By the time I had finished introducing myself, I looked up at my watch, and it was already five o'clock in the afternoon, just in time for dinner. So I stood up and said to the seven regimental commanders, "When it's time to eat, let's stay and have a meal together." To tell you the truth, I've been in the school for three days, and no one has ever invited me to dinner. Even if I touch everyone's light today, how about tasting the food in the division? ”

As soon as my words fell, everyone burst into laughter, and Sholov said in an almost cohesive tone: "Comrade division commander, I have the right to speak on the matter of food. If it weren't for Colonel Dorofeev's reluctance, I would have dug his cooks into my regiment long ago. Sholov's words made everyone laugh again, and the atmosphere in the room became extraordinarily harmonious.

While we were chatting, Boroda ran to the door and ordered the kitchen to bring the meals of the nine of us to the headquarters. After all this, he returned to his place and listened quietly to our chat.

With little effort, a second lieutenant walked into the headquarters with nine soldiers carrying trays. The second lieutenant stepped forward, saluted me and reported: "Hello, comrade division commander! Your food has been delivered, so please dine. ”

I nodded at him and said with a smile, "Thank you, Comrade Second Lieutenant." ”

He replied politely, and then ordered the warriors to place the plates of food on the table, and then the knives, forks, and napkins in front of each of them in turn. After doing all this, he saluted me again and left with the warriors.

With the available conditions, the dinner was quite sumptuous, with two plates and a bowl of soup in front of each person. On one plate was a spoonful of oatmeal, two square pieces of aspic, five or six finger-thick pickled cucumbers, an egg-sized pickled tomato, a few pieces of roast lamb, and two roasted potatoes; The other is a salad platter. There is crab salad, mushroom salad, carrot salad, sweet and sour vegetable salad and chicken salad; The soup is the famous beetroot soup with cooked beef cut into strips floating in the soup.

See so much to eat. I hadn't eaten seriously for nearly a month, and I couldn't help but swallow my saliva. Not just in front of his own subordinates. I still have to maintain my glorious image, I picked up the fork next to the plate, and greeted everyone with a calm look: "Comrades, don't be stunned, hurry up and eat." After speaking, he picked up a piece of meat jelly with a fork and put it directly into his mouth. When the others saw that I had started eating, they raised their forks and began to destroy the food in front of them.

I've always thought of the dining table as a great place to connect with feelings. Even Russia is no exception. After eating for a while, I saw that several commanders were no longer as restrained as they were at the beginning, so I began to chat with them. I first asked the commander of the tank regiment: "Comrade Donskoy, where are you from?" ”

Donskoy hurriedly put down his fork, wiped his mouth with a napkin, stood up and replied: "Comrade report division commander, I am a native of Moscow, born in the town of Veliko Uvarovo on the outskirts of Moscow. ”

I stretched out my right hand and pressed it down and said, "Comrade Donskoy." I'm just chatting with you, don't be so inhibited, just sit down and talk. ”

As soon as he sat down, it occurred to me that the name of the town of Veliko Uvarovo was quite familiar. So I asked him: "I heard from you that you were born in the town of Veliko Uvarovo, and the name of this place is quite familiar, and I seem to have heard anyone talk about this place." ”

Donskoy listened to me. Frowning, he said a little dazedly: "The town came out with me to be a soldier." There are at least a few hundred people, and I can't guess who mentioned the place name to you. ”

I tapped my fingers lightly on the table. I pondered over and over who had ever mentioned this place name to me, and that this person's position was at least not too low, otherwise an ordinary place name would not have made such a deep impression on me. The sound of me banging on the table caught everyone's attention, and everyone stopped and looked at me.

Seeing that it affected everyone's eating because of me, I quickly smiled apologetically at them and said, "I'm thinking about one thing, I'm really sorry that it affects everyone's eating." Keep eating, and leave me alone. "As I spoke to everyone, my eyes inadvertently swept over Donskoy's body, and when I saw his black tank uniform, a familiar name popped into my mind. My eyes lit up, and I immediately remembered who it was, and I couldn't help but say to myself, "It's him, no wonder I think this place name is quite familiar." ”

"Who is he? Comrade division commander. Donskoy asked curiously.

"Katukov!" I solemnly said the names of the people I had just thought of and asked the tank commander tentatively: "Comrade Donskoy, do you know Katukov?" ”

"Katukov?! Hahaha, so you're talking about Misha! When Donskoy heard my name, he couldn't help but laugh: "It's this guy!" No wonder you have such a deep impression after hearing him mention his hometown. According to me, anyone who has been in a relationship with him will be impressed by him as a madman. ”

"Maniac?! What the hell is going on, and what do you call him? "I know that Misha is Katukov's nickname, and only those who know him best know him will call him that, but I don't understand why he will be called crazy by others.

"Oh, dear comrade division commander, that's a long way to talk." When Donskoy learned that I knew Katukov, his speech became casual: "At that time, we were sent to the Olabowkunin Higher Infantry School and the Motorized Academy of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army to study and master the command skills of tank combat. In a later military exercise, Misha served as the captain of the T-18 tank detachment, and I was the deputy leader. Our tank detachment was halfway through the assault on the enemy's position, and a trench dug by the enemy exceeded the width of our tanks, blocking our detachment. ”

Speaking of trenches, I remember hearing about Katukov's barbarism, so I tentatively asked Donskoy: "Is it a bridge to bury a car?!" ”

"Yes, Comrade Division Commander." Donskoy gave me an affirmative reply, "At that time, Misha asked his subordinates to signal me to accept the mission. When my tank stopped next to him, he actually gave me an order: drive the tank into the pit. Use the cart with the bridge to let the other tanks pass through it. After listening to this order from him. I was in a hurry and called him a madman. would actually come up with such a crazy plan, you must know that if you are not careful, you will make a mistake. But no matter how much I scolded, he was indifferent and just ordered me to carry out the order. I couldn't help it, so I got the rest of the tankers out of the car and drove the tanks into the trench alone. Comrade division commander, you must know that it is a trench more than two meters deep! When I drove the tank in, it was turned upside down. I fainted at that time. In this way, the other tanks of the detachment ran over the roof of my car and passed smoothly through the enemy's fortified area. After the exercise, Marshal Tukhachevsky, People's Commissar of Defense who had come to watch the exercise, received us and praised Misha as a 'Kutuzov-style commander'. ”

Marshal Tukhachevsky, as soon as I heard this name, I couldn't help but shudder. It is important to know that Tukhachevsky was executed for treason. Whoever wants to have anything to do with him at this moment, the consequences are still very serious. I watched the expressions of the others vigilantly, and when I saw that everyone was eating as usual, I put my hanging heart back into my stomach.

Fortunately, Donskoy did not mention Tukhachevsky again. Instead, he asked about Katukov's whereabouts: "Comrade division commander, do you also know Misha?" I haven't seen him for years, and I don't know what happened to him. ”

I nodded vigorously. Say: "Yes, I know General Katukov. I fought alongside him during the Battle of Moscow. ”

"General? Oh, my God. This madman can level up so fast. I'm still a lieutenant colonel, but he's a general. Donskoy's exaggerated expression provoked another burst of laughter.

"Lieutenant Colonel Donskoy, have you been separated from General Katukov for so many years and have never been in touch?" According to my thoughts, as old comrades-in-arms, the two should have a very close connection with each other.

"Since the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War, I have lost contact with him. You know, being a tank soldier is different from being an infantryman, and we often move around. There was also the wartime military postal system, which was also inconvenient in one way or another, and it was impossible to say that the letter he wrote to me was lost in the mailing process, or because he was afraid of leaking secrets, he was detained by the inspection organs. ”

Hearing him say this, I was surprised that two fellow villagers and good friends actually lost contact after the outbreak of the war, and even didn't know about such a major event as one of them becoming a general?! I asked with some skepticism, "Don't you know how he became a general?" ”

Donskoy shook his head, indicating that he didn't know what to say.

"Haven't you read the battle report of the Battle of Moscow? , to know the Tao, on which you can find the answers you need. I asked unwillingly.

Donskoy shook his head. My gaze swept to the others again. Those present had already stopped their knives and forks, and when they saw my gaze on them, they collectively shook their heads, indicating that they had not read the battle report I was talking about. Among them, Sholov also said with a hippie smile: "Comrade division commander, since everyone is very interested in how Katukov became a general, and you have worked with Katukov and know more about his situation, you can tell everyone about it." ”

"Yes, yes, comrade division commander, tell us about it!" The rest of the people chimed in.

Seeing that everyone was interested in this topic, I did not refuse, pushed aside the empty plate in front of me, and told everyone about the Soviet war report I had read: "Since everyone wants to hear about General Katukov's deeds, then I will first talk about his famous battle: the battle of the Mtsensk tank.

In October last year, Colonel Katukov became the commander of the newly formed 4th Separate Tank Brigade, which was initially stationed in the Kubinka region west of Moscow to protect the road and railway along the Moscow-Minsk route. Soon the tank brigade was incorporated into the 1st Guards Infantry Corps of General Lelyuschenk and overnight set out from the outskirts of Moscow and rushed by rail to Mtsensk.

Katukov was tasked with leading his troops to hold on to Mtsensk, the western gate of Moscow, to block the German Guderi Cluster and prevent them from continuing to advance eastward.

To be told, Katukov had only 45 old tanks on hand and was running low on ammunition. In the eyes of others, this was an impossible task, but all this did not stump Katukov. As soon as he arrived at his destination, he immediately urged his soldiers to dig fake bunkers around the clock, and used plywood to build a large number of fake tanks and camouflage them, while the real tank positions were deployed 4,000 meters away.

Commanders and fighters of the 4th Separate Tank Brigade. Tossed by Katukov for several days and nights without sleeping, everyone was dissatisfied. Behind his back, they are all calling him a 'German spy who wants to exhaust the Russians'. As soon as the battle began, the original complaining commanders and fighters found out. Follow this 'slippery brigade commander', at least you can save your life.

During the Battle of Mtsensk, Katukov used every soldier carefully, and ordered each tank to prepare three or four firing points, and change places after a few shots, so that the Soviet army appeared to be very strong. Under his bewitching fighters, the Germans could not figure out what we were doing, and when they reported to their superiors, they even claimed that there were thousands of Soviet tanks deployed here.

After 8 days and nights of fierce fighting. The Katukov brigade destroyed 133 enemy tanks and shot down 2 aircraft, while its own troops lost only 6 tanks, 2 of which burned on the battlefield, while the other 4 were sent to the repair station for repairs and soon returned to the battle.

On October 22, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR awarded 32 officers and men of the 4th Tank Brigade the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and medals to 32 officers and men of the brigade in the Mtsensk region. The 4th Separate Tank Brigade was also reorganized into the 1st Guards Tank Brigade. At the same time, thanks to his outstanding performance in the Battle of Mtsensk, Katukov became a favored general of Comrade Stalin, and was soon awarded the rank of major general. ”

After listening to Katukov's experience. Donskoy slapped the table excitedly and said loudly: "With just a few dozen old tanks, Guderian, who is invincible in the German army, has lost his armor." Misha is amazing! ”

I looked at him with a smile on my face and said, "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel." Suppose in the next battle, if you can also achieve the same brilliant results. Then I believe. In the near future, you will soon become General Donskoy. ”

Amid everyone's good-natured laughter, Donskoy's face turned red, and he stood up and made a statement to me: "Please rest assured, Commander, I will never disappoint your expectations." In the future battles, make sure to complete every command you give. ”

Hearing Donskoy expressing his determination to me, everyone present stood up and said in a neat voice: "Please rest assured, Commander, we will fulfill all the orders you have given." ”

Seeing everyone's reactions, I nodded with satisfaction and said, "Okay, since you are so confident, then I solemnly promise you here that as long as you achieve outstanding results in the campaign you are about to launch, then I will personally submit an application for promotion to your rank to Comrade Commander of the Front Army." ”

Hearing that after the battle, there was a possibility of promotion to the ranks, several commanders were so excited that their faces were flushed, and they shouted in unison: "Serve the Soviet Motherland." ”

I was very satisfied with their attitude, and when I looked at the empty plates on the table, I knew that everyone had eaten about the same, so I didn't keep them: "Everyone has eaten about the same." That's all for today, comrades, commanders, immediately go back to your respective units, do a good job of pre-war mobilization, and be ready to pull your troops out of the army at any time. ”

The seven commanders replied in unison: "Yes, Comrade Division Commander, I promise to complete the task!" Then they saluted me and Boroda, and then took their leave.

Looking at their departing backs, Boroda said with emotion: "Comrade division commander, this kind of mobilization of yours is really ingenious. Look at how long it has been, and these commanders, who were originally resistant to us, have now been trained by you to be obedient. ”

At today's meeting, I skillfully subdued the most unruly Lieutenant Colonel Sholov. Then, at the dinner party in the evening, because of Katukov, he won over the tank commander Lieutenant Colonel Donskoy, which can be regarded as an unintentional windfall. Hearing Boroda's words, I smiled and said, "Comrade Captain, to tell the truth, if you want to quickly control this division, the best way is to replace the original middle-level commanders with people you are familiar with. However, we have just taken over this division today, and we have not brought new commanders with us, nor do we know the situation of commanders at all levels in this division, and if we easily replace those commanders who are not satisfied with us, it may cause confusion in the command system and affect the morale of the troops.

The situation of managing a division and managing a company or a battalion is completely different. When we were battalion commanders or company commanders, orders could be conveyed directly to the squad leader or soldiers; But after becoming divisional commanders, if we want to convey our orders, we must pass them on to each soldier through the regimental and battalion commanders who are here to attend the meeting today. Therefore, we need to consider a lot of issues, and how to properly handle the relationship with these middle-level commanders is the first thing we should consider. Only when they do not reject us and are willing to accept and obey us can the command of this division be handy. ”

"Convinced, Comrade Major, I am convinced!" Boroda's words made me a little inexplicable, I couldn't figure out why he would say this, but fortunately, his later words solved the mystery for me: "When Commander Meretskov appointed you as the division commander, I was still quite unconvinced, but seeing your performance today and what you just said, I am convinced by you. ”

Finally, when he finished speaking, I was about to be modest, when he suddenly slapped his forehead and said, "Comrade Major, it's so late, shouldn't you go back to the dormitory to accompany your son Alex?" ”

As soon as he said this, I remembered that Alik was still in the maid's dormitory, and quickly said, "Yes, if you don't say it, I forgot about it." In this case, you stay on duty in the division headquarters, and I will go back first, and then come back tomorrow morning. ”

"Comrade Major, go back with confidence, I'll leave it to me." (To be continued......)

PS: Thank you book friends for reading my favorite, yxzr's monthly pass support, book friends %Gregary$, don't talk about the reward for this book.