red moscow

Chapter 3086

In the dead of night, all was quiet. Suddenly, intense and rapid gunfire erupted from the direction of the German division headquarters. This sudden sound of battle instantly roused Sokov from his deep sleep.

Sokov sat up abruptly from his cot, his eyes sharply fixed on Chief of Staff Karsokov standing by the table. He asked urgently, "Comrade Chief of Staff, what's going on? Where are the gunshots coming from?"

“It was from the direction of the German division headquarters,” Karsokov replied solemnly, his brow furrowed. “I deduce that it was very likely that our 1st Battalion was discovered by the enemy’s guards during a night operation, which led to the skirmish.”

Upon hearing this, Sokov was immediately filled with anxiety. The reason he had sent out a battalion on the outflanking mission was to cut off the German army's retreat without them noticing. If their movements were exposed and the enemy's division headquarters were to escape, his meticulously planned encirclement would be in vain. He absolutely could not allow the victory that was about to be in his grasp to slip away like this.

He didn't even have time to put on his shoes, walking barefoot quickly to the table and firmly issuing orders to Karsokov: "Immediately call Major Vasya, the commander of the Fourth Battalion, and order him to organize his troops and launch a fierce attack on the location of the German division headquarters. As long as they can quickly break through the enemy's defenses, even if the enemy tries to escape, we will have the opportunity to pursue and annihilate them!"

"Yes, Comrade Brigade Commander!" Karsokov nodded in response. "I'll contact Major Vasya right away."

However, before Karsokov could even pick up the receiver, the phone rang first—it was Major Vasya who had called after hearing the gunfire.

After confirming that the person on the phone was the Chief of Staff, Vasya said urgently, "Comrade Chief of Staff, we heard extremely intense gunfire coming from the direction of the German division headquarters. Is it possible that our troops are engaged in combat with the enemy?"

Karsokov paused for a moment, then realized that due to the need for secrecy in operations, the 1st Battalion's flanking maneuver had not been communicated to the 4th Battalion. He quickly explained, "Major Vasya, after dark, the brigade commander sent the 1st Battalion to flank the enemy, with the aim of cutting off the German retreat. The gunfire you heard should be the 1st Battalion engaging the enemy."

"I see." Vasya suddenly understood, then asked for instructions: "So what is our current action plan for the Fourth Battalion? Should we continue to hold our ground and wait for orders, or launch a preemptive attack under cover of night?"

Karsokov, not daring to make a decision on his own, immediately turned his gaze to Sokov beside him. Sokov strode forward and took the microphone: "Major Vasya, the sounds of fighting coming from the direction of the German division headquarters are basically confirmed to be the 1st Battalion engaging the enemy. Your battalion's mission now is to launch a full-scale attack on the enemy positions immediately. We must break through their defenses as quickly as possible! Only in this way, even if the enemy attempts to retreat, we can effectively pursue them."

"Understood, Comrade Brigade Commander!" Vasya replied without hesitation. "I will immediately mobilize the entire battalion and organize a strong attack to break through the German defenses in the shortest possible time!"

"Do you need artillery support?" Sokov pressed.

Vasya thought for a moment, then replied, "Not for the time being. Our battalion is equipped with enough rocket launchers to effectively strike enemy strongpoints. Moreover, nighttime artillery fire has limited visibility, and artillery support is prone to causing significant friendly fire risks."

"Alright, then I won't arrange for an artillery battalion to support you," Sokov concluded. "I will immediately order the Second Battalion to provide support at any time. If you encounter any difficulties during the battle, be sure to report to me promptly!"

"Yes, Comrade Brigade Commander!" Vasya responded loudly.

"Comrade Brigade Commander, you should put your boots on first." As soon as Sokov put down the microphone, Karsokov quickly stepped forward and handed Sokov the boots that he had placed beside his cot: "The ground is cold, and you'll easily catch a cold if you stand barefoot on the cold floor. The war is urgent now, and you can't afford to get sick."

Sokov sat on a wooden bench, bending down to put on his boots. As he tightened the laces, he instructed Karsokov beside him: "Chief of Staff, immediately relay my order: have the entire Second Battalion assemble at once. Once the Fourth Battalion successfully breaks through the enemy's forward positions, the Second Battalion must immediately follow up, rapidly expand the gains, and give the enemy no chance to breathe!"

After hearing the order, Karsokov thought for a moment and then asked, "How should the three battalions be arranged?"

Sokov, without looking up and continuing his work, replied, "The Third Battalion will remain in reserve for now, awaiting my next instructions!"

Just as Sokov finished putting on his boots, a field telephone on the table beside him suddenly rang urgently. He saw that Karsokov was using another telephone to give instructions, so he picked up the receiver and calmly replied, "This is Sokov."

A slightly tense voice came from the other end of the phone: "Comrade Brigade Commander! This is Captain Lomonsov!" Sokov paused slightly upon hearing the name, then remembered that Captain Lomonsov was the recently appointed artillery battalion commander. Because the two hadn't had much contact, he didn't immediately recognize him. He quickly composed himself and asked in a polite and calm tone, "Comrade Captain, is there some urgent matter you need to report by contacting me at this time?"

Lomonsov explained urgently, "Comrade Brigade Commander, we've heard intense gunfire and artillery fire coming from the area ahead. Has the enemy begun their attack on our positions?" He then asked for instructions, "If necessary, should our artillery open fire immediately to intercept the attacking enemy?"

Sokov immediately realized that Lomonsov had misunderstood and quickly explained, "There's no need to fire, Captain. You've misunderstood. Our positions haven't been attacked by the enemy. The gunfire you heard is actually our battalion, which has outflanked the enemy, engaging them. We don't need artillery support for now. You can stay put and wait for further orders."

Lomonsov, feeling resentful that Sokov had not assigned him any combat tasks, said, "Comrade Brigade Commander, the infantry are engaged in fierce fighting with the enemy. If our artillery cannot provide them with artillery support, we may face their complaints after the battle is over."

"Comrade Captain." Seeing Lomonsov's eagerness for battle, Sokov smiled wryly to himself. He could only patiently say, "It's not that I don't want your artillery to provide fire support for the infantry. The problem is, we only know that the area of ​​combat is near the German division headquarters, but we don't know the exact location. If we rashly open fire, the shells will either land in the open snow or hit our own men. It is precisely for this reason that I do not plan to use the artillery for the time being."

The moment the phone call ended, a telegram arrived from the army group headquarters.

The telegram was sent on the order of Chief of Staff Malinin, who was eager to find out what had happened.

After carefully reading the telegram, Karsokov looked up at Sokov and asked, "Comrade Brigade Commander, should we report the actual situation here to headquarters as it is?"

“Of course, we must report the truth,” Sokov replied firmly. “Not only must we explain what the gunfire was, but we must also report all the measures we took in response. Understand?”

"Understood!" Karsokov nodded vigorously and replied seriously, "I'll call headquarters back immediately."

The telegram had barely been sent when Deputy Brigade Commander Belkin strode in from outside, his voice filled with anxiety: "What's that gunfire outside? It sounds like it's coming from the German division headquarters. Could it be that Yefim's 1st Battalion has been discovered by the enemy during their flanking maneuver?"

"Judging from the current situation, it's very likely that the deputy brigade commander is the one in question." Sokov finished speaking and turned to Karsokov, asking, "Chief of Staff, have you made contact with Captain Yefim?"

Karsokov shook his head and replied solemnly, "Not yet. It's estimated that the troops suddenly engaged in firefight with the enemy while on the march, and there simply wasn't enough time to set up and activate the radio."

"But the battle has been going on for so long, hasn't the radio operator realized to switch on and make contact yet?"

"Comrade Chief of Staff, have our men keep calling, and do everything possible to contact Captain Yefim." After giving the order to Karsokov, Sokov turned to comfort Belkin: "Comrade Deputy Brigade Commander, don't be too anxious. The reason we can't contact Yefim and the others for the time being is either that the radio is not turned on or that it was damaged in the fierce fighting, making it impossible for them to contact us for the time being."

After a moment's thought, Belkin realized that Sokov's words made sense, but he still asked anxiously, "What should we do now? If they are really surrounded by the superior German forces, even if we want to rescue them, we may not be able to find a breakthrough."

“Don’t worry, Comrade Deputy Brigade Commander,” Karsokov interjected, speaking with certainty. “The Brigade Commander has ordered the Fourth Battalion to launch a full-scale attack, and the Second Battalion is ready to provide support at any time. As long as the Fourth Battalion can break through the enemy’s defenses as soon as possible, your concerns will be insignificant.”

"I hope so," Belkin sighed. "If the First Battalion can cut off the enemy division headquarters' retreat, then we may be able to annihilate or capture the German division headquarters, which would be a great victory."

Sitting beside him, Sokov scoffed dismissively, thinking to himself that in his previous life, he had personally captured Field Marshal Paulus, commander of the German Sixth Army, in the basement of a department store in Stalingrad. What was a mere German division commander compared to that? Capturing him was naturally a cause for celebration; even if he was lucky enough to escape from his encirclement, it was nothing extraordinary.

(End of this chapter)