It took less than a day for Travkin to get acquainted with the reconnaissance battalion he commanded. At noon the next day, he came to my headquarters and asked me for a mission. Probably afraid that I would not agree, he deliberately emphasized: "Comrade commander, I have already talked with all the company and platoon commanders in the reconnaissance battalion, and everyone thinks that with the current situation of our battalion, we can immediately start reconnaissance work against the German troops in the front. Please approve it! ”

I have been silently calculating in my heart the time when the Battle of Kursk broke out, and seeing that there are only ten days left before the start of the battle, if we do not send people to conduct reconnaissance and keep abreast of the German dynamics in time, then in the early stage of the battle, we may suffer a big loss.

However, I did not take matters into my own hands, but turned back to Danilov and asked: "Comrade Deputy Commander, what is your opinion, do you agree with the captain and them to go out to reconnoitre?" ”

"I have no opinion," Danilov replied crisply, "we should have sent someone to the German defense area to conduct reconnaissance a long time ago." It is difficult to understand the real situation of the German army by relying solely on the information reported by the troops below, so I think we should send a reconnaissance battalion belonging to the group army to conduct a detailed reconnaissance of the depth of the German defense. ”

Seeing that Danilov's thoughts were the same as mine, I no longer hesitated, and after asking Travkin if he wanted to personally lead the team to reconnoiter this time, I picked up the pencil on the table and wrote in my notebook:

"It is hereby commanded:

Captain Travkin of the reconnaissance battalion of the group army immediately dispatched capable personnel to form a reconnaissance detachment and went deep into the German-controlled Belgorod-Kharkov area to reconnoiter the German army's defense and activity patterns. There is a time limit of eight days without delay.

Commander of the army group: Oshanina

Military Commissar Political Commissar:

Deputy Commander:

Chief of staff:

Date of issue: 25 June 1943. ”

After writing and signing, I pushed the order in front of Danilov and several of them. After the three of them took turns reading the order, they signed their names behind their positions.

After all the signatures are done. I picked up this order, handed it to Travkin, who had been waiting beside me, and instructed him: "Captain, this reconnaissance behind enemy lines is of great importance, and you must give feedback on the reconnaissance in a timely manner, so that the commander of the group army can adapt to the changes in the enemy's situation." to adjust the deployment of troops. ”

"Yes!" Travkin replied resoundingly: "Please rest assured, Comrade Commander, that we guarantee to complete the task." ”

When I saw him turn to leave, I stopped him again from behind and said, "If you go behind enemy lines, you will be in a very dangerous situation." You must remember to try to minimize the losses of the squad. Do you understand? ”

"Understood, Comrade Commander."

Looking at the back of Travkin leaving, Kirillov, who knew him well, suddenly asked, "Leda, this reconnaissance." Why let Captain Travkin go himself? You must know that he is now the battalion commander of the reconnaissance battalion, and there are so many company commanders and platoon commanders under him, and whoever he sends out can successfully complete this mission. ”

"Comrade Military Commissar," I explained to Kirillov in response to his doubts: "I asked Travkin to personally go out because this reconnaissance mission was too important. Although there were a lot of company commanders and platoon commanders in the reconnaissance battalion, it was a pity that I had been in the group army for too short a time. I didn't know enough about them, so I sent them out rashly. I don't feel at ease. ”

My words alarmed Danilov, who tentatively asked: "Comrade commander, the other day the command of the Front gave an order for us to strengthen combat readiness and prevent a possible offensive by the German troops. As a result, several days have passed since the prediction of the superiors, do you think the Germans will still attack? ”

"Yes. Definitely. Seeing that it had only been a few days since the Battle of Kursk broke out, I didn't want my deputy to take the matter of war preparations lightly, so I said solemnly: "Judging from the current indications, the Germans may launch an attack on our defense area in early July. ”

"Early July?" Listen to my analysis. Danilov had a look of disbelief on his face: "It's the end of June now, but in front of our defense, there is no sign of large-scale movement of German troops." You must know that if we want to launch an attack on our army group's defense area, the German army must prepare at least 300,000 people, and it is impossible to complete the transfer of so many troops, weapons and equipment in more than a month. ”

"Comrade Deputy Commander, you must not underestimate the enemy." Kirillov interjected: "You must know that on the eve of the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War, we were not aware that the Germans had entered the attack position, and even some early warning information was ignored by us, and as a result, as soon as the war broke out, we were caught off guard." The more the enemy in front of us does not move, the more we must not take it lightly, otherwise we will suffer a great loss if they attack. ”

"Comrade Military Commissar is right." As soon as Kirillov finished speaking, I immediately expressed my support for him and explained to Danilov: "Manstein is not a simple figure, a few months ago he defeated two fronts several times more numerous than him, and now his troops are deployed on the front of our defense, and it is not okay not to be vigilant." ”

"But how can you be sure that the Germans will attack in early July?" Although Kirillov and I have said a lot, Danilov still looks incredulous, "There is no intelligence to support this statement at the moment." ”

Seeing that he was so stubborn, I smiled bitterly and said: "Comrade Deputy Commander, if I say that it is just my intuition, I feel that the Germans will launch an attack on our defense zone at the beginning of July, will you believe it?" ”

Almost at the same time as Danilov shook his head, Kirillov nodded vigorously and said loudly: "I trust the judgment of Comrade Commander. Based on my previous experience with her, I believe her prophecy will soon come true. ”

Without waiting for us to completely convince Danilov, the new regiment commander Sederikov walked into the headquarters. As soon as he saw him, Kirillov smiled and asked him: "How is it, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, has your unit been formed?" ”

Sedelikov waved his hand and said with a wry smile: "Comrade Military Commissar, how can it be so fast." Now only the framework of the battalions has been erected, some commanders have been appointed, and as for the soldiers, it may be two days before they are in place. ”

When I heard Sederikov say this, the first thing I thought about was that he came to me at this time, and he didn't want some commander to enrich his troops, right? So when he finished speaking, I frowned and asked, "Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov, you came to the headquarters today, is there anything you have to do?" ”

"That's right, Comrade Commander." Instead of perceiving my dissatisfaction, Sedjerikov said truthfully: "I would like to ask what is the first task to be carried out after the completion of the reconstruction of a regiment?" ”

Unexpectedly, he did not come to me to ask for a commander, but to request a mission, which made my dissatisfaction with him disappear immediately. I smiled and asked, "So what do you have in mind?" ”

Sederikov walked to the table, pointed to the map on the table, and asked respectfully: "Comrade commander, will I allow me to explain to you on the map?" "With my permission, he drew a straight line from Kursk to Yakovlevo by hand, and then said, "Comrade commander, please see, the total length of the line of communication from Kursk to Yakovlevo, where our first line of defense is located, is 120 kilometers or a little longer. The supply of the entire army group was carried out on this line of communication. Am I right? ”

"That's right, this road is our only transportation route." "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, can you tell me what exactly you are planning?" ”

"We should step up the defense of this road." Pointing to one of the points, Shederikov said: "We entered from here at that time, and our troops walked on the road for almost an hour without seeing any checkpoints or fortifications. If it weren't us who entered this area, but the Germans, I won't say, you can imagine it. ”

Sederikov's words shocked me into a cold sweat, I always thought that this road was defended by special troops, but I did not expect that it would become a place that we ignored. If it weren't for Shederikov's reminder, once the Battle of Kursk broke out, the Germans would have sent an armored unit to cut off our transportation lines, and the first and second lines of defense would have become precarious due to insufficient ammunition and supplies.

However, since Sedjerikov has discovered this defensive hole in our army, then he must have a good countermeasure, so after secretly wiping the cold sweat on my forehead, I asked: "Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov, what are your plans?" ”

"That's what I think, Comrade Commander." Shederikov had obviously done his homework before coming here, so he did not hesitate to answer my question: "I intend to deploy two battalions between the first and second lines of defense, because in the event of a battle this will be the focal point of the German offensive." The remaining battalion and regimental units were placed behind the second line of defense and used as reserves. As soon as the Germans broke through our first line of defense, then the two battalions in front withdrew behind the second line of defense, joined up with the regimental headquarters and continued to protect the line of communication between Kursk and the second line. ”

I was very satisfied with this arrangement of Sederikov, and after nodding my head in agreement, I took the initiative to say to him: "In order to strengthen the combat effectiveness of your regiment, I will ask the chief of staff to provide you with twenty mortars and five armored vehicles." In a word, even if you sacrifice your own life, you must ensure the safety of the transport lines of the group army. Do you understand? ”

"I see," replied Sederikov in a loud voice, repeating what I had just said: "Even at the expense of one's own life, we must resolutely ensure the safety of the transport lines of the army group." (To be continued.) )