artillery arc

Chapter 568 Pursuit
On December 12, the youth volunteer team from Badayev Village, following the instructions of the parish, crossed the frozen Valdai River with dry food they had raised on their own and set up a supply point on the main road.

The village militia acted as guards, as it was said that there were still some scattered enemy soldiers on both sides of the main road.

However, by the evening of that day, the young men had not seen the remnants of Plossom's defeated army.

Only the young men of the Abawakhan Front continued to advance forward.

All the troops were marching quickly, and when they passed by the food and water stalls set up by the young people, the soldiers just hurriedly picked up the food and water on the table and enjoyed them while running.

One young man couldn't help but ask, "Why are you in such a hurry?"

Most of the soldiers were eating and had no time to respond. Only the priest who was taking bread answered: "The enemy is running away. We are chasing them. Commander Rokossov told us to run!"

After saying this the priest also started running while eating, followed by his warriors.

Not only the soldiers were running, but also the nurses and the quartermaster who accompanied the army were running, and the lady from the cooking team was still running carrying an iron pot.

Countless troops continued to pass by the main road.

The young men of Badayev village could only look at the soldiers with envy.

Most of the young men were not yet of conscription age, but they had witnessed the cruelty of war and had buried their relatives and friends who had been killed in bombings by the Plosson Air Force. They were eager to go to the battlefield themselves and take revenge on the Plosson invaders.

----

When Eric von Shipling entered the temporary headquarters, his brows knitted together: "This is just a toilet! Do we really want to set up a headquarters in a place like this?"

The adjutant said awkwardly, "This is the best house we can find. By the way, this is not a toilet, but the main house of this family. The smell may...may be left over from not cleaning the room for too long."

Shiplin shook his head, turned around, opened the door curtain and went out to the yard: "Okay, okay, we can work in the car. The car has the temperature provided by the engine, which is better than this thatched house anyway!"

Just as he finished speaking, gunshots were heard in the falling night.

Shiplin raised his head and asked, "Where is the shooting?"

Adjutant: "West, the gunshots came from the west."

"Of course I know it came from the west. What I'm asking is how far away from us the gunshots came from, and where exactly!"

The army chief of staff said: "It sounds not far away. No, it sounds like it is near us. Someone should come to report soon--"

Before he could finish his words, dense gunfire rang out, and at this time everyone could hear that the battle was taking place nearby.

Soon, the head of the guard regiment came running over and said, "The Proson cavalry came out of nowhere and are attacking us!"

General Shiplin: "What nonsense are you talking about! Of course they came out of the snow! Rokossov has a large number of cavalry troops, including the Guards Cavalry. He sent all these easy-to-feed troops out to chase us! Organize defense quickly!"

At this time, General Shiplin heard the sound of horse hooves on the street outside.

He glanced around, and immediately jumped onto the command tank of the army group headquarters, and patted the commander on the shoulder: "Get off, I'll take this seat."

The commander got into the tank as soon as he left General Shiplin.

Just at this moment, the sound of horse hooves passed by the gate of the courtyard, and two smoking grenades were thrown into the yard.

The explosion occurred almost immediately, knocking down a large number of guards who were on guard at the door.

Shiplin ordered: "Back up, smash the wall behind, and prepare to fire at the cavalry!"

The driver immediately executed the order, and the tank reversed and smashed the thin mud wall behind it.

After leaving the yard, Shiplin continued to give orders: "Turn right 90 degrees! Aim the machine guns on the vehicle body at the cavalry in front and fire!"

The tank turned immediately, and at the same time the cavalry also discovered the tank and rushed over on horseback. The leading cavalry had already taken out Ant's incendiary bomb and lit the cloth soaked in alcohol stuffed at the head of the incendiary bomb on horseback.

The cavalry held the incendiary bombs like torches, leading their teammates to charge.

The hull machine gun opened fire.

The Ant cavalryman was shot and fell down, and the incendiary bomb in his hand shattered on the ground, turning into a large pool of fire.

The war horses behind were frightened by the flames and stopped and raised their front hooves, but they were also knocked down by machine guns.

Shiplin: "Quick! Send another tank out and block the streets on both sides back to back. Also, call the nearby troops on the radio, quick!"

At this time, the mechanic's voice came from Shiplin's headset: "General, our tanks have radios, you can give orders yourself."

"I don't know the code word today!" Shiplin cursed.

During this era, only the United States had mastered the most basic radio anti-eavesdropping and anti-interference technology. Radios in other countries had to use code words, or at least hide the unit numbers and target locations.

At this time, another tank was about to leave the yard, but it got stuck when it crashed into the wall, and its tracks hung in the air and spun wildly.

Shiplin: "Damn it, it never rains! Quickly rescue this tank! First dig up the earth wall that is stuck on it! Quick!"

At this time, Shipin heard the sound of horse hooves behind his head. He turned around and saw that it was cavalry coming from the other side of the street. Each of them was holding a lit Molotov cocktail in his hand, as if they were determined to burn the two Plossen tanks completely.

Shiplin went straight into the tank, closed the hatch, and said to the gunner: "Aim at the enemy and fire!"

Gunner: "But, General..." "Fire!" Shiplin shouted again.

The gunner fired reluctantly, but there was an armor-piercing bullet in the barrel. It bounced on the ground and flew out, flying a long distance before being detonated by the delay fuse.

Shiplin: "Why armor-piercing bullets?"

"We heard that Ant's cavalry was operating with the armored forces, so we were prepared to face the enemy's armored forces."

"Load high explosive rounds and fire when ready."

A few seconds later, the command tank's tank gun opened fire, and the shell exploded between the two troopers.

However, the command tank was a modified version of the Panzer III, and most of the Panzer III tanks provided to Shiplin's army were still using old 37mm guns.

After all, the main job of a tank commander is to command, and the artillery is not important. No one expects this thing to fight head-on with enemy tanks.

However, this 37mm gun almost killed Shiplin. The shell exploded between the two cavalrymen, and they should have been blown to pieces, but one cavalryman fell down, and the other cavalryman continued to charge, looking completely uninjured.

Shiplin got goosebumps. He didn't know what kind of fierce battles these cavalrymen had experienced to develop such a strong fighting will!
Fortunately, at this time, the machine guns of the guard regiment on the roof started firing, and the gunshots everywhere became much more frequent without people noticing.

The head of the guard regiment lay on top of the door and shouted to Shiplin: "General, don't be afraid. We have confirmed that it is only a small-scale platoon-level force. The attack will be repelled soon!"

Shiplin: "I know. But I feel the situation is not good. Send an order! The entire headquarters must leave this damn place safely and continue to advance towards Yeisk! Try to reach the Sukhayaveli River within two days!"

----

On the evening of December 12, Saint Ekaterinburg, National Radio Station.

In the main studio, Olga read the speech for the umpteenth time.

Turgenev: "Don't be nervous. I'm not asking you to recite it. Just read it aloud later."

Olga looked bitter: "I am afraid that I will not perform well in some areas and will not be able to boost the morale of the people of the country and will not be able to dampen the arrogance of the enemy."

Turgenev: "Victory will boost morale. You don't have to worry too much. Just let the people know that we have won. They will celebrate their hard-won victory on their own."

Olga nodded and asked, "Have you arranged for the exhibition of the captured marshal's baton and other items?"

Turgenev: "His Majesty Belinsky provided the cathedral managed by the church as an exhibition venue, and the captured enemy armored vehicles were parked in the courtyard of the cathedral for the public to visit."

Olga seemed very happy and asked again: "Aren't you going to exhibit the prisoners this time? Aren't you going to parade them through the streets? I think we can do it again!"

Turgenev: "The situation was urgent last year. Without some strong stimulus, many people would not have the confidence to continue the war."

"So no stimulation is needed this year?"

Turgenev: "Yes, that's why you are preparing to give a speech now."

At this time, the director's voice came from Olga's headphones: "Get ready, the broadcast will start in 30 seconds. Your Majesty, when you see me put my hand down, start reading immediately."

Olga swallowed, "Okay! I'm ready."

----

Wang Zhong looked at the time and waved his hand: "Bring the radio over. I want to listen to what His Majesty the Tsar is saying."

Popov was surprised: "You didn't know?"

Wang Zhong: "How would I know? Telepathy? I deliberately avoided suspicion yesterday."

As they were talking, a radio was brought over, and the staff officer holding the radio said, "We have already adjusted the channel in advance, all you have to do is listen."

After saying that, he put the machine on the table and pressed the switch.

The melody of "Holy War" floated out from the speakers.

Wang Zhong could feel that everyone in the headquarters stopped for a moment, but they immediately resumed working.

Suddenly, the music became quieter, and a female voice with a broadcasting tone said, "My fellow countrymen, soldiers of the Ante Army, His Majesty the Tsar will give a public speech next."

Then the rustling sound of static electricity came from the speaker, making Wang Zhong suddenly feel that the surroundings were very quiet.

The rustling was interrupted by an equally young female voice: "Eh? Can I speak now? Ah, hello, everyone. I am His Majesty the Tsar... er, I am Olga Nikolaevna Antonovna.

"I want to announce great news to the people of the whole country! The brave Abavakhan Front, under the outstanding leadership of General Rokossov, not only blocked the attack of Plosin's Sixth Army, but also launched a counterattack in one fell swoop and surrounded the Sixth Army in turn.

"Just yesterday, the Sixth Army of Plosson surrendered to General Rokossov. The commander of the army, Marshal Frederick, handed over his marshal's baton to General Rokossov..."

Wang Zhong sighed: "Your Majesty sounds like a little girl showing off her new doll."

Pavlov and Popov both laughed.

At this time, the communicator rushed in and saluted Wang Zhong: "Report! Just now on the radio, General Kirinenko reported that his vanguard attacked a place that looked like a high-level command post. The people inside have escaped on tanks, and the messenger is on the way to deliver the captured documents back to the front headquarters.

Wang Zhong: "Tell Kirinenko that he is doing a great job! Keep it up. If you encounter a unit that you cannot handle, bypass it and leave it to the mechanized units behind to handle it!"

(End of this chapter)