When I arrived at the observation post, I raised my binoculars and looked out into the open field in front of a group. I saw that the commanders and fighters who had fled had completely lost their formation, and there were more than a dozen people in a group, and there were also dozens of people in a group, rushing wildly in the direction of the position of a regiment.

I shifted my gaze to the back of the friendly troops, and found no trace of the enemy troops, only sporadic artillery fire bombarding the fleeing troops. A small number of shells exploded in empty positions, causing no casualties to the troops; More shells fell in the crowd and exploded, blowing up the blood and flesh of the soldiers who were running desperately. The smoke blown away by the river wind was filled with the flying dust and the strong smell of blood.

It is not that our fighters are not heroic, nor that our grassroots commanders are not excellent, but that our weapons are not as strong as the enemy's, and that our troops, which are only equipped with light weapons, have to withdraw from the battle under the blow of the enemy's powerful firepower.

I couldn't bear to look any further, so I walked quickly to the telephone, picked up the microphone and called Akhromeyev, and ordered him in a stern tone: "Comrade Chief of Staff, the friendly forces that have been withdrawn from the battle at the moment are retreating to the positions of a regiment. You immediately contact Shederikov and ask them to send a company to meet the friendly forces. ”

As soon as I put down the phone, Kirillov suddenly called out to me: "Oshanina, come and see, it seems that something is happening, there seems to be some kind of riot in the rear of the retreating troops." ”

"Riots?!" When I heard Kirillov say this, my heart was full of doubts: At such a critical juncture of life and death, are the friendly forces still engaged in infighting? Hurriedly walked to the observation port. Hold up the binoculars and look into the distance. Want to see what's going on?

From the telescope. I saw that there was indeed confusion in the last ranks, some people were fighting in close quarters, and some people were shooting with guns. When I took a closer look, I understood what had happened, it turned out that the people who were fighting with our fighters were all wearing German uniforms, and they were supposed to be captured prisoners by our troops. It looked like they were trying to escape. As a result, there was a clash with the fighters who were holding them.

I removed my binoculars from my eyes, turned to Kirillov and said: "Comrade commissar, it seems that the German soldiers, who had been captured by our troops, tried to take advantage of the chaos and tried to escape, and clashed with the fighters guarding them. ”

Kirillov snorted and said in a contemptuous tone: "Hmph, if you want to escape, how can there be such a light thing." Since he has been captured by our army, he must have the consciousness of being a prisoner, otherwise. Even if you kill them all, you can't let them escape back. Take up arms again and fight us. ”

After that, he also walked to the telephone, picked up the microphone and called Akhromeyev: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I just saw that the prisoners captured by the friendly forces are taking advantage of the chaos and rioting in an attempt to escape. So you have to order Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov to send one more company to reinforce the commanders and fighters who are guarding the prisoners, and not a single prisoner must escape. ”

The order we gave was quickly conveyed to Sederikov, who saw the commanders and fighters rushing out of the hillside positions into the open field. Kirillov suddenly said: "Comrade Oshanina, I have noticed that you have rarely been in contact with a group lately. ”

Hearing him say this, I was stunned for a moment, then quickly came back to my senses and replied with a smile: "In the past, I was the only one in command of the independent division, so I had to do everything, and I had more contact with the commanders of each regiment. Now that you and Akhromeyev, the chief of staff, share a lot of the work for me, I will naturally have much less contact with the troops below. In addition, the combat effectiveness of the first regiment was originally the strongest in the whole division, and now Shedelikov has been equipped with such a capable political commissar as Oberstan, so we don't need to worry about the affairs of the first regiment. ”

After the receiving troops of the first regiment descended the mountain, they immediately divided into two routes, one way to meet the friendly troops through the Guò heights, and entered the city; On the other hand, they rushed over to assist the soldiers who were guarding the captives and exterminate the captives who had rebelled.

Those who had escaped came to a halt after crossing a regiment's position to the southern slope, and several commanders wearing large-brimmed hats began to gather their troops. It seems that they wanted to gather as many fighters as possible before retreating into the city.

The company that went to destroy the prisoners of war who had rioted was clearly not going well. The Germans, having fought with our soldiers, seemed to have the upper hand, and after killing our fighters, they received a lot of weapons from them. Seeing that some troops were rushing towards them under artillery fire, they hurriedly lay down in the crater and opened fire on the favorable terrain.

The soldiers of the regiment all had a wealth of combat experience, and when the fighters who rushed to the front were knocked down by random shots, the rest hurriedly jumped into the nearby crater and fired back. After a brief period of confusion, the fighters, under the cover of two light machine guns, leaped forward with the help of craters and quickly pressed towards the group of Germans. But when the distance between the two sides was no more than twenty meters, in the crater where our fighters were hiding, countless grenades flew out, and after drawing a beautiful arc in the air, they fell into the crater where the enemy was hiding and exploded. Taking advantage of the smoke of gunpowder, our fighters leapt out of the crater and pounced on the stubborn enemy.

The battle lasted about ten minutes before it ended, most of the rioting prisoners of war were killed, and the surviving captives hurriedly raised their hands and stood honestly in the crater waiting for our soldiers to take the prisoners. As the enemy's shelling was still going on, in order to ensure safety, the soldiers who had captured the prisoners were all two of them, and dragged the prisoners in the direction of the high ground.

When there were no longer any running figures in the open field, I thought that all the troops that should be withdrawn had withdrawn, and just as I was about to leave, Kirillov suddenly said: "Comrade Oshanina, come and see, it seems that there are still our people on the battlefield. That's right, it's our people, it's our hygienists who care for the wounded. ”

I picked up the binoculars again and looked out into the open field, and sure enough, I saw several hygienists wearing red cross armbands and carrying medical kits on their backs, bent over the battlefield.

Among these hygienists, is there Shmakova? Thinking like this, I involuntarily moved the telescope. In the midst of a busy crowd. Look for her.

Position close to the position. No; A little further from the position, there is no either. I thought that Shmakova did not participate in this kind of treatment, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief, and said to myself: in such a dangerous situation, it is better not to let the female hygienist take risks.

Just as I was about to put the telescope in front of me, I inadvertently looked into the area where the battle had just taken place in the distance, and I was suddenly shocked into a cold sweat. I saw Shmakova, who I thought she was still in a safe ambulance station, wearing a steel helmet and a military raincoat. Braving enemy fire, he squatted beside a seriously wounded man and bandaged him. A shell landed not far away and exploded, and almost at the same time, Shmakova threw the gauze in her hand and threw it directly on the wounded, protecting the wounded from shrapnel.

However, Shmakova quickly got up from the wounded and continued to bandage him. After the bandaging was completed, Shmakova struggled to carry the wounded man on her back. His feet staggered in the direction of the position. After walking about seventy or eighty meters, I met two other male hygienists. After handing over the wounded to them, she turned and ran again towards the place where the artillery fire was most intense.

I raised my hand and patted Kirillov, who was standing next to me, and at the same time pointed to Shmakova, who was running, and said to him in an excited tone: "Comrade commissar, look, our hygienists rushed over in the face of enemy artillery fire to save the wounded who fell on the battlefield. ”

This time, as Shmakova ran towards a newly found wounded, another shell landed next to her and exploded, knocking her body to the ground. Seeing this scene, Kirillov couldn't help but exclaim in a low voice. But I held my breath and stared intently at Shmakova lying on the ground, fearing that she would be hit by shrapnel and would never be able to get up again.

But my worries seemed unfounded, and it didn't take long for Shmakova to raise herself, swing her head vigorously, shake off the dust from her body and hat, and run quickly towards the wounded again. Since shells fell and exploded from time to time near the wounded's position, Shmakova could no longer squat to bandage the wounded as she had just done, so she and the wounded man lay side by side and began to bandage each other with difficulty.

Seeing this scene, Kirillov said with emotion: "This female hygienist is amazing, do you know her name?" I want to honor her merits and report her deeds to the group army headquarters, and call on all commanders and fighters to learn from her! ”

"Her name is Tamara. Shmakova. "When I spoke to Kirillov, my eyes were always on Shmakova. From what I have observed, the wounded man's injuries are not light, and they are very large, I wonder if Shmakova will be able to drag him to the rear?

My fears soon became a reality, and after Shmakova had finished bandaging the wounded, she tried to carry them on her back as she had just done, but after several attempts, she could not carry them. When I was at a loss, I saw Shmakova take off her raincoat and put it on the ground, and then move the wounded person up. Then she grabbed the raincoat with both hands and dragged the casualty back with all her might.

Seeing the shells exploding sporadically around her, my heart went to my throat, and if a shell that didn't grow long landed next to her and exploded, then she would have no hope of survival.

"Hell, where did those male hygienists go, how could they only let a lesbian do such a dangerous thing?" When Kirillov saw this, he nagged worriedly: "Comrade division commander, we have to think of some way to take this female hygienist down, we can't watch her die in vain." ”

"Comrade Commissar, please stay calm." Although I was worried about the shells exploding around Shmakova, after hearing Kirillov's words, I pretended to be calm and said without looking back: "I believe that the enemy's shells will not hit her." ”

At this moment, Basmanov's voice suddenly came from the door: "Report to the division commander, political commissar, and commander of friendly forces have come to visit you." ”

I put down my binoculars and turned my head to see two commanders of about the same height standing behind Basmanov in the doorway. From the collar badges of the two, I could tell that one was a colonel, and the other was a political commissar at the battalion level.

Before I could think about whether I should take the initiative to greet them, Kirillov had already passed me and greeted the two of them directly and familiarly: "Colonel Baklanov, Commissar Korogsky, hello, I am glad to see that you led the troops to withdraw safely. "Finished. Reach out and shake hands with the two of them one by one.

Wait until the handshake is over. He turned to me and explained: "Comrade Oshanina. Let's get to know this colonel, Comrade Baklanov, the commander of the 299th Infantry Division, and Comrade Korogsky, the political commissar of the battalion level. ”

I hurriedly stepped forward to shake hands with the two of them, and at the same time politely said, "Hello! Welcome. You can rest your troops at Mamayev Hill for a few hours before retreating to the city. ”

Hearing me say this, the Baklanov's face turned red, and he said in an excited tone: "No, Comrade Colonel. We need no rest, and as soon as the scattered troops are gathered, I will lead them back to the city. ”

As soon as Baklanov's words were finished, I immediately understood that he had misunderstood, and he thought that I was being sarcastic about him, which is why he was so excited. I quickly explained to him: "Colonel Bakranov, you may not know that the German troops have stormed the city from several directions and are engaged in a fierce battle with our troops. Since you don't have to rest, wait for the exhausted commanders and fighters to recover. Hurried back to the city, in the event of an encounter with the enemy's troops. Even if I don't say what will happen, you know what will happen, right? ”

As soon as Kirillov waited for me to finish speaking, he hurriedly took Baklanov's hand again, and said with a pleasant face: "Comrade Oshanina is right, your warriors are tired and hungry after such a long battle, and they have not eaten, and once they encounter the enemy when they enter the city, it is estimated that it is impossible to achieve victory. Why don't you rest for a few hours before leaving? ”

After listening to Kirillov's words, Baklanov couldn't help but hesitate, and when he was hesitating, it was Korogsky, the political commissar next to him, who took the initiative to express his position: "Since it is the kindness of Comrade Kirillov and Colonel Oshanina, Comrade Division Commander, let's not shirk it, just do what they say!" Seeing that his political commissar said so, Baklanov was no longer stubborn, and nodded in agreement.

Kirillov nodded with satisfaction, and then ordered Basmanov, who was still standing by the door: "Comrade Captain, you give Colonel Baklanov their guide and take him and his troops to the settlement." At the same time, Lieutenant Colonel Sù Gaidar is to provide our friendly troops with the necessary food and enough water to rest well for a few hours in our defense zone. ”

After Basmanov agreed, he made a gesture of invitation to the two commanders of the friendly forces, and at the same time said politely: "Please, comrades commanders, I will take you and your troops to a nearby settlement to rest." ”

Baklanov nodded at us, turned and walked out with Basmanov, while Commissar Korogowsky stretched out his hand, shook hands with me and Kirillov once more, and thanked him, before turning to chase his division commander.

After a few people had left, I hurried to the observation port and raised my binoculars to look at the battlefield to see if Shmakova had dragged the wounded back smoothly. I searched everywhere for a long time before I saw Shmakova among the several hygienists following behind a stretcher, and my heart hanging in my throat fell into place.

After landing in the evening, I turned more attention to the Volga, because according to the prior agreement, the 13th Guards Division of General Rodimtsev was to begin to cross the river in a big way.

Before the fleet appeared in my field of vision, I even wondered for a moment whether the 13th Guards Division would be as illusory as the air force that Commander Yeremenko had promised to support the operation.

Not long after I was worried, Kirillov, who was standing next to me, excitedly shouted: "Look, Comrade Oshanina, the fleet, the fleet transporting soldiers. Thankfully, the reinforcements sent to us by the High Command have finally arrived. ”

The fleet started out as a bunch of small black dots, but as we got closer, the outline of the ship became clearer. The fleet consisted of more than 20 steamboats, perhaps to speed up the crossing of the river, and the places where people could stand on the boats were full of commanders and fighters, and from a distance, only patches of steel helmets could be seen, and the scene was spectacular.

While Kirillov was excitedly counting the number of ships and counting the number of men in this division, I was secretly worried that with so many people crowded on each ship, if I were to encounter enemy shelling or bombardment, if I was hit by a single shell or bomb, then I could cause dozens or even hundreds of casualties.

While I was worrying about the sky, the roar of the motors of the planes was heard in the sky, and I looked up to see two enemy planes passing over our high ground and rushing towards the flotilla crossing the river. At the same time, the shelling, which had just stopped, began again, this time not on the open ground in front of the Mamayev Heights, but on the Volga. The shells that fell in the river and exploded suddenly set off columns of water that rushed into the sky one after another.

Seeing that the troops crossing the river were being shelled and bombarded by the enemy, Kirillov, who had always been calm, panicked and cried out: "Hell, what about our Air Force, where is our Air Force?" Did you see the troops of a division being sent to the bottom of the Volga River by all the enemy's artillery and aircraft while crossing the river? ”

Seeing Kirillov's gaffe again, I could only sigh helplessly, knowing that the troops crossing the river would suffer heavy casualties, but there was nothing we could do about it, we could only pray that they would have good luck and lose less in the process of crossing the river.

When the two enemy planes swooped down towards the flotilla, although the infantry on board could only stare at the enemy planes in the sky, the sailors were trying to stop the bombardment of the convoy by the enemy planes. Almost all ships at the same time had billowing smoke billowing from the chimneys to block the view of enemy aircraft; At the same time, the ship's anti-aircraft machine guns also opened heavy fire into the air.

Despite the smoke from the chimneys and the fire from the anti-aircraft machine guns, the enemy planes continued to swoop down from the sky and fire bombs on the troop carriers.

A bomb dropped by an airplane hit a steamboat, and in the huge flames that rose, the fragments of the ship and the corpses of the fighters could be clearly seen, which were lifted into the air and then plunged into the water.

Although the bomb of another plane missed, when a high column of water was stirred up on the side of the ship, several fighters fell straight into the water with their bodies crooked.

The planes hit the target, and the shells hit our ships equally. A steamboat that would hit the bow of the ship, the tail was raised high, the hull slowly sank, and the fighters had to jump into the water to escape. When I saw one steamboat after another being shot and the casualties of the troops increasing, I was so angry that I slammed my fist against the wall.

However, as the flotilla got closer and closer to the pier, the anti-aircraft guns near the pier also rumbled and opened fire, driving the two enemy planes away from the Volga River and covering the burning ships to the shore. (To be continued......)

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