Thanks to Deputy Director Leonid, Chuikov soon learned that in his army group there was a man named Vasily. Zaitsev's commanders and fighters, relying on their excellent marksmanship, killed nearly a platoon of the enemy in just two days. The well-informed Chuikov did not believe in such a result at all, and specially called me to verify it.

After listening to me recount in detail about Vasily's successes, he was silent for a long time before he could hold back a sentence: "Genius, this second lieutenant Vasily is simply a shooting genius." ”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." I replied affirmatively: "He is the best marksman I have ever seen, and in the present situation, he can make use of his strengths and let him go to all corners of the city to hunt down those lone German officers and soldiers, and I believe he will achieve better results." ”

"That's what I think, Oshanina." Chuikov said carefully: "I plan to gather the snipers of all the units under the group army and act in unison. In this way, even if you encounter a large German army during the mission, you will have the ability to protect yourself. ”

"No, you can't use all the snipers." Chuikov's words startled me, and in a hurry, I forgot about the superiority and humility, and opposed him without thinking: "With so many snipers huddled together, it is easy to become a key target for the enemy's artillery or air force. Snipers are the treasures of our troops, their role in the battlefield, one person is equivalent to a squad or a platoon of an ordinary army, and a sniper like Vasily can top at least one company. ”

When I said what I wanted to say in my heart. Suddenly I found myself speechless. Hurriedly apologized to Chuikov: "I'm sorry. Comrade Commander, I'm so excited, so ......"

Unexpectedly, Chuikov said generously: "Okay, needless to say, I understand your feelings, but I didn't think it through, I won't blame you." Tell me, how are you going to use these snipers? ”

I quickly thought back to the snipers I had seen in later films. Then, according to his own understanding, he said to Chuikov: "Comrade commander, we can divide the snipers who go out to execute the characters into groups of two, and put three to five sniper groups in each sniper area. In this way, their target will not be too large, and when one of them is attacked, the closest sniper group can provide support in time to cover their escape. ”

After listening to Chuikov. Although I didn't dismiss my idea, I didn't agree with it either. He suddenly changed the topic and asked: "Oshanina, how did I hear that the second company of guards with dozens of German soldiers is now in charge of the guards of your division headquarters, I remember that their company commander seems to be called Grams, it turned out to be a captain of the German army, you are so confident and bold to use them, aren't you worried that they will defect and arrest several of your division leaders to the enemy to ask for credit?" ”

Hearing that Chuikov suddenly mentioned Grams and his men, my heart chuckled, and my heart said that it could not be that someone sued me for the black state, and Chuikov came to me to ask for the guilt? But I tried my best to defend Grams, saying: "Comrade Commander, although Captain Gramms is German, and after so long observation and testing, with their usual appearance, I can assume with great certainty that they are completely on the same front as us. ”

When I heard his laughter, I was confused, I didn't know why he was laughing, but I didn't dare to ask casually, so I could only hold the microphone and wait quietly. When his laughter stopped, he said in a relaxed tone: "Since you think that they have completely fallen to us, then don't let them stay in the fortifications all the time, and send them out on some missions." ”

"Performing a mission? What task? I asked, puzzled.

"I think it is better for them to carry out tasks such as reconnaissance or sabotage, and these real Germans are much more advantageous to disguise themselves as German soldiers to carry out tasks behind enemy lines than simply to be disguised by our commanders and fighters, after all, there are still certain differences between the demeanor and temperament of real German soldiers and those of the Soviets. In addition, the words and deeds of our commanders and fighters must fully conform to the requirements of the German army's regulations, and unless they have been cultivated through many years of training in the ranks, this kind of image cannot be pretended. Rather than having our commanders and fighters risk being in danger at any moment, it would be better for your Surrender officers and men to play the role of the Germans, who would have been much less suspicious when crossing enemy lines, at least when crossing enemy lines. ”

Chuikov's attitude changed so quickly, but it made me a little uncomfortable, and after he finished speaking, I asked carefully: "What should be the composition of the team that carries out the mission?" ”

Chuikov thought for a moment and replied: "A team of ten to fifteen people, including two or three of our commanders and fighters, in order to prevent accidents, there must be one political worker among them. ”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." Hearing Chuikov say this, I muttered to myself: If these defectors want to defect, let alone send only two or three people to monitor them, even if half of them are our own people, it will be impossible to prevent them. Although I did not approve of this arrangement, I still flattered me verbally: "The commander is still thoughtful, and I will call Captain Grimes in a moment, and assign him the task you have assigned." ”

"Good. I hope your special squad will be ready for battle tonight. ”

After listening to the task assigned by Chuikov, I was about to put down the phone, when I suddenly heard Chuikov's hurried voice coming from the receiver: "Hey, hey, Oshanina, don't hang up the phone yet, I still have something to inform you." I hurriedly put the earpiece to my ear and said politely: "Comrade commander, I'm still here." Don't know what other instructions you have? ”

"That's right, before I called you, I received a call from Comrade Khrushchev, the military commissar of the Front, saying that the war correspondent of the newspaper "Red Star" Ilya . Gregriwicz. Comrade Ehrenburg, having already crossed the Volga last night and entered the city of Stalingrad, was conducting interviews with the commanders and fighters of our army group. According to the itinerary reported by the military commissar, after completing his interview mission in the city during the day, he will go to Mamayev Height. Interview with you and Kirillov. Remember. Be sure to receive him. He's a great journalist, and you can't afford to slack him. ”

When I heard the name Ehrenburg, my heart sank sharply, and the past came flooding back to me, and if he hadn't reported on my massacre of German prisoners, which had the undesirable consequences, perhaps I would still be a general now, following Zhukov or Rokossovsky every day. Give them a deputy who is not in any danger, and they don't have to stay in this hellish Mamayev post, and they can't live in fear.

Chuikov was a little anxious when he heard that I didn't make a sound here, and couldn't help but raise his voice: "Hey, Oshanina, are you still listening?" ”

I hurriedly replied, "Comrade Commander, I am here." Please rest assured that I will receive this war correspondent from the "Red Star" newspaper well. "Before Chuikov put down the phone, I suddenly remembered Pugachev and Persjian, who had not been heard from for several days. Hurriedly asked before Chuikov put aside the phone: "Comrade commander, I would like to ask my former commander of the second regiment, Major Pugachev. And what happened to the commander of the tank battalion, Major Persten? ”

My question silenced Chuikov for a long time, and after a while he said, "The two commanders you are talking about were very heroic in the battle to defend the elementary school. While covering the artillery observers to provide the artillery with firing parameters, they engaged in a desperate struggle with the enemy who tried to retake the school. In just two days, they repelled the enemy and launched more than 30 charges. When there were only a few of them left, they still stuck to the roof of the school building, stubbornly fighting the enemy. ”

The more I listened, the more I listened, the more apprehensive I became, and finally I couldn't help but interrupt him and ask: "Comrade commander, did both of them die?" ”

As soon as my question came out, Chuikov immediately asked in an inexplicable tone: "Sacrifice, who said they sacrificed?" Just when they were about to lose their support, the reinforcements I sent arrived just in time to destroy the enemy besieging them. Your men, including the two commanders, were left with only seven men, and all of them were wounded, so I sent them to the field hospital by the river. If there are no surprises, they will be discharged from the hospital in a week. ”

As soon as I put down the phone, Kirillov leaned over and asked curiously: "Comrade Oshanina, the commander said that a war correspondent is coming to us, who is it?" ”

Although I, Ehrenburg, once rushed to the airport to see me off when I was about to leave for Leningrad after I was demoted, and gave me a lot of things, my resentment towards him could not be eliminated. Unexpectedly, after less than a year, he would appear in front of me again, which is really a narrow road.

In response to Kirillov's question and Akhromeyev's curious gaze, I tried to squeeze a smile on my face and said to the two of them: "Commander Chuikov said that it is the famous war correspondent Ilya from the Red Star. Gregriwicz. Ehrenburg, he is currently in the city interviewing the commanders and fighters of the army group that is fighting with the enemy, and in the evening he will come to our division headquarters and give an exclusive interview with you and me. ”

"The original Comrade Ehrenburg!" When Akhromeyev heard this, he was unexpectedly excited, and he said excitedly: "When I was in the Volkhov Front, I heard Commander Meretskov talk about him many times. Comrade General praised him, saying that as a journalist, from the beginning of our Great Patriotic War, he always fought at the forefront with the commanders and fighters of the Red Army, risking his life to conduct interviews and write news day and night in trenches, shelters or bomb craters. Pravda, Izvestia, Red Star, and many other large and small newspapers and radio stations in the Soviet Union published and broadcast political articles and newsletters written by Comrade Ehrenburg full of militant spirit almost every day. ”

"Comrade Chief of Staff, you may not know. Comrade Ehrenburg was not only an excellent journalist, but also a great writer. Hearing the name of Ehrenburg, even Kirillov was interested.

"What novels did he write?" I asked faintly.

"Have you heard of The Fall of Paris? After the publication of the book, it also received this year's Stalin Prize. ”

"Comrade Political Commissar, what is the novel about?" Akhromeyev asked curiously.

Hearing Akhromeyev's question, Kirillov's face showed a look of surprise, and he asked rhetorically: "Have you not heard of this famous novel?" "Seeing that Akhromeyev and I both shook their heads in unison, they began to popularize science for both of us." June 14, 1940. German troops marched into Paris. Paris, once the cradle and birthplace of the Revolution, has now surrendered to the German fascists. Comrade Ehrenburg, who was in Paris at the time, was both an eyewitness to the tragedy of France and familiar with the many carefree and happy days of the French people on the eve of the war, and now he saw with his own eyes the terrible scenes that had taken place after the fall of Paris. In August of that year, Comrade Ehrenburg returned to his homeland. He published a series of newsletters and reports on the fall of France in the press, and then spent another year. In one go, he wrote this reportage novel, which truly reveals the causes and consequences of the French national tragedy. ”

"It's wonderful," said Akhromeyev, with emotion, "and if I have the chance, I'll definitely find this book." ”

"Okay, okay, Comrade Political Commissar and Chief of Staff, stop talking about these inconsequential whispers." I was afraid that as soon as the two of them talked about the common topic of Ehrenburg, they would not finish talking, so I quickly tapped my fingers on the table a few times, interrupting the latter words of the two. After seeing that their attention was focused on me, I said, "Comrade Commander has also given us an important task. ”

"What task?" Akhromeyev's attention. Suddenly we moved from the book "The Fall of Paris", which we had never seen before, to our daily work.

"That's right," Comrade Commander believes. Since Grahms and others, the former German officers and soldiers who surrendered to Chengcheng, have really stood on the same front as us, then we can use their status to carry out some tasks behind enemy lines. Then I repeated the reasons that Chuikov had said to the two of them.

After listening to my story, both nodded thoughtfully. Kirillov said: "Comrade Oshanina, in this way, we will send Second Lieutenant Greitka to set off with a small detachment tonight, and let Comrade Savchenko, the political instructor of the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Regiment, also follow. ”

After listening to Kirillov's words, Akhromeyev frowned and reminded: "Comrade political commissar, is it appropriate for the commander to send two or three of his own commanders and fighters to accompany us in the small detachment, and only one person?" ”

Kirillov waved his hand at him and said in an unquestioning tone: "There is nothing inappropriate, Comrade Chief of Staff. If Second Lieutenant Gretka wanted to suddenly defect after entering the German area, let's not talk about two or three of his own people, even if half of them were his own people, it would be useless. Do you think that if a few of them are exposed, there is still a possibility of escape on the enemy's territory? ”

"I see." Akhromeyev nodded, then pulled the phone in front of him and said to us: "I'll call Second Lieutenant Greteka and ask him to come to the division headquarters for a mission. ”

"Wait a minute, Comrade Chief of Staff." Kirillov raised his hand to stop Akhromeyev's movements, and when he saw that we were all looking at him with strange eyes, he continued: "First call Comrade Savchenko of the 2nd regiment, and I will privately instruct him on some precautions. ”

Kirillov's words, Akhromeyev and I both understood by heart, and the so-called private orders were nothing more than secretly spying on Gretka, and if we found any unusual movement in him, we would kill him without hesitation.

Savchenko, who received the call, soon came to the command headquarters, and after he had finished saluting us, he was pulled aside by Kirillov and instructed to take precautions. Akhromeyev approached me and asked in a low voice: "Comrade division commander, do you think this is appropriate?" Comrade Savchenko is only one person, and if Gretka has any bad intentions, aren't you afraid that he will suffer? ”

"You're thinking too much, Comrade Chief of Staff." Although the suspicions expressed by Kirillov and Akhromeyev about Grams and Gretka also made my heart shake a little, in front of my own subordinates, I still have to say a few words for these officers and soldiers who have surrendered: "Since we have already let them join our ranks, we should trust them, and don't be suspicious and suspicious." It will chill them if you let them know that you are always suspicious of them. ”

Akhromeyev's face was flushed by my words, and after a while he addressed me: "Understood, comrade division commander. When Ensign Gretka arrives later, I'll know what to do. ”

After Kirillov and Savchenko had finished talking, Akhromeyev, with my permission, called the 2nd Company of Guards and informed not only Gretka but also Grahms by the way. It was my idea to call Grams, after all, Gretka was one of his men, and it would be easy for him to become suspicious if we stepped past him and gave orders directly to his men, so I ordered Akhromeyev to call him along and hear how we assigned tasks to his men.

Because of our openness and honesty, both Grams, who stayed on the high ground, and Gretka, who went on a mission, were very cooperative. As soon as Akhromeyev finished speaking, the two of them immediately got up from their seats and expressed their determination to us: "Please rest assured that the commanders will fulfill the tasks assigned by you." (To be continued......)

PS: Heartfelt thanks to book friends *Little Crab*, Magic Brother Fan, Feli Ferran, and the precious monthly pass of the dead Pig Shoes! Thank you for the reward of YY Dream Children's Shoes in the Year of the Book Friend!