The troops jumped out of the trenches and pounced on the Germans who were fleeing from the wolves. The shells fired by Morozov's artillery battery constantly exploded in the crowd of the enemy's rout, and the waves of explosion or flying shrapnel occasionally cut down the German soldiers in a row.

I called Pugachev to the front, handed the telescope into his hands, and said excitedly: "Captain Pugachev, let's take a look, what is the coordinated operation of infantry artillery?" The battle that is going on outside is a good teaching material. ”

Although Pugachev was confused, the strict hierarchy in the army made him afraid to ask casual questions, so he had to honestly raise his binoculars and look outside.

After he looked at it for a while, I asked next to me, "Do you see anything famous?" ”

He put down the binoculars, looked at me blankly, shook his head slowly, and said with some confusion: "I only see the enemy fleeing, and our army is pursuing." ”

I was choked by his words, and I wanted to raise my hand to slap him, and I showed an expression of hatred on my face, and pointed outside and said to him angrily: "Comrade Captain, didn't you pay attention to the impact point of my division's artillery battery?" ”

He nodded, and replied, "See, almost all the shells fall in the middle of the enemy's infantry and explode, but the enemy is so dense in formation, and the distance is so close, it is strange if the artillery company misses." ”

This elm pimple, I am still so optimistic about him, I didn't expect him to be so open-minded, and I didn't see anything after watching it for a long time, so I was ashamed of my trust in him. But I wondered if I had any trouble with him, but patiently explained to him: "Comrade Pugachev, you look carefully. The shells of the artillery company fell where the enemy was concentrated. This made it possible to destroy the resistance of the enemy, which could be organized. So that the attack of our troops will be a little smoother, and the charge will be a little faster. There are also infantry commanders and fighters who are also remarkable, they know that the artillery is guiding their own attack, and immediately direct the troops to follow the artillery point to attack, often as soon as the shells blow up the enemy, the infantry in company and platoon will rush forward and destroy the remaining German troops. ”

Hearing me say this, Pugachev, who was observing the battlefield with a telescope, nodded again and again: "Comrade division commander. As you say, our warriors rushed forward at the point of impact, beating the enemy to the point of abandoning their armor and fleeing in a wolf manner. ”

Our fighters pursued and killed for about two kilometers, then stopped the pursuit, and the dozens of German soldiers who had escaped with their lives escaped as if they had been pardoned, spread their feet and fled into the distance. After our fighters stopped the pursuit, they began to clean up the battlefield, carry the captured materials, and escort the prisoners back.

The trucks on the battlefield were almost destroyed by artillery fire, but I found the fighters returning when they returned. Actually drove back the armored car that collided with the truck. It seems that this armored car is sturdy, so violently after the impact. The trucks are all reimbursed, and it's fine.

Seeing the fighters returning to the trenches one after another, I finally waited for Gaidar's belated call. I heard him say excitedly: "Report to Comrade Division Commander, in the battle just now, our regiment destroyed 3 enemy tanks, 5 armored vehicles, and 25 trucks, killed 147 enemy people, wounded 213 people, captured 17 people, and captured one armored vehicle. ”

When Gaidar finished talking about the results of our army, I took the initiative to ask: "What are the casualties of our army?" ”

"Fortunately, only a dozen fighters were slightly wounded, and no one died."

"Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, have you interrogated the prisoners? What part of them are they? ”

"Interrogated, they are the 4th Division of the Motorized Rifle Division of the 29th Gothic Tank Army. We were defeated by the vanguard battalion of the division, the main force of the division was still fifteen kilometers away from our army, and it was estimated that it would be able to arrive in about an hour. ”

Hearing this, I hurriedly instructed Gaidar: "Comrade Gaidar, although we took the enemy by surprise, it also aroused their vigilance, before the next attack, the enemy will definitely bombard the positions of your regiment with artillery fire, and you must let the soldiers do a good job of defense and minimize the losses suffered by the enemy's shelling." ”

"Please rest assured, our regiment has built a large number of anti-artillery holes in the two lines of defense, and when the enemy shells, except for a small number of observation posts, the remaining commanders and fighters can go to the holes to avoid the enemy's artillery fire."

"Can the anti-artillery hole withstand the enemy's heavy artillery bombardment?" Although Gaidar was full of confidence, I was still unsure in my heart, so I couldn't help but ask more.

"No problem, our anti-artillery holes are all dug diagonally downward, and the soil layer on the top is almost two meters behind, as long as it is not directly hit by the enemy's heavy artillery, it should be able to carry it."

I breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this, and after a slight pause, I began to comment on the battle just now: "I am very satisfied with the appearance of your regiment in the battle just now. The German vanguard battalions were approaching their positions, and they didn't find anyone in the trenches, proving that you did a good job of concealment. Captain Morozov's artillery company also made a great contribution, destroying all the enemy's tanks and armored vehicles as soon as it struck, and then covering our troops with artillery fire, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy. If you continue to fight like this in the next battle, it is estimated that it will not be long before you can get promoted again. ”

Gaidar smiled and began to pat me again: "It's still the division commander who commands well, and I just follow your orders." ”

Then Morozov's phone called, and after complimenting him, I reminded him: "Comrade Morozov, I think your artillery battery should move its position." If you think about it, you just beat the Germans so badly, the vanguard battalion was almost completely annihilated, and the Germans will definitely retaliate. They will definitely bombard our positions with heavy artillery fire before launching an attack, and the location of your artillery battery will be their first target. ”

Morozov was taken aback when he heard me say this, he obviously did not expect this situation to happen, and hurriedly asked me for advice: "Commander, where should we evacuate?" ”

"To the left of the defensive position, there is a small river, you can transfer your artillery battery there." I was afraid that he would lose time because of hesitation, so I specially emphasized: "Don't hesitate, transfer immediately." If there are not enough people. Let Gaidar send someone to assist you. And also. Placing a few more false positions on top of the existing positions also attracted German artillery fire. ”

"Understood, division commander, I'll let the troops transfer right away." Morozov replied very briskly.

The large forces of the German army came faster than I had expected, and after only forty minutes the shelling of our positions by German artillery began. First, a shell fell more than ten meters in front of the trench and exploded, setting off a huge column of smoke. Then the shells rained down on the perimeter of our trenches and exploded, and the flying smoke and dust covered the sky and the sun, and the dazzling sunlight dimmed at once, as if the sky was suddenly overcast.

The rumbling sound shook the ground beneath my feet. I can't help but worry about the commanders and fighters in the trenches, will they be able to survive the heavy artillery bombardment without incident?

The shelling of the Germans lasted almost twenty minutes before it stopped. Before the smoke of the guns on the position had completely cleared, the German attacking force appeared in my telescope. With the strength of about a regiment, they were guided by more than 30 tanks. Columns rushed towards our positions.

It may be that our army is in such a humble position, in the shelling just now. Already destroyed by their artillery fire. The attacking enemy appeared to be arrogant, and a few tanks that were far away from the rear were crowded with infantry wearing steel helmets.

When these tanks were less than fifty meters from the trenches of our troops, our fighters crawled out of the ruins of the bombed fortifications and opened fire on these enemies with rifles, submachine guns, machine guns. Under the dense light fire of our troops, although the infantry on the tanks rolled down one after another, the German tanks continued to move forward.

When I saw this, I couldn't help but feel a little anxious, if the German tanks rushed through the trenches, it would be a fatal blow to the morale of the commanders and fighters. I was thinking about calling Morozov and having their artillery battery open fire and knock out all the tanks that were about to rush to the edge of the trench.

As soon as I thought so, a shell fell around the German tank and exploded, and one of them was hit directly, and a large cloud of dark red flames suddenly burst out from the tank body, and then began to burn violently. The tank, dragging the flames and smoke, drove forward a few more meters, and then stopped.

Then another flying shell hit several other tanks one after another, and in a short time these tanks that were the first to attack were all destroyed, and they stopped not far from our trenches and burned brightly.

Several of the tanks, which were far behind, stopped, turned their guns and opened fire at the position of Morozov's artillery battery. The German tank shells landed on the artillery position, accurately hit one of the gun emplacements, and when the smoke cleared, I saw a crater with the wreckage of the cannon in it, and the fighters on the gun emplacements were lying in all directions.

Seeing that his gun emplacements were destroyed by the German tank guns, Morozov was also red-eyed, and he commanded the remaining artillery to fire at the tank, and after a salvo, the German tank was destroyed.

Seeing that the tanks of his accomplices were destroyed, more German tanks turned their guns and began to fire at the artillery positions of Morozov's company, and Morozov, not to be outdone, directed his fighters to bravely return fire. In this way, the Germans destroyed a cannon of our army, and our army destroyed a German tank.

And the German tanks, attacking head-on, carefully bypassed the wreckage of the trucks that were destroyed by our troops, and led the infantry to rush towards our positions. The tank crews of the three tanks in the lead looked to be veterans, highly skilled and composed, and when they drove forward, they fired their guns while firing their guns, and with heavy firepower, they suppressed our commanders and fighters in the trenches and could not move.

Because the artillery battery was pinned down by several other German tanks, it was unable to provide artillery support to its comrades who were holding the trenches, and the infantry in the trenches were overwhelmed by enemy fire, so they could only watch as several German tanks crossed the trenches and headed for the second line of defense.

However, not far from the enemy's tanks, fighters hiding in the communication trenches between the two lines of defense struck up and threw Molotov cocktails at the speeding tanks. The Molotov cocktail burst on the tank body and began to burn violently. After the tank stopped, we saw that the tank soldiers inside had escaped in a miserable way, and our fighters with machine guns and submachine guns fired wildly at them, knocking them all down like moving targets.

I asked Razumeyeva to dial Oleg and calmly ordered him: "Lieutenant Colonel Oleg, it's time for your second regiment and tank detachment to attack. Remember. After the tank rushed out of the underground tank hangar. Take out the tank units of the Germans first. Then turn around and hit the artillery positions of the Germans. Also, your second regiment is responsible for blocking the retreat of the German infantry, and not a single one of them can let them escape. Do you understand? ”

"Understood, Comrade Division Commander." From Oleg's voice, I could tell that he was excited, and after several hours of hiding in the ground, it was finally time to strike. So he replied to me so loudly that I had to take the microphone off my ears. "We will attack immediately, and we must destroy this enemy completely."

The Germans, who were attacking our positions, never dreamed that I was still in the ground on their flanks, hiding an ambush. What's worse is that this kind of unit is still a mechanized unit, and more than a dozen tanks broke through the ground, went around the back of the German tanks like a lightning speed, and calmly opened fire. Pity the remaining two dozen German tanks, they didn't even notice the tanks that appeared behind them, and they were all destroyed one by one by our tank crews as if they were practicing shooting.

The German infantry, which had already been disrupted by our tanks. In the face of the second regiment that pounced like a wolf and a tiger, it was even more chaotic. Quick response. hurriedly turned around and put a few shots; The reaction was slow, and before he could figure out what was going on, he was shot down by our soldiers.

Seeing that the enemy's infantry and tank detachments were crushed by the 2nd Regiment and the tank detachment that emerged from the flank, the commanders and fighters of the 4th Regiment jumped out of the trenches again and rushed forward with shouts and shouts at the enemy. When the troops attacked, I paid special attention to the number of this force, and found that there was no need to be less than just now, and it was estimated that Gaidar took advantage of the short gap after the shelling stopped, and moved the troops of the second line of defense to the first line.

Although the Germans were brave when attacking, when they found themselves in a desperate situation, they usually did not fight the attacking enemy, but voluntarily laid down their arms and raised their hands in surrender. In this way, ten minutes after the attack of the 2nd Regiment and the tank detachment, the regiment of the 29th Division of the German Motorized Rifle Division was eliminated by us.

Soon news also came from Perstian that the tank detachment had broken through the enemy's artillery positions, dispersed the enemy's artillery, and captured nearly forty artillery pieces and matching ammunition.

I asked Pugachev to call Morozov and ask how the losses of the artillery battery were. As a result, I was saddened by the report that seven of the ten artillery pieces in the company had been completely damaged and two were wounded, leaving only one intact. And the soldiers of the whole company suffered three-quarters of the casualties.

Just as I was grieving over the loss of the artillery battery, Razumeyeva pulled my sleeve and whispered to me that Chuikov was going to talk to me. I put on my headphones and said politely into the microphone: "Hello, Comrade Commander. ”

"How's your situation there?" Chuikov didn't say anything polite to me, and asked straight to the point.

"Comrade commander, the enemy launched two attacks on the defense line of our division." I replied clearly: "The fighters of our division were very brave in battle, and the enemy's attack was crushed by us. ”

"Very good," Chuikov said this, and asked with concern, "Oshanina, are there many casualties in your division?" Please tell me the truth, can you hold out until dark? ”

"The artillery company is almost exhausted, and the four regiments that held their positions have suffered certain casualties in the enemy's shelling, but the specific number of casualties has not yet been reported to me by Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, and I estimate that the casualties are only about one battalion. As long as the enemy does not dispatch the air force, it will be no problem to continue fighting according to the current way of fighting and holding out until dark. ”

"Well, since that's the case, then I'll convey to you the next order. After dark, your division immediately withdrew from its existing positions, moved in the direction of Stalingrad, and after retreating 30 kilometers, it built a new defensive line to continue to block the enemy. Do you understand? ”

"Understood, Comrade Commander." It seems that Chuikov wanted our division to fight and retreat, and to retreat to Stalingrad step by step while constantly delaying the enemy's attacking forces.

"Good luck, then!" After Chuikov finished speaking, he directly terminated the call.

"Comrade division commander, the phone number of the regimental commander Sederikov." As soon as I took off my headphones, Pugachev, who was standing next to me, handed me the phone and said, "He wants to ask you when to make a mess attack." ”

I smiled, picked up the topic, and said loudly: "Is it Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov?" Do you have anything to do with me? ”

"Comrade division commander," Sederikov's tone was very anxious: "I heard the artillery fire in front of me here, but I have not received your order, and I thought that the telephone line was broken by shells, so I made a call to confirm." ”

I knew that he wanted to fight, but I deliberately pretended to be confused and said, "Now that you know that the phone line is open, then I'll hang up." ”

Shedelikov became anxious and hurriedly shouted: "Comrade division commander, please wait a minute, I have something to say." ”

"If you have anything to say, say it." I said without hurrying.

"When are we going to let the group go up?" He said a little awkwardly: "I heard that the artillery fire in front is so fierce, the casualties of the fourth regiment must not be small, you better transfer our regiment over to support them earlier." ”

"Commander Sederikov," I said deliberately calling his position, "I have a plan for when to let you go to the regiment, and I don't need you to remind me." In addition, I would like to tell you one thing, although the enemy's attack was fierce, the soldiers of the fourth regiment were very brave, and they repelled both enemy attacks, and they are counting the results of the battle at the moment. ”

"However, Comrade Division Commander ,......" Shedelikov wanted to say something, but I unceremoniously interrupted. I said coldly: "Comrade Sedjerikov, the task of your regiment is to be on standby at the station, and you should stay there honestly until you get my order." Okay, I still have to contact the other troops, so I'll hang up first. After speaking, without waiting for him to speak, I hung up the phone directly.

Then I dialed Gaidar and asked bluntly: "Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, how did your regiment get results this time?" Also, are the casualties of the troops large? ”

Gaidar hurriedly replied: "Report to the division commander, before the enemy's shelling, I only left one company in the first line of defense, and the rest of the troops were withdrawn to the second line of defense, so after the enemy's fierce artillery bombardment, our regiment probably suffered a company of casualties." Then, when I found out that the enemy was on the offensive, I ordered those troops who had retreated to the second line of defense to return to the first line of defense and block the enemy's attack. When the 2nd Regiment and tank detachments attacked from behind the enemy, our troops also engaged in a timely counteroffensive because of their small casualties. ”

"Very well, Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, you are doing a good job." After I praised him, I ordered: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I have just received an order from General Chuikov, who ordered our division to retreat thirty kilometers north in the direction of Stalingrad after dark, to build new fortifications there, to continue to resist the enemy's attack, and to slow down the enemy's advance towards Stalingrad. The task of blocking the German troops head-on, I still want to continue to let your regiment complete it, do you have confidence? ”

"No problem, Comrade Division Commander." Gaidar said confidently: "Judging from the current situation, the casualties of our regiment are not large, and it will not affect tomorrow's battle at all, so you can rest assured that this task will be entrusted to our regiment." ”

Although he said it with such confidence, I was still a little unsure, and took the initiative to propose: "Lieutenant Colonel Gaidar, the third regiment is not far from you, do you want to let the third regiment take over your defense when it comes, and let your regiment withdraw to the rear first to rest and recuperate." ”

My words made Gaidar anxious, and he said loudly: "Comrade division commander, you are looking down on our regiment. I tell you that as long as there is still one soldier in the fourth regiment who has not been sacrificed, he will definitely not take the initiative to withdraw from his position. ”

Hearing that his attitude was so resolute, I had no choice but to say: "Okay, since you are so confident, then let your regiment carry out the task of holding the position during the day today." ”

As soon as I put down the phone, the commander of the artillery company, Morozov, appeared in my observation post, and when he saw me, his eyes turned red and he almost cried, and he choked up and said: "Comrade division commander, see if you transfer that artillery battalion out, I will fight face to face with those Germans and avenge my brothers who have died." ”

"No," I immediately dismissed his mention in an unquestioning tone, "it's not yet time for them to appear." As for avenging the soldiers of your artillery company, rest assured, I will let you get your wish when it gets dark. (To be continued......)