The soldiers of the guard company had just put the bodies of the two dozen female soldiers who had died into the newly dug soil pit, and before they could fill in the soil, suddenly a shout came from not far away: "Air attack!" Air strikes by enemy aircraft! ”

Li Jiya, who was standing next to me, heard this shout, only looked up at the air, and shouted at the female soldiers standing on the edge of the pit: "Girls, prepare to fight!" After shouting these words, she took the lead and ran towards a nearby anti-aircraft gun...... After a short hesitation, the female soldiers who were wearing only white military shirts also ran to their respective gun emplacements.

Basmanov walked up to me, touched me with his arm, pouted at the pit, and asked a little embarrassed: "Comrade division commander, what should we do?" Do you want to help the female soldiers bury all the martyrs now? ”

"No, wait a minute." I looked at the two enemy planes hovering over the pier, shook my head slowly, and said lightly: "Don't worry, Comrade Captain, wait until the female soldiers have repelled this wave of enemy planes." "I say this because I have an ominous premonition that the female soldiers will die in the next battle, and if they fill the hole now, they will have to dig it later. But I said to Basmanov in a high-sounding voice, "Let's wait until the female soldiers have repelled this wave of German air raids and let them say goodbye to their comrades." ”

I don't know what the German air force commander thought, every time the docks were bombed, only two enemy aircraft were dispatched, and this time was no exception. When the enemy planes skimmed over the Mamayev Heights, they did not immediately dive down to bomb and strafe, but continued to hover high in the air. As the anti-aircraft machine guns on the dock opened fire, the crisp sound of gunfire rang out. Li Jiya also decisively gave the order to open fire on the remaining six anti-aircraft guns.

The position of the anti-aircraft guns was too messy. In addition, the shooting boundary is affected by the surrounding buildings. The explosion of the six shells in the air did not have any effect on the two hovering enemy planes.

I was deeply afraid that such inefficient shooting by anti-aircraft guns would attract retaliation from enemy planes, so I hurriedly stepped forward to stop Li Jiya: "Comrade political commissar of the regiment, stop, stop!" ”

Li Jiya didn't expect me to stop her suddenly, so she couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, and then asked coldly, "Comrade Colonel." Are we just watching enemy planes bomb civilians on the docks? ”

"With your style of play, not only will you not be able to destroy the enemy plane, but it is estimated that you and your subordinates will be sacrificed in the end." I didn't bother to explain anything more to her, and as soon as I had said this, I turned around and ordered Basmanov: "Comrade Captain, take your men and help the female soldiers drag the anti-aircraft guns to a place with a wide field of vision." Remember, after the anti-aircraft guns are in position, they form a triangle in groups of three. The two triangles are fifty meters apart. ”

For my command, although Basmanov listened to it with a blank face. But he still replied with a resolute expression: "Yes, Comrade Division Commander, I will carry it out immediately." Then he turned and shouted at the guards and soldiers who were coming this way: "Hey, all come to me, move quickly, don't rub in." ”

While the soldiers of the guard company were dragging the anti-aircraft guns to the open field, I walked up to the angry Li Jiya, and before I could speak, she hurriedly yelled at me: "Comrade Colonel, what are you really doing? Why let your fighters pull the anti-aircraft guns away, didn't you see that the planes of the Germans were about to dive and bomb? ”

As she spoke, the sound of an explosion was heard from the direction of the docks, followed by shouts and cries. I smiled bitterly and said to the angry Li Jiya: "Comrade Political Commissar of the regiment, have you ever wondered why your antiaircraft artillery regiment has suffered heavy casualties in the past few days, but only a handful of enemy planes have been killed?" My words made Li Jiya's face show a puzzled expression, and then she instinctively shook her head, indicating that she didn't know.

Seeing that she was able to calm down and listen to me, I continued: "Although your anti-aircraft artillery regiment has a large number of anti-aircraft guns and anti-aircraft machine guns on the dock, when the enemy planes are flying, they all fight separately, scatter their firepower, and do not pose the slightest threat to the enemy organs. I asked Captain Basmanov to arrange your anti-aircraft guns in a triangle so that enemy planes, regardless of which direction they are coming from, will guarantee a sufficient density of fire to provide a hit rate for downing enemy aircraft. ”

After listening to me, Li Jiya frowned and thought for a while, then nodded approvingly, and said at the same time: "Comrade Colonel, what you said is very reasonable, I will let the girls try and try to shoot down the enemy plane." ”

After the anti-aircraft guns were in position, they formed two adjacent triangles according to my deployment, and opened heavy fire on the enemy planes that were pulling back into the air, and the shells exploded around the planes, forming a black barrage of bullets, which soon drifted away with the wind.

When the enemy aircraft circled at high altitude, six anti-aircraft guns illuminated them; When the enemy aircraft began to dive, the anti-aircraft machine guns on the pier weaved a dense web of fire in front of it. An enemy plane destroyed an anti-aircraft machine gun when it was diving to drop bombs, but just as it was pulled into the air and was about to circle, it was hit by shrapnel from anti-aircraft guns, and a long black smoke burst out from under the wings, and the fuselage shook and fell to the east bank of the Volga River.

Seeing that the enemy plane was shot down, the girls who operated the anti-aircraft artillery raised their hands and cheered in unison: "Down, down!" Ulla! Ulla!! ”

Seeing that its companion had been shot down, the remaining enemy plane did not dare to dive down and drop bombs again, but circled in the air and then turned around and flew north. Unexpectedly, when the enemy plane flew over the Mamayev Heights, the fuselage suddenly lost control, plunged downward, diagonally crossed the position on the high ground, and planted directly to the north of the high ground. A dull explosion was followed by a puff of black smoke.

What's going on? When I saw the enemy plane that crashed inexplicably, I thought to myself that it wouldn't be such a coincidence, the enemy plane just wanted to fly over the position of our army, but it had a mechanical failure and directly led the crash?

But before I could figure it out, Lieutenant Colonel Oleg came running over with a telegraph operator and shouted at me from afar: "Comrade division commander, the phone number of the army group headquarters says that I want to talk to you immediately." ”

I dragged Oleg and the operator to the wall of the building, then took the headphones and put them on, and shouted into the microphone, "Hey." Feed. I'm Colonel Oshanina. Please reply when you hear it. ”

The voice of General Krylov soon came from the headphones: "Hey, Colonel Oshanina, I'm Krylov. What is the situation on your side, were the Germans attacking the docks repulsed? ”

"Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff, the Germans who attacked the docks were completely wiped out by us." I replied loudly.

"Well done," the chief of staff complimented me loudly, and then asked, "Are there any commanders who stand out?" Report their names to me. I want to take credit for them. ”

"Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff. The 1O1 Regiment of the 35th Guards Division came to support our anti-tank company, and although they had only eleven men and ten anti-tank guns, they eliminated 12 German tanks in the battle. ”

"What, a force of eleven people actually eliminated 12 tanks, it's amazing, what is the name of their commander?" Krylov was also stunned by such a result, and he immediately asked the name of the commander of the company.

I thought about it for a moment. He replied: "The commander who led the team was Gerasimov, the political instructor. ”

"Hmm. I made a note of the name. Anything else to report? ”

"Also, Comrade Chief of Staff." Thinking of the sacrificed girls who were still lying in the pits, I immediately reported to Krylov: "The 1o77th anti-aircraft artillery regiment also stood out in battle, they destroyed at least five German tanks. But at the same time, he also paid a great price, two anti-aircraft guns were destroyed by German tank shells, and more than two dozen girls died heroically. Just two minutes earlier, they had shot down an enemy plane that had come to bomb the docks. ”

Krylov was silent for a moment, then asked: "The commander of this regiment died in yesterday's air raid, who is now commanding this unit?" ”

"At present, the commander of the antiaircraft artillery regiment is Li Jiya, the political commissar of the regiment, who is a commander with a very fighting spirit."

"Well, I made a note of it. Is there anything else going on? ”

"Comrade Chief of Staff," I hesitated when I heard that he was about to hang up, but still asked decisively, "I want to ask if the counterattack carried out today was successful?" ”

"Can't you feel it? Colonel Oshanina. Krylov said sternly: "If our counterattack goes well, will the German tank units still storm the city and try to capture the docks?" ”

Hearing Krylov say this, I remembered that the Germans had two armies, one of which had bypassed the 1o7.5 heights and swooped down on the city from north to south, while the other tried to seize the dock from west to east, but we had already destroyed it.

"Have we wiped out the German armored forces that stormed the city?" In order to learn more about the hostile situation, I asked cautiously.

"Not yet." "The Germans are storming the central railway station, and the remnants of the 1O Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the 35th Guards Division are fighting stubbornly against them," Krylov said quickly. By the way, the 4th Regiment of your Separate Division has also been dispatched, they are attacking from the rear of the German army, and the commander has now personally arrived at the railway station to direct the troops against the attacking German troops. ”

After returning the headset and microphone to the operator, I looked up and asked Oleg: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, did Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar send someone to support you when you attacked the German flank attacking the dock just now?" ”

Oleg nodded vigorously and said affirmatively: "Yes, Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar transferred a battalion of the third regiment to me, so that I would have enough strength to attack from the rear of the German army." ”

I nodded with satisfaction and said to him: "Well, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, now the defense of the docks will be entrusted to you and Captain Prokop of the 1O Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. I will only say one thing, at any cost, resolutely hold the pier, because this is the main artery of the whole of Stalingrad, and if it is cut off by the Germans, the troops holding on to the city will be in a desperate situation of running out of ammunition and food, and then we will all be thrown into the Volga by the Germans. Do you understand? ”

"Understood!" Oleg answered me loudly.

I was about to leave with my legs raised, when it occurred to me that his troops had been holding on to the south of the settlement, and if they were all transferred here to guard the docks, wouldn't there be an air raid there? So he added: "By the way, you can't give up in the settlement, and you must send the most powerful people to hold on." ”

"Commander, please rest assured. Comrade Vellol, the political commissar of the regiment, was there, and she had three companies of troops in her hands. Even in the event of an attack by the Germans. It can also be on top for a while. Besides, we can get the support of the three regiments at any time. Comrade division commander, please rest assured that we have no problem holding on to the settlements. ”

Having received Oleg's promise, I was relieved to return to the division headquarters with Basmanov and the guard company.

As I passed by the hill where the main position was located, I suddenly remembered the enemy plane that had fallen inexplicably, and beckoned Basmanov to turn around and walk towards the heights.

On the way, he met an ensign on duty, who, hearing that I was going to Lieutenant Colonel Sedjerikov, immediately called a fighter. Let him be our guide and guide us to Lieutenant Colonel Sedjerikov. In order to prevent the crowd from revealing the target, I left only Vera and the three of them, and the rest of the soldiers let Basmanov take them back to the division headquarters first.

I followed the trench to Lieutenant Colonel Shederikov's headquarters, leaving Vera and her sisters at the door, and I opened the curtain and walked in. Shedelikov was holding a kerosene lamp at the moment, lying on his desk and reading a map. When he saw someone come in, he turned his head to look at me, maybe he was thinking about something, and looked at me for a while. Only then did he remember that he had put the kerosene lamp on the table, stood up straight and saluted me.

I walked over to him and sat down. Looking up at him, he asked, "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, do you have hostility here?" ”

Shederikov shook his head and replied: "No, not at all." There was neither German artillery bombardment nor a German ground offensive. Perhaps our counterattack at dawn today has drawn their forces in other directions, so they can't muster the strength to attack us. ”

"Although the enemy did not attack, he could not let his guard down." When I heard Sederikov say this, I was afraid that he would take it lightly, so I hurriedly reminded him.

"Before dawn, I sent scouts to lurk five kilometres north of the heights. According to the information they sent back, the Germans did not make any move, and it seemed that they would not attack. ”

Hearing that, I felt a little relieved. Then I remembered the purpose of my visit, and said to Shederikov: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I have just seen an enemy plane flying over your position, suddenly lost control, and exploded and caught fire on the north side of the high ground. I wanted to see what was going on and figure out why the plane was falling inexplicably. ”

As soon as my words fell, Sederikov burst out laughing. I was confused by his laughter, and asked puzzledly: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, what are you laughing at, did I say something wrong?" ”

Sederikov waved his hand again and again and explained: "This is not the case, Comrade Division Commander. The enemy plane crashed not because of some mechanical failure, but because we shot it down. ”

"Shot down?!" Sederikov's words surprised me, a mass without anti-aircraft weapons, what was it used to shoot down enemy planes? "Comrade Sederikov, you have confused me, what the hell is going on, let's hear it."

Shedelikov did not answer me immediately, but made a gesture of invitation, and at the same time said politely: "Comrade division commander, please come to me, I will let you see with your own eyes how the enemy plane was shot down." ”

Confused, I got up and followed him out of the headquarters, out of the trenches again, and onto the hillside overgrown with bushes and weeds. Shedelikov stood still and said to me with a smile: "Comrade division commander, here you are." ”

"Right here?" I looked around for a long time, and I didn't see a single anti-aircraft machine gun, let alone an anti-aircraft gun, except for bushes and weeds, and I asked dissatisfiedly: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, what exactly do you want me to see?" ”

Sedelikov took two steps earlier and shouted towards the hillside: "Ensign, ensign, where are you?" ”

With his shout, seventy or eighty commanders and fighters stood up from the bushes and grass, and one of the commanders trotted up to Sederikov and, after raising his hand to salute him, reported: "Ensign Kursen reports to you and is at your orders." ”

Sederikov pointed at me and said, "Comrade division commander wants to find out how the enemy plane just fell, so you can demonstrate it for her." ”

The second lieutenant agreed, turned around and shouted at the soldiers on the hillside: "Air attack, all prepare for air defense." ”

Following his command, the warriors lay on their backs on the ground, raised their guns and aimed them into the air, making a gesture ready to shoot.

Seeing this scene, I couldn't help but be surprised again, and I asked Sedelikov curiously: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, this is how you shot down the enemy plane?" ”

Sederikov nodded vigorously and said affirmatively: "Our regiment has no anti-aircraft weapons, and every time we see enemy planes sweeping over our heights to bomb the docks, the commanders and fighters are all heartbroken when they see those civilians killed and wounded in the bombing, and finally it is Second Lieutenant Kurson who has the wit to come up with this method of attacking enemy planes. Originally, I just agreed to his style of play with the idea of giving it a try. I didn't expect to really shoot down the enemy plane today. ”

Hearing what Sederikov said, I nodded, thinking to myself that this kind of fighting, if we want to shoot down the enemy planes, there will be more luck in the element, and it seems that we should consider asking the army group headquarters to replenish our division with some anti-aircraft machine guns, and if it really doesn't work, it would be okay to move all the anti-aircraft machine guns from the dock.

When I returned to the division headquarters, I again received a call from the headquarters of the army group, and this time it was no longer Krylov, but Chuikov himself. He said with relief: "Thank you, Colonel Oshanina. It would not have been easy to destroy the German armored force that had broken through into the city if it had not been for the timely dispatch of troops to attack from the rear of the German army. ”

I was thinking about the anti-aircraft machine guns in my head, so I directly ignored what Chuikov said to me and said straight to the point: "Comrade commander, can you provide part of the anti-aircraft machine guns for our division?" ”

"Anti-aircraft machine guns?!" After repeating my words, Chuikov asked puzzledly: "What do you want an anti-aircraft machine gun for?" ”

"Every day enemy planes pass over the heights and go to bomb the docks. If anti-aircraft machine guns are placed on the high ground, we can inflict heavy damage on them as they pass through the high ground and reduce the pressure on the air defense of the docks. ”

After thinking about my suggestion, Chuikov agreed very simply: "This is easy to do, I will do my best to arrange for someone to send you an anti-aircraft machine gun." Do you have any other requests? ”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." I naturally would not let go of the rare opportunity to propose conditions to Chuikov, and I said in a hastened voice: "In order to strengthen the leadership of the independent division, I hope that you will send me a political commissar and chief of staff. ”

Hearing me say this, Chuikov laughed hehehe, and after laughing, he said, "Commissar, I have already prepared it for you." If you don't ask, I'll send it to you tomorrow. However, the selection of the chief of staff is a bit troublesome, and it may take a while. ”

"The commissar will come tomorrow? Who is he, do I know him? ”

Unexpectedly, Cui Kefu didn't answer me directly, and also sold me Guanzi: "As for who it is, when you see it, you will naturally know." I still have something to do, we'll talk about it next time. Good luck! (To be continued......)

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