After dark, I summoned all the commanders who had been awarded medals to the command. After having Kirillov finish awarding them with the medals, I beckoned them to sit down at the table and discuss the next steps in the operation.

I stood up with my hands on the edge of the table, and looked at the commanders who were all wearing medals, all of them blushing with excitement, perhaps they never dreamed that they would still be alive to receive the Order of the Red Banner, which represents a very high honor, and it was inevitable that they would be excited. I coughed lightly and said, "Comrades, today is the first meeting of commanders of the independent division after it arrived at the Mamayev Heights, and we will discuss how to use the favorable terrain, existing troops, and weapons and equipment to resist the enemy's frantic attack in the coming days. ”

After saying this, everyone's attention was on me, quietly waiting for me to continue. After sweeping my gaze over every commander present, I finally stopped on Gaidar, the commander of the Fourth Regiment: "Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, your regiment is currently at the forefront of the whole division, you come to tell you, do you have any difficulties now?" ”

Gaidar, who was named by me, hurriedly stood up, looked at the commander present, shook his head, and replied loudly: "Report to the division commander, we have no difficulties. ”

"Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, you're lying!" Kirillov, who was sitting next to me, stood up and said to Gaidar with a smile: "What is the situation in the northern heights, don't our division leaders know? I know that although you have not been on the ground for a long time, under the enemy's shelling and indiscriminate bombardment, the number of troops must have been reduced a lot, right? In addition to the fact that the number of troops is getting smaller and smaller, maybe the commanders and fighters don't have much ammunition in their hands, right? ”

Hear Kirillov say that. Gaidar laughed a little awkwardly. At this time, Xia Ping, the former political commissar of the 42nd Tank Brigade and the current political commissar of the Fourth Regiment, stood up. He replied to us with a stern expression: "Division commander, political commissar." Although the attrition of our troops is relatively large, there is no problem in holding the position. As for the lack of ammunition, we often organize soldiers to collect the dead bodies of the enemy, barely able to maintain normal consumption. ”

I raised my right hand and pressed it downward, motioned for the few people who stood up to sit down, and continued: "In addition to you going to the front to collect it, I will send someone to send you some of the ammunition in stock of the second regiment later." ”

Gaidar, who had just sat down, listened to this. Only then did I find out that the acting commander of the 2nd Regiment, Major Pugachev, was not present, so he asked me curiously: "Comrade division commander, where has the commander of the 2nd Regiment, Major Pugachev, gone?" I see that the enemy has never attacked your high ground, and I plan to consult with Pugachev and ask him to give me some additional troops. ”

Gaidar was unintentional in his words, but I was intentional in listening, and when he said this, he couldn't help but worry about Pugachev and his two or three hundred commanders. I didn't dwell on Gaidar on this issue, and directly changed the subject: "Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, your fourth regiment has also fought several battles with the enemy. How is the love of the warriors? ”

Listening to my question, Gaidar jumped up again. replied loudly: "Report to the division commander, our four regiments from top to bottom, whether it is the regiment commander, political commissar or ordinary soldiers below, are full of combat enthusiasm. The soldiers all said that the German 6th Army was also in vain and looked fierce, but they used two divisions to launch so many attacks on our positions in turn, but they did not succeed once, and they lost so many troops in vain. I think that if the enemy and us had changed positions and let them defend our attack, it is estimated that all ten Mamayev posts would have been captured. ”

Gaidar's words caused laughter from the commanders present, and Kirillov stood up again, pointed his finger at Gaidar, and said with a smile: "You Gaidar, you dare to say anything." In my opinion, if this place had not been commanded by Division Commander Oshanina, but had been commanded by a different commander, perhaps this position would have been occupied by the enemy long ago. Speaking of this, the expression on his face suddenly became stern, "We can't comment on the situation of other defensive areas, but in the 107.5 highland, two kilometers west of our highland, I think everyone is familiar with it, right?" In order to hold there, how many troops did the army group fill in? But now, despite the sacrifice of thousands of commanders and fighters, that high ground still fell into the hands of the enemy. ”

"Division commander, political commissar, I want to know if you have brought all our regimental commanders here in a hurry today, in addition to awarding medals, or any other arrangements?" Shederikov, who had been silent, suddenly asked.

"That's right, Comrade Sedjerikov." I held the table with my hands and leaned forward slightly, "In order to ensure that our division can better hold the existing defensive zone, I plan to readjust the deployment of troops. ”

As soon as my words came out, there was an uproar, and the commanders of several regiments began to whisper to each other. I just looked at everyone coldly and didn't say anything to stop them.

Still Kirillov couldn't stand it anymore, he stood up and slapped the table with his hand a few times, and said loudly: "Quiet, please be quiet!" After everyone stopped talking, he still said angrily, "Look at yourselves, either lieutenant colonels or majors, all of them are military commanders of various regiments, what does the commotion look like now?" ”

After saying that, he turned his gaze to me and seemed to ask me to continue. I waved my hand and motioned for him to speak next, and then sat down in my seat. After Kirillov waited for me to sit down, he officially announced to everyone: "Comrade commanders, first of all, I would like to announce to you one thing, the order of the Supreme Command at all levels, starting today, the former Stalingrad Front will be renamed the Don Front, and the commander will be Lieutenant General Rokossovsky; The former South-Eastern Front was renamed the Stalingrad Front, and the commander was General Yeremenko; The former 1st Guards Army was expanded into the Southwestern Front, and the commander was Lieutenant General Vadudin.

The 62nd Army, to which our separate divisions are located, and the 64th, 57th, and 51st armies are part of the Stalingrad Front and are responsible for the defense of Stalingrad. The independent division has been greatly reduced, so we must reorganize and transfer the main force of the five regiments, which are relatively intact, from the existing station. Took over the defense area of the 2nd Regiment. ……”

"Comrade Commissar." Lieutenant Colonel Oleg stood up. Asked Kirillov: "May I ask, where are the troops of the 2nd regiment?" ”

Kirilov sighed and said with a bitter expression: "Except for a full company in the Southern Heights and on Soviet Street, the rest of the troops of the Second Regiment are gone. ”

Everyone was taken aback by Kirillov's words again, but this time they did not exchange words, but remained silent, and turned their eyes to Kirillov.

"The 42nd Guards Regiment of the friendly neighbor has almost been wiped out after the recent fighting. With their current strength, they could not hold the Soviet Avenue at all, so the division commander transferred a company of troops from the 2nd Regiment to support them. "Since the headquarters of the army group was under onslaught by the enemy during the day, the division commander, fearing that the commander was in danger to them, left Major Pugachev a company on the high ground and then went into the city with the remaining troops to reinforce them. After destroying the enemy besieging the headquarters, the superiors said that they would recapture the elementary school occupied by the enemy and restore the observation positions of the artillery, so Major Pugachev was asked to carry out this offensive mission with his troops. Assist them in their attack. were the two tanks belonging to the tank battalion of Major Perstian. Because both commanders were directing their respective units and the Germans to fight stubbornly, they did not come to our meeting. ”

Everyone listened to Kirillov's words. The expressions on their faces became solemn, and everyone knew what it meant for them to participate in such a battle in the city, and perhaps they were silently praying for the comfort of the two comrades fighting in the city at the moment.

Kirillov then announced a new adjustment: "...... After the main force of the 5th Regiment entered the southern heights, the original number was cancelled, and the troops left behind by the 2nd Regiment were mixed and renumbered as the 2nd Regiment, and Oleg and Vylor still held the positions of regiment commander and political commissar. The 3rd and 4th regiments maintained their existing defense areas, and the 1st regiment was transferred to the original position of the 5th regiment to receive their remaining troops. After saying this, Kirillov asked aloud: "Did you hear clearly?" ”

All the commanders stood up in unison and replied neatly and loudly: "Understood!" ”

Seeing that there was no objection from everyone, I got up from my seat and said slowly, "Now that everyone has clarified their tasks, let's go to our respective teams!" ”

After all the commanders had left, Kirillov looked at their backs and said to me worriedly: "Comrade Oshanina, although we have abolished the formation of a regiment after this downsizing, we still have not enough troops, and if our superiors do not give us any more supplements, I am afraid that we will not be able to hold out for long at the Mamayev post." ”

I sighed and said helplessly to Kirillov: "Comrade commissar, don't talk about us, even the command of the army group does not have any reserves in its hands. We can only rely on our own strength and try to hold out on to the Mamayev Gang for a longer time. Maybe wait another month and things will turn around. ”

Hearing me say this, Akhromeyev, who was standing next to him, suddenly had his eyes lit up, and then he couldn't wait to ask me: "Comrade division commander, have you heard any inside information, is the Supreme Command planning to carry out a large-scale counterattack here?" Even Kirillov's interest was aroused when Akhromeyev asked this, and he stared at me intently, waiting for me to answer Akhromeyev's question.

I smiled bitterly and said self-deprecatingly: "Political commissar, chief of staff, don't forget, I'm just a small division commander, and secrets like these at the battle level are not something that people of my level can know. After finishing speaking, seeing the disappointed expressions on the faces of the two of them, I hurriedly comforted them and said, "But don't worry, the days of counterattack will not be too long." The city of Stalingrad is a hot summer, with temperatures reaching up to minus 40 degrees Celsius; The winter is very cold, and the lowest temperature is minus 30 degrees. I kept thinking that Hitler was really blind and had to fight our heroic Red Army in this city. You know, whether he sends troops to fight in summer or winter, he won't have a very good chance of winning. Moreover, the Soviet Red Army he met was not an idle man: the harsh climatic conditions gave rise to the character of the Stalingraders, who were strong, fierce, and cruel at heart. Moreover, Stalingrad established an important military-manufacturing industrial zone along the Volga River, which played a huge and irreplaceable role in wartime for the Soviet army's combat equipment and weapons support. ”

The words I said later finally gave the two of them a little confidence, and they regained their normal expressions. Back at the table, I gathered around the map that I had seen countless times. Let's start talking.

I'm hesitating to give Chuikov a call to Krylov. When Pugachev and Perstian were asked what their fate was, Basmanov, who was on duty outside with his soldiers, walked in, followed by a small but stocky commander wearing a large-brimmed hat and a military overcoat.

I caught a glimpse of the two gold stars on the collar of the visitor's coat and hurriedly greeted them. Without waiting for Basmanov to finish speaking, I raised my hand to salute the major general who came and said politely: "Comrade General, the commander of the independent division, Colonel Oshanina, salutes you. You are welcome to the division headquarters of the independent division. ”

Seeing that I had already saluted first, Basmanov hurriedly flashed his body to the side. The major general raised his hand to salute me, and was about to speak, when suddenly Kirillov's voice sounded behind me: "Aha, who is this!" Dear Stepan. Comrade Savelyevich, it's a pleasure to see you in my command. ”

"Hello, Comrade Director of the Political Department." The major general apparently knew Kirillov, and he directly put his hand out.

While the two were shaking hands, Kirillov corrected him and said: "Dear Stepan. Savelyevich, I am now the commissar of the separate division. He did not continue to hold the post of director of the political department of the group army. When he let go of his hand, he introduced me to the general: "Comrade Oshanina." You don't know this commander yet, do you? ”

I hurriedly squeezed out a smile on my face, then shook my head and said, "I'm sorry, Comrade Political Commissar, I don't know this Comrade General. Do you know him? ”

Kirillov nodded, and then introduced: "This is the commander of the 37th Guards Division, Stepan. Savelyevich. Major General Guriev. Then he turned to the general and asked: "Guriev, have your troops crossed the river?" ”

Major General Guryev shook his head and said: "Only a small half has come, and the rest are still assembled on the other side." My commissar is assembling troops from the river crossing at the docks, and in a little while he will come here as well. ”

"How's the troop doing?" Kirillov asked again.

"Not very good, Comrade Kirillov." General Guriev said with a bitter face: "At present, only half of the regiments of the division have been replenished, and each company has only 40~50 people. During the period of September 18~20, our division participated in many battles in the north of Stalingrad in the sequence of the 1st Guards Army, and suffered heavy casualties in the offensive battle against the village of Kuzmich. However, the basic combat effectiveness of the troops was not destroyed, and the main elements of the division were airborne troops, and most of them were Communists and Komsomol members. ”

"Comrade Guryev, before you crossed the river, did your superiors tell you where you plan to deploy your 37th Guards Division?"

To Kirillov's question, Guryev thought for a moment and replied: "By order of the command of the army group, our division, having completed the task of crossing the river, assembled on the south side of the Mamayev Heights. Then, before dawn, an attack was launched on the enemy-occupied heights of 107.5. Take the position and hold it firmly. ”

"Comrade General." After waiting for Guriev to finish, I opened my mouth and asked politely: "Is there anything that needs our help when your troops attack the 107.5 heights?" ”

Guriev glanced at me, slowly shook his head and said, "Comrade Colonel, thank you for your kindness. According to the information received in advance, the Germans had only one company of troops on the 107.5 heights, and sent two battalions to attack the heights, so there should be no problem in occupying the heights. ”

"Dear Stepan. Savelyevich," Kirillov said to him with a smile: "You may not know that Colonel Oshanina has repeatedly organized troops to regain the 107.5 heights and inflicted heavy losses on the enemy. If you want to regain the high ground, you really can't do without our help. ”

Kirillov's words aroused Guriev's curiosity, and he asked rhetorically: "I wonder what kind of help your division can provide us?" ”

Kirillov did not answer his question immediately, but patiently explained to the explanation: "On the 107.5 heights, two kilometers west of the Mamayev Gang, the terrain is gentle on the north slope and steep on the south slope. When you attack from the southern slopes, the steep terrain will affect the speed of your attack, and the condescending Germans will inflict heavy casualties. ”

When Guriev heard him say this, his brows furrowed unconsciously, and after he nodded, he said: "Yes, Comrade Kirillov, you are quite right. Our division currently has no heavy weapons, and if we want to attack the high ground, we will no longer be able to provide more fire support to the infantry except for a dozen or so heavy machine guns. Speaking of this, he looked at Kirillov again and asked anxiously: "Tell me, can your division provide us with artillery support?" ”

Kirillov turned his head to look at me, then turned to look at Guriev, and said with a smile: "Don't worry, old man, we will definitely be able to provide you with strong enough fire cover, maybe by the time you attack the hillside, there will be no living enemies on it." (To be continued......)