"Comrade Deputy Commander, you are so optimistic." Betzikov said teasingly: "Didn't you find out where the weakness of the Bere tank detachment was?" ”

"Weakness, what weakness?" Danilov said with a blank expression, "I think it's quite good to fight like them, and the German troops attacked by them can't stop their assault without the cover of planes and artillery." ”

Bezikov grabbed the map on the table, took it in his hand and walked it to Danilov, pointed it to him and said: "Comrade Deputy Commander, you see, Colonel Berey's troops can only operate in the defensive areas of the army group, and if they cross Yakovlevo to the south, then they will be killed like targets by the German aircraft and artillery because they cannot replenish fuel and ammunition." ”

Danilov took the map in Bezikov's hand, looked at it several times, and said with a pout: "I thought that as long as I organized a few more such tank detachments, I could greatly weaken the strength of the German army. ”

"Comrade Deputy Commander, you can't say that." Seeing Danilov's depressed look, I hurriedly picked up a telegram I had just received and stuffed it into his hand, and at the same time comforted him: "Judging from the reconnaissance during the day, the Germans originally planned to transfer the 19th Panzer Division and another infantry division to the Prokhorovka area, but after being attacked by Colonel Bere, the Germans stopped moving and are still staying in place. ”

When Danilov heard me say this, he quickly picked up the telegram, carefully read it twice quickly, and then breathed a sigh of relief. Said: "Anyway. Colonel Berey their actions. It's still very successful. At least it also pinned down part of the German forces, so that they could not concentrate superior forces and attack a certain point in our defensive zone. ”

"Although at present, the German army in our defense zone does not take advantage of anything, and it has also paid a lot of price." "But they have succeeded in splitting our line," I said, "leaving the three Guards Divisions of the first line of defense in separate positions, disrupting all of our original plans. At present, these three divisions can only barely protect themselves. and was unable to launch an effective offensive against the Germans. ”

"So what are we going to do?" Bezkov asked briefly: "If the status quo is not changed as soon as possible, even if a major counteroffensive begins, it is estimated that the three Guards Divisions in front will be like the 62nd Army during the Battle of Stalingrad, and can only stick to the existing positions and consume the enemy's vital forces by stubbornly defending." ”

"Comrade Deputy Commander," after hearing Bezikov's question, I turned my eyes to Danilov and humbly asked him for advice: "Do you have any good ideas?" ”

Danilov shook his head after placing the map in his hand on the table. "It is very difficult to concentrate all our strengths. Unless ......"

"Unless what?" Seeing Danilov to sell off the off. Bezikov asked anxiously: "Comrade Deputy Commander, you can say whatever comes to mind, don't hang our appetite like this, okay?" ”

"Come and see," Danilov said, calling us to the table and pointing to the map, "why our three Guards Divisions in the forefront are now in a situation of fighting on their own, is because the forces are so weak that they are divided by the superior German forces." ”

"Comrade Deputy Commander," Kirillov, who was writing the report, put down the pen in his hand, looked at it, and asked tentatively, "If I am not mistaken, you mean that we should send out living forces to strengthen these forces, strengthen their existing strength, and regain all the positions lost in the first line of defense." Right? ”

After listening to Kirillov's analysis, I immediately turned my attention to Danilov to see how he reacted. Unexpectedly, he actually nodded and said affirmatively: "That's right, Comrade Military Commissar, you are right, that's what I meant." He turned his face to me and said, "Comrade Commander, I still don't understand, why are you reluctant to throw them into battle when you still have a complete Guards Division in your hands?" ”

"Now it's only the initial stage of the campaign, we will throw all our forces into it, and when we reach the later stage of the battle, we still have mobile forces there that can be used?" What I didn't tell them the truth is that in a few days, the Soviets will launch a full-scale counteroffensive, and I don't want to put the main forces of the counterattack on the ground and fight a war of attrition with the Germans and consume them in vain. Sometimes it's a terrible feeling to know something that no one else knows and not be able to say it.

After I finished speaking, Danilov laughed contemptuously, and then asked in a mocking tone: "Comrade commander, then I may ask you, when will we be able to use these mobile forces that you are talking about?" ”

I thought about it, then stretched out a finger and said to Danilov: "A week, a week from now, no matter what the situation on the battlefield is, I will put all the Guards Divisions that have not been used into battle." ”

"Well, since you say so, then I believe you." Danilov said with some reluctance: "During this time, I will also fully cooperate with you to prevent the Germans from penetrating further into the defensive depth of our army." ”

We were chatting, and suddenly Lopukhov, who was standing next to a walkie-talkie, called me: "Comrade Commander, I have your phone. ”

I stopped talking to Danilov, walked over and took the phone from the major's hand, and casually asked: "Do you know who called?" ”

Lopukhov nodded and said with certainty: "It was the call of the commander of the Fifth Guards Tank Army, Lieutenant General Rotmistrov Tank Corps, who said that he had something important to discuss with you. ”

Hearing Rotmistrov's name, I guessed that it would definitely have something to do with the tank Armageddon, so I quickly put my headphones to my ear and said politely: "Hello, General Rotmistrov, I'm Oshanina, do you have any instructions?" ”

Rotmistrov smiled and said, "Comrade Oshanina, how dare I give you any instructions, you must know that we are all of the same ranks." I'm calling you today to ask for your help. ”

"Something. Just say it. Comrade General. ”

"That's right. According to our reconnaissance, the units of the German 'Hitler Division', 'Reich Division', and 'Skeleton Division' are massing in the Prokhorovka area, and seem to be preparing for a large-scale tank battle with us. "Although we have more tanks than theirs, since the tankers are not yet skilled in the handling of the new tanks, it doesn't matter if we have a large-scale tank battle with the Germans, we will not have much advantage on the battlefield." ”

"Comrade General. Say whatever you want. I interrupted him when I heard him go around in circles for a long time and didn't get down to business, and said to him bluntly: "As long as I can help you, I will not refuse." ”

"Really? That's great. Rotmistrov did not expect that I would offer to help him without knowing what he was going to say, and immediately became excited: "Comrade Oshanina, my request is very simple, that is, when our army and the Germans are engaged in a large-scale tank battle. You can send troops out to harass the German camp where fuel and ammunition are stored. As long as the logistics of the German army were cut off. No matter how many tanks they have, we will all be wiped out in the end. ”

"Do you know exactly where the Germans are stockpiling fuel and ammunition?" I couldn't wait to ask, because once we knew where the German warehouses were, our air force would be able to make them lose a lot of money, even if the tank forces couldn't kill them. But first we have to find out where the German warehouses are before we can move on to the next step.

"It's a pity, Comrade Oshanina." Rotmistrov said apologetically: "Although we sent people to reconnoitre, we never waited to find the location of the enemy's warehouse. So I can only ask you to provide us with the necessary help to harass from the rear of the enemy, so that they cannot concentrate all their forces and launch a full-fledged attack on the Prokhorovka region. ”

After listening to what he said, I said with a solemn expression: "Well, Comrade General, since you have made such a request, as your friend, I will definitely help you to the best of my ability. ”

After putting down the phone, I said to Danilov and Bezikov: "Lieutenant General Rotmistrov said on the phone that they may have a large-scale tank battle with the Germans in the near future and need our assistance. ”

"But, Comrade Commander." Before I could finish speaking, Danilov interrupted me and said to himself: "We have a limited number of tanks, and it is almost impossible to support General Rotmistrov on the battlefield. ”

"Comrade Deputy Commander, how can you say that?" As soon as he finished speaking, Bezkov retorted with a glaring eye: "Since General Rotmistrov is our friend, how can we stand idly by while they are engaged in battle with the Germans? Even if the number of tanks is limited, we have to find a way to cobble together a tank force to reinforce them. ”

"Deputy Commander, Chief of Staff, don't argue with the two of you." I saw that there were signs of quarrel between the two, so I hurriedly stopped them and said: "General Rotmistrov did not ask us to send tanks to fight side by side with him, but hoped that after the tank battle between them and the Germans began, we would send troops to attack the oil depots and ammunition depots in the rear of the German army, so that the German tanks would have no fuel in their tanks and no shells in their chambers, so that they could easily wipe out all the German armored forces." ”

"So what do we do?" Danilov and Bezikov asked in unison.

Seeing that it was rare for the two to have such a tacit understanding, I couldn't help but smile, and then said: "As for the German warehouses where fuel and ammunition are stored, whether we send tank units to attack them in the future, or bomb them by planes and artillery, the most important task at present is to find the specific location of the enemy's warehouse. Otherwise, where can we find such a wide area? ”

"That's right, Comrade Commander, you're right." As he spoke, Bezikov grabbed the phone on the table, turned to me before dialing, and said, "I'm going to call Captain Travkin and ask him to personally take someone on this mission." ”

Among my many subordinates, Captain Travkin is one of the most important people I have, and I like to give him many important reconnaissance missions, because I believe he has the ability to complete them. However, his performance was also outstanding, and he never failed to live up to my trust, and successfully completed the tasks I gave him every time.

As he stood in front of me with his body straight, I repeated General Rotmistrov's request and asked him: "Comrade Captain, I will entrust you with the task of finding the enemy's warehouses." However, time is of the essence, and I can only give you two days, which means that you must complete the task before midnight on July 11th. Can you do it? ”

After listening to my order, Travkin frowned, and after thinking for a long time, he nodded and replied with a resolute expression: "Comrade commander, please rest assured that I will definitely complete the task you have assigned me within the specified time." ”

Travkin's answer made me feel reassured, and since he said he could do it, I was confident that he would be able to complete the task. I smiled and said to him, "Since there is no problem, Comrade Captain, you should go back and prepare." Bring two more radios to make it easy to get in touch with the headquarters at any time. Remember, it's very important for us to get the information back even a minute earlier, get it? ”

"Understood!" Travkin gave me a resounding yes, saluted, turned and walked out of headquarters.

After Travkin left, Danilov asked curiously: "Comrade commander, how can we destroy the enemy's warehouses once we find out where they are?" ”

"Comrade Deputy Commander, it's very simple, there are two ways." I held out two fingers to him and said, "First, let Colonel Bere's tank detachment sneak near the enemy's warehouse at night and destroy it with tank fire. The second way is to let Povsky's artillery, according to the coordinates provided by Captain Travkin, cover it with rocket artillery, and I do not believe that under such artillery fire, the German warehouses will survive. ”

"Yes, yes, both of these methods are good." After hearing this, Danilov nodded excitedly and said: "If the German warehouses are not heavily guarded, we will send a tank detachment to sneak attack; If the defense is tight, use rocket artillery for long-range attacks. I don't believe it, even if the enemy's heavy forces can block our ground attack, can they still stop the rocket shells falling from the sky? (To be continued.) )