The entire plan of the Soviet army was divided into three steps.

First of all, the front-line infantry, an order to go down to let them understand the direction of the battle in the future.

The daytime mission is somewhat similar to Kyiv's "barrel defense", dividing the troops into several parts, and then separating them from a few kilometers of defensive lines, one defense after another, each of which requires several hours to defend...... This was not difficult for the 316th Division, it took several hours for the German Panzer Division to advance several kilometers in muddy ground and minefields and then organize an offensive, and then a symbolic defense came for a while.

The task at night was relatively heavy, that is, to recapture the enemy's position, and it was carried out with little rest...... This was caused by the insufficient strength of the Soviet troops.

As mentioned before, because the Soviet army was on the passive defense and the reserve forces were used for counteroffensives, although the total strength was not less than that of the German army, there was always a situation where there were fewer Soviet troops and more German troops in local areas.

For example, the strength of the 316th Division at this time was more than 8,000 people, plus the 5,000 troops of the 4th Tank Brigade, and the total strength was only 13,000.

The Germans, on the other hand, had two armored divisions and an infantry division of nearly 30,000 men, not counting the superiority of artillery and air force.

This made the 316th Division's schedule very tight, retreating layer by layer during the day, and after resting for a few hours, it was about to enter a counteroffensive immediately, and the counterattack was still only a victory and not a defeat...... If the counterattack is not possible in the designated area, it means that the next day the German army will push further forward, that is, closer to Moscow, and more seriously, it may threaten the flanks of friendly forces on both flanks.

This was followed by the preparation of the 4th tank brigade.

Needless to say, they withdrew to 12 kilometers that night for night training, flares, tracer shells, communications, and so on.

One of the more troublesome things is communication.

Waving a signal flag during the day is easy for the infantry behind the tank to see, but at night it is a challenge to have a unified command, and even the infantry and the tank have difficulty communicating...... Theoretically, night fighting would have been more advantageous for the Germans, who had more advanced communications equipment and were equipped with every tank.

However, this was eventually resolved by means of a mutilated signal, with both the infantry and the accompanying infantry using black-clothed flashlights, using light and dark or circles to express different meanings.

The most important thing is actually the sappers.

The sappers have more to do...... Mines, wires and barricades were laid, and bridges were blown up, and after the bridges were blown up, they had to be repaired at night so that the Soviets could counterattack at night.

In addition, it is necessary to build several "dark tunnels", that is, roads that appear to be muddy on the surface, but in fact can be passed by tanks.

Each of these projects was not a small project that required a considerable amount of manpower, but this was not a problem for the Soviet army, which had many civilians working as sappers on the front line.

Looking at the people who were nervously building fortifications on the battlefield, Shulka was a little worried...... I wonder if they're one of them?

"They" refers to Shulka's family, who knows that they are building fortifications in the area.

"Don't worry!" The instructor patted Shulka on the shoulder and said, "I've already transferred them to Moscow, I mean your parents!" ”

Shulka couldn't help but look at the instructor suspiciously: "How do you know about them?" ”

"Is there anything else I don't know about here?" The instructor asked rhetorically.

So Shulka understood, someone made a small report to the instructor...... Sometimes the content of the small report is not entirely bad, for example, Shulka's family working on the front line has little to grasp, or rather, it is a kind of "news".

"Thank you, Comrade Instructor!" Shulka said to the instructor.

"Don't thank me!" The instructor replied: "We need to let the heroes fight at the front with peace of mind, and ...... They can also be our promotional targets! ”

"Propaganda object?"

"Yes!" The instructor nodded: "The hero's family, the whole family is fighting on the front line, which is a good example for others!" ”

Shulka couldn't help but smile bitterly, he didn't want this, but thinking about it, he felt that it was indeed a good thing, at least it could keep them away from the battlefield, so he didn't speak.

The next day, it was a rare good weather, the sun was just right and the air was fresh.

Early in the morning, Colonel Jonas, commander of the German 5th Panzer Division, stood next to a "No. 3" tank in the snowflakes with a telescope and watched the movement in the direction of the Soviet troops.

"Get ready to attack!" Colonel Jonas coldly ordered the adjutant beside him.

"Yes!" The adjutant then radioed the order.

As a result, fire broke out under the German tanks...... The tanks designed by the Germans were not designed to fight in severe cold conditions, and they had to be warmed up if they were frozen overnight. (Note: During World War II, most gasoline did not have antifreeze added, so it was easy to freeze)

After observing for a while, Colonel Jonas put down his binoculars, and his blue eyes revealed some doubt: "They seem to have fewer troops than before!" ”

"Maybe they retreated!" The adjutant said, "Or run away!" ”

Colonel Jonas shook his head and replied: "Here is only a little more than a hundred kilometers from Moscow, and at the same time the last line of defense, they have nowhere to run!" ”

After a pause, Colonel Jonas said, "I think they are using some kind of tactic, although I don't know what!" ”

"Tactics?"

"Yes!" Colonel Jonas put away his binoculars, looked at the map carefully for a while, and then suddenly understood something: "The reservoir, the reservoir of Istria, they may retreat to that defense, and even ...... You can blow it up if necessary! ”

"Blow up the reservoir? Will the Russians do this? "The adjutant couldn't believe it, after all, it would leave a flood downstream.

"If we threaten Moscow, do you think they won't do that?" Colonel Jonas asked rhetorically.

The answer is yes, the Russians did not hesitate to sacrifice everything in order to defend Moscow.

"We should warn the rest of the troops!" Colonel Jonas said: "Let them beware of this, and additionally...... We should try to capture the reservoir before they blow it up, otherwise we will have to continue our advance north towards Moscow! ”

In a way, Colonel Jonas was right in his fears.

To be precise, what Colonel Jonas feared was what had happened in history, that is, Rokossovsky's defenses.

However, what Colonel Jonas did not expect was that the Soviet army at this time had already adopted another defensive tactic.

Compared to blowing up the reservoir, this defensive tactic is what he needs to worry about.