Steel Soviet Union

Just as Malashenko had predicted earlier.

After being covered by a round of artillery fire, the German army still refused to give up under the afterglow of the setting sun. They firmly grasped the last hour or so before it became completely dark and continued to launch a second fierce attack.

Malashenko guessed correctly. The German artillery that had just launched a fierce bombardment at the Stalingrad Tractor Factory was an artillery regiment unit of three German infantry divisions integrated into one unit.

The German army, which was determined to win the Stalingrad Tractor Factory in the plan, wanted to end everything before dark. The tractor factory, which was scheduled to be captured today, could not be given up under any circumstances.

Reliable intelligence pointed out that it was this dilapidated tractor factory that was bombed by air raids that had been using the lowest manual methods to produce tanks for the Soviet army that was "refractory".

Although those T34 tanks with extremely poor ergonomics were inferior in quality due to their manual manufacturing, the Soviet standard medium tanks that appeared in groups one after another still caused unimaginable trouble to the German offensive.

No matter how poor the quality is, the sloped armor is real. Without the help of the latest long-75 main gun Panzer IV tank, the German army is still helpless against this annoying Soviet tank. As long as the tractor factory is taken down, the future troubles can be eliminated once and for all!

The desperate German army invested a crazy offensive force in order to end the battle before dark.

More than fifty German tanks lined up in the open space on the outskirts of the tractor factory and rushed over menacingly. The entire German infantry battalion, who had been forced to put the duck on the shelf, directly threw themselves into the offensive, following behind their own tanks to coordinate the attack. .

The workers' armed forces, which had escaped from the shelling just now and did not suffer much losses in time, joined forces with the Red Army soldiers who had heard the news from all directions in the past hour or so to hold on to their positions and fight to the death.

It was not Malashenko's style to stay in position and wait for the onslaught of German tanks.

Malashenko, who recognized that the German attacking light infantry lacked effective anti-tank weapons, divided all the remaining tanks under his command into two teams. He and Lavrinenko each led a team and fully engaged in the battle from both wings.

The task of resisting the German attack on the frontal defense line was handed over to the 99th Tank Brigade led by Lieutenant Colonel Roskov. Malashenko, who put all his chips in one go, frantically led the team to attack those who had left the position and had only German infantry in the rear with small arms available.

Seeing that there was hope of breaking through the Soviet defensive positions in front of them, the German armored forces began to be timid again. Once the infantry behind the chrysanthemums could not hold it, it would mean that their retreat was cut off. This was impossible without a final decision on the battle and the balance was still swinging. Catastrophic failure tolerated and endured.

Forced by the desperation, the German armored forces detached a part of the troops that could effectively deal with Malashenko and turned back to attack. However, the frontal offensive still maintained a high-pressure posture and refused to let go. The ambition of this tractor factory must be made by the same forces. The Germans attacked like crazy and completely became red-eyed.

This battle, which was supposed to be a German assault and a Soviet defense, turned into a brutal melee of assault and counter-assault, and they all ended up in a mess.

After hearing the news from all directions in the city, workers' armed forces and Red Army soldiers of different organizations rushed in continuously, just like refueling tactics, they continued to pour into this cruel battlefield to provide emergency support and provide support for their own side. The scale of victory keeps adding subsequent weights.

Using three infantry divisions and an under-organized armored division with slight losses to launch this attack, the German army, which had thought it was sure to win, encountered unprecedented difficulties in the face of its strong and unyielding will. The fierce and fierce war ax directly It hit the strong and unyielding red iron, breaking the ax handle and blunting the ax blade.

When the afterglow of the sunset completely dissipated, the German army, which was the first to be unable to hold on any longer, retreated leaving behind more than a thousand corpses and more than 30 burning tank wreckage in more than an hour. The embarrassment did not look back, and the fierceness and abnormality when the attack was launched were no longer the same.

After just one hour passed, Malashenko's radio communication channel lost forever too many young voices that he had not yet had time to get familiar with and recognize.

The KV1 heavy tank and more than fifty wreckage of the Matilda, Valentine, and T34 medium tanks burned together, lighting up the night sky that had been shrouded in darkness and lighting up the fire of lost life.

Malashenko, who opened the turret hatch above his head, could not feel any joy after victory. The strong smell of blood and the faint smell of burnt human flesh floating in the air were enough to make ordinary people vomit.

His godless eyes scanned the wreckage in front of him, which was filled with scorched earth that was completely soaked in blood and saturated with rivers of blood. Malashenko, who had survived this most difficult day, felt that his soul was about to collapse completely.

"it is finally over"

It was late at night, and Malashenko, who was so tired that he could barely walk, leaned against a pile of shell boxes in a newly built temporary regiment headquarters tent behind the ruins of the bombardment in the factory area, holding the bomb in his hands with trembling fingers. It was the hot lunch box that Commissar Petrov had just handed him.

"The residents of the city just brought us dinner. I heard that it was the last fat pig that has been kept until now. The old woman who brought the meal told us to eat it and recover well."

There was a touch of emotion in Commissar Petrov's words. Malashenko, who was so tired that he couldn't even open his mouth to eat, glanced at the steaming chunks of pork soup in the lunch box. Malashenko, who was already so hungry that his chest was pressed against his back, was finally forced by the temptation of delicious food, and raised his shaking right hand to hold the spoon.

He slowly put the food into his mouth one after another. After his nearly collapsed body barely regained some strength, he started to ask questions while eating.

"How are the conditions of the wounded? Do we still have enough medicine?"

Political Commissar Petrov, who had already finished dinner before Malashenko, was holding the specific list he had just calculated. He sat on the chair in front of the command table and immediately gave Malashenko an answer.

"Don't worry about medical supplies. We are fighting with an entire city behind us. If we are short of anything, we can transport it overnight from the Volga River. There is no problem with logistical support."

"As for the situation of the wounded, there are a lot of medical personnel arriving in the city one after another. I just took a look and found that except for the comrades who really can't be saved, the lives of the rest can be saved."