When Rokossovsky received Lidyukov's report that the troops under the command of Major Sakhno had successfully occupied a trench on the west side of the German line, he breathed a long sigh of relief and turned to Vinogradov: "Comrade Deputy Commander, the Germans will not be able to support it for long, they will soon retreat." Pen %Fun %Pavilion www.biquge.info"

In response to Rokossovsky's statement, Vinogradov asked with suspicion: "Comrade commander, our troops launched an attack from both the east and the north, but they never cut a gap in the enemy's defensive line. Now that it is only a small force that has occupied a local position of the enemy, are you so happy, are you too optimistic? ”

Rokossovsky pushed the map a little in front of Vinogradov, then smiled and said: "General Vinogradov, although our attack from the east and north has not made much progress because of the stubborn resistance of the German army. Due to the ferocity of our offensive, the Germans saw that the 20th Army in the west remained still, so they left only a small number of troops to monitor them, and the rest were transferred to the east and north to resist our attack. Now the troops under the command of Major Sakhno have taken the positions on the western flank, where the Germans are empty, and the entire enemy line has become precarious. Wait, for an hour at most, the Germans, attacked from three sides at the same time, should not be able to hold on. ”

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard Ma Lining shouting to him from the side: "Comrade commander, your phone call is from the headquarters of the front army. ”

A call from the command of the Front? When Rokossovsky heard Malinin say this, he first thought of Bulganin, and asked if this comrade military commissar had something important to say to himself, otherwise it would not have been possible to call himself at such a short interval.

But when he put the microphone close to his ear, he heard a voice coming from inside not Bulganin, but Timoshenko's deep voice: "Hey, Comrade Rokossovsky, how is the situation on your side?" ”

"Comrade Marshal, since the troops of the 20th Army were standing still in our offensive battles, the enemy was able to concentrate all his forces to resist our offensive." Rokossovsky complained unmovingly about the uncooperation of the friendly troops, and immediately reported to Timoshenko, "However, Colonel Lidyukov sent a small force equipped with tanks, successfully detoured behind the enemy, and decisively launched an attack, occupying a position on the western side of the German army. Judging from the current situation, it is estimated that in another hour or so, the enemy may have to withdraw from his position because he cannot support it. ”

"Great, that's great." When Timoshenko heard Rokossovsky say this, he immediately became excited: "As long as a gap can be torn in the encirclement of the German army, then tens of thousands of commanders and fighters of the 20th Army can successfully jump out of the enemy's encirclement." ”

"But, Comrade Marshal, I am now very worried." Although victory is now in sight, Rokossovsky is very self-aware, he knows that even if the gap is opened, as soon as the day dawns, the German counterattack troops can re-seal the gap under the cover of aircraft artillery, as for how many troops of the 20th Army can jump out of the encirclement, it can only be left to fate, "Even if we open the gap for friendly forces, if they do not cooperate, our efforts will be in vain." ”

"Don't worry, Rokossovsky." Timoshenko gritted his teeth and said: "As long as the 20th Army stands out from the enemy's encirclement, I will severely punish Kurochkin, who has repeatedly failed to act and behaved in a panic, and I will not rule out the possibility of sending him to a military court." ”

Troubled times use heavy codes, and after Rokossovsky heard Timoshenko say this, the first thing that came to mind was this sentence. If General Kurochkin had been able to order his troops to actively cooperate with his offensive operations on the night of the previous day, perhaps the troops of the 20th Army, like the other two armies, would have crossed the Vopi River and established a new defense near Yaltsevo. And their own troops, because of the small casualties, could hold back the German attacking forces on the west bank of the Wopi River for a longer time, so as to buy more time for the troops to build a defensive line in the north and south directions of Yaltsevo.

After Rokossovsky put down the phone, he called Malinin and instructed: "Chief of Staff, send a telegram to all participating units, asking them to speed up the offensive and crush the enemy on the position in the shortest possible time." Immediately after occupying all positions, the troops should occupy favorable terrain and lay out new defenses. In the face of a possible enemy attack, hold out at least until noon tomorrow. ”

"What does it mean to hold on until noon tomorrow? Comrade Commander. When Malinin went to send a telegram to the divisions, Vinogradov, who had heard Rokossovsky's strange order just now, came over and asked curiously: "Where should our troops withdraw after withdrawing from their positions tomorrow?" ”

"Where else could it be, of course, a defensive position by the river." Rokossovsky said somewhat helplessly: "The German troops defeated by us will definitely not be reconciled to their defeat, and after dawn, they will definitely attack the positions we occupy under the cover of aircraft, artillery and tanks." Do you think that there will be only two weakened divisions and a mixed detachment on the position, and will they be able to hold back the enemy's fierce attack? Rather than let them die there in vain, they should retreat to the river early, and use the defensive positions that have been built long ago to fight a beautiful defensive battle. ”

Lidyukov, having received a telegram from Rokossovsky, after a short period of thought, made a bold decision, he ordered Major Shebelyuk to lead a motorized company and rush along the road on a motorcycle to the defense area of the 20th Army.

As soon as Shebelyuk's troops entered the zone of defense of the division closest to the front, they came under heavy fire. After the driver of the motorcycle in front was shot, the body immediately lost control and crashed straight into a tree on the side of the road, causing a fire and explosion, and all three fighters in the car died heroically.

Seeing this, Shebelyuk hurriedly ordered the troops to stop advancing and sent someone to shout to identify himself. A lieutenant in the trench opposite, hearing someone shouting in Russian, quickly ordered the machine gun to stop firing and personally brought people out to check.

The lieutenant walked up to the shouting soldier and, after a brief conversation with him, came to Shebelyuk. He apologized and said, "I'm sorry, Comrade Major, I saw a motorbike convoy coming towards us along the road, and I thought it was Germans, so I ordered the fighters to shoot." ”

"Well, Comrade Lieutenant, now is not the time to say." Due to the urgency of time, Shebelyuk did not bother with him, but asked straight to the point: "Where is your division commander?" ”

"It's about two kilometers from here." The lieutenant replied respectfully, "If you take a motorcycle, you can get there in about five or six minutes." ”

"Time is pressing, let's talk as we go." Shebelyuk beckoned to the back, let a three-wheeled motorcycle come over, and with a gesture of his hand, he said to the lieutenant: "Hurry up and get in the car, we will rush to your headquarters immediately." ”

Led by the lieutenant, Shebelyuk came to the division headquarters. But when he saw the commander of the division, a colonel, he did not bother to salute and informed the other side that the German positions had been broken through.

When the colonel heard the news, he listened to it outward, and then said a little unceremoniously: "Comrade Major, from the sound of gunfire from outside, it seems that there is still a fierce battle going on in the defensive positions of the German army." ”

When Shebeliuk heard him say this, the corners of his mouth twitched violently, and then he said: "Comrade Colonel, now that time is pressing, please immediately organize your troops to break through to the east." If you delay the time, when the enemy's planes fly over the battlefield at dawn, it will be almost impossible to break through. ”

After listening to Shebelyuk's words, the colonel smiled bitterly and said: "Comrade Major, do you know how many casualties our division suffered in the daytime breakout battle? Without waiting for Shebelyuk to speak, he asked himself again, "Two-thirds, two-thirds of the division's casualties. Now that I have only more than 2,000 men left, it would be easier said than done to break through the enemy's encirclement with this amount of strength. ”

After hearing this, Shebelyuk snorted and said without humility or arrogance: "Comrade Colonel, do you know how many casualties we have suffered in order to rescue you? The 38th Infantry Division and the 101st Tank Division, the main forces of the battle group, have now suffered casualties, but they continue to fight to rescue you. ”

When the colonel heard Shebelyuk say this, he just sat in his seat and said nothing, as if what Shebelyuk said had nothing to do with him.

Seeing that the colonel did not react at all, Shebelyuk could not help but be secretly disappointed. After sighing softly, he asked tentatively, "Comrade Colonel, can you send someone to take me to meet your commander?" ”

"Our commander?" When the colonel heard Shebelyuk say this, a wry smile appeared on his face, and he said helplessly: "Comrade Major, I have not been able to contact the commander since the evening. Otherwise, our division would not have listened to the fierce battle that was taking place a few kilometers away, but stayed here and stood still. ”

"What, you can't find General Kurochkin either?" Shebelyuk was taken aback when he heard the colonel say this, because he knew that if he could not find Kurochkin, his mission would be a complete failure. The Soviet army, which was known for its strict execution of orders, usually remained where they were and did nothing until they received orders from their superiors.

After seeing the colonel nod in affirmation, Shebeliuk turned around in disappointment and walked towards the door. But when he reached the door, he looked at the young commanders and fighters standing in the trenches outside the door, and suddenly stopped, and he couldn't bear to watch these robes die in vain. He turned to the colonel and said, "Comrade Colonel, I tell you again, we have opened a passage for you, even if you are not willing to leave, please inform the other commanders of this news and let them make their own choices." Remember, by noon tomorrow, our men will keep this passage open. ”

By the time Shebelyuk returned to the battlefield, the battle was over, and the Germans had been temporarily driven out of the area by the Soviets. He came to Lidyukov's command post and, after reporting what he had seen, said: "Comrade Colonel, I have already done what needs to be done, and as for whether they will follow my orders and retreat from the passage we have opened, I am not clear. ”

Lidyukov soon reported the situation to Rokossovsky in detail. After listening to this, Rokossovsky pondered for a long time before he said slowly: "Colonel Lidyukov, we have already done what needs to be done." As for whether the troops of the 20th Army can successfully break through, it depends on their luck. ”

Immediately after putting down the phone, Rokossovsky asked the communications corps to answer the phone from the command of the Front Army and report directly to Timoshenko: "Comrade Marshal, we have routed the Germans and opened the passage for the troops of the 20th Army. ”

"What, opened the passage?" Hearing this report, Timoshenko was overjoyed, and he said in a loud voice: "Great, great, this is really good, our 20th Army can smoothly jump out of the enemy's encirclement." ”

"Comrade Marshal, the situation is not as rosy as you think." Seeing Timoshenko's agitation, Rokossovsky hurriedly poured a basin of cold water on him: "When we opened the passage in the enemy's encirclement, we once sent people to the 20th Army to make contact and let them withdraw from this passage. But unfortunately, after our men went, they learned that General Kurochkin was missing, and that the 20th Army had lost its unified command......"

"Is this true, Comrade Rokossovsky?" After hearing this, Timoshenko asked in disbelief: "If this is really the case, it seems that we should make some adjustments in the appointment of commanders. ”

How to adjust, Timoshenko did not say, and Rokossovsky did not ask. The first thing he did when he put down the phone was to call Malinin over and tell him to tell the commanders of the divisions that they must hold out until noon tomorrow in their present positions, and as for whether the friendly forces will break through along the opened passage, it will be natural.

After waiting for Rokossovsky's order to be given, Vinogradov specially reminded him: "Comrade commander, our main task now is to hold the west bank of the Vopi River, so that the enemy will not be able to cross the river in a short time, and to buy time for our troops to build a new line of defense. At present, there are too few troops on the position, so can we consider transferring some troops from the northwest to strengthen the defense along the river? (To be continued.) )