Vashukin's mood has been extremely low these days, he thought that as advertised before the war, the military principle of the Soviet army is not defense but offense, and if the enemy takes the initiative to provoke a war, the Soviet army will be the most offensive army of all armies, and can deal a devastating blow to the enemy and let them perish on the spot. According to the top-secret plan of the General Staff of the Soviet Army, "KOBO-41", in the event of an attack by Germany against the Soviet Union, a counter-assault operation would be carried out on its flanks and behind it, and the war would be pushed beyond the borders.

Then the unforgiving reality made Vashukin confused, and the troops of the Southwestern Front seemed to be unable to defend the existing positions, and where was there any ability to carry out a counterattack on the enemy in accordance with the orders of the General Staff. Yesterday the mechanized corps and infantry divisions were thrown into the Dubno area, and the losses can only be described as heavy. In particular, the 135th Infantry Division, on its way to the border, was first bombed indiscriminately by German aircraft, and then encountered a surprise attack by German armored units, with the result that in less than an hour, thousands of troops were completely wiped out.

But fortunately, Rokossovsky, whom he values, did well after the start of the war. First, he led his troops to break through the outlying positions of the German army at Vladimirov Volynsky, and took the opportunity to occupy Lublin, where the enemy was empty. Confirming that the other mechanized corps could not break through the German obstacles, they went to join them, and decisively went north to strike at the flank of the German army attacking the Brest fortress. Yesterday, he led his troops back to Lutsk, and won two battles in a row, although the scale of the battles was not large, but when the overall situation was unfavorable to the Soviet army, it still played a role in boosting morale.

After reading the telegram that Kirponos had handed him, his mood became cheerful. He put the telegram on the table, then stood up, put the military cap resting on the table on his head, and said to Kirponos: "Comrade commander, I would like to go and see Rokossovsky's troops. ”

When Kirponos heard Vashukin say this, he couldn't help but be stunned, and then instinctively persuaded: "No, Comrade Military Commissar, it's too dangerous there, I can't let you take the risk." ”

"Comrade Commander," Vashukin saw that Kirponos was going to prevent him from going to the troops, and hurriedly tried to convince the other side with his own reasons: "I wanted to go to Rokossovsky's troops, find out how they achieved these victories, and then carry out propaganda on the whole front, in order to boost our declining morale. ”

In the same way, if someone else had said it, he would have been rebuked by Vashukin for saying that it was a defeatist argument, but when he said such a thing at the moment, Kirponos, who had always contradicted him but never entered the water, would certainly not point out anything wrong with him. All he had in mind was how to stop his military commissar from taking risks.

"Comrade commander," Pulkaev, who had not spoken all this time, suddenly said, "since Comrade Military Commissar thinks that he should go to the troops, then go." Maybe he went to the army, and it could also have the effect of stabilizing the morale of the army and boosting morale. ”

Kirponos looked at his deputy with some confusion, not understanding how he, who had always hated Vashukin, could suddenly jump out to defend the person he hated. Before he could come up with a reason, Vashukin continued: "That's right, Comrade Chief of Staff is right, because our troops have suffered successive defeats, and the morale and morale of the army are currently in question. We need to set an example for them to follow, and when they understand the series of victories achieved by Rokossovsky's forces, they can regain their confidence in victory. ”

Vashukin's words made Kirponos even more embarrassed. He had no choice but to turn his eyes for help to Pulkaev next to him, but he didn't expect the other party to nod vigorously, signaling that he agreed to let Vashukin go to Rokossovsky. Seeing this, Kirponos could only say: "Well, Comrade Military Commissar, since you insist on going to the troops, then go!" However, it is too dangerous outside now, so you must pay attention to your own safety. ”

"I'll take notice." After saying a cold word, Vashukin nodded at the two of them, and then left the conference table and walked towards the door.

After Kilponos and Vashukin's figure disappeared from the door, he lowered his voice and asked Pulkaev: "Comrade Chief of Staff, why do you want me to agree to Comrade Vashukin to go to the army?" You must know that the situation outside is too chaotic now, and he may encounter danger if he goes out like this. ”

"Comrade Commander, don't you think it's a bit of a hindrance for him to stay here? Maybe he's leaving, and that's really good for us. After Pulkaev said these words, without waiting for Kirponos to respond, he diverted the topic, "This Rokossovsky is really amazing, it seems that we should put a burden on him." Comrade commander, the current situation in Shepetovka is very bad, I think he should be transferred there. ”

"Shepetovka?!" When Kirponos heard Pulkaev say this, he asked a little strangely: "Isn't there Lukin there at the moment, wouldn't it be a bit redundant to transfer him there?" ”

"Comrade commander, when you were on the phone with General Lukin, you also heard him say that he received an order from the General Staff to immediately rush to Smolensk with his troops, after all, the order of his superiors cannot be violated, and I believe that he will not stay long in Shepetovka." Pulkaev shrugged his shoulders and continued: "Therefore, in order to ensure the security of military warehouses in the area, it is necessary to send a competent commander over. Judging from the current situation, Rokossovsky is the most suitable candidate. ”

After listening to Pulkaev's words, Kirponos stared at the map for a long time, then nodded slowly and said: "Well, Comrade Chief of Staff, since you say so, then immediately send a telegram to Rokossovsky, asking him to immediately lead a detachment of troops to Shepetovka and resolutely hold there. ”

At this moment, Rokossovsky was in the defense area of the 22nd Mechanized Army, and was studying the issue of arranging defenses with the chief of staff of the corps Tamruchi and the commander of the cavalry division Mareyev. After receiving the telegram from the Front, he couldn't help but be stunned. Xin said that he had just relieved the siege of Tamruch, and he was going to immediately lead his troops to Shepetovka to clean up the mess, and he simply became a battlefield firefighting team.

Tamruch's eyes were sharp, and he could read the contents of the telegram clearly at a glance. He pretended to ask mysteriously: "Comrade army commander, do you know why your superiors sent General Lukin to Smolensk?" ”

Rokossovsky really didn't know the answer to this question, he looked at Tamruch and asked curiously: "Comrade Chief of Staff, do you know the reason?" ”

Tamruch leaned close to Rokossovsky's ear and said mysteriously: "It is said that in the Katyn Forest in Smolensk, there is a tsar's treasure that has not yet been found. If the Germans had occupied it, it was estimated that these treasures would not have been saved. ”

Rokossovsky almost laughed out loud when he heard this absurd reason, and he said to himself: You don't know how you would feel if you knew that there was no tsarist treasure in the Katyn Forest in Smolensk, only the bodies of tens of thousands of executed Polish officers were buried.

He smiled faintly at Tamruch, then beckoned to Novikov, who was not far away, and at the same time shouted loudly: "Hey, comrade division commander, gather the troops immediately, we are about to leave." ”