Seeing the back of the arrogant captain and his subordinates disappearing at the door, Colonel Lyudnikov leaned down and whispered: "Comrade Deputy Commander, look at this matter, do we need to report it to the Front Command immediately?" ”

Chuikov did not immediately answer his question, but stared at the door with a grim expression and did not say a word.

After a long time, he sighed softly, glanced at the scouts standing in a row by the wall, looked up and said to Lyudnikov: "Comrade Colonel, arrange for the scouts to rest." If there's anything, we'll wait until dawn. ”

Lyudnikov was so disappointed by Chuikov's appearance that he had to reluctantly say: "Okay, I'll let someone arrange for them to go to rest first." With that, he reached for the phone on the table.

"Wait a minute, Comrade Colonel." I grabbed his hand and stopped him from making the call.

"Lieutenant Colonel Oshanina, what are you doing here?" Lyudnikov, confused by this sudden move of mine, looked at me and asked.

"I can't let the scouts rest yet, I still have a mission to assign to them." I withdrew my hand and explained to Lyudnikov and Chuikov, who was sitting at the table, the reason for my move.

"Oshanina, the engineer is missing, even if these scouts are sent to continue the mission. They don't have the expertise to do it, and they don't have the intelligence we want to know. "Chuikov may have been a little upset with my move to stop Lyudnikov from calling, so he unceremoniously refuted my claim.

"Comrade Commander, Comrade Colonel." I pointed to the scout by the wall and patiently said to him and Lyudnikov: "Listen to me, you two. It is precisely because the key figure in the reconnaissance detachment - the engineer - is missing. That's why these fighters can't be allowed to rest. They should all be sent out immediately. Look around for the Engineer's whereabouts. You know, this is not far from the enemy's position, and the engineer fled in a panic, probably running to the Germans by mistake. If the Germans had caught them, then our plans to retake the settlements would have been leaked to the Germans. In order to ensure victory in the counterattack battle, we must not let him fall into the hands of the Germans. ”

After listening to my explanation, Chuikov nodded thoughtfully and said approvingly: "Comrade Oshanina is right. The engineer was certainly one of those who understood the plan of the offensive. If he had been captured by the Germans, it would have been entirely possible that our plans would have been leaked to the Germans. Having said this, he stood up and instructed Lyudnikov: "Comrade Colonel, you immediately send your best small unit to search for the missing engineer with these scouts, and I will see his body alive, even if I die." ”

I added to the side: "Comrade Colonel, I advise you to divide the search party into groups of ten. Search in several directions at once. Each group had one scout from our division, because they were not the only ones who knew engineers. The Engineer also knew them, and only when he saw them would the Engineer let his guard down and obediently follow the search party back. ”

"Comrade Division Commander!" The wounded soldier leaning against the wall suddenly interjected: 'Can I report a situation to you?' ’

I walked quickly in front of him and asked lightly, "Comrade soldier, if you have anything to say, just say it." ”

The wounded soldier leaned close to my ear and wanted to whisper to me. I hurriedly took a step back, frowned and said to him: "Comrade soldier, there are no outsiders here, if you have anything to say, you can say it in public." ”

The wounded soldier's face flushed, he looked left and right, and still said boldly: "Report to the division commander, comrade, I think the engineers who are with us may have defected to the Germans!" ”

"What?" I was stunned by his words, and it was unbelievable that the engineer we had entrusted with the task might have gone to the Germans after he had disappeared.

"Why? Comrade fighters. Why are you so sure? Colonel Lyudnikov, who came to his senses first, asked the wounded soldier in a loud voice.

The wounded soldier glanced at Lyudnikov's rank, and said mysteriously: "In the past, in the Gulag concentration camp, I lived in a shed with the engineer, and I once heard him say that he was a top student of architecture at the Technical University of Munich in Germany, and after graduation, he worked in Berlin for two years, and then he was ordered to return to China. ”

"On that basis alone, you can't just say that he will defect to the Germans. You know, in our country, there are quite a few people who have studied in Germany. As far as I know, except for a few scum who are serving the Germans, most of the rest are still on the side of the motherland and fighting stubbornly against the German invaders. After listening to this, Lyudnikov said disapprovingly.

"Comrade Colonel," seeing that Lyudnikov did not believe his words, the wounded soldier became a little impatient, and he raised his voice and said: "Do you know why he was sent to the Gulag concentration camp?" It was because he had spent several years in Germany that he was arrested by the Ministry of Internal Affairs on suspicion of collaborating with the enemy. Originally, he was going to be shot at that time, but later someone mentioned that he would be locked up first, and when the fascist bandits were defeated, he would be dealt with with with these invaders, and he was lucky enough to save his life. ”

When I heard the wounded soldier say this, I couldn't laugh or cry. Because the engineer had studied in Germany, he was arrested as a suspect and imprisoned in the Gulag concentration camp. I believe that he must have suffered a lot of inhuman torture in the concentration camp, and finally had a chance to escape, and was almost killed by his own people as a deserter. Now that he has disappeared in an area not far from the Germans, with his proficiency in German, even if he does defect, he will be accepted by the other side.

Thinking of this, I turned to Chuikov and Lyudnikov and said: "Commander, colonel, there can be no more delay, act immediately." If we really wait for this engineer to run to the enemy's side, then our plans will be ruined. ”

Chuikov nodded, stood up and said to Lyudnikov: "Comrade Colonel, you take all these scouts out, assign them to various search teams, do not hesitate, act immediately." ”

Lyudnikov agreed. To raise your legs is to walk outward. Suddenly, I saw the wounded soldiers. He stopped and asked Chuikov: "Comrade Deputy Commander, what should I do with this wounded soldier?" ”

Chuikov rolled his eyes at him and said angrily, "Find him a place to rest, and then ask the hygienist to bandage his wounds." Go for it! ”

Lyudnikov came to the scouts and said to them: "Boys, I think you must be tired and hungry, so let's go outside and have something to eat and drink some tea." Rest for a while before heading out. Let's go, come with me. With that, he took the lead and walked out.

The scouts followed him in a hurry, and the two fighters who had been supporting the wounded soldiers also threw down the wounded soldiers and walked straight out. Seeing that there was no one to support him, the wounded soldier panicked and hurriedly shouted: "Comrades, brothers, you can't leave me." I'm a wounded! ”

He shouted for a long time, and none of the scouts turned back. Seeing that the companions were leaving. He was helpless, so he had to hold on to the wooden wall and jump on one foot and leave the division headquarters.

When the back of the wounded soldier disappeared from the doorway, Chuikov snorted heavily and muttered: "Damn Judas!" Hearing him say this, I guess he was disgusted with this wounded soldier who betrayed his comrades.

Chuikov and I were the only two people left in the command, and I felt extremely uncomfortable when I thought of the fact that Lyudnikov had just asked him for instructions on whether to report the misdeeds of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to his superiors, and he politely refused. I deliberately tilted my head to the side, pretending to be looking at the map on the wall, ignoring him.

"Oshanina, are you still angry that I refused to stand up for the scouts and report to my superiors about the misdeeds of the officers and soldiers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs?" Chuikov asked suddenly behind me.

I quickly turned around and looked at him, thinking about how to answer his question. Before I could speak, he had already spoken first: "You also know that the power of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is too great, and ordinary people have nothing to do with them. Besides, the supervision team of the Ministry of Internal Affairs was formed by the order of the Supreme Commander himself, and I can't help myself, Comrade Oshanina, can you understand my helplessness? Chuikov looked me in the eye, a longing for recognition.

I looked at him with mixed feelings. I understand that what he said is true, and he is really powerless for the officers and soldiers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. I was silent for a moment before I responded: "Comrade Commander, I understand your distress. I don't blame you, I'm worried about the missing engineer, and I don't know if the search team can find him? ”

Chuikov thought for a moment, then said to me: "Oshanina, I don't have much hope that the search team will find the engineer, maybe he is no longer alive. However, our reconnaissance work cannot be stopped, and we must seize the time to find out the enemy's defense situation in the settlements. ”

I squeezed out a smile on my face and asked tentatively, "Comrade Commander, since we can't expect the search team to find an engineer, do you need me to go back to the station immediately and bring another engineer with me?" ”

When Chuikov heard me say this, he nodded again and again, and said approvingly: "What you say makes sense, just do as you say." You should leave at once, return to the station of the independent division, and bring two or three more engineers with you, and hurry up to complete this reconnaissance mission before the Germans are aware of our reconnaissance operations. ”

"Without further ado, I'll leave right away." Seeing that it was a race against time, I didn't dare to delay any longer, so I said a word to Chuikov and rushed back in a panic.

Chuikov's jeep and the truck loaded with the guard squad were still parked outside, and I left the command headquarters, rushed straight to the jeep, opened the door on the co-pilot's side, and pulled down Sidorin, who was sitting inside, and then sat down myself, urging the driver to drive quickly.

After the car started, I deliberately looked back, but fortunately, the truck driver was still more elf, and he also drove the car to follow.

Although the driver of the jeep drove the car very fast, I still felt that it was too slow, and I was afraid that the missing engineer had fallen into the hands of the Germans, and that would make it much more difficult for us to reconnoitre.

As soon as the car came to a stop outside the forest at the station, I pushed the door and jumped out, and without waiting for the guard squad behind me, I spread my feet and ran towards the regimental headquarters of Sederikov.

Since the guard squad was all taken away by me, there were no soldiers on duty at the gate of the headquarters at the moment, so I broke in on a rampage. Perhaps it was because I entered the door so loudly that it startled both Sederikov and Razumeyeva in the command, and the captain even pulled out his pistol and pointed it at me.

Seeing that it turned out to be me. The lieutenant put the pistol back in his holster. While asking with concern: "Comrade division commander." You're back. Did you figure out the deserter's thing? Which regiment is it? ”

I sat down on the stool, panting and commanding Razumeyeva: "Comrade sergeant, you come in immediately with the three regimental commanders, and let them come here immediately for a meeting, I have an important military briefing!" ”

While Razumeyeva was in contact with the other three newspaper operators, I looked up and said to Sederikov, who was standing aside: "What deserters, this is a reconnaissance detachment sent by Captain Gaidar to reconnoiter the settlement. Because they did not have passes, the people of the Ministry of Internal Affairs considered them deserters. Without saying a word, he shot and killed two fighters. ”

I thought that if I said this, Sedelikov would be indignant and verbally criticized the Inspectorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, but after listening to this, he actually walked across from me, sat down silently, and stared at the map on the table in a daze.

In less than ten minutes, the three regiment commanders who received the notice came to the headquarters together.

As soon as he entered the door, Senior Lieutenant Kosgaard couldn't wait to ask on behalf of everyone: "Comrade division commander, call several of our regiment commanders over in the middle of the night, is there anything wrong?" ”

I didn't answer right away. Instead, beckoned them to sit down first. After they were all seated, I stood up and said sternly, "Two hours ago." General Chuikov called the intercom and told me very angrily that the men of the Ministry of Internal Affairs had captured a dozen deserters who claimed to be independent divisions in the defense area of the 70th Guards Division. As they tried to escape after being caught, they were killed by the Overseers and wounded a few, leaving the rest to their knees. The overseers were going to shoot them all on the spot, but fortunately they were discovered by the patrols of the Guards Division, who took the deserters to the division headquarters, and their division commander, Colonel Lyudnikov, reported the news to General Chuikov. "As I spoke, I kept observing the expressions of the four of them, whether I talked about the 70th Guards Division or Colonel Lyudnikov, they did not react at all, apparently not connecting the desertion incident with the matter of the reconnaissance detachment at all. However, this is not to blame for their loneliness, it is estimated that except for me, the division commander, they do not know who the commanders of other units are.

"What happened after you and General Chuikov went to the division headquarters of the Guards Division?" Sederikov was the one of the four regiment commanders who wanted to know the truth of the matter the most, after all, why I left in a hurry in the middle of the night, he was one of the people in the know.

I sneered and continued: "General Chuikov and I went to the division headquarters of the Guards Division, and with the help of the division commander, Colonel Lyudnikov, we met this group of deserters who had been detained by the Overseers. After careful questioning, I learned that these so-called deserters turned out to be scouts of our division. ……”

"Scout?!" When Gaidar heard this word, he jumped up from his seat and anxiously asked: "Comrade division commander, are you those scouts I sent?" ”

I nodded at him and replied affirmatively: "Yes, those so-called deserters are the reconnaissance detachments you sent to reconnoiter the settlements, Captain. As they had no papers, they were arrested as deserters by the Ministry of Internal Affairs' warlords, and if they hadn't happened to have patrols from the 70th Guards Division nearby, they would have been shot by now. Speaking of this, I couldn't help but slam the table heavily and yelled at him: "Comrade Captain, since you sent a reconnaissance detachment to the Orlovka region, why didn't you report to me?" ”

Gaidar lowered his head in embarrassment, he did not answer my question, but asked with a gloomy expression: "Comrade division commander, are there many casualties in the reconnaissance detachment?" ”

I snorted heavily at him and said angrily, "Fortunately, only two people were killed and one was injured." "Although I have always heard of several people who were injured, when I was in the headquarters, I only saw that the informant was wounded in the leg, and the rest were intact, so when I reported to my subordinates now, I only said that one person was injured.

Captain Oleg looked at the dazed Sederikov and the dejected Gaidar, got up and asked: "Comrade division commander, what should we do next?" Do you continue the reconnaissance or withdraw the reconnaissance detachment? ”

I waved my hand and said resolutely, "It's impossible to withdraw." The construction engineer in the reconnaissance detachment has disappeared in the confusion, and I have asked Colonel Lyudnikov to assist in the search. Since the engineer is the key to this reconnaissance mission, we cannot sit back and wait for the results of the search team, and we should send a new engineer to carry out a detailed reconnaissance of the settlement. ”

Hearing that the engineer would be sent over again, Gaidar, who was originally depressed, stood up and took the initiative to ask me to ask: "Comrade division commander, let me replace the missing engineer and complete this reconnaissance mission!" ”

"You?!" I looked him up and down in distrust, "Can you do it?" ”

Gaidar nodded affirmatively and replied to me: "Comrade division commander, I was a construction engineer before the war, and in addition to building houses, I also participated in the construction of many defense fortifications. I am confident that I will be able to complete this mission. ”

I kindly reminded him: "Comrade Captain, this reconnaissance mission is dangerous, and you may lose your life, so you should think carefully before answering me." ”

"I've figured it out, and I'm confident that I'll be able to complete this mission." Gaidar said resolutely.

"Have you really thought about it and don't regret it?" I'll ask again.

"You've figured it out!" Gaidar's tone was unprecedentedly firm. (To be continued......)