the combat teams would immediately move to new locations to conceal themselves, patiently waiting for the opportune moment to eliminate the enemy.

The German commander had assumed that Sunhill was only a medium-sized city, and that his troops could capture it within an hour or two. However, to his surprise, the rearguard, under Sokov's command, employed guerrilla tactics to slow their advance. By dusk, the Germans had only captured half the city.

Seeing the slow advance of the German army, Sokov was in high spirits. Just as he was preparing to wait until midnight and launch a counterattack against some of the German-occupied areas under the cover of darkness, Morozova, the radio operator accompanying him, reported to him: "Comrade Brigade Commander, I have just received a telegram from the Army Group Headquarters, ordering us to immediately withdraw from Sun Mountain City and report to the Army Group Headquarters in Klyukovo."

After reading the telegram, Sokov abandoned his idea of ​​attacking the German army at night. Since Rokossovsky told him to retreat, then so be it. Anyway, he could return to Sun Mountain when the time was right.

Sokov immediately ordered his men to notify the various combat teams to gather at the October Festival Square in the south of the city, and to withdraw from the city after most of them had arrived.

When Sokov arrived at October Festival Square, he found that more than two hundred people had already gathered there.

Upon seeing Sokov's arrival, the officers and soldiers immediately surrounded him, greeting him all at once: "Comrade Brigade Commander, you've arrived!"

"You've finally arrived, Comrade Brigade Commander! We've been waiting for you for ages!"

"..."

Captain Olga, the company commander of the 3rd Company of the 2nd Battalion, approached Sokov, saluted, and said respectfully, "Comrade Brigade Commander, my company was supposed to have 110 men, but only 75 are present. When can we depart?"

"Wait a little longer." Sokov guessed that the 35 men missing from the Third Company had most likely died in battle, and he couldn't help but feel a little regretful. He said to Olga, "Let's try to get more men before we withdraw out of the city."

"The company commander of the second company was killed in battle," Olga reported to Sokov. "Now the third platoon leader has taken his place."

The company commander was killed, and the person who took his place was actually a platoon leader? Sokov asked with some surprise, "The company commander of the second company was killed, shouldn't the deputy company commander take his place? How could it be a platoon leader?"

Olga sighed softly and explained, "The Second Company's temporary command post was discovered by the enemy and besieged. After a fierce battle, all but one wounded soldier who escaped were killed, including the deputy company commander and the political deputy company commander. Therefore, the third platoon leader had to take over the company commander's duties."

Sokov and his group waited in October Square for more than half an hour, but only fifty or sixty people came to join them.

Seeing this, Olga said to Sokov, "Comrade Brigade Commander, it looks like no one else is coming. Let's move on."

Sokov quickly counted the men and found only three hundred. The other hundred or so commanders and soldiers who hadn't arrived were likely either killed or hadn't received orders and were still fighting somewhere. However, waiting any longer was clearly unrealistic. If the Germans discovered them and sent a large force, all three hundred men would likely perish. Therefore, Sokov decisively issued the order: "It's getting late. Everyone move out of the city."

As soon as the troops arrived outside the city, they saw a motorcycle with its headlights on coming towards them.

Olga immediately shouted, "Take cover! Prepare for battle!"

At his shout, the commanders and soldiers marching along the road quickly dispersed to both sides of the road and found suitable places to hide.

But just then, the motorcycle stopped, and the rider shouted loudly in their direction, "Don't shoot! We're on the same side! We're on the same side!"

Upon hearing the shouts from the other side, Sokov immediately yelled to his left and right, "Don't fire! They're our own people!"

He then handed Olga over to him and instructed her, "Captain, go and see who they are."

Olga agreed and got up to walk towards the motorcyclist.

Not long after, Olga returned with the motorcyclist and reported to Sokov, "Comrade Brigade Commander, it's the liaison officer left behind by the deputy brigade commander. He's here to meet us."

The motorcyclist approached Sokov, saluted, and said respectfully, "Comrade Brigade Commander, the Deputy Brigade Commander asked me to stay here and wait for you. He also prepared 20 trucks in the nearby forest so that you could catch up with the troops as quickly as possible."

Upon learning that 20 trucks were hidden in the nearby forest, Sokov was overjoyed, as it meant they would no longer have to march on foot. He grabbed the motorcyclist's arm and excitedly said, "Comrade soldier, where are the trucks? Take us there quickly!"

A dozen minutes later, 20 trucks full of officers and soldiers drove out of the forest one after another, heading towards Klyukovo's location.

Sitting in the driver's seat, Sokov asked the driver curiously, "Comrade driver, which unit are you from?"

“Comrade Lieutenant Colonel!” The driver glanced quickly at Sokov’s collar insignia and replied politely, “I am from the logistics transport team of the army group headquarters. Before dark, we received orders to stand by in the forest south of Sun Mountain City to prepare for the transfer of retreating troops.”

“Oh, I see.” Sokov nodded to the driver, smiling, and said, “Thank you for making this special trip.” “Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, it’s our duty.” The driver mentally organized his thoughts before replying to Sokov, “I originally thought that once we got here, we could just pick you up and leave. But when we arrived, the people who were supposed to meet us said that you were still fighting the enemy in the city, and when you would be able to withdraw was still unknown. They told us to wait patiently for you here. I thought I might have to wait here all night, but I didn’t expect you to complete your blocking mission so quickly and withdraw from the city.”

After driving for an hour, the convoy arrived at Klyukovo, where the army group headquarters was located.

Once the vehicle came to a stop, Sokov instructed Olga to gather the troops and find a sheltered place to await further orders, while he went directly to headquarters to see Rokossovsky to see if the latter would assign him any new combat missions.

As soon as Sokov entered the command post, he was spotted by Lobachev, who was sitting in a corner. Lobachev said to Rokossovsky and Malinin, who were standing at the table looking at a map, "Commander, Chief of Staff, Lieutenant Colonel Sokov is here!" After saying that, he stood up and walked towards Sokov.

Upon seeing Lobachev approaching him, Sokov immediately stood at attention and saluted him, saying, "Hello, Comrade Military Commissioner!"

"Hello, Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, we meet again!" Lobachev shook Sokov's hand and asked with concern, "I heard you personally led the troops in the city to fight a defensive battle. How are you? Were you not injured?"

"No, Comrade Military Commissioner, I am not wounded. Thank you for your concern."

Although Sokov insisted that he was not wounded, Lobachev still carefully examined the uniform and confirmed that the brown bloodstains were not left by Sokov before he was completely relieved.

Rokossovsky walked over and shook hands with Sokov, saying, "Misha, you are the brigade commander of an infantry brigade. You can completely delegate the task of leaving behind rear guard to other commanders. There is no need for you to do it personally."

Hearing Rokossovsky's seemingly reproachful but actually caring words, Sokov was deeply moved. He quickly explained, "Comrade Commander, I'm worried that some officers and soldiers haven't received the retreat order and are still fighting the enemy in the city. I'm staying behind to direct the cover mission so that I can gather the scattered troops in the city and bring them out together during the maneuvering."

"How many of you are left?"

Sokov thought for a moment and then said, "The deputy brigade commander and the chief of staff took away nearly two thousand men. As for me, I brought more than three hundred men out of the city in the end. That is to say, the infantry brigade now has a total strength of at least two thousand three hundred men."

As the group was talking, the telephone on the table rang.

Rokossovsky turned his head and saw that it was the high-frequency telephone that could connect to the outside line that was ringing. He couldn't help but frown: "It's so late, does the higher-up have some instructions to convey to us?"

Malinin reached for the receiver, listened for a moment, and then handed it to Rokossovsky: "Comrade Commander, it's a call from General Zhukov."

Seeing Rokossovsky take the microphone and hold it to his ear, Sokov unconsciously took two steps forward, wanting to hear clearly what orders Zhukov was going to give Rokossovsky so late at night.

"Koschika!" Sokov heard Zhukov's voice coming through the receiver. This voice was different from his usual deep tone; it was filled with excitement: "I have good news to tell you!"

"Good news?!" Upon hearing Zhukov's words, Rokossovsky raised his eyebrows and tentatively asked, "What good news? Is it that the higher-ups are preparing to send us a reserve force?"

"That's not it."

Rokossovsky couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed: "What is it?"

"In recognition of the bravery, tenacity, heroism, and great achievements of Colonel Beloborodov's 78th Infantry Division in the defense of Moscow, the Supreme Command is prepared to formally award them the honorary title of the 9th Guards Infantry Division."

Rokossovsky hadn't expected that the 78th Infantry Division, which had only been deployed to battle on the 17th of this month and had participated in combat for a mere ten days, would be awarded the honorary title of Guards Division by the Supreme Command. This seemed far too fast. It was with this in mind that he tentatively asked, "Comrade Zhukov, is what you're saying true?"

“Of course it’s true,” Zhukov said in an unquestionable tone. “How could I possibly joke with you about something like this?”

"But the 78th Infantry Division went from being deployed to the battle to receiving the honor of being a Guards Division in just ten days, which is a bit too fast."

Hearing Rokossovsky's words, Zhukov's tone became stern: "Yes, the 78th Infantry Division received the honorary title of Guards Division a little too quickly. But if you just think about the role this unit played on the battlefield, you'll realize that the title of Guards Division was well-deserved for them. If they hadn't broken through the battle in time, the German army could have rushed directly to Moscow along the occupied Volokolamsk-Moscow highway. It can be said that it was because they entered the battlefield in time that the German army's attempt to rush into Moscow was thwarted."

Standing to the side, Sokov listened to Rokossovsky and Zhukov's conversation and couldn't help but feel envious. His own infantry brigade had participated in many battles and achieved good results during this period, but had not won any collective honors. It would be a lie to say that he did not feel disappointed.

After Rokossovsky finished the call, he instructed Malinin, "Comrade Chief of Staff, call Colonel Beloborodov immediately and inform him that their division has been awarded the honorary title of the 9th Guards Rifle Division, so that he can be happy too."

“Yes, Commander.” Another unit has been awarded the honorary title of Guards Division. This is exciting news. Malinin said with a smile, “I will call Colonel Beloborodov immediately and tell him the good news.”

While Malinin was on the phone with Belobolodov, Rokossovsky approached Sokov. He had just noticed the disappointed look on Sokov's face when he sighed softly, patted Sokov's shoulder gently, and comforted him, saying, "Misha, I know your brigade has achieved good results in the defense of Moscow. But it's regrettable that the higher-ups haven't awarded you the honors you deserve. But don't worry, what's yours will come. Just because you haven't received any commendation now doesn't mean you won't receive it in the future."

Sokov knew very well that Rokossovsky also had many constraints. Even if he wanted to award honors to his infantry brigade, he needed Zhukov's permission before reporting it to the Supreme Command. Sokov himself had performed admirably in the defense of Sun Mountain City, and he wondered if his unit would receive a collective honor after Rokossovsky reported it to Zhukov.
"Lieutenant Colonel Sokov!" Lobachev, who also noticed Sokov's dejected expression, walked over and said to Sokov with a smile, "Your brigade performed exceptionally well in the battle to defend Sun Mountain. After discussing with the commander and chief of staff, I have decided to report your brigade's achievements to the Supreme Command. We'll see after some time whether the higher authorities will award you the appropriate honors."

Upon hearing Lobachev's words, Sokov quickly grasped his hand and said excitedly, "Comrade Military Commissioner, you are so kind. On behalf of all the officers and soldiers of the infantry brigade, I express my heartfelt gratitude to you!"

(End of this chapter)