At the beginning of June, Ponomarenko summoned the main commanders of the partisans behind enemy lines to a meeting in Gomel and assigned them the combat tasks that the partisans would undertake before the start of the summer campaign.

Rokossovsky, who was staying at the headquarters, was waiting for Ponomarenko's reply when he suddenly received a call from Zhukov. "Comrade Rokossovsky, I have good news for you, the Allied forces have successfully landed in Normandy yesterday, on the morning of June 6. ”

When Rokossovsky heard Zhukov say this, he couldn't help but be in a trance, and he silently said in his heart: "The Allies have landed in Normandy, which means that the Second World War is nearing its end." If the war is over, what will he do with the impostor Rokossovsky? ”

It may be that Rokossovsky's voice was not heard for a long time, and Zhukov couldn't help but be a little anxious: "Hey, Rokossovsky, are you still there?" Why don't you speak? ”

"Comrade Marshal, I'm still here." Rokossovsky hurriedly replied: "I was thinking about the landing of the Allies in Normandy, what effect would it have on the war as a whole?" ”

"There will definitely be an impact, you must know that this is the second battlefield opened up by the Allies." Zhukov said with great interest: "In this way, the German army in Europe will be completely pinned down by the Allies, and Hitler will have to think twice if he wants to send troops to our country again." ”

"That's right," Rokossovsky hurriedly chimed in, "the Germans now have to fight on two fronts at the same time, and they will soon be underarmed." As a result, the Germans would not be able to receive assistance from the European side when we carried out the summer operations. ”

After discussing the Normandy landings for a while, Zhukov changed the subject and asked: "Comrade Rokossovsky, if I remember correctly, today should be the day when Comrade Ponomarenko summoned a meeting of the commanders of partisan detachments behind enemy lines. How about it, do those comrades from behind enemy lines have any problems with their tasks? ”

"I don't know, Comrade Marshal." Rokossovsky replied with a wry smile: "I'm also waiting for news, the meeting is not over yet." ”

"It seems that we will have to wait a little longer to find out what the situation is like behind enemy lines." Before hanging up, Zhukov asked another thing: "Are you ready for the wood to cross the swamp?" ”

"It's almost ready." Reporting to Zhukov, Rokossovsky deliberately emphasized: "In order not to be noticed by the enemy, we all cut down trees at a great distance and transported them by wagons to the positions where the assault troops were assembled. ”

"Uh-huh, got it." After learning about the situation, Zhukov told Rokossovsky: "We must pay attention to concealment, and we must not let the enemy perceive our intentions." ”

"Don't worry, Comrade Marshal." Rokossovsky nodded and replied: "Our actions have always been covert, and the enemy on the other side has not been aware of it at all. ”

After Rokossovsky put down the phone, the curious Terekin couldn't wait to ask: "Comrade commander, what were you talking to Comrade Marshal just now, that the Allies have opened up a second battlefield?" ”

"Yes, Comrade Military Commissar." Rokossovsky replied in the affirmative: "The Allies have successfully landed in the Normandy region of France and are developing in depth towards the German defense. The successful opening of the second battlefield has greatly reduced our frontal resistance, and in the coming days, it would be good for the German army to ensure that it would not transfer troops from us to strengthen the defense in the European direction, not to mention adding troops to Belarus or Ukraine. ”

"Great, that's great." Terekin said excitedly: "During this period of time, I lost sleep almost every day for the sake of the summer offensive, and I was deeply afraid that the troops would not perform well in the battle and would live up to the trust of our superiors. Now that the Allies have opened a second battlefield, and with the guerrillas about to launch behind enemy lines, I am confident that we will win this campaign. ”

As the two were talking, the phone on the desk rang again. Rokossovsky picked up the microphone and heard Ponomarenko's voice coming from inside: "Comrade commander, can you come to us and say a few words to the comrades of the partisans?" ”

Before Rokossovsky could speak, he saw Terekin on the side constantly gesturing and winking at him, signaling that he would agree to Ponomarenko's request. So he replied decisively: "Okay, Comrade Ponomarenko, I'll go with Comrade Military Commissar right away." ”

Half an hour later, the two went to the place where Ponomarenko was holding a meeting and met with the partisan commanders who were holding a meeting. Rokossovsky, after shaking hands with several of them, asked: "Comrade commanders, do you have any questions?" ”

A partisan commander with the rank of colonel stood up and asked Rokossovsky respectfully: "Comrade General, can you tell us how to effectively strike at the enemy?" ”

Hearing this question, Rokossovsky smiled, and then said: "Comrade commanders, I know a little about everyone's situation, we have gathered everyone here and let your troops cooperate with the actions of the regular army, not to let you attack the fortifications, but to use your strengths to strike at the enemy fiercely." ”

After Rokossovsky said this, he saw that many people were at a loss, and then continued: "Let me give you an example, you see that all the railroad tracks you see have been blown up, bringing the railways to the most important points to a standstill and disrupting the operation of other railway lines. If all lines of communication are destroyed, the communication between the enemy's superiors and subordinates will be cut off......" he said in one breath seven or eight measures that the guerrillas could take, and finally asked, "Do you understand everything?" ”

"Understood, Comrade General." The commanders sitting below replied in unison. Rokossovsky's narration was so simple that they understood their mission more thoroughly, and at the same time thought of ways to teach the Germans a hard lesson to cooperate with the attack of the regular army.

At the end of the meeting, the colonel walked up to Rokossovsky's side and said respectfully: "Comrade General, there are more than 700 people in our troops, some of whom are commanders and fighters who have been scattered in battles before, and some of whom are our comrades-in-arms who have been rescued from the prisoner of war camp. Although there are many people, there is a shortage of experienced grassroots commanders, so I wonder if you can send us a group of cadres to strengthen the leadership of the troops? ”

When the other party said that there were more than 700 people, Rokossovsky's heart moved the idea of recruiting them, and when he heard the colonel's request, he immediately replied unequivocally: "Okay, Comrade Colonel, I will let the chief of staff arrange this matter later, and try to send you as many commanders as possible." ”