Red Moscow

  Chapter 1441

  Granin put down his binoculars and said to his chief of staff with relief: "The enemy's artillery positions have been eliminated. Before their new artillery positions are established, the enemy attacking the bridge will not receive any artillery support."

"That's right, Comrade Commander." The chief of staff of the regiment echoed: "And we still have two captured tanks as fixed turrets on the east bank of the bridge. If the enemy wants to seize the bridge, he will inevitably have to pay huge casualties. "

  Granin raised his hand and looked at his watch, then asked, "When will the main force of the division arrive?"

   "I'm afraid it will take another hour or two." The chief of staff of the regiment explained to him: "The headquarters sent a large amount of weapons and ammunition to the division, which greatly slowed down the marching speed of the follow-up troops."

"Originally, we only brought two bases of ammunition. In the face of the enemy's crazy attack, I'm afraid we can support it for less than three hours." Granin nodded and said, "With the batch of ammunition sent by our superiors, we can persist A longer time to wait for the arrival of the main force of the group army."

"As soon as the main force of the division arrives, we can switch from defense to offense and attack the outer positions of Kharkov." The chief of staff of the regiment looked at the area where Qiaodong was fighting, and said with emotion: "But I don't know where At that time, how many people are left in the first battalion?"

The chief of staff of the    regiment was justified in his worries. Although the rockets on the West Bank destroyed the German artillery positions a few kilometers away, the German officers and soldiers of the 320th Infantry Division still attacked the positions of the first battalion without hesitation.

  Granin picked up the phone on the table, connected to the First Battalion, and asked Shamrich bluntly: "Comrade Major, can you stop the German attack?"

   "Don't worry, Comrade Commander." Shamrih's voice came from the phone: "As long as the enemy has no artillery cover, it is very difficult to break through the defense line of our battalion."

  Granin was very satisfied with Shamrich's answer. Although the main force of the regiment was only a river away from the first battalion's position, he was unwilling to easily put the troops into battle. He knew very well in his heart that if the troops were put into battle prematurely, once the losses were serious, then the next battle to liberate Kharkov would basically be out of reach of his regiment. If only one battalion is used to fight the enemy, even if one battalion is wiped out, there are still two battalions that can be used. In the next stage of combat, your regiment can still accept important combat tasks.

  The situation of the battle along the Ude River was quickly reported to the group army headquarters.

After receiving the battle report, Sameko quickly browsed through it, and then reported to Sokov: "Comrade Commander, the 98th Guards Division reports that the 1st Battalion of the 296th Guards Regiment standing on the east bank of the Oude River is in the battalion. Under the command of Chang Shamrih, he killed no less than a hundred enemies and successfully repelled the enemy's attack.

  At the same time, the head of the regiment, Lieutenant Colonel Granin, also ordered the troops to launch new rockets from the west bank to attack the German artillery positions, completely destroying the artillery positions that threatened our army to cross the river..."

"The 320th Infantry Division of the German Army attacked the bridge," Sokov asked after listening to Sameko's report, "This division is relatively powerful in the German 11th Army. Outside the city of Cala, the two divisions of the friendly army were forced to retreat with the strength of one regiment."

"That's right, Comrade Commander." Sameko agrees with Sokov very much: "It is because of the strong combat effectiveness of this unit that Kenf will deploy them in the outer positions in the western suburbs of Kharkov. , in order to prevent our army from attacking the city."

"Now we have only one battalion of Major Shamrih's battalion standing on the east bank of the Ud River. They have to face enemies several times more than themselves. Even if the enemy's artillery position is destroyed and the enemy loses the cover of artillery fire, But the offensive is still fierce, can our troops hold it?"

Hearing Sokov's question, Sameko showed a confident expression on his face: "Don't worry, Comrade Commander. You must know that the commanders and fighters of Major Shamrich's battalion are almost all sailors. You know, In our army, the most powerful unit is the sailors, and the combat effectiveness of a battalion of them on the battlefield is often stronger than that of a regiment of ordinary troops."

  Sokov thought about it carefully, and it seems that this is really the case. In particular, Major Shamrich, who has made remarkable achievements on the battlefield since he became his subordinate in the Battle of Stalingrad. When defending the northern position of Mamayev Gang, the troops under his command ran out of bullets, and bravely rushed forward to fight the enemy face to face with bayonets, repelling the enemy's attack forcefully. Now they are sticking to important positions, and I believe that Shamrih's performance will not let them down.

Although he was confident that the Shamrih Battalion would hold the position, he was unwilling to let such a heroic unit fight alone for a long time, so he raised his head and asked Sameko: "When will the 98th Guards Division arrive in Uzbekistan?" De River?"

   "Comrade Commander, since they are carrying a large amount of ammunition transported by Colonel Yakov, the marching speed will inevitably be slowed down. I estimate that it will take about an hour or two to reach the bridge."

   "Send a message to Colonel Chuvashov, tell them to speed up, don't leave the 296th alone."

"Don't worry, Comrade Commander." Sameko nodded and said, "When I received the division's battle report, I called back and ordered Chuvashov and the others to speed up their march. They must arrive at the designated location within an hour and Get ready to counterattack."

  After talking about the 98th Guards Division, Sokov asked anxiously, "Did the troops in Jergach move towards the Ud River?"

   "The 254th Infantry Division of Colonel Shechtman is currently marching as the first echelon. According to their current marching speed, they will be able to reach the Oud River in about three hours."

  After listening to Sameko's report, Sokov was very unhappy. This is really a plan that can't keep up with the changes. According to my own thinking, after the 98th Guards Division sent the 296th Regiment to seize the bridge, the main force should have rushed to the Oud River before dawn, but they were still marching on the road at this time. The departure time of the defenders in the city was also postponed, which resulted in the plan to launch an attack on the outskirts of Kharkov's western suburbs at ten o'clock in the morning, which had to be postponed.

Seeing the angry look on Sokov's face, Sameko couldn't help but feel a little trembling, but he was worried that Sokov would blame the division commanders below, so he said cautiously: "Comrade Commander, although the troops in front of us have not yet been able to Getting into position, but for us, it's not a bad thing."

   "Isn't it a bad thing?" Sokov asked in a daze, "Why?"

"Judging from the current battle situation, the main force of our left-wing front army and the troops of the Voronezh Front Army are not going very smoothly. If we attack Kharkov prematurely, the enemy on the left wing will turn around to support us. enemy, thus increasing the difficulty of our attack."

  Sokov lowered his head again, staring at the map in front of him and pondering carefully. He felt that Sameko was right. The attack on Kharkov by the two left-wing front armies did not seem to be going smoothly. If he hastily launched an attack on the outer positions in the western suburbs at this time, Kenf would definitely ask Huot for help and deploy troops to strengthen his frontal defense. Don't look at your own troops occupying the bridge on the Ude River, but as long as the enemy builds a defense line around the bridge, it is difficult for your own troops to expand the results of the battle.

   Seeing Sokov lost in thought, Sameko couldn't help asking, "Comrade Commander, what are you thinking?"

"Comrade Chief of Staff, what you said makes sense. If we launch an attack on Kharkov's outer positions at this time, then Huot's troops will definitely rush over to support the enemy in front of us. Putting up a defensive line nearby would defeat our intention to expand the landing field and start a tug of war with us in this area."

"Comrade Commander, it's like this." Sameko continued: "Don't look at us occupying the bridge on the Oud River, but the area of ​​the landing field established is too small. The west bank of the bridge cannot deploy too many troops, so we can only use refueling tactics to attack the enemy on the scale of a company or battalion."

"Using refueling tactics to attack an enemy who has an advantage in numbers is a kind of suicide. We can't do this kind of loss-making business." Sokov said with a serious expression: "So the best way is to be on the West Bank On the landing field of the German Army, we started a tug-of-war with the Germans. One is to consume their vital forces, and the other is to wait for the progress of the friendly forces on the left. As long as the main force of the Front Army can wipe out a large number of German forces outside the city, Huot will definitely send reinforcements to the frontal enemy In this way, we will have the opportunity to attack the enemy decisively, and we will definitely be able to break through the outer positions in the western suburbs of Kharkov in the shortest possible time."

Sameko took a long breath, and then said: "Comrade Commander, I think we may have to wait a day or two before launching an attack on Kharkov. I wonder if we can let a few main divisions stay in the How about a rest in town?"

   Regarding Sameko's proposal, Sokov was quite moved. But after thinking about it, it is all about spirit when fighting. Although the commanders and fighters in the city are a little tired now, everyone is full of fighting spirit. If they are allowed to rest for two days, their energy may be vented.

   "No." Sokov shook his head and said, "Comrade Chief of Staff, I know that the commanders and fighters have become a little exhausted after fighting during this period, but we can't let the troops rest in the city."

  This time it was Sameko's turn to be puzzled: "Comrade Commander, why?"

  If Sameko is lucky enough to read "Zuo Zhuan", Sokov will naturally tell him: the insight of one effort, then decline, and three exhaustions. But the other party didn't know the Dongfang book at all, so it was a bit difficult for Sokov to explain.

"Comrade Chief of Staff, our commanders and fighters have won many victories in the battle during this period, and they are thinking about fighting the Germans face to face so that they can make more achievements." Sokov organized in his mind After a bit of vocabulary, he said: "When they can't wait to compete with the enemy, we suddenly order them to rest, and their fighting spirit will weaken during the rest. After they complete the rest, if they want to go into battle again, I'm afraid it will take a long time." It will take a period of time to adjust before returning to the original state.”

  Sokov's explanation made Sameko feel enlightened. He nodded vigorously, and said: "Comrade commander, I understand what you mean. The fighting will of the commanders and fighters is like a car in winter. Once started, it cannot be stopped casually, otherwise it will take a while to warm up. to reboot. Am I understanding this correctly?"

Seeing that Sameko understood his intentions, Sokov nodded with a smile: "You are right, Comrade Chief of Staff, that's what I want to express." When he said this, he began to think inwardly. If you want to mention the words of buoyancy and the like, just follow Sameko's example of using a winter car.

   "The troops in the city, will they continue to move towards the Ude River as planned?"

"That's right, order the troops in the city to continue marching towards the Oud River." Sokov is not an unreasonable person, he said to Sameko: "You can let them slow down the marching speed, and let the soldiers march forward while they are marching." Rest in the process."

Facing Sameko’s puzzled expression, he went on to say: “If the soldiers are allowed to stay in the city to rest, the residents’ warm hospitality to them will quickly make them lose their fighting spirit. But when they rest during the march, When they hear the sound of guns and guns in front of them, they will think of their comrades in arms fighting against the enemy ahead, and their hearts will always be full of fighting spirit."

   Having said that, Sameko fully understood Sokov's intentions, and quickly replied loudly: "Yes, Comrade Commander, I will convey your meaning to the division commanders."

   While Sameko was calling the commanders of the divisions to explain the tasks, Sokov felt that he should call Konev to find out about the progress of the left wing troops.

  After the call was made, the person who answered the call was Chief of Staff Zakharov. Hearing that it was Sokov's call, he asked straight to the point: "Comrade Sokov, how is the situation there, and where is the troop going?"

   "Our vanguard has now occupied the bridge over the Oude River and is fighting the counterattacking enemy on the east bank."

   "Oh, your troops have crossed the Oud River?"

   "Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff of the Front Army." Sokov replied truthfully: "The vanguard group has established a landing field on the east bank and has launched a fierce battle with the enemy who is trying to recapture the bridge."

   Knowing that Sokov's vanguard had crossed the Ud River, Zakharov asked anxiously, "When will you attack Kharkov?"

   "I think the time to attack Kharkov is not yet ripe."

   "The time is not ripe?" Zakharov asked in surprise: "Why?"

"I think before the main force of the Front Army arrives outside the city of Kharkov, if our department hastily launches an attack on Kharkov, Huot will definitely draw a sufficient number of troops from his defense zone to reinforce the Kenf combat group, Strengthen the frontal defense of our army." Sokov said into the microphone: "Our army's artillery and tanks are not many, and it is very difficult to expand the landing field eastward under the heavy siege of the German army. Even if you pay a huge amount If sacrificed, the results obtained will be very limited."

  Zakharov was silent for a long time, and asked: "Then when do you think is the best time to attack?"

  (end of this chapter)