Red Moscow

  Chapter 723 Raid on the Ammunition Depot (Part 2)

  The next morning, Chuikov woke up from his sleep. The first thing to do was to ask Krylov, who was on the night shift, "Chief of Staff, has Colonel Sokov called?"

   "No phone call, Vasily Ivanovich!" replied Krylov, shaking his head.

  Although he didn't get the answer he wanted, Chuikov still asked unwillingly: "Chief of Staff, tell me, what is Colonel Sokov doing at the moment? Has he sent out the task force?"

Seeing Chuikov's worry about gains and losses, Krylov couldn't help laughing, and he replied: "Comrade Commander, what's wrong with you, don't you have great confidence in Colonel Sokov, why have you become so restless? "

"I can't help it either." Chuikov stood up, walked to the place where the samovar was placed, turned on the tap and made himself a cup of hot tea, then walked over with the tea mug in his hand, and said to Krylov: "The enemy is attacking the barricade factory and the Czech Republic. The attack on the Erzhinsky factory is so fierce that if we don't do something, I fear that the factory will not survive."

   Hearing what Chuikov said, Krylov fell silent. No one knew better than him the situation of the two factories. Every time he answered the phone and heard that a certain place was occupied by the enemy again, his heart felt like a knife was piercing his heart. Faced with the request for reinforcements from the commander below, he could only repeat over and over again: I have no reserve team, you must rely on your own strength to resolutely block the enemy.

   "What's wrong with you, Chief of Staff?" Seeing Krylov in a daze, Chuikov couldn't help asking curiously: "What are you thinking, I saw you keep this posture for several minutes."

Chuikov's voice awakened Krylov from his contemplation, he sighed softly, and said in a low voice: "Comrade Commander, if the higher-ups don't send us more reinforcements, I'm worried that the city may be lost. Perhaps worried that Chuikov would say that he was panicked, he added, "Of course, I'm talking about the worst case."

"Chief of Staff, you don't need to explain." Chuikov also understands the situation in the city, otherwise he would not try to let Sokov's troops launch an attack in the south of the city. Soldiers and workers fighting hard in a factory. "The situation in the city is getting worse every day. I also heard from Commander Joludev yesterday that his troops seized the diary of a German officer. The officer wrote in the diary: 'The enemy and the enemy fought for every Houses, workshops, water towers, railway embankments, even a wall, a basement, and every pile of rubble were fought with a fury never seen before."'

   Chief of Staff, did you hear that? Not only do we feel that the battle was extremely fierce, but even the Germans who attacked one side feel the same way now. "

"Comrade Commander," seeing that Chuikov didn't blame himself, Krylov asked him again: "Please see if you can ask your superiors to send us reinforcements. Even if there is only one division or an infantry brigade, we can It is the unfavorable situation at the two factories that has been eased."

"Whether it is Commander Yeremenko or Comrade Khrushchev, they will not watch the city fall." Chuikov waited for Krylov to finish speaking, and said thoughtfully: "If they There are mobile forces that can be used, and they must have been sent to the city long ago. Now that they have not received any reinforcements, it can only show that they are also facing a situation where they have no soldiers to use."

"So, we have no choice but to think of another way." Krylov asked Chuikov cautiously: "How about I call Colonel Sokov and ask him how the situation is there, the troops who destroyed the enemy's ammunition depot , has it been dispatched?"

  Cuikov thought for a while, reached out and grabbed the phone, and said, "I'll make this call."

  The call was quickly connected to the division headquarters on Mamayev Gang. Hearing Sidolin’s voice coming from the receiver, Chuikov immediately asked impatiently, “Lieutenant Colonel Sidolin, this is Chuikov.”

Hearing that it was Chuikov who called, Sidolin was still surprised. He raised his hand and looked at his watch. Seeing that it was just seven o'clock, Chuikov called. There must be something important. He asked nervously, "It's me. , Comrade Commander! What instructions do you have?"

   "I want to ask." Since his old subordinate Sidolin answered the call, Chuikov didn't make any circles, but asked directly: "Have the troops behind the enemy to destroy the ammunition depot set off?"

"Yes, Comrade Commander, the squad has already set off." Even if Chuikov didn't take the initiative to ask about this matter, Sidolin planned to wait for dawn and find a time to report to the headquarters. Since Chuikov asked at this moment, he would answer Said: "There are a total of 20 people in the squad, and the members are from the division's guard battalion and the downsizing regiment. The leader is Lieutenant Grisa. He just came back from the enemy's rear not long ago and has rich experience in fighting against the enemy behind the enemy's rear. Therefore, the division commander let him In charge of commanding the squad."

   "What, there are only twenty people?" Chuikov said with some disappointment: "The enemy's ammunition depot must be heavily guarded. These few people may be wiped out by the enemy's firepower before they even approach the ammunition depot."

   "Don't worry, Comrade Commander." Regarding Chuikov's worries, Sidolin explained with a smile: "Twenty men are more than enough, and they are capable of destroying the enemy's ammunition depot from a long distance."

"Destroy the enemy's ammunition depot at a long distance?" Chuikov asked after repeating Sidolin's words: "Do they carry mortars? If so, it is indeed possible to destroy the enemy's ammunition at a long distance. Ammunition Depot."

   "They are not using mortars, Comrade Commander." Sidolin quickly explained to Chuikov: "It is the new type of rockets you have seen."

   "The new rockets, haven't they been used up long ago?" Chuikov asked puzzledly, "Where did they come from now?"

"When Lieutenant Grisa led the troops on a mission behind the enemy, he hid three of them somewhere behind the enemy because it was inconvenient to carry them." Sidolin replied: "They are going to use the New rockets destroy enemy ammunition depots."

   "That's really great." Cuikov knew the power of the new rockets, and he couldn't help but be overjoyed when he learned that Sokov actually had this magic weapon in his hand. But he quickly thought of a key question: "Do you know where the enemy's ammunition depot is?"

"We still don't know the exact location." Sidolin continued: "But after a series of analysis, I think the enemy may have set up the ammunition depot in the town of Gorodisheh." It may be because Chuikov is like Sokov. Worried that the bombing of the ammunition depot would bring disaster to the residents of the town, he explained first, "According to reliable information, the residents of the town had been evacuated two months ago, and now the town is full of Germans."

   Chuikov did have the same thoughts as Sokov in his heart, but after hearing Sidolin's explanation, the boulder hanging in his heart immediately fell to the ground. He nodded and said into the microphone: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, if there is any new progress, remember to call me in time."

   "Don't worry, Comrade Commander." Sidolin replied, "I will keep in touch with you at any time."

With Sidolin's assurance, Chuikov put down the microphone with a sigh of relief, and said to Krylov who was sitting beside him: "Comrade Chief of Staff, Sokov has sent a small team to the enemy. I believe it will not be long before we can Heard the good news." After speaking, seeing Krylov's dazed expression, he remembered that when he called, the other party seemed to have answered a call, and he probably didn't hear the conversation between himself and Sidolin. Then he repeated the content of the call just now to Krylov.

After listening to Chuikov's narration, Krylov also showed joy on his face. He said in surprise: "Comrade Commander, if the enemy's ammunition depot is really located in Gorodisheh, then at the latest tomorrow, it will be on the barricades." The German troops in the area of ​​the factory and the Dzerzhinsky factory will have to temporarily suspend their offensive due to lack of ammunition. Then, we can gain precious time to readjust the defensive deployment."

  (end of this chapter)