When we entered the room of the division headquarters, we saw a large map nailed to the wall in front of us, a bald colonel standing with his back to the door, and a gray-haired lieutenant colonel pointing at the map with a wooden stick on the wall.

Captain Boroda stepped forward and reported loudly: "Comrade Division Commander, Captain Boroda reports to you and listens to your orders!" ”

Hearing Boroda's voice, the lieutenant colonel stopped explaining and turned his gaze to us. The bald colonel turned around, looked us up and down, and asked in an official tone: "I am the division commander Dorofeev, comrade captain, which part are you?" There was a hint of disdain in his tone.

Boroda straightened up and replied: "Report to Comrade Division Commander, I am the adjutant of the commander of the Front, General Meretskov, and I have been ordered to carry out special tasks. ”

Hearing that he was the adjutant of the commander of the Front, and that he was on a special mission, Dorofeev's tone softened, he turned his gaze to me, and asked Boroda tentatively: "Comrade Captain, who is this female soldier?" You must know that this is the division headquarters, and not just anyone can come in. ”

Without waiting for Boroda to speak, I hurriedly stepped forward, saluted Dorofeev, and preemptively said: "Comrade Colonel, the battalion commander of the 327th Regiment of the 1127th Infantry Division of the 2nd Assault Army, Major Oshanina, reports to you and waits for your orders. ”

"From the 2nd Assault Army, or a major?" Dorofeev came over, circled around me, and asked in a not very friendly tone: "What about your military rank?" How I didn't see it. ”

I hurriedly took out the rank marker in my pocket, held it in both hands for him to see, and explained: "When I broke through the enemy's encirclement, I was afraid of losing my rank, so I temporarily took it down. ”

Dorofeev snorted heavily, and said sarcastically: "I'm afraid of losing my rank, this is really the biggest joke I've ever heard." I think you are greedy for life and afraid of death. ”

"Comrade division commander, I don't agree with your statement." Captain Boroda stood up in time to say good things for me, "Major Oshanina will never run away, she has participated in many battles and achieved great results. Even Commander Meretskov praised her as an excellent commander with a fighting spirit. ……”

Dorofeev interrupted Boroda very impolitely, and he said dissatisfiedly: "Comrade Commander of the Front must have been deceived, and if she is a commander with excellent results, then is there something missing from her uniform?" As he spoke, he pointed to his chest, where there was a medallion.

When Captain Boroda heard him say this, he was speechless, and shrugged his shoulders at me, spread his hands, and signaled to me that he could not help. I smiled at the captain and did not speak, but took out the cloth bag from my pocket and gently opened it in front of several people, revealing the four dazzling medals inside.

As soon as my medal was displayed, it immediately stopped the few in front of me. Generally, military merit medals are nothing, as long as you have participated in a few battles, it is possible to get them. The Order of the Red Banner is awarded to citizens of the Russian Federation who directly participated in the battles and showed special bravery and valor, and it is very difficult to get one, let alone three.

The atmosphere in the room was a little awkward, and the gray-haired lieutenant colonel came over and took the initiative to extend his hand to me: "Hello! Major Oshanina. My name is Samoilov and I am the chief of staff of the 378th Division. You must be tired from such a long journey, so sit down and rest and have a cup of tea with honey. ”

The impasse was invisibly resolved by the chief of staff, and Dorofeev hurriedly took advantage of this step to step down, "Yes, yes, yes! I have spoken, but I haven't invited you to sit down. He gestured as he sat down, "Let's sit down and talk." ”

After we sat down, the Chief of Staff poured two cups of tea and placed them in front of me and Boroda. Dorofeev asked Boroda in a flattering tone: "Comrade Captain, I wonder if there is anything I can do for you?" ”

Boroda was not polite, nodded and said: "Comrade division commander, I was ordered to come out to rescue General Vlasov of the 2nd Assault Army, and on the way, I met Major Oshanina, who had escaped from the encirclement, and she brought the news that General Vlasov was besieged in the village of Pyatenica. Because the small detachment I led encountered the Germans on the way forward, and after a fierce battle, almost all casualties were lost. Since we do not have the strength to relieve General Vlasov at the moment, the commander of the front ordered me to return temporarily and look for new units to take part in the siege relief battle. I wonder if Comrade Lu Dao will be able to send troops to attack with me and go to the village of Pyatnica to relieve the siege of friendly troops? ”

Dorofeev frowned and thought about it, judging by his expression, he was reluctant to send troops. Sure enough, he sighed and said, "Comrade Captain, I also want to send troops to help you." But no, I can't just send troops without orders from my superiors. ”

Boroda stood up, stared at Dorofeev, and said: "Comrade Colonel, if you need an order, I can immediately contact the commander of the front and ask him to give you an order directly. ”

The chief of staff pointed to a telephone on the wooden table in the corner of the wall and said: "Comrade Captain, it is a high-frequency telephone that can be used to talk directly to the headquarters of the front army. ”

Boroda walked over, picked up the phone, dialed a number, and said, "Please pick me up from the front headquarters." After a moment's wait, he continued, "I'm Captain Boroda, please help me find General Meretskov, I have something important to ask him for." After a minute or two of waiting, he spoke again, "Hello, Comrade Commander of the Front, I'm Captain Boroda, and I'm calling you now at the division headquarters of the 378th Division of the 59th Army......"

After a few minutes of speaking, he turned around, covered the microphone with his hand and said to Dorofeev: "Comrade division commander, the commander of the front army wants to speak to you personally. ”

Hearing that it was the commander of the Front who was going to talk to him, Dorofeev's face was flushed with excitement, he rushed to the wall in two steps, took the phone from Boroda's hand, and said into the microphone: "Hello, Comrade Commander of the Front, I am Colonel Dorofeev, commander of the 378th Division. ……”

As the colonel answered the phone, Boroda sat down at the table and took a long sip of his cup of tea. "I've heard of you, Comrade Captain." The chief of staff suddenly spoke.

"Really? Comrade Lieutenant Colonel. I don't know what you've heard about me? ”

"I once heard from one of my comrades-in-arms who worked in the headquarters of the army group that when the Great Patriotic War broke out, you were awarded the Order of the Red Banner and you were the lieutenant station chief of the 5th border station near Suoyarvi on the Soviet-Finnish border. After the start of combat operations, Finnish troops surrounded the border posts. You led our warriors to repel twelve enemy onslaughts in two days. So the enemy began to bombard this border station. You held out in siege for twenty-two days. When you run out of ammo, you lead your warriors into a white-knuckle combat with the enemy, and at the end of the day, you break through from the enemy's unexpected direction - frontally, and escape the enemy's pursuit with full equipment and wounded. Five days later, your squad and the large forces of our army converged. For this, you and your comrades-in-arms were honored, and you were awarded a second Order of the Red Banner. "Led troops to break through from the front of the enemy?! I've heard that Li Yunlong has done this kind of thing, and it seems that this captain is also a great character, no wonder he can get Meretskov's weight.

Hearing the lieutenant colonel say this, Boroda smiled slightly and said, "Comrade Chief of Staff, I didn't expect you to know quite well about my past. ”

The lieutenant colonel continued: "I haven't finished speaking, my comrades-in-arms also said that you were later transferred to the 7th Army, and while fighting near Petrozavoodsk, you were wounded, and after recovering from your wounds, you became the commander of the guard company of the military council of the army. Later, after you got to know Commander Meretskov, he was transferred to the Operations Department of the Front Command as an assistant to the chief. Am I right? Comrade Captain. ”

"Exactly, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel."

Colonel Dorofeev returned from the phone call and gave the latest order to the Chief of Staff: "Comrade Chief of Staff, according to the order of the commander of the Front, immediately transfer the troops and put them under the command of Captain Boroda, and go to the village of Pyatnitsa as soon as possible to rescue General Vlasov who was trapped there. ”

"Obey the order, comrade division commander, I will mobilize the troops immediately." After saying that, the chief of staff got up and went to the corner to make a call.

Less than five minutes later, the chief of staff came back and replied: "Comrade division commander, our troops have been transferred, including eight companies of infantry and a tank regiment, all under the command of Captain Boroda. ”

Captain Boroda raised his hand and looked at the time, and said: "It's three o'clock in the afternoon, Comrade Chief of Staff, can you tell me how long it will take for the troops to be assembled?" ”

The chief of staff also raised his hand and looked at his watch, and replied: "It will take about three and a half hours, that is, at six o'clock, the troops can complete the assembly." Speaking of this, he added as if apologetically: "You must know that the troops of the entire division are scattered in a wide combat area, and it will take time to assemble. ”

"Three hours is too long, Comrade Chief of Staff." "It's almost twenty-five kilometers from here to the village of Pyatnitsa, and the troops are almost infantry, and even a rapid march will take at least seven or eight hours, and by the time we get there, it's already midnight." ……”

"Comrade Captain," I interjected, interrupting Boroda, "Comrade Chief of Staff has done his best, after all, it will not be an easy task to gather the scattered troops, so be patient and wait." ”

"Yes, Major Oshanina is right." Dorofeev echoed me and said, "Gathering troops in three hours is already our limit." ”

Hearing all of us say this, Captain Boroda had no choice but to say helplessly: "Understood, Comrade Major. For now, it seems that we can only wait patiently. ”