As the acting division commander of the 328th Division, Sokov felt that he needed to visit the units below. Only by understanding the real situation at the grassroots level can we formulate targeted measures to improve morale. Bindasov's 1135th Regiment was stationed on the Zizdra River, across the river from the German army on the other side. It was the closest unit to the German army, so this regiment became his first inspection target.
Hearing that Sokov came to inspect his place, Bindasov quickly came out with the political commissar and chief of staff to greet him. After saluting Sokov, he said with a smile: "Comrade division commander, you are welcome to come and inspect our regiment."
After the group returned to the regiment command post, Bindasov winked at his chief of staff and motioned for him to report the situation of the troops to Sokov. The understanding chief of staff waited for Sokov to sit down and then took the initiative to say: "Comrade division commander, let me introduce to you the defense situation of our regiment."
The purpose of Sokov's inspection here was to find out the defense situation of the 1135th Regiment, so after hearing what the Chief of Staff said, he nodded, indicating that he could start reporting.
The chief of staff pointed to the map on the table and introduced to Sokov: "Comrade division commander, please look at the map. Our regiment is deployed along the Zizdra River. The first battalion is at the front. Their positions are The German positions are across the river, and the closest point is less than 200 meters away..."
"Wait a minute, Chief of Staff." When Sokov heard this, he quickly raised his hand to interrupt the Chief of Staff, looked at him and asked: "How wide is the river and how fast is the current? How many troops do we have stationed here? , and what kind of force is the enemy?..."
Facing Sokov's series of questions, the chief of staff hesitated for a moment, but soon he answered very quickly: "The narrowest part of the river is only fifty meters, and the water depth is more than three meters. However, because the river has just thawed, there is no For a long time, the river is still biting, and the enemy and we do not have the conditions to swim across it for the time being; the first battalion holding the position by the river is 192 people, and the enemy on the other side is about the same as us..."
After listening to the chief of staff's introduction, Sokov stood up and said to Bindasov: "Comrade Colonel, accompany me to the 1st Battalion's position. I want to see the situation of the enemy on the other side."
Bindasov originally thought that when Sokov came to his regiment, he would just sit at the regiment headquarters and listen to the report like previous leaders. Unexpectedly, he actually wanted to go to the front to have a look, so he quickly persuaded: "Comrade Division Commander, the enemy's position there is too close and life is in danger. If you want to know anything about the situation, we will report it to you truthfully."
"Comrade Colonel, as the commander of the first division, it is necessary for me to be familiar with the situation in my defense area." Sokov waved his hand and said to Bindasov: "Besides, after a while, we will launch an attack on the enemy. , if I am not familiar with the terrain, how can I command the battle?"
Seeing that Bindasov was speechless by himself, Sokov shook his head at him and said: "Let's go, comrade colonel, you accompany me to the front line to have a look."
Seeing Sokov calling his life, Bindasov could only nod his head and said helplessly: "Okay, comrade division commander, since you want to see the frontier, I will accompany you."
The first battalion's defense area is only five or six hundred meters away from the regiment headquarters, and can be reached through a small forest. The original commander of the first battalion died in the battle, and now he is replaced by Captain Jetrov, commander of the third company.
When Sokov and Bindasov arrived at the first battalion, Captain Jetrov was staying in the observation post, observing the situation on the opposite side with a telescope. Seeing the regiment leader coming in, he quickly put down his binoculars and greeted him with a raised hand: "Comrade regiment commander, Captain Jetrov, acting commander of the 1st Battalion, is reporting to you. I am observing the enemy situation on the other side. Please give me instructions!"
After Bindasov raised his hand to return the salute, he introduced Jetrov: "This is the new division commander, Major Sokov. You can report to him."
Knowing that the young major standing next to the regiment leader was the new division commander, Jetrov couldn't help but widen his eyes in surprise. But he quickly returned to normal, raised his hand to salute Sokov, and repeated what he had just said.
After Sokov returned the greeting to Jetrov, he walked straight to the lookout and asked casually: "Comrade Captain, is there any movement from the enemy on the other side?"
"No, Comrade Division Commander." Jetrov replied simply: "The enemy is the same as usual, there is nothing strange. It seems that they will not launch an attack in the short term."
Just as Jetrov was talking, Sokov suddenly saw a carriage parked on the opposite bank of the river, and two German soldiers were fetching water from the river with buckets. Sokov couldn't help but frowned when he saw the German soldiers struggling to put the buckets filled with water on the carriage. He turned to look at Jetrov and said sternly: "Comrade Captain, I would like to ask you to explain what happened to the two German soldiers who were fetching water on the other side of the river."
Jetrov had obviously seen the two German soldiers a long time ago. After hearing Sokov's question, he replied without hesitation: "Comrade division commander, those two Germans should be cooks. They are here." Those who draw water from the river.”
"Water fetcher?!" Sokov walked around Jetrov and sneered: "Comrade Captain, I want to remind you that regardless of whether they are cooks or not, they are our enemies first." He paused for a moment and then asked, "But what should we do when we see the enemy?"
Although Jetrov did not understand the purpose of Sokov's question, he still answered simply: "Destroy them resolutely."
"That's right." Sokov said expressionlessly: "Since you know it's an enemy and you want to destroy it, then why do you see the enemy going to the river to get water under your nose, but you don't do anything?"
Faced with Sokov's question, Jetrov blushed and replied with embarrassment: "Comrade division commander, those are the enemy's cooking soldiers..."
"I have just said that no matter what the military branch is, as long as it is the enemy, we must resolutely eliminate them." The observation post of the first battalion is only more than 200 meters away from the German position. Through the lookout, even if it is not used, Using the telescope, Sokov could also clearly see the German sentries standing guard on the opposite position. He pointed at the German position in the distance and continued: "Also, the enemy's sentry is like a telegraph pole, standing within the range of your rifles and machine guns, but you actually turn a blind eye..."
After Jetrov waited for Sokov to finish speaking, he immediately asked with a guilty conscience: "Comrade Commander, what should we do?"
"What else can we do? Form a sniper team as soon as possible to kill the enemies on the opposite side who are exposed to our guns." Sokov looked at Jetrov and said with a serious expression: "I hope to come again next time When I inspected here, I couldn’t see a single active German on the other side. Do you understand?”
"Understood, comrade division commander." Although Jetrov still had some resistance to Sokov's order, he still replied in a loud voice: "I immediately transferred sharpshooters from the battalion and formed a sniper team. Detach your team and go sniper those enemies who have entered the range of our army."
Regarding Jetrov's statement, Sokov nodded with satisfaction and said: "Comrade Captain, now that you know what to do, take action as soon as possible. I will wait for your good news at the division headquarters. Good luck!"
