Red Moscow

  Chapter 1604 The Broad River (Part 1)

   Since the combat plan was reported, it was considered that the battle in the Svetlovodsk district would last for more than three days, so the next direction of attack was not mentioned.

  Now that the Svetlovodsk district has been easily captured, Zakharov, as the chief of staff of the front army, must understand the next combat goals of the 27th Army. He glanced down at the map in front of him, and continued to ask, "Where is your next offensive direction?"

Before making the phone call, Sameko had discussed with Sokov the direction of the next attack, and when he heard Zakharov’s question, he replied confidently: “I have studied it with Comrade Commander, and I think the troops should follow Go up the Dnieper River and attack in the direction of Cherkasy to meet the friendly troops on the left bank to cross the river."

   "Comrade Commander," Zakharov did not immediately express his attitude after listening to Sameko's report, but called Konev, who was standing by the wall and looking at the map: "Please come here."

After Konev walked in front of him, Zakharov reported to him: "Comrade Commander, the troops of the 27th Army have lightly captured the Svetlovodsk district and are preparing to continue to attack the German army in depth. develop."

"Oh, the Svetlovodsk district has already been taken?" Hearing the news, Konev was also very surprised. He originally thought that the battle would be over within three days, which was considered very fast. Who knew that Sokov's The troops captured the Svetlovodsk district in less than three hours. He asked in surprise: "So fast?"

After briefing Konev on the situation, Zakharov asked, "Comrade Commander, what General Sokov means is to advance northwest along the Dnieper River to capture Cherkasy and to meet Our troops on the left bank crossed the river. I wonder what you mean?"

  Konev just stood by the wall and looked at the map, and he was thinking in his heart that if he wanted to reach the troops on the left bank, he would quickly cross the Dnieper River and establish a new landing site on the right bank. Hearing what Zakharov wanted to say at this moment, it was as if someone would send a pillow when he wanted to fall asleep. He quickly said: "I think Sokov's plan is good. Now Shumilov's 7th Guards Army is attacking Pei. Levolochnaya, the mouth of the Volskra River, and the New Orlik area, if they can get the support of friendly forces, their crossing operation will be very smooth."

After receiving Konev's instruction, Zakharov said into the microphone: "General Sameko, Comrade Commander feels that the plan to advance northwest along the Dnieper River is very feasible, and you can put it into practice as soon as possible. "

  After putting down the phone, Sameko immediately reported to Sokov: "Comrade Commander, the Front Army Command has no objection to our proposed attack direction. The only requirement is that we start the attack as soon as possible."

  Sokov nodded after listening, and then asked: "Comrade Chief of Staff, ask General Fomenko how long it will take his troops to resume their offensive."

"General Fomenko?" Sameko grabbed the phone on the table, connected to the headquarters of the 84th Division, and asked Fomenko, who had just returned to the headquarters, straight to the point: "Comrade commander, when will Can a new round of attack be launched?"

   "Comrade Chief of Staff, if you want to attack, you need to regroup your troops. In addition, you need new troops to take over the defense of our division in the Svetlovodsk district..."

"As for the defense of the Svetlovodsk district, I will ask Colonel Koida's 188th Division to take over." Sameko answered this question very simply, and asked: "Your division is launching an offensive again. how long?"

   "One hour." After Fomenko said the number, he worried that Sameko would be dissatisfied, and explained to him specifically: "Due to the search for remnants, the troops of our division have been dispersed..."

Sameko knew that the time Fomenko said should be the limit, so he interrupted him and said reasonablely: "General Fomenko, I will give you an hour and a half. After the troops are assembled , advancing northwestward along the Dnieper River, the target of your attack is Cherkasy, if you can capture Chigirin halfway along the way, that would be great."

"Chijilin?!" As a frontline commander, Fomenko looked at the map every day. Naturally, it was just Chijilin mentioned by Sameko. It was about 50 kilometers away from the Svetlovodsk district, so he said with a smile: " Comrade Chief of Staff, it is almost 50 kilometers from our place to Qijilin. If it is walking, it will take at least a day. But now our division is equipped with thousands of bicycles. According to the speed of 12-20 kilometers per hour, it is completely possible. Get there before dark."

"Yes, General Fomenko." Sameko now thinks that bicycles are simply a treasure. Without trains or trucks, they can quickly deploy thousands of troops to distant battlefields. , This is something that I dare not even think about: "The enemy did not expect that our troops were equipped with bicycles, which greatly increased the speed of maneuvering. You have to use this skillfully to quickly assault Qijilin and find a way to kill the Germans. Before you regain your senses, take that city and make preparations to meet the friendly troops on the left bank to cross the river."

The plan is a good plan. Whether it is Sokov or Sameko, when formulating the battle plan, they have ignored a key issue: what will happen to Manstein after he learns that the Svetlovodsk district has fallen? Reaction.

The commander of the German army stationed in the Svetlovodsk district saw the fierce Soviet artillery fire, and the shells seemed to have eyes, accurately destroying many fortifications and the tanks preparing for the assault. If he stayed here, he might live and die with this town, so he slipped away with the soles of his feet.

However, he knew his responsibilities. Although he voluntarily gave up the Svetlovodsk district, after reaching Qijilin, he still reported what happened to the commander of the 1st Army, General Blaskowitz. Report.

   Hearing the news that the Svetlovodsk district was lost, Blaskowitz couldn't help being taken aback. He quickly checked the map and found that he should have been fooled by Sokov and placed the main force in the wrong position.

   Regarding the Soviet attack on the right bank, he felt that he should report to Manstein immediately so that the other party could know what he was doing. Thinking of this, he immediately called Manstein's headquarters.

Manstein learned that it was Blaskowitz who called him, and guessed that the opponent's defense zone might have been attacked by the Soviet army, so after picking up the phone, he asked directly: "Blaskowitz General, is your defense zone under attack from the Russians?"

   "Yes, Your Excellency the Marshal." Blaskowitz reported emotionally: "The Russians launched an attack on the Svetlovodsk district by surprise, and they have now occupied it."

"What, the Svetlovodsk district has fallen." Hearing the bad news, Manstein's hand trembled, and the cigar fell directly to the ground, but he didn't bother to pick it up at all, but asked out of breath: "General Blaskowitz, is your information accurate?"

"Exactly, my marshal." Blaskowitz replied: "The head of the regiment who stood firm in the Svetlovodsk district, when the town fell, he withdrew with some people. He retreated to the After Qi Jilin, he called me to report."

   Learning that the Svetlovodsk district had fallen, Manstein frowned. He opened the map on the table, looked carefully at the location of the Svetlovodsk district, and said to Blaskowitz: "The Russians have captured the Svetlovodsk district. Then their next move is to go up the Dnieper River to capture Cherkasy and build a bridgehead there."

"You are right, Marshal." Blaskowitz also studied the situation before calling, and felt that the possibility of the Soviet army taking the opportunity to attack Cherkasy was very high, so he echoed: "I also I feel that the next target of the Russians is Cherkasy. As long as they capture it, the Russians will gain two crossings on our Dnieper River defense line. They can pass through these two places and put more troops and The weapons and equipment are all brought in."

   "Immediately inform the defenders of Chijilin and order them to increase their alertness." Manstein said sharply: "If the Russians occupy the city, they will wait to be court-martialed."

   Blaskowitz heard Manstein say this, and knew that the other party was really angry. At the beginning of the year when the Dnieper River was fighting against the Soviet Army, many regiment-level officers were executed by Manstein's order because they were unfavorable in combat. The Svetlovodsk district has already been lost. If Chijilin falls again, not only the head of the regiment who fled to Chijilin may not be able to save his life, but even the city defense commander of Chijilin may lose his head.

   "I understand, Your Excellency Marshal." Blaskowitz said: "I immediately called Chijilin's city defense commander and ordered him to strengthen his guard to prevent possible Russian attacks."

   "In addition to making Chijilin's city defense commander more vigilant, General Blaskowitz, you have one more thing to do."

   Blaskowitz asked in surprise: "What is it?"

"Now that I think about it, the transfer of the Russians in the direction of the bridgehead is an act of deceit." Manstein realized at this time that he might have been fooled by Sokov, so he said to Blaskowitz: "But this It's not a bad thing for us, we have assembled a large number of troops south of the Russian bridgehead, and you can take the opportunity to order the troops to attack."

   "Now launch an attack on the Russian bridgehead?"

"Yes." Manstein replied: "Even if they can't break through their defenses, they can hold back a large number of Russian troops and prevent them from mobilizing enough troops to attack Chigirin and Cherkasy. Understand? ?”

   "I fully understand, Your Excellency the Marshal." Blaskowitz replied: "I will immediately understand the troops south of the bridgehead, launch an attack on the Russians, and disrupt their attack plan."

After finishing the conversation with Manstein, Blaskowitz personally called Chijilin's city defense commander: "Colonel, according to various indications, the Russians who captured the Svetlovodsk district are very likely to It is possible to launch an attack on Qijilin, you must provide vigilance and take all precautions."

"Your Excellency, Commander," the City Defense Commander said respectfully, "We are about 50 kilometers away from Svetlovodsk District. Even if the Russians are dispatched at this moment, they will not arrive at our place until noon tomorrow at the earliest. Don't worry. , With such a long time, it is enough for us to take all precautions."

"I'm going to command the troops to attack the bridgehead." Blaskowitz said with great relief after hearing the reply from the commander of the city defense: "I'll leave Qijilin to you, if there is anything, just call me , I will find a way to help you solve it."

"Your Excellency, Commander," upon hearing Blaskowitz's words, the City Defense Commander took the opportunity to say, "I only have the strength of a regiment in my hands, plus a battalion retreated from the Svetlovodsk district." , with a total strength of no more than 5,000. If the Russians attack with all their strength, I am worried that it will be difficult to defend the city with our own strength."

   "Colonel, don't worry." Blaskowitz comforted the other party and said, "I will send an infantry division to you as soon as possible, and they will reach your city before the Russians attack the city."

  Received Blaskowitz's promise, the commander of the city defense was immediately relieved. He thought to himself that with the current 5,000 people plus an infantry division, unless the Russian troops attacking the city were at the army level, there would be no way to occupy the city at all.

  After putting down the phone, he called in several of his battalion commanders to arrange defenses for them.

Although the battalion commanders guessed that the Soviet army might take the opportunity to attack Qijilin, they felt that the distance between the two places was so far. It would take a day or two for the Soviet army to arrive here without means of transportation. The task assigned by the commander of the city defense was not carried out immediately and vigorously. Instead, he slowly summoned the residents of the city to help them build fortifications.

   What the Germans didn't expect was that General Fomenko's troops had completed their assembly, got on their bicycles again, and advanced rapidly along the bumpy road.

   The troops rushing to the front are naturally the 258th regiment of Colonel Belkin.

  The officers and soldiers of the whole regiment were the first to rush into the Svetlovodsk area, but in the end, they did not achieve the slightest result. Instead, the 254th Regiment, which entered the town later, also captured more than a dozen German prisoners.

  After receiving the order to attack Qijilin at this moment, the commanders and fighters exerted all their strength, stepped on the pedals desperately, and rushed to the direction of Qijilin along the road, hoping to make meritorious service in the battle of liberating the city.

   Sokov, who was staying at the headquarters, was very relieved to learn that the 84th Division had quickly advanced towards Chijilin. But not long after he was happy, he heard bad news that he didn't want to hear: the Germans in the south of the landing site suddenly launched an attack on the defenders.

   "Not good." Hearing the news, Sokov immediately had an ominous premonition in his heart. He said to Sameko, "Comrade Chief of Staff, it seems that our combat intention has been seen through by the Germans."

   "No way?" Sameko expressed doubts about Sokov's statement: "We also made a temporary decision to attack Chijilin. How could the Germans see through it?"

Seeing that Sameko didn't understand what he meant, Sokov explained to him: "The series of fake moves we made on the south side of the landing field did confuse the enemy. But now they suddenly launched an attack on the landing field, which shows that they want to Contain our main force so that we cannot mobilize more forces to attack in other directions."

  (end of this chapter)