Leaving Stalin's office, Vatutin had to face a series of problems for Moscow after the destruction of Ulyanovsk. The first is the direct consequence of the destruction of an important railway line, where a large amount of supplies were transported from the rear, but they could only be piled up in distant places and could not be transported into the Moscow theater of operations.

Ammunition and ammunition provided by the Americans, including hundreds of Sherman tanks, as well as countless machine guns and ammunition, could only be stacked in some railway stations further east of Ulyanovsk and slowly transported into Moscow by car.

This is only a question that can be immediately thought of by Vatutin, and another question is whether the German bombing will continue, if the Germans continue to bomb and spread the bombing site from the node of Ulyanovsk, then the empty hinterland of the Soviet Union will be bombed by the Germans, and the fragile industrial base will be further worsened.

All the transport nodes along the Hopiol River, a tributary of the Don River, including the transport hub of Tambov and the important town of Penza southeast of Moscow, as well as Saratov and even the distant industrial region of Chelyabinsk, could be visited by German bombers - this was definitely not good news, at least not for the Soviet Union.

The Soviet Union's prideful defense in depth was now about to be pierced by the German army, and cities that would never have been attacked by anyone were now under the wing of the German bomber force. What is even more desperate is that Kazakhstan and other allies, which were originally negotiating to join the Soviet Union, have adopted a neutral wait-and-see attitude at this moment.

Of course, it was not until a day later, when the number of the second batch of SU-34 self-propelled anti-tank guns modified with T-76 chassis modified to Moscow was reduced from the original fixed 30 to a pitiful 5, that Vatutin realized that another Soviet heavy industry base had been destroyed by the Germans.

"Comrade Stalin asked me to confirm how well Zhukov was preparing for the welcoming parade back to Moscow. "An attaché sent by Stalin walked into Vatutin's messy and somewhat dilapidated office, which had not been restored for a long time, because of the last German bombardment, and all the senior Soviet commanders were ordered not to use the offices on the ground easily. Of course, as the number of German bombings dropped to almost nothing, the ban was eventually forgotten, and most officers preferred the spacious and bright rooms to the dimly lit underground command bunkers. Not to mention that they felt that the time they could use the office so comfortably was running out, and as soon as the Germans began to attack Moscow on a large scale, everyone would have to use underground bunkers.

Vatutin put down the document in his hand and pulled his mind away from the damn document. The documents recorded were the weapons and supplies received by the Moscow theater since May, and the overall decline in the volume of all supplies made Vatutin unhappy.

So he no longer thought about these unpleasant things, but replied to the Stalin attaché who came in: "The station is ready, and the troops for the parade have been trained for 5 days." I heard that Marshal Zhukov would be able to arrive in Moscow in three days, and if he could take a plane, he would have been there a day earlier. ”

"There was no way, because of the fact that the Luftwaffe's fighters had a very wide range of activities, so officers above the rank of major general were forbidden to fly. Everyone still obeys this rule, after all, no one wants to be a target for the Luftwaffe, does they?" the attaché glanced at the map spread out on the table, and then quickly withdrew his gaze in fear.

Because the map is not far west of Moscow, which has been densely packed with German troops, the nearest small high ground, which he once inspected as Stalin's special dispatcher, when the German army had not yet reached there, when he went there he only saw dense old Soviet men lining up to dig trenches.

"Germany...... The Germans have advanced to this position?" the Stalin's attaché looked at Vatutin with a horrified face: "He...... They...... They've all hit this far? Oh my God. ”

"Otherwise, where do you think they are? Wait for your permission under the city of Berlin before going to Moscow?" Vatutin sneered, and then pressed his hand on the map spread out on his desk: "The Germans are only 15 kilometers away from Moscow, the closest position, and we are killing thousands of soldiers every day to prevent the German army from continuing to advance towards the city center. ”

He had to push countless lives, young and old, into the depths of hell, holding on to positions that had been blown up to disfigure, paying with his life to stop the German advance. With such sacrifices to defend the tranquility of Moscow, or rather, to defend him and Stalin from being killed by the Germans.

"We lack artillery and tanks, and to be able to stop the Germans from continuing to advance into the city of Moscow, is already the maximum combat intensity that soldiers can do. Vatutin smiled bitterly, pointed to the place recognized by Stalin's attaché and said: "We have killed 1,700 soldiers in this position, and by the time the Germans occupied it, the corpses had filled almost the entire trench. ”

"I will convey these things to the great leader, Comrade Stalin. The attaché swallowed a mouthful of saliva, and then forced his composure to Vatutin: "I will convey your efforts to Comrade Stalin, General...... If nothing happens, can I go back to my life now?"

Coming out of Vatutin's place, the attaché next to Stalin walked a little trembling, he only knew today how serious the situation in Moscow really was, when he heard that the German army was still dozens of kilometers away from Moscow, he had almost no concept of this distance in his mind, but today he knew what this distance meant, and how dangerous and desperate his current situation was.

Sitting in the rickety car, the poor creature pondered how he was going to get out of the chaos until the car drove into the Kremlin and he realized that he had returned to his destination. So he pushed open the door and got out of the car, following the guidance of the guards all the way to the office of his allegiance leader, Stalin.

"Ah...... Are you ready for the military parade arranged by Comrade Vatutin? I will make an important speech there to encourage the entire Motherland to continue to hold out in the Great Patriotic War. Stalin heard someone push open the door, looked up at his men, and then continued to look down at the secretary's prepared speech. He looked at it and spoke to his confidant attaché, and it seemed that he was in a good mood today.

Who knows why he was in a good mood today? Maybe it was because of a sunny day, maybe it was because the Germans didn't shell the west of the city, maybe it was because they knew that Zhukov was about to return to Moscow, and even more so because of the exact news from the reinforcements from the Far East.

Anyway, this super-leader, who once turned his hands into clouds and rain in Moscow, is now full of conviction that as long as he slows down the German offensive in Moscow, he will definitely usher in a turning point in the future that will change the tide of the war. So he is now highly motivated, which is in stark contrast to the generals around him.

As the Luftwaffe's tanks and armoured vehicles drew closer to Moscow, the Soviet leader somehow hypnotized himself into believing that he could hold the enemy in Moscow, fight to extend his rule, and win.

"Comrade Stalin, great leader, I think I would like to consult with you if it is possible ......to send my family to Chelyabinsk, which is safer," the attaché pleaded, taking advantage of Stalin's good mood. He didn't know when Stalin's mood suddenly turned bad, after all, people's mood at such times is often very sensitive, and it can be completely changed by some small trifles.

"Chelyabinsk, why do you mention that damn place, I have heard that there are already people there who oppose my leadership, and they think that it was my war with the Germans that led to today's defeat!" Stalin's face suddenly became terrible, for just a day earlier he had received a secret report that the exiled families in the heart of the Soviet Union had begun to circulate against it.

Stalin then telegraphed Chelyabinsk and ordered the authorities there to suppress the rumors that were not conducive to his rule and to arrest those who spread them. However, the people in Chelyabinsk politely rejected Stalin's request, claiming that if the workers' statements were to be investigated rashly, the speed of production of weapons and equipment in the rear factories would be affected.

This almost justified refusal caused a sudden panic in Stalin's heart, and he feared that his orders would begin to be unsupported at the local level, and he was suspicious that there was an inexplicable force behind his back. Now, when his attaché suddenly mentioned Chelyabinsk, Stalin was rightly furious.

"No! As long as I live! No one can leave Moscow! No one can leave! You all have to fight in this city, for our motherland, for our cause! Fight! Fight until the last second!" Stalin pounded the table and roared loudly, and his voice echoed throughout the Kremlin: "If you talk to me about leaving Moscow again, I will send your family and you to the front!"