Red Moscow

"According to the original plan, move forward without giving the Germans any chance to breathe!" Before Sidolin could speak, Sokov said first: "Don't forget, our attack tomorrow will be supported by the air force. If the Germans wanted to attack us from the flank, they would definitely pay huge casualties."

   "Misha, since you said that, I feel more at ease." Lunev said, "I trust your vision."

Just when it was agreed to continue to advance deep into the German defense according to the original plan, Sokov suddenly saw the director of reconnaissance running in, frowned slightly, and asked: "Comrade director, what is it?" What alarmed you so much?"

   "Report to Comrade Commander," the chief of reconnaissance came to Sokov and raised his hand to salute, and replied in a panic: "My scouts have just sent back the latest information. They have already figured out the number of the German army that set up the ambush."

  Sokov asked casually: "Oh, which German unit made you lose your composure?"

  "Grossdeutschland Panzer Army!" The head of the reconnaissance replied hastily: "It's the Grossdeutschland Panzer Army!"

  Everyone present couldn’t help but change their faces when they heard what the reconnaissance director said. Only Lunev, who had just arrived, asked with a blank face: "What is the origin of the Greater German Panzer Army? Is it very powerful?"

"That's right, Comrade Military Commissioner, this unit is indeed very powerful." Pornegerin said with a solemn expression: "Although it belongs to the Wehrmacht, its combat effectiveness is comparable to that of the German Army's most powerful Banner Guard Division, Skeleton Division, Imperial Division and Wehrmacht Division." The combat power of the capital is comparable, and it belongs to the number one trump card elite. In the case of equal strength, no army in our army is its opponent."

   But Lunev obviously didn't know about this unit, so he continued to ask: "I've only heard of the Grossdeutschland Division, what does it have to do with this unit?"

"Comrade Military Commissar, let me explain to you." Sokov said: "In November 1944, the Grossdeutschland Division withdrew to East Prussia for rest, and some new troops were assigned to the division. was expanded enough to form another division. Because of the excess troops, the division was expanded into the Grossdeutschland Panzer Corps, with the Grossdeutschland Panzergrenadier Division and the Brandenburg Panzergrenadier Division."

"I really didn't expect that the troops that were going to ambush our army were actually the armored troops of the Grossdeutschland Division." Lunev said with lingering fear: "If our scouts hadn't discovered their whereabouts in advance, after the battle started during the day, this A flank assault by an armored force could well overwhelm our attacking forces."

"But don't worry now." Sokov said: "Comrade Marshal promised that before the offensive begins, the air force will be dispatched to carry out intensive bombing of the area where the armored troops are buried, even if the German armored troops are all equipped with Tigers." Tanks cannot escape the fate of being wiped out."

   Said that he was not worried, but Sukov still had some headaches when he thought of the heavy armored battalion under the Grossdeutschland Division. The Tiger tanks equipped by this battalion were the nemesis of T-34 and JS-2 tanks. If the bombing is not thorough, and a few fish that slip through the net escape, and encounter their own tank brigade on the battlefield, I am afraid it will bring a lot of losses to themselves.

  Thinking of this, he felt that he should call Rokossovsky, report the matter to him, and request the Air Force to carry out more intense bombing of the German armored ambush area to completely destroy the German heavy armored battalion.

But when Sokov mentioned the matter, Lunev said disapprovingly: "Misha, there are only a few dozen tanks in a single heavy armored battalion. After being bombed by our army, there may not be a few left. When they escape On the field, our tank brigade just picked them up."

"Comrade Military Commissar, don't take it lightly." Sokov said to Lunev: "As far as I know, in yesterday's battle, a tank unit of the 2nd Army assaulted the 507th Heavy Armored Battalion of the German Army. Yes, after a fierce battle, our army lost more than 20 JS-2 heavy tanks, but the Germans did not lose a single one."

   "Ah, we lost more than 20 heavy tanks, but the enemy didn't lose a single one?" Lunev asked in surprise, "Is this true?"

"Of course it is true." Sokov gave him an affirmative answer: "The German 507th Heavy Armored Battalion is equipped with a large number of Tiger tanks. It is a strong enemy of our army. We must not take it lightly. In the battle report, it appeared that a large number of tanks of the 48th Army were destroyed by German Tiger tanks."

  Sokov connected the front army headquarters, and Rokossovsky, who was about to lie down and rest for a while, felt a little strange when he heard that Sokov was looking for him. He came to the table in his military overcoat and picked up the microphone on top: "Misha, what do you want?"

"Comrade Marshal, I just got the latest information from the scouts behind the enemy." Sokov didn't want to delay Rokossovsky for too long, so he made a long story short: "The nearby German armored units are preparing to attack our army. In the units of the Greater German Panzer Army, there are also many Tiger tanks."

   "What, the troops of the Greater German Panzer Army are equipped with a large number of Tiger tanks?" Rokossovsky asked in surprise, "Is the news you said reliable?"

   "Totally reliable, Comrade Marshal." Sokov said: "This is the intelligence that the scouts just sent back not long ago. I think it is true and credible."

  "The German Tiger tanks are too much of a threat to our tanks. It seems that to increase the bombing of the area, we must destroy all the German tanks at the ambush site to avoid posing a threat to your attack."

"That's right, Comrade Marshal, that's what it means." Seeing that Rokossovsky understood his intentions, Sokov said with relief: "As long as the German heavy armor battalion is destroyed, then we will be able to attack in the next attack." Only in this way can it go smoothly and at the same time minimize the casualties of the troops.”

Rokossovsky raised his hand to look at the time, and then said into the microphone: "Misha, it's getting late, you should go to bed early. When the sun rises, you still have to command the battle. Don't be sluggish then. If something goes wrong, there can be serious consequences."

   "Okay, Comrade Marshal, I'll take a rest right away." Before putting down the phone, Sokov said one last sentence: "Sorry to disturb your rest, you should go to rest earlier."

  After putting down the phone, Sokov said to everyone: "Commanders, there are still a few hours before dawn, everyone should take the time to rest. When the battle starts during the day, I just want to sleep, and I don't have time."

   Fortunately, the headquarters is relatively spacious, and there are five or six camp beds near the wall, which were originally used for the staff officers to rest. But since the main commanders of the group army are here, these camp beds are naturally used by them.

   But before dawn, Sidolin got up, stood at the table and made a few phone calls to learn about the situation of the various troops and prepare for the upcoming attack.

  As soon as the hour hand pointed to eight o'clock, the Air Force's bomber formation bombarded the woods where the German army was ambushing, and immediately blew up the woods into a sea of ​​flames. The German tank soldiers were sleeping in the tanks. They never dreamed that the Soviet bombers would bomb their hiding places just after dawn. Many tank soldiers were burned alive in the tanks before they could escape.

This sudden bombing destroyed the German commander's battle plan. In a hurry, he had no way to dispatch troops from other places to attack the flank of the 48th Army, so that the 48th Army started a new round of offensive. With a devastating momentum, they broke through the German defense lines one after another.

However, before the official offensive started, the division commanders received a call from Sokov himself, asking them to slow down the attack speed during the offensive today, occupy one place and consolidate one place, and be prepared to deal with the German counterattack .

When Lunev heard Sokov's order, he couldn't help saying in surprise: "Misha, yesterday I said to slow down the attack speed of the troops so that the troops on the left and right flanks could follow up in time, but you objected. You said this would give the Germans enough time to fortify their defenses."

"That's right, that's exactly what I said." Sokov explained: "The slowing down of the attack speed I said was for yesterday's battle. You know, yesterday five infantry divisions and two infantry brigades, using Alternate offensives, quickly advancing deep into the German defenses, did not have time to consolidate the occupied areas.

  Yesterday, the enemy was beaten by us. They lost a unified command, and many troops lost their organizational structure. Naturally, they have little combat effectiveness. But after a night of rest, they must have made some adjustments. If we still charge forward regardless of what we did yesterday, we are likely to be attacked by the Germans from the flank. Because of this, I ordered the division commanders to leave enough troops to consolidate each place they occupy. Even if we encounter a counterattack by the German army, we can still rely on the terrain to fight back and forth to slow down the advance speed of the German army. "

   "Misha, you are still thoughtful." Lunev said with a smile: "Tell me, how far can our troops advance today?"

"Conservatively estimated, it should be able to advance about ten kilometers." Considering the ferocious offensive yesterday, the troops advanced very fast, but today's German resistance should be very strong. Just to be on the safe side, Sokov said cautiously: "This should be The best result we could have had today."

   "Comrade Commander, call." Sidolin said to Sokov: "It's General Onuprienko, commander of the 6th Guards Division."

   "Hello, Comrade General." Sokov took the microphone and asked, "Do you have anything to do?"

"Comrade Commander," Onuprienko's voice was a little excited: "Yesterday, the main force of the group army rushed into the depths of the German defense. Only our division stood by and watched the excitement. Let's see if we can join the battle today ?”

"No, General Onuprienko, absolutely not." Sokov said seriously: "The defense of Pultusk town is also very important, if your division goes to the front to participate in the battle, then who will protect the town? You know, now that I have only one infantry brigade in my hand, besides the troops directly under the group army, I can't let them take over your defense and be responsible for the defense of Puutusk town."

"Comrade Commander, the commanders and fighters of the friendly army are fighting **** battles with the German army ahead, while our division is staying in the town doing nothing." Onuprienko continued: "I am worried that if this continues, the commanders and fighters will have bad emotions. .”

"I think you are the one with emotions?!" Sokov unceremoniously exposed Onuprienko's lies, and said to him: "The task of your division now is to stick to the town of Pultusk. Comrade General, this battle is not over today, and we still have to fight the Germans for a long time, and there will be opportunities for your division to play, understand?"

Hearing Sokov say these words in such a harsh tone, Onuprienko had nothing to do, he could only bite the bullet and said: "Well, comrade commander, our division will resolutely carry out your orders and stick to your orders. The town of Puutusk is good. But I also hope that you can keep your promise, and when you have an important combat mission next time, just don’t forget our division.”

   "Comrade General, I can assure you of this." Sokov said: "The next time there is an important task, your division will definitely be assigned as the main attack."

"Comrade Commander," when Sokov put down the phone, Ponejielin walked over to him and said, "I think Asya has been in the 6th Guards Division for a long time, should she be sent back to the Army Group?" Field hospital?"

However, Lunev, who knew nothing about this matter, was a little surprised when he heard Ponegerin mention Assia's name: "Isn't Assia a military doctor in the weapons and equipment department? When did she run away again?" Came to the front line?"

"Not so long ago." Sokov said briefly, and then said to Ponegerin: "Comrade Deputy Commander, I thank you for your kindness, but I think it's important for Assia to return to the Army Group Command at this moment." She definitely doesn't want to go to a field hospital. It's better to let her stay in the town of Pultusk and perform operations on the wounded. This way there is no danger, and she can also do her favorite job, which can be said to kill two birds with one stone."

   Assia was captured by the Germans during the Battle of Kursk, and Lunev was one of the insiders. If he hadn't come forward at that time, I'm afraid Assia would have gotten into a lot of trouble. Knowing that Assia appeared on the battlefield again, Lunev's heartbeat accelerated. Fortunately, he later heard that Assia was staying in the relatively safe town of Pultusk, so he felt a little more at ease. Some.

"Misha." Lunev said to Sokov earnestly: "I think if it is possible, let Asiya stay in the rear. You know, her identity is quite special. If something happens to her, the German People will definitely make a fuss about this matter, and it will have a negative impact on the morale and morale of our army."

"Comrade Military Commissar, I admit that it is inappropriate for Assia to stay at the forefront of danger." Sokov said with a wry smile, "But I also need to respect her wishes. If she is not willing to stay behind, I say She wouldn't listen to anything else she said. Since she wants to go to the front line to save lives and heal the wounded, let her go. Besides, Ara, the daughter of Marshal Rokossovsky, is also working as a health worker at the front line."

"Well, you're right." Lunev nodded and said, "I remember when Marshal Rokossovsky heard the news that his daughter was injured, he was in a mess. Fortunately, God Yes, he was out of danger soon, and after lying in the hospital for two months, he returned to the battlefield and continued to work as a health worker."