red moscow

Chapter 3060 The Fall of a Star General

Before the men they sent out had even been gone for ten minutes, and before they had even found Dovator's command post, Sokov saw countless cavalrymen charging out of the forest again. They raised their sabers and charged toward the frozen surface of the Ruza River, preparing to launch another attack on the German positions on the opposite bank.

As soon as the cavalry charged to the riverbank, machine gun fire from the opposite bank opened fire.

As gunfire erupted, cavalrymen fell from their horses one after another. Although not everyone died on the spot, most of the wounded were trampled under the hooves of charging horses before they could even stand up. Only a lucky few at the edge of the charge escaped being trampled by the galloping horses.

The fearless cavalrymen pointed their sabers diagonally forward and charged through a hail of enemy fire. They rushed down the riverbank, onto the ice, and drew ever closer to the German positions on the opposite bank. Seeing the approaching cavalry, the Germans, in addition to the continued machine gun fire, also opened fire with rifles, submachine guns, and even pistols from their positions.

Under the intense barrage of fire, cavalrymen continued to fall from their horses. Some horses, now without their masters, continued to charge forward with the main force, while others broke away and ran to the sides. Even in the advancing ranks, warhorses continued to tumble and fall during their charge, tripping over other horses and being dragged under the hooves of the surrounding cavalry along with their riders.

Even so, the cavalry, charging at high speed, continued to advance. In just a minute or two, the Soviet cavalry had reached the middle of the Ruza River, and perhaps in another minute or two, they would be able to break into the enemy's position and then into the village ahead.

But the enemy's firepower was simply too fierce. The charging Soviet cavalry seemed to have crashed into an invisible, transparent wall, and one by one they were smashed to pieces, their heads bleeding profusely. Before long, Sokov could no longer see a single standing warhorse, and the snow-white ice of the Ruza River was stained red with blood.

Yefim stared in disbelief at the scene before him. After a long while, he said with a look of shock, "Comrade Brigade Commander, the cavalry has been completely wiped out?"

Sokov sighed softly and said, "There may be wounded, but under such heavy enemy fire, their chances of survival are very, very low."

"What's going on?" Yefim said angrily. "Didn't we say we'd launch the attack after we arrived?"

"I think the men they sent haven't found General Dovator and his men yet." After saying this, Sokov turned to look behind him, trying to see where the two 20mm quadruple anti-aircraft guns were. Don't underestimate these things just because they're not very effective against aircraft in the air; when used to deal with German strongpoints on the other side of the Ruza River, they're a game-changer.

But Sokov pessimistically discovered that the two anti-aircraft guns were still a couple hundred meters away, and at their current speed of movement, it would take at least five to ten minutes for them to barely reach their position.

Sokov began to pray silently that the cavalry would not launch another attack before his two anti-aircraft guns were in place, otherwise everything he had done would be nothing but a death sentence.

But sometimes, what you fear most is exactly what happens.

Another cavalry unit bravely charged out of the woods and into battle. But they were quickly blocked by the corpses of their fallen comrades and horses, and were forced to dismount and advance on foot. As soon as they stepped onto the frozen surface of the Ruza River, they were met with German machine gun fire.

Not on horseback, the cavalrymen, suppressed by the firepower, immediately lay down on the ice and fired back at the enemy on the opposite bank. Sokov stamped his feet in anger, cursing repeatedly, "Damn it, which idiot is commanding the troops? Didn't he see how fierce the enemy's firepower was on the other side? How dare he send his cavalry to attack the enemy without any fire support?"

But the next moment, Sokov saw through his binoculars the scene he least wanted to see: General Dovator, pistol in hand, led a group of officers and soldiers without horses out of the forest and strode toward the river.

Seeing that Dovator was only a dozen or twenty meters away from the soldiers who were pinned to the ice, he suddenly stopped walking forward. As if someone had given him a hard push, he swayed twice and fell heavily onto the snowdrift on the shore.

Yefim witnessed Dovator being shot and falling, and he couldn't help but exclaim, "My God, Comrade Brigade Commander, General Dovator seems to be wounded."

Sokov remained silent, continuing to observe the battlefield through his binoculars. He saw an officer rush towards the fallen Dovator. The machine guns on the opposite bank continued to roar, and Sokov could clearly see the exact points of impact of the bullets through the spraying snow. Just as the officer approached Dovator, his body convulsed violently as if electrocuted, and he too collapsed.

Then a colonel, clutching his chest, fell backward beside Dovator. Sokov immediately recognized the fallen colonel as Colonel Tavliev, commander of the 20th Cavalry Division.

Seeing Dovator and Tavoriev fall to the ground, both wounded by bullets, Commissar Karasov screamed and rushed over. He reached Dovator, bent down, and lifted him up. But at that moment, a series of deadly bullets struck him in the back. Karasov, still holding Dovator, spun half a circle on the spot before collapsing heavily onto the ice.

Seeing their commander and political commissar fall to the ground, nearby officers and soldiers rushed forward one after another, trying to retrieve their bodies. However, under intense enemy machine gun fire, they fell one after another beside the two corpses, quickly piling up like a small mountain. Finally, two officers crawled to General Dovator's side and, braving heavy machine gun fire, dragged him back.

"Comrade Brigade Commander!" Yefim shouted from the side, "The two 20mm anti-aircraft guns are in position and ready to fire at any time. Please give instructions!"

"Fire!" Sokov roared. "Fire at the enemy's machine gun positions, leave no one alive!"

With the order given, the 20mm quadruple anti-aircraft guns began firing. The insane barrage of shells easily shattered the tree trunks supporting the earthen fortifications, and the powerful firepower tore the machine gunners hiding inside to shreds. After destroying one machine gun emplacement, the anti-aircraft guns extended their fire to destroy the next.

The Soviet cavalry, suppressed by German machine gun fire, got up and charged on foot toward the enemy positions on the opposite bank.

"Captain Yefim!" Sokov saw that the exposed machine gun positions on the opposite bank were being destroyed by anti-aircraft gun fire, and the firepower to stop the cavalry commanders and soldiers was becoming sparse. He ordered Yefim: "Send the troops out to help the cavalry brothers and wipe out those damned Germans on the other side."

Yefim nodded, then left a few men to protect Sokov and cover the anti-aircraft guns that were firing wildly. He then personally led the soldiers of the battalion out of the forest. They quickly stepped onto the frozen river and, together with the cavalry, rushed towards the German positions on the opposite bank.

(End of this chapter)