"Colonel, it's good that you're here," Guttman immediately said when he saw Villadelle's appearance, "I was just about to call your headquarters, but I didn't expect you to come first." ”

After hearing this, Villadele asked tentatively: "Comrade Army Commander, are you here to arrange the next combat mission for our brigade?" ”

"That's right, Colonel, it's exactly the intention to deploy a new combat mission to you. Come and see," said Gutman, after calling Villadere to the table, pointing to the map, "and when the pontoon bridge has been erected, your brigade will quickly cross the river and rush along the road to Cherkasy. ”

Villadelle tilted his head and looked at the map for a while, and then asked tentatively: "Comrade commander, I don't know which unit the higher authorities plan to send to cooperate with our actions?" ”

"Comrade Colonel." Without waiting for Guttman to speak, I preemptively said: "As soon as your brigade has crossed the Dnieper, you will rush along the road to Cherkasy. This time we did not arrange for troops to follow you, just to make your tank brigade as mobile as possible and rush into Cherkasy before the Germans came to their senses. ”

Turning his gaze from the map on the table behind me, Villadere said angrily: "Comrade commander, I have only sixty tanks and a small number of motorcyclists in my hands, and with such strength alone, I do not estimate that I will be able to take Cherkasy. ”

"Don't worry, Comrade Colonel, I won't let you estimate the battle." After listening to his concerns, I immediately comforted him and said: "A regiment of the 67th Guards Division is currently approaching Cherkasy. At the same time, the 375th Infantry Division also changed its original direction of march and was also advancing towards Cherkasy. I think that with the cooperation of the infantry of one division and one regiment, you should have no problem taking Cherkasy. ”

Hearing me say this, Villadelle took a step back, then straightened his back and said to me: "Don't worry, comrade commander, since we have friendly forces, there should be no problem for us to take Cherkasy. ”

"Now that the mission is clear, let's prepare!" After Gutman said this, he stepped forward and shook Villadelle's hand, and after shaking it a few times, he said, "Colonel, I wish you good luck!" ”

Before the pontoon bridge could be erected, Vatutin's phone call went directly to my headquarters. Hearing my voice, he went straight to the point and said: "Hey, Comrade Oshanina, how is the situation, did your troops cross the Dnieper?" ”

"Comrade General," I replied respectfully, "our troops have successfully crossed the Dnieper and recaptured Kanivo. ”

"What, Canivo has been reclaimed?" Vatutin was taken aback by our victory, and he said with some disbelief: "I thought you would cross the river at noon at the earliest, and then you would have to wait until evening to capture Kanifu, but I didn't expect to move so quickly, and the city was recovered by you before dawn, which is too fast!" ”

"Comrade General, I will send a detailed report to your headquarters later." Thinking that his old subordinate Shederikov had made so many military exploits from the Battle of Kursk to the present, but his position had never been promoted, he took the opportunity to ask Vatutin: "The unit that liberated Kanivo this time is the Shedelikov Regiment of the 67th Guards Division. From the beginning of the Battle of Kursk alone, he made a series of meritorious achievements......"

"Alright, Comrade Oshanina, don't say it, I understand." Vatutin interrupted me without waiting for me to finish, and then asked in a calm tone, "What is his current position and rank?" ”

"Regiment commander, rank of lieutenant colonel." After answering this question briefly, I added a word: "His position and rank have not changed since the Battle of Stalingrad to the present. ”

After being silent for a long time, Vatutin suddenly asked: "Oshanina, if I'm not mistaken, this Lieutenant Colonel Sederikov commanded the 67th Guards Division for a period of time in place of General Baksov during the Battle of Kursk, right?" ”

Although I did not understand the purpose of Vatutin's question, I replied truthfully: "Yes, Comrade General, you are not wrong at all, it is true. ”

After listening to this, Vatutin said to himself as well as to me: "Lieutenant Colonel Lukin, commander of the 309th Regiment of the 51st Guards Division, is now the commander of the 375th Infantry Division. At present, it seems that the command of the 51st Guards Division is too weak and needs to be strengthened. ”

When I heard him say this, a thought suddenly popped into my mind: God, he didn't want Shedelikov to be the commander of the 51st Guards Division. Although the original division commander, Tavart Kiradze, was promoted to commander of the 23rd Guards Army, he continued to serve as the division commander of the division because there was no suitable person to replace him.

While I was thinking about it, I heard Vatutin continue: "Since this Lieutenant Colonel Sedelikov is so capable, then I will now promote him to colonel and appoint him the acting commander of the 51st Guards Division. ”

Although I guessed in my heart that Vatutin might make an exception to appoint Shedelikov to the post of division commander, I still felt a little unbelievable when I heard what he said about the appointment, and the magnitude of this promotion was too great.

After Vatujin finished speaking, he heard that there was no movement on my side, and he couldn't help but raise his voice and ask: "Hey, Oshanina, why don't you speak, do you have any disagreement with my appointment?" ”

"No, no, Comrade General, I have no opinion on your appointment." Hearing that my old subordinate was promoted to the rank of officer, and everyone would be happy to be replaced, I hurriedly said: "On behalf of Colonel Sederikov, I thank you!" ”

"What's next for you?" Vatutin changed the subject and asked, "Do you plan to cross the river as soon as possible with the main force of the group army and establish a defensive area centered on Kanivo?" ”

"Comrade General, it is not enough to have Kanivo, the space that can be provided here for the movement of troops is too narrow, and it lacks sufficient strategic depth." Since Vatutin asked me about my next step, I also said it without reservation: "If the Germans concentrate their superior forces and technical equipment and attack us, perhaps in the end, we will have to withdraw across the Dnieper and retreat to the original starting point of the attack." ”

"And what are your plans?" Vatutin asked in an official tone, "Tell me what you think." ”

"If we can take Cherkasy in the shortest possible time, connect the two cities and build a huge landing field, then not only can we cross the river in a steady stream of troops of the Front, but at the same time we can build a solid and perfect defense system, so that we do not have to worry about a German counterattack."

After listening to this, Vatutin was silent for a long time, and then said: "Your idea is very good, once the two ferry cities are in our hands, then this can also become a starting point for an offensive attack on Kyiv." But only if you can capture Cherkasy in time. ”

"Comrade General, please rest assured of this." In order to dispel the other party's doubts, I said confidently: "I have sent a part of the 67th Guards Division and the 375th Infantry Division down the river and straight to Cherkasy. In order to strengthen the strength of the troops, I am also going to send a tank brigade to rush from Kanifu along the road to Kanivo. ”

"Well, you've thought it through." After complimenting me, Vatutin added: "You immediately send me a detailed report of the battle, and I will inform Marshal Zhukov in Moscow of this victory in the shortest possible time." ”

After hanging up, I called Akhromeyev over and instructed him: "Major, I believe that you know the whole battle very well, so I will give you the task of writing a report to the command of the Front." Is there a problem? ”

After listening to this, Akhromeyev shook his head and replied affirmatively: "Don't worry, Comrade Commander, there is no problem at all for me in writing such a trivial matter as writing a report. In half an hour, half an hour at most, I will be able to complete this report. ”

"Without further ado, let's put pen to paper now." As I spoke, I gathered away what was on the table, and then said to Akhromeyev: "You can just sit here and write." ”

Writing a report as trivial as a report may have racked my brains, but for Akhromeyev, it was a breeze. After only about 20 minutes, he put down the pen in his hand, handed me a few pieces of paper, and said: "Comrade commander, I have finished writing, do you see if there is anything that needs to be revised?" ”

After taking it and taking a quick look at it, I nodded and complimented, "Yes, Comrade Major, it's really well written." Well, anyway, if you are familiar with the whole battle, you will send this report to the headquarters of the Front, and if Comrade General has any doubts, you can explain it to him on the spot. After saying these words, I turned to Nekrasov and said, "Comrade division commander, please send a few fighters to escort the chief of the operations section of the army group to the headquarters of the front." ”

"Yes, Comrade Commander." Hearing my command, Nekrasov readily agreed: "I will arrange for men to escort him to the headquarters of the Front." After saying that, he turned around and walked out of the headquarters, presumably arranging for people.

Shortly after Akhromeyev, under the protection of a platoon of guards sent by Nekrasov, drove to the headquarters of the Front, Guttman received a report from Colonel Villadel: "Comrade Commander, the pontoon bridge has been erected. ”

"Now that the bridge is ready, let's cross the river quickly." Guttman urged: "Now we have to compete with the Germans, and you will rush into Cherkasy before they come to their senses, understand?" ”

"Understood, Comrade Commander," replied Villadel cheerfully, "I will lead my troops across the river." ”

After a few minutes, I saw through the binoculars the tanks of the Villadelle Brigade, one by one, driving up the pontoon bridge that had just been erected, slowly moving towards the opposite bank.

Looking at the tank troops that were crossing the river, Guttman said with some concern: "Comrade commander, I think Colonel Villadel's troops are still too thin, and if they encounter the enemy's anti-tank men on the road, it is estimated that the troops will suffer a lot of losses." ”

While I understand that the scenario Guttman is talking about is entirely possible, in this situation, I cannot send a mobile force to follow suit. So I could only sigh and say: "Comrade commander, it is only more than thirty kilometers from Kanivo to Cherkasy, and if the tank brigade is at full speed, it will be there in an hour at most. Even if they encounter the resistance of the German anti-tank fighters on the road, it is believed that they will be able to rush through. ”

To be on the safe side, I used the walkie-talkie to contact Baksov, who was hiding near Cherkasy: "Comrade division commander, where are your troops?" ”

"We were hidden behind a hill southwest of Cherkasy, about three kilometers from the city." After reporting on his location, Baksov then asked: "Comrade commander, when will we launch an attack on the city?" ”

"Soon, soon, Comrade Division. In an hour at most, you'll be able to attack. The tank brigade that cooperated with you in the capture of the city is crossing the river at the Kanifu section at this moment. After completing the river crossing, they will rush directly along the road to Cherkasy. I now have an important task entrusted to you, which is to immediately send men to monitor the Cherkasy-Kanivo road, and to resolutely destroy the German anti-tank men if they are found along the way. ”

"Comrade commander, although the kilometer is only more than 30 kilometers long, I must send at least one battalion of troops to complete the task you have assigned to me." "In this way, our forces for attacking the city will appear weak," Baksov complained. ”

"Don't worry, Comrade Division." I comforted him, saying, "I have sent Lieutenant Colonel Lukin's 375th Infantry Division to you at the speed of a rapid march. I'm sure they'll be able to join you before the battle even starts. By the way, what is the situation in the city, how many troops does the enemy have, and has he noticed your arrival? ”

"Comrade commander, don't worry, although our troops are quite numerous, they are well concealed, and the enemy has not discovered us at all." Baksov reported to me: "The scouts I sent reported to me half an hour ago that there was probably a regiment of German troops in the city. According to the confessions of the captured prisoners, however, the focus of their defense was on the side of the Dnieper, and in order to prevent our troops from crossing the river, they built several fortifications along the river and deployed two-thirds of their forces along the river. The remaining forces were scattered throughout the city. ”

"Continue to send men to monitor the movements of the German troops," I commanded briefly, "and report to me as soon as they make any troop movements." ”

"Yes!" Baksov replied loudly. (To be continued.) )