Budyonny's boys did a good job, and for several days in the field, like hounds chasing rabbits, the cavalry, with the combined armoured and skiing units, met with little resistance to what could be called stubborn, and the knights had to fight only against the weather. Pen? Interesting? Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 ｉｎfo

On the afternoon of January 7, on the left flank of the Dzerzhinsk Mountains, the 1st Guards Cavalry Corps encountered a special German infantry. After a handful of T34s destroyed German heavy fire points, the cavalry prepared to launch a strong assault on the German sparsely laladen positions from both flanks.

The Germans were obviously short of ammunition, and in a few minutes they were blindly beaten while the fire was being prepared, and they could not see how many machine-gun positions there were in the snow, apparently a charge could easily take it! But unlike the average German infantry, the Germans did not flee and resist to the death at once: they understood that if they fought hard with a cavalry group or fled on foot in a gentle hill and unsheltered area with woods, they would be seeking their own death, and they would either be immediately drowned by the cavalry or bitten to death like a rabbit in the mouth of a hound!

The Germans raised the white flag and chose to surrender!

The Cossacks were caught off guard by the unexpected choice of their opponents: the Cossacks themselves were almost startled when they looked at the German commander who walked out of the trench a few hundred meters away, carrying a gray-white white flag waving in the wind!

It made sense that there were no white sheets in the army, lest there be an accident, and it took the Cossacks a while to figure out that the Germans were really going to surrender.

Nearly 500 German troops seemed to have chosen to surrender quite naturally, much to the surprise of the Soviet cavalry! But seeing the captives dressed like Hanako (wrapping everything that could keep them warm), the Cossacks could understand that the Germans basically had no strength to fight. Since the opponent did not resist, this side could not be put to death - the Cossacks soon found out that the opponent was all cavalry! A group of horsemen without war horses!

"If it had been two months ago, my men and I would have been happy to have an epic cavalry duel with you! But now, as a group of cavalry without war horses, I can only choose to surrender sadly. It would be unwise to confront you in the present situation, and I don't want my lads to die in vain because of my bad decisions. ”

The one who led the surrender was a lieutenant colonel deputy regiment commander with the title of baron, "Although I am personally deeply ashamed to surrender to you, this is already the best choice now." ”

It is always better for cavalry to surrender to cavalry than to Russian infantry like wolves - it is a question of whether they can surrender or not, and even worse when they encounter armored assault troops!

The baron was deeply saddened, for his horses had become food for the troops, including his own mounts! In those days of encirclement, hunger deeply tormented all the German troops, not only the "big meat eaters" of the 1st Cavalry Division, but all the horses and mules used to pull artillery and transport supplies were slaughtered as food for the troops.

If it weren't for those poor horses, the 4th and 9th armies of Army Group Center would have starved to death and died of disease in the hundreds of thousands!

Cavalry without horses, with insufficient ammunition and full of wounded and sick battalions, sworn to resist the Russian cavalry swept like a whirlwind in such a situation? The baron decided to surrender - if it were against other Russian troops, he would resist to the end, but it seemed to him that surrendering to his peers might have a chance of survival.

He made the right choice.

The Cossacks understood the sorrow of the horseless cavalry, and after collecting the Germans' weapons, they left only a few people in their care, and even left a lot of food and medicine to escort to the predetermined location: the cavalry had its own rules, and this group of German prisoners of war also seemed to have become "private" prisoners of the 1st Guards Cavalry Army, temporarily in the custody of the Cossacks.

Budyonny was very happy when his troops had captured almost a regiment of German cavalry, but became less of a man of speech when he understood that it was a group of "infantry". He originally wanted to capture a batch of Hanover horses to fill his horse breeding farm, but now he was overjoyed! The reason for the opponent, but now Budyonny still praised his cavalry troops, and they had accomplished a mission that was difficult for other arms, namely that there would still be thousands of cavalry wandering the front line, searching for the Germans who remained in the wilderness.

"We can withdraw our cavalry boys, and the cold will help us deal with the remaining Germans, without risking the loss of our horses."

The night is minus 40 degrees, and even the Budyonny war horse will freeze to death if you spend the night in the wild!

However, Lin Jun's arrival at the headquarters of the Belorussian Front was not just to listen to Budyonny's "unexpected" nonsense, and now the western part of Belarus has become a salient embedded in the battle line, and both flanks are facing the German-controlled area for a long distance, like a big nail nailed into the German strategic front. God gave the USSR a buffer of three to four months, and what about the Nazis?!

Until May, whoever wanted to start a large-scale war was someone who had a problem with their brains! Not to mention the severe cold, the next muddy season will allow mechanized troops to "destroy" all roads, and no matter how advanced the equipment is, it will become a decoration in the mire! It's also best for the infantry to stay in dry fortifications during the muddy season, if you can find a way to dry them! Otherwise, you will have to taste the taste of becoming a "wetland hunter", which will definitely make the experiencer unforgettable and hairstand for life!

This big nail not only faces threats from three directions, but also can also attack the northern army group on the first line of Lithuania in the north, and threaten the vast German-occupied areas of Ukraine in the south, which is a "big bargaining chip" for both sides, and it is extremely eye-catching on the map!

When the mud is over next year, Lin Jun can think with his toes that Hitler will try his best to regain the strategic initiative, and the Stolbutch salient in the west will be one of the decisive battle areas that cannot be escaped. There may be a "new Kursk", and the central government is thinking of launching a large-scale campaign in Ukraine next, and it cannot be relaxed here, the summer of 42 will not be easy!

The battle in Ukraine must be well prepared, the strategic situation is over there where the Germans have formed a strategic wedge, but all this is still in the "future tense", and what needs to be done at the moment is enough to be busy.

The latest operational map in Zhukov's war room shows the latest situation of both sides in Belarus: "We are separated from the guerrilla zone of the Swamp guerrilla corps only about 80 kilometers, but we will not be able to gain direct ground contact with them until the summer comes, but we will be able to support the partisans from the air. ”

Zhukov handed Lin Jun a report from Kobets that the weather was too cold, the forcible opening of a passage to the swamp was not worth the cost, and the troops urgently needed to enter the fortifications: the partisans had a hard time in winter, and the air force would have a planned air supply.

There were a lot of clues, and Lin Jun only explained the meaning of the central government, and the three of them briefly discussed for an hour.

"Let's go, go see the German generals." Lin Jun put on the military coat handed over by the guard and said: The staff is not furnished, let them be busy, and they will not be tired to death if they ask for everything!

Personnel of the Ministry of Internal Affairs belonging to the command of the Front were entertaining high-ranking German officers nearby, but not in a barbaric way: Stalin wanted to make good use of the captured German generals. It was necessary for them to make an anti-Hitler manifesto, and to make a lot of propaganda to the German troops. As for whether the Germans cooperate or not, they don't have to worry about the front-line commanders, and the Ministry of the Interior has a solution.

Historically, General Dewalt-von Seydlitz-Kurzbach even proposed to form an anti-Hitler army from German prisoners of war, but the Soviet Union did not accept this proposal - "Will this happen?" Lin Jun's mind flashed.

But Lin Jun just thought about it, he didn't expect and never planned to form any "German Liberation Army" - a puppet army, unreliable! Or as a labor force to come real and insured.

Not much nonsense with the Germans, Lin Jun just wanted to see the group of captives who would soon be sent to Moscow - including the bald Field Marshal Adolf Strauss, all the senior German generals were detained separately. Judging from the countenance of the captives, the siege effect some time ago was obvious, and even these high-ranking generals were tired and did not dare to malnourish!

Adolf Strauss didn't stock up on any special supplies, unlike Stalingrad, where most of the German army was half starved to death, and a few slept surrounded by bread and butter! When Lin Jun saw the captives, except for the most basic identification symbols on their military uniforms, all the decorations and honors of the Third Reich had been unceremoniously deprived!

Medals and ribbons, including the marshal's scepter, have been grouped together and sent to Moscow at that time. The staff officer also found Strauss's brand-new German marshal's scepter for Lin Jun to look at, "The workmanship is good", Lin Jun took it and weighed it, and returned it after a simple evaluation.

Lin Jun is no longer keen on those "souvenirs" of the war, otherwise as long as he throws the scepter to Landscoch, it will naturally become his collection.

Even Hitler's mountain palace could become his own vacation spot, and there was nothing material to attract him.

For the first time, the German generals saw the Marshal of the Soviet Union who had been held to the sky: wearing a brand new military coat, with elaborate lambskin gloves on his hands, and a pair of high-end leather boots that could shine brightly!

Lin Jun saluted the captives politely and casually, and there was no contempt or sarcasm in his eyes - he was a little curious, and besides, he couldn't go too far by expecting these people to angrily denounce Hitler.

German, stereotypical. (To be continued.) )