The second round of the offensive launched by the 53rd Army soon ended in failure. Seeing the burning tanks of our army on the battlefield and the disorganized retreating of our troops, I did not have the heart to continue looking, and after saying goodbye to Managarov, I hurriedly left the observation post with Chistyakov.

On the way back to the headquarters of the army group, Chistyakov, who was sitting next to me, asked curiously: "Comrade commander, General Managarov's second offensive, although it also failed, they clearly fought better than the first, and the commanders and fighters showed more tenacity......"

"Comrade Deputy Commander," I interrupted him by raising my hand impatiently without waiting for him to finish, "the reason why I am in such a hurry to leave is because I can't stand it anymore, because this wrong way of attacking by General Managarov will cost us even more?" ”

Hearing me say this, Chistyakov asked curiously: "Comrade commander, you must know that in such a stormy battle, no matter how good the commander is to command the troops, the attacking troops will pay heavy sacrifices. ”

"We can accept the great price to pay in order to regain the lost city and defend our great Soviet Motherland." "But some wrong tactics will not only fail to defeat the enemy, but will cause us to pay a lot of unnecessary casualties." Speaking of this, I thought of the tragic scene I saw when Lyuban broke through, and I said to him in a deep voice, "At the time of Lyuban's breakout, in order to open a gap in the enemy's not very solid defensive line, a general of the Second Assault Army at that time, commanding our troops, who had the advantage in strength, launched an attack on the German positions. Because he was afraid that his commanders and fighters would get lost in the forest, he asked the soldiers to charge arm in arm; When the commanders and fighters of the first echelon fell under the guns of the Germans, he ordered the commanders and fighters of the second echelon to ride in trucks. Again an assault was launched on the German positions. When both echelons were wiped out, he ordered the tanks to launch a final attack, but the tanks, which had lost infantry cover, were destroyed one after another under the blows of the German anti-tankers. ”

After I finished the story with anger, Chistyakov looked at me strangely. With an innocent face, he asked: "Comrade commander, I don't understand what is the connection between the Liuban Breakout Battle and today's offensive battle?" ”

"Didn't you find anything wrong in the course of the failure of the second offensive organized by Managarov?" Chistyakov's reaction really left me speechless, and I even secretly cursed in my heart that maybe he used the same tactics as Managarov when he commanded the troops to fight, so he would be accustomed to many things. "The purpose of using tanks in attacking fortifications is to tear a gap in the enemy's line. And let the infantry that rush with them widen the breach. But you can see how Managarov's troops used tanks, which followed behind the infantry, moving slowly, and stopping from time to time to use themselves as stationary batteries, only to be killed by the German anti-tank men as easily as a target. ”

Hearing me say this, Chistyakov realized the seriousness of the problem, and he asked me with a frown: "How to use tanks if you command?" ”

"Let the tanks charge ahead." I replied casually, "Let the commanders and fighters hide behind the tanks." Rush forward. Our commanders and fighters hid in the blind spots of German small arms fire, so during the charge. It is not easy to pay too many casualties. ”

After listening to my explanation, Chistyakov nodded, and then said: "I estimate that in the short term, our group army will not have any combat missions, and the infantry and tank coordination tactics you mentioned can seize the time for the troops to conduct drills." to reduce casualties in the following battles. ”

When we returned to the headquarters of the army group, Kirillov and Bezikov, who had been waiting all night, immediately greeted us. Among them, Kirillov also asked with concern: "Lida, how is the situation, did the 53rd Army break through the defensive positions of the German troops?" ”

"No," I said, shaking my head, "before we leave." General Managarov launched two attacks in succession. But alas, his attacks failed. ”

"How so?" Kirillov wondered: "The preparation of artillery fire before the attack, we can also see it here, the southern sky is red by the fire from the shells, is it possible that the fortifications of the German army are so strong that they have not been destroyed by our artillery for several hours?" ”

I sighed and said, "It's hard to put into words." After saying that, I walked quickly to the map hanging on the wall, turned around and beckoned Kirillov to them: "Military commissar, chief of staff, please come over for a moment, and I will brief you on the situation." Seeing that everyone was coming, I pointed to the location of Kharkov with my explanation stick and said to everyone, "In order to defend against our attack on Kharkiv, the Germans have built seven defensive lines on the north side of the city, and each line is connected by communication trenches. In this way, when our troops begin to shell their first line of defense, the main forces of the German army can move to the second or third line of defense, and when our shelling is over and the troops attack, they will return to the first line of defense and start a blockade against us. ”

After listening to me, Kirillov looked at the map and nodded, and then said, "Leda, I see what you mean." Although we made the necessary artillery preparations before the attack, we did not consume much of the German army's living forces, so not only did we pay heavy casualties during the attack, but it was also difficult to achieve the desired results. ”

"That's right, that's it." I casually leaned the baton against the wall and continued: "If we are going to engage in an offensive battle against Kharkiv, then we have to adjust tactically. ”

"Comrade commander, tell us about it," Bezikov said, as soon as I finished speaking, "let us also know what tactics to use against the enemy." ”

Hearing his question, I picked up the baton again and pointed to where Kharkov was located: "The offensive to the east of the city is under the responsibility of General Shumilov's Seventh Guards Army; To the north of the city, the three armies of the Steppe Front were responsible. As for the battle we are going to fight, the most likely battlefield is to the west of the city.

Before the attack, we should still carry out the usual artillery bombardment of the first line of German defense. Forty minutes after the shelling. The artillery fire was extended, smashing the shells into the enemy's second line of defense. The Germans had the illusion that we were about to attack, and that they would go from the second line of defense, which was being shelled, back along the lines of communication to the first line of defense, ready for battle. When the enemy was almost all back to the first line of defense, our artillery fire suddenly returned from the second line of defense to the first line of defense. Beat the Germans who had just entered the position. ”

"And then at this time, will we attack the enemy's position?" When Bezikov heard this, he couldn't help but interject and ask: "The shelling of the enemy has not ended, let the troops rush forward, will they be accidentally injured by their own artillery fire?" ”

"Chief of Staff, please listen to me." After glancing at Bezkov with dissatisfaction, I continued: "When our artillery fire again extended fire into the enemy's depth, the tank units were the first to charge, followed by armored vehicles laden with fighters. When the tank units tore the German line of defense. Fighters in armored vehicles come down to clear the trenches of the enemy, expand and consolidate the breakthrough......"

When I talked about my offensive tactics, everyone listened and nodded, and no one raised any objections. When I finished, I grabbed the baton in both hands, looked around, and asked, "Who else has a different opinion?" ”

Hearing my question, Akhromeyev immediately said: "Comrade commander. Your plan is virtually flawless. But the premise is that our tank corps and many artillery regiments and guards rocket artillery battalions can be rebuilt on time before the battle begins. ”

It turned out that everyone saw the dawn of victory. But when he heard Akhromeyev say this, the expression on his face suddenly darkened. Bezikov sighed and said: "Although Commander Vatutin has long said that several infantry divisions, tank corps and artillery will be rebuilt, it has been so long, and there is still no movement. ”

Seeing that all the people became depressed. I hurriedly coughed and said to them: "Okay, comrades commanders, even if we are going to fight, we will not be in these two days. That is, we still have plenty of time to wait for the return of Tomarovka's troops. As for this period of time, all divisions should be urged to seize the time to train their troops, especially in street fighting. The Germans would never be willing to let us take Kharkov from them, and the street fighting in the city would have been fierce. Let the commanders and fighters conduct targeted training, and in the future, when fighting street battles, the casualties of the troops will be greatly reduced. ”

When everyone went to work on their work, Kirillov pulled me aside and asked in a low voice: "Lida, when you saw the failure of the attack of the troops at the observation post of the 53rd Army, did you not casually express your opinion?" ”

I shook my head and replied, "No, Comrade Military Commissar." You know, I just went to them to find out what was going on at the front, and I couldn't dictate how friendly forces were fighting. ”

"That's good, that's good." When Kirillov said this, he also reached out and secretly wiped the sweat from his forehead, "So I can rest assured." ”

Kirillov's words confused me, and I was puzzled and asked: "Comrade Military Commissar, why do you say that?" ”

Kirillov looked left and right, and saw that the other commanders were some distance away from us, and he probably couldn't hear us say yes, so he approached me and whispered: "Lida, in the eyes of others, you belong to the Marshal Zhukov family. And General Managarov, on the other hand, belongs to another family, and his backstage has a deep contradiction with Zhukov, as for who this person is, please forgive me for not being able to tell you. If you see the failure of Managarov's troops' offensive, feel free to express your opinion and give him what to suggest. The victory of the offensive of the troops was undoubtedly the credit of Managarov; But if you fail, the responsibility will be on you. ”

Kirillov's words shook me into a cold sweat, and I could not imagine that before the Germans had been driven out of the territory of the USSR, a factional struggle within the army had begun. In the eyes of everyone, I have been branded with the mark of Zhukov's family, and in the coming days, I will definitely be suppressed by another faction, both openly and secretly, so I must be more cautious in my words and deeds in the future, so as not to be caught by others.

Just as I was struggling with this unexpected news, there was a faint sound of shouting a report outside the door. Bezikov was closer to the door, and when he heard the voice, he replied while rushing outside: "Come in!" ”

As soon as he finished speaking, two commanders in general's uniforms walked into the headquarters. When I looked up and saw the people coming, I was overjoyed and hurriedly greeted the two of them. I stretched out my hands to them and said excitedly, "Colonel Bere, Colonel Povsky, welcome back!" ”

The next moment, the three of us held hands together. Just as we were shaking hands, Kirillov walked up to me and said to me with a smile: "Lida, you just called me wrong, the two of them are no longer colonels, but generals." As he spoke, he first stretched out his hand to Bere, "Hello, Colonel Bere, welcome back to the headquarters." ”

The two who came, namely the commander of the tank corps Bere, and the commander of the artillery of the army group Povsky, perhaps in recognition of their performance in the battle, promoted both from colonel to the rank of major general.

After I beckoned the two of them to sit down at the table, I took the two cups of tea brought by Akhromeyev and put them in front of them, and then asked with a smile: "Comrades two generals, when you go back to the headquarters today, are you here to report to me, or are you officially leading the troops back to the building?" ”

Hearing my question, the two people who had just picked up the teacup hurriedly put down the cup and stood up. Berey respectfully reported to me: "Comrade Commander, a few hours ago we received an order from our superiors to complete the rebuilding work within today's time. Since it will take time for the troops to march, I am afraid that you will be in a hurry, so I rushed over by car with Comrade Povsky. ”

After I waited for Berey to finish speaking, I turned my head to look at Bezkov, who was standing next to me, and asked: "Chief of Staff, have you received a notice from the Front Command?" ”

"No, Comrade Commander." Betzikov shook his head and said: "I didn't receive any notice, so I didn't know at all that the artillery and tank corps would be returned today." ”

"Major Akhromeyev." In order to avoid confusion, as soon as Bezikov finished speaking, I beckoned the chief of operations who was standing not far away, "I will give you full responsibility for the task of receiving the reconstituted troops." We must arrange our tank corps and artillery well, and there must be no confusion. (To be continued.) )