Chapter 700

Hearing from safchenko that there was an artillery position in the camp of the east battalion, I couldn't help but see it. After he finished, I immediately put forward my own view: "political commissar, chief of staff, you see, this artillery position is just in the middle of the enemy's 44th, 76th and 113th infantry divisions, which is not too far away from the three divisions. If we can send troops to seize this position, we can turn the muzzle and bombard the surrounding German camp at will. "

"I think it works." Kirilov first agreed and gave an example of the last night attack on the 113th German division: "the last night attack led by Comrade oberstein not only successfully occupied the enemy's artillery positions, but also turned the muzzle to bombard the enemy, killing not only the adjutant of the 113th German division, but also the commander of the 389th German division. This time we have the distribution map of several German divisions. I believe the effect of shelling will be better. "

"Teachers and political commissars, your ideas are very good. I think they need to be further improved." Akhromeyev also enthusiastically said: "before seizing the enemy's artillery camp, mines should be laid on several roads passing through the camp, so as to slow down the German army's movement..."

Although the enemy's artillery position is still under the control of the east battalion, the three of us seem to regard it as our own position, and discuss with each other as if no one else how many artillery should be dispatched by Morozov, which regiment of infantry should be sent to guard, and so on. However, safchenko, who reported the enemy's situation to us, was left aside. When our discussion came to an end, we carefully poured cold water on it: "the division commander, the political commissar and the chief of staff, although the fighting capacity of the troops of the Dongfang battalion is not strong, their camp defense is very tight. The camp is surrounded by not only two barbed wire fences, but also minefields. There is only one way to enter the camp. According to our reconnaissance, there are at least three civil fire points at the entrance. In this case, we are unlikely to succeed in sneak attack, we can only take the way of strong attack. As it was not far from several German camps, the enemy reinforcements could arrive within ten minutes once the fighting started. If our troops can not solve the battle in a short time, they will not only be unable to seize the enemy's artillery positions, but may even be surrounded by the encircled enemy. "

Safchenko's words made the three of us wake up from our illusions. Then we remembered that we were talking about things that had not yet been seen. We could not help laughing.

After laughing, I asked safchenko thoughtfully, "Comrade safchenko, you know the situation of the eastern camp best. In your opinion, is there any way we can seize the camp quietly without disturbing the surrounding enemy?"

Safchenko frowned and thought for a long time. Finally, he shook his head slowly and replied with a bitter smile: "Sir, I don't think it's possible. If we want to seize the camp of the eastern battalion without disturbing the enemy, unless the commander of the battalion surrenders to us secretly. "

The speaker didn't mean to listen, and the listener meant to. A casual remark from safchenko, to my ears, is like a penetrating remark: Yes, why do I always want to fight with the enemy? Why don't I want to disintegrate them through political offensive? Thinking of this, I turned to kirilov and said excitedly, "Comrade political commissar, I suddenly have an idea."

Kirilov raised his eyebrows and asked in surprise, "Comrade oshanina, you don't really think there will be a miracle when the enemy surrenders to us secretly, do you?"

Instead of following his words, I continued to ask safchenko, "do you know the name of the commander of the eastern battalion? Which army did you work in, what position did you hold, and what rank did you hold? "

Safchenko nodded his head and replied, "we ambushed a five man patrol team nearby. Except for one, the rest of them were all killed by lieutenant gretka. After interrogation, the prisoners admitted to us that the commander of the east battalion was captain Karpov, who was captured by the German army in the battle of Odessa. Before being captured, he once served as the deputy commander of the artillery company under general Petrov of the chabayev division. "

"Chabayev division, general Petrov?" I silently repeated the unfamiliar number and the name of the commander in my heart. I turned to kirilov again and asked, "Comrade political commissar, do you know this army and general Petrov?"

Kirilov nodded his head and said: "of course, comrade chabayev was a hero during the Soviet civil war and an excellent commander of the Red Army. His troops moved around the Urals and beat back the gorchak white guards many times. On September 5, 1919, they died in the battle of lebihansk village. Later, the Supreme Soviet renamed it chabayev. Although the name of the army he commanded was changed to the 25th Infantry Division, people still used to call it chabayev division. As for the situation of general Petrov, I know one thing. He is a military chief with outstanding organizational ability and strong will. He is one of the commanders in the defense of Odessa and Sevastopol. The second month after the outbreak of the war, he was the commander of the 25th Infantry Division of the southern front army. In October, he was appointed commander of the Binhai group army by Comrade Stalin. At present, he is commanding the army and the enemy in the Caucasus campaign. " Speaking of this, he suddenly stopped and asked in surprise, "Comrade o'xanina, what do you want to do when you ask these questions? Do you really have the idea of Dongfang camp?"

"Yes, comrade political commissar." In kirilov's face, I didn't hide my true thoughts: "even if there is only a glimmer of hope, I will try.". If we can plot against the commander of the Dongfang battalion and bring this detachment here to enrich our army, we will greatly weaken the enemy's strength at the same time. "

"Is that all right?" Kirilov said nervously: "at this time, if you ask your superiors to plot against the commander of the enemy, especially the traitor who defected from our army, are you not afraid of the trouble of the interior department?"

Kirilov's words made me feel a little stuttered. Because I had suffered many losses from the Ministry of internal affairs, and even was once put on the execution ground, my feet trembled when I heard the name of this unit. But such a good opportunity in front of me, let me give up like this, I am really unwilling. After much hesitation, I finally gritted my teeth and said to kirilov, "Comrade political commissar, I want to have a try. Whether it is successful or not, it will not affect you."

After that, without looking at the expression on kirilov's and akhromeyev's faces, I picked up the phone on the table and dialed the headquarters of the group army. When I heard the harsh and hoarse voice of the soldier on duty in the microphone, I decisively indicated my identity to him: "I am the commander of the independent division, Colonel oshanina. Please let commander trakov answer the phone. I have something important to report to him!"

The soldier who answered the phone said politely: "Hello, comrade colonel. Just a moment, please. I'll call the commander right away. "

In a short time, there was trakov's voice in the receiver: "Hello, oshanina, what can I do for you?"

"Yes, comrade commander." I respectfully said: "I want to implement a bold plan now, and hope to get your approval."

"Bold plan?" "What a bold plan, can you compare with your plan of" replacing soldiers with water "? The Supreme Commander himself was shocked. I heard general Zhukov say that this plan has been completely rejected by the high level. The reason is that we would rather pay more sacrifice than let the city named after the leader be submerged by the Volga River while being attacked by the German army. "

Although I have known for a long time that my plan of "replacing soldiers with water" is likely to be rejected, I still feel a little disappointed when I get the news from trakov. After a few more words of nagging, trekov got to the point: "I want to know if you have any unexpected and bold plans this time. Let's talk about them."

"The reconnaissance team we sent to the rear of the enemy has returned. The intelligence they brought back shows in detail the deployment area of the enemy's three divisions to the north of the city."

"That's great. Your plan will be discussed later. Tell me about the enemy's deployment first."

"There are three divisions in the north of us, namely the 44th, 71st and 113th divisions of the German army. The areas where the divisions are stationed are..." I reported to trakov one by one to the positions that akhromeyev had just marked on the map. At the end of the day, I specially added: "at the junction of the three divisions, there is an open-air warehouse where the enemy stores military supplies, Guarded by an Italian battalion; Not far from here, there is an artillery position guarded by the eastern battalion. "

After hearing what I said later, trakov suddenly sneered. He said in a scornful tone: "What combat effectiveness these troops can have, Italian battalion and Oriental battalion, is nothing more than to carry out some tasks to help the German troops guard the warehouse or traffic lines. The next time you send a small unit to sneak into the enemy's rear, take a chance to blow up the enemy's military warehouses and artillery positions. "

Trikov's understatement made me laugh and cry. He really thought that I was omnipotent and could easily blow up the warehouses and artillery positions in the German heavy military assembly area?

"By the way, now it's time to talk about your bold plan." After giving me an almost impossible task, trekov said with a smile, "I'd like to know what you have in mind."

Originally, I had been thinking about how to say this to trikov, but when he asked me to say it, I hesitated. After a moment's hesitation, he summoned up courage and said to him, "Comrade commander, this is it. As a result of our last two night attacks, the Germans have been on high alert. Outside the Italian camp and the eastern camp, there are not only two layers of barbed wire, but also minefields. That is to say, it is not feasible to take the sneak attack as before. If we want to take a strong attack, we can't win the enemy's camp in a short time only by relying on small troops. In this way, they will fall into the encirclement of the reinforcement enemy and risk being completely annihilated. So I'm going to send someone I can trust to the east battalion to try to plot against the commander of the enemy. "

"What, what do you say?" When trekov heard what I said, he suddenly became nervous. In a low voice, He reproached me and said, "treason, I'm afraid you have come up with such a ridiculous plan. Do you forget the order given by Comrade Stalin that all those who surrender to the enemy are traitors to the motherland and should be eliminated from their bodies without mercy. And you want to surrender to the enemy of the motherland. Didn't you run into the muzzle of the interior department? "

"Comrade commander, that's what I think," I tried to keep my mood stable and to convince trakov in a flat tone, "although they were confused for a moment and surrendered to the enemy. But in the present situation, I think we should unite more people who can be united and give them a chance to commit crimes. If they can turn their back on the battlefield, they can not only enrich our army's strength, but also weaken the enemy's strength and attack their morale. I don't know if you agree with me when I say that? "

After a long silence, trakov sighed and asked, "do you know the name of the commander of the eastern battalion and which army he belonged to before he was captured?"

"The reconnaisance unit had interrogated the prisoners of the eastern battalion and knew that the commander of the battalion was Karpov, with the rank of captain. He was captured in the defense of Odessa and served as the deputy commander of the artillery company under general Petrov of chabayev division. Comrade commander, do you know the general? "

"General Petrov, Ivan yefemovitch Petrov," trekov said Petrov's full name without hesitation, and then introduced his resume to me: "he is a military chief with outstanding organizational ability and strong will, and once was one of the leaders in charge of the defense of Odessa and Sevastopol. He has been the commander of the 25th Infantry Division of the southern front army since July 1941, was promoted to the commander of the Binhai group army in October, and was transferred to the commander of the 44th group army in July this year. "

Hearing that trakov is so familiar with general Petrov's resume, I believe that there should be friendship between them, so I have the cheek to ask him: "Comrade commander, I don't know if you can contact General Petrov for me to see if he knows the situation of Captain Karpov, so that we can carry out the next counterinsurgency work."

Trekov was obviously embarrassed by my request. He hesitated for a long time before he said, "o'shanina, I can't give you a definite answer. I can only do my best. You should know that the captain used to be only a deputy artillery company commander under Comrade Petrov. Whether the general knows this man or not is a question, let alone his details. "

After listening to what trakov said, I knew very well that he was not perfunctory. I said politely: "Comrade commander, no matter what the final situation is, I thank you."

Just as I was about to hang up, trakov suddenly said, "by the way, there's one more thing I forgot to tell you. In order to strengthen the defensive forces in the city, the front army decided to give us two new divisions. Since the soldiers of the independent division tend to be exhausted in the battle of defending the mamayev post, after studying with comrades of the military commissar, I have decided to add a new Corps to you. " Before I heard the good news, he continued, "these two divisions are newly formed and have not received the necessary training. The soldiers were recruited from cities and collective farms in Kazakhstan. Although they had no problem with loyalty, they had no ability to use weapons. There is also a very serious problem, that is, most of them do not understand Russian, which will bring us difficulties in training soldiers and commanding operations. It will take time to overcome such a difficulty that complicates our work, and what we lack most is time. "

Long after trekov hung up, I was still holding the phone in a daze. Seeing my expression, kirilov patted me on the shoulder and asked with concern, "what's the matter with you, o'shanina? What did the commander say about your plan? "

I quickly put down the phone and answered him, "general Petrov has been transferred to commander of the 44th army. Commander trakov promised to contact him immediately to find out about Karpov." Seeing kirilov and akhromeyev nodding with relief, I went on, "the commander also said that he would give us a new regiment in the near future. These new fighters come from cities and farms in Kazakhstan. Although they have no problem with loyalty, they have no ability to use weapons at all. There is also a very serious problem, that is, most of them do not understand Russian, which will bring us difficulties in training soldiers and commanding operations. It will take time to overcome such a difficulty that complicates our work, and what we lack most is time. "

After what I said, kirilov and akhromeyev fell into deep meditation. Instead of interrupting their thoughts, I sat down and watched them silently, waiting for them to come up with a good idea.

After a while, akhromeyev first said: "Comrade division commander, in order to help the team overcome this difficulty, I suggest that cadres who have mastered Russian and Kazakh should be selected from the existing political workers in the division. I believe that these staunch party workers will be able to complete the translation task excellently. "

As for akhromeyev's proposal, I did not oppose it, but expressed my own scruples: "among the existing political cadres, there are not many people who know how to fight. When so many cadres are transferred out, there must be a commander who knows both politics and military command to lead them. But who should be in charge of so many political cadres in the division? "

"I think Comrade oberstein, the political commissar of the first regiment, is good." Kirilov said his ideal candidate without thinking.

Later, akhromeyev agreed: "I agree with the Commissar. While the regiment was still holding fast to the northern highland, comrade oberstein often stayed in the front to command the troops, and twice led the night attack team to attack the enemy's rear. Judging from his achievements, his military command ability is very strong. As for political and ideological work, I think there would be no problem, otherwise general meletzkov would not have specially transferred him to be the political instructor of the second lieutenant training team at that time. "

I saw that both of them were recommending oberstein to me, so I agreed. Then I told razumeyeva, who was sitting by the phone, "Comrade lieutenant, get in touch with the first regiment immediately, and let Lieutenant sergeant xijerikov and political commissar of oberstein come to me." When razumeyeva reported to me that shejerikov and oberstein, who had been informed, were on their way, Naga came up to me, handed me a telegram with both hands, and said, "Comrade division, the telegram just received." "Who's the telegram?" I asked casually as I took the telegram from her Unexpectedly, Na Jia hesitated for a moment, then hesitated to say: "it's a telegram from the Black Sea army cluster headquarters of the Transcaucasian front army, but it seems that we have never contacted them. Maybe they sent this telegram in the wrong place."“ It's impossible. It's absolutely impossible to send a wrong telegram. " Kirilov said in a loud voice, took the telegram from my hand, held it in front of me, and read in public the signature under the telegram: "general Ivan yefemovitch Petrov, commander of the Black Sea army group of the Transcaucasian front army!"