Red Moscow

  Chapter 432 Rescue (Part 2)

   "Boom", with an earth-shattering explosion, Sokov, who was hiding behind the ruins 20 meters away, felt that his internal organs were displaced by the shock, and his ears were so painful. But the soldiers hiding around came out of their hiding places one after another before the gunpowder smoke cleared to check the effect of the blasting.

  Sokov stood up straight, collected his mind on the spot, and then walked slowly towards the blasting point. The first thing I said after seeing Andre was to ask directly: "Comrade Captain, how many grenades are tied to your cluster grenade?"

   "Twelve, Comrade Brigadier," Andrei immediately replied a little excitedly when he heard Sokov's question, "If the gap between the iron railings is not too small, I would like to tie a few more grenades."

Hearing what Andrei said, Sokov almost kicked it directly. He said in his heart that we used six bombs to blow up fortifications, and only eight bombs to bomb tanks. If you blow a hole, you actually used ten bombs. Two grenades, the shock made my blood boil, my throat became sweet, and it almost cost me half my life.

Sokov wanted to teach Andre a few words, but saw that the ventilation window had exploded a hole that could be bent over, so he decided to find Rodimtsev's whereabouts first, and then settle accounts with Andre later. , and ordered him to say: "Captain, since the entrance of the cave has been blasted, immediately send two soldiers to go in and have a look."

  Andrei waited for his soldiers to get into the hole, and asked a little unsteadily: "Comrade Brigadier, do you think General Rodimtsev will be in the basement?"

"I don't know." Sokov stared at the dark hole, and said angrily, "Whether the general is inside or not, don't you know when your soldiers come out?" He was worried that the grenade explosion just now was too powerful, If someone is really in the basement, will they be injured by the shock?

   After waiting for about three or four minutes, a soldier who went to explore the road came out of the hole and excitedly reported to Sokov: "Report to Comrade Brigadier Commander, we have found General Rodimtsev!"

   "What, have you found General Rodimtsev?" Even though Sokov was confident when he ordered someone to blow up the hole, he had no idea at all. Especially after the two soldiers were ordered to enter the cave to understand the situation, he became even more uneasy. At this moment, when the soldier reported that he had found Rodimtsev, he was extremely excited, and quickly asked, "Where is he? I want to go in and see him."

   "Comrade Brigadier, please wait a moment, the general will come out soon." The soldier pointed to the entrance of the cave suddenly and said excitedly, "Look quickly, isn't that the general?"

   Sokov looked in the direction of his finger, and sure enough, he saw Rodimtsev bending down and coming out of the hole. Andre hurried forward, trying to help the other party, but was pulled aside by Sokov. Sokov grabbed Rodimtsev's hand and helped him get out of the hole, while asking with concern: "Comrade General, are you all right?"

Rodimtsev looked a little haggard. After he got out, he took a few deep breaths, and then said to Sokov: "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, you don't know, you have been in the basement for a long time, and you want to take a breath of fresh air." Air is such a luxury. I thought I wouldn't be able to come out alive, but who knows I'll see the sun again one day."

Sokov grinned, and when he was about to agree, Rodimtsev suddenly opened his arms and gave him a bear hug. He leaned close to his ear and said with a sob: "Listen, Misha. , It was you who saved the lives of me and my subordinates, and we will always remember your friendship."

To Rodimtsev's gratitude, Sokov politely replied: "Comrade General, what are you talking about? You are my superior. If you are in danger, I will definitely come to rescue you. This is my duty." .”

After Rodimtsev let go of Sokov, he took a step back. He sniffed, looked at the hole, pretended to be nonchalant and said, "Including me, there are 37 people in the basement. , in addition to the staff, communications, and health workers, there are also my chief of staff, political commissar, and the head of the 39th Guards Regiment."

   Knowing that the head of the 39th Guards Regiment was also trapped in the basement, Sokov said with some surprise: "No wonder the troops of your division are missing. It turns out that the main middle and senior commanders are all trapped here."

  Sokov's words moved Rodimtsev: "Lieutenant Colonel Sokov, what did you just say, my troops are missing?"

"Yes, Comrade General." Sokov nodded and replied affirmatively: "According to the information I have, you lost contact with the commander of the 39th Guards Regiment, and the regiment command post of the 34th Guards Regiment Hit by German artillery fire, the regiment commander has died. As for your troops, unfortunately, I don't know where they are?"

   "My troops are gone?" Rodimtsev asked in surprise: "So which troops are in charge of defending our division's defense zone?"

   "It's Colonel Tanasov's 92nd Infantry Brigade. The brigade is mainly sailors from the Baltic Fleet and the North Sea Fleet." Sokov replied blankly: "They are responsible for defending your original combat area."

"Damn, what a hell, how can a unit of thousands of people say that it is gone?" After Rodimtsev finished speaking, he happened to see his chief of staff and political commissar, one after the other, from the army. Drilling out of the hole, he rushed forward and informed the two of the shocking news he had just heard.

Seeing that Rodimtsev and his deputy were working on research, Sokov was not idle. He immediately called the radio operator over and told the other party: "Immediately send a report to the Army Command, saying that we have successfully recovered from the collapsed In the building, General Rodimtsev, who was trapped in the basement, and 36 other commanders and fighters were rescued. Among them were the chief of staff of the division, the political commissar, and the head of the 39th Guards Regiment."

  When the radio operator was sending a report, Andrei walked up to Sokov and asked curiously: "Comrade Brigadier, I don't understand why no one knows about the general and the others being buried in the basement?"

"Comrade Captain, the reason is very simple." Sokov explained to Andrey: "When the German army bombarded this area, most of the commanders and fighters took cover. When the building where the division headquarters was located was destroyed by artillery fire, they didn't even know Has the general been transferred? And the soldiers in charge of guarding the division headquarters were killed in the shelling, and they are the remains of those soldiers you found."

After Sokov's explanation, Andrei suddenly realized: "The soldiers who knew the inside story all died in the shelling; while the other soldiers were either not in this area at all during the shelling, or they didn't even know that there was a headquarters here. Therefore, no one knew that someone was trapped in the basement. In addition, there was no radio signal in the basement, and the general could not get in touch with the army headquarters, which created an illusion of disappearance."

"That's right, that's how it is." When Sokov said this, he said in his heart that if Stalin didn't know about it, he might regard Rodimtsev as a traitor or a deserter, and what awaited him would be extremely miserable. ending.

Guchakov, who led the soldiers to wipe out the enemy, returned, and he reported to Sukov: "Comrade Brigadier, we have cleared out the enemies hidden in the building. We killed five people in total. We sacrificed two and wounded two." Eight people."

   "Good job, Lieutenant Guchakov." Sokov raised his hand and patted the opponent's shoulder twice, and then said: "I will always remember your achievements."

  ...

  The German army's attack on the factory area was extremely fierce, and Cuikov kept receiving telegrams or phone calls from the commanders of various divisions and brigades asking for help. Since he didn't have any reserves in his hands, he could only say to his subordinates in vain: "I don't have a reserve team. You must make full use of your existing strength to resolutely block the German attack."

  When he saw the communications staff rushing in with a telegram, he asked impatiently, "Which army is asking for reinforcements?"

"No, Comrade Commander, it's not a telegram requesting reinforcements." The staff officer waved the telegram in his hand and reported excitedly: "It's a telegram from Lieutenant Colonel Sokov. 36 officers and fighters were rescued from the basement under the collapsed building."

"This is really great news." When Chuikov heard the news, his frown suddenly relaxed, and he smiled and said to Krylov who was answering the phone: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I really didn't expect to ask Cove is so good, just a few hours later, he successfully completed the task we gave them."

"Sokov is really amazing." Knowing that Rodimtsev had been found, Krylov became happier: "We have been searching for so long, but there is no clue at all, and as soon as Sokov came out, It actually solved the problem.”

"In two days, we will launch a counterattack against the German army and respond to General Rokossovsky's offensive." Chuikov said to Krylov: "Since Rodimtsev has been found, we will urge him to attack as soon as possible." Gather the troops and continue to fight the enemy in the city center to attract the enemy's attention and reduce the pressure on our army in the counterattack."

   Just when Krylov was about to order the radio operator to send a report, Chuikov changed his mind again: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I thought about it, and I think he should call me. I want to have a good talk with him."

"But, Comrade Commander." Regarding Chuikov's order, Krylov said with some embarrassment: "If we can contact Rodimtsev by phone, I don't think we will lose contact with Rodimtsev for so long. If you If you want to talk to him about something, it's best to let him come to the headquarters in person."

  (end of this chapter)