Red Moscow

  Chapter 737 Hard to sing alone

   After Chuikov and Gurov returned to the headquarters, they immediately convened a meeting of the members of the Military Council. Seeing that the commander called everyone for an emergency meeting, everyone thought that something had happened, so they put down their work and rushed over in a hurry.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, Chuikov announced the opening of the meeting, and then said to everyone: "Comrades of the Military Council, on the way to Mamayev Hill today, comrades of the Military Council and I once had an idea to form a new combat The group, fighting the enemy on Mamayev Kurgan and the old town in the south of the city, to relieve the pressure on the factory area in the north of the city. I would like to hear everyone's thoughts on this matter. Is it necessary to establish this combat group? "

After Chuikov finished speaking, Chief of Staff Krylov was the first to speak. He looked at Chuikov and asked tentatively: "Comrade Commander, if I guessed correctly, once this battle group is established, then Colonel Sokov must be The perfect choice for a commander, right?"

"That's right, I do plan to let him be the commander of this battle group." After Chuikov gave Krylov a reply, he didn't say that Sokov rejected him, and asked directly: "Comrade Chief of Staff, Do you think it is necessary for us to set up such a combat group?"

"Comrade Commander, your proposal is indeed very tempting. Once a combat group is established, it will inevitably disperse the German offensive forces, so that we can get a breathing space in the factory area to the north." Krylov said After completing the benefits of setting up a battle group, he began to talk about the difficulties: "However, we simply don't have extra troops to set up such a battle group."

After Krylov finished speaking, Colonel Zalijuk, the director of operations, also expressed his opinion: "Comrade commander, if we want to set up a combat group, the first thing to consider is whether the superior will send us new troops? Even if new troops are sent, what about their supplies? You know, with the blockade of the Volga by the enemy's air force and artillery, our supply situation has deteriorated."

"The Director of Operations is right." As soon as Zalijuk finished speaking, Major General Lobov, the Minister of Logistics who rarely spoke at military conferences, added: "As he said, our logistics is due to the impact of enemy planes and artillery fire. The blockade has become more and more difficult. If there are a few more divisions or brigades, what should they do with their weapons, ammunition and supplies of various military supplies? They cannot be allowed to fight the enemy with rifles without bullets. A bayonet?"

Then, Lieutenant Colonel Wei Yinlubu, director of the Armored Forces of the Group Army, also stood up and spoke: "In order to establish a battle group, there must be an armored force. Then the question arises again, how many tanks and tanks can we transport in a short period of time with our current transportation capacity?" Armored vehicles, transported from the east bank of the Volga River?"

  A series of questions raised by several members of the military committee made the instigator Gurov feel like he was sitting on pins and needles. Hearing the difficulties raised by everyone, he doubted his persistence. Is it really not suitable to form a new combat group in the city under the current situation to disperse the German offensive strength?

Fortunately, the commanders who participated in the meeting guessed that this proposal must have been proposed by the commander or the military commissioner, so they did not point the finger at the two of them, but talked about the reasons for not being able to form a new combat group at present, and why they must not Difficulties not to face.

   Someone whispered: "If it is really impossible to form a combat group, I am afraid that Colonel Sokov, who is sticking to Mamayev Post, will be disappointed."

When Gurov heard this, he could no longer hold back the anger in his heart. He slapped the table hard, stood up abruptly, and asked sharply, "Who is saying that a combat group cannot be established? Colonel Sokov will be disappointed." Let me tell you, the first person who opposed this plan was Colonel Sokov. He firmly told me and the commander that the conditions for establishing a combat group are not yet available. I am stubborn and insist on the command Bring this matter up to a meeting of the Military Council for discussion."

   Seeing that Gurov got angry, the person who had just made sarcastic remarks shut up wisely, so as not to cause trouble to his upper body. Chuikov raised his hand and pressed down, and said kindly to Gurov: "Comrade Military Commissar, it's only natural for someone to have such thoughts. Don't worry, sit down first, let's continue the discussion."

   After Gurov sat down, the headquarters became extremely quiet, and no one spoke. When Krylov saw it, he was cold-hearted, and quickly came out to liven up the atmosphere: "Commanders, I think whether to set up a combat group, no matter what conclusion we finally come to, if there is no support from the superior, it is useless. The superior If we don't send us new troops and technical equipment, even if we barely form a combat group, it will be of no use."

  Passing Krylov's circle, the originally silent commanders expressed their opinions one after another. However, their views are exactly the same as those of the previous ones, and they all believe that it is meaningless to form a combat group to disperse the offensive strength of the German army.

Chuikov saw that everyone overwhelmingly said that a combat group should not be established. In order to prevent Gurov from being embarrassed, he quickly got up and prepared the steps for him: "Comrades, I think the chief of staff just said a lot. We don't care about this matter. The outcome of the discussion still needs to be decided by the Front Army Command."

Having said that, he paused for a moment, looked at Krylov and said: "Comrade Chief of Staff, sort out everyone's opinions, and then report it to the Front Army Command immediately. What's your opinion, Comrade Husband?"

After Krylov nodded in agreement, he raised his concerns: "Comrade Commander, although the squadron of the 41st Guards Division destroyed the enemy's ammunition depot, the enemy who attacked the Barricade Factory and the Dzerzhinsky Factory We have to slow down the pace of the attack. However, with the current transportation capacity of the German army, the offensive troops at the front will be fully replenished in less than two days. By then, the defenders we deploy in these two factories will have to bear Enormous pressure."

  Chuikov felt that to solve this problem, he could use the plan Sokov proposed to him, so he stood up and announced: "Comrade Wei Yinlub will stay, and the rest of the comrades can go back to rest."

   After the meeting was almost done, Chuikov said: "I asked Sokov today how to win in a counterattack. He told me to ensure the suddenness and concealment of the counterattack..."

  Wei Yinlub, who stayed behind, thought that Cuikov would simply order himself to organize a tank force to counterattack when the enemy attacked, and use the sacrifice of the tank force to ensure that the infantry could hold their positions. Unexpectedly, he heard Chuikov talk about how to counterattack the enemy. This new tactic quickly attracted him.

  After Cuikov finished speaking, Weinrub asked in surprise: "Comrade Commander, the tactics you mentioned are really novel. Where did you hear about them?"

"Colonel Sokov told me." Cuikov looked at Weinrub and said, "They used this tactic to repel the enemy's attack many times. I hope you can also use this tactic as soon as possible to guard the factory area." It can be popularized among tank troops to achieve greater results with minimal casualties."

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  (end of this chapter)