"Comrade Oshanina, ...... you" My unusual behavior caused Kirillov to wonder, and he got up from his seat to ask what had happened, so much so that I asked some inexplicable questions.

Without waiting for him to finish, I raised my hand to stop him from talking and continued to say good things about Hitler with Schmidt. When I realized that the other party had been completely led by my nose, I asked coldly: "Your Excellency, Squadron Leader of the Third Commando, there is one thing I don't understand, what are you SS doing in Zaporosh instead of being by the Führer's side to protect his safety?" ”

After listening to Gretka's translation, Shumidt said unconvinced: "Who said that we do not protect the safety of the Führer, and we are not on this task now...... As soon as he said this, he suddenly realized that he had missed his mouth, so he closed his mouth in amusement. But it was too late, and when what he said was translated by Gretka, everyone present heard it.

Pandereev stood up and waved at Adil and motioned for him to take the captives down. After the dejected captives were taken away, Bandereev said excitedly: "Comrade commander, do you think it is possible for the captives to speak well? Would Hitler have come to Zaporosh at such a time? ”

After he finished his question, all eyes in the room were focused on me, waiting for me to answer. To be honest, I don't know if Hitler was in Zaporosh at all, but the information about his visit to Zaporosh was blurted out by a German prisoner when he was unprepared, and it should not be fake news.

Thinking of this, I said word by word: "Comrades commanders, I think that the information that this captive has inadvertently revealed is accurate. It is entirely possible that Hitler will appear in Zaporosh at this time. ”

I've just finished my sentence. Bandereev retorted: "Comrade commander. You must know that under the joint attack of our two fronts, the German army is already in danger. If I guessed correctly, the German command in Zaporosh was already preparing to retreat, and could Hitler have come here at such a moment, at great risk? I don't think it's possible. ”

After listening to Bandereev's words, both Kirillov and Oberstein nodded approvingly, expressing their approval of his statement. I didn't speak, just looked at Gretka. In a soft tone, he asked, "Comrade Ensign, what do you think about this matter?" ”

Greitka, who had been standing at the table, heard my question, quickly straightened his waist and replied loudly: "Report to Comrade Commander, I think your analysis is correct. ”

It was not clear to me why Gretka would trust my judgment so much, so I said to him amicably: "Comrade Ensign, tell me your reasons. ”

"Report to Comrade Commander," said Grettka respectfully, "I think the Führer ......" I could not help frowning and coughing heavily in dissatisfaction when I heard that he had actually used the honorific title against Hitler. Gretka heard me coughing. Immediately changed his tune and said: "I think that the reason why Hitler appeared in Zaporosh at this time may be related to the capture of Kharkov by our army." You know, it's an important industrial city in Ukraine. Hitler knew what the consequences would be once captured by the Soviet army, so he came here mostly to let Manstein discuss how to retake the city. ”

After listening to Gretka's analysis, I nodded with satisfaction, and said in my heart that I didn't expect that this German officer who had surrendered to Cheng Cheng would be able to analyze things so thoroughly in a few words, and he would definitely be reused if he had the opportunity in the future. I turned to Kirillov and said, "You all heard the analysis of Ensign Grettka, right? I think he has a lot of point. Seeing the expression of shame on Bandereev's face, I hurriedly comforted him and said, "Of course, General Bandereev's analysis also has some truth. Our troops conquered Kharkov, and the two fronts were oppressing the German troops on the east bank of the Dnieper, and perhaps Manstein was packing his bags and preparing to flee. ”

When everyone heard me say this, they immediately burst into laughter. When the laughter stopped, Bandereev asked me for instructions: "Comrade Commander, if our judgment is correct, if Hitler is really in Zaporosh, do we need to report this to our superiors?" ”

"Comrade Bandereev," before I could speak, the political commissar next to him, Kirillov, had already spoken first, saying: "Do you need to talk about this?" Of course, you have to report to your superiors. With our current forces, it is unrealistic to storm Zaporosh and capture Hitler alive. We need to report this to our superiors and have the army group send friendly units to cooperate with us in taking the city. Are you right, Comrade Oshanina? His last words were addressed to me.

"Yes, Comrade Political Commissar, this information needs to be reported immediately." After saying this, I instructed Pantai Reyev: "Comrade division commander, immediately use your radio to send a telegram to the army group headquarters and report to Commander Kharytonov the information that Hitler may be in Zaporosh, and ask him to send friendly units to assist us in the capture of Zaporosh." ”

"Yes!" After Bandeleev agreed, he turned around and instructed his chief of staff: "Lieutenant Colonel Ilya, did you hear the order of the army commander?" Immediately send a telegram to the command of the army group, reporting upwards what has been detected. ”

When Ilya went to send a telegram next door, I tried hard to control my feelings, and walked around the house with my hands behind my back, thinking about whether I should transfer the 308th Division as well, and together with the 22nd Guards Division, launch a fierce assault on Zaporosh. If Hitler could be captured or killed alive, it would be a real miracle, and the merit of capturing Paulus alive is simply not worth mentioning.

While I was considering how to unfold the troops of the two divisions, Ilya came back from the communication room next door, and as soon as he entered the door, he handed me a telegram and said: "Comrade commander, this is a call back from the headquarters of the army group. ”

When I saw Lieutenant Colonel Ilya's face being extremely ugly, I felt a sense of foreboding rise in my heart, and I guessed that something must have gone wrong. Take the telegram you have just received to your eyes and examine it carefully. This sight immediately made me tremble with anger, and I saw that it was written: "Absurd." It's just ridiculous. General Oshanina. I don't know who instilled such false intelligence into you. In a day or two at most, the German troops under Manstein's command will be driven across the Dnieper. Hitler was not a fool, how could he have appeared in Zaporosh in such a situation. If this matter is sued by your scout, I advise you to shoot him immediately, perhaps he is a spy sent by the Germans, presumably spreading false information to you. "The last signature was: Commander of the 6th Army Kharidonov.

After reading the telegram, I walked briskly to the table. He slapped the telegram on the table heavily, and regardless of the strict rank and humility in the army, he said angrily to his group of subordinates: "Look at what Commander Khalitonov's telegram says? With that, I sat down in my place.

After reading the telegram first, Kirillov cautiously asked: "Comrade Oshanina, since the commander said so, what are you going to do next?" ”

"What to do, what else to do?" I said angrily: "Since the army group command does not believe our report and does not send troops to help, then we will do it ourselves." I immediately ordered Major General Gurtiev to transfer his troops to the Kuban. As soon as dawn came, an attack was launched on the German positions to the west. After seizing the position. If I continue to assault Zaporosh, I do not believe that I will not be able to take the city with the strength of two divisions, plus the support of tank brigades and artillery regiments. ”

"Comrade Commander, I have a different opinion." After reading the telegram, Pandereev handed it to Oberstein and said to me in a straight voice: "Even if we succeed in breaking through the artillery positions on the western outskirts of the city, it is possible that Hitler will have fled by plane before we can attack Zaporosh." In that case, there would be little point in us going on the offensive. Rather than this, it is better to send a force first to seize the enemy's airfield and completely cut off Hitler's retreat. ”

I was sulking at Kharytonov's telegram, and when I heard Bandereev say this, I couldn't help but shudder, and said that it was so dangerous, and if he hadn't reminded me, I would have ignored the fact that Hitler could have fled the battlefield by plane. When we attack the artillery positions on the western outskirts of the Kuban, we will not be able to strike them down in a moment, and when we have seized the enemy's positions and advanced to Zaporosh, both Hitler and Manstein will have plenty of time to flee by plane.

Thinking of this, I stood up and said politely to Ilya: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, please go and invite Scout Sergeant Adil in, I want to ask him about the distribution of troops at the German airfield." ”

Ilya agreed, turned and walked out of the headquarters, looking for Sergeant Adil. As the military commissar, Kirillov was not thinking about military affairs, but about political issues, and as soon as Ilya left, he cautiously asked me: "Comrade Oshanina, although your report did not attract the attention of Commander Kharytonov, should we report this matter to a higher commander?" ”

A higher-level commander? When I heard this term, I was stunned for a moment, and then I realized that Kirillov was asking me to report the matter to the commander of the Front, Vatutin. I nodded and said approvingly: "Comrade Political Commissar, what you said has a point. Since Commander Kharytonov does not believe in our intelligence, then send a telegram to the commander of the Front, General Vatutin, to report this matter and see what his attitude is. ”

Since Lieutenant Colonel Ilya went out to find Sergeant Adil and did not know when he would be able to answer, Oberstein took the initiative to send a report to the telegraph room next door. Looking at the back of Oberstan leaving, I felt more and more unsure, and I thought to myself, what should I do if Vatutin did not believe in our information and did not allow us to take the initiative to attack Zaporosh?

"Comrade Commander," I was thinking about when I suddenly heard the voice of Bantai Leev calling me, and when I looked up, I saw him standing opposite me, leaning forward, his hands on the edge of the table, as if looking at the map in front of him. I quickly turned my gaze to the map and waited for him to continue. He saw that my attention had been drawn to him, and then he continued: "You see, on the north side of our army, there are five divisions under Army Group, but they are not used in a concentrated manner, but are evenly dispersed across this wide Ukrainian plain. With Commander Khalidonov's arrangement, it was difficult for the troops to form a strong offensive capability; In the event of an enemy counterattack, the troops will be broken one by one. ”

I took a closer look at the place where Pandereev was pointing with his hand, and according to the situation marked in red and blue pencils on the map, it was really as he said, that several divisions, which were originally strong, were now laid out evenly on the offensive front nearly two hundred kilometers wide, and that the troops had no defensive depth and no reserves, and if the Germans concentrated their forces to attack one of them, the whole army would be thrown into disarray.

Ilya returned to the headquarters with Adir, and before Adil could raise his hand to salute us, I called him to the table and asked him kindly: "Comrade sergeant, have you completed the reconnaissance of the airfield?" ”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." Adil replied in the affirmative: "We have completed the reconnaissance of the Zaporosh airfield before the capture of the German prisoners. ”

"Tell me about it." I said lightly, and at the same time I felt a lot more at ease, as long as our scouts finished their work on the airfield, then the next battle would be easy to fight.

"According to our reconnaissance, the Germans probably had two companies of Wehrmacht in the airfield, as well as a platoon of SS." Adil replied in accordance with the regulations: "At the entrance to the airfield, there is a tank and two points of machine-gun fire. At the airport, there are three patrols of 10 people, patrolling non-stop......"

When Adil had told him about the situation at the airport, I asked unhurriedly: "Comrade Sergeant, if we were to send troops to attack the airport, how many troops do you think we would have to send?" ”

Adil listened to my question, frowned and thought for a while, and then replied: "Comrade commander, if the troops we attacked could have one tank company, plus two infantry companies, I think there should be no problem in taking the airfield. ”

"Oh, comrade sergeant, how can you be so confident?" I didn't expect Adil to be so confident in our seizure of the airport, so I couldn't help but ask him curiously, "Can you sue us for a reason?" ”

"Comrade Commander, according to my observations, due to the limited area of the airfield, the quarters of the defenders are next to the fuel depot and ammunition depot, as long as our assault tank units accurately hit these two targets and detonate the fuel depot and ammunition depot, how much do you think the enemy will be left after the violent explosion?" (To be continued......)