Toltkin placed sentries near the main road, and the almost constant flow of motor vehicles passed through it, which had to be monitored. Sometimes traffic is interrupted for a moment, and then tension resumes. The car was filled with Germans and secret cargo covered in coarse canvas. The powerful tractor pulled the cannon twice, and the number of guns was 18 in total.

Toltkin constantly monitored the traffic, while the rest of the scouts took turns on duty: some slept, and Sun Hui counted the German forces passing by, along with Toltkin.

Markov suddenly emerged from the darkness, "There was a big German car on the sidewalk, and there were only two Germans. The car was full of food. Please let's stab these two guys to death, just shoot them. ”

Toltkin followed him cautiously, and sure enough, he saw a carriage moving slowly along the sidewalk. Two Germans smoke cigarettes and chatter lazily. A pig purred and snorted on the cart.

yes, everybody wants to clean up these two guys. They are simply self-defeating. But Toltkin waved his hand not without regret: "Let them go." ”

Markov was even a little annoyed, because the situation was so favorable, he couldn't help but try to show his ability to show the scouts, especially Semenov, that he was quick-eyed.

The sky was getting brighter, and the traffic on the main road was cut off.

"They only operate at night." Semenov said, "In order to avoid our Air Force." There must be some attempt, scoundrel! ”

Toltkin led the warriors back to the dense oak forest, where the scouts curled up and dozed off in the morning cold. Suddenly, there was a long dragging sound from the house by the lake, and it was impossible to hear whether it was moaning or shouting.

Toltkin himself, for some reason, suddenly remembered Markov. The screams came again, and then everything fell silent.

"I'll go see what's going on over there," Pyshkov suggested.

"No," said Toltkin, "it's dawn." ”

It's really bright. Pink dots of light ripple across the lake. The scouts nibbled on Markov's rusk clips** from his bottomless pockets and fell asleep again.

Toltkin and Sun Hui didn't sleep. They crawled to the edge of the lake and stopped in the bushes almost close to the shore. The houses by the lake seemed to wake up, and the yard was full of people.

Soon, three people walked out of the door. The tallest of them raised his hand to the brim of his hat, gave a military salute, and slowly left the house. He climbed the hill, turned back and waved to the two men who had remained in the doorway, and walked briskly along the sidewalk. Toltkin discovered that the German was carrying a backpack with a white bandage on his left arm.

Toltkin immediately thought that the German should be captured. This is simply not an impulse of thought, but of the will, which every scout develops at the slightest sight of any German. It only later dawned on Toltkin what the German's bandaged arms had to do with the midnight cry that had alarmed the scouts. It turned out that the house by the lake was a hospital. The tall German who walked along the sidewalk had just been discharged from the hospital and was about to return to his original unit. No one will look for this German.

Toltkin pointed to the lanky figure looming in the sparse trees and said, "Catch this guy." ”

The Scouts would have been taken aback if they were. Because their leader, who is usually very cautious, actually ordered the Germans to be arrested in the middle of the day!

Sun Hui was also surprised, and then Toltkin pointed to the house and explained to him: "That's the hospital. ”

Sun Hui saw a white bandage shining in the sun on the German's arm, and immediately understood.

"Let's get him." Sun Hui said, and rushed forward silently.

The Germans were walking, whistling and blowing tunes, presumably enjoying themselves on this crisp morning. Actually, everything is very simple. Sun Hui pounced on the Germans at once, as the scouts often did, and Toltkin assisted him in quickly tying the Germans up with ropes and gagging him with a ball of cloth, and when they dragged him back, the Germans had not yet figured out what was going on.

The German was lying on the ground, as if he had been pulled a slightly long pointed nose towards the sky. They pulled the ball of cloth out of his mouth. The Germans began to hum.

Toltkin spoke German in a Russian accent and asked, "Which unit are you from?" ”

"109 Infantry Division, Infantry Company," the German replied.

This is an infantry division that the scouts know is stationed at the front.

Toltkin looked closely at the captive. He was a young man of about twenty-five or sixteen years of age, with gray hair and watery light blue eyes—typical Germanic eyes.

Toltkin stared the pair into the eyes and asked the second question: "Have you seen the SS here?" ”

"Oh, yes," replied the German, who seemed to be smug at the familiarity of the situation, and was able to look at the Russians around him more boldly, "and there are quite a few of them here, and they are everywhere." ”

"What kind of troops are they?" Toltkin asked.

"It should be the SS 'Reaper' Panzer Division, a famously powerful division, the elite unit of SS leader Himmler."

"The Reaper Panzer Division?" Toltkin frowned.

"Yes, their insignia has the head of the Grim Reaper on it." The captive said.

Sun Hui did not know German, and only after listening to Toltkin's translation did he know what the prisoner had said, and he immediately understood and told Toltkin that this unit should be the SS "Skeleton" Panzer Division.

The scouts understood that something very important had been heard. Although the German did not know the purpose of the formation and assembly of the "Skeleton" division, Toltkin attached great importance to the significance of the information he obtained.

After executing the captives, the scouts moved on, this time more slowly, even stopping from time to time to listen to the night's sounds. As soon as Semenov made a bird's call, everyone stood still.

On the left side of the road, cars and tracked tractors often pass by. The Germans can be heard singing, swearing, and the sound of passwords. Sometimes the infantry walked by, and the conversation of the soldiers was heard so clearly that it seemed that if you could catch a German with a single stretch of your hand, and when you touched the German face, you would be burned by the cigarette butts that the Germans were burning.

Toltkin resolutely decided not to catch the "tongue" for the time being. He felt that they had penetrated into the center of the enemy garrison. A negligent movement, a low shout, would provoke a surprise attack by this group of SS troops. He knew that the "Skeleton" Division might be assembled here, but he did not know its formation and intentions. If we count the troops, tanks, and artillery, the size of this division can be roughly determined. As for the intentions of the command, it was understood only by the Germans, who were familiar with the situation. They had to catch such a German.