Although Yazov tried to pretend that nothing had happened, I was keenly aware of the painful expression on his face, and quickly grabbed his arm and shouted at Katerina, who was standing next to him and had been stunned by the scene just now: "Katerina, Comrade Katerina. ”

I shouted twice in a row, and the stunned Katerina woke up from the shock and asked in a trance, "Finger...... Commander with ...... Comrade, you ...... You call me ...... What's the matter? ”

"Come and help me, and help the comrade soldier to sit on the tree stump in front of me." I saw that she hadn't fully recovered from the bloody scene just now, so I raised my voice: "Don't be stunned, come here!" ”

Perhaps my last roar woke Katerina from her lost state, and she hurried over and helped me to carry Yazov to a nearby tree stump and sit down. At this time, the hygienist also rushed over, saluted me, and leaned over and ordered Yazov: "Comrade soldier, please take off your clothes, and I will check your injuries." ”

When Yazov took off his cuirass, took off his military coat, and lifted his jumper, I saw several red marks on his chest, and if it wasn't for the cuirass blocking the bullets, I guess he would have died a long time ago. The hygienist, probably afraid that his ribs would be broken, touched his ribs with his hand and asked him if he was in pain while examining him.

After the examination, the hygienist stood up and reported to me: "Comrade commander, this soldier's ribs are not broken, only some skin injuries, as long as you take some medicine, you will be fine in a few days." ”

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of Yushchenko hurrying towards me with two fighters, probably to inform me. Said that the guard troops were ready to go. I leaned over. He raised his hand and patted Yazov on the shoulder. smiled and said to him: "Comrade soldier, thank you again for saving me." We'll see you again. As he spoke, he took the initiative to extend his hand to him.

Yazov, who was sitting on the stump, saw that I was going to shake hands with him, and he didn't care about the pain in his body, so he quickly stood up, stretched out his hands and held my hand tightly, shook it vigorously, and said excitedly: "Comrade commander, you are the commander of the first army. You should pay more attention to your safety in the future. ”

"I will, Comrade Yazov." After saying this, I withdrew my hand from his, nodded to him, and turned to Yushchenko.

"Comrade Commander, the guard unit has been assembled." After Yushchenko reported to me on the situation of the troops, he asked again: "Can you go?" ”

"Let's go, Comrade Captain." The battle was over, and there was no point in staying, so I waved my hand. said: "You take the guards and go back to Kirovgrad with me." ”

Yushchenko followed me a few steps. Glancing back at the dozen or so captives standing in the pile of corpses, he asked cautiously: "Comrade commander, what should you do with these captives?" ”

I stopped, turned my head to look at the frightened captives, who were standing trembling in the pile of corpses, and felt compassion in my heart, so I relented and told Yushchenko: "Take them back to the city with the wounded." ”

About an hour later, we were able to return to the city, and when I appeared at the door of the corps headquarters, I was surprised to find that in addition to Kirillov, Vitkov, and Pugachev, there was also Lieutenant Colonel Sverin, the political commissar of the 308th Division, and next to him sat three junior commanders in shabby tank uniforms.

Just as I was in a daze at the door, Pugachev spotted me, and he exclaimed in surprise: "The commander is back!" Then he approached me, took the assault rifle from my hand, and asked with concern, "Are you on a good road?" ”

"It's going well, Comrade Major." I handed him the assault rifle and walked briskly to the middle of the room and shook hands with Kirillov and the others.

After shaking hands, I glanced at the three commanders who were standing next to me, somewhat at a loss, and then turned to Vitkov and asked: "Comrade Chief of Staff, who are these three commanders ......?!" ”

When Vitkov heard my question, he didn't answer it directly, but glanced at Lieutenant Colonel Sverin next to him, turned to face me again, and said with a smile: "Comrade Commander, these three commanders were brought by Lieutenant Colonel Sverin, so let him introduce you." ”

Hearing what Vitkov said, I turned my attention to Sverin and said with a smile: "Commissar Sverin, since you brought the person, let you introduce it to me." ”

After saying that, he walked up to the three commanders, turned around and introduced me: "Comrade commander, these three commanders are now the commanders of the Zmian Kaduha partisans. Then from the far left: "This Captain Shamlikh, the commander of the tank company; political instructor Shabvalenko, tank company instructor; Lieutenant Yakuda, deputy company commander of a tank company. At the outbreak of the war, they were all part of the 22nd tank brigade of the Belarusian Special Military District. ”

After Svering's introduction, I went up to shake hands with the three commanders with patches on their uniforms, and politely said to each of them, "Hello, nice to meet you!" ”

Kirillov walked up to my side at some point, and after I shook hands with the three commanders, he beckoned them to sit down again, and then said to me: "Lida, we have just listened to the three commanders talk about their combat experiences, and since you are back, let's sit down and listen together." After speaking, he waved at them, "Captain Shamrichh, what are you still doing in a daze?" Why don't you tell your story again to the commander? ”

Captain Shamlikh stood up and said yes, and began to tell me formally what they had been through: "Before the outbreak of war, our tank brigade was stationed in the Poltava region, where the steppes stretched as far as the eye could see, divided in two by the many steep bends of the watery Pshor River.

When the war broke out, several German armored divisions broke through the defense lines of our army in September, forced the Dnieper River, and then rushed directly to Kharkov. And although our tank brigade suffered heavy losses in air raids and enemy tank battles, the surviving tanks continued to fight.

After our company was separated from the main force, it remained in the Pschull River valley and continued to fight the Germans to the death. We take advantage of our familiarity with the terrain. Ambushes were fought along the road to Kharkov. Attack enemy convoys. Attacks were carried out on transport command posts on the side of the road and on the small number of garrisons in the villages. ”

"Comrade Captain, please wait a minute." When I got here, I couldn't help but interrupt him and asked curiously: "Since you have lost contact with the main force, then I am curious about where you got your supplies, is it in the area of your activity, is there still a combat warehouse of our army that has not been discovered by the Germans?" ”

"Not so, Comrade General." Captain Shamlih shook his head. "Although our tanks have long since run out of fuel, our fighters have managed to get enough fuel from abandoned tractor depots and collect ammunition from destroyed tanks parked on battlefields where recent battles have taken place, to ensure that we can continue to fight."

The successive attacks we launched finally attracted the attention of the Germans, and they even ordered the troops who were heading to the front line to stop their advance and turn around and encircle us. After countless battles with great disparity, the strength of our company was finally exhausted. During the battle near Olshz, our last tank was also destroyed.

There were only eight men left in the company, except for the three of us. There was also a sergeant, and four fighters. Although we are a bunch of tankmen who have lost their tanks. Although we were trapped behind enemy lines, none of the soldiers who had lost their usual weapons thought of taking a portrait of the fascist invaders and expressed their desire to continue to fight stubbornly against the invaders.

When the eight of us entered the woods and I announced a stop to rest, the instructor, Comrade Shabvalenko, took out a military flag in his shirt from his bosom and unfurled it under the moonlight that peeked through the leaves. He held this glorious flag tightly to his chest and said to his comrades in a solemn and resolute tone: 'Comrades, as long as we have one person alive and still holding weapons in our hands, as long as this glorious flag is still with us, our tank brigade will not be wiped out by the enemy. It still exists, and it continues to fight. Comrades, let us swear before this banner: we will not bring shame on cowardice and discouragement; As long as we are alive, we will never lay down our arms, and as long as there is one of us whose heart is still beating, we must surround this glorious banner and strike a fierce blow at the fascist aggressors. ’

When I heard the instructor say this, I felt my blood boiling, and even if a hundred fascist bandits appeared in front of me at this moment, I would bravely rush towards them with my weapons in my hand. So I was the first to get down on one knee and be the first to say, 'I swear!' And kissed the corner of the battle flag. Then every comrade followed me in the same way. ”

Hearing this, I couldn't help but stand up and asked with a little emotion: "Captain, where is the flag of your tank brigade?" ”

When Shamrish heard my question, he turned to Shabvalenko, who was still sitting in his seat, and said: "Comrade instructor, show our military flag to Comrade General." ”

Shabvalenko quickly stood up, unbuttoned his coat, took out a red silk flag embroidered with gold from his bosom, and unfolded it with both hands. Seeing the portrait of Lenin in the middle of the red flag, Kirillov couldn't help but step forward, knelt down on one knee, held the corner of the flag with both hands, and kissed it.

Now that Kirillov has set an example, Vitkov and Pugachev have also kissed the military flag. Seeing that Kirillov and the three of them took turns kissing the military flag, I, as the commander of the first army, must have to do it according to the gourd drawn by the scoop. After kissing the flag and standing up, I turned to the others in the room and said loudly: "To our Party, to the Motherland and to the people, we swear: let us always be loyal to the banner of Lenin and defend our holy Fatherland with our own blood and lives." We swear! ”

As soon as my words fell, a neat and solemn voice suddenly sounded in the room: "We swear!" ”

After everyone sat down again, Kirillov asked curiously: "Comrade Captain, how did you come to Ukraine from Belarus?" ”

Shamlih quickly got up from his seat and continued: "After losing all the tanks, our group of tank men on foot began to fight guerrilla, and our ranks grew stronger and stronger due to the addition of small units that were scattered one after another, or local residents, workers, or farm workers who were dissatisfied with German rule.

In the autumn of 1941 alone, I can't remember how many German convoys were intercepted, how many cars were burned, how many enemies were killed in ambushes on the steppe, and how much food that the Germans urgently needed to bring back to China was burned or returned to the local population. ”

"Why don't you do the statistics? Comrade Captain. When Vitkov heard this, he couldn't help but interject and ask.

The captain smiled shyly, and then said: "Comrade Colonel, we were just acting at that time, and we didn't care about counting the results of the battle at all. The way we fought was very ingenious. It always appears suddenly on the grass and disappears suddenly, leaving no trace.

It was precisely because of this elusive tactic that the Germans became panicked. The German command in Poltava even issued an instruction 'on fighting the Soviet airborne troops in the helmets, who were wearing tank helmets at the head of the Verikrelen, Kobelyak and Raychekirov forces, numbering in the thousands'.

In the instruction, the German command instructed the officers and men of the German army and the client states to exercise caution when passing through the steppes, and forbade them to go out after dark, and forbade the passage of less than fifteen vehicles alone without an escort. The night guards of the German command were increased, and the village garrisons were moved from farmhouses to public buildings.

At the same time, they also put up notices everywhere telling the local population that if they could provide clues about the Soviet 'bandits in tank helmets', or if they could bring one of them, dead or alive, to the German headquarters, they could get huge bonuses and many other benefits.

After their notices were posted, no one came to them to inform, or to send the partisans, alive or dead. In desperation, the Germans had no choice but to transfer large numbers of SS members from distant places to the Pschule River, where they carried out massive searches, stalks, and arrests in various villages. Cavalry columns of the field police trained in the steppes, scoured ravines and mountain streams, and set fire to dry reeds. Trying to force us out of our hiding place and drive us into the open to annihilate us completely. (To be continued......)

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