Originally, they thought that the attack on Zizdra City would be an easy victory. But after the battle started, the situation changed unexpectedly. The infantry that launched an attack on the city were intercepted by German artillery fire; the tank corps that covered the infantry attack was deployed too far from the city, and as they moved in, they were bombarded by enemy planes. fry.
The attack lasted for two days, and Orlov's infantry corps and the tank corps that cooperated with the battle had suffered more than half of their casualties. Not to mention capturing the city, not even the German army's peripheral positions were cleared. What was originally thought to be a fruit-picking battle turned into a hot potato. Faced with this situation, the Army Headquarters held another military meeting to discuss how to capture the city.
At the beginning of the meeting, Rokossovsky asked Kazakov directly: "Comrade Artillery Commander, when our troops rush towards the city, they will be intercepted by German artillery fire. Do you have any way to counterattack them with artillery fire?" ?”
"Comrade Commander, this is very difficult." Kazakov said with some embarrassment: "The supplements given to us by our superiors were very few and came very slowly. We simply did not have enough artillery shells to counterattack the German artillery positions. "
"Where is the Minister of Logistics?" Lobachev heard this and immediately interrupted and asked: "What did they do? Why didn't they send the artillery shells to the front line in time? Don't they know that we are launching an attack?"
"Comrade Military Commissar, you misunderstood. This matter has nothing to do with the logistics department." Seeing that Lobachev wanted to vent his anger on the logistics director of the group army, Malinin quickly interrupted and explained: "Yesterday, the troops commanded by Marshal Timoshenko were in Kazakhstan. In the direction of Erkov, an offensive campaign was launched against the German army. For a long time in the future, the supply focus of the base camp will be concentrated there. And even if we can obtain supplies, the quantity will be very limited, so we can only rely on ourselves. "
"The chief of staff is right." After Malinin finished speaking, Rokossovsky immediately continued: "The Kharkov battle is the top priority in the near future, so it is not only weapons and ammunition, but also soldiers, supplies and A large number of air forces have been mobilized by the base camp in this direction. We must be prepared to make careful calculations and rationally use the resources we have to complete this offensive mission."
"But Orlov's infantry army has suffered heavy casualties after two days of offensive. And we don't have many artillery shells left." Kazakov waited for Rokossovsky to finish. Immediately remind him: "It needs to be replenished before attacking again."
"The Chief of Staff and I have just said that the base camp's attention is now focused on the direction of Kharkov. Before the end of this offensive campaign commanded by Marshal Timoshenko, we will basically not get any supplements. , everything depends on you to figure it out."
"But what can I do, Comrade Commander?" Kazakov said in despair: "If there is a problem with the artillery, my artillerymen can repair it themselves. But if the shells are gone, I really don't have any." Method."
Seeing his old friend so worried, Rokossovsky took out a cigarette from the cigarette case and handed it to him, saying to him: "General Kazakov, you came to work with me in the 16th Army last year. Bar."
Kazakov took the cigarette from Rokossovsky's hand, held it in his mouth, nodded, and agreed confusedly: "Yes, I was sent to the 16th Army with you last year. "
"Since you came with me," Rokossovsky continued after lighting a match to light a cigarette for the other party, "then you should remember that when many commanders and soldiers rushed out of the enemy's encirclement, They were all using their bare hands, so how did they get their weapons and ammunition?"
Rokossovsky's words reminded Kazakov, and he widened his eyes and said: "Comrade Commander, do you mean that there may be a hidden ammunition depot of our army in the nearby forest?"
"This possibility cannot be ruled out." Rokossovsky nodded and said, "But whether you can find the ammunition depot depends entirely on your luck. After all, you can't find the person who handled it at that time."
Hearing what Rokossovsky said, Kazakov could no longer sit still. He put out the cigarette he had just taken two puffs on, stood up and said to Rokossovsky: "Comrade Commander, allow me to Leave? I want to send people to the forest to find the ammunition depot now."
"Wait a minute, General Kazakov, don't be anxious." Rokossovsky did not agree to Kazakov's request. Instead, he motioned for him to sit down first: "Let's talk about the attack on Zizdra first. OK."
"What else can we talk about?" Kazakov asked with some confusion: "If the artillery does not receive enough ammunition, it will not be able to provide them with the necessary artillery preparations when the infantry corps attacks."
"Comrade commanders," Rokossovsky did not answer his words, but said to the other group army leaders: "Orlov's infantry army's attack on Zizdra has lasted for two days. But unfortunately, they did not make any progress, but suffered heavy casualties. Therefore, I recommend that the siege force be adjusted immediately and that the 31st Guards Division complete this glorious task."
"What, let the 31st Guards Division complete this task?" Rokossovsky's words startled Lobachev, and he asked in a panic: "We can't take Zizdra as a single army. , can he do it as a division?"
Hearing that Rokossovsky planned to let the 31st Guards Division take over the task of attacking Zizdra, Malinin's eyes suddenly lit up and he quickly continued: "I agree with the opinion of Comrade Commander, the 31st Guards Division will take over the task of attacking Zizdra. Attacking Zizdra with a division may be the best option at the moment.”
Kazakov did not comment on Malinin's statement. After all, it was he who proposed that the infantry corps be responsible for the main offensive mission. Orel, who chose to abstain last time, agreed simply: "I agree with the commander and chief of staff's opinion that the 31st Guards Division will replace Orlov's infantry corps."
Although Rokossovsky, Malinin and Orel all proposed that the 31st Guards Division be responsible for attacking Zizdra, Military Commissioner Lobachev still insisted on his opinion: "For the 31st Guards Division, I am very satisfied with the recent performance of the division. However, the acting division commander Major Sokov was only a battalion commander before. After all, I feel uneasy when he is responsible for such an attack."
In response to Lobachev's question, Orel argued: "Comrade Military Commissar, even though Major Sokov was only a battalion commander before, judging from the recent series of outstanding performances of the division, his ability is in line with his The duties are commensurate. If their division attacks Zizdra, the chances of liberating the city will be greatly improved."
While the Army Group Headquarters was discussing whether the 31st Guards Division should take over from the Infantry Corps to complete the task of attacking Zizdra City, at the division headquarters of the 31st Guards Division, Sokov was also convening three The head of the group has a meeting. Lieutenant Colonel Ajik, the newly transferred leader of the 1139th Regiment, said angrily at the beginning of the meeting: "Comrade division commander, tell me, what do your superiors think about it? The forward of our division is only five kilometers away from the city of Zizdra. , but the task of attacking the city was handed over to General Orlov's infantry army. You know, although their vanguard is not far from the city, the main force is still twenty or thirty kilometers away, waiting for them to reach the starting position of the attack At that time, the enemy had used this time to strengthen the city's defenses."
"An infantry corps plus a tank corps." Bindasov waited for Ajik to finish, then snorted coldly, and then said: "We launched two consecutive attacks on Zizdra, but neither of them succeeded. This is not Know how they direct.”
Pavel was much more cautious. After Bindasov and Ajik finished speaking, he glanced at Sokov secretly. Seeing that the expression on his face had not changed, he said cautiously: " Comrade Division Commander, according to reconnaissance, except for a few of the enemies on our front who were on alert in their positions, the rest have withdrawn to Zizdra. As a result, I am afraid that General Orlov will be unable to capture Zizdra if he wants to capture it. It’s even more difficult.”
While the three leaders spoke, Sokov remained silent. After the three people finished speaking, he said: "Comrade leaders, I called you here today to discuss the reasons for the failure of Orlov's army's attack. What we have to consider is: the attack they took Is the method right? What should we do if our division is assigned the task of attacking Zizdra? The defeat of Orlov's army has proved that a simple strong attack is not advisable. Faced with this situation, we should adopt What kind of offensive tactics?”
Sokov's series of questions left the three group leaders speechless. He waited for a while, and when no one expressed his opinion, he pointed at Bindasov and said, "Comrade Colonel, your regiment is closest to Zizdra. If your superiors order your regiment to capture the city, what are you going to do?"
Bindasov raised his hand and scratched the back of his head, and said with some embarrassment: "Comrade Division Commander, I think we should increase the density of artillery strikes and destroy all the enemy's fortifications. That way, when the troops launch a charge, they can easily Seize the enemy's position."
"Comrade Colonel, don't you know that the artillery unit of the group army is currently in a state of insufficient ammunition?" Sokov looked at Bindasov and said with some laughter and tears: "Even if our army's artillery fire destroyed the German army's outer positions, but When our troops enter the city and engage in street fighting with the enemy, how are you going to fight?"
"Before the attack, I will ask political workers to go to each company to do propaganda and agitation work, calling on the commanders and soldiers to perform meritorious service in the battle." Bindasov said hesitantly: "As long as the morale of the troops is improved, I believe that the commanders and soldiers will They will perform very bravely in battle, even if they face the enemy's gunfire, they will bravely rush forward..."
"Comrade Colonel, you can't just rely on fighting and rushing." Sokov didn't wait for Bindasov to finish speaking, raised his hand to interrupt what he was saying, pointed to his temple, and said: "A war requires more than just fighting. Relying on bravery, you also need to rely on brains. As a commander, you must know how to use tactics reasonably. Whoever applies tactics correctly on the battlefield will be the final winner."
Potugin, who had not finished speaking, waited for Sokov to finish speaking, and then said: "Comrade commanders, I believe you are very familiar with some of the past battles of the division commander. Whether it is defending the Istria Reservoir or During the liberation of Maklaki Town, the troops commanded by the division commander at that time were able to achieve victory by rationally using various tactics on the battlefield, thereby achieving the greatest victory with minimal casualties."
"Comrade division commander," Pavel asked cautiously: "If the superiors give our division the task of attacking Zizdra City, how are you going to complete this task?"
Although Sokov just said it eloquently, in his heart, he also hoped that the artillery preparation time before the attack would be as long as possible, so that more German fortifications could be destroyed and the resistance of the troops during the attack would be reduced. But now it seems that this idea of my is obviously impossible to realize. Therefore, reasonable tactics must be used to attack. But he had no idea what tactics to use.
While he was silent, the phone on the table rang. Potukin picked up the receiver and listened for a while, then handed it to Sokov and said to him: "Comrade division commander, this is a call from the headquarters."
Sokov quickly took the phone, put it to his ear and said, "I am Major Sokov."
"Major Sokov." Malinin's voice came from the receiver: "You come to the group army headquarters immediately. Comrade Commander has an important task to assign to you."
"Understood, Comrade Chief of Staff. I'll be there right away!" After Sokov put down the phone, he looked around at his subordinates standing at the table and said to them: "The Chief of Staff asked me to go to the Army Headquarters immediately, probably. It has something to do with capturing the city of Zizdra. Don’t rush back to your respective regiments for the time being. Just stay here and discuss what tactics should be used to attack the city." After saying that, Sokov walked to the wall, took off his clothes and hung them on it. He put a helmet on his head and strode out of the division headquarters.
When Sokov walked into the army headquarters, he saw the army chief sitting at the table. He couldn't help but be surprised: Why are there so many people here? Could it be that before I came, they were holding an important military meeting.
Seeing Sokov walking in, Malinin immediately stood up and said with a smile: "Major Sokov, you came very quickly." Then he pointed to the empty seat next to him and said, "Sit down first!"
Although Malinin asked him to sit down, Sokov still raised his hand and saluted the leaders present before sitting down in the empty seat next to Malinin.
"Major Sokov," Rokossovsky stared at Sokov and said with a straight face, "I called you here today because there is an important task for your division to complete."
