red moscow

Chapter 3088

Just forty or fifty meters from the headquarters of the German 267th Infantry Division stood a solitary wooden hut, the temporary residence of Division Commander Martinek. Despite the unusually cold weather and howling wind, the two sentries at the door stood as straight as telephone poles, steadfastly holding their posts.

Suddenly, a series of rapid and clear footsteps broke the silence from the direction of the division headquarters. The two sentries immediately became alert and reacted quickly. They took the rifles slung over their shoulders, skillfully pulled back the bolts, and steadily aimed the muzzles in the direction from which the sound came.

As the footsteps drew closer, they recognized the man—it was the division commander's adjutant. The two men immediately breathed a sigh of relief, lowered their guns, stood at attention again, straightened their backs, and gave each other a standard, respectful salute.

The adjutant strode up to the two sentries on duty and asked in a low voice with a serious expression, "Has anyone come looking for the division commander? Has anything unusual happened?"

“Reporting, Adjutant, no one!” one of the sentries replied swiftly and respectfully, “No one has approached the division commander’s quarters tonight except for you.”

After hearing the sentry's reply, the adjutant nodded slightly, then stepped forward, pushed open the door, and went straight inside.

Upon entering, he gently closed the door behind him and, without pausing, headed straight for Martinek's bedroom. By the flickering candlelight on the bedside table, he could clearly see Martinek lying in bed, snoring evenly, clearly fast asleep. Normally, the adjutant would never dare disturb his commander's rest, knowing full well that doing so would surely incur a severe reprimand. However, with the military situation urgent and the battle unpredictable, even knowing he would anger his superior, he had no choice but to steel himself and wake him.

"Commander! Wake up!" The adjutant bent down, leaned close to Martinek's ear, and called out in a loud voice, "Commander, please wake up!"

Martinek was startled awake. He opened his eyes groggily, and when he saw that it was his adjutant standing by the bed, his face immediately showed displeasure. He asked with a hint of annoyance, "What's going on? What's the matter so late?"

"Commander, the situation is extremely dire," the adjutant said urgently, his voice tinged with anxiety. "The Russians have circled around to our rear, completely cutting off our retreat. Our entire division is now surrounded by the Russians!"

Martinek was not fully conscious at this point and his reactions were somewhat slow. Upon hearing his adjutant's report, he did not immediately realize the seriousness of the situation and simply replied nonchalantly, "Don't panic. Even if the Russians have a numerical advantage, their fighting strength is far inferior to ours. With the strength of our division, we are fully capable of resisting their attack."

Seeing that Martinek did not seem to fully understand the current critical situation, the adjutant quickly raised his voice and explained urgently, "Your Excellency, the two companies of the 497th Regiment deployed on our western defensive line have been completely defeated by the Russians. Our retreat route has been cut off, and the situation is extremely dire!"

"What?! Our retreat has been cut off by the Russians?!" Martinek, who had been drowsy, was instantly jolted awake by the news, as if doused with cold water. He sat bolt upright, staring intently at his adjutant and demanding, "Is everything you're saying true? Is the information reliable?"

“Absolutely true, Your Excellency!” the adjutant replied respectfully, standing at attention. His tone was firm and heavy: “Our retreat has indeed been completely cut off by the Russians.”

Martinek stood frozen in place, as if frozen in place. He was acutely aware of the disparity in combat strength between the German and Soviet forces. Even though his 267th Division had suffered considerable losses in the fighting, they would not be at a disadvantage even when facing two Soviet divisions simultaneously. This was precisely why he could sleep soundly despite the intense night battle.

What he found even more unacceptable was that flanking maneuvers had always been a specialty of the German army. Since the outbreak of the war, the 267th Division had successfully encircled several Soviet division, corps, and even army group-level command posts using this tactic, capturing tens of thousands of Soviet officers and soldiers. He never imagined that the tables would turn, and that they themselves would be trapped in the enemy's flanking maneuvers, surrounded in a tight encirclement.

He quickly rolled out of bed, gesturing for his adjutant to help him put on his boots, and asked anxiously, "Where's the chief of staff? What is he doing? Has he taken any countermeasures?"

"His Excellency the Chief of Staff is commanding the troops in a fierce resistance at the front." The adjutant, after struggling to put one boot on Martinek, picked up the other and continued the report: "Furthermore, he has sent urgent telegrams to our friendly forces on both flanks, requesting timely assistance." Upon learning that the Chief of Staff had sent telegrams to friendly forces, a glimmer of hope ignited in Martinek's heart, and he quickly asked, "Have you received a reply? What did they say?"

The adjutant hesitated for a moment, then nodded and replied, "Yes. The 87th Infantry Division on the right flank has replied, but they said they are also tied up by the Russians and cannot come to our aid."

"And what about the 78th Infantry Division on the left flank?" Martinek pressed on, his tone tinged with a final hope: "What did they say in their reply? Is there any possibility they'll come to our aid?"

"Your Excellency, the 78th Infantry Division had not yet replied before I came here."

Martinek put on his boots and immediately got up and walked toward the door: "Let's go, let's go take a look at the division headquarters."

A few minutes later, Martinek appeared in the division headquarters.

The chief of staff, who was extremely busy, seemed to have found a pillar of support when Martinek appeared. He immediately came forward and said, "Commander, you've finally arrived! Our current situation is very precarious, and we need your advice."

"Has the 78th Infantry Division on the left flank replied?"

“No,” the chief of staff shook his head and said, “I suspect they may have been attacked by the Russians and are on their way to relocate. Their radios are not on, so we cannot contact them.”

How is the situation here?

“Very bad.” The chief of staff continued shaking his head, “The 487th Regiment, deployed on the front, is being pushed back under the Russians’ frenzied attack and is less than 500 meters from the division headquarters.”

"What?! The Russians are so close to my division headquarters?!" Martinek could no longer contain himself and shouted at the chief of staff, "Then why haven't we moved yet?!"

"Your Excellency, this is precisely why I sent my adjutant to you," the chief of staff said. "Whether the troops stay to hold their ground or choose to break out is a decision you must make."

“The immediate priority is to break out. I don’t want to be taken prisoner by the Russians,” Martinek told the chief of staff. “Let the 487th Regiment hold their ground and slow down the Russian advance. Then, the division headquarters, under the cover of the division’s direct troops, will break out to the west. As long as we can break through the Russian encirclement, we can escape safely.”

"Yes, Commander!" the chief of staff said respectfully. "I will immediately relay your order to the division headquarters to break through to the west."

(End of this chapter)