Minsk, General Command of the German Front.

After learning that the Moder Rapid Panzer Brigade was exchanging fire with the Russian army on the western outskirts of Smolensk, Oli hurried to the combat hall of the headquarters, and only three minutes later, Chentian, dressed in a simple suit, also arrived.

Seeing Ollie switching his gaze back and forth between the small map on the table and the large map on the wall, Chen Tian approached and said:

"Our troops were ambushed by the Russians?"

"Yes, Your Majesty, and it is very likely that the ambush of us is a Russian tank unit!"

Ollie turned around, his face not too anxious or uneasy, and after a serious military salute, his gaze returned to the map.

"Will it be the 3rd Armored Division of the Russian Army?" Chen Tian looked up, the place near Smolensk on the large map had long been occupied by all kinds of arrows and circles, and the place where the battle took place was the tip of one of the arrows.

"Unlikely!" Ollie shook his head, "General Guderian's advance force has already discovered the traces of that Russian armored force!" Unless the Russians split their last armored division in two, which would do little good......"

Referring to the information he had received earlier, Chen Tian asked again: "Then what we encountered is very likely to be those independent armored regiments formed by the Russian army in the Far East?" ”

Ao replied in a speculative tone: "It is quite possible, and there is more than one separate armored regiment!" According to the latest battle reports from the front, the artillery fire of our army's rapid armored brigade is very fierce, and so far a tank equivalent to a tank company has lost its combat effectiveness! ”

"Including tank IV?" Chen Tian asked closely.

"I'm afraid so!" Ollie said helplessly, "It seems that the Russians already have a considerable understanding of our large-depth interspersed operations, so they will deploy heavy troops in that position!" It's just that judging from the current situation, those Russian tanks are not supported by a large number of infantry, which is good news for us! ”

Chen Tian pondered coldly for a while, "Did you order the Air Force to dispatch?" ”

"Yes!" Ollie replied, "Two fighter squadrons and a bomber squadron were dispatched, but at night our ultra-low-altitude horizontal bombing and normal dive bombing were restricted, and the effect of air raids was probably hard to expect!" Other than that. The terrain is more complicated, and the moonlight and stars are not bright tonight! ”

"It's ...... dawn," Chen Tian looked at his watch, "and there are still at least six hours!" ”

"Time is more favorable for the Russian army!" Ollie added.

"How about attacking with flares and incendiary grenades?" Chen Tian stood next to him and asked.

Ollie's tone was a little tactful, "Judging from the situation during our drill, the effect of using it at night is very unsatisfactory, and it greatly increases the chance of accidentally injuring one's own ground!" In general, the effectiveness of ground support at night of the aviation unit is still a major technical difficulty! ”

Chen Tian thought about it again, "In that case...... That's right! The Russian army avoided our air force under cover of night. Then our infantry and assault guns can also approach their tanks through the nightfall, so that the infantry anti-tank detachments with anti-tank weapons can be used! ”

Ollie straightened up, "Your Majesty, if our front-line commander is qualified enough, I think he has already done so!" ”

Chen Tian nodded, a little happy and a little embarrassed in his heart, although his talent in commanding the troops in the combat area is recognized, but after all, after ascending the throne, he has not personally commanded the troops on the front line for many years, as the king of a country, it is impossible for him to pay attention to the latest tactical details of the grassroots troops from time to time. That's why some of the questions asked will seem a little white. It is no wonder that in history, the Supreme Commander-in-Chief overstepped his level to interfere in the decision-making of grassroots commanders, and sometimes caused some ironic things. Even turn a victory into a draw, a draw into a defeat, or even a direct low-hanging fruit victory into a "miraculous" reversal, because they are not grassroots commanders. Many times there is simply no understanding of the specifics of what is happening on the battlefield.

Chen Tian then remembered that the main purpose of his coming to the front line was to visit and comfort the generals and soldiers on the front line, not to "support" the command and judgment of the generals. Thinking of this, Chen Tianan sat down quietly, asked the attendant to get him a cup of coffee, and then watched Ollie and his staff officers busy.

On the other side, the battle was still raging. The German vanguard tank battalion, which had suffered heavy losses from the sudden and heavy artillery fire of the Russian army, had stabilized, and more than a dozen destroyed tanks and assault guns were still burning on the road and in the nearby fields, and the remaining tank IV of the battalion had either found earth, trees or ditches for cover. Either their thickest frontal armor is facing the other side from a distance, so even if a Russian shell falls near them or hits them directly, they are not easily damaged, let alone destroyed!

There were more than a dozen equally obvious fires in the field about 500 to 1,500 meters in front of these IV tanks, which were Russian tanks that had not long ago tried to rush from their positions to this side of the road, but unfortunately as soon as they left their previously hidden positions, they were quickly exposed to the light of German flares, followed by heavy fire from German tanks and assault guns. The combination of Russia's backward industry and Japan's lack of primitive interest in tanks and the urgent need to strengthen steel performance makes its tanks less technical than even the United States 264 years ago, when the best heavy tanks in the United States made it impossible for German 75mm guns to penetrate their armor from 500 meters away, and now Russian and Japanese tanks can only rely on terrain to avoid German shells 800 meters away!

The Russian tanks temporarily retreated to their positions, but the fire between the two sides was still fierce, and under the cover of the fire of the deleted tanks, the weaker armored tank III and assault guns were able to withdraw to a safer place and continue firing. At the same time, six truck-drawn howitzer batteries in the Rapid Armored Brigade began to fire at the Russian positions with their 105-mm howitzers after completing their preparations for firing, and the momentum of artillery fire on the German side suddenly intensified!

The situation stabilized slightly, but Moder had no intention of retreating with his troops, knowing that his troops had the heavy responsibility of quickly interspersing to cut off the retreat of the Smolensk defenders, and he must not give up because of this small blow, so he began to organize a counterattack while studying the opponent's situation.

The scattered infantry units did not find any trace of the Russian troops in the surrounding area, which made Moder feel relieved to transfer the four tank companies in the middle to the front. Immediately afterward, he assigned the Tank III, assault guns, and anti-tank infantry of the Advance Tank Battalion and the four tank companies in the middle, and half of the assault guns remained to provide fire support to Tank IV.

The other half returned to the flank of the Russians with some of the No. III tanks and some of the infantry units, and more than 20 No. 3 tanks were left in mobile reserve.

Next, the III tank, assault guns and infantry were grouped in a more detailed group with three tank III forming an armored cover group, three assault guns and four half-track armored vehicle guns forming a specialized armored anti-tank group, and an anti-tank infantry platoon plus a regular infantry platoon forming an infantry anti-tank group. After the formation was completed, these groups took advantage of the darkness of the night to outflank the two flanks of the woods where the Russian army was located.

Although it was not his first combat operation, Thomas who poked half of his body out of the hatch on the top of the assault gun. Sergeant Oakman still had an uncontrollable excitement. As a veteran. He fought in the German-American War 964 years ago, and also witnessed the metamorphosis of the German Army's anti-tank weapons after that war. In 1924, the German Army's anti-tank weapons had 37 mm light anti-tank guns, 75 mm medium anti-tank guns, assault guns, anti-tank grenades and anti-tank explosive packs, these weapons had a certain amount of equipment in the German armored forces and infantry units, but as the war progressed, the 57 mm anti-tank guns were not very powerful, the 75 mm anti-tank guns were too bulky, and the shortcomings of the relatively high requirements for infantry such as anti-tank grenades and explosive packs were also exposed. The German Army decisively eliminated the 37 mm and 75 mm specialized anti-tank guns, the 57 mm guns were replaced with light anti-aircraft guns, and the 75 mm guns were integrated into infantry field artillery batteries as fire support weapons. Only the most effective assault guns and portable anti-tank grenades were retained.

By the beginning of 1928. The total number of assault guns in the German army has reached 17,000, of which about 4,000 are equipped as auxiliary vehicles of tank companies to the front-line armored units, and more than 10,000 Type 1918 and the improved Type 1926 have become standard fire support vehicles for infantry battalion and above units. Their 75 mm guns can be used not only against enemy tanks, but also can effectively attack pillboxes, machine gun positions, anti-tank gun positions and other obstacles.

As a junior artillery officer in the 2nd Panzer Army's Rapid Armored Brigade, Thomas Oakmann commanded a six-man anti-tank gun team until 1924, and as these guns gradually left the German anti-tank weapons sequence, Oakman chose to become an assault gun commander, and he commanded the latest and best Type 1926 assault gun in the German Army, with a total combat weight of 18 tons, which was comparable to a modification of the No. III tank. However, it is equipped with a 43 times diameter 75 mm gun with stronger firepower, and the vehicle is only 2 meters high.

Overall, the low profile of assault guns made them difficult targets and dangerous opponents, and the Type 1918 assault gun, which was slightly inferior to the Type 1926, destroyed no less than 100 American tanks and armored vehicles in the First Battle of Oklahoma alone, and in the First World War of Dallas, the number even reached a staggering 337, equivalent to the combined record of Tanks III and IV.

However, Oakman was a little worried that the sound of his assault gun's engine would attract the attention of the Russians, despite the benefits of diesel engines. However, the shortcomings of concealment are very prominent, and the frontal armor of this assault gun is only at the level of tank III, and the armor of the sides, top, and rear parts of the vital parts is even weaker, and shells are obviously not their strong point.

Thinking of this, Oakman couldn't help but look to the left, right and back, the other two assault guns and four half-track armored vehicles that were incorporated into this group were also rumbling forward, and the heads wearing steel helmets could be seen in the open compartments of the half-track armored vehicles, and in addition to the most basic weapons, each platoon also received two boxes of 24 P2 magnetic anti-tank grenade batch "Iron Fist I" anti-tank grenade launchers from the ammunition supply truck, Although the 80mm anti-tank grenade launcher was only equipped at the beginning of the year, in just three months, almost every German infantryman was taught how to use the weapon, and a considerable number of them also fired live ammunition, and the soldiers were full of praise for this simple and easy-to-operate weapon.

Oakman saw the group commander sitting on the other assault gun make a "keep going" gesture, and turned his attention back to the front, where the moon was obscured by a thick cloud, and the starlight was very dim, and only the black outline of a forest could be seen in front of him, but the distance was not at all. The continuous sound of cannon sounds far and near, and the noise of engines and tracks fills my ears with these imminent sounds.

In this case, the German and Russian outflanking forces, which were very close, failed to detect each other as soon as possible, until the distance between the two sides was reduced to a terrible 500 meters!

The first to fire was a Russian tank that might not feel that something was right, and then the Russian army fired another flare, and the dazzling light illuminated a large area of the wilderness in a miserable white, and the officers and soldiers on both sides were really surprised at this time - this wide field is full of tanks and armored vehicles! The camouflage-painted German tanks were more like stones hidden in the fields, and the yellow-green painted Russian tanks were like beetles of indescribable shape lying in the grass, and just like that, a scuffle began!

One flare after another rose into the air, and there was no need to find out who fired it. In this open field, both sides have no geographical advantage, when the distance is close enough, the difference between the two artillery is largely canceled, as long as the target can be hit, 47 mm guns, 50 mm guns, 57 mm guns and 75 mm guns can beat the other side back to the state of parts, at this time the two sides are compared with artillery, tactics, composure, coordination, etc., and the German side obviously has the advantage of numbers and infantry.

As early as after the Russian army fired the first shot, Oakman got into the cabin, but in this bad light, the effect of finding targets through observation holes and periscopes was not good, so he still risked sticking his head out of the cabin again and again. The paint colors of the tanks on both sides are easy to confuse in the dark night, but the tanks and armored vehicles on both sides are very different in appearance, but most of the compact tanks are German No. III tanks, and those without turrets must be German assault guns and armored vehicles, while the tall and small tanks of Russian tanks are both funny and easy to identify.

In the dark night, dark red shells are flying around, compared to tank guns, the scene of "Iron Fist I" firing looks much better - whenever the infantry pull the trigger, there will always be a thick orange-red flame in front of and behind the launch tube, and then about 100 meters away will explode its large flames, although the range of this weapon is not far, but the high explosive in the concave blasting part of the grenade can penetrate more than 100 mm of armor, once it is directly hit by this powerful Dongdong, Not a single tank on this battlefield could resist.