Miracles didn't happen!

Captain Ignatov returned to his battalion and soon organized a second charge.

Both the commanders and the fighters behaved unusually bravely, but under the intensive fire of the Germans, they fell in front of the positions in batches. Even Captain Ignatov was hit by dozens of machine-gun bullets, and after being beaten in a few circles, he fell heavily to the ground.

The second attack, which was hastily launched, failed again.

Lieutenant Colonel Yevgeny returned to Colonel Anchufeev and reported with a bitter face: "Report to Comrade Division Commander, the attack of the 1st battalion has failed again, and the battalion commander, Captain Ignatov, has been killed. Of the seven hundred men in the battalion, less than twenty were evacuated, and all of them were wounded. ”

In such a situation, a different commander may consider suspending the offensive and convening everyone to discuss what kind of fighting method should be used to reverse the unfavorable situation they are facing. But Colonel Anchufeev, even though he saw with his own eyes the heavy casualties of Yevgeny's regiment, he did not even blink his eyelids, but said indifferently: "Comrade Evgeny, it is necessary for me to remind you. Our task now is to open a breakthrough in the encirclement of the Germans and cover the main forces of the army group to break out of the encirclement. In order to achieve this goal, it is worth the sacrifice. You immediately return to the regiment and organize a third attack as soon as possible. Lieutenant Colonel Yevgeny sighed helplessly, and after saluting, he turned around and was about to go back to the regiment to set up a new attack, but was stopped by the colonel, "Lieutenant Colonel Yevgeny, you wait." ”

I thought that the division commander had changed his mind and called Evgeny to adjust the deployment, but I heard him say coldly: "I don't want any casualty figures, I just want the opposite position." Even if you fight the whole regiment, you will be taken by me from the position. ”

Hearing the division commander's death order, Harpy and the other regiment commander could no longer open their mouths to persuade them, so they could only remain silent. Seeing that the matter was irreparable, Evgeny returned to the ranks with his shoulders crumbling to organize a new futile and deadly attack.

When I saw this scene, I really couldn't laugh or cry, what age was it, and I still imagined that during World War I, I engaged in crowd tactics to break through the enemy's position, didn't that let the soldiers die in vain? However, since the two regiment commanders did not advise the division commander, why should I, the battalion commander, make such a move and make myself bored.

Idle is idle anyway, and I beckoned to Ugad, who was standing not far away, and motioned for him to come over.

Ugad trotted all the way to me, glanced at the black-faced division commander next to him, and the embarrassed-looking Lieutenant Colonel Harpy, and asked me in a low voice: "Comrade Major, what instructions do you have?" ”

I pointed to the side with my hand and ordered, "Gather the soldiers of the Eighth Company and let them dig trenches." ”

"Digging trenches?" Ugad asked a little puzzled, "But now we are attacking, why do we need to dig trenches?" ”

I sneered and said slowly: "Be prepared, in case the attack is frustrated and the Germans counterattack, at least we have a position to resist for a while." "Although I say this with a certain element of gambling, in an attack, if you cannot provide fire cover for the attacking troops, no matter how many times you attack, the result will be the same.

At the sound of the order, the soldiers of the 8th Company immediately began to act, took out their tools and dug up the foxhole. A few months ago, I had them do a long period of civil engineering on the battlefield, and now that they are doing this job, it is really easy to do it. In less than ten minutes, most of the warriors' personal bunkers had been completed, and attempts were being made to connect them all together.

The attack of Yevgeny's organization was once again repulsed, and watching the troops with heavy casualties hastily retreat to the starting position, where Anchufeev jumped to his feet and cursed, he grabbed Lieutenant Colonel Harpy, who was standing beside him, and ordered loudly: "Lieutenant Colonel Harpy, immediately bring your regiment up, go and help Evgeny and them, and be sure to take the enemy's position." ”

When I heard the order to send us to death, my heart suddenly cooled. While pondering how to deal with this death-defying order, a soldier came with several armed men in civilian clothes. He walked up to Anchufeev and loudly reported: "Comrade division commander, Comrade Sotnikov, commander of the partisans, is here. ”

Anchufeev shook hands with a stocky middle-aged man and began to talk intimately.

Seeing the two of them talking speculatively, a thought suddenly flashed through my mind: since they were partisans, they must be familiar with the terrain, and if we could let them serve as guides for us, perhaps we could go around behind the Germans, and attack the front and rear to annihilate the enemy who stood in the way.

Having made up my mind, I walked up to Anchufeev and Sotnikov and interrupted their conversation. First said to the colonel: "Comrade division commander, I'm sorry to disturb me. Can I talk to Comrade Sotnikov? Seeing that the colonel nodded indifferently, he turned his head again and asked: "Comrade Sotnikov, are there any fighters in your partisan group who are familiar with the terrain here?" ”

Sotnikov was stunned for a moment when I asked this, and then replied: "Yes." Many of the fighters in the guerrillas were locals, and they knew the terrain as well as their own home. ”

Anchufeev, perhaps dissatisfied, interrupted his conversation with the partisan leader and asked stiffly: "Major Oshanina, what do you want to know?" ”

"Comrade division commander," I quickly explained, "I thought that since it would cost great sacrifices to attack from the front, why not send a unit to quietly bypass the German position, sneak into their rear, and take them by surprise." ”

My suggestion made Colonel Anchufeev's eyes shine, and although he repeatedly stressed the need to open a breakthrough at all costs, if there was a way to make fewer sacrifices, he would probably be willing to try.

Unexpectedly, after listening to my words, Sotnikov shook his head and said: "This task is very difficult to execute. You must know that there are swamps on both sides of this high ground, and the troops cannot pass through it at all. If you want to go around the back of the Germans, you have to go five or six kilometers to the south, and then turn east, where there are swamps, but you can still pass through them if you have an experienced person to lead you. ”