Hearing what Katukov said, Rokossovsky's heart couldn't help but burst into ecstasy, and secretly thought that he really didn't expect Zhukov to be so generous and directly handed over Katukov's 1st Guards Tank Army to his command. I thought that even if Stalin came forward, Zhukov would be able to hand over his command to nothing more than Major General Lazievsky's Second Guards Tank Army.

Rokossovsky stepped forward and shook Katukov's hand and said excitedly: "Hello, General Katukov! On behalf of all the commanders and fighters of the Second Belorussian Front, I welcome you to join us. As he shook hands, he turned his head to look at Subotin and Bogolyubov, and added, "With your joining, we will be more sure that we will completely annihilate the enemy in East Pomerania." ”

When Bogolyubov shook hands with Katukov, he also asked with concern: "General Katukov, I am Bogolyubov, chief of staff of the Front, I don't know when your troops will be able to attack?" He asked this only because the troops of the First Front were slow to advance, and the flanks of the 19th Army were still threatened by the Germans from time to time.

Hearing Bogolyubov's question, Katukov hesitated for a moment, and then said: "Comrade Chief of Staff, my troops are still being assembled and gathered, and if they want to go into battle, I'm afraid they will have to wait for two more days. ”

Although Katukov's troops had to wait some time before they could officially enter the battle, Bogolyubov did not appear to be in a hurry, because the 1st Guards Tank Army was not included in the next battle plan for the time being. While Katukov and Subotin were shaking hands, he returned to the table, picked up a glass of seawater, handed it to Katukov, and said politely: "General Katukov, taste how this water tastes." ”

Although Katukov did not know what Bogolyubov gave himself, judging by his experience, it was definitely not ordinary water, so he took a small sip. Seeing Katukov frowning, Bogolyubov asked with a smile: "General Katukov, who does this taste like?" ”

"It looks like seawater?" Katukov asked tentatively.

"That's right, it's seawater." Bogolyubov nodded in affirmation.

"Sea water?!" Katukov's face showed a look of surprise, and he wondered in his heart: where did this sea water come from? But after a while, he thought of a possibility and couldn't help but ask, surprised: "Is it the sea from the Baltic Sea?" ”

A smile appeared on Bogolyubov's face: "That's right, it's the waters from the Baltic Sea. The vanguard of our front has reached the seashore of the Baltic Sea. General Katukov, please come here and let me give you a brief overview of the current situation. ”

When Katukov followed him to the wall, Bogolyubov pointed to the map above and said: "General Panfilov's 3rd Guards Tank Corps has successfully captured Kzlin and advanced to the Baltic Sea, successfully cutting off the retreat of the German army in East Pomerania. Next, we were ready to order Panfilov to turn to the east and cooperate with the troops on the right flank of the Front to encircle and annihilate these besieged German troops. ”

Katukov did not speak, his eyes stayed on the map, waiting for Bogolyubov to assign himself a task: "...... Your army group will enter the battlefield from the area controlled by the 19th Army and attack in a northeasterly direction,......"

While Bogolyubov was still assigning tasks, the phone on the desk rang. Rokossovsky saw that the high-frequency phone was ringing, worried about something important, and hurriedly walked over and picked up the microphone. Zhukov's voice came from the earpiece: "Is it Comrade Rokossovsky?" ”

"Yes, Comrade Marshal, it's me." Rokossovsky guessed that Zhukov's call to him must be related to Katukov, so without waiting for the other party to ask, he took the initiative to say: "General Katukov is with me, do you want to talk to him?" ”

"No need," Zhukov rejected Rokossovsky's kindness: "His troops are now under your command, and I have nothing to say." But I have to tell you in advance what kind of formation the army group will be when it goes to you, and it will have to be no less when it returns. ”

"Don't worry, Comrade Marshal." Seeing that Zhukov agreed to assign Katukov's troops to his command, the stone that Rokossovsky had hung over his heart finally fell to the ground. At this moment, even if Zhukov made any excessive requests, he would do so, and besides, the other party's request was still a reasonable one, and he naturally had no reason not to agree: "After performing the combat mission, I will return the entire unit to you." ”

Although Zhukov had already learned something about the Second Front from Stalin, for the sake of safety, he continued to ask: "Comrade Rokossovsky, I heard that your troops have occupied Kzlin?" ”

"Yes, Comrade Marshal." Rokossovsky replied respectfully: "General Panfilov's tank corps, having captured Kzlin, has advanced to the shores of the Baltic Sea and has successfully cut off the retreat of the German army in East Pomerania. Now you have handed over Katukov's tank army to us, so that we have enough strength to crush the besieged German army. ”

"Koschika," Zhukov waited for Rokossovsky to finish, then suddenly called his nickname, "according to the instructions of the Supreme Command, our front should have launched an attack on Berlin in February, but this offensive was postponed because of the perception of the German build-up in East Pomerania. I hope that the transfer of Katukov's tank army to you will remove this insecurity as soon as possible and ensure that we can launch an attack on Berlin as soon as possible. ”

Rokossovsky silently calculated in his heart that it was the beginning of March, and in two months, this damned war would be over. Hitler died, Germany surrendered unconditionally, but what will be the fate of his own future? Or is it like in real history, to go to Poland and become Minister of Defense?

After a pause, Zhukov then asked: "How long do you think it will take to crush the German army in East Pomerania?" ”

"Comrade Marshal, I think it will take only half a month at most," Rokossovsky said confidently, "and we will be able to completely crush the enemy, thereby returning Katukov's tank army and allowing them to participate in the assault on Berlin." ”

"Well, Comrade Rokossovsky, since you are so confident." Zhukov knew that Rokossovsky was not a man who spoke and did not count, so he said with confidence: "I am waiting for your good news." ”

When Rokossovsky put down the phone, he saw that Bogolyubov had already finished assigning tasks to Katukov, so he asked: "General Katukov, I wonder when your troops will be ready to fight?" I need an exact time. ”

Katukov just said that it would take two days, but after listening to the task assigned by Bogolyubov, he silently calculated in his heart for a long time, and finally felt that the two days were too rushed, and he must not be able to catch up. Therefore, after careful consideration, he said to Rokossovsky: "Comrade Marshal, I think that our troops will not be able to enter the battle until March 8 at the earliest. ”