Vasilevsky noticed my abnormality and said to me apologetically, "I'm sorry, Leda. You should understand that this matter has nothing to do with me, so you don't have to complain about me. As he spoke, he came over and patted me on the shoulder and comforted me, "Don't worry, according to all indications, the German attack from the south will not be earlier than September." The High Command believed that Manstein would definitely wait for Army Group Center to occupy Kursk before launching an attack, and that he would attempt to join forces with friendly forces east of Kolsk to form an encirclement of Moscow. ”

I listened to Vasilevsky's words, I really couldn't cry and laugh, I just said all the feelings in vain, he still stubbornly believes that the Germans will only attack Kursk from the northwest, and really thinks that Manstein and his three most elite SS divisions are vegetarians.

Perhaps to reassure me, Vasilevsky told us more secrets: "Marshal Zhukov deployed you south of Kursk to block Army Group South in Manstein. If you think about it, the Voronezh Front has under the command of the 6th and 7th Guards Armies, the 38th, 40th, and 60th Armies, the 1st Guards Tank Army of General Katukov, and the 35th Infantry Army, with a total strength of more than 600,000 men, and is also armed with 8,000 artillery pieces and assault guns, as well as more than 1,700 tanks and self-propelled guns. ”

"yes, Leda." Shumilov also helped Vasilevsky enlighten me: "Don't worry too much, we have so many troops and technical equipment, Manstein doesn't attack, once we attack, we will definitely give them a lesson that they will never forget." ”

"In addition to what I just said, the Supreme High Command has deployed the steppe front of General Konev in the rear of the two fronts of Rokossovsky and Vatutin, who are responsible for providing you with reinforcements. Even if the worst happens. The Kursk line of defense collapses, and the steppe front becomes the last line of defense against Moscow; And once our army turns into a major counteroffensive, the steppe front will become our new force.

The Supreme High Command used the Frontal Army against the 9th and 2nd Armies of the German Army Group Center, the 4th Tank Army of Army Group South of Manstein and the Kempf Group. In terms of strength and equipment, our three fronts of the armed forces have absolute superiority. In addition, Sokolovsky's Western Front, Popov's Bryansk Front, the 57th Army and the 2nd Tank Army of the Southwestern Front were deployed in the Kursk region as a campaign reserve. ”

As he spoke, he grabbed my arm and came to the combat map hanging on the wall, and after pulling back the curtain, he picked up the baton and pointed it at it and said to Shumilov and me: "You see, in the forward positions of the Kursk salient, we have established several lines of defense, and the depth of defense is more than 160 kilometers. The entire defense system was densely covered with trenches, barbed wire, anti-tank support points, anti-tank trenches and minefields. We are still in the direction where the Germans are most likely to attack. Heavy troops were deployed. ……”

When Vasilevsky explained the map to us, I couldn't help but nod my head secretly, saying in my heart that I know this period of history and know where the defense is focused, so I can naturally build a defense system in a targeted manner. And Zhukov and the others just analyzed the situation, and the defense system they laid out was actually deployed in an orderly manner.

Shumilov is worthy of being an experienced commander in a hundred battles, waiting for Vasilevsky to finish briefing the situation. He went on to add: "Comrade Chief of the General Staff, judging by the current strategic situation. The Kursk salient was defended to the north by Rokossovsky's Central Front, and to the south by General Vatutin's Voronezh Front. To the north of the Central Front, there was Popov's Bryansk Front, and the Western Front, commanded by Sokolovsky. To the south of our Voronezh Front there was the South-Western Front, and in our rear the Steppe Front, which was located exactly in the center of the rear of the salient. In this way, they could attack the German 9th Army in Moder to the north, and Army Group South in Manstein to the south, and at the same time prevent the Germans from encircling the Central Front and our Voronezh Front. This deployment of the Supreme High Command is wonderful. It's just wonderful. ”

Although I listened to the two of them in great detail and reasonable, my mood did not improve because of this, and I still remembered in my heart that I did not know when the new equipment of the troops would be installed. So much so that I heard Vasilevsky ask me: "Leda, after hearing all we have to say, is there anything else you have to worry about?" ”

"Absolutely." Without thinking, I said what was on my mind: "I wonder if my troops will be able to complete their outfit before the outbreak of the war." ”

"New gear! New Gear! Isn't this battle a battle if your group army is not equipped with new equipment? Vasilevsky expressed strong dissatisfaction with my stubbornness, and he said with a wave of anger: "Even if we are poorly equipped, we must fight bravely in the face of the enemy who rushes up." When the bullets ran out, they struck them with rocks and sticks; When the stones were gone, and the sticks were broken, they struck them with their fists; When his fist hurts, he bites it with his teeth. All in all, as long as we have one breath left, we must continue to fight the enemy. ”

In response to Vasilevsky's inexplicable criticism, I said aggrievedly: "Comrade Chief of the General Staff, even if we do not change the uniforms of our commanders and fighters, we will be nailed to the position like a nail in the face of the enemy rushing forward, and we will never take a step back. The reason why I strongly asked my superiors to change our clothes as soon as possible is to reduce the casualties of the troops, so that more young people can live to see the day when we will achieve our final victory. ”

Vasilevsky, who was originally angry, softened because of my last words. He let out a long sigh and said to me, "Lida, I understand your feelings, why don't I think the same way, I hope that more commanders and fighters can live to the victory." But no, the production speed of the arsenal has almost reached the limit, and it is impossible to increase the output. ”

"Is there really no way around it?" Although Vasilevsky was conclusive, I asked with a hint of luck. "Perhaps the Supreme High Command, when arranging the order of the redressing, will be able to move the position of our army group to the front."

"How is this possible, the decision made by the Supreme High Command is not allowed to be changed. The battle plan is like this, and so is the outfit plan. As he said this, he paused suddenly. Half a day before hesitantly spitting out a word: "Unless ......"

As soon as I heard that there was a joke, I hurriedly asked: "Comrade Chief of the General Staff, unless what?" ”

As if he hadn't heard me, Vasilevsky said to himself: "As far as I know, the Ministry of Armament has special authority to do so without going through the Supreme High Command. A small amount of equipment will be installed directly in designated units. At this, a look of surprise suddenly appeared on his face, and he turned to me and said, "Lida, don't you know Comrade Ustinov?" You can give him a call and maybe something unexpected. ”

"Really?" When I heard him say this, I was overjoyed, because with my friendship with Ustinov, even if I could not get all the commanders and fighters of the entire army to change their clothes. But the equipment of one or two guards divisions should still be guaranteed. I turned my head to look at Shumilov next to me and asked excitedly: "Comrade commander, can you contact Moscow with your high-frequency telephone here?" ”

Shumilov glanced at Vasilevsky, saw that the other party nodded in agreement, and then said to me with certainty: "You can talk to Moscow." However, Leda. There is one thing I want to say first, you can only come forward to negotiate with Comrade Ustinov. Neither I nor the Chief of the General Staff can get involved. Do you understand what I mean? ”

"Understood, completely understood, Comrade Commander." In order to confirm the accuracy of my guesses, I also went out of my way to add: "If you or the Chief of the General Staff had come forward in this matter, once we had persuaded Commissar Ustinov, we would have got the equipment we wanted." Then the commanders of other units after getting the news. The chief of the General Staff will also be asked to go out and solve the equipment for his troops, so that if this develops, things may get out of control. ”

"Leda, you're absolutely right." Vasilevsky praised me with a smile, and continued: "With your friendship with Comrade Ustinov. Even if it is not possible to achieve a complete rearmament of troops, the equipment of one or two Guards divisions is still fine. ”

Shumilov was afraid that I would not be able to use a high-frequency telephone, so he helped me dial Moscow, and when he heard a voice coming out of the microphone, he said in a serious tone: "Hey, comrade on duty, please find me Comrade Ustinov." Who am I, you ask? I'm sorry, but you don't have the authority to know for the time being, so please inform the People's Commissar immediately, and if you make a mistake, you can't afford to take this responsibility. ”

Maybe it was the tone of Shumilov's speech that frightened the other party, and it is estimated that he will go to Ustinov immediately. After a while, Shumilov covered the microphone with his hand and handed it to me, whispering: "It's Comrade Ustinov." ”

I smiled and nodded to him, then took the microphone and put it to my ear and said, "Hey! ”

Immediately, Ustinov's familiar magnetic voice came from the earpiece: "Hey, hello! I'm Ustinov, who is looking for me? ”

"Hello, Comrade People's Commissar." I quickly and politely replied, "I'm Oshanina." ”

"It's Lida." Ustinov's originally serious voice softened, and he even said jokingly: "I heard that our heroine went to the front to become the commander of the army group, and I haven't had time to congratulate you." How's it going, how does it feel to be a commander? ”

"It's not good, there are a lot of things to worry about every day." I also said in a joking tone, "If I had known this was the case, I might as well have stayed with you and become the head of the base." ”

"It's not too late to come, I've always kept that position for you." After Ustinov finished saying this, his tone returned to normal and asked: "Lida, you called me today, is there anything important?" ”

"That's right, Comrade People's Commissar." Hearing Ustinov take the initiative to ask, I also told him about the situation of my army group, and at the end I added: "Do you think you can replace us with a batch of new equipment in the near future?" ”

Ustinov was silent for a long time about my request, and then said slowly: "Lida, the situation is not easy. At present, the production of the arsenal has reached its limit, and it is difficult to increase production. As he said this, I heard the faint sound of turning the pages of a book, as if looking through the list of outfits provided to him by the base camp. Then, he was really embarrassed and said: "Lida, the situation is not very easy to handle, according to the list of redress, the refitting time of your 6th Guards Army is in mid-October, which means that you still need to wait five months before you can redress your troops." ”

Hearing Ustinov say this, I immediately said to him with a hippie smile: "Comrade People's Commissar, I seem to have heard that you still have a mobile quota for the allocation of weapons in your hands, I wonder if you can give this quota to our army group for the sake of the face of your old friend?" (To be continued.) )

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