From December 14 to 17, the top commanders of both sides unanimously held a private truce.

The Austro-Hungarian Kuster wanted to digest the occupied area and ensure that there were no remnants of the enemy, otherwise his own combat situation would be one-way transparent to the Russians.

The Russian Ivanov attempted to build a strong defensive line on the east bank of the San River to defend against Kuster's attack in order to capture Przemyśl once and for all.

The rest of the senior leaders also did not say anything, after all, they were not in direct command.

On the contrary, Kaiser Wilhelm kept calling Kuster, urging him to attack; This annoyed him, and he simply told the operator not to answer any calls from Germany.

Because Ivanov had set up his defensive line on the San River, there was a particularly convenient way to quickly relieve Przemyśl - it was less than 2 kilometers from the narrow section of the northern bank.

Everyone knows that the Russians will definitely focus on defense in these two kilometers. Not to mention the Maginot Line, which is as large and magnificent as the Maginot Line, at least it has to be the most practical and solid of the entire line.

So Kuster will hardly launch a main attack on this area. So what should he do? The entire river was an impregnable line of defense for the Russians, impregnable.

Suddenly, he found on the map the Ardennes region of Russia, Sanok. This place was once the headquarters of the Third Army, which was captured by the Russians in September and has remained until now.

Although Sanok was still under the control of the Russians, it was located on the west bank of the San River and was far from the defensive line, so it was not fortified, but the army was withdrawn a lot.

Kuster had discovered the warplane, and he was like Manstein at the moment; Decidenously deployed the only tank battalion there, and then quietly gathered a superior force of 60,000 around Sanok.

As mentioned before, the biggest advantage of the attacking side is to use the initiative to choose the time and place of the battle; The defenders, on the other hand, have the advantage of terrain, but they can only be beaten passively.

On the night of 18 December, while heavy artillery shells were slamming down on the other side of the San River, a raid on Sanok began.

In just 10 minutes, they completely swept away the empty Sanok, and then used it as a stronghold to prepare to force the crossing.

To boost morale, Kuster personally went to the front line to direct the battle.

He stood next to a soldier holding an MG34, flicked his clothes, and asked him:

"How does it taste like to have your first kiss?"

"Great, I should have met you sooner! I really feel the thrill of defending the country and killing the enemy at this moment! ”

The soldier's face was full of excitement and his words were incoherent.

Kuster nodded in satisfaction, dusted him off, and continued to direct the soldiers' forced crossing.

In the early morning of the 19th, the total crossing of the river began. Two rocket artillery battalions fired 1,000 rockets in a row at almost the opposite bank.

The terrifying howls pierced the eardrums of the Russian soldiers, and many of them were buried directly in the ground, and the fortifications they had deployed before also ceased to exist under the fierce firepower.

And by the time they reacted, it was too late.

Separated from the West Bank, Kuster could not see the intensity of the battlefield, and could only hear a roar, roars, and explosions....... The air on both sides of the strait was filled with the smell of gunpowder.

Soon, about 20 minutes later, the Russians on the other side ceased their resistance and formally surrendered to Kuster.

The fighter has been turned on, and it can no longer be suppressed. The four tanks headed straight for Przemyśl, about 45 kilometers away.

Before they set off, Kuster warned the people in the car to be more careful. For no other reason, the commander of these four tanks, Captain Serowin Kuster, was his third son.

As he watched them drive away, Kuster felt like something was missing, but he had to go back to the headquarters.

In order to cover the attack of the tank battalion, Kuster ordered to throw all reserve divisions into the battle, leaving no room for it.

There would be a lot of risk in fighting like this, but he didn't need to worry about being a small army commander.

Moreover, it is not impossible to turn this place into a battlefield: then the armies of both sides will gather here, and he will be able to hide in the shadow of his allies and break through in any position of his choice.

So now, what Kuster wants to do is to make an earth-shattering move here, and force the surrounding four armies to be involved in this battle.

Thinking of this, Kuster spoke a few words to the commander-in-chief of the Third Army in the words of the line; As for what is being said, it will not be revealed until tomorrow.

On 20 December, a message reached the Tsar that the Austro-Hungarian Third Army was fully involved in the battlefield of Przemyśl, with Boroyevich and Kuster under the command of both the Austro-Hungarian Army, and the Austro-Hungarian army being replenished with 230,000 troops.

Doing so would greatly threaten the flanks of the Russian Third Army, which in turn would have a negative impact on the Eighth Army besieging Przemyśl.

But in the same way, because of the withdrawal of the Third Army on the Austro-Hungarian Eastern Front, there are currently only 300,000 troops of the Second Army defending against the Russian army, which is also a good opportunity for the Russians to break through, but I don't know if they can grasp it.

By now everyone knows that this local battle will turn into a decisive one.

If Austria-Hungary had won, then under the siege of the two Germanic emperors, the Slavic tsars would have retreated, or even abdicated.

If Russia wins, Austria-Hungary will face an even more dire situation since Galicia.

And for those officers, they must also be cautious.

If they fail, they will not only be dismissed and discredited; What is even more terrifying is the safety of their families and the rise or fall of the country. They can't lose, and they can't afford to lose.

For the Russian officers, they had to stubbornly resist the Austro-Hungarian offensive, especially General Ivanov. If his army group is surrounded, then he can only end up with Samsonov in Tannenberg - suicide and martyrdom.

For the Austro-Hungarian officers, they will do everything to break through the enemy's lines, especially Kuster, who started the war, and Borojevich, who expands the war. If this march fails, their previous efforts will be nullified.

It can be said that the officers on both sides have already put their lives on the line for their own interests, and they will not back down. The scale and bloodiness of this battle can also be imagined.

On December 21, Germany launched a series of offensives on the Eastern Front, successfully attracting a large number of Russian troops.

The Austro-Hungarian joint offensive was also officially launched, and they gathered 300,000 troops to force Przemyśl.

In contrast, the Russians had only 170,000 men in the area. But they have a great advantage, that is, they have a very strong mobilization ability and can continuously transport troops to this area.

So Kuster had to deal with it as soon as possible, and it wouldn't be good for them to fight for a long time.