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By the time the Moscow crisis was brewing, a terrible fireball was already flashing in the middle of the Central Asian plains outside Khujand. The sudden increase in the range of the 305-mm fortress guns was completely unexpected by the Soviet troops, and when the first shells whistled down, the artillery positions of the Soviet 54th Army, deployed five kilometers behind the straggler trenches, were dealt an unprecedented terrible blow. Even with nearly half the weight, a 256-kilogram high-explosive grenade can still set off a terrifying mushroom cloud. Every shell that fell could smash a five-meter-deep crater, and the frozen earth squeezed each other in the explosion, and the gravel and dirt were swept into the air at a height of 100 meters. The diffuse blast wave of the landslide was enough to kill all the soldiers in the nearby bunkers.

Barbed wire, tunnels, bunkers, trenches, and gun emplacements were brittle than eggshells under the onslaught of the fortress's heavy artillery. The 122-mm, 152-mm, and 203-mm guns, which symbolized the Soviet artillery, disintegrated and buried under the coarser muzzles without even firing a single shell. Piles of shells began to explode, and from a distance, the Soviet positions forty kilometers away were as brilliant as fireworks.

Knowing that their usefulness was becoming less and less, the garrison troops in the hilltop fortress stuffed all their enthusiasm into the barrels, and the commander of the fortress also took special care of these young men, and ordered all 720 bottom exhaust range extender shells to be distributed. The 265-kilogram grenade has a radius of up to 550 meters for personnel and 71 meters for stationary targets. One can imagine what terrible damage it will cause when the artillery goes all out to shoot out this batch of shells!

So much so that the Soviet 54th Army, which was defending Andijan, was completely stunned by the sudden extension of artillery fire! All the phone lines were crowded in an instant, and all kinds of shouts and yells filled the space.

"Hey, hey, hey? 156th Division, connect me to 156th Division. What the? Broken phone line? Then go fix it! ”

"Damn it, orderly?"

"Comrade Commander! They were aimed at the infantry positions. ”

After forty minutes of ravaging the artillery positions, General Kirponos again looked bitterly at the infantry trenches and fortified troops in the area closer to the muzzles of the fortified guns.

The fortified area troops are based on the new tactics derived from the large-scale trench warfare in the last European war. To put it simply, a large number of permanent and field fortifications and other fortifications were constructed, and the obstacles of each fortification were combined to form a fortification system, which was widely used in the defense systems of various countries around the world. Centered on sturdy permanent cement fortifications, it is equipped with a large number of field fortifications, which are equipped with specialized artillery and machine guns. According to the intensity and importance of the direction of operation, the depth of the fortified area can reach up to tens of kilometers, and the density of firepower on each kilometer is quite amazing, so the Soviet army, which advocates firepower, attaches great importance to the deployment of the fortified area. Often, a fortified group had 20 machine guns, 10 to 20 field guns of various types, and at least 10 anti-tank weapons.

Tashkent is the most important strategic point on the plain of the Syr Darya River, which not only holds Andijan, but also radiates the entire Great Plain from Shymkent to Samarkand. So after the Shanghai Communiqué. The Soviet army continued to strengthen the Tashkent fortress left by Tsarist Russia, transported a large number of old-fashioned fortress heavy artillery during the European war, and built 1,296 fortifications on this plain that is 350 kilometers long from north to south and 150 kilometers wide from east to west, with 25 machine gun battalions alone and a total strength of 18,000 people. After the end of the First Battle of Central Asia. Stalin also ordered an increase in anti-tank firepower, and dozens of anti-tank battalions were deployed here, with as many as 2,177 anti-tank guns and anti-aircraft guns of various types! Of the 530,000 troops of the Uzbek Front in Tashkent, 200,000 were involved in the fortified area. The task of these fortified units was very simple and clear. It is to use layers of fortifications and bunkers to consume the enemy's living forces and prevent the enemy's armored clusters from breaking through quickly.

This is the main reason why Stalin was cut off in Kyzylorda and still insisted on holding on, believing that this would become the grave of the Wehrmacht. According to his ideas. Even if the Wehrmacht committed twice as many troops, it would be the largest in Central Asia. Even in front of the vast fortified territory that can rank in the top five in the world, he hit his head and bled out.

Dealing with the fortified area is the most headache for all teams in the world, especially in Tashkent, an area that must be fought unavoidably, and the fortifications poured with reinforced concrete give all the generals a headache. Therefore, in order to clear the forward obstacles for their assault troops and destroy important artillery positions, the boys of the fortress artillery aimed their guns at the area of the area of fortification on the width of 20 kilometers on the front, ready to use heavy artillery to open a gap for the assault troops.

"They're on us! Be careful, get down, get down, don't look up, everyone don't move, their shells can only tickle for us. Seeing the shells that were still whistling over their heads falling from their heads, many Soviet soldiers began to be agitated. Officers and commissars immediately stepped forward to stabilize morale, and some deliberately patted the thick concrete, a move that reassured many soldiers.

But the officers and commissars lied.

After the destruction of the civil war and the priority of the five-year industrial plan, the Soviet fortifications with scarce materials were much worse than their European and American counterparts, and due to the urgent need for national construction, a large amount of steel was used in the five-year plan, resulting in many permanent cement fortifications not even a few steel bars could not be seen. In many areas, the simplest method is to build the interior walls with cement, add bricks in the middle, and then pour a layer of cement on the outside. It seems to be sturdy, but the actual utility is much worse.

Such a fortification may protect against 155 mm shells, but in the face of 256 kg of heavy artillery originally intended for the Navy, it is no different from paper paste.

Boom, boom, boom.

After two or three rounds of testing, the fortress cannon became more and more accurate, and the shells were constantly thrown at the places marked with fortifications on the map. "You see, it's still a long way off. Let me tell you, the larger the caliber, the less accurate it is, and the enemy is using the old artillery of the last century, which will not damage our fortifications at all. Political Commissar Konstantin stood in his anti-tank gun fortifications, facing three 76-mm anti-tank guns and dozens of artillerymen, pointing at the fireball thousands of kilometers away without changing its color, looking immovable and tough.

The Soviet artillerymen, who didn't even know a few big characters, were all relieved to see that the shells were really inaccurate. Seeing this, Konstantin immediately asked everyone to prepare the shells, and said that he would make the Chinese tanks suffer a little. The artillerymen, who believed it to be true, immediately got busy, but a minute later an earth-shattering bang came from beside them, and the earth shook violently and violently. The shells piled up in the corners rolled down and collapsed, and a large amount of mud and dust suddenly poured into the narrow shelling window, and the thick smell of gunpowder smoke choked the mouth and nose, and everyone almost choked their breath.

When the line of sight was restored, the artillerymen found that the same anti-tank fortifications 600 meters away from the door were no longer visible, and only one M1936 76-mm anti-tank gun with a broken barrel was seen in the whole fortification. In the place where the barrel was broken, there was also a headless corpse. Burning little by little in the flames.

Konstantin's face changed, and he hurriedly avoided the suspicious looks cast by the artillerymen, sat down and began to wipe the pistol. The attentive soldier even saw that the hands of the respected comrade commissar trembled a little.

A minute later, a second round of shells fell. At this point, no one spoke anymore. Everyone knew that they would die faster if they went out, so they huddled together, and several of them were so frightened that they kept praying. If this kind of behavior was enough to be shot before, but now Konstantin just didn't see it, let's live first.

The fortified soldiers hiding in the permanent fortifications can at least have a psychological comfort, and those infantry in the front-line trenches are miserable. The lethal power of large-caliber shells is simply too great, even if they are buried in the trenches. are likely to be killed by the falling dirt and stones. You must know that for ordinary infantry, 150 mm shells are already extremely terrifying, so from the beginning of the war to the present, the Soviet troops have not dared to get too close to the fortress within 35 kilometers. Positions are also deployed along this maximum range line. So when the fortress cannon suddenly extended, raining down at a rate of 6 pieces per minute, you can imagine how great a panic it caused.

What's even more terrifying is that the opposite side took out all the long-range shells this time. At a rate of one per minute. They need to hold out for 150 minutes in the wind and explosion! So in the face of the seemingly never-ending shelling, a large number of front-line infantry began to retreat. Even the overseers set up their machine guns and couldn't stop the wolf-rushing soldiers.

The more the Soviets fled, the more excited the artillery boys on the top of the hill became, stripped naked, revealing their muscular muscles, and their cheeks, blackened by the flames, were covered with sweat. By the time the two-and-a-half-hour shelling was over, the area 20 kilometers wide and 42 kilometers deep at Khujand Fortress was already full of flames and huge craters. By the time Konstantin and the soldiers of the anti-tank battalion raised their heads, a torrent of steel had already appeared on the horizon.

Meng Lang, commander of the 103rd Division, stood on the command tank, holding the microphone and giving an order unhurriedly: "Take the battalion as a unit, and the infantry should pay attention to protection." Be centralized, not scattered! Don't rush to attack, if you encounter fierce resistance, stabilize first, and then call for support. Be careful of the river, the snow and ice have begun to melt this season, so protect the boat, bridge and vehicle from getting stuck in the mud. After the breakthrough, the troops should spread out to both flanks and not block the advance channel of the main forces behind. ”

As a classmate of Liu Mingzhao and Long Yun, a generation who came back in the face of the wind and waves of the North Sea, he started as a company commander of the guard division after returning to China, and has come to this day in a down-to-earth manner. Therefore, he has always been strict in governing the army, and he is famous for his skillful use of tactics. Although the division commander was stern and verbose, for the officers and men of the 103rd Division, the meticulous tactical arrangement benefited them a lot. What's more, the four Central Guard Divisions and the 1st to 5th Divisions are all ace divisions that have been fought from the Xinhai Year to the present, and it can be said that Yang Qiu has been trained in accordance with the standards of later generations, and his tactical literacy is extremely high.

Counting the division's armored battalions, the 103rd Division is a typical 7-battalion armored division, each battalion is full of 42 Type 36 main battle tanks, and in order to deal with dense and strong permanent fortifications, it is also attached to a 36C independent Spitfire Tank Regiment transferred from the rear. 420 tanks, with the cooperation of dozens of engineering tanks, quickly filled the first line of positions. Then, with the battalion as a unit, under the breakthrough tactics of Meng Lang's mercury outfall, a dozen gaps were carved out in the 20-kilometer-wide defensive line, and the other four divisions following them also immediately spread along these gaps to the two flanks, paving the way for the subsequent main force to pass.

"Tanks, it's enemy tanks! Prepare for battle. ”

The rumbling sound of the motor, like a battle horn, made Konstantin forget the embarrassment just now, and shouted for the artillery to get ready. Soon, five blurred figures appeared in front of them. "Manchurian Tiger, it's Manchurian Tiger!" There is no word for Siberian Tiger in Russian, so after learning the nickname of the 36 tank, the name of the Manchurian Tiger became a nightmare for Soviet tank crews and anti-tank guns.

"Reload! Aim for its tracks. "Konstantin is a commissar though. But the military literacy is good, knowing that his 76-mm anti-tank gun will not be able to deal with the main armor of the Type 36 tank, so he simply concentrates fire on the destruction of the marching mechanism.

Boom.

Three armor-piercing rounds came out of their chambers, two of which hit the mud at too low angles, and the remaining one hit the front with a ricocheting projectile. However, Konstantin was not discouraged and immediately organized a second round of shooting.

The light of the bunker caught the attention of the tank platoon, and four of them quickly pounced, while the other strange-looking tank moved to the side and rear under the protection of the infantry. Konstantin noticed the tank, but he was not aware of the danger. Because this tank is so weird! How so? It appears to use the same chassis as the Type 36, but with a significantly smaller turret and no long barrel. The main thing is that in front of it there is also a thick shovel used by a bulldozer, which when lowered has blocked the tracks. So he thought it was a modified engineering tank and did not want to waste shells.

Four 36 tanks quickly rushed to 600 meters and bombarded the anti-tank bunker. It has to be said that Konstantin's anti-tank battalion is still very tenacious, and after a gap was punched out of the bunker, it still gritted its teeth and did not retreat, fighting back desperately like a stubborn child. This tenacity finally paid off, and a poorly positioned 36 tank with half of its side exposed was accurately hit by a shell on the track. Loss of mobility.

"Well done! Markovic, one more shot. Konstantin was very good at mobilizing his emotions, and immediately cheered loudly for the gunners who hit the tracks, and the remaining two guns also hit one after another. But because of the angle of shot, they didn't achieve results. A dozen shells incapacitated only one "Manchurian Tiger", although the results were still discouraged, but strangely, just when Konstantin wondered whether to retreat. The remaining three abruptly abandoned them and accelerated to the right in an attempt to get around.

"Great! Turn around. They're going to expose their sides, get ready! Konstantin thought that the other party had made a mistake and excitedly turned the cannon with the soldiers. After all, no matter how strong the "Manchurian Tiger" is, the side tracks are still very weak. But at the moment when the muzzle of the cannon turned, a black shadow suddenly flashed out of the shelling window on the left.

"It's an engineering tank! Machine guns, watch out for infantry. Konstantin thought it was an engineering tank covering the infantry, but just as he called out to the machine gunners to get ready, an orange flame burst into the eye!

The high-pressure air pushes the gasoline and pulls out a 130-meter-long line of fire. Without even shouting carefully, flames burst in through the shooting hole. In an instant, the entire castle was filled with flames and smoke, and sparks scurried around in the semi-enclosed space. In the blink of an eye, everyone was on fire.

The power of the Type 36C Spitfire was terrifying, in some ways more powerful than the tank gun. After three consecutive fires, the inside and outside of the bunker were already scorched, dozens of Soviet artillery and machine gunners were screaming and desperately fleeing, and some of them rolled on the ground as soon as they came out trying to extinguish the flames, and even the approaching Chinese soldiers did not have time to care. It didn't even take a strafing shot, and the detonating shells blew the bunker to pieces.

In the darkness before dawn, the lines of fire that erupted one after another were bright and terrifying, and they were panicked by the troops of the fortified area with high hopes, and they were constantly devoured by the fire-breathing monsters that threw them for the first time.

Due to the heavy losses of the artillery in the previous fortress artillery raids, when the 103rd Division continued to advance in depth, Kirponos could not even find much means of counterattack. Less than 100 T26 and BT7 tanks could not even make a splash when they were thrown into it, and they were destroyed by the 36 and 31 tanks that rushed in. Even the fortifications with high hopes have become big fireballs because of the appearance of Spitfire tanks. Seeing that the troops were about to collapse, he had to order the use of reserves, trying to drag the enemy with crowd tactics, and at the same time stepping up the call for reinforcements nearby.

But he forgot that his opponent was a country with more abundant human resources than the Soviet Union, which had a population of 150 million before the war! Moreover, in the minds of those who rule the country, there is no concept of elite soldiers. Looking at the whole world, only Yang Qiu has always maintained a large number of armored troops and air force establishments while developing the economy and researching new technologies and weapons, and even to this day the air force still has thousands of Sparrow biplane trainers from the European war period to maintain the flight team. And even after the improvement of industrial capacity and the gradual superiority of weapons and equipment, he never gave up his manpower superiority. Therefore, in the siege of Tashkent, three armies with a total of 16 divisions and 350,000 soldiers were invested in Andijan alone.

Relying on a group army of less than 80,000 people to hold back three armies cannot be done under any circumstances. Faced with a resolutely committed opponent, Kirponos held out for only three hours before having to give the order to retreat to Gulistan.

At the same time that Andijan opened the gap, Sun Chuanfang of South Road was not to be outdone. First, the Tajik 24th Infantry Corps launched an attack on Dushanbe through the mountains, and then he himself led 8 divisions and 2 Afghan divisions north from Termez. He first asked Du Yuming to assist the 24th Army in encircling a Soviet infantry division in Dushanbe, while the remaining 9 divisions gave up the encirclement and forced through the defensive junction between Karshi and Shahri Sabuz overnight, directly leaving the two Soviet infantry divisions behind, and trying to storm Samarkand.

Nine a.m. The 2nd Airborne Division, protected by 40 Thunderbolts, parachuted in a saline area 55 kilometers from the eastern desert of Urgench. Due to the open terrain and thorough preparations, the parachute landing was exceptionally smooth, with only 17 casualties and the remaining 13,000 paratroopers landing safely. And a few hours later opened up a field airfield. Although attacked by two tank battalions of the Soviet 29th Army, which arrived later, this time the air force did not let the chaos in Balkhash recur, and soon sent enough heavy weapons with transport planes and gliders. In the evening, the 9th Motorized Rifle Division of the Seventh Army and the 11th Kazakh Separate Cavalry Division arrived one after another. In the face of three divisions, Kacharov, who had suffered so much, was so frightened that he immediately withdrew his fist and tried to hold the Urgench railway line.

After receiving the news of the successful landing of the 2nd Airborne Division, the 1st Army and the 16th Army had a total of 7 divisions. Launch an offensive along the Aral Sea towards Karakalpakstan to pin down the Soviet forces and secure the flanks of the 7th Army. Also on the same day, a total of three infantry divisions and two Iranian divisions of Mare and Mashhad also launched an attack on Ashgabat in the northwest as planned.

Except for the Northern Route Army in Hillkent, which was not connected by rail. In addition to the slow progress of the stubborn resistance of the Soviet troops in the fortifications of Karatas, the progress in the other directions was rapid. Moreover, the Wehrmacht Air Force has firmly grasped air supremacy from beginning to end, and has deployed a total of more than 1,000 warplanes to support troops in all directions and destroy obstacles along the way. In this close-support bombing campaign. The dive bombers once again demonstrated the advantages of high efficiency and high precision, and in a short period of time completed a surprise attack on 17 Soviet field airfields and more than 600 fortifications. In total, more than 800 aircraft of various types were destroyed, including at least 30 BF109 and 110 IL2 attack aircraft.

At this time, Tashkent was already in chaos, large groups of dive bombers and H-5 tactical bombers came to visit several times a day, and patches of buildings collapsed in the explosion, although a large number of anti-aircraft guns were replenished, but in the face of air raids from all directions, the air defense forces were still stretched. In the crowded and cramped underground command post, the heads and brains of the Uzbek Front such as Apanashchenko sat here, constantly directing the defense by radio to the troops who had not lost contact.

But as more and more troops lost contact, Apanashchenko's face began to turn blue. Although he swore to Moscow in a telegram that he would turn this place into a "grinding plate for meat grinding", when the opponent really launched it with all his might, he realized that the strength in his hand was still seriously insufficient. "Comrade Commander, the 54th Army reports that the enemy has committed three armored divisions and a tank capable of breathing fire, and that their three fortified regiments have suffered heavy losses, and that the front of Bekabad has also been lost. Now the enemy is advancing towards Lake Aydarkul, and Admiral Kirponos has already transferred his command to Gulistan to continue the resistance. ”

"Comrade commander, it was a telegram from General Kachalov of the 29th Army of Urgench. He reported that Urgench was already under siege, so there was no way to come to our aid. ”

"This Soviet scum who has suffered defeat!"

As soon as he heard that Kachalov's 29th Army could not pass, Apanashchenko, who had always been hot-tempered and strict in governing the army, slapped the table fiercely.

Sheko, the chief of staff who had worked with him for more than ten years, picked up the whip and walked to the map rather helplessly: "The situation is already obvious, the Chinese are trying to cut off the Urgench railway line, and then cut us off from Andijan west to Lake Edarkul. From the present point of view, we have the largest number of enemy forces in the north, and although the railway line from Taraz to Shymkent has not yet been completely repaired, the 30 and 31 armies in this direction cannot move in any case. Therefore, I propose that the reserves of the 44th Army be immediately put into order to ensure the security of Gulistan while it has not yet been cut off, and at the same time abandon Dushanbe and other places south of Samarkand, recover the four divisions here, and concentrate forces to hold the line of defense on the Turkestan Mountains. ”

Apanashchenko nodded, this is indeed a way to go, otherwise the troops are too scattered and will be eaten by the fast-moving armored clusters. But Begoff, the First General Secretary of Uzbekistan, stood up and retorted: "Comrade General, General Secretary Stalin's order is to fight for every inch of land, and not to give up any land!" Abandoning the southern side of Turkestan would be tantamount to allowing them to attack Urgench easily, which would be a crime against the Soviets. ”

"Well, you go and report to Moscow, just say that Apanashchenko has committed a crime, you will command!" Apanashchenko, who was on fire, was slapped on the table by this robbery, and when he saw that Begefu stopped talking, he sat down again: "Just hit according to this, and withdraw your fist." You all go to the front, and if anyone loses his position, he doesn't have to come back! Tell all the commanders and fighters that their fortress cannons are powerful, but my fortress cannons will also tear the enemy apart! ”