Rokossovsky and Vashukin's Gas, passing through the streets of Kivatis. Vashukin looked at the energetic commanders and fighters outside through the car window, and said happily: "Comrade Rokossovsky, you fought a good battle today, not only destroying the arrogant German vanguard, but also greatly boosting the morale of the troops. Look at the mental strength of these warriors out there. ”

Rokossovsky only smiled faintly at Vashukin's praise, what he was desperate to know at the moment was that the commander of the Fifth Army was in a hurry to summon himself to Lutsk, what combat missions would he arrange for himself?

After passing through several well-guarded checkpoints, the car finally reached the city of Lutsk. As soon as you enter the city, traces of war can be seen everywhere, perhaps because of two successive bombings, many houses have been blown down, and some have been shattered so crookedly that it feels as if you will collapse with a push of your hands. On the road, firefighters and some people in civilian clothes were trying to extinguish the flames coming from the windows that had been knocked off the window frames. There was an intermittent flow of retreats on the streets, and in addition to the packages or suitcases in their hands, they also threw their excess luggage on their carts or bicycles, and headed towards the east of the city in a panic.

Despite his own efforts, the war broke out as scheduled, and the Soviet army was still caught off guard by the Germans without any preparation, so that these residents had to leave their homes and join the flood of refugees......

When I arrived at the headquarters of the Fifth Army, I saw a busy scene. A few soldiers were piling sandbag fortifications at the gate, the communications soldiers were pulling telephone lines along the wall, and officers of all ranks were coming in and out of the entrance, everyone looking worried.

Walking to the door, Rokossovsky and Vashukin were stopped by an officer on duty who apparently found that these two high-ranking commanders were not members of the Fifth Army, so he felt the need to ask, so he politely said: "Comrade commanders, please show your documents!" ”

"I'm the military commissar of the Front, Vashukin," Vashukin reported his identity to the officer with a serious expression, and then waved his head to Rokossovsky's position: "This is General Rokossovsky, the commander of the Ninth Mechanized Army, we have urgent matters to see General Potapov, where is he?" ”

After waiting for Vashukin to report his identity, the officer hurriedly raised his hand and saluted, and said respectfully: "Hello, Comrade Military Commissar. The commander is in the office on the second floor, and the second room on the right hand side of the stairs is. With that, he took a step back and turned his body to the side, bending slightly in a gesture of please.

On the second floor, without asking anyone, Vashukin saw the office with a desk in the doorway. Sitting behind the table was a major, who was supposed to know Vashukin, and stood up from a long distance, raised his hand to the brimmed hat, and said politely: "Hello, Comrade Military Councilor. ”

Vashukin walked up to him, stopped and asked with a blank face: "Is Comrade Potapov here?" ”

"Yes, he is in a meeting with the military commissar and chief of staff of the army group inside." As he spoke, the major stepped forward and pushed the wooden door open a crack, and said, "Please! ”

Vashukin pushed open the door and strode in, followed by Rokossovsky. As soon as he entered, he shouted to the people who were meeting around his desk: "Hello, comrades commanders! As he spoke, he raised his hand and saluted.

When the people at the desk heard his voice, they quickly got up from the table and raised their hands to salute him. Rokossovsky, who was following behind Vashukin, also hurriedly raised his hand to salute several people in the room.

Vashukin walked straight to the table, sat down on a vacant chair, looked up at Potapov, who was standing behind the desk, and asked briefly: "Comrade General, how is the situation?" ”

"Many cities on our border were brutally bombed by the Luftwaffe." Potapov tried to answer Vashukin's questions in a calm tone.

"What about our troops?" Without waiting for him to speak, Vashukin hastily interrupted him.

"Fighting!" Potapov replied briefly.

"I ask you, where are our troops fighting? How many troops did the Germans fight with them have, and what kind of weapons and equipment did they have? Vashukin yelled at Potapov in a rough tone.

He was answered by a moment of silence.

Rokossovsky looked at Potapov, a young commander who was a few years younger than himself, and secretly recalled his resume in his heart: Potapov's promotion was due to the Great Purge, and in three years, he rose from regimental commander to chief of staff of the army, army commander, deputy commander of the army group, and participated in the Battle of Nomenkan. For his outstanding performance in battle, he was appointed commander of the Fifth Army in 41.

"Didn't you hear me?" Seeing that Potapov had not finished speaking, Vashukin raised his voice: "I ask you, where are our troops, fighting with the Germans?" ”

"Comrade Military Commissioner, allow me to report back to you." Pisarevsky, the chief of staff next to him, came out in time to relieve his commander.

Vashukin glanced at him, nodded, and said: "Okay, Comrade Chief of Staff, it's up to you to report." ”

Pisarevsky straightened up and reported to him: "Comrade Military Councilor, as a result of the destruction of ours by the Germans, the entire chain of command of the army group was paralyzed. However, according to reconnaissance, we held on to Vladimir Volynsky's troops and were fighting stubbornly. We have sent the 124th Infantry Division of Major General Sushi to repel the enemy attacking the city. ”

When Vashukin heard this, a smile appeared on his face, and he said with satisfaction: "That's right, in the face of the enemy's attack, we can't defend passively, we must decisively launch a counterattack against them, and we must drive them away from the invaded area as soon as possible." Speaking of this, he turned his gaze to Rokossovsky, who was standing in the middle of the room, and said proudly, "Soon after Comrade Rokossovsky's 131st Division entered the defensive position, it wiped out a German mechanized force of more than 1,000 people. I am sure that you will be able to achieve greater results than him. ”

Pisarevsky walked up to Rokossovsky and asked him: "Comrade General, where is the main force of the mechanized army?" ”

"Report to Comrade Chief of Staff," Rokossovsky replied in a proper manner, "the 131st motorized division is stationed in Kivatis, and the 20th and 35th tank divisions are on their way to Lutsk. ”

"Comrade Rokossovsky," Potapov waited for Rokossovsky to finish, and then immediately continued: "Just now we are discussing organizing troops to launch a counteroffensive against Vladimir Volynsky, and if your tank division arrives in time, it will be able to provide the necessary fire support for the infantry." ”

While Potapov was explaining the task to Rokossovsky, Nikishev, the military commissar of the army group, who had never spoken, whispered to Vashukin: "Comrade Military Commissar, at 12 o'clock in noon today, Comrade Molotov made a brief speech. The speech was broadcast simultaneously on radio stations across the country......"

After listening to Nikishev's words, Vashukin said bitterly: "From noon today, the life of the Soviet people will begin a new historical period. From this time on, when people mention the old days, they will definitely add the word 'pre-war'. ”

After he had said this, he saw that the conversation between Potapov and Rokossovsky had ended, so he stood up and said to Potapov with a serious expression: "Comrade General, I order you to draw up a counterattack plan at once, and you must drive the invading Germans out of our territory by noon tomorrow. Do you understand? ”

After hearing this order, Potapov hesitated for a moment, then took a deep breath and replied with a resolute expression: "Understood, Comrade Military Councilor!" We immediately draw up a plan for a counteroffensive! ”