After talking about my arrangement, Chuikov asked Zhukov curiously: "Comrade General, why did the High Command suddenly send you to Stalingrad?" ”

To the question of an old friend, Zhukov smiled and replied: "I was sent by Comrade Stalin to replace Comrade Vasilevsky and to lead the entire Stalingrad region of our army in the operation. This is because the General Staff and the Supreme Command very much need Vasilevsky, a 'wise star', to coordinate and deploy the war situation across the country. In terms of specific command of operations, Comrade Stalin seemed to think that I was better than Comrade Chief of the General Staff, who had a staff officer, so he sent me here. ”

Just now, several generals have mentioned one after another: wherever Zhukov goes, the offensive will begin. Although Zhukov was noncommittal about this statement, Chuikov, the commander of the 62nd Army, who was about to take office, was still curious to ask him about the next deployment.

After a moment of silence, Zhukov said unhurriedly: "Before I left Moscow, the Supreme Commander himself told me that the 24th and 66th armies and the 1st Guards Army would be immediately transferred to Stalingrad. So the first thing I did when I arrived at Stalingrad was to immediately start deploying the counterattack of the three armies. ”

When Chuikov was about to say something, someone suddenly ran in from outside the house, hurriedly glanced at the people present, walked quickly to Chuikov's side, leaned down to his ear and whispered a few words.

Zhukov's expression became stern when he noticed this sudden intruder, he looked at this person and asked in a stern tone: "Who are you?" ”

The person who had just come in was asked so suddenly by Zhukov. I was surprised to find that there was still a general sitting in the room. Suddenly I was frightened and a little panicked. I didn't know how to answer this question, so I had to turn my eyes to Chuikov in front of me for help. And Chuikov was obviously still digesting the news he had just gotten, so he didn't notice the predicament of his subordinates.

This person who just came in, except for me and Chuikov, the rest of the people should not know each other, and seeing him at a loss, I just wanted to stand up and answer Zhukov. Unexpectedly, Zhukov repeated his question again at this time: "You didn't hear what I said. Comrade private? I just asked you, who are you, and why didn't you report it and come in? ”

Zhukov's voice woke Chuikov from his contemplation, and he quickly stood up and introduced to Zhukov: "Comrade General, this is my herald Sidorin. Then he took a step towards Zhukov and said in a softer voice, "He is the son of my former chief of operations, Lieutenant Colonel Sidorin. After the death of the lieutenant colonel on the Don River, he was always by my side. ”

Chuikov's words. Silenced Zhukov, and he walked over to Sidorin Jr. Reaching out and patting him on the shoulder, he asked kindly, "Little Sidorin, how old is this year?" ”

Little Sidorin lowered his head and replied timidly, "I will turn 16 this year. ”

After hearing this, Zhukov nodded and said: "Although he is a little smaller, he is also a glorious Red Army soldier." Why didn't you shout a report when you came in just now? ”

When Little Sidorin heard Zhukov say this, he quickly raised his head and explained: "I'm sorry, Comrade General, I didn't know you were here, and I was very familiar with Sister Oshanina, so I didn't bother to shout a report, so I broke in directly." ”

When Zhukov heard him say this, he couldn't help but turn his head to look at me and asked curiously, "Leda, is that so?" ”

I hurriedly stood up and replied: "Yes, Comrade Commander, I am very familiar with Little Sidorin, and when he arrives at my headquarters, he hardly needs to shout a report, he comes in directly. ”

After hearing this, Zhukov lowered his head and asked Sidorin: "Little Sidorin, you hurriedly ran in to find General Chuikov, don't you know what is going on?" ”

Seeing Zhukov's amiable attitude, Sidorin was no longer as frightened as he had just now, he hurriedly straightened up, straightened his body, and reported loudly: "I have just received a report that the Germans are launching a fierce attack on the Meshkova River, and the battle is fierce. ”

Little Sidorin's words surprised everyone who stayed in the house, except for Zhukov and Chuikov.

Zhukov glanced at the map a few times, and then asked Sidorin: "How many troops are the Germans?" ”

"The Germans, under the cover of aircraft, dispatched more than 200 tanks and armored vehicles, plus a regiment or so of infantry, launched an attack on our defense line, and the 126th Infantry Division, which defended the area, was fighting stubbornly with the Germans."

"Comrade Chuikov," after listening to the report of Sidorin Jr., Zhukov instructed Chuikov, who was standing in front of him: "This may be the last battle you commanded in the 64th Army, you immediately go to the front to see." In a word, at any cost, hold on to the Meshkova River and definitely not let the Germans move forward. ”

Chuikov hurriedly agreed and left the command with Sidorin.

I raised my hand and looked at my watch, it was almost noon, so I asked Zhukov: "Comrade General, it's not early, will you stay here for lunch?" ”

Zhukov also raised his hand to look at his watch, nodded and said: "Okay, I'll have lunch at your place, and then rush to Stalingrad to hand over Comrade Vasilevsky." ”

Hearing that Zhukov was willing to stay with me for lunch, I immediately ordered Razumeyeva to go to the cooking class to make arrangements.

After Razumeyeva left, Zhukov asked about the defense of our division. After I had given him a detailed briefing on the situation, he said thoughtfully: "Judging from the current situation, Hort's 4th Tank Army has achieved nothing in nearly a week of fighting, they have lost a large number of fighters and technical equipment, and now they have lost the energy to continue their advance, and they have to temporarily abandon the plan to attack the Red Army City, and then advance to the Volga to join Paulus's 6th Army. ”

After Zhukov finished speaking, I humbly asked him: "Although the German tank 4th Army has temporarily stopped the offensive, but the offensive of Paulus's 6th Army is still very fierce, I would like to ask, in the current situation, what kind of action should our army take to restrain the powerful offensive of the German army?" ”

As soon as this remark came out. I noticed that both Krylov and Kirillov had changed their faces. Immediately realized that he had asked a question that he should not have asked. Krylov glanced at Zhukov, who was silent. Stand up and criticize me: "Colonel Oshanina, please be aware of your own identity, you are only a division commander, not a commander of the front. There is no need to report to you on how Comrade Zhukov will be deployed during the campaign. Although his words were very serious, I could still tell from his expression that he was worried that I would offend Zhukov. only then did he deliberately stand up and criticize me.

"Don't get excited, Comrade Krylov," Zhukov raised his hand and pressed downward, motioning for Krykov to sit down, adding, "Comrade Leda's strategic vision and level of judgment of the situation, in many cases, are incomparable to those of us senior commanders. If the base camp had been reminded by Leda and had decisively transferred troops to strengthen the defenses of the Don River valley and the Stalingrad area, would the Germans have been able to cross the Don River at this moment. It's still an unknown. ”

Hearing Zhukov say this, Kirillov, who had not spoken all this time, was taken aback. He asked curiously: "Comrade General, when I was still in the Central Committee, I heard other colleagues privately say that a staff officer in the Volkhov Front actually told Comrade Stalin through General Guò Meretskov that the target of the German offensive in the summer offensive was neither Moscow nor the Caucasus oil fields. At that time, Comrade Stalin was very angry after hearing this report, and after scolding General Meretskov, he also said that he would send this staff officer to guard the Mamayev post. As you know, being transferred from the frontier to serve as a commander in a non-fighting area is almost marginalized, and that is the end of your career in the military. Listening to what you say, could it be that this person who addressed Comrade Stalin was Colonel Oshanina? ”

Zhukov looked at me and smiled without saying a word, so I had to stand up and admit to Kirillov with a red face: "You are right, comrade political commissar of the regimental level, that person is me." ”

After hearing this, Kirillov stepped forward, stretched out his hand to me, and said with a little excitement: "Sure enough, it's you, Colonel Oshanina, you are really amazing, you can judge the next move of the German army just by a few clues." ”

Kirillov's words, which seemed to remind Zhukov, raised his head to look at me and asked: "Lida, do you think the 126th Infantry Division can hold the position on the Meshkova River?" ”

Hearing his question, I shook my head almost without thinking, and then replied decisively: "Comrade General, with all due respect, the 126th Division will not be able to hold the Meshkova River. ”

"Why? Tell me your reasoning. Zhukov asked.

With the experience of working in the headquarters of the group army some time ago, I have to answer Zhukov's question smoothly and naturally: "First of all, the 126th Division suffered heavy casualties in the early battles, and it was not replenished in time, and there are less than 4,000 people left in the division at present; Secondly, in terms of equipment, the 126th Division had no anti-aircraft weapons and lacked sufficient anti-tank weapons, and in the face of the three-dimensional offensive of the German army, even if our fighters were tenacious, they could not stop the powerful offensive of the German army. ”

After listening to my words, Zhukov's eyes looked at the roof, and his fingers tapped lightly on the table, as if digesting what I had said. After a while, his fingers stopped, frowned, looked at me with inquiring eyes, and asked unpleasantly: "Lida, according to you, we can only watch the Germans seize the positions on the Meshkova River, and there is nothing left to stop them?" ”

For the first time, the stern expression on Zhukov's face made me nervous, and I replied with some nervousness, "Yes...... That's right, Comrade General. As far as I know, not to mention the 64th Army, even if our front army is in terms of technical equipment, compared with the German army, we are at a disadvantage. In order to reverse this unfavorable situation, the only way to divert the attention of the Germans was to divert the attention of the Germans, to distract their forces, and to relieve the frontal pressure on our defensive forces. After saying these words in one breath, I felt cold sweat drenching the back of my military uniform.

After Krylov and Kirillov heard what I said, surprisingly no one took a stand, but turned their eyes to Zhukov to see how he reacted.

Zhukov did not stand up, did not change his posture, just frowned and thought.

Seeing that Zhukov was lost in thought and did not react for a long time, Krylov next to him couldn't help but call his name softly: "Georgy. Konstantinovich, what are you thinking? ”

Zhukov suddenly came to his senses, and he sat down in a relatively comfortable position. Then he said to a few of us, "In this situation. I won't hide it from you. According to the information received by the High Command. On August 27 and 28, Hitler's command redeployed the German troops attacking Stalingrad. They ordered the troops of the right flank to move to the left flank, more precisely, to the Abuganerovo, Kapkinsky areas in the center of the front. The 14th and 24th German tank divisions, the 60th motorized rifle division, and the 6th and 20th Romanian infantry divisions were transferred to the area. The task of these units was to carry out a surprise attack on the Zeta and Nariman areas, passing through these two villages to join Paulus's 6th Army. Encirclement of two divisions of the 62nd Army and the 64th Army in the area. ……”

Zhukov's words made several of us gasp, if these troops were really surrounded by the German army, then the Battle of Stalingrad would not have to continue to fight, you must know that in the later period, the 62nd Army was the main force holding the north of the city.

Fortunately, Zhukov's next words made us breathe a sigh of relief: "...... After receiving the above information, the high command promptly alerted the Front, so the commander of the Stalingrad Front, Yeremenko, immediately ordered the troops of the 62nd and 64th armies that could be encircled. Quickly withdraw to new defensive areas. "When I heard Zhukov say this, I thought to myself. It is estimated that Shumilov and Chuikov had already sensed the German army's intentions long before the high command discovered the intentions of the German army, so they promptly ordered the main forces to withdraw one after another.

At this time, a voice shouted at the door. Before I could speak, Zhukov raised his voice and shouted outside the door: "Come in!" ”

The soldier who walked in was not my subordinate, but a lieutenant colonel, apparently a subordinate brought by Zhukov from Moscow. He strode up to Zhukov, raised his hand and saluted, took out a paper clip clamped under his armpit, opened it and handed a piece of paper inside to Zhukov, which looked like a battle report he had just received.

After Zhukov took the report in his hand, he waved his hand to the lieutenant colonel, who put the text under his armpit again, raised his hand in salute, and turned to leave.

After reading the report in his hand, Zhukov put it on the table, and with a slight smile on his face, he said to us: "Comrades, I have good news for you. The 'Northern Forces Cluster' of the Stalingrad Front, under the unified command of Colonel Gorokhov and consisting of the 124th and 149th separate infantry brigades, launched a fierce counter-assault on the Germans this morning. As a result of the heroic and tenacious fighting of our troops, the main German attacking force north of Stalingrad suffered heavy casualties. Although our counterattack was finally suppressed by the Germans, they also lost the ability to continue the attack on the city of Stalingrad in the short term, which bought precious time for our army to gather the necessary defensive forces in the city of Stalingrad. ”

Krylov picked up the report on the table, glanced at it, and said excitedly: "Yes, due to the stubborn offensive of our troops, the enemy was forced to disperse his forces on a wide front, thereby weakening the possible fierce offensive of the enemy directly against Stalingrad. ”

"Colonel Oshanina." Zhukov waited for Krylov to finish speaking, and suddenly called me, not by my nickname, as usual, but by my surname. When I heard him say this, I knew that there must be an important task, so I quickly got up from my seat and replied loudly: "Here!" ”

"In two days, your troops will be placed under the command of the 62nd Army, and I hope that before your independent division leaves, a counter-assault will be carried out against the 4th Hote Tank Army on the south side of Stalingrad, so that they will lose the ability to advance to the city of Stalingrad in the short term. Can you do it? ”

I was dumbfounded at the order to counterattack Hort's 4th Tank Army, and if I didn't replenish artillery, tanks, and air support, it would be no different from going to die.

Seeing that I did not answer decisively, Zhukov was a little unhappy, he raised his voice and asked: "Colonel Oshanina, what's wrong with you, deaf or dumb, why don't you reply to my words?" ”

"Comrade General, I can't answer you exactly." I replied hesitantly, and as soon as the words came out, I realized that my answer was very inadequate, but I could only bite the bullet and continue, "My independent division is poorly equipped and not very strong in combat, if it cannot be supplemented by artillery and armored units, it is already necessary for air support." Then the counterattack carried out against the German tank 4th Army. I don't think it will work out. ”

Zhukov snorted heavily. Dissatisfied, he said, "If I can provide you with the qiē you need, do you think I still need to send your independent division to complete this task?" The two divisions of the 64th Army on your right flank and the 57th Army on your left flank can successfully accomplish this task by sending out any division at will. ”

Zhukov's words left me speechless, I didn't know how to answer his words, and I didn't dare to make promises to him casually, so I had to keep my head down. Staring at the map on the table in a daze.

Zhukov waited for a while, saw that I did not speak, sighed, walked up to me, patted me lightly on the shoulder, and said kindly: "Lida, I have always trusted you, which is why I have entrusted you with such a difficult and glorious task. ”

Hearing him say this, I almost jumped up and retorted to him: everyone knows that this kind of task of sending people to death is quite difficult. If we are all wiped out, no matter how much honor we are given. What's the use? However, in the face of such a kind elder as Zhukov, I can only hide these words in my heart and not say them.

Seeing that I didn't speak, he persuaded me again: "I know that this mission is a life-and-death task for your independent division. ...... "Hearing this, I secretly said in my heart, since you know that it is a task of nine deaths and one life, what else is left to us to do."

"I only give you the task of counterattacking, as for how to fight, it's all up to you, and no one will interfere with your decision-making. Let me remind you one last sentence that time is running out, and the counterattack against the 4th Tank Army must be completed before your division can move its defenses. ”

Zhukov's words have already been said for this duty, and I have no possibility of refusing at all, so I can only agree to it: "Yes, Comrade General, I will definitely carry out a counter-assault on Hort's 4th Tank Army within the specified time limit." ”

Hearing my statement, Zhukov's face smiled again, he patted me on the shoulder, and said kindly: "Lida, I knew you would say that." I really don't feel at ease about handing over this task to other troops, but if I give it to you, with your ability, I believe it will be successfully completed. ”

Although my heart was bleeding, I still had to force a smile on the surface, after all, if Zhukov had not appeared in time, I would have taken the joint investigation team back to Stalingrad for trial. For a country like Lao Maozi, which has no reason to talk about, for the sacrifice of dozens of soldiers, the commander of a main division must be arrested and questioned; If I had refused Zhukov's order outright, he might have taken my life without having to go to a court-martial.

I tried to squeeze a smile on my face and said to Zhukov: "Comrade General, please rest assured, I will definitely do my best to teach Hort and his men a good lesson, so that they have no strength. In the short term, an attack was launched on the city of Stalingrad. ”

"Very good," Zhukov complimented me, then raised his hand to look at his watch, and asked strangely, "Lida, what's the matter with that second lieutenant of your communications corps, why hasn't he brought us lunch after he has been walking for almost half an hour?" ”

Hearing him say this, I smiled embarrassedly and hurriedly said, "Comrade General, please wait a while, I will personally go to the cooking class to see what is going on, and bring lunch to a few of you." ”

Without waiting for me to go out, Razumeyeva, who was belated, and two fighters trotted into the headquarters with a plate in their hands. When Razumeeva saw me, she said embarrassedly: "I'm sorry, Comrade Division Commander, the cooking class didn't know that there were big people, so the food prepared was relatively simple, and I asked them to remake it after I went." ”

Just as we sat down at the table, ready to enjoy a hearty lunch, Zhukov's lieutenant colonel came in again and brought another copy of the latest battle report.

After reading the battle report, Zhukov slapped the knife and fork in his hand on the table, and after meeting our surprised eyes, he said in a heavy tone: "The Meshkova River has been lost. The 126th Infantry Division, which was holding the area, was unable to hold back the Germans despite stubborn fighting under the three-dimensional offensive of the Germans, and now the troops, who had suffered heavy casualties, had retreated to the rear. (To be continued......)

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