Burning Moscow

Hearing that we are going to stay here to rest, the chief of staff of the regiment hurriedly greeted people with steaming black tea and some simple food. After the soldiers placed their things neatly on the table in front of us, the commander waved and sent them out.

I picked up the teacup, smelled the sweet tea fragrance, took a sip, and then asked the group leader who was standing at the table awkwardly: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, has your group built fortifications nearby? "

Hearing what I said, the head of the group did not immediately answer, but turned his eyes for help to Kazakov next to him. General Kazakov saw the reaction of his subordinates and immediately understood what was going on. After all, neither Apanashenko nor Kazakov introduced me to him just now. He didn't know who I was. Therefore, I dare not answer such matters involving military secrets casually.

Kazakov smiled at him and said understandingly: "This is General Oshanina, a special commissioner from the base camp, who is responsible for supervising and inspecting the construction of the fortifications in our defense zone. You can report to her."

After getting permission from Kazakov, the lieutenant colonel laughed at me twice, and then said politely: "Comrade General, my chief of staff should report to you. He has been coordinating this aspect of work. Arranged."

"Yes!" I nodded with a smile, turned my head and looked at the major standing next to me, and asked politely: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I wonder if you can tell me about the construction of your fortifications?"

The chief of staff of the tall regiment, who was in stark contrast with the short and chubby lieutenant colonel next to him, heard my question and said clearly: "Report Comrade General that the first and second battalions are in the defense zone of our regiment Fortifications were built on the south side.... Relying on the terrain, we dug a few semi-circular trenches on the hills. Several roofed firepower points were built in the trenches..."

After the chief of staff introduced the situation, Apanashenko thoughtfully said: "Perhaps in the near future, we will fight a defensive battle with the Germans here. Whether the fortifications are strong or not determines whether we can Stay here for the time."

"Comrade Deputy Commander." Kazakov took the conversation and asked with a smile: "Do we need to take a look on the ground?"

Before Apanashenko could answer, the lieutenant colonel waved his hand and said: "No, no, comrade General, the situation there is very dangerous. The enemy's artillery will fire cold cannons at it after a while."

"Comrade Lieutenant Colonel," Apanashchenko sneered at the commander who discouraged us, and said in a mocking tone: "What. Are you scared by the enemy's cold cannon?"

Seeing that Apanashenko had signs of anger, Kazakov hurriedly came out to complete the battle: "Comrade Deputy Commander, you have misunderstood the meaning of the lieutenant colonel. He is worried that we will be in danger if we go there."

"Yes, Comrade General, what I want to say is that." The lieutenant colonel, who blushed when he saw the commanders of the group army speak for himself, said quickly: "You don't need to go in person if you want to understand the frontier situation. I called the battalion commanders of the two battalions. I will report to you in detail and the effect will be the same."

"No, no." I just wanted to say a few words. Apanashchenko has already said what I want to say: "I want to go to the forefront to see the fortifications repaired by the soldiers."

Seeing that Apanashchenko was so stubborn, Kazakov had no choice but to say: "If this is the case, Comrade Deputy Commander of the Front Army, I will accompany you when I finish eating."

Unexpectedly, after listening, Apanashchenko waved his hand at him and said, "No, General Kazakov. Later, let the chief of staff of the regiment lead me and General Oshanina. You should go back to the group army headquarters, there must be a lot of things waiting for you to deal with."

"Okay. Since this is the case, I obey your orders." Kazakov may really be something in the group army headquarters. Hearing that Apanashenko said so, he did not shy away, so he readily agreed.

After eating, Apanasenko drank the last sip of tea, put the teacup aside, looked up at the major standing upright at the table: "Comrade Chief of Staff, take us to see you here. Build something," he said, turning his head to Kazakov next to him, adding: "I hope that the fortifications you built will not leave your group army commander comrades faceless."

The three of us came out of the regiment’s command post. Apanashenko saw Yushchenko and the soldiers from the guard squad approaching, so he specifically asked for my opinion: "Comrade Oshaninna, let’s walk to the front fortifications to see. Look, okay?"

When I was about to answer, the chief of staff of the regiment suddenly interrupted and said: "Comrade deputy commander of the front army, I am afraid that walking here is not possible, so I have to take a car. It is seven or eight kilometers from here to the station of the first and second battalions.

"Well, then get in the car!" Almost at the same time that Apanashenko issued the order, Yushchenko also heard these words. He immediately stopped and ordered the guards around him to get on the car.

The chief of staff of the regiment was sitting in the sidecar of a motorcycle, clearing the road ahead. The jeep that Apanashchenko and I were riding in followed closely, and behind it was the truck that Yushchenko and the guards drove in.

On the road, seeing no outsiders in the car, I asked Apanashenko curiously: "Comrade Deputy Commander, are you getting along well with the commander of the Front Command?"

Although Apanashchenko was surprised that I would ask such a question, I answered truthfully, "It's okay. Commander Vatutin is very kind to people. When he speaks to anyone, he always wears something on his face. Smile. As for Comrade Khrushchev," he stopped when he said this, making me **** up my ears nervously, eager to learn more useful information from him in the future.

He glanced out the window, and then said: "Although Khrushchev is a member of the Military Committee of the Front Army and has the rank of general, when he interacts with others, he mainly maintains the demeanor of a party worker and never uses it. "Military rank" does not use the term "please report". How to say, he is also a good colleague."

After listening to Apanaschenko’s evaluation of Khrushchev, I secretly breathed a sigh of relief. It seems that if there is a chance, I still have to deal with future leaders, leaving a good impression on him, and waiting for him to dominate. World time. My life should be better.

We were still far from the fortifications, and our car stopped. I looked through the window and saw two captains standing on the side of the road. Talking with the chief of staff who just got out of the sidecar.

Through the introduction of the regiment chief of staff, I learned that these two captains were the commanders of the first battalion and the second battalion. I received a call from the head of the delegation, knowing that we are going to inspect, and came to the side of the road to wait for us.

After shook hands with the two captains, Apanashenko said blankly: "Take us to see what you have built and see if it is satisfactory."

We first inspected the fortifications of the second battalion. The second battalion commander led the way. Apanashenko and I followed him. The regiment chief and the first battalion commander were five or six steps behind us. Farther away are Yushchenko and the soldiers of the guard squad.

The commander of the second battalion led us through the fortifications built by the second battalion, and we came to the defensive zone of the first battalion. To be honest, although I was ordered to inspect the construction of the fortifications, I am a layman. It is okay to see the excitement. If I want to point out what is wrong with the fortifications, I really can't tell.

Fortunately, with Apanashenko's help, I was relieved a lot. He not only stood on the ground to observe the various firepower points, but also walked into the trenches and used his body to measure the height and width of the trenches. From time to time, I knocked the wood of the fortification with my fists to see if it was firmly fixed.

The inspection was almost done, and Apanashenko stopped. Said to the first battalion commander who was the guide: "Comrade Captain, both your battalion and the second battalion are doing a good job, not bad, not bad."

I stood on the south side of the trench and looked into the distance, trying to see if I could see the German positions in the distance, but apart from the wide plains, there was no sign of German fortifications at all. I beckoned to the chief of staff of the regiment. When he stood beside me, I pointed to the distance and asked, "Comrade chief of staff. I don't know how far it is from the German line of defense?"

"At least five kilometers apart, Comrade General." The regiment chief of staff replied very neatly.

I looked around. A hundred meters away from the front left, there is a small soil slope. The height is only 20 to 30 meters, the frontal width is only a hundred meters, and the depth is only 70 to 80 meters. At this moment, many people are nervously building fortifications.

Apanashchenko walked to my side and asked curiously, "Comrade Oshanina, what are you looking at?"

I pointed to the soil **** I was looking at, and said to Apanashenko: "No, Comrade Deputy Commander, there is a small soil **** there. It seems that the comrades of the First Battalion are planning to transform it into a fire support. point."

Apanashchenko glanced at that side, and then said: "Yes, I also saw it. There can be a fire support point. When the enemy attacks the main position of a battalion, it will inflict heavy damage on the enemy from the side. ."

After listening to Apanashenko's words, I slowly shook my head and said, "Comrade Deputy Commander, I think it is not wise to use this as a firepower support point."

"Why?" Hearing what I said, Apanashenko's brows furrowed, and he asked inexplicably: "Comrade Oshanina, can you tell me your reason?"

I pointed to the soil **** in the distance and said to Apanasenko: "Comrade Deputy Commander, look at the slope. The **** is gentle and the area is small. The troops on the **** are too small to attack the Germans. The role of the flanks; too much force will cause heavy casualties in the enemy's artillery or bombing. Since it is such an easy-to-attack and difficult-to-defend terrain, there is no need to build a defensive position on it."

"But, Comrade Oshaninna." Apanashenko retorted me dissatisfiedly: "Are we just watching the Germans occupy it and turn it into an offensive starting point without doing anything?"

"Comrade Deputy Commander, please listen to my explanation." Not only was Apanaschenko's face showing dissatisfaction, but several other commanders gathered together and whispered to each other. I coughed and said loudly to them: "Although there is no need to build fortifications on such a small highland that is difficult to defend at the forefront, small troops can be sent to defend with submachine guns, machine guns and other automatic firearms. Wait for the enemy to attack us. At the time, first use firepower to kill the enemy as much as possible, and then retreat to the main position in a scattered and hidden manner...."

When I said this, I found that Apanashenko's austere brows were stretched out, and there was also a smile on his face, so I struck the iron while it was hot and said: "When the enemy's occupation of the position is not stable, I will use it again. The artillery fire covers the high ground, and then retakes the high ground with a counter-impact. In this repeated seesaw, a large amount of the enemy's vital power is consumed."

"I understand, I understand." After hearing what I said, the battalion commander beside him couldn't help but exclaimed in excitement.

The regiment chief of staff quickly came over and slapped him severely on the back, and at the same time scolded him, "What are you talking about!"

But Apanashchenko waved his hand to the chief of staff disapprovingly, and asked a battalion commander with a smile on his face: "Comrade Captain, what do you understand? Let us all listen."

A battalion commander took a look at us and said with a little embarrassment: "The reason why Comrade General did not recommend us to build fortifications on the small highlands was because I was afraid that after the Germans occupied the highlands, they would use these fortifications to fight back and increase my counterattack. Casualties of troops."

"Yes, Comrade Lieutenant." I waited for a battalion commander to finish and gave him a thumbs up. At the same time, I added: "Although the enemy is attacking, we can only defend. But we can't just do it for defense. In defense, we must use various favorable opportunities to counterattack the enemy. Do you understand?"

"Understood!" the regiment chief and two battalion commanders replied neatly.

"Now that I understand, what are you doing here?" Apanashenko apparently accepted my proposal and immediately ordered a battalion commander: "Comrade Captain, you still don't send anyone to withdraw the soldiers who repaired the fortifications. After having been busy for so long, I believe they are also tired, so let them rest first. As for that slope, you can leave a class as a guard."

"Yes~www.NovelMTL.com~ I will immediately give the order." After a battalion commander replied loudly, he turned and left.

Apanashchenko walked up to the chief of staff of the regiment and said to him: "Comrade chief of staff, you have heard what General Oshanina said." Seeing the other side nodded in approval, he continued, "Since you are listening. When it arrives, immediately promote this new type of defense deployment to the battalions, and abandon the fortifications and constructions on the small highlands that are not easy to defend."

The chief of staff of the regiment waited for Apanashchenko to finish, and first nodded to express obedience to the order, and then complained to him: "Comrade deputy commander of the front army, because our troops are newly formed, the equipment is very poor, although every soldier is armed There are weapons in it, but there are very few automatic weapons like submachine guns and machine guns. I don't know when the superiors can change them for us?" (To be continued.)

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