As soon as Rokossovsky and Kamenev entered the command headquarters on the front foot, Leskov's phone call came immediately after. He complained on the phone: "Comrade Commander, why did you arrange a young girl to our regiment? I asked her to be a hygienist, and she didn't agree; Let her be a communications soldier, but she still doesn't agree. Tell me, what should I do? ”

Hearing Leskov's complaints, Rokossovsky said lightly: "Comrade Captain, since she is not willing to be a hygienist and a communications soldier, let her go to the company as an ordinary soldier." ”

"No, no, Comrade Commander." When Leskov heard Rokossovsky say this, he immediately shouted: "There are more than a thousand men in our regiment, how can we let a delicate young girl fight with the Germans with bayonets like us?" ”

Leskov's words made Rokossovsky ponder, he felt that he had just taken it for granted, only remembering that the Soviet army had conscripted 800,000 female soldiers during the Great Patriotic War, but he had never thought about what kind of troops these female soldiers were, otherwise he would not have easily arranged Nadya into the army. Thinking of this, he asked a little tangled: "Comrade Captain, how do you think Nadya should be arranged?" ”

"In fact, she could have joined the militia, participated in patrols in the city and was on duty in key departments, or rescued people injured in air strikes or shelling." Leskov cautiously advised: "If she does not want to join the militia, she can also join the partisans behind enemy lines, or the sabotage group that we are about to send to the rear of the enemy......"

"Alright, Comrade Captain, no more talk." Although Rokossovsky had only been in contact with Nadya for a short time, he knew in his heart that she only wanted to join the regular army, not some militia or partisans. So he interrupted Leskov's words, "Neither the militia nor the partisans are suitable for Nadya, her wish is to join the regular army and avenge her dead relatives." ”

"But, Comrade Commander." When Leskov heard Rokossovsky say this, he immediately asked with some tears and laughter: "What position should I assign to her?" ”

Rokossovsky held the microphone and frowned and tried to think that after joining the army, female soldiers were not only engaged in medical and health care and communications work, but also took on various positions, such as pilots, tank crews, anti-aircraft gunners, machine gunners and snipers. Thinking of this, he couldn't help but light up, and immediately thought of the position that could be assigned to Nadya, and he said loudly into the microphone: "Comrade Captain, are there any snipers in your regiment?" If so, Nadya will be assigned to the sniper team. ”

"We have a sniper squad of three sharpshooters in our regiment," Leskov asked worriedly after briefing the situation, "but is it appropriate to let Nadya be a sniper?" Maybe she won't even put a gun on it. ”

Leskov's words gave Rokossovsky a wake-up call, and he hurriedly asked: "By the way, Comrade Captain, since the last time you repelled the sneak attack of the German army, your regiment has replenished a lot of new recruits, have you concentrated them on military training?" ”

"Not yet, no recruit training." When Leskov heard this, he secretly cried out in his heart that something bad would happen, but he did not dare to tell a lie to Rokossovsky, so he could only try his best to justify: "Comrade commander, the situation is like this, since the last German sneak attack, I feel that our defensive position is not strong enough, so I have recently used all the manpower to repair the existing fortifications so that we can resist the fierce attack of the German army in the future. ”

"Comrade Captain, how can you do this? Now that you know that there are so many recruits in your regiment, the first thing you should consider is not to rush to repair the fortifications, but to seize the time to train the recruits. Rokossovsky said with a hint of helplessness: "You should at least teach them how to use weapons and know how to shoot bullets." Otherwise, when the battle starts, they can only use the weapons in their hands to engage in white-knuckle combat with the enemy. ”

"I see, Comrade Commander." After listening to Rokossovsky's words, Leskov replied with some shame: "I will then order the recruits to be organized and teach them to use various weapons first." ”

"That's right, Comrade Captain." Hearing that Leskov knew that he could correct his mistakes, Rokossovsky nodded with satisfaction, and then added: "Also, you immediately arrange for Nadya to join the sniper team." Even if she doesn't know how to shoot, it doesn't matter, she can learn these things slowly. I think this girl with a blood feud, as long as she is not too stupid, should soon grow into a qualified sniper. ”

"I see, Comrade Commander." After listening to this, Leskov replied respectfully: "I will arrange for her to join the sniper team, and at the same time find the sharpshooter with the best marksmanship to serve as her shooting instructor." ”

After finishing the call with Leskov, Rokossovsky put down the phone and asked Maslov, who was standing next to him: "Comrade Chief of Staff, have you made contact with your superiors?" ”

Maslov shook his head and said with a serious expression: "Although we have tried a lot, we have never been able to get in touch with the command of the Fifth Army, and even Fedyuninsky's 15th Infantry Army has completely lost contact. ”

"Did you get in touch with the Front Command?" Rokossovsky asked unwillingly.

"No, we have lost contact with the Front Command." Maslov said with a look of dismay: "According to the information we have received, the German troops have rushed in from the combined part of our Fifth and Sixth Armies. In the face of a powerful enemy offensive, the command of the Front had shifted to the rear two days earlier, and in my judgment they should have retreated to Kyiv. ”

"So, Comrade Chief of Staff." When Kamenev heard this, he couldn't help but interject and ask: "Our army has become a lone army at the moment. ”

When Rokossovsky heard this, he glanced at Kamenev and said resolutely: "No, Comrade Deputy Political Commander, there are still many friendly troops in our vicinity, who are still fighting stubbornly with the German army. We are not alone, not before, not now, and will not be the case in the future. ”

"What do we do next?" Maslov looked at Rokossovsky and asked: "Do you still want to stick to Shepetovka?" ”

"Until we get a new order from our superiors, we must continue to hold on to Shepetovka." After Rokossovsky said these two sentences, he ordered Maslov: "Chief of Staff, immediately send a reconnaissance detachment to the vicinity to find the troops that are still fighting." If possible, let our scouts bring all these units to Shepetovka to replenish our regiments with heavy losses. (To be continued.) )