I put down the phone and thought to myself: There is still a week before the great counteroffensive, and if we allow our division's strength to continue to be consumed at the present rate, it is estimated that we will soon be transferred to the rear for rectification, and when the time comes to reward meritorious deeds, the honor won by our division will be greatly reduced, and in order to prevent the troops from being transferred to the rear at the critical moment by their superiors, we must find ways to replenish the troops needed by the troops. Thinking of this, I immediately instructed Akhromeyev: "Comrade Chief of Staff, call the military commanders of the four infantry regiments, artillery battalions, and tank battalions, and ask them to come to the division headquarters for a meeting after dark. ”

In response to this order I issued, Kirillov asked with some confusion: "Comrade division commander, are you holding an extraordinary military meeting at this time with the intention of carrying out a counterattack against the enemy?" Although this idea is good, I do not think this is the right time, because the division has lost more than two-thirds of its strength in the fighting in recent days, and if we attack the enemy with such a small number of troops, we will not be able to hold the Mamayev Gang in the event of defeat. ”

Hearing Kirillov say this, I understood that he had misunderstood what I meant, and hurriedly explained to him: "Comrade commissar, I am not calling a meeting of the commanders of the regiments tonight for the purpose of engaging in a counterattack that will not outweigh the losses. You all know very well about the current situation in the division, and if we continue to fight like this, it is estimated that the whole division will be exhausted, so I have temporarily decided to convene this meeting so that the regiments can seize the time to replenish their troops, so that we can continue to hold on to the strength. ”

After dark, commanders at all levels who had received the notice came to the division headquarters one after another. I stood at the table and spoke to Pantai Leyev, and from time to time I raised my hand to salute the commanders who saluted me. Among these people. I also unexpectedly saw a regiment of political commissars Oberstein, whom I hadn't seen for a long time. With Persjian, the commander of the tank battalion who had just returned from injury, I hurriedly ended my conversation with Bandereev, walked over quickly and shook hands with the two, and at the same time asked them how they were doing.

When everyone was seated, I coughed and cleared my throat and said, "Commanders and comrades, I have summoned you here tonight to inform you of an important matter. "Speaking of which. I looked up at my watch, and then continued in the whispers of the participants, "First of all, please report on your existing strength. The head of the first regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov, said first. ”

Sederikov, whose name I called, was the first to stand up and replied loudly: "The regiment has 1,152 troops, and two-thirds of them are newly replenished recruits. With that, he sat down again.

Lieutenant Colonel Oleg, the commander of the second regiment, who then reported, said with a sad face: "The second regiment has 211 troops, of which 195 are combatants. ”

"The three regiments have 763 troops."

"The current strength of the fourth regiment is 497 people."

When the regimental commanders were debriefing, I recorded the numbers they said in a notebook. After a brief calculation, it was found that there were only more than 2,000 people left in the division. Half of them were recruits, and it was estimated that it would be difficult to succeed in counterattacking the Germans with such strength.

Since I was busy counting the troops, I didn't speak immediately, and some of the commanders sitting below were anxious, and I couldn't help but ask loudly: "Comrade division commander, is the division headquarters preparing to counterattack the German army?" ”

I looked in the direction where the voice came from, and saw that the person who was asking was Major Yaming, the deputy head of the Second Regiment, so I asked with a smile: "Major Yaming, what do you think, you might as well tell it in front of everyone." ”

Yameen stood up and replied respectfully: "Comrade division commander, as far as I know, all units of the group army are conducting counteroffensives of different scales in their own defensive areas. But in Mamayev Heights, such a counteroffensive, in my opinion, is inappropriate. ”

"Why, Comrade Major?" Yamin's words aroused the interest of Bandereev, and he asked curiously: "Tell me your reasons." ”

Yameen received encouragement from Bandereev, and he expressed his opinion in public without hesitation: "Although our troops are larger than the other divisions of the group army, the terrain here at Mamayev Gang is different from that in the city, and once our troops leave the fortifications and launch a counterattack against the Germans, they will be exposed to unobstructed open ground, and the long-range fire of German tank artillery can make us pay a heavy price." ”

When Yameen was expounding his opinion, everyone remained silent, listening to him quietly, and the individual commanders kept recording it in their small notebooks. After he finished speaking, Akhromeyev first expressed his support for his statement: "Major Yameen has a point. The reason why the counterattacks carried out by the divisions in the city were so effective that their defensive lines were intertwined with those of the Germans, and the Germans could not get the support of aircraft and artillery during the battle, so they could only engage in close combat with our troops with the light weapons they had received. And our situation here is very special, outside the position is a large plain with an unobstructed view, and if we do not have our air supremacy and artillery support, we carry out a counterattack is a suicidal act. ”

After Akhromeyev finished speaking, neither I, nor Kirillov, nor Bandereev expressed a different opinion. The commanders present thought that I had acquiesced to Akhromeyev's views and stood up to express their opinions. However, their views are lackluster, and they just take what Akhromeyev and Yameen said in a different way.

After everyone had quieted down, I coughed again and began to announce my plan to everyone: "Commanders and comrades, I would like to make it clear first of all that I have summoned you here tonight not to discuss any counterattack plan, but to let you find ways to replenish your forces in the near future and prepare for a big and tough battle. ”

When I said this, I caught a glimpse of the disappointed expressions on the faces of the several commanders sitting below, presumably they were staunch counterattackers, and they couldn't help but feel lost when I said that they would not fight back for the time being. I hurriedly added: "Although we will not carry out a counterattack against the German army in the near future, it will disappoint some comrades in command and fight." However, if we do not counterattack in the near future, it does not mean that we will not counterattack in the future. I'll let you find a way to resupply your troops. It is to prepare for a big counteroffensive in the future. ”

"Comrade Division Commander." Major Vatorak, deputy commander of the 3rd Regiment, stood up and asked politely: "Due to the freezing on the Volga River, our communication with the other side has been completely cut off, where should we recruit soldiers?" ”

I looked at the major in front of me, and then at Lieutenant Colonel Ilya, the deputy commander of the regiment sitting not far from him, and said in my heart that you are all new divisions from Colonel Bandereev, but why do other Lieutenant Colonel Ilya know how to recruit stragglers and residents who have nowhere to hide nearby to replenish the troops, while you only know that you are bent on waiting for the reinforcement of troops from the other side. No wonder someone else Ilya is a lieutenant colonel, and you are just a major.

Before I could speak, Wattolak's old superior, Bantai Leev, stood up and said in a reproachful tone: "Comrade Major, don't you know what is going on in the city? The attrition of the divisions is so severe, even if new troops come over from the east bank, the priority is to replenish those troops who persist in fighting in the city, and it will not be our turn for the time being. ”

Bandereev's words made Wattolak's face flush with shame, and he lowered his head and confessed his mistake to Pandereev and said, "I'm sorry. Comrade Deputy Division Commander, I was wrong. But. I also felt anxious when I saw that the commanders and fighters of my regiment were just being constantly withdrawn and never replenished. ”

"Is it useful to be in a hurry, to be in a hurry?" Bandereev continued to lecture him: "If we can replenish the attrition of the troops in a hurry, then we don't have to do anything, just a group of people around and sigh." ”

"Okay, Comrade Deputy Division Commander, don't talk about it." Kirillov saw that Major Wattolak had been taught a lesson and could not step down from the stage, so he lost no time in standing up and playing a round, he walked up to Vartorak, patted the other man on the shoulder and said: "Comrade Major, do you know why the first regiment has the most troops? Seeing Vatorak shaking his head stupidly to show that he didn't know, he continued, "Because Lieutenant Colonel Ilya has organized men to recruit the scattered stragglers, the newly healed wounded, and the homeless refugees, and to fill them into the troops, so that the regiment can always have enough strength." In this regard, you should learn from your former colleague, Lieutenant Colonel Ilya, and don't always think about asking your superiors to replenish your troops, but also think of more ways to do it. ”

"Comrade Commissar, I understand." Vatorak assured Kirillov that "as soon as I returned to the troops, I tried to recruit men to replenish the third regiment." ”

When they had almost finished speaking, I continued: "Now that everyone knows the reason why I have called you to the meeting, what the commanders at all levels should do after returning to the unit is to try their best to increase the number of your troops and form combat effectiveness in the shortest possible time. ”

As soon as I finished speaking, Lieutenant Colonel Sedjerikov stood up and asked on behalf of everyone: "Comrade division commander, I would like to know what is the period of this minimum time?" ”

"Today is November 12th," I said in a resolute tone, "I can only give you five days, that is, by the 17th, the strength of your regiments will be more than doubled, and at the same time you will have to form combat effectiveness." ”

Pantai Leev walked up to me and reminded me in a low voice: "Comrade division commander, is five days too short, you must know that in such a short period of time, it may be a little too late to recruit and train both soldiers. ”

Before he could finish speaking, I raised my hand to interrupt his next words and reiterated my order in public: "Remember, you have only five days, and if the regiments are not able to complete the tasks I have set by then. Then, I will think that the military commanders of the regiments are not competent enough to take up the present position, and I will let someone else take your place. Got it? ”

The commanders below agreed in unison: "Understood!" ”

"Now that we all understand, let's dismiss the meeting."

Over the next few days, the regiments fought and tried to expand their forces as much as possible. Seeing this, Kirillov said worriedly: "Comrade division commander, is it appropriate to do this?" Although the number of our divisions has increased rapidly in a short period of time, due to the addition of a large number of new soldiers, the combat effectiveness of the troops has not only not improved, but has been diluted. ”

In response to Kirillov's concerns, I comforted him and said: "Don't worry, commissar, since the formation of the independent division, the troops used are almost all recruits who have no combat effectiveness, and after the baptism of battle, they will form a strong combat force in the shortest possible time. This time, I asked the regiments to expand their troops in order to prepare for the future. ”

Kirillov, who had been dealing with me for a long time, immediately heard something from my words, and after looking left and right, he asked in a low and mysterious voice: "Comrade Oshanina, did you get any inside information from your superiors, which is why you are so active in replenishing the troops of the regiments. At this point, he paused to think for a moment, then asked tentatively, "Is it that our all-out counterattack is about to begin?" ”

Although Kirillov's voice was very low, it was very quiet in the command headquarters, and Pantai Laiev and Akhromeyev, who were not far from us, also heard it, and the two immediately surrounded them, and Akhromeyev excitedly asked: "Comrade division commander, is this true?" Are we going to start a full-scale counterattack on Paulus's troops? ”

"Nothing." Although I know better than anyone else the specific time of the major counteroffensive, at this moment I can only pretend to be confused: "When will the major counteroffensive be carried out, this is something that even the commander of the front army does not know, do you think that I, a small division commander, can learn such top-secret information?" ”

Akhromeyev: When they heard me say this, they couldn't help but have a disappointed look on their faces. At this moment, the phone on the desk rang, Akhromeyev turned around, grabbed the microphone, and said loudly: "Hey, I'm the chief of staff, Major Akhromeyev, where are you?" ”

Because of the distance, I couldn't hear the voice coming from the microphone clearly, but after listening to two sentences, Akhromeyev suddenly raised his voice: "What did you say, I didn't hear clearly, say it again?" ”

The other party seemed to repeat what he had just said, and he saw an expression of surprise on Akhromeyev's face, he covered the microphone, turned his head and reported loudly to me: "Comrade division commander, Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov reports that there is a fleet of ships that are risking their lives to come to our side?" ”

"What, flotilla?!" Hearing Akhromeyev say this, I thought I had heard it wrong, the Volga has long been frozen, how could the fleet come over? In order to find out what was going on, I rushed over, snatched the microphone from his hand, and asked loudly, "Hey, is it Sedjerikov?" I'm Oshanina, and you report back to me again. ”

From the earpiece came Sederikov's excited voice: "Report to Comrade Division Commander, according to my observation post, a flotilla is coming towards us. ”

Although I heard Sedelikov tell me that a flotilla was coming, I could not believe that it was true, and could only verify it again: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, are you sure that your observation post is not mistaken? You must know that the Volga River was completely frozen a few days ago. ”

"Comrade division commander, you don't know anything." Hearing my questioning in a skeptical tone, Sederikov hurriedly introduced: "The temperature has risen in the past two days, and the ice has melted in some sections. Perhaps the sailors on the east bank saw the ice on the river thinning and took the plunge. ”

"Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, for the sake of safety, I order you to go to the observation post on the top of the hill and see for yourself. After figuring out the situation, report it to me, understand? ”

"Understood!" Sederikov said a brief yes and hung up.

"Great, that's great." When they heard that a fleet was approaching us, Kirillov was excited, and before the information was finally confirmed, they planned to report the good news to Chuikov.

Fortunately, I was still relatively calm, and quickly stopped Kirillov's adventurous move, and reminded him: "Comrade commissar, wait, when Sederikov's new report comes, we will report to the command." (To be continued......)