Because of their outstanding performance on the battlefield, all the commanders and fighters of the Second Artillery Battalion of the division were each awarded a medal after dark. The battalion commander, Captain Kulishenko, was awarded the Order of the Red Star by Chuikov himself for his bravery, decisiveness and enterprising spirit in the battle against the German fascists, as well as for the great results he achieved.

Seeing that the commanders and fighters of the 2nd Artillery Battalion had received commendations from their superiors, the commanders and fighters of the 1st Artillery Battalion felt red-eyed. Early the next morning, Major Morozov walked into my headquarters. With an aggrieved face, he said to Kirillov and me: "Division commander, political commissar, I am here to ask you for war on behalf of the officers and soldiers of the whole battalion?" ”

Kirillov and I looked at each other and asked with a smile: "Major Morozov, please fight, please fight?" Didn't you hear the order issued by the division commander not long ago to let all the commanders and fighters of the division hold their existing positions and maintain a state of confrontation with the German army? ”

After a quick glance at me, Morozov complained to Kirillov: "Comrade commissar, the fighters have seen that the newly joined 2nd Battalion has made such great achievements, while our battalion has been on standby in the back, and they all have a ......."

"I don't think it's a soldier who has feelings, but you, the battalion commander." Without waiting for him to finish, Kirillov interrupted his later words, put away the smile on his face, and began to teach him a lesson: "Comrade Major, although our division has the largest number of troops in the entire group army, it faces a much stronger enemy than ours. If we attack without the cooperation of our allies, it will not be long before we are annihilated by superior enemy forces. Therefore, we must also hold on to our existing defensive zones and withstand the enemy's onslaught. Hold back their forces, while gradually accumulating strength, and wait until the critical moment to deliver a thunderous blow to the enemy to completely destroy them. ”

After sending Morozov away, I called both Bandeleyev and Akhromeyev to the front. Discuss with them how to assign combat missions to the regiments. Pandereev first expressed his position and said: "Comrade division commander, I think your previous arrangement is good, although our division has the largest number of troops in the entire group army, but at present we are in a state of being alone in the depths of the army, and if there is no cooperation with friendly forces, we will launch an attack on the enemy. It was possible to be surrounded and annihilated by the German army. ”

"Comrade Deputy Division Commander, you are too pessimistic." Akhromeyev was obviously much more optimistic about the current situation of friend and foe, and he retorted to Bandereev: "Although in the defense zone of our army group, the Germans are still on the defensive, but friendly forces in other directions. But they are constantly attacking the enemy, and I believe that it will not be long before the other armies of the front army will be able to join us in the city. ”

"Huishi?!" After repeating this word, Bandereev sneered and said: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I would like to remind you of one thing, nearly a month has passed since the beginning of the great counteroffensive, but the troops of all armies have always stayed in the areas occupied in the early stage. I think you must know this. Moreover, at present, German reinforcements are constantly attacking the outer flank of our encirclement. At any time, it is possible to join forces with Paulus's forces in the encirclement. As soon as they will divide the army, perhaps Paulus will completely abandon the plan of breaking through and launch a counterattack on our troops, driving us completely into the Volga. ”

Kirillov did not say anything to the two men in the argument, but turned to me and said: "Comrade Oshanina, tell everyone what is in your heart. Let's all know what to expect. ”

Kirillov's words silenced both the sabre-rattling Pantai Leev and Akhromeyev, both of whom were the same as Kirillov. His eyes were on me, waiting for me to say what was on my mind.

I glanced at them. A simple order was immediately given: "The regiments reinforce their positions, hold the existing defensive areas, and hold back the German attack." At the same time, seize the time to train the recruits and wait for the final counterattack. ”

Over the next two days, the Germans launched several more attacks on the regiment's defensive area. However, without exception, they all ended in failure. A regiment not only succeeded in blocking the enemy's attack, but even took the initiative to attack and capture several buildings occupied by the enemy.

On the evening of the 16th, I received a call from General Krylov from the headquarters of the army group, saying that Chuikov had asked me to make a trip. Hearing such a notice, Kirillov's first reaction was that the final offensive was about to begin.

I was not as optimistic as the three of them, Manstein's forces were still attacking outside the encirclement, and the final assault on the encirclement of Paulus would not begin until he was repulsed.

After arriving at the headquarters, I saw that in addition to the commanders of the army group headquarters, there were also division commanders such as Lyudnikov, Guryev, Rodimtsev, and Vachuk attending the meeting. As soon as I looked at this stance, and at Chuikov's face that could wring out water, I knew that the topic of the final attack would not be discussed tonight, but that the friendly attack in the area was frustrated again.

Seeing my arrival, Chief of Staff Krylov nodded at me and immediately called the meeting to order. He picked up a piece of paper on the table and read it out in public: "In the recent battles, although the offensive forces of the German army have been exhausted and they can no longer launch another large-scale attack on the defense area of our army group, it is still a very difficult thing to seize the position from them. In particular, on December 16, when the news came that the 4th Panzer Army of Hort had broken through the 51st Army's defensive line on the Aksai River, the officers and men of Paulus's division, who had seen hope, were as excited as if they had been beaten with blood, and they forgot about hunger and fatigue, encouraged each other, and the German troops in the Voroshilov district were extremely tenacious in the face of the fierce attack of our 64th and 57th armies. After a day of fierce fighting, the offensive of the two armies ended in failure, and no progress was made, except for the accumulation of corpses in front of the German defensive positions.

In the face of the German troops that had penetrated the outer flank of our encirclement, as well as the German positions in the city that had been unable to capture for a long time, the morale of our troops was severely affected. Individual commanders became panicked, and in some units there were even quite a few deserters. ”

After listening to Krylov's briefing, the commanders present began to talk one after another. The offensive failed, which is understandable, after all, in everyone's minds. Paulus's 6th Army was the elite of the German army. But the appearance of deserters made everyone feel incomprehensible, so the discussion revolved around this aspect.

I didn't join in their discussion, but I just smiled bitterly in my heart, and the commanders that Krylov said were probably worried about the current fight. In the end, not only was it impossible to encircle Paulus's troops, but his own troops were surrounded by reinforcements from Manstein, who rushed up. When the German army comes to join forces, we will not be able to escape the annihilation of the whole army.

I am more aware of the reasons for the setback of the offensive of the 57th and 64th armies. The Soviet offensive pattern had long been mastered by the Germans, so they developed a set of targeted defensive tactics, that is, when our infantry was charging intensively. First of all, the sniper shoots the commander of the unit, and our troops will be thrown into confusion because of the loss of command, and finally have to retreat on all fronts. As soon as the infantry retreats, then our tanks lose their protection. At this time, the Germans will give priority to destroying the command tanks of our army, which are equipped with both radio reception and transmitting devices. Because it is the only one that can issue orders, the other tanks are only equipped with receivers. Once the command tank is taken out, the other tanks will be overwhelmed by the lack of instructions, giving the German anti-tank men the opportunity to destroy them one by one.

Chuikov didn't stop everyone's whispering, but silently swept his gaze over everyone present to see how everyone reacted. When the discussion gradually subsided, Chuikov turned his eyes to me and asked bluntly: "Comrade Oshanina." What do you think about the failure of the offensive of the 57th and 64th armies? ”

Although I had just sorted out the reasons for the defeat of the Soviet army in my mind, I heard Chuikov ask at this moment. Instead of immediately saying what was in my heart, I asked rhetorically: "Comrade commander, I wonder if there are any detailed battle reports of the 57th and 64th armies?" ”

When Chuikov heard my question, he turned his head to look at the chief of operations of the army group standing next to him, and asked: "Colonel Zalizyuk, in addition to a simple briefing on friendly forces. Is there a detailed battle report? ”

Colonel Zaliyuk shook his head and replied: "I'm sorry. Comrade Commander, I've been there so far. For the time being, we have not received detailed battle reports from friendly forces. ”

Chuikov glared at each other and said dissatisfiedly: "Then why don't you immediately go to the communications room and ask the communications director, Colonel Yulin, to see if they have received the latest telegram." ”

Colonel Zaliyuk did not dare to argue, but with a word of agreement, he turned around and ran out of the command headquarters, and obediently went to the communications room to find the communications director and ask if he had received the latest battle report.

Although there is no latest battle report for the time being, Chuikov took advantage of the opportunity to wait for the telegram and continued to say to everyone: "In today's battle, the 57th and 64th armies, a total of three divisions and one brigade, were disabled. ”

Chuikov's words caused confusion among everyone again, but this time Chuikov did not let it go, but decisively stopped everyone's private discussion, and said with a straight face: "Maybe everyone will think that the German army has a lot of troops holding on here, so our army has paid such heavy casualties. I sue you, you are all wrong. At this point, he slammed the table and stood up, and said bitterly, "According to friendly reconnaissance, only two dissatisfied battalions of the German army are stationed in these two blocks of the Voroshilov district, and there are no tanks, armored vehicles, and the number of artillery is very limited. That's why our allies used these two blocks as a breakthrough, and as a result, they prepared for half a month of attack, and finally ended in failure. ”

After Chuikov finished speaking, Rodimtsev, who had a good relationship with him, said tentatively: "Comrade commander, maybe the soldiers of our army who participated in the battle are all new recruits and lack sufficient combat experience, which is why they will suffer such a big loss. You must know that the officers and men of the German army are far stronger than us in terms of equipment and training, and even if they are veterans, they can't take advantage of them in a one-on-one competition, let alone new recruits. For those untrained recruits, the Germans alone could take out dozens of us. ”

If in the past, Rodimtsev's words were the embodiment of defeatism, Chuikov or Gurov could have immediately dismissed him from the military and sent someone to send him to a military court. But after listening to his words, not only did Chuikov and them not react, but even the other division commanders remained silent, and it seemed that they all agreed with what Rodimtsev said in their hearts.

And Colonel Lyudnikov, after listening to this, snorted softly in his nose, as if he was not impressed by what Rodimtsev said. Gurov's ears were tipped, and when he heard Lyudnikov snorting, he hurriedly asked curiously: "Colonel Lyudnikov, do you have any different opinion on General Rodimtsev's words?" ”

Hearing Gurov's inquiry, Lyudnikov quickly got up from his seat and replied loudly: "Report to Comrade Military Commissar, I cannot agree with General Rodimtsev's statement just now. He said that our army was poorly equipped and trained than the German army, and I admit that. But I can't agree with the fact that untrained recruits can't fight, and that dozens of people can't beat the Germans alone. ”

Lyudnikov's words aroused everyone's curiosity, and even Chuikov asked with interest: "Comrade Colonel, why do you say that?" ”

Lyudnikov turned his head to me and said: "Comrade commander, I think what General Rodimtsev said, at least does not apply to General Oshanina's troops. You must know that from the beginning of the formation of her independent division, most of the fighters in the division were recruits without any training, but this did not affect the independent division in the battle to defend Stalingrad and win victory after victory. ”

Lyudnikov's compliments on me made everyone pay attention to me again and gave me a sense of self-pity. Chuikov stared at me and asked, "Comrade Oshanina, if Colonel Lyudnikov hadn't mentioned it, I would have forgotten about it." Tell me, how did you train this strong unit, do you have any know-how? ”

Hearing Chuikov's question, I quickly stood up and replied loudly: "Report to Comrade Commander, in fact, there is no trick, after the recruits enter the troops, I will arrange special political workers to carry out political and ideological work on them, because only the Red Army soldiers armed with Stalin's ideas are invincible." ”

Because I said it so sensitively, I got goosebumps all over my body when I said it, and the rest of us can imagine it. But when I finished speaking, Gurov actually took the lead in applauding, and I sat down again amid everyone's warm applause.

As soon as the applause stopped, Colonel Zaliyuk returned to the house and reported to Chuikov: "Comrade commander, the 64th Army has sent a telegram saying that the attack launched by them has failed due to the ferocity of enemy fire. ”

After reading the telegram handed to him by Zalizhuk, Chuikov frowned and looked at it a few times, then threw it on the table, then stood up and said to me: "Comrade Oshanina, it seems that it is unrealistic to find out what happened from the war reports of friendly forces. So, I have now decided to give you this task, and you must find out the reason for the failure of the friendly attack within three days. Can it be done? ”

Chuikov's order immediately dumbfounded me, my God, from the Dzerzhinsky district, where my division is located, to the Voroshilov district, where the friendly attack failed, is a distance of more than 30 kilometers, and there are all German troops in between, it is a completely impossible task to unknowingly cross the German line and figure out what is happening.

Seeing my helpless look, Chuikov added: "Comrade Oshanina, I know that this task is very big. For the commanders and fighters of other divisions, it may be an impossible task; But for your independent division, it's much simpler. Speaking of this, a smile appeared on his face, "Aren't there many German officers and soldiers in your division?" This task can be left to them. (To be continued)

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