Not only ordinary German officers and soldiers did not expect to be attacked on Christmas Eve, but even Paulus did not expect it. After he received the report from the troops below, he couldn't help but be stunned.
After a long time, he looked at Schmidt and asked: "Chief of Staff, why did the Russians launch an attack on Christmas Eve? Don't they know that even during the war, there should be a truce on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day? After all, this is It’s the biggest festival.”
"Your Excellency, Commander," Schmidt said cautiously after waiting for Paulus to finish: "Christmas for the Russians is on January 7, which is two weeks later than ours. And many years ago, the Bolsheviks had canceled This is an important holiday. Therefore, it is entirely possible for them to attack our army on Christmas Eve."
"Damn it, damn it." After hearing what Schmidt said, Paulus cursed "Damn it" twice, and then ordered the other party: "Chief of Staff, immediately find out which part of the Russians attacked our position. Wait. At daybreak, immediately concentrate air force and artillery forces to retaliate against their positions."
Upon hearing Paulus's order, the muscles on Schmidt's face twitched violently twice. He said cautiously: "Your Excellency, Commander, there is no need to check. The area where the battle took place is at the Mamayev Hills." The Russians attacking our positions nearby must be Sokov's 41st Guards Division."
"It's damn Sokov again." Paulus was so angry that he smashed his fist on the table and said angrily: "According to our intelligence, didn't he go to Moscow? His troops were on the defensive some time ago. Why did you carry out a sneak attack on Christmas Eve?"
"Your Excellency, Commander, I have a bad feeling." Schmidt said cautiously: "Maybe Sokov has returned to Stalingrad."
"What, he returned to Stalingrad again?" Paulus' pupils shrank violently: "Chief of Staff, where did you get the information?"
"I didn't get any information." Schmidt replied: "I judged it based on the abnormal actions of the Russians. Think about it, they held their positions for almost a month. Take the initiative to launch even one active attack on us. But tonight, they launched an attack unexpectedly, and I think there is something wrong with this."
Schmidt's words made Paulus aware of the crisis. He quickly picked up the phone and called the head of the intelligence department. He said straight to the point: "General, according to various indications, damn Sokov has returned to Mars." Mayev Gang. You immediately send out capable personnel to find out whether Sokov has returned before dawn."
"Your Excellency, Commander." When the head of the intelligence department heard Paulus's order, he couldn't help but said in embarrassment: "Under the current circumstances, it is difficult for our scouts to approach the Russian positions..."
"I don't want to listen to your sophistry." Paulus ordered without explanation: "I want to get the exact information before dawn, otherwise you will lose your epaulettes."
Faced with Paulus' threat, the head of the Intelligence Department could only bite the bullet and replied: "Yes, Your Excellency Commander, I will find out before dawn whether Sokov has returned to Mamayev Heights."
After the head of the intelligence department put down the phone, he said to his adjutant: "What the hell, the commander asked me to find out whether the Russian Colonel Sokov has returned to Mamayev Heights before dawn. This is really an impossible task." Task."
"Your Excellency General," the adjutant said thoughtfully after hearing this: "Actually, there are many ways to find out whether Sokov has returned to Mamayev Heights."
When the general heard what his adjutant said, his eyes suddenly lit up and he saw a glimmer of hope. He quickly urged: "Hurry up and tell me what a good solution is."
"We can send people to sneak into the vicinity of Mamayev Heights and find ways to eavesdrop on their phones." The adjutant said confidently: "Through the phone, our scouts should be able to know whether Sokov has returned to Mamayev Heights. "
The German intelligence department sent scouts to the Mamayev Heights area to try to figure out what happened to Sokov when he returned to Mamayev Heights. Sokov was staying at his headquarters and personally calling the commanders of each regiment. Call to learn about their results. Since he did not know that the Germans had launched reconnaissance on him, he did not deliberately hide his identity during the call.
Two hours before dawn, the head of German intelligence appeared in Paulus's office. After saluting Paulus, he said proudly: "Your Excellency, Commander, I have obtained the information you want."
"The information I want?" Paulus, who was in a state of distress, did not react for a moment when he heard his subordinate's statement: "What information?"
"Your Excellency, Commander, according to my scout's report," the general said, "the Russian colonel has returned to Mamayev Heights."
"Russian Colonel?" Paulus was shocked: "Are you talking about Sokov?"
"Yes, it's him." The general nodded vigorously and said in a positive tone: "He has returned to Mamayev Heights."
"General," Schmidt asked on behalf of Paulus, "I would like to ask, how did you confirm that Sokov has returned to Mamayev Heights?"
"Your Excellency, Chief of Staff," the general replied respectfully to Schmidt's question: "The scouts I sent tapped the Russian communication lines. He found that the phone calls from the regiments to Mamayev Heights , all called the person who answered the phone 'division commander', so it was concluded that Sokov had returned to Mamayev Heights."
Although in Schmidt's heart, he had confirmed that Sokov had returned to Mamayev Heights. But he still had a sense of luck in his heart: "Just relying on a title can't explain anything. The Russians can make their deputy division commander a 'division commander'. General, the credibility of your report is too low." .”
"Your Excellency, Chief of Staff," faced Schmidt's question, the general of the Intelligence Department said with a somewhat uneasy expression: "My scouts have eavesdropped on the Russians' phone calls many times. They only use the name Sokov when they call him." The title of 'division commander' will be used, and the other title will be deputy division commander. I will never be mistaken about this."
Seeing that the general of the Intelligence Department was so sure, Schmidt felt that the matter was already a certainty, so he turned to Paulus and said: "Your Excellency, Commander, it seems that Sokov has really returned to Mamayev Heights. I'm afraid that next time I’m afraid the battle will be difficult to win.”
"It's easy to fight, but you have to fight." Paulus gritted his molar teeth and said: "If we don't knock down Sokov's arrogance, I'm afraid it will have an impact on our military morale and morale."
"So what should we do?" Schmidt asked.
"After dawn, the air force will be dispatched to carry out air strikes on Sokov's position." Paulus pointed at Schmid and said through gritted teeth: "But before that, we must concentrate our superior forces and put the Russians in safety." Take back all the positions we occupied at night."
When the intelligence general heard what Paulus said, he was stunned for a moment, and then said cautiously: "But, your Excellency, Commander, after completing the attack on our army, the Russians have all retreated to their own positions, one soldier at a time. None of them are left. All in all, those positions are still in the hands of our army."
"Hell, what on earth does this damn Sokov want to do?" Paulus said angrily: "Their troops took the initiative and launched attacks on many positions of our army. They could obviously reoccupy these positions, but they There’s not one, what’s going on?”
As Paulus's chief of staff, Schmidt's mind is quite useful. After thinking for a while, he understood the general reason. He quickly said to Paulus: "Your Excellency, Commander, I think I may understand what is going on."
"What's going on?" Paulus urged: "Chief of Staff, since you know the reason, tell me quickly."
"I think Sokov's troops quickly retreated to their original positions after carrying out a sneak attack on our army. I'm afraid it is still related to their limited strength." Schmidt said cautiously: "Their strength is limited. If they divide their troops again, If we defend, the overall defense force will be weakened. Once it is attacked by our army, the position that has just been occupied will be recaptured by our army. As for Sokov, he obviously does not want to see this happen. Therefore, we decisively ordered the troops to withdraw to their original positions after completing the sneak attack."
If Sokov were here now and heard Schmidt's words, he would definitely applaud him, because the situation he analyzed is roughly the same as the actual situation.
After listening to Schmidt's analysis, Paulus nodded in agreement: "Chief of Staff, you are right. The reason why Sokov did not dare to let his troops occupy those positions was because he was worried that dividing his troops for defense would cause The force becomes weak, and there is a danger of being defeated by each of us."
"After dawn, do we still need to dispatch the air force to bomb the defense area of the Russian 41st Guards Division?"
"That's for sure, Chief of Staff." The night attack carried out by Sokov successfully angered Paulus. He decided to wait for daybreak before carrying out retaliatory actions. The air attack on the defense area of the 41st Guards Division was just his plan. the first step. In the next battle, he will also concentrate superior artillery fire to plow the defense areas of Sokov's troops several times, and then send infantry to seize these positions.
"Your Excellency, Commander," Schmidt pointed to the map and said to Paulus: "The Russians control these positions in front, which is very conducive to the assault of tank troops. I recommend that both the 16th and 24th Armored Divisions be put into battle. So. With the current level of equipment of the Russians, it is basically impossible to block the assault of our tanks. I think our army is fully capable of returning the front to the state it was in at the beginning of November."
Returning to the state of early November means that the 41st Guards Division's defense area only has one place: Mamayev Hill. This situation was obviously what Paulus wanted to see. He nodded and said to Schmidt: "If we can return to the situation in early November, we can also have an explanation to Berlin."
The intelligence general knew very well that if the defense line was pushed back to Mamayev Hill, it would threaten the Soviet crossing at any time. As long as the ice on the river melts in the spring, artillery fire can be used to block the direction of the ferry as in previous months, making it impossible for the Russians to easily transport supplies into the city, or transport the wounded and residents to the other side.
"We are currently facing a shortage of fuel and ammunition for our tanks." Paulus still has a general understanding of the basic situation of the current troops: "If the attack fails to work, then in the following days, these will be exhausted. Without fuel and ammunition, tanks can only be parked on the battlefield for display. If they are discovered by Russian planes, they may become targets for bombing."
"Don't worry, Commander." Schmidt felt confident when he thought that the troops attacking the Sokov area would consist of two armored divisions and one infantry division. Although he admitted that Sokov is a very powerful person, no matter how powerful you are, as long as you have limited troops, you will pose more threats. He said confidently: "With so many troops, I believe Sokov will be defeated."
"It's getting late." Paulus looked at his watch and said to Schmidt: "Immediately call the three division commanders involved in the attack and let their troops prepare for combat. As soon as the air raid ends, To launch an attack on the Russian positions, we must push the front back to Mamayev Hill in the shortest possible time."
"Your Excellency, Commander," Schmidt said with a smile: "Our soldiers will definitely complete your mission and defeat all the Russians, including Sokov. As long as Sokov's troops are defeated, We will be able to occupy the Mamayev Hills and smoothly advance to the banks of the Volga River, reversing our current unfavorable situation."
"Also," Paulus urged Schmidt: "Send a telegram to Commander Weikes and tell him that the fuel and shells of our tanks have been basically exhausted, and ask him to inform Berlin and give him a message as soon as possible. We replenish it.”
"Your Excellency, Commander, will this be effective?" Schmidt asked cautiously: "You know, in order to supply our army of nearly 300,000 people, Marshal Goering has tried his best to send all the transport planes he can. We were sent out. Although the transport opportunities were attacked by Russian fighter planes from time to time, which cost a lot, our supplies were never interrupted."
"The supplies Goering gave us are not enough, far from enough." Paulus said with an earthy face: "With the weapons and ammunition in our hands, we simply cannot sustain the needs of a large-scale battle. In order to restore the troops To increase our combat effectiveness, we must be given more supplies.”
"Chief of Staff, maybe you are right." After Paulus said these words, he was silent for a long time before continuing: "We do need to obtain more supplies in order to survive better under the siege of the Russians. A long time."
