Actually, Voroshilov did not like to stay in Leningrad at all.

It's April, but the Neva River is still blocked by thick ice and high snowdrifts can be seen on the streets.

Leningrad remained under severe siege. The walls of many houses were struck with bullets, as if they had pockmarked spots. Some of the plywood-clad windows stared like eyeballless sockets. Only a few women or men can be seen on the streets, and all of them serve in the army. The militiamen standing in the street all carried rifles on their shoulders and steel helmets around their waists.

The barracks of the troops were dark and cold, the wide windows were covered with plywood and felt, and only a small piece of glass remained in the corners, and the faint sunlight could barely shine through. The soldiers made small stoves out of empty iron drums, but there was a shortage of fuel, so no amount of stoves was useless. It's like going back to the Stone Age: the small dome of the black hole in the four corners, like a cave. A primitive oil lamp made of cans illuminates the cave with a faint glow. Thick soot came out of the kerosene mixed with the lamp. The soldiers sat by the stove in their coats, silently watching the sound of the wood being peeled.

"You can't endure this for a long time," Voroshilov thought, "and bad food, cold, and filth, can cause disease, demoralization, and physical decline." Vitamin insufficiency, combined with mental malaise, can cause scurvy. …… No, that's not going to work,...... There should be a struggle! ”

"Hey, brothers, why are you worried?" One of the newly arrived sailors asked, they were coming from the Baltic Fleet, and in the darkness they did not notice Marshal Voroshilov, who was dressed in civilian clothes.

"It's hard to be in town." The other sailor replied in a low voice.

"We've only been out here for half a year, and we can't imagine that this is a bad situation," said one of the local soldiers, "and today my mother came to me and gave me 125 grams of bread." …… That kind of bread, you should see, is nothing more than chaff and chemical pulp...... It's heavy, it's wet, it's a wet piece of soil! I gave her my own rations, but she refused to take them, but said, 'Thank you, my good son...... 'My good son,' and she wanted to cry, but there were no tears in her eyes, and she couldn't cry. ”

He covered his face with his hands in sadness, and at this moment, another person's voice came from the shadows:

"Yesterday, a bomb fell on the signalman's house, burying his mother, father and two little sisters. The house is like a pile of rubble, and you can't even dig it out. ”

Voroshilov should have given them an answer, or should have encouraged them. But what is good to say, and how to say good? The Germans had captured Moloisk, Podsolnechnoy, Yakhroma and then approached Skhodnia. Skhodnia was a summer retreat only 30 kilometers from Moscow, and Voroshilov was familiar with it, and it was about to be occupied by the Germans!

"Yes, it's hard in the city. …… Perhaps, it will be more difficult; But our spirits must not be depressed. We should do everything possible to break through the encirclement quickly, to drive the Germans out of Leningrad, and to drive them completely from the land of our homeland......" was encouraged.

"Our spirits will not be depressed," interrupted one of them, "I just don't understand how we can drive the enemy away when we stay in the barracks." ”

"Our gunners, they can help the front, can hit the Germans with artillery," someone interjected. "At the point of fire on the coast, the battle continues."

"How nice it would be if we went to fight guerrillas! Then I can strangle all those Germans...... Tear them to shreds with your teeth! …… As long as I live, I will fight, fight, fight...... Comrade lieutenant, let me go to the partisans. ”

The people were lively, there was a commotion: everyone thought he had a good idea. Voroshilov's heart was also touched.

"Yes, we should organize ourselves and organize all of us into a guerrilla detachment."

"Yes wow...... Not bad...... That's a great idea. Many people around shouted like that.

"The people we have here are experienced and alert...... We can go to the rear of the enemy and make things go with a bang. If you think about it, we have all kinds of specialists here: engineers, electricians, shooters, machine gunners, minelayers...... If I capture a fascist tank, I can fully equip it. ”

"If you join the guerrillas, it doesn't mean that you will be able to fight guerrillas right away. …… There should be a discipline first......"

Hearing this, Voroshilov couldn't help but smile.

"Every unit, including the guerrilla units, should be orderly and have a commander. I now propose that our comrade lieutenant be asked to be the commander of the partisan detachment. ”

And so, the people were in an uproar again. The lieutenant stood up and said, "I am very honored by the trust you have placed in me. Thank you in advance; But don't forget that you are not partisans yet, and I am still a captain. Please sit down, everyone. ”

Everyone sat down on the beds next to the stove.

"Before you go to the guerrillas, you have to learn first. We have to study the weapons of the infantry well; But alas, not every one of you has a full knowledge of infantry weapons. We need to know the weapons that can be captured. We knew blasting very well, we were good at crawling, we learned how to fight with hand, we had to judge the terrain, and much more. So I'm going to suggest that from tomorrow onwards, we start to learn these things. The partisans were supposed to be the strongest, flexible, hard-working, able to endure the hardships of any long march and not afraid of the cold. The order that morning exercises must be done is still an order to this day; But each of us has to work harder to do morning exercises; You must know that every person who is not in good health, who is weak, and who has not been trained will only become a burden in the army. ”

The talk of the sailors reminded Voroshilov, and it suddenly occurred to him that the special tank platoon led by the "521" crew could not rely on only four new heavy tanks to kill Himmler, and they not only needed the support of the infantry, but also had to be met by partisans after entering the enemy-occupied area.

Isn't this group of sailors in front of you a good guerrilla force?