After a day in Moscow, Rokossovsky returned to the front.

Seeing that Rokossovsky had returned to the command headquarters, the head of logistics, Antypenko, immediately came to him and anxiously asked: "Comrade commander, the supplies in our logistics warehouse are almost empty, I wonder when the superiors will be able to replenish us?" ”

Rokossovsky did not answer immediately, but lit a cigarette, took a few puffs, and then said: "General Antipenko, the current situation is worse than you think, not only will we not get any replenishment now, but this situation will continue even in the next two months. ”

"What, it's going to last two months?" Rokossovsky's words startled Antipenko, and he muttered: "Don't say wait another two months, even if you wait for two more days, the ammunition of the troops will not be available." ”

"Comrade Minister of Logistics, what did you say?" Andypinkko's words, in turn, startled Rokossovsky, and he asked with a frown: "Is it true that the ammunition of the troops can only last two days?" ”

"It depends on how our army uses ammunition," Andipenko said with a solemn expression: "If you want to launch a large-scale attack on the German army, prepare for artillery fire for more than an hour, and then launch a surprise attack, the ammunition can only be used for two days at most." But ......" At this point, he paused, as if considering what to say more appropriately.

"But what," Rokossovsky couldn't help but feel a little anxious when he heard that the shortage of ammunition had reached such a point, especially when he saw that Andypinkko was only half of what he said, he urged: "Comrade Minister of Logistics, you should say it quickly." ”

"If we save it, we might be able to last until April." After saying this, Anji Pianko may have felt a little unsteady in his heart, and hurriedly added, "Maybe there will be no more in mid-March." ”

After listening to this, Rokossovsky thought to himself: Now all sections are fighting with the German army, although the scale is not large, but after all, hundreds of thousands of troops are fighting, even if it is saved, the consumption of ammunition is still a surprising astronomical amount. Thinking of this, he tentatively asked Anjipienko: "Comrade Minister of Logistics, if we are not supplemented by our superiors, can we get the ammunition needed by the troops from other means?" For example, an ammunition warehouse somewhere, or a direct capture of the enemy's weapons? ”

"Comrade commander, the situation you mentioned is fine for a small unit, such as a division or a regiment, but it really can't be used for the entire front army." In order to make Rokossovsky understand better, Antipnko explained to him: "I have searched for the ammunition depot you mentioned, where you can find it. There is no warehouse where weapons and ammunition are still stored.

And the use of captured enemy weapons inevitably involves a change of outfit. Once our troops are replaced with German armaments, we will also have a headache in the supply of ammunition for these weapons in the future. ”

After Andypinkko finished speaking, the expression on Rokossovsky's face became more serious: "Comrade Minister of Logistics, in this way, we can only reduce the consumption of ammunition by reducing the scale of the battle?" ”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." Anji Pianko nodded and said, "This is the only way to do it at the moment." ”

"I understand," Rokossovsky waved at Andisenko: "You go back first, I have to discuss this matter with the chief of staff and the deputy commander." ”

After Andypinkko left, Rokossovsky called Zakharkin and Malinin in front of him, repeated what Andypinkko said to the two, and then asked: "Tell me what you think?" ”

"Comrade commander, since the current ammunition is becoming more and more difficult, I think it is better to temporarily reduce the scale of the battle." As he spoke, Malinin pulled the map on the table, pointed to the above positions and said to Rokossovsky: "The offensive battles in these areas, I suggest that you can stop for a while. ”

"Stop, why stop, Comrade Chief of Staff?" When Zakharkin heard Malinin say this, his eyes widened and he asked: "Don't you see that our army has always adopted an offensive posture in these areas?" ”

"Comrade Deputy Commander," Malinin retorted, "yes, we are indeed attacking in these places, but every day we consume a lot of ammunition, for example, for a preparation of artillery fire, our artillery will consume at least two bases of ammunition. Maybe it won't hit twice, and our artillery will have no shells available. ”

"Comrade Chief of Staff, you are too pessimistic." Zakharkin said with a big grin: "As long as our troops can continue to advance, then we can find the arsenals of the German army in these liberated areas and replenish our troops with their weapons and ammunition!" ”

Rokossovsky couldn't say a word between Zakhargin and Malinin, so they argued, and naturally understood in his heart what was going on. The last time Batov's troops suffered a crushing defeat in the Kalinkovich region, Malinin wanted to report the matter to the High Command in a timely manner, but Zakharkin tried his best to suppress the matter and was ready to report it when the situation improved. It was because of this time that the two became rivals.

He didn't want to see the two continue to argue, so he stopped them in time, and then announced his decision: "In order to solve the situation of insufficient ammunition in the troops, starting today, the units of the various army groups on the right flank of the front army will gradually reduce the scale of the battle, from the original division-level battles to the battalion-company level battles; The 61st, 65th, and 48th armies on the left flank, while attacking, should seize the time to strengthen the fortifications in the occupied areas and prepare for the transition to the defense at any time......"

"Understood, Comrade Commander." As soon as Malinin waited for Rokossovsky to finish speaking, he immediately got up from his seat and went to the communication room with the recorded order to convey the order.

Zakharkin glanced at the back of Malinin leaving, looked at Rokossovsky and asked: "Comrade commander, are you really ready to reduce the size of the battle of your troops?" ”

"That's right, it's the only way to save ammunition." Rokossovsky said somewhat helplessly: "Comrade Deputy Commander, I also want to direct the troops to immediately hit Minsk and drive the Germans out of Belarus. But no, we are now seriously short of ammunition and soldiers. The number of soldiers needed by the troops can also be replenished by discharged wounded soldiers, local residents, collective farm workers. But what about the ammunition we need? There is no way to solve it in the same way. ”