red moscow

Chapter 3028

"Comrade Major, I called you here because I have an important task for you to complete." Sokov didn't beat around the bush and said directly: "After discussion, in order to ensure that my brigade can quickly drive out the enemy after entering the city, we are going to send a small team into the city in advance and hide in the sewers."

After listening to Sokov's words, Vasya nodded and said generously, "Comrade Brigade Commander, please give the order. I will immediately arrange for men to infiltrate the city and lie in ambush."

“Sending too many men will easily expose our position; sending too few men won’t be very effective,” Sokov said to Vasya. “Therefore, I think it would be more appropriate for you to send two platoons of soldiers.”

"Can they carry rocket launchers?" Vasya asked, then, fearing Sokov's refusal, added, "Comrade Brigade Commander, our soldiers will inevitably encounter enemy tanks at their ambush sites. If they carry rocket launchers, they can choose to destroy them, preventing them from hindering our assault troops."

Upon learning that it was such a trivial matter, Sokov naturally did not object. Moreover, if the infiltrators were equipped with rocket launchers, their effectiveness would be no less than that of a battalion's frontal assault. So he readily agreed, "No problem, they can carry rocket launchers. It would be best if they carried more rockets, so that they could destroy more German tanks or firing positions."

After verifying a few more details with Sokov, Vasya turned and left the command post.

After Vasya left, Karsokov said with some concern, "Comrade Brigade Commander, how much of a role can two platoons of infiltrating troops play when our brigade participates in the attack? Should we add more troops? After all, the Fourth Battalion also deployed a company when we raided the city's defenders a while ago."

But his suggestion was rejected by Sokov: "Comrade Chief of Staff, the strength of the Fourth Battalion has already been weakened in the battle. If we send another company to carry out an infiltration mission, how will the remaining troops fight?"

“Didn’t they reinforce themselves with several hundred soldiers a few days ago?” Karsokov continued. “After so many days, these newly joined soldiers must have already formed combat capabilities. I don’t think that even if a company is transferred, it will not have any adverse impact on the overall combat effectiveness of the Fourth Battalion.”

“The order has been issued, and there is no need to change it.” Sokov did not want to argue about the matter any further, so he promptly changed the subject: “Comrade Chief of Staff, do we have enough weapons and ammunition to support a medium-sized battle?”

“There shouldn’t be any problem,” Karsokov replied readily. “After the higher-ups replenished our ammunition, each gun will have as many as two hundred rounds, which is more than enough to support a medium-sized battle.”

"That's good, that's good." Sokov's biggest worry at this moment was that the troops were engaged in fierce fighting with the enemy and suddenly found that they were out of bullets. How could they continue the battle then? Since each gun now had two hundred rounds of ammunition, it shouldn't be a big problem to fight for a day: "In that case, let's patiently wait for orders from our superiors and see when they plan to let us into the battlefield."

……

On the second day of fighting, the 7th and 8th Guards Divisions, along with a regiment from the 354th Infantry Division, launched repeated attacks on the enemy inside Klyukovo, but still failed to achieve the desired results. Left with no other option, the two division commanders called Rokossovsky to report that the Guards Divisions were currently unable to drive the enemy out of the city.

Upon receiving the report, Rokossovsky was furious, but he did not criticize the two division commanders. Instead, he comforted them, saying, "Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war. There are many reasons why you failed to drive the enemy out of the city, so there is no need to feel burdened. After fighting for two days, the commanders and soldiers must be very tired. Let them switch to defense on the spot, and I will send other units to continue the offensive mission."

Thus, the two Guards Divisions ceased their offensive against the German forces and switched to defense, racing against time to construct fortifications in the occupied areas in preparation for any possible German counterattack.

At the same time, Sokov received a phone call from Rokossovsky himself: "Misha, it's time for your troops to step in."

"Yes, Commander, my troops will get to the city as soon as possible."

After hanging up the phone, Sokov, somewhat agitated, instructed Karsokov: "Comrade Chief of Staff, call the four battalion commanders and tell them to assemble their troops and prepare to enter Klyukovo to participate in the battle."

Karsokov was overjoyed to learn that his troops would soon be able to enter Klyukovo and join the battle. He immediately and loudly agreed, "Yes, Comrade Brigade Commander, I will call the four battalion commanders right away and have them assemble their troops immediately."

But as soon as he picked up the microphone, he remembered something else and asked cautiously, "Comrade Brigade Commander, should we bring the artillery battalion with us when we enter the city for this operation?"

According to his ideas, when Sokov commanded his troops in urban warfare, the most common artillery tactic he used to destroy enemy firing positions was "bayonet on the cannon," which involved using artillery to fire directly at enemy firing positions from hundreds of meters away, thus clearing the way for the attacking troops.

To everyone's surprise, Sokov shook his head and said, "The artillery battalion should stay in the village. They won't participate in this battle."

Upon hearing Sokov's words, Karsokov's eyes widened in surprise. He asked, puzzled, "Comrade Brigade Commander, why is that?"

“Our troops are now equipped with rocket launchers.” Sokov naturally wouldn’t tell the other side that recapturing Klyukovo was no easy task; the Soviet and German forces had been locked in a stalemate there for half a month. While he could indeed drive the enemy out of the city in a very short time, the city would fall back into German hands once the German counterattack began. Therefore, he offered a flimsy explanation: “Rocket launchers can not only deal with enemy tanks but also destroy enemy firing positions. In comparison, artillery is rather cumbersome and inconvenient to carry.”

Karsokov actually believed such a far-fetched reason. He nodded and agreed, saying, "Comrade Brigade Commander, you are very thoughtful. With rocket launchers already in hand, there is really not much use for our soldiers carrying artillery."

In less than half an hour, the officers and soldiers of the four battalions had assembled.

Four battalion commanders came to the brigade headquarters to receive their missions, and soon a heated argument broke out over which battalion should enter the city first.

Sokov, eager to lead his troops into the city, impatiently interrupted their argument: "Alright, stop arguing, be quiet!"

Once the command post had calmed down, Sokov spoke up: "To avoid arguments about the order of attack, I've decided that we'll enter the city in order of our battalion numbers. Yefim's 1st Battalion will be the first; followed by Alexa's 2nd Battalion, Nazorov's 3rd Battalion, and Vasya's 4th Battalion." Upon learning that his unit would be the first to enter the city, Yefim's lips curled into a smile. He patted his chest and assured Sokov, "Comrade Brigade Commander, our battalion will absolutely not let you down. We will plant the red flag on the city's highest point in the shortest possible time."

“Captain Yefim,” Sokov frowned slightly and said to Yefim, “Although planting a flag on the highest point in a city signifies its occupation—a tradition passed down from the Tsarist era—what I want is to drive all the enemy out of the city and completely retake it, not just a political occupation. Do you understand?”

“Understood.” Yefim nodded and said, “I will do my best to drive the enemy out of the city.”

"And one more thing," Sokov continued, "After you enter the city, you need to send out scouts to find out the enemy's defensive deployment and to make contact with friendly forces. You've just entered the city and are unfamiliar with the environment, so if you can get cooperation from friendly forces, it will be very helpful for your subsequent operations."

After giving Yefim his instructions, Sokov gave some further instructions to the second and third battalion commanders before sending them away.

When Vasya saw that Sokov had sent the other three battalion commanders away but left him alone, he immediately guessed that the man had something to tell him. He cautiously asked Sokov, "Comrade Brigade Commander, is there anything you need to tell me?"

“Major Vasya, logically speaking, your battalion is most familiar with the city's environment, so it would be most appropriate for you to lead the charge.” Sokov, worried that Vasya might have some reservations, explained to him, “But my concern is that if your attack falters, and the other three battalions are unable to replace you, then our operation to recapture Klyukovo might fail. Therefore, I have designated your battalion as a reserve force, to be the last to enter the city, in preparation for deploying you into battle at a crucial moment.”

Vasya knew that Sokov valued him highly, so he nodded and said, "Understood, Comrade Brigade Commander. Our battalion will definitely not let you down."

After a pause, he tentatively asked, "Comrade Brigade Commander, where do you plan to command the operation?"

“Although the village is not far from the city, there are no telephone lines,” Sokov said. “If I cannot maintain constant contact with the front lines, I will not be able to keep up with the situation on the battlefield. Therefore, I plan to move the command post to the city.”

"Oh, you're going into the city too?" Vasya said, somewhat surprised. "Isn't that too dangerous?"

Sokov smiled faintly and then said, "As commanders, how can we be afraid of death? You know, many division commanders like to set up their command posts a few hundred meters away from the front line. Their purpose in doing so is twofold: first, to be able to understand the situation at the front line in a timely manner, and second, to let the officers and soldiers see that their division commander is directing the battle just a few hundred meters behind them, thereby stabilizing morale and boosting morale."

Under the cover of darkness, the troops quietly entered the city. After making contact with the 8th Guards Division, they moved to their designated starting point for the attack.

After Sokov led his brigade members into the city, he found a one-story bookstore to use as his command post. He then left Karsokov to oversee the overall situation while he and Belkin went to the headquarters of the 8th Guards Division to visit Commander Levyagin.

Upon arriving at the headquarters of the 8th Guards Division, Major General Levyagin, the division commander, and Political Commissar Yegorov were both very welcoming.

Yegorov grasped Sokov's hand and said excitedly, "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, we meet again."

“Yes,” Sokov nodded and said, “We fought side by side in the Volokolamsk region, and I even visited you and General Panfilov back then.”

Upon hearing Sokov mention Panfilov, Yegorov's expression turned solemn: "Yes, when we were chatting, the division commander even said to you: 'We are now defending Moscow side by side, and in a few years, we may be able to attack Berlin together.' I never imagined that General Panfilov would be killed just a few days later."

“Yes, it is indeed very regrettable that General Panfilov was killed,” Sokov said with a soft sigh. “But now we are fighting side by side again. If we can successfully eliminate the enemy and liberate this city, I think General Panfilov’s spirit in heaven would be gratified to see this.”

After a brief chat, Sokov explained his purpose: "Comrade Political Commissar, I've come here today to learn about the enemy's situation, which will be helpful for our operations tomorrow."

Levyagin was very generous in response to Sokov's request. He summoned the division's operations and intelligence staff and instructed them, "This is Lieutenant Colonel Sokov of the infantry brigade. His troops will take over from us tomorrow and continue the attack on the remaining enemy forces in the city. Now, give Lieutenant Colonel Sokov a detailed briefing on all the intelligence you have."

The two staff officers nodded and then began to explain the situation in Klyukovo to Sokov.

Sokov took out a pen and paper and began to carefully record what the two staff officers were saying. Occasionally, he would interrupt them to ask questions about details. After understanding what he wanted to know, he would let them continue.

After the staff officer finished explaining the situation inside the city, Levyagin said to Sokov with a bitter face, "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, my troops have been fighting in the city for two days, but we have been unable to capture the several buildings and churches occupied by the Germans. Instead, we have suffered considerable casualties. If you want to drive the enemy out of the city, the first thing you need to consider is capturing these buildings and churches to eliminate the enemy's strongpoints and make the subsequent offensive smoother."

"Comrade General!" Sokov asked the question that had been on his mind after Levyagin finished speaking: "Comrade General, could you tell me why your attack on these buildings and churches failed?" Fearing that the other party was unwilling to talk about such an embarrassing matter, he added, "Only by understanding the reasons for your failure can we avoid making similar mistakes in the next operation."

Levyagin turned to look at Yegorov, who happened to be looking at him as well. When their eyes met, they both saw the helplessness in each other's eyes.

“Alright, Lieutenant Colonel Sokov,” Levyagin said with a sigh, “since you want to know why our attack failed, I’ll tell you.”

(End of this chapter)