The excitement shown by Meretskov and Starikov was very short-lived. After all, the Neva cluster of the Leningrad Front began to cross the river, and the battle on the heights under the command of Golovchnier was only the beginning, and they had more important things to do.

Starikov asked the communications corps to move several important telephones to the conference table, so that he and Meretskov could receive the reported battle reports by phone without moving their positions, and give orders to their subordinate units in a timely manner.

Meretskov spoke on the phone with the chief of staff of the Front Command, Stepakh, and the military commissar Zaporozhyets, and told them the good news that the Neva Cluster had begun to cross the river and was preparing to receive the assault troops of the Volkhov Front, and at the same time reminded them to maintain good communication and liaison with the High Command and its subordinate units, and to call the headquarters of the 8th Army in time to inform him of any important military situation.

General Starikov spoke to his men and gave them a series of orders as to which troops should take over if the 19th Guards Division and the 140th Infantry Brigade were to attack the heights if they were thwarted. If the high ground is conquered by our army, which troops should take over the defense.

I was standing not far from them while the two were on the phone. Although I frowned at some of the orders, I knew that if the troops were mobilized in this way, after the commanders and fighters had designated their positions after the forced march, their combat effectiveness would be greatly reduced due to exhaustion, and they would not be able to play their due role in the fierce battle without a certain period of rest. But these thoughts were also a flash of my thoughts, and I knew my identity very well, in such a large battle of more than 100,000 people. The superior commander did not ask me for my opinion before. I am not in a position to make any comments.

Then. Meretskov, who had finished making the call, suddenly asked Gagan, who was sitting on the side: "Comrade General, I want to ask you, how many special shooters are there in your troops at the moment?" ”

General Gagan probably didn't expect Meretskov to suddenly ask such a question, and he looked a little flustered, and then said in a hurry: "Report to Comrade General, there are about fifty or sixty commanders and fighters in our army who can be called special-grade marksmen. ”

Hearing his answer, Meretskov frowned. He said with some displeasure: "Comrade Gagan, as early as the end of June, in order to prepare the front army for the offensive, we held a meeting of special marksmen, and demanded that after the campaign was launched, the number of special marksmen in all units should reach the standard of at least 50 men per brigade and 100 men per division. But what about your 4th Guards Army? Seven infantry brigades and one infantry division can only provide fifty or sixty special marksmen. It seems that you have not completed the tasks assigned by your superiors very well. I don't know if it's because of your ability, or if you didn't take the orders of the Front Command to heart at all. ”

In the face of Meretskov's reproach. Gagan became even more flustered, and he wiped the sweat from his forehead desperately. While defending himself, he said: "Comrade Commander, do you know that more than half of my troops are new recruits, and they have only undergone a short period of military training. On the battlefield, it's good to be able to aim at the enemy and shoot bullets out of the way. As for where the bullets flew, only God knows. Cultivating top shooters doesn't happen overnight, and it takes a long time for them to grow. ”

Meretskov said with a gloomy face: "Comrade Gagan, in the battle tonight, or later, these special shooters are needed to show their might, but you told me that it will take time to train special marksmen. You know, we are fighting fiercely with the Germans now, and we don't have that much time for you to slowly train super marksmen. ”

General Starikov, who had just finished making a phone call, heard the words of the commander of the Front, and hurriedly put down the microphone and said good things for his old friend in order to resolve Gagan's embarrassing situation: "Comrade General, General Gagan's situation is understandable. After all, the recruits under his command had just a few months ago been factory workers, collective farm workers, and even young students who were still studying. They have not undergone systematic military training, and it is unlikely that they will be able to pick enough special marksmen from among them. ”

Hearing Starikov's defense of Gagan, Meretskov did not refute, but asked in a gentle tone: "General Starikov, how many special marksmen can be drawn from your army group?" ”

This time it was Starikov's turn to be embarrassed, and he replied in distress: "Comrade commander, you also know that my army group has been fighting continuously since the beginning of the campaign, and the attrition of the troops is very serious, and it may not be able to provide you with enough special marksmen. ”

When I heard them repeatedly mention the word "special marksman", I immediately thought of snipers, and wondered if Meretskov planned to let these sharpshooters snipe the German commander and those artillerymen, so as to achieve the goal of reducing the combat effectiveness of the German army.

But before I could figure it out, the phone on the desk rang, and it was Stepach calling from the Front Command. He reported to Meretskov: "Comrade commander, according to information from the Leningrad Front, it was the units of the 55th Army that took part in the river crossing operation. The 43rd Infantry Division and the 268th Infantry Division, one left and one right, forced their way across the Neva River and launched a fierce assault on the Dubrovka district on the west bank of the river. Ahead of them was a German SS division, and in order to stop the Neva cluster that had rushed to join us, the Germans sent a large number of tanks and planes to bombard the attacking troops. The battle was very fierce. Every time our army takes a step forward, it has to pay great sacrifices. ”

Meretskov put down the microphone and said in a heavy tone: "Comrades, the current situation is serious, the troops of the Leningrad Front, who crossed the Neva to meet us, were blocked by the Germans' tanks and aircraft artillery. It seems that in order to realize the convergence of the two armies, it is still necessary for the troops of our front army to intensify the offensive. ”

At this moment, the phone in front of General Starikov rang, he picked up the microphone and listened for a while, and suddenly became excited, he said excitedly: "Well done!" Comrade Chief of Staff. Let the troops continue to advance, be sure to take the high ground, and then bombard the depth of the German defense with artillery fire to relieve the pressure on the troops crossing the river. ”

Put down the phone. He immediately reported to Meretskov: "Comrade commander. Good news! My chief of staff has just reported to me. It is said that the troops of the 19th Guards Division, under the cover of tanks, have seized the first line of defense on the heights of Sinavino, and the commanders and fighters are continuing to rush to the second line of defense. The 140th Infantry Brigade was moving into the first line of defense, preparing for an assault on the rear of the heights, except for a small number of troops left behind to repair the fortifications. ”

"Great!" In response to this sudden arrival of good news, Gagan wasted no time in jumping out and applauding, and at the same time gave Meretskov advice: "Look, Comrade Commander. Should we report this result to Comrade Stalin immediately? ”

"Yes, Comrade General." General Starikov also echoed: "At present, the battle has entered a stalemate, and such good news should be reported to the Supreme High Command immediately." ”

Meretskov hesitated a little about the proposal of the two: "Our troops had just taken the first line of defense, and they hurried to report to Comrade Stalin. If our offensive forces were held back by the second line of defense and did not make progress, they would have attracted criticism from Comrade Stalin. ”

As soon as the words came out, the two were speechless. Everyone knows that Meretskov has a point, although at the moment the attack of the 19th Guards Division is going well. But no one can say what will happen next. Stalin was very eager for a victory. But if anyone dares to deceive him and lie about the military situation, he will inevitably be wrathed, and he will be removed from his post at least and court-martialed at worst.

After a long while, Meretskov said euphemistically: "General Starikov, wait until you report to Comrade Stalin." What you have to do now is to keep in close contact with Colonel Golovchnier and keep abreast of the progress of the fighting on the heights. ”

Time passed in our anxious waiting, and when the phone ringed again in front of General Starikov, he quickly grabbed the microphone and said loudly: "Chief of Staff Golovchner?" I'm Starikov. How's it going? The position has been taken, and it's great! Comrade Chief of Staff, you guys are amazing! I would like to take credit for you and the commanders and men of the 19th Guards Infantry Division. ……”

As soon as he said this, Meretskov had already gone around to his side from the other side of the table and asked in a low voice: "Have our troops already occupied the high ground?" ”

Starikov didn't bother to cover the microphone, so he replied loudly: "Yes, Comrade Commander, the 19th Guards Division, under the cover of tank troops, has occupied the second line of defense of the German army and is currently clearing the remnants of the enemy. ”

"Call me." Meretskov said and took the microphone from Starikov's hand and said loudly: "Hello, Comrade Golovchner, I'm Meretskov. I congratulate you, congratulate you! When I reported the victory to Comrade Stalin, I would specifically point out that it was you who came to the front and led the 19th Guards Infantry Division to seize the Sinavino Heights, which was entrenched by the Germans, and made an immortal contribution to the meeting of the two fronts and to breaking the German siege of the city. At the end of the battle, I will take credit for you and ask Stalin to grant you the honor you deserve. ”

When he heard Meretskov say that he would personally take credit for Colonel Golovchner, General Starikov was also very excited, because he also had a share of the honor achieved by the 19th Guards Division.

But Golovchnier's next report poured cold water on his head and made his expression become serious. The chief of staff of the army group reported in a hesitant manner: "Comrade General, although only two of the KV tanks involved in the attack were destroyed by German artillery fire, the rest also broke down one after another and could not continue to open the way for the infantry in front, and these tanks are currently parked on high ground and used as fixed batteries." ”

"I see, Comrade Colonel. All you have to do now is to take the time to rest your troops and at the same time strengthen the fortifications to prevent a possible counterattack by the Germans. ”

Putting down the phone, he called Starikov and Gagan back to the map and began to assign combat missions to them. I listened carefully to every word he had to say and learned what worked for me. In mind, Meretskov was a commander with a lot of combat experience, and although he was not as capable as Zhukov in commanding operations, he was absolutely decent in arranging his troops, and fully met the standards of the command course taught at the Frunze Military Academy.

After deploying the two Starikovs, he called the commander of the Leningrad Front, Govorov, and told him that the troops of the Volkhov Front had captured the Sinavino Heights and were preparing to launch an attack on the German defensive depth from three directions at the same time in response to the battle of the Neva cluster in the Dubrovka district.

Next, Meretskov and Govorov further studied the specific issues of the movement of the troops, the timing of the attack, and the coordination of artillery fire. (To be continued......)

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