When Chuikov said where we were going, I rolled up the map and stuffed it into the bag, and at the same time instructed the driver: "Comrade driver, let's go to the headquarters of the 62nd Army in the village of Verdach. ”

The driver nodded and replied in a deep voice: "Understood, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel. ”

With the map in hand, my eyes looked out the window, contemplating the special mission we were about to undertake. It was only at this time that I truly realized what kind of love Zhukov had for me when he rejected my application for promotion. The brutal Battle of Stalingrad had just begun at the moment, and our army was at an extremely disadvantage. In order to reverse this unfavorable situation as soon as possible, the Supreme Command now punishes the commanders below with a particularly heavy punishment, not to mention the division commanders and brigade commanders of the units below, and even the chiefs of staff and even the commanders of the group armies, according to the Supreme Commander's own preferences, they will be dismissed and replaced, and even directly sent to a military court.

Probably because I kept looking out the window and didn't speak, Chuikov asked with concern: "Oshanina, what are you thinking?" ”

I withdrew my gaze from the window and tried to squeeze a smile out of him, trying to find a light topic to talk to him. Just as he was about to speak, he suddenly thought that the purpose of our trip was to dismiss his old comrade-in-arms, and at this time, there were some things that could not be said casually in front of him. After hesitating for a moment, I opened my mouth and asked: "Comrade Commander, I heard you mention at the meeting today that you once studied at the Frunze Military Academy, is this true?" ”

Chuikov nodded vigorously and said, "Yes, I studied at the Frunze Military Academy for three years. At present, in the Stalingrad Front, not to mention the commanders of those army groups, even many division commanders, brigade commanders and even regiment commanders in the troops below. It's all the same as me. He graduated from the Frunze Military Academy. Oshanina. Why did you suddenly remember to ask this? ”

"Comrade Commander," I tentatively told him what I was thinking, "does the Frunze Military Academy Academy still admit cadets?" If possible, I would be more than happy to go to the academy for some time. ”

"You want to go to the Frunze Military Academy now?" When Chuikov heard me say this, a slight look of displeasure appeared on his face.

I saw that he had misunderstood me, and hurriedly explained: "Comrade commander, I see that you have misunderstood a little, but I really want to improve my campaign, tactics, and military skills at the Frunze Military Academy. But not now, we have to wait until we win the battle in front of us. ”

Chuikov's face softened, and he said with a pleasant face: "That's good, as soon as the battle is over, I will personally arrange for you to study at the Frunze Military Academy." I also know quite a few instructors at the academy, so I can ask them to take care of you when the time comes. ”

After thanking him sincerely, I changed the subject in a timely manner: "Comrade commander, are you familiar with General Lopatin?" ”

"Yes," said Chuikov with a gloomy expression, "I knew Comrade Lopatin before the war. I used to think of him as a strong and decisive commander. I didn't expect him to behave so badly since he became the commander of the 62nd Army. Not only did he repeatedly disobey the orders issued by the Front, but he even dared to disobey the orders of the Supreme High Command. You know, I feel very uncomfortable today when I am ordered to carry out the task of dismissing him......"

At this moment, the jeep slowly stopped. As soon as the car stopped, I asked the driver in the front seat: "Comrade driver, have we arrived at the village of Vergaci?" ”

"Comrade Colonel of the report, we have not arrived yet." The driver replied without looking back.

Hearing what the driver said, Chuikov asked impatiently: "Then what are you stopping for, don't you know that we have urgent business and want to rush to the headquarters of the 62nd Army as soon as possible?" ”

The driver turned around and said a little aggrieved: "Report to Comrade Commander, there is a convoy of tanks in front of you." Because the road was too narrow, I deliberately stopped on the side of the road to make way for them. ”

"Tanks? What tanks? Chuikov said as he pushed the door and got out of the car and walked to the middle of the road.

Seeing that Chuikov got out of the car first, I also pushed open the other side of the car door and got out of the car, standing on the side of the road and looking ahead. We saw a convoy of about thirty tanks coming straight ahead of us, kicking up a high pile of dust behind them.

Perhaps sensing us standing on the side of the road, an armored vehicle in the queue sped up and drove towards us. More than twenty meters away from us, the armored car stopped, and then the door opened, and a general without a military cap came out of it. At the sight of his black hair, I immediately recognized it as someone I knew, the commander of the 1st Tank Army, General Moskalenko.

Seeing him walking towards us, Chuikov hurried up to meet him, and I quickly trotted after him. The two stopped two or three paces apart, saluted and shook hands, and then hugged each other tightly. After the two of them separated, I quickly took two steps forward and raised my hand to salute Moskalenko.

Moskalenko nodded slightly at me, turned around and asked Chuikov: "Comrade Chuikov, what are you doing here?" Is it to go to the village of Vergach to find General Lopatin? ”

Chuikov nodded, since the other party had already guessed where he was going, he no longer had anything to hide from him, but told the truth: "Yes, I went to Vergach Village to relieve the command of Comrade Lopatin of the 62nd Army and take over the rest of his troops. ”

"The rest of the troops!" Moskalenko said in a mocking tone: "General Lopatin can command no more than a hundred troops now, and it is the same whether you go and take over it." ”

"What, there are less than a hundred left?" Chuikov was taken aback by this data and asked in surprise: "Comrade Moskalenko, what is going on, didn't the front army tell me that there are still a few divisions with tens of thousands of people?" ”

Moskalenko sneered twice and asked: "Comrade Chuikov, do you know Lopatin?" ”

Chuikov nodded vigorously and replied: "Yes, I knew him long before the war, and in my impression ......"

Moskalenko interrupted him and said: "Comrade Lopatin before the war, don't talk about you, even I know it very well, but now ......" said this. He paused. Continue with regret. "He became unrecognizable to me."

When Chuikov heard this, he said to him in a relatively calm tone: "General Moskalenko, I hope that you will be very responsible and completely sincere in telling me what you think about General Lopatin. ”

Tank troops passed by us, and the roar of huge motors drowned out all sounds. Both Chuikov and Moskalenko remained silent at this moment, waiting for the departure of the tank troops.

"Comrade Chuikov, I can't hide it from you," Moskalenko said bitterly after the tanks drove over one after another. "The former General Lopatin gave him a sense of confidence and victory, which is why he was appointed commander of the 62nd Army. But now, he gave me the impression of panic and frustration. When I met him yesterday, I saw him and his command being pursued by German infantry, so I came to his rescue. Well, you see, this tank unit that just passed was my 158th Heavy Tank Brigade. During yesterday's battle, the tracks of four tanks were broken by German anti-tank guns. So I left the tanks in the defensive position west of the village and used them as fixed turrets. Provide the necessary artillery support for the infantry holding their positions. ”

Chuikov bit his lip and asked a little stiffly: "General Moskalenko, where are you going?" ”

Moskalenko shrugged his shoulders and replied: "Who knows, anyway, the order I received was to drive east in the direction of Stalingrad, find a place there to replenish, and then return to the battle." Speaking of this, he raised his hand and looked at his watch, urging, "It's not early, Comrade Chuikov, I suggest that you rush to the headquarters as soon as possible, otherwise the Germans will come too late." ”

After shaking hands with Chuikov and saying goodbye, Moskalenko turned around and got into the armored car and left. Chuikov stood silently on the side of the road, staring motionlessly into the distance, as if thinking about something. I didn't bother him, just stood quietly behind him.

He turned around, looked at me and said, "Comrade Oshanina, let's go, let's go to the headquarters of the 62nd Army, and bring back as many as they can, no matter how many people they have left." ”

We quickly arrived at the village of Verdgach, which had long since been bombed into ruins by German planes. In front of a civilian house that had not yet collapsed, we saw a sentry standing guard and two jeeps that had been parked, from which we concluded that the headquarters of the army group was located there.

When the sentry saw me and Chuikov getting out of the jeep, he quickly straightened up.

Without waiting for Chuikov's command, I walked up to the sentry and asked: "Comrade soldier, is the commander here?" ”

"Yes, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel." The sentry glanced at me and Chuikov's ranks and reported respectfully. "It's packing up inside and getting ready to move right away."

When we walked into the house, which had not yet completely collapsed, Lopatin was facing away from us, directing the communications corps to dismantle the telephone lines and the radio station, so that they did not even notice our arrival. Although in my eyes, the movements of these communication soldiers are already very sharp, but Luo Pajing still urges vigorously: "Hurry up, hurry up, comrades soldiers, your movements are too slow." ”

Chuikov and I stood at the door for a while, looked around at the dilapidated house, which was quite large, and then walked straight behind Lopatin and asked coldly, "General Lopatin, where are you going?" ”

Lopatin was startled by Chuikov's voice, he turned around and found that it was Chuikov standing behind him, and replied weakly: "Where else can I go?" Comrade Chuikov, you have seen it, the enemy is not far from us, it is possible that it will arrive immediately, and I will transfer with my troops. ”

"Troops!" Chuikov snorted coldly, "I was about to ask, where are your troops?" You must know that the troops under your command have more than 80,000 people in ten divisions, why didn't I see them on the way here, and where did they go? Well! ”

Looking at Chuikov's stern expression, Lopatin tried his best to make a smile, but the smile was unnatural, and he said in a hurry: "You must know that our troops, skills and equipment are at a disadvantage compared to the enemy's......"

Chuikov interrupted him without waiting for him to finish his defense, and coldly announced: "General Lopatin, I will now officially inform you. You have been relieved of your post as commander of the 62nd Army, and I will take your place. ”

Hearing this, Lopatin stood in a daze in surprise. He opened his mouth as if he was about to say something. But not a word was spoken. Those communications soldiers who were originally busy. I heard the news that Lopatin had been dismissed. couldn't help but be stunned, and they all stood in place in a daze.

I quickly coughed and walked up to them and scolded, "What are you still standing for? If you don't hurry up and pack your things, do you want to leave all this precious communication equipment to the Germans? When I said this, the communications soldier hurriedly packed up his things with his hands and feet.

At this moment, Luo Patin seemed to be a teenager old, his back was hunched down, and he asked weakly: "General Chuikov, what are you going to do with me?" ”

"You should go to the front command in Stalingrad right away. Someone there will tell you what to do? Chuikov replied stiffly, and then asked, "Are there any other commanders in the command?" ”

The dejected Lopatin shook his head and replied with a gloomy face: "No, I'm left alone." In addition to these communications troops, there was about a platoon of troops, which were in a defensive position to the west of the village, and four heavy tanks whose tracks had been blown up. If they were attacked by the enemy, they would have been able to resist for a while. ”

"Let's go, General Lopatin. I will have my herald Sidorin accompany you to Stalingrad. As for the fighters in those positions, I will take them to join the troops of General Korpakchi. Then he shouted at the door: "Private Sidorin." Come in for a moment. ”

At his shout, little Sidorin hurried in, raised his hand to salute Chuikov, and asked: "Comrade commander, Sidorin has been ordered to come and listen to your instructions!" ”

"Sidorin," Chuikov said to Sidorin, pointing at Lopatin, "your task is to escort General Lopatin to Stalingrad. ”

"What about you? Comrade Commander. Sidorin asked worriedly, "We have only four people out this time, and if I leave, who will keep you safe?" ”

I walked over, put my arm around Sidorin's shoulders, raised the submachine gun in my hand, and comforted him, saying, "Sidorin, don't worry, although you are leaving, I am still here." You must know that I have personally fought many battles on the front line, and I am still very competent for such small things as protecting the safety of comrades in command. ”

Sidorin looked at Chuikov and then at me, and finally said to me as if he had made up his mind: "Well, comrade lieutenant colonel, I will leave the safety of the commander to you." Seeing that I was nodding at him, he walked to Lopatin's side, stretched out his hand and made a gesture of invitation, and said politely: "Comrade General, please!" ”

After Lopatin left, seeing that the signal soldiers were almost ready, I urged Chuikov: "Comrade commander, we should leave. It's too close to the enemy, and they might pounce on them at any point. As soon as he finished speaking, there was a fierce sound of gunfire outside.

I was eager to slap myself in the mouth, it was really a crow's mouth, a good and bad spirit, and as soon as I said that the Germans were coming, the Germans called. Listening to the dense gunfire outside, I don't know if we can evacuate safely.

Chuikov hurriedly asked the signal soldiers: "If any of you is familiar with the position in the west of the village, take me to see it immediately." ”

A communications soldier with a walkie-talkie on his back walked out of the crowd and raised his hand to report to Chuikov: "Report to Comrade Commander, the walkie-talkie on my body can directly communicate with the tanks on the position. ”

After hearing this, Chuikov was really overjoyed, and hurriedly ordered the signal soldiers, and immediately ordered him: "Immediately contact the tank crews on the position." ”

The signal soldier said with some embarrassment: "Comrade commander, we have only one platoon of infantry and four tanks on our position, and we may not be able to hold back the enemy for long. Instead, we left in the car and could have contacted them on the way. ”

Hearing the signal soldier's proposal, I hurriedly echoed: "Comrade commander, this soldier is right, let's move first, and then contact the position on the road." ”

"But......" Chuikov was about to say something, but I interrupted him, and I grabbed the conversation and said: "There is nothing, you are the commander of the army, and if anything happens to you, our losses will be great." Now don't say anything, listen to my arrangement. All the people listened, immediately got into the jeep outside, and left here immediately. Don't hesitate, everyone, do it now. "And just like that, a group of us gathered around Chuikov and got into the jeep at the door.

When I got into the car, I realized that this jeep was really big, and Chuikov was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, and I and five communications soldiers were facing each other in the back, and it didn't look crowded at all.

I quickly got in touch with the tank soldiers on the position, I put on headphones and said loudly into the microphone: "I am Lieutenant Colonel Oshanina, chief of staff of the group army, who are you?" ”

A deep male voice soon came from the headphones: "Hello, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel." I'm Lieutenant Yambekov of the 158th Heavy Tank Brigade, do you have any instructions? ”

"How many troops are there of the enemy attacking you?"

"Comrade Colonel of the report, the enemy has dispatched 30 tanks and one motorized infantry and is launching a fierce attack on our positions." Lieutenant Yambekov shouted loudly: "In the face of the enemy's attack, we will not be able to resist for long, so I advise the command of the army group to move immediately." As he was talking, he heard a loud bang from the headphones, and then there was no sound.

I shouted a few more words into the microphone, but there was still no response. I was so angry that I took off my headphones, threw them to the communications soldier along with the microphone, and said angrily: "Comrade soldier, you should check it immediately to see if the walkie-talkie is broken." ”

The communications soldier took it and tried to listen to it, and immediately replied: "Comrade Colonel in the report, the walkie-talkie is very good, perhaps because the signal is not good, so the communication between the other party and us has been interrupted. ”

Chuikov, who was sitting in the co-pilot's seat, heard my words and hurriedly instructed the driver: "Comrade driver, find a higher hill and drive the car up, we need to immediately restore contact with the position." (To be continued......)