The scouts sent out did not transmit all the information they had detected through the radio until dark.

Colonel Krasnoretsky was taken aback by the telegram sent back by the scouts, and he handed it to Rokossovsky, who was sitting opposite him, and at the same time said anxiously: "Comrade commander, an armored unit of the enemy is massing in the north-western direction, and according to the results of the observation of the scouts and the interrogation of the prisoners, they will attack us after dawn tomorrow." ”

Rokossovsky finished reading the telegram with a blank face, casually rested it on the table, and then looked up and said to Krasnoretsky: "Comrade Colonel, gather all the commanders under your command for a meeting to study together how to deal with this German unit rushing towards us. ”

For this order of Rokossovsky, Krasnoretsky immediately carried it out without hesitation. In addition to informing the regimental commanders to come to the meeting, he also informed the commanders of the 116th Tank Regiment.

When all the commanders attending the meeting had arrived, because of the urgency of time, Rokossovsky did not go around in circles, so he informed everyone about the situation of the German army gathering troops in the northwest and preparing to launch an attack on Shepetovka after dawn. Finally, he said politely: "Commanders and comrades, if you have any good suggestions, you can put them forward at the meeting. ”

After waiting for Rokossovsky to finish speaking, Novikov looked left and right for a moment, and then said: "Comrade commander, although we do not know the number of tanks that the Germans have, with our current strength, it is unwise to want to fight against them. So I suggested that, in addition to strengthening the frontal defense, tank units should be concealed in the nearby forests. When the enemy launched a fierce attack on our defensive positions, the tank units fought out from their flanks and caught them by surprise. ”

Hearing that Novikov's suggestion coincided with his own thoughts, Rokossovsky couldn't help but nod with satisfaction. Just as he was about to speak, he was interrupted by an abrupt voice: "Comrade General, I firmly oppose the use of such tactics. ”

Rokossovsky looked in the direction from which the voice came and saw that the person who spoke was Lieutenant Colonel Lyon, commander of the 116th Tank Regiment. He frowned slightly, and then asked the other party politely: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, can you tell me your reasons?" ”

Lieutenant Colonel Lyon got up from his seat, looked at Rokossovsky and said eloquently: "Comrade General, you must know that our troops have been cultivated with a high offensive spirit, and now they are being asked to carry out passive defense, which will affect the morale of our troops. ”

As soon as he heard these clichés of Rien, Rokossovsky felt the urge to beat people. He secretly scolded in his heart: Do you know that it is this erroneous military viewpoint that has caused many troops to be lost in vain. If these forces had been used for defense, at least the Soviets would not have lost so badly in the early stages of the war.

In order to prevent himself from having a seizure on the spot, Rokossovsky turned his head towards Krasnoretsky and asked: "Comrade Colonel, what is your opinion?" ”

Krasnorets basically had the same idea as Lieutenant Colonel Lyon, believing that with his existing strength, he would definitely be able to win a confrontation with the German army. But when he saw Rokossovsky's serious face, he knew that the other party would not agree with his opinion. After thinking for a while, he asked tentatively: "Comrade Army Commander, since the commander of the group army, Lieutenant General Lu Jin, is also in the city, do you think you should report this matter to him and let him make up his mind?" ”

Hearing that Krasnoretsky had moved Lukin out, Rokossovsky felt a headache, and he knew that he could not deploy his troops as he wanted. He nodded slightly, and said helplessly: "Since this is the case, then report to Commander Lukin immediately!" ”

Krasnoretsky, in the presence of Rokossovsky, called Lukin. "Hey, Comrade Commander, I'm Krasnoretsky. According to the information returned by our scouts, the Germans had gathered a large number of troops in the northwest and were preparing to attack Shepetovka after dawn. ”

"What are you going to do?" Lukin asked without moving.

"We are holding a military meeting to discuss the matter." Krasnoretsky glanced at Rokossovsky, who was sitting opposite him, and said with some hesitation: "At present, it is divided into two factions, the faction dominated by Lieutenant Colonel Rion, which advocates using our current strength to fight against the German army; The other faction of Comrade Commander was ready to send troops to ambush in the nearby forest, and when the main forces of the German army pounced on the positions we were holding, they would launch a surprise attack and strike hard at the flanks of the German troops. ”

After listening to what Krasnoretsky said, Lukin did not immediately express his position, but continued to ask: "I wonder which scheme you used in the end?" ”

"Both options have their advantages, so we can't choose right now." The sleek Krasnoretsky replied skillfully: "That's why I'm calling you to report this matter to you and waiting for your orders." ”

Rokossovsky raised his hand and looked at his watch, feeling impatient. In the summer at high latitudes, the sky is bright before four o'clock, and it is not dark until eleven o'clock in the evening. It is now past midnight, that is, there are still about four hours left, and the Germans will attack Shepetovka, and at this moment, there is no final conclusion on whether it will attack or defend.

When Krasnoretsky put down the phone, he immediately couldn't wait to ask: "How is it, Comrade Colonel." What did General Lukin say, are we on the offensive or on the defensive? ”

"I'm sorry, Comrade Commander, I don't know." Krasnoretsky shook his head and said with a look of embarrassment: "Comrade Commander said that he was going to send a telegram to the heads of the front armies and report this matter to them. ”

When Rokossovsky heard him say this, his heart became more and more worried, he knew that the tradition of the Soviet army, even if there was only the slightest possibility, the superior commander would never allow his soldiers to stay in the fortifications to fight defensive battles, but to let them desperately launch a fierce attack on the enemy.

Rokossovsky walked back and forth in the house with his hands behind his back twice, and suddenly stopped, thinking to himself that he was the supreme commander here, and that he could completely decide how to deploy his troops until new orders from his superiors arrived. Thinking of this, he returned to the conference table and began to deploy combat missions: "Comrades commanders, now I give you a combat order!" ”

"Military ...... Comrade Army Commander," Krasnoretsky was a little anxious when he saw Rokossovsky assigning tasks on his own initiative, and he asked in a panic: "Don't you wait for the commander's reply?" ”

"It's too late. When dawn came, we would discuss whether to defend or attack, but it was too late. Rokossovsky said decisively: "Novikov's tank division, hidden in the forest to the north of the first line of defense, when you see the enemy's tanks approaching our positions, you decisively attack and completely cut off their attacking forces." ”

"Yes," Novikov stood up and replied loudly: "The tank division is guaranteed to complete the task!" ”

"Lieutenant Colonel Leon," Rokossovsky waited for Novikov to sit down, then turned his gaze to the tank commander next to him, and instructed him: "Your tank regiment is deployed behind the first line of defense, and when the enemy's attack is repulsed by us, the tank regiment will immediately turn to the counteroffensive." ”

"Understood, Comrade General." Lieutenant Colonel Liao En also hurriedly stood up and replied.

"After returning to their respective units, the commanders of the infantry regiments immediately organized the soldiers to take advantage of the night to strengthen the fortifications." Then Rokossovsky gave another order to the infantry commanders: "And in the trenches, prepare enough anti-tank weapons." ”

After he finished speaking, Krasnoretsky opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, so he waved his hand first and said: "Okay, this is the end of today's meeting, everyone should go back to their respective units." Meeting! ”