On both sides of the Tisza River, the Reichsmarshal Panzer Division and the Großdeutsche Division pursued all the way north, with the E-40 in front, the No. 4 tank in the middle, and the SDKFZ51 armored vehicles behind, where the armored cluster passed, all the vehicles were beaten to scrap metal, any infantry who dared to resist was drowned in a rain of bullets, and the blood of the officers and men of the 49th Tank Division and the 1st Motorized Division stained every inch of the land. >> >>

It wasn't until nightfall that a one-sided killing stopped.

On the north bank of the Tisza River, in the town of Mazechat.

Hearing the bad news of the defeat of the two armies, the commander of the 24th Mechanized Corps, Kryakov, and the chief of staff, Kosolov, faced each other, and clearly saw the shock in each other's eyes.

In one day, both divisions were all crushed, not by a sneak attack, not by an ambush, but in a frontal battle with no fancy to speak of.

Although I had already thought that the Germans would be stronger than the Italians and Hungarians, I did not expect it to be so strong.

In front of the Germans, the golden combination of the KV-1 and T-4 tanks, which they were so proud of, turned out to be so vulnerable.

Most unexpectedly, the telegram of the 1st Motorized Rifle Division stated that it had been attacked by a German armored unit of unknown origin on the right bank of the Tissa River.

"If I'm not mistaken, which unit did the troops of the 49th Tank Division meet the Great German Division, the 1st Motorized Division? When did they arrive on the battlefield? Kryakov asked.

Kosolov frowned, silently took off his military cap, letting the heat of his head escape.

"I think the failure of the offense is just a problem now, and the real big trouble is yet to come."

"Why so?" Kryakov asked puzzled.

Kosolov shook his head. Let the heat of the head dissipate faster. Then he said: "The thing is obvious. What is the unknown Panzer Division trying to do hiding on the battlefield? Certainly not to ambush our 1 motorized division, our advance plan took a very short time from the formulation to its implementation, and the Germans could not have ambushed an armored division there in advance. There is only one answer, the enemy is ambushing an armored unit there in order to attack our flanks, cut off us from the main forces in the rear, and then eat us. ”

Kryakov was stunned and froze there for more than a dozen seconds before regaining his composure, and quickly accepted Kosolov's opinion.

"Yours right. This inference of yours explains not only why that unit was there, but also why the Großdeutsche Division appeared in front of the Forty-ninth Tank Division so quickly. ”

"This is the only explanation, we must report our inferences to the army group command, and if I am not mistaken, they will continue to advance north after dawn, and the left flank of our marching infantry units is dangerous." Kosolov tract.

"It was ordered that the troops of the 1st Motorized Division and the 49th Tank Division must build fortifications in place overnight, wait for reinforcements to arrive, and not be allowed to take a step back. You immediately send a telegram to the army group command to clarify our speculation. and the progress of the battle during the day. Kryakov said.

Kosolov quickly dictated a telegram, which was recorded by the staff officer. After reading it, Kryakov took up a pen and signed his name to agree to send it.

After sending the telegram, Kosolov and Kryakov gathered around the map table.

"The troops of the 1st Motorized Division and the 49th Tank Division have lost most of their heavy weapons, and in one night they have to collect the routed troops and build positions, and the efficiency will certainly not be high, and it is unlikely that they can block the attack of the German armored forces, and we must think of other ways to delay the German attack."

"Yes, the 1st and 49th Divisions have failed in battle, and the infantry units behind will encounter the Germans in the wilderness, and then there will be a one-sided massacre, and the 45th Division must stop its attack in the Solnok area, turn around and go east, and attack the left flank of that mysterious force, and plan the defense of the 1st Division." Kryakov said.

Solnock! Hearing the name of the place, Kosolov's heart moved.

He hunched over the map, his pencil sliding over the banks of the Tisza River before finally resting on top of Solnok.

"Located at the confluence of the Tissa River and its tributary, the Zozhivo River, Solnok is a hub for land and water transport. The Germans would not fail to protect the city. What is it clear that the march of the 45th Tank Division during the day was completely unhindered by the German Army? ”

Kryakov followed Kosoloov's prompts and soon thought of a possibility.

"You mean that the enemy has not detected our intention to attack Sornok, or that they have no armored forces in the Sornok area that they can use to counter us?"

"The only possibility that comes to mind is whether we can use this discovery to make a counterattack plan." Kosolov tract

In the town of Kaur Caoge, Chen Dao walked around the military headquarters with his hands behind his back, looking up at the map on the wall from time to time, and hesitated in his heart.

After a day of fighting, the Seventh Panzer Army easily repelled the enemy who outflanked the Italian Eighth Army, but it also revealed its own presence, and the operation of attacking the enemy's flank also lost its suddenness.

After pondering for a while, Chen Dao's gaze fell on Solnok City.

There was a Soviet armored unit that was attacking the Solnok area, and the Italian Litorio Panzer Division and the Turin Motorized Division, which were certainly no match for the Soviets in the field, were forced to abandon the operational intentions that accompanied the attack of the Imperial Marshal's Panzer Division, and switched to a defensive posture in place, preparing to deal with the Soviet armored forces with a more favorable defensive battle.

If this force is left alone, will the Italians be able to deal with the Soviet armored forces with their own strength?

To the west and southwest were the units of the 67th Infantry Corps, to the south was defended by Italian troops in the Sornok area, to the north was mountainous area, and beyond the mountains was German-controlled Slovakia, as long as the 7th Panzer Corps could attack north as originally planned, cutting off the enemy's armored forces from the infantry in the rear, an encirclement would be formed, and all the enemies in the encirclement would be the spoils of the battle.

But now the thorny problem lies with the 7th Panzer Corps. If the Italians are defeated. Solnock was occupied. The Soviets opened a breakthrough in the south of the encirclement, and all their efforts were undone.

Unconsciously, Chen Dao wandered in front of the map for half an hour.

When the soldiers are used, they hate less, and it would be nice to have one more armored force, Chen Dao couldn't help but feel annoyed.

"Can we let the 67th Infantry Corps send troops to fight together, so many troops are just squatting there to guard the trenches, it's really a waste?"

Major Lorenz's words reminded Chen Dao, and Chen Dao's eyes lit up. Quickly look at the location of the Sixty-Seven Infantry Corps on the map.

"They are all infantry, and it is okay to use defensive warfare against the tank units of the Soviet army, and to leave the trenches to fight field battles with the Soviet KV and T-4 tanks, the consequences are unimaginable." When Chen Dao spoke, his eyes dimmed again.

"I remember that you once sent a teaching unit to assist the Hungarians in debugging the No. 4 tank line, and also assisted the Hungarians in training tankmen, and those people are still in Hungary, can we use this force?"

Chen Dao slapped his head, and then patted Major Lorenz on the shoulder and said, "Your reminder is really timely. I know what to do. ”

Chen Daowan asked for a pen and paper, and wrote two telegrams to Major Lorenz. Verbally explained: "After sending these two telegrams, inform the Reichsmarshal Division and the Großdeutsche Division that the original plan will remain unchanged and that the attack to the north will continue after dawn." ”

For the rest of the night, neither Chen Dao nor Kryakov closed their eyes, and the invisible radio waves intertwined and shuttled through the endless night until the dawn fell over the battlefield.

The sky had just brightened, and in the east and west directions of the battlefield, countless groups of planes rushed into the battlefield, either thirty, or fifty, and more.

After the combat report of the 24th Mechanized Army was sent to the military headquarters of the 12th Group Army, it not only attracted the attention of the 12th Group Army, but also caused a shock after it was forwarded to the headquarters of the Southwest Front Army.

If the German army really did what the telegram suggested, not only would the battle of the Southwestern Front not be successful, but because the German counteroffensive would turn into a major defeat, the armored forces that came out would face the danger of total annihilation.

The movement of ground troops was too cumbersome and slow, and in order to save the critical situation on the battlefield, the Soviet Air Force carried the banner of "fire brigade" and stepped into the battlefield at dawn to save their army comrades.

On both sides of the Tisza River, with the arrival of Soviet Air Force bomber groups, the tranquility of the battlefield was instantly shattered.

The fuselage of the Il-attack aircraft was sprayed with black paint, like a grim reaper dressed in black, roaring to the Germans on the ground, 100 kg of bombs fell with a strong wind, and 0 mm cannons and 7.6 mm machine guns swept out one after another.

In order to avoid these Black Deaths, the German soldiers scrambled to lie on their stomachs.

On the Dongfeng self-propelled anti-aircraft guns, the 40-mm Bofors anti-aircraft guns threw out countless shells, and the towed 0-mm anti-aircraft guns also turned into combat forms, using dense fire nets to stop the wreaking havoc of the Soviet Air Force.

The fleet of the Sixth Air Force arrived in time, and its original mission was to cooperate with the ground forces in the offensive.

However, after discovering the presence of Soviet fighters, the escorted ME-109 fighters lightly swooped down on Il.

In the blink of an eye, the sky was filled with fighters chasing each other, and new groups of planes kept coming, and they were immediately pulled into a fierce battle, and the sound of guns and explosions obscured the sky over the battlefield.

With the support of the air force, the Il-attack aircraft ceased to rage, and the German forces on the ground once again became bold in their actions, and a new round of offensive began.

The Großdeutsche division took the lead in the attack.

Reconnaissance platoons and aerial reconnaissance planes sensed that the Soviets on the opposite side had constructed new defensive lines, which were supported by the villages and towns on the road.

The foxholes outside the village and the buildings inside became the main fortifications of the Soviet infantry.

There was no barbed wire, and no continuous trenches.

In one night, the troops of the 49th Tank Division spent most of the night just reorganizing their scattered troops, and there was no extra time to build complete fortifications.

The Greater German Division attacked north along two nearly parallel roads.

Major General Holren was born as an infantry regiment commander, but after being promoted to division commander, he quickly learned the essence of the armored force attack, and even more profoundly understood the operational concept that artillery is the god of war, which Chen Dao has always advocated.

Although the troops advanced north along two parallel roads, the artillery regiment followed closely behind, and the troops on both roads were all within the fire support distance of the artillery regiment.

On Highway 4, the 1st German Corps easily conquered two villages and reached the important town of Tissafield on the left bank of the Tissa River.

Tisafeld is across the river from the town of Poroslo on the right bank of the Tissa River, less than five kilometres between the two towns.

According to the battle plan, the Großdeutsche Division and the Imperial Marshal's Division agreed to take the two towns on both sides of the Tisza River and make contact on the way.

Five Bobcat light tanks were soon dispatched to the outskirts of Tissafield for reconnaissance, followed by an infantry platoon in armored vehicles.

Four FI-8 helicopters were also dispatched to the city.

Ten minutes later, the artillery regiment sent a telegram informing them that the regimental artillery of the regimental headquarters was ready.

The Soviets were outnumbered, fortified only on the edge of the town and within the town, abandoning the defense of the field, and the infantry and armored vehicles of the 1st Regiment and 2nd Battalion easily took the field and went around to the northeast of the town, with a tank company with them.

With a radio wave, a thunderous cannon roared from the positions of the Greater German Artillery Regiment, and a battalion of 105-mm howitzers roared as shells rained down on the southern part of the town of Tissafield.

After about fifteen minutes of shelling, eleven E-40 tanks and seventeen Type 4G tanks led about a company of infantry into the attack.

Soviet soldiers flashed in the wreckage and ruins of buildings south of the town, and there were also traces of tanks in the corners of some buildings at the entrance of the town, which were the few survivors of yesterday's tank battle.

Relying on the town's buildings and favorable terrain, the Soviet soldiers mustered up the courage to resist the German charge with inferior weapons.

Unlike in the field, the E-40 tank did not rush straight into the town, but pulled away, relying on heavy armor and accurate 88 guns, firing at the exposed fire of the Soviet army one by one.

Behind the E-40, Tank IV is doing the same job.

Whether it is a machine-gun bunker, an anti-tank gun position, or a Soviet tank hidden in a dark corner, once exposed, it will immediately be bloodied by German tank guns.

Seeing that the fighting in the south of the town was tight, the German infantry was getting closer and closer to the town, and more and more Soviet infantry rushed to the south of the town to join the battle, and the anti-tank gunners also pushed the anti-tank guns to the south of the town.

Every move of the Soviet troops in the town was monitored by the artillery observation post on the helicopter, and with the call of the artillery observation post, the Big German artillery regiment roared again.

In this round of shelling, four artillery battalions opened fire at the same time, and six 105-mm howitzers and one 150-mm howitzer smashed tons of steel on the heads of the Soviet troops in the south of the town, and almost one-third of the area in the south of the town was instantly covered in flames and smoke.

Under the shelling, intact buildings were reduced to rubble, which in turn turned into piles of rubble, covering the corpses of Soviet soldiers.

After carefully identifying the intensity of the shelling, the 2nd Battalion, which had made a detour to the northeast of the town, recognized it as the agreed signal for attack.

Taking advantage of the opportunity of the main force of the Soviet army being attracted to the south of the town, the second battalion, under the guidance of the tank company, quickly rushed to the northeast of the town, and it took only one charge to sweep through the Soviet positions in the northeast of the town in less than ten minutes, and rushed into the town of Tissafield. (To be continued......)