Hearing Chuikov say this, my heart suddenly cooled in half. Although I had heard Kirillov say this a long time ago, I still had a trace of illusion in my heart, otherwise I would not have taken the risk of telling Sù Chuikov and Krylov about the plan of "replacing the army with water" at this time. Hearing the two of them say in unison that this plan will not work, then it seems that this plan is really unrealistic.

Although I was extremely unhappy in my heart, in front of Chuikov and Krylov, I had to pretend that nothing had happened and said: "Since the commander and the chief of staff also feel that this plan cannot be implemented, then they will no longer think about it." It seems that the only way to stop the frantic attack of the Germans is to rely on our existing forces and weapons. ”

Krylov walked up to me and said enthusiastically: "Comrade Oshanina, whether or not you can hold the Mamayev post is related to whether our army group can hold Stalingrad, so the burden on your shoulders is not light." If you encounter any difficulties, you can call us or send us a telegram, and we will do our best to help you. ”

Krylov's words made me feel Alexander, and I felt uncomfortable at the sight of the trusting gaze cast by him and Chuikov. But if I say goodbye to them at this time, I can't find a suitable reason. In desperation, I could only force a smile and express my determination to the two of them: "Please rest assured, commander, chief of staff, I will strengthen the Mamayev post and turn the high ground into a floodgate that the enemy cannot cross." ”

Chuikov was good at observing words and feelings, and the anxious expression on my face that could not escape his shrewd eyes could not escape his shrewd eyes, so he immediately took over the conversation: "Okay, Comrade Oshanina. I think you're back to your heart right now. We won't keep you. You'd better hurry back to the troops. ”

Hearing that Chuikov asked me to leave, I really couldn't ask for it, so I hurriedly saluted him, turned around and left the headquarters.

I walked out of the headquarters and stood in the streets strewn with rubble and craters, looking left and right at the motorcycle that had brought me. An executive lieutenant next to me walked up to me and politely asked, "Comrade Colonel, are you looking for a motorcycle?" ”

I nodded hurriedly. "Yes, a motorcycle with a sidecar, two fighters on board," affirmed. Comrade Ensign, do you know where they are? ”

"If you go down this street, fifty or sixty meters, you will see a fork in the road ahead, and two of your men will be hidden in the building there."

I thanked the lieutenant and walked down the street in the direction he was pointing. Along the way, I saw the craters and broken bricks and rubble, and from time to time I could see the corpses of the German soldiers that had not yet had time to clean up, and I understood in my heart how dangerous the situation of the army group headquarters had been.

I just came to a fork in the road. Before I could open my mouth to call someone, I heard a voice from the building next to me: "Commander." Is that you? ”

"It's me, come out." I heard the sound coming from one of the fighters on the motorcycle, and I yelled yes.

I was sitting in a sidecar and heading out of the city, and I was about to close my eyes when I heard the soldier sitting behind the driver say, "Commander, we have just met a patrol of the 10th Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. ”

Ministry of Internal Affairs, after hearing this title, I asked lightly: "Really?" What are they doing in the city, they are also serving as overseers, and when they see any army retreating without permission, they shoot at their own people? ”

"No, Comrade Division." The fighter hurriedly explained to me: "Coincidentally, the captain of the patrol and I used to be in the same unit before. He told me that their division was currently a garrison, controlling all the spare defensive points in the city and the fire support points in the city. ”

The warrior's words aroused my curiosity, so I couldn't help but ask, "What else did he say?" ”

He added that most of the city's fortifications consisted of small firing points, a third of which were civil structures. Of course, from some of the fortifications he pointed out to me, including the barricades, these fortifications were not strong enough to be necessary fire support points in the course of the battle. ”

After listening to the words of the fighters, I could not help but fall into deep thought: "If the intelligence that the fighters said is true, then the 10th Division of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Colonel Saraev will not be able to hold off the enemy's surprise as a reserve at all, because it is simply impossible to withdraw them from those fire support points." It seems that the defense of the northern side of the city will still be dominated by my independent division. ”

When he returned to the headquarters, he saw that Kirillov, who had remained in the 5th Regiment, was actually there, so he hurriedly called him and Akhromeyev over, and first informed the two of them that the commander of the 92nd Brigade had escaped from the battlefield and had been executed on the spot after being captured by Krylov from the desert island.

After I finished the briefing, Kirillov didn't ask in detail, but asked straight to the point: "Comrade division commander, does the command have any instructions for us?" ”

I shook my head and replied: "It's the same old thing, that is, let us resolutely hold the Mamayev Heights at any cost, ensure the safety of the Volga crossing, and prevent the enemy from rushing into the city from the north of Stalingrad." ”

Hearing that there was no new order, Kirillov sighed in disappointment, and then told me: "Comrade Oshanina, before you return, we received a telegram from the headquarters of the army group saying that there are troops to take over the defense of the 107.5 heights, and that our three regiments will hand over positions to them when the new troops arrive. ”

"I don't know what my superiors think, our three regiments have simply become a firefighting team, and every time something happens to the high ground of friendly troops, they have to rush over to reinforce it." Hearing Kirillov say that the third regiment was going to be transferred again, Akhromeyev next to him couldn't help but complain.

I deliberately pretended not to hear his complaints, but Kirillov glanced at me, fearing that I would be angry with them, and specially whispered a few rebukes to Akhromeyev.

"By the way, the commander gave a special explanation, the commander of the second regiment, Captain Pugachev, the commander of the third regiment, Captain Godunov, the tank battalion, Captain Persjian, and the artillery battalion, Captain Morozov, all of whom were promoted to the rank of major."

As soon as I finished speaking, a look of surprise appeared on the faces of the two of them, apparently they did not expect that Chuikov would suddenly have a whim to promote several commanders of the independent division to the ranks. After a while. Kirillov next to me approached me. He asked in a low voice: "Are these commanders promoted to military ranks?" ”

"yes. The four of them were promoted to the ranks. I looked at Kirillov in confusion and asked, "Do you have any questions?" ”

Kirillov first snorted at the other side of the table, then stole a glance at me in the direction of the door. I looked at the other side, and then at the door, and immediately slapped myself on the forehead in annoyance, secretly scolding myself for being so confused, how could I forget these two people.

It's not nice to say, Pugachev and Godunov were promoted, but my divisional chief of staff Akhromeyev and guard battalion commander Basmanov. It's still a captain, and even if they don't say anything, I'll feel uneasy inside.

I hurriedly moved the map in front of me, looking at the map to hide my embarrassment. After staring at the map for a long time, he tried hard to recall his defensive deployment in his mind, and after feeling that there was nothing wrong, he raised his head and said to the two people sitting next to him: "It's not early, you should rest early, maybe tomorrow the enemy will attack our position." ”

Originally, I just said it casually, but I didn't expect it to become a prophecy. As soon as it was dawn, the enemy began to shell the Mamayev Gang. Not only the high ground where the 1st Regiment was located, but also the high ground where our headquarters was located was also subjected to shelling. Ten minutes after the shelling began, the enemy's aircraft group also flew over the Mamayev Hill and began to dive and bomb.

I wanted to go outside the cave to see what was going on, but as soon as I stepped out of the first wooden door, I felt like I was jolting in a small boat on the rough sea, and the powerful blast of the blast slammed the door outside, as if an elephant were banging on the door outside.

Seeing that I wanted to go outside, Captain Basmanov, who was on duty in the corridor, stopped me and shouted at me: "Comrade division commander, it's too dangerous outside, you can't go out." After speaking, he yelled at the two soldiers standing next to him: "What are you still doing standing here stupidly, why don't you help the division commander in quickly." ”

After listening to his order, the two soldiers did not say a word, but stepped forward and dragged me into the headquarters with my arms. I also knew that it was too dangerous outside, and if I stubbornly ran out, I would lose my life nine times out of ten. Therefore, I was very cooperative in having two fighters drag me into the command.

Back in the command headquarters, the first thing I saw was Akhromeyev shouting into the phone microphone: "Hey, hey, hey, clump, can you hear me?" Hey, hey. ”

"Don't bother to make any effort, Comrade Chief of Staff, don't you hear how fierce the artillery fire is outside?" Before I could speak, Kirillov preemptively said: "I estimate that the telephone line leading to a mass of positions has long been blown up by enemy fire."

Hearing Kirillov say this, Razumeyeva hurriedly stood up and asked: "Comrade political commissar, I will send someone to check the line, and I will do my best to restore the communication between the division headquarters and the front." ”

"Wait a minute, Lieutenant Razumeyeva." At this moment, I have to stand up and stop the commander of the communications company, there are not many people left in the communications soldiers under my command, and if I send people out to check the line again, it is estimated that by the time this battle is over, there will not be many people left in the communications company. "Don't be in a hurry, the enemy's artillery fire is fierce at the moment, and sending people to check the line is tantamount to sending them to their deaths. Although I know that the soldiers are not afraid of death, I still try to avoid such meaningless casualties if I can avoid them. Wait until the enemy's artillery fire is thinning out, and then send people. ”

"The division commander is right," Kirillov said in a timely manner, "Lieutenant Razumeyeva, let's use the walkie-talkie to contact the first regiment." ”

When Razumeyeva was using the walkie-talkie to communicate with the regiment, Kirillov said to me with some concern: "The enemy artillery fire and bombardment are so fierce, will the casualties of the regiment be too great?" ”

Kirillov's words made my heart sink sharply, under such heavy shelling and bombardment, I don't know how many casualties will be killed in a regiment? Although we are only a few hundred meters apart from each other on the two heights, we will not be able to send reinforcements in a short period of time if we encounter a blockade by enemy aircraft.

At this moment, Akhromeyev came over and told me something even more disturbing: "The division commander, according to the report of the observation post of the 2nd regiment, found German units in the distance, under the cover of a large number of tanks, pushing towards our position. ”

"Did you hang up?" I asked Akhromeyev coldly.

He shook his head and said, "Not yet, the information was reported by Captain Khrushov of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Regiment." He's still online. If you want to know more details. You can ask him directly. ”

I walked briskly to the table, picked up the microphone that was set aside and put it to my ear, and said loudly: "Hey, hey, is it Captain Khrushov?" ”

"Yes, Comrade Division Commander, it's me." Khrushov's familiar voice came from the earpiece.

"Report what you've observed."

Because the explosions outside were so loud, Khrushov had to shout at the top of his voice. I could only hear what he said: "Report to the division commander, as soon as the enemy's shelling began, I noticed that a cloud of dust had been raised in the steppe in the distance. Upon closer inspection, it turned out that it was the German infantry, under the cover of tanks, who were advancing towards our positions. At the moment, there are still four kilometers from the position of the first regiment. ”

"How many troops does the enemy have?" According to the calculations of the previous two days, the German 44th Infantry Division in front of us should still have tens of thousands of troops, and I figured out how many troops the enemy had invested this time.

"There are more than thirty tanks, and as for the infantry. Only a piece of black pressure was seen, and the exact number was not clear. I guess there must be a regiment. ”

"Understood, report the situation in time." I hung up when I was done.

When Kirillov and Akhromeyev came around, I said to them with a stern expression: "Political commissar, chief of staff, the situation is very bad, according to Captain Khorushov, the German army following the tank attack has about one regiment, that is to say, more than 3,000 people, and its strength is about the same as the defenders on our Mamayev post. However, due to their superiority in weapons and equipment, and the air supremacy on the battlefield is in their hands, we will have a fierce battle next. I hope you all will be mentally prepared in advance. ”

"Please rest assured, division commander, don't look at the menacing enemy, but I believe that their fate will be the same as before, in front of our position, they will be bloodied, and finally retreat in disgrace." Akhromeyev said confidently.

And Kirillov appeared to be less confident: "Comrade Chief of Staff, we can't be too optimistic either. As far as I know, the Germans attacked the positions of a regiment several times in yesterday's battle. Although we later carried out a counter-charge and drove them back. But what does this mean? At this point, he deliberately paused for a moment, glanced at the expressions of me and Akhromeyev, and then continued: "It shows that the enemy, having suffered several losses in front of our position, has begun to change his tactics. And the commanders and fighters of the first regiment also used the past methods to deal with the enemy, so that the Germans captured our positions several times. So today, in the face of the menacing German army, I have no confidence at all that the first regiment can hold its position. ”

"Comrade division commander, the communication with the first regiment has been connected." Before Akhromeyev and I could express our opinions, Razumeyeva, who was sitting next to the intermediate, excitedly shouted at me: "The commander of the regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov, is on the line and wants to speak to you." ”

I walked over and put on my headphones and asked loudly into the microphone: "Hey, hey, Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov, let me ask you, are there any casualties in your regiment now?" ”

"Report to the division commander," Shederikov's loud voice came from the earphones, "because our regiment has dug many tunnels on the high ground in the past two days, from the beginning of the shelling, except for a few observation posts, the rest of the commanders and fighters have taken refuge in the fortifications. Regardless of the enemy's artillery fire and bombardment, our regiment suffered almost no casualties. ”

"Great, that's great, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel." I was overjoyed to hear Sedjerikov's report, although we lacked anti-aircraft weapons and were helpless against the enemy planes that were looting in the air. But as long as our commanders and fighters hide in the tunnels, no matter how many enemy planes are in the air, they will not be able to take advantage of us.

"Division commander, our observation post reports that the enemy's infantry, under the cover of a large number of tanks, is approaching our high ground, and is in a posture of vowing not to give up until the high ground is taken."

The thought of the thousands of German soldiers approaching the high ground made me feel unconfident, and I tentatively asked, "Do you have the confidence to repel the enemy?" ”

"Please rest assured, don't look at the enemy's large number of troops, but they have nothing to do with the many fortifications on our heights. Don't look at how many times they attacked yesterday, but they didn't take advantage of anything, but we killed hundreds of people. ”

Hearing Sedjerikov mention the tunnel, I suddenly remembered that when I was in the 64th Army, I participated in the construction of the tunnel fortifications, and the idea at that time was to fight a battle with the enemy similar to Shangganling, but I did not expect that the plan could not catch up with the changes, and the tunnel fortifications finally had no time to play a role, because our army had to retreat in a big stride, and had to blow up all of them. But now that the regimental positions were covered with various fortifications and tunnels, my mind could not help but come alive again.

I thought about it for a moment and said to Shederikov: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, if the enemy forces are strong and you can't resist them, you can temporarily abandon the surface positions, withdraw all the troops into the tunnels, and fight a protracted battle with the enemy to contain their forces. ”

"What? Abandon the surface position and withdraw into the tunnel? Sederikov was frightened by this order of mine, and he asked rhetorically, with a bit of a stutter: "This, this, this is appropriate, is it appropriate?" ”

"Nothing out of place." I said to him categorically: "The orders of the superiors are not allowed to be discussed, you just have to follow them." If something goes wrong, I'll take care of it. (To be continued......)

PS: I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to the book friends Wutong's ashes, bent foot pole, old godfather, Luo-Xia, yxzr, wzzhnag68, dead pigs, and Shanshui Caitian children's shoes for their valuable monthly ticket support!