As soon as I walked into the regimental command post, I had the feeling that I had arrived at a vegetable market, with the hoarse shouts of the telegraph operators, the ticking of telegrams, and the fact that many communications or staff officers were coming in and out, and they were very busy. Commanders and fighters, whether they enter the door or go out, must stop and salute me when they see my presence.

I nodded at them and walked quickly behind Sederikov. At this time, he was facing away from me, covering his ear with one hand and holding the microphone with the other, and shouted loudly, "...... Captain Nikolai, I order you to immediately organize your troops to carry out a counterattack and destroy all the enemy wedged into your battalion's defensive positions......"

After he ended the call with Captain Nikolai, he dialed the number again, because the voice in the command post was too noisy for me to hear which unit he was contacting. After he said a few words loudly into the microphone, he suddenly covered the microphone with his hand and shouted at the signal soldiers and staff officers: "Be quiet, give me silence." You're so noisy, I can't hear what's on the phone! ”

With his roar, the room fell silent. Shederikov let go of the hand holding the microphone and said loudly to the other party: "Hey, operator, I'm Lieutenant Colonel Shedelikov, immediately pick me up the 6th Company of the Sherebryan Battalion." Yes, find me Lieutenant Antonich of the 6th Company. ”

As the room was quiet at the moment, I heard a familiar voice coming from the earpiece: "Hello, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel. ”

"Where's Lieutenant Antonech?" Sederikov asked.

"The company commander has just died in battle. Report Comrade Colonel, two tanks rushing from the pontoon bridge were blown up by us, and the infantry following behind were also repulsed by us. ”

"Who are you? Who's talking to me? Sederikov asked with confusion.

"It's me. Comrade Lieutenant Colonel. It's me. Sergeant Adil ......"

"It's you. Sergeant Adil. Shedelikov continued: "Apart from you, are there any other commanders in the company now?" ”

"No, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel." Sergeant Adil replied quickly: "The rest of the commanders were either killed or wounded and sent away. At the moment, I am the highest ranking in the company. ”

Sederikov was silent for a moment, then asked: "How many troops do you have now?" ”

"Comrade Colonel in the report, including the wounded, there are 43 people in the company who are still fighting at present."

"Do you have the confidence to hold your ground?"

For this question of Sedjerikov. Adil was silent for a long time before he hesitated and said: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I'm not sure if I can stop the next wave of German attacks. If you can add thirty men to me, I think I can hold out until noon tomorrow. ”

Hearing Sergeant Adil say this, I couldn't help but feel a little anxious, and without thinking, I raised my hand to grab the microphone from Sederikov's hand. Shederikov, who was talking to Adir, noticed that there was someone behind him, turned around and was about to get angry, but when he saw that it was me who wanted to grab the microphone, he quickly and respectfully handed the microphone to me.

"Comrade Sergeant." I said into the microphone, "I'll give you a company, can you hold it?" ”

Adil immediately heard my voice. He hurriedly assured me: "Comrade commander, please rest assured that as long as the company you added to me arrives, I will be able to hold my position firmly and never let the enemy rush over the pontoon bridge again." ”

I put down the phone and first ordered Yushchenko, who was following behind: "Comrade Captain, transfer a company from your guard battalion to Sergeant Adil's position. Move quickly, and be sure to get into combat positions before the Germans attack again. ”

After Yushchenko left, I turned around and asked Sederikov: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, where is the battle taking place?" "Actually, my question was a bit redundant, the sound of rifle and machine gun fire coming from outside was clearly audible, and the dust on the roof and ceiling had not yet rustled down from above with the explosion of the shells.

Without waiting for Sederikov's answer, I asked another question: "How did the Germans rush into the city?" After asking this, I added reluctantly, "How could the Germans break through their positions so easily, but the pride of your regiment, the Sherebryan battalion, who held that section of the river?" ”

Hearing my question, Sederikov lowered his head and replied ashamedly: "Comrade commander, it is so, the Germans took advantage of the fact that our army was under artillery bombardment and could not be observed, and sent elite engineering units to repair the pontoon bridge. As soon as the bridge was repaired, five German tanks rushed over the bridge. Since our anti-tank guns could not destroy the enemy's tanks, we could only watch them rush into the city. Seeing that the enemy had broken through our lines, the commanders and fighters on the positions fell into chaos. When Major Sherebryanny immediately organized his men and blew up the tanks that had rushed into the city, he found that the scene was out of control. ”

"Can't control it?" After hearing this, I frowned and asked, "Why can't you control it?" ”

"The German infantry, taking advantage of the confusion in our regimental positions, rushed in droves from the ice." Sederikov explained to me with a sad face: "Although our commanders and fighters fought stubbornly, quite a few enemies stormed the city. At the moment I have sent three battalions and my guard company to clear the city of German troops. ”

After hearing what Sederikov said, I realized why I couldn't see the vigilant troops near the regimental command post, and it turned out that he had sent them out to clear out the remnants of the enemy who had entered the city. I smiled bitterly and said lightly: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, we were just on our way here when we were blocked by a small group of German troops. Fortunately, the guard platoon I led was strong in combat, and it only took a few minutes to destroy this group of enemies. ”

"What, you were ambushed by the Germans?" Frightened by my fluttering words, Shedelikov nervously looked me up and down, and at the same time asked with concern: "Comrade commander, you are not injured, are you?" ”

I waved my hand and said disapprehantly, "You don't have to worry about my safety, the bullets that can kill me haven't been made yet." By the way, what is going on with Captain Nikolai, I just heard that he was also attacked by the Germans? ”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." Speaking of the Nikolai battalion, the expression on Sederikov's face became gloomy again. "His battalion was placed at the junction of our regiment and the fourth regiment. There was just about a company of infantry under the cover of several tanks. Broke through the positions of the 2nd company. Wedged into the defensive depth of the battalion. I have just called to urge Captain Nikolai to send his troops to carry out a counterattack and annihilate this enemy as much as possible. At this point, he paused, came over for a moment, and asked tentatively, "Comrade Commander, this Captain Nikolai used to have worked under the Germans. Seeing that the situation is not in favor of our army, he will not lead his troops to defect, right? ”

"Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov." Hearing Sederikov express his worries, I immediately reprimanded him with a straight face: "Although Captain Nikolai had worked under the Germans before, it was a thing of the past after all. The more critical the moment, the more we as commanders must trust our subordinates, so as to ensure the stability of the army's morale. Do you understand? ”

"Understood, Comrade Commander." Sederikov, who had been taught me two sentences, replied with an embarrassed expression.

"What's going on over there with the Fourth Regiment?" After learning about the situation of the first regiment, I asked Sedelikov about the situation of the fourth regiment.

Shederikov thought for a moment and cautiously replied: "According to intelligence, the Germans did not repair the pontoon bridge in the direction of the 4th regiment. On the entire defensive front, the enemy still had only infantry attacking from the ice. ”

"Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov. Since the 4th Regiment is not under much pressure at the moment, then call Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar at once and ask him to send troops to reinforce you from the flanks. I was deeply afraid that Shedelikov would delay his business, and urged him: "Don't delay, call him immediately." ”

Sederikov nodded, walked to a walkie-talkie, took the headset from the operator's hand and put it on, and didn't care about the codename, he shouted at the microphone: "Hey, hey, Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar?" Hey, do you hear that, Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar? I'm Sederikov, did you hear me? German tanks and infantry broke through the positions of our regiment and stormed into the city. Please support, please support! ”

"You're not alone." Gaidar's familiar voice sounded in the headphones, and he said unhappily: "The German infantry is constantly attacking our regiment's positions from the ice, and my troops are fighting, and it may be difficult to draw troops to reinforce you. ”

Hearing that Gaidar was reluctant to send troops to support, I raised my hand and patted Sederikov on the shoulder, motioning for him to hand me the microphone and headset. After I put on the headphones, I said into the microphone in a stern tone: "Hey, Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, I'm Oshanina. ”

"Military ...... The commander of the army is ...... Comrade, it's you! Hearing my voice suddenly, Gaidar seemed a little flustered, and he said nervously: "What instructions do you have?" ”

"Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, I'm here to ask you." As for his cousin, who had just seen death and could not be saved, I asked very dissatisfiedly: "Why are you reluctant to send reinforcements when you see that a regiment is in a critical situation?" ”

"That's right, Comrade Commander, please listen to my explanation." Listening to my stern tone, Gaidar looked even more flustered, "According to the forward report, German sappers are rushing to repair the pontoon bridge, and the build-up of German tanks can be seen faintly by the river in the distance. I thought that as soon as the pontoon bridge was repaired, the German tank units would rush over the bridge. So I had to leave enough troops behind to deal with a possible onslaught from the Germans. ”

I waited for Gaidar to finish speaking, and after calculating the strength of the four regiments in my mind, I ordered him bluntly: "Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, if we remember correctly, the formation of the four regiments is four battalions, each battalion has five companies, and each company has 200 men. Even if there were a lot of attrition in the early battle, your regiment still has at least 3,000 men. I now order, in my capacity as corps commander, to immediately dispatch two companies to the defense zone of one regiment and one battalion, and assist Captain Nikolai in destroying the German troops in that area. ”

"Understood, Comrade Commander." Gaidar did not dare to object to my arrangement, so he reluctantly agreed: "I will immediately send troops to reinforce the Nikolai battalion." ”

When I finished the call with Gaidar, I went to the table again, picked up the phone on the table, and connected Nikolai's battalion. When I heard Nikolai's voice coming out of the earpiece, I asked with concern, "Hey, Captain Nikolai, how are you doing there?" ”

Nikolai looked agitated to hear that it was me, and he reported loudly: "Report to Comrade Commander, my troops are charging the buildings occupied by the Germans. Since the enemy was parked outside the building, and the tanks that served as firing points and batteries were strong, our anti-tank guns could not penetrate its armor, so a charge that had just been launched ended in failure. ”

"Comrade Captain, if the attack fails, let's do it again." I cheered for Captain Nikolai on the phone, "Since the enemy's tanks are too strong, then you should not organize a frontal attack, that is no different from sending you to death in vain." You can draw the attention of German tanks with fire on the front, while sending an attacking force around the back of the enemy and beating them hard from behind their butts. As a commander, if you want to achieve victory, it is not enough to be brave, you must also learn to understand your brains, fight more skillfully, and achieve the greatest victory with the least casualties! Comrade Captain, do you understand? ”

"Understood, Comrade Commander." Nikolai said excitedly on the phone: "I will immediately deploy a new round of attacks according to your arrangement." ”

As he was talking, there was a sudden burst of gunfire outside the door, mixed with the sound of grenade explosions. I was just about to ask Shederikov to send someone to see what was going on, when Yushchenko hurried in from outside with a gun.

As soon as I entered, he reported to me in a loud voice: "Comrade Commander, there are probably more than fifty German soldiers, rushing towards us along the street. The enemy is now exchanging fire with Sergeant Lazarev's guard squad and a regiment of machine-gun fire. ”

"Comrade Captain," I heard that the German troops were rushing towards the command post of the regiment, and without consulting Sedjerikov, I directly ordered Yushchenko: "Leave a squad to protect the safety of the command post of the regiment, and the rest will immediately go to support Lazarev and them." ”

"Yes!" Yushchenko resoundingly agreed, turned around and ran out again with a gun.

As soon as Yushchenko left, I turned to Sederikov and said: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, your command post cannot be left without guards, otherwise, as soon as the enemy comes with dozens of people, you will be killed by Lian Pot." ”

After hearing my words, Shedelikov shrugged his shoulders and said helplessly: "Comrade commander, do you think I want to do this? But there was no way, all the troops were sent out, and there was simply no extra force to serve as a guard at the regimental command post. (To be continued......)