The battle on the morning of August 26 was still very favorable for the Soviet army. But after the afternoon, the situation took a turn for the worse. The German army, which was originally beaten to the point of parrying, not only did not abandon its position and fled, but on the contrary, carried out a frantic counter-assault on the Soviet troops.

The German counter-assault did not concentrate a large number of tanks and infantry to attack the areas occupied by the Soviet troops, as in the past, because they understood that their dense offensive formation would become a target for the Soviet air force. Therefore, they used more than a dozen tanks, guided an infantry battalion to assault, and the tactics of aircraft cover in the air, and launched wave after wave of attacks on the Soviet army without stopping. The battle was extremely fierce, and the two sides even engaged in repeated tug-of-war in order to seize individual fire support points.

Upon learning of this, Rokossovsky immediately instructed Malinin: "Chief of Staff, call General Bogdanov and order him to immediately prepare for a sortie. ”

"Comrade commander," Malinin immediately reminded him of this order from Rokossovsky: "The offensive campaign has just begun, and is it a little too early for us to put the tank army into battle now?" ”

"Only by increasing the intensity of our offensive can we crush the counterattack carried out by the German army." After a simple explanation, Rokossovsky said to Malinin in an unquestioning tone: "Okay, Chief of Staff, you go and comrade General Bogdanov to prepare for battle, and I will put his troops into battle at the right time." ”

It didn't take long for Bogdanov to call in, he wanted to verify the authenticity of the orders conveyed by Malinin, after all, according to the plan, they would have to wait two days before they could go into battle. Hearing Rokossovsky's voice, he immediately asked: "Comrade commander, I just received a call from the chief of staff ordering our army group to be ready for battle. I want to ask, what the hell is going on here, why did we attack earlier? ”

"General Bogdanov," Knowing that the purpose of the other party's call was to verify the authenticity of the order, Rokossovsky said with some displeasure: "Now that the situation on the battlefield has changed, the German army is not willing to accept their defeat, so the organization forces continue to carry out counter-assaults on our positions, and the situation there is not very good for Batov, so I will order to immediately prepare for battle and be ready to fight at any time." ”

"Understood, Comrade Commander." After confirming the accuracy of the order, Bogdanov said to Rokossovsky: "Judging by the current situation, my troops will be able to enter the area of engagement from the 65th Army one after another only tonight. ”

Rokossovsky knew that the advance of the tank troops was not as easy as he imagined, so he nodded and said reasonably: "Okay, then your troops must enter the starting position this evening, and when it is dawn tomorrow, they will cooperate with Batov's troops and launch an attack in the direction of Shevsk." ”

The movement of the tank army was too loud to hide from the ears and eyes of the German scouts. Almost as soon as the 2nd Tank Army was moving, the commander of the German 2nd Army received this information, and he immediately reported to the commander of Army Group Center, Field Marshal von Kneuger, that the Russians were about to intensify their offensive in the direction of Shevsk in the hope of replenishment.

After consulting with his chief of staff, von Kniug replied to the commander of the 2nd Army: "Don't worry, Your Excellency, Commander, we will transfer two infantry divisions and two tank divisions to Shevsk overnight to resolutely block the Russian attack. ”

……

The movement of the Soviet troops was detected by the Germans; And the Germans took advantage of the maneuvers carried out at night, and the Soviets knew nothing.

After daybreak, Batov's troops resumed their offensive against the enemy in the front. Since they did not know that the Germans had increased their forces and were still attacking according to the plan of the previous day, the result was inevitably that a small number of troops would be used to attack the heavily defended areas of the German army.

When the news that an infantry regiment led by two tank battalions was frustrated and that the attacking troops were almost completely wiped out came, Bartov was shocked, and he hurriedly dialed the command headquarters of that division, scolded the division commander with his head and face, and then asked angrily: "Comrade division commander, you explain to me that one of your infantry regiments, under the cover of two tank battalions, launched an attack on the enemy's position, but in less than half an hour, it was almost wiped out, what is going on?" ”

After muttering for a long time, the division commander replied: "Comrade commander, I feel that the situation of the frontal enemy is a little wrong. Their artillery fire was at least twice as strong as yesterday's; And the defensive firepower on the positions has become extremely strong, so our attacking forces will suffer huge losses. ”

"Enemy fire has intensified?" With a frown, Batov asked, "Has there been any change in the enemy you are facing in the face?" ”

"Comrade Commander, we can't know this for the time being." The division commander said helplessly: "Since we do not have scouts in the enemy's rear, we have no idea about the enemy's troop deployment. ”

"I see." After waiting for the other party to finish speaking, Batov said angrily: "You immediately readjust your troops and prepare to attack again, and I will let the artillery of the army group cooperate with you." ”

As soon as he put down the phone, he loudly ordered the signal soldiers: "Give me the front headquarters." ”

After listening to Batov's report, Rokossovsky was silent for a moment, covered the microphone with his hand and asked Malinin on the side: "Chief of Staff, is there an update on the situation of the German army opposite the 65th Army?" ”

Malinin shook his head and replied: "From the beginning of the offensive campaign, our scouts have all withdrawn, and they cannot get the latest information in time. ”

"It's too late to send scouts now." Rokossovsky asked with some anxiety: "Can you contact the partisans?" ”

"I'm not sure," said Malinin hesitantly, "the guerrilla radio station is not on 24 hours a day. We can only contact them at the appointed time. ”

"Time is pressing, you immediately get in touch with Maksimenko and the partisan radio." Rokossovsky said to Malinin with a serious face: "We need to know the latest movements of the German army. ”

"I see, Comrade Commander." Ma Linin replied very dryly: "I will do it immediately." ”

Rokossovsky let go of the hand covering the microphone and said into the microphone: "Comrade Batov, although we all suspect that the Germans may have increased their troops in your defensive zone, we have not been able to confirm this news yet. Well, you have your forces regrouped, and as soon as Bogdanov's 2nd Tank Army arrives, you can attack the German positions. ”

After explaining the task to Maksimenko, Malinin returned and reported to Rokossovsky: "Comrade commander, I have already put the communications department in contact with the partisan radio station, and as soon as there is news, I will report it to you immediately. ”

"Good." After Rokossovsky said this, he picked up the phone on the table, dialed Chernyakhovsky's command, and after hearing his voice, immediately said loudly: "Hello, comrade general, how well are your troops prepared to immediately go into battle?" ”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." Chernyakhovsky said in an affirmative tone: "My troops have completed the adjustment and are ready for all combat and ready to fight." ”

"According to our analysis, the Germans may have sent additional reinforcements in front of Batov's troops, so that the attack of the 65th Army did not go well." Before Rokossovsky gave the order to Chernyakhovsky, he explained to him the gravity of the current situation: "So I need your left flank troops to carry out an attack on the German troops in front of them, in order to disperse the German defense and relieve the pressure on Batov's offensive. ”

"Understood, Comrade Commander." Chernyakhovsky replied briskly: "I will immediately concentrate a few of the most combat-effective divisions in the area where the attack is scheduled to be carried out to attack the defensive positions of the German army." ”

Seeing that Chernyakhovsky understood his combat intentions, Rokossovsky said happily: "Since this is the case, Comrade General, then I wish you victory. ”

At noon, Chernyakhovsky's 60th Army launched an offensive against the Germans in front. Having received news of the German build-up in this area, Chernyakhovsky risked exposing his right flank to the Germans, concentrated his main forces on the left flank and launched an attack on the German positions.

Unexpectedly, the resistance of the German positions was very weak, and the enemy in individual sections could be said to be crushed at the touch of a button. Chernyakhovsky was stunned to see that his troops, without artillery preparation, managed to capture the first line of German defense in just one hour.

He said to his deputy commander and chief of staff: "Didn't our scouts report that the enemy in front of us had an infantry division and a motorized division? Why does the enemy's combat effectiveness not rise but fall, and what is going on? ”

The deputy commander and the chief of staff looked at each other and said: "Comrade commander, I guess it is a comrade of the reconnaissance group, who was deceived by the Germans, so the wrong information was passed on to us. ”

The chief of staff then said: "Comrade commander, do you think it is necessary to report this situation to the front army command?" ”

"I'm here to report to Rokossovsky." After a long sigh, Chernyakhovsky picked up the phone, and after hearing the voice coming from the microphone, he ordered the operator: "Give me the command of the front." ”

Don't look at the smooth offensive of the 60th Army, the offensive of Batov's troops at the moment is going extremely difficult. The Germans, heedless of all losses, constantly carried out counter-assaults on the Soviet troops, and it was the units of the 65th Army that paid huge casualties for every step forward. But Rao was like this, and the Soviet commanders and fighters continued to attack and advance towards the enemy's positions one after another.

Rokossovsky heard that Chernyakhovsky had called him, and thought that something was wrong in the section of the 60th Army. When he learned that they had easily occupied the first line of defense of the German army, he could not help but be surprised: "General Chernyakhovsky, didn't the reconnaissance report you got say that the Germans were adding troops on your front?" Why did the offensive go so smoothly? ”

"Comrade Commander, I don't know the specific situation." Chernyakhovsky explained: "We have lost contact with the scouts and are unable to understand the movement of forces in the rear of the German army. I suspect that the Germans may have transferred these units to the direction where General Batov was. ”

"I see, General Chernyakhovsky." Rokossovsky said thoughtfully: "Since the Germans have shifted the focus of their defense to Batov's side, you should attack boldly, bravely rush to the depth of the German defense, and I will send other troops to cover your flanks." ”

After finishing his work on Chernyakhovsky's side, Rokossovsky turned his attention to Batov again. He asked Malinin, who had just finished the call: "Chief of Staff, how is the situation, has the situation changed with Batov?" ”

"The battle continues." "But I have just received a report from the partisans that the Germans had sent two infantry divisions and two armored divisions to the Bartov attack last night," Malinin said vaguely. ”

"I see." Hearing Malinin say this, Rokossovsky suddenly realized, he nodded and said: "No wonder Batov's attack will fail, it turns out that the German army has increased so many troops." Bogdanov was immediately ordered to immediately organize tank units to carry out a surprise attack, and in the shortest possible time, to break through the German defenses and cover the arrival of Batov's troops to Shevsk. ”

"Comrade commander, I see that the air power in the Shevsk direction needs to be strengthened." Malinin reminded Rokossovsky: "Although our air force gained air supremacy from the Luftwaffe yesterday in that direction, due to fuel and ammunition, the number of sorties today is relatively small, and it is not possible to provide sufficient air cover for the ground forces." ”

"You immediately call Rudenko and order him to fly all the planes that can take off." As soon as Rokossovsky waited for Malinin to finish speaking, he decisively ordered: "We must use air power to completely crush the German defenses." ”

As the order was given, a large number of Soviet aircraft rose into the air from various field airfields and flew in groups in the direction of Shevsk. When they arrived at the battlefield, they immediately bombarded the German troops on the ground indiscriminately, so that the enemy could only cower in the fortifications and could no longer carry out any counterattack in any situation. As a result, the commanders and fighters of the 65th Army, with the support of the tanks of the 2nd Tank Army, were able to smoothly advance towards Shevsk.

The battle continued into the evening, and Shevsk, which the Germans had held, was occupied by units of the Soviet 65th Army.