After I said this with anger, I pointed with my hand to Captain Morozov, who was sitting behind Gaidar and had always remained silent, and said unceremoniously: "Captain Morozov, tell us how your mortar company provides artillery support to the attacking troops......

Morozov, who was sitting in an unobtrusive position without saying a word, suddenly heard me call his name, hurriedly stood up, and asked a little nervously: "Comrade division commander, I don't know what I should say?" ”

When he asked, I was stunned. I hesitated for a moment, and then decisively instructed him: "Let me tell you how your artillery provided artillery support to the attacking troops, and why it failed to suppress the fire of the Germans on the high ground, and the attacks of the 3rd and 4th regiments of the 3rd Regiment failed repeatedly. ”

Seeing that I had already explained what he had said, Morozov, who had no way out, could only bite the bullet and began to tell everyone about the artillery's performance in the battle just now: "...... Before the attack, Lieutenant Colonel Kosgaard and Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar told me that I must use mortar fire to suppress the German fire on the hillside and cover the infantry rushing up the hill. Since my well-trained gunners were all lost in the brutal battles of the early stage, the ones who participated in the battle today were all newly recruited recruits. Speaking of this, his courage gradually grew, his eyes looked at me, and he said boldly: "Comrade division commander, you also know that artillery is different from other arms such as infantry, and after new recruits are added to the company, they must go through at least half a year of relevant training before they can truly form combat effectiveness. ”

I nodded and gestured to him. Said politely: "I understand this." Go on. ”

"I have eight 81mm mortars in my company. All captured from the Germans. After a week of intensive training, the new gunners' skills were a bit stiff, and after a salvo, all but one of the shells landed on the hillside and exploded.

Seeing that we were shelling the positions of the Germans, the infantry began to charge. They formed a line of skirmishers, crooked like a long black snake, twenty meters behind this line. Again, the same skirmishers. Since the infantry charged very quickly, and soon approached the mountainside, I was afraid that the artillery fire would accidentally injure my own men, so I ordered the firing to stop. At this time, the Germans on the hillside, seeing that the shelling had stopped, came out of their hiding places, crouched or lay on the hillside, and fired wildly at the charging team below. Faced with the rain of bullets, our fighters fell. In this case, the troops should choose to lie down. Conduct a return fire and wait for our artillery support. ”

"That's right, in this case. You should lie down on the spot and return fire and wait for our artillery support. Captain Morozov, did they do it? ”

Unexpectedly, after listening to my words, Morozov shook his head with a painful expression and replied: "No! I heard the battalion commander who had organized the attack, brandishing his pistol and shouting at the soldiers: 'Forward, forward!' Come on! Why are you cowards lying on the ground, aren't you afraid to grind your belly out of the cocoon? Advance! Get up and move forward! Rush forward! If anyone doesn't rush forward, I'll shoot him!" ......' At his shout, the fighters had to brave the hail of bullets to get up from the ground and bravely rush towards the enemy's position. But it was in vain, the enemy's fire was so dense that many of the fighters had just stood up and had not had time to take two steps before they fell down like pillars. ”

"Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar," I asked angrily at the commander of the fourth regiment in front of me, "who is this blind battalion commander, call him here immediately." Who gave him such a right to let our fighters go to their deaths in vain. Have you forgotten that I once told you that in the army, the most precious thing is not weapons and equipment, but the life of every Red Army soldier? You, immediately go and call the battalion commander here, and I will ask you how he commanded it. He was not qualified to be a commander at all, and was only worthy to be a soldier in the army. ”

Gaidar waited for me to finish his temper, looked embarrassed, and replied in a low voice: "Comrade division commander, the battalion commander can't come." He died in the second charge. ”

In the past, I have heard more than once that the Soviet army's tactics are dull, and the offensive tactics follow the pattern of the cold weapon era, relying on the tactics of crowds and flattening at the expense of the lives of a large number of soldiers to achieve the final victory. I have seen many similar situations with my own eyes since I crossed over, and I know that many commanders will not fight at all except to achieve victory at the cost of countless lives. In order to avoid similar things in independent teachers and students, I have stressed to several regiment commanders more than once that the lives of soldiers are precious, so we must not fight hard with the German army when fighting, and we must know how to fight skillfully and minimize the casualties of the troops. Unexpectedly, the battle of the 3rd and 4th regiments attacking the high ground today still caused huge casualties, and even the commander of the 3rd regiment, Kosgaard, was wounded.

Thinking of this, I took a few deep breaths, tried to calm the anger in my heart, and then made a gesture to Gaidar and Morozov for them to sit down. I glanced at the commanders present again, and tried my best to calm my tone: "Comrades commanders, the reason why I am not satisfied with today's battle to attack the high ground is because our commanders are too light on the enemy, thinking that we have more troops than the Germans, and if we fight one by one, we will win. Without careful planning, they recklessly attacked.

But did such a hasty attack have any effect? No, except for the heavy casualties and losses of our army, it has no effect at all. Captain Morozov said that the gunners under his command were all new recruits, and their personal skills were limited, and in order to prevent accidental injury to their own people by artillery fire, when our troops rushed halfway up the mountain, the artillery stopped firing. As a result, our infantry had to attack the German positions without any fire cover.

Speaking of which, I can't help but criticize Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar again, although there is no artillery support, but your two regiments are still armed with a large number of light and heavy machine guns, why don't you use them to suppress the enemy on the hillside with fire? Judging from the report you gave me. Lieutenant Colonel Kosgaard was at the time of providing fire cover for the attacking troops with heavy machine guns. Wounded by German mortars. Even if the artillery did not come in handy. If you set up a few more machine gun fire points, the dense fire generated by the light and heavy machine guns will completely suppress the Germans on the hillside. ”

Hearing my harsh criticism, Gaidar stood up again and took the initiative to admit his mistake to me: "Comrade division commander, I was wrong. I was too underestimated to be a little too weak to think that there were more than a hundred German soldiers on the hillside, and that they had not yet had time to build fortifications. With just one charge, we can destroy them and take back our positions. ”

Seeing that he had realized his mistake, I gently patted him on the shoulder and said with a pleasant face: "Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, please remember that you, as a middle-level commander, must not make such a mistake of underestimating the enemy at any time, because a wrong decision by the commander will lead countless soldiers to pay the price of blood and lives. All right. Sit down. ”

After talking about the battle on the heights, I will discuss with you the distribution of forces to defend the heights of Mamayev Heights. This high ground beneath our feet. Say it's not big, it's not small. If there is only one regiment, the number of troops will be less; But if the entire division were placed here, such a dense formation, under the shelling and bombardment of the German army, would have suffered heavy casualties.

However, the commanders present were obviously aware of this problem, and Shedelikov took the initiative to propose: "Comrade division commander, although there were many casualties among the four regiments in today's air raids and battles on the high ground, our total strength still has ** thousand people, if all of them are piled up on this high ground. Under the double blow of German artillery fire and air raids, at least a few thousand soldiers will die in vain. So I built yì, leaving two regiments on the Mamayev hill, and the remaining three regiments were withdrawn to the city. ”

I looked at the map of the Mamayev Gang in front of me, looked up and asked the rest of the regimental commanders: "Lieutenant Colonel Shedelikov has already expressed his own opinion, what is the opinion of several of you?" ”

Pugachev and Gaidar also hurriedly nodded in agreement: "We agree with Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov's construction." Since our division was replenished with 6,000 recruits some time ago, although it has not yet formed combat effectiveness for the time being, the total strength of the division is tens of thousands, and we still have as many as 1,000 people in today's attrition. If such a dense formation was maintained on the hill, it would have been an easy target for German aircraft. ”

Oleg, who had not spoken for a long time, stared at the map for a long time, and finally asked: "Comrade division commander, I would like to ask where you plan to arrange the surplus troops?" It is three kilometers away from the city, and if they are all transferred to the city, once the troops on the high ground are insufficient, it is afraid that reinforcements will not be in time. ”

"Comrade Regiment Commander is right," Vilore, the political commissar of the Fifth Regiment, also stood up and echoed Oleg: "Once the high ground is tight, the road leading here will definitely be blocked by German artillery fire or enemy aircraft, and even if our troops are dispatched, they will suffer heavy casualties on the road, and when they reach the high ground, it is estimated that there will not be many reinforcements left." ”

After listening to Oleg and Vylol's worries, I said confidently: "The third, fourth, and fifth regiments do not need to withdraw into the city, and there is a large settlement in the southeast of the heights, near the wharf, and I have observed that there are some solid high-rise buildings inside, and there is no problem in hiding the troops of the three regiments there." As soon as the forces on the high ground are tight, your reinforcements can rush from the settlements in a matter of minutes' walk. ”

After listening to my words, Oleg looked at the map again, and after glancing at Velol, he nodded with a smile and flattered me: "Comrade division commander is still thoughtful, and it is indeed the best choice to put a few regiments in the residential areas of the highlands." ”

I ignored his sycophants, looked up and said to Sedjerikov: "Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov, the task of holding the main position of Mamayev Gang is the responsibility of you and your regiment, remember that most of the troops are placed in the hiding hole on the south side of the hillside, and you must not put too many troops on the front of the defense." ”

"Understood, Comrade Division Commander." Sedelikov replied very dryly: "The number of hidden caves is not enough, and when I go back, I urge the soldiers to dig them overnight and try to complete a sufficient number before dawn." ”

"Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov, it's not to fight, it's to be done." I said with a stern expression: "Go back and tell the soldiers, sweat more in peacetime and bleed less in wartime, now dig more shovel of soil, and wait for the fight to start." You can take one less piece of shell skin. ”

Shederikov listened to me. Nodding vigorously. He promised: "Okay, comrade division commander, I will relay your original words to the soldiers." ”

I turned my gaze to Pugachev again: "Comrade Captain, this high ground where the division headquarters is located is guarded by your 2nd Regiment. My request to you is to dig more bomb shelters, air-raid shelters, and troop hiding holes, and to minimize the number of troops on the surface positions, so that the enemy's reconnaissance planes will not be able to figure out how many troops there are on our high ground. ”

"Understood, I immediately convey your order to the fighters."

I nodded. Standing up straight, he said to the remaining Gaidar, Oleg, and Vylol: "The remaining three regiments will be under your command and immediately transferred to the settlements. Pay attention to concealment, never be exposed, our division has no air defense, and once the German air force is present, we will become lambs to the slaughter. ”

Oleg turned his head to look at the three Germans sitting at the door, and asked me in a low voice: "Division commander, what about the Germans?" Do you want to follow us to the settlements? ”

I turned my head to look at Grams, Beckman, and the others sitting in the doorway, and thought for a moment. He shook his head slowly and said, "Forget it, let's let them and their troops stay on the high ground." Maybe it might even come in handy. ”

After saying this, I called Morozov in front of me again and explained to him: "Captain Morozov, just when I was at the headquarters of the army group, I raised the matter to my superiors that we did not have artillery and air defense, and they have promised to send us two artillery batteries in the near future. When the artillery company comes, immediately merge the mortar company with them to form an artillery battalion, with you as the commander of the artillery battalion and the commander of the mortar company. Do you understand? ”

Morozov probably never dreamed that this big pie would fall on his head, and he nodded excitedly and said: "Comrade division commander, please rest assured, as long as we are replenished with an artillery company, preferably an anti-tank artillery company, with our current favorable terrain, we will definitely be able to defeat the attacking German tanks." ”

I have already explained the things that should be explained, and I was about to announce the dismissal of the meeting, when suddenly there seemed to be an acquaintance missing from the room, so I hurriedly asked: "By the way, do any of you know where Captain Persjian of the tank detachment is?" ”

Hearing Perstian's order, Sederikov, Oleg, and Pugachev all shook their heads in unison and said: "I don't know, we haven't seen him for a long time." Sedjerikov also deliberately added: "Comrade division commander, in the battle some time ago, after the complete loss of tanks in the tank detachment of Captain Perstian, he and the surviving tank crews withdrew from my position to the position of the third regiment. They remained in the 3rd Regiment until we were transferred, and perhaps Lieutenant Colonel Kosgaard knew his whereabouts. ”

"Don't bother Lieutenant Colonel Kosgaard," Gaidar said in time, "I know the whereabouts of Captain Perska." If there were tanks today, I think he would have provided us with artillery support with tank guns. After the battle, he and the commander of the first battalion of the third regiment, Godunov, remained on the 1o7.5 heights. ”

Since I had just personally instructed Gaidar, when the tank corps arrived, Godunov's battalion would be withdrawn. Since Perstian and Godunov are together, then the two of them will return together with their troops later. Thinking of this, I waved my hand and said to everyone, "It's okay, let's dismiss the meeting." Seeing Grams, they also stood up and wanted to leave, and hurriedly called them: "Grams, Captain Beckman, you stay, I still have something to tell you." ”

When the commanders had left, and only me, Razumayeva, and three Germans were left in the command, I waved to them and said in a friendly voice: "Gentlemen, please come and sit down." ”

After the three of them were seated at the table, I first politely expressed my gratitude to them: "Captain Grams, Captain Beckman, thank you very much for your assistance to us today, so that the 5th Regiment was able to capture the 1o7,5 heights occupied by the enemy with zero casualties. "In order not to irritate their sensitive nerves, I deliberately avoided using the term German or German army, and instead used a general term - enemy.

Beckman could understand my words, and he smiled and said, "Your Excellency, you're welcome, since we are all on the same front, then serving you is also what we should do." ”

And after listening to the translation of the second lieutenant Grettka, Grahms frowned, and spoke in German with a stern expression, and the second lieutenant hurriedly translated for me: "Comrade division commander, I think you are too strict with your subordinates. Without any preparation. The attack was on high ground guarded by a company of German soldiers. They were able to suffer only seven hundred casualties. It is not easy to seize the high ground. ”

Grams's words surprised me, and I couldn't help but ask curiously, "Why do you say that?" You must know that if I were to command this attack, the casualties would not even be half. ”

"According to my experience of fighting with the Russian ** team, the Russians seem to be not afraid of death, they line up in a dense formation, without any fire cover, towards the position of our army. Fearlessly, they charged, wave after wave. And our soldiers, all they need to do is hide in the fortifications and pull the trigger on the crowd that rushes up, and the final result is that a ** Russian is killed by us in front of the position. For example, in the first half of this year, my company held a high ground next to the village of Ryabink near Rzhevden 6 and repelled more than 20 charges of the Russian ** team in one day. After cleaning up the battlefield, we now have more than 8oo Russians killed, while my company has only 17 casualties. ”

I couldn't help but sneer when I heard this, and said in my heart that after all, your company still suffered 17 casualties. In my memory. Even more exaggerated was the assault on the Serovsk Heights, according to the battalion commanders who took part in the fighting. They attacked only one of the enemy's pillboxes. As a result, the battalion commander lost all the company-level commanders, almost all the platoon-level commanders. When he encouraged the fighters to make a final charge, less than 1oo remained of the reinforced battalion of more than 7oo men, but the enemy's machine guns suddenly became mute. The Red Army soldiers who broke into the bunker killed the second machine gunner, and now the first machine gunner was crazy, because he could not stand the mountain of corpses in front of him.

"Since Captain Grams said so, I would like to say a few words as well." Beckman, who was sitting next to him, saw that after Grams finished speaking, the expression on my face was flat, and there was no sign of fire, so he couldn't help but interject: "I think your troops are different from other Russian ** teams I have seen." ”

"Oh?!" Beckman's words aroused my curiosity, and I hurriedly asked, "Don't you know how my troops are different from other troops?" ”

Beckman shrugged his shoulders and said with some reluctance: "Well, I have the impression that the Russians are very dull. In the Battle of Kharkov, my company captured a large number of Russian soldiers. It's funny to say that they were all in a forest, and they were captured by us without a fight. When I interrogated one of the officers afterwards, he replied that they had received orders to stand by in the forest, and that they did not have orders from their superiors when the large army was defeated, so they did not dare to do anything, so they could only stay where they were. And what about your troops, without further orders, the two regiment commanders dared to change the route of the march without authorization and throw their own troops into battle. ”

After listening to Beckman's words, I couldn't help but smile bitterly. I looked over to Razumeyeva's position and saw that she was looking at us curiously, so I waved at her and said, "Comrade Ensign, there is nothing to do with you here, you go out first, if there is anything, I will call you." I went out to see Captain Basmanov, and told him that I had important matters to discuss with Captain Grams, and that no one was allowed to come in without my orders. ”

After Razumeyeva had left, I said to Beckman with a stern expression: "Three gentlemen, please swear in the name of the officer that you will never leak my conversation with you to anyone else. ”

Seeing that my expression was stern, not like joking with them, the three of them looked at each other, and then swore one after another according to my suggestion, saying that they would never divulge what I said to them to outsiders.

Seeing that the three of them carried out my mention to the letter, I calmed down and said unhurriedly: "Gentlemen, I think you should know that a few years ago, there was a large-scale purge in the Soviet army, right? Seeing that the three of them were nodding, obviously they knew no less about this matter than I did, so I directly ignored the political inducements, the process and the far-reaching impact on various fields of the Soviet Union, and only talked about the impact on the army, "Due to various reasons, in our army, a great purge was carried out from top to bottom, and all the army commanders in the army, almost all division commanders and brigade commanders, more than half of the regiment commanders, all group army-level political members, almost all armies, divisions, Brigade-level political commissars, one-third of regimental-level political commissars, and a large number of middle- and lower-level commanders were purged. And these sudden vacancies were replaced by a large number of middle and lower-level commanders. As well as Cheka members of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Let's think about it. A large number of regiment commanders and even battalion commanders were suddenly promoted to cadres at or above the division level. What a sad thing for the troops. At the same time, the consequence of the severe results is that the anti-purge campaign has greatly obliterated the subjective initiative of the commanders of the troops, which is exactly the opposite of the mental outlook of your German officer corps and the non-commissioned officer class of the National Defense Forces. ”

Hearing my praise for the German troops, several people couldn't help but smile with pride on their faces.

I continued: "It is precisely for this reason that in our troops, down to the company platoon commander and up to the commander of the group army. It is not uncommon for even trivial matters to be reported to their superiors before they dare to make a decision. The reason for this situation is undoubtedly the invisible shackles imposed on the commanders and fighters of our army by the shadow of the Great Purge, which has conspicuously restricted the normal swing of our army's combat effectiveness. ”

After I said this, I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, you must know that these words, although they are all true, at the end of this special year, it is very rebellious, if any of the three of them reveals my words, it is estimated that it will not take two days. Someone from the Ministry of Internal Affairs would have sent me to Marshal Tukhachevsky.

Grams, listening to my words, nodded vigorously. He said with deep sympathy: "Comrade division commander, I think the reason why our army was able to achieve such huge results in the early stage of the war, and the Russian ** team was defeated and fled on all fronts. The reason for this is, of course, there is the factor of the suddenness of the war, but after I heard you say this, I personally believe that the most important thing is that the command system of the Russian ** unit has fallen into chaos, and the commanders of countless units have been in a hurry in the face of the fierce attack of our army, and the combat units have not undergone strict training and are extremely lacking in tactical quality. ”

"Alright, Captain Grams, don't go any further, these topics are too sensitive, and if they are heard by the people of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, it is estimated that the lives of all four of us will be in danger." Beckman saw that Grams had a tendency to continue, so he hurriedly stopped him, and took the initiative to ask me: "Your Excellency, what are you going to arrange for us?" Will you stay here and fight alongside you, or will you be sent to a prisoner of war camp with the soldiers who refuse to surrender? ”

Beckman's words immediately attracted the attention of Grimes and Greitka, who were probably worried about their fate and future for some time.

"Gentlemen," I said, standing up, "I can tell you very responsibly that in the near future, Mamayev Gang will become the focus of contention between the Soviet and German armies, and will become a meat grinder that devours the lives of countless people." If you all stay, the chances of survival are only 1o%. If you are sent to a prisoner of war camp, you will soon be sent to Siberia, you must know that almost all the young men of our country are on the front lines, and countless more have fallen on the battlefield. At present, there is an extreme shortage of labor in the country, and prisoners of war will become the substitute for the labor needed for the economic development of our country. At this point, I deliberately paused for a moment to observe the expressions of the three men. After listening to the second lieutenant's translation, Grams still sat there with a blank face, while Beckman's face became cloudy, as if he was considering whether to stay at Mamayev Hill or go to the prisoner of war camp.

Without waiting for Beckman to express his opinion, I continued: "Although prisoners of war are not the same as prisoners of labor camp, there is not much difference in treatment. I have heard that prisoner of war camps, which usually consist of small and rudimentary huts, are simply not able to withstand the bitter cold winds of the Siberian winter, and that a large number of prisoners of war die every day. ”

Captain Beckman was evidently frightened by my words, and he took off his large-brimmed hat and took out the handkerchief in his pocket and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. I ignored him and asked Grams, "Captain Grams, what do you think?" ”

Hearing my question, Grams's expression became solemn, and he asked me sternly: "Comrade division commander, I want to ask you, where will you stay in the coming days?" Is it Mamayev Hill or retreat to the city? ”

I smiled slightly, and said lightly: "Captain Grams, Mamayev Gang is my post, and I will definitely not leave here until this battle is over." ”

After listening to the translation, a smile appeared on Grams's face, he stood up, took the initiative to stretch out his hand to me, and said sincerely: "Comrade division commander, no matter where you stay, I, Captain Grams, will be with you. ”

"Captain Grams, you made the right decision." I held his hand tightly and smiled and said, "In a few months, you will see how right you are to make the decision you made today." ”

After letting go of Grams's hand, I turned to Beckman and asked, "What about you, Mr. Captain, are you going to the prisoner of war camp, or are you staying with us at Mamayev Heights?" ”

All three of us were fixed on Captain Beckman, who was wiping his sweat with his handkerchief and whispering words as if he were making a difficult choice. After four or five minutes, he stopped wiping his sweat, put the handkerchief in his pocket, and put the big-brimmed hat on his head again, then he straightened up, raised his hand and saluted me, and said with a resolute expression: "Your Excellency, Master Oshanina, I have decided. I am willing to be your subordinate, like Captain Grams, and stay with you at Mamayev Heights. (To be continued......)

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