The German army's two consecutive attacks on Luhansk ended in failure, and the news quickly reached Manstein's ears.
"What on earth is going on? How could our attack on Luhansk fail?" After hearing the news, Manstein pounded the table and became furious: "You know, the troops participating in the attack, although they are just ordinary Wehrmacht, not the elite SS. But even against the Russians who outnumbered them, they were still sure of victory."
"Your Excellency, Marshal," the chief of staff of the group army carefully reported to Manstein: "According to our reconnaissance, the troops currently stationed in Luhanskri are the Russian 41st Guards Division..."
"What's so great about the Guards Division? A few days ago, our Cavalry Division easily defeated one of their Guards armies. It can defeat an army, but wouldn't it be easier to defeat a division?... Wait, "When Manstein said this, he realized that he heard a number that gave him a headache: "Chief of Staff, what is the number of the Russian Guards Division you just mentioned?"
"The 41st Guards Division, Your Excellency Marshal." After answering Manstein's question, the Chief of Staff added: "The commander of this division is Colonel Sokov, and it was he who led the men to capture Paulus."
"It turns out it's him." When he learned that the troops stationed in Luhanskri were actually the 41st Guards Division commanded by Sokov, Manstein's eyebrows knitted into a knot: "This troops is not fighting in Ma Ma." Yevgan, when were you transferred to Luhansk? Why didn’t I get the report?”
"Your Excellency, Commander," the Chief of Staff replied with a wry smile: "I think the reason why we didn't know that this force was stationed in Luhansk is that when they entered the city, the situation here happened to be bad, so we didn't have any extra energy. To understand the new trends of the Russians.”
"To which Russian front does this division belong?"
"According to the information we have, this Guards Division still belongs to Chuikov's 62nd Army and is subordinate to Rokossovsky's Don Front."
"Hell, this is really a hell." After listening to the chief of staff's report, Manstein smiled instead of being angry: "If I remember correctly, Luhansk should belong to the defense area of Vatutin's Southwest Front Army, how could Dunton be allowed to do so? Where are the troops stationed on the River Front?"
"Perhaps the Russians noticed our intentions, so they sent their elite troops to Luhansk." The chief of staff analyzed to Manstein: "To prevent our army from cutting off their retreat."
"How could the Russians be aware of our intentions." Regarding the chief of staff's analysis, Manstein said disdainfully: "If they were aware of our intentions, the Russians would not have been so reckless in their attack. You didn't see Watu Beijing's troops are already thousands of kilometers away from their logistics supply base. If it weren't for the long distance and the destruction of roads and bridges along the way, which prevented sufficient supplies, I'm afraid we would have been driven to the other side of the Dnieper River. .”
"Marshal, what should we do next?" the chief of staff asked Manstein: "Do we need to send more troops to strengthen the offensive against Lugansk?"
Unexpectedly, after hearing this, Manstein waved his hand and said, "No need."
"Your Excellency, Marshal," the Chief of Staff saw that Manstein rejected his proposal and quickly reminded him: "If we cannot occupy Luhansk quickly, then we will not be able to cut off the Russians' retreat, and then they may escape from us. Escape from the encirclement."
"Just run away." Manstein said disapprovingly: "Our remaining troops can turn around and go north to continue attacking the Russians who occupied Kharkov and Belgorod and retake these places. "
Seeing that the chief of staff wanted to persuade him again, he continued: "Paulus's Sixth Army was attacking Stalingrad, and all the troops that encountered Sokov suffered heavy losses at his hands. Even if we increase our troops to attack at this moment, I am afraid that we will not be able to capture Luhansk in a short period of time, but will instead disperse our forces. And the Russians deployed Sokov's troops in Luhansk, maybe they want to disperse our forces. The strength of the troops will enable those Russians who may be trapped by our troops to escape from the encirclement calmly."
"But, Marshal, even if we don't send anyone to attack Luhansk, no one can guarantee that when we encircle and annihilate the Russian Southwest Front, the 41st Guards Division will not stab us in the back."
"Chief of Staff, you are overthinking." Regarding the Chief of Staff's concerns, Manstein said confidently: "I am sure that during our attack on the Southwest Front, Sokov's troops will never appear in our rear. "
Seeing that Manstein was so confident, the chief of staff couldn't help but curiously asked: "Marshal, why is this?"
"After several months of fierce fighting, I believe that the 41st Guards Division must have added a lot of new soldiers. With the addition of these new soldiers, although the number of soldiers has increased, their combat effectiveness has inevitably been weakened. ." Manstein said with a smile: "Such a unit can do a defensive battle, but if it fights in the wild, it will be defeated by our armored forces within a few hours. Colonel Sokov is a smart man. You would never do such a stupid thing.
If I were in his position, I would probably choose to rely on the city for defense. And at the appropriate time, accommodate those defeated stragglers to enrich the city's defense strength. "
After listening to Manstein's analysis, the chief of staff gave him a thumbs up: "Marshal, your analysis is really reasonable. After hearing what you said, I feel much more at ease. What should we do next?"
"Deal with the Russian Sixth Army first." Manstein gritted his teeth and said: "More than twenty days ago, they annihilated our Sixth Army. Now it is our turn to take revenge. I must do it in the shortest possible time. Within a short period of time, kill the Russian Sixth Army.
After this group of Russians is eliminated, the next thing to deal with is Popov's rapid swarm that goes deep alone. I want to eliminate all these damn Russians and avoid the shame of the Stalingrad defeat. "
"Chief of Staff," Manstein ordered to his Chief of Staff: "Immediately order our troops to immediately launch a fierce attack on the Russian Sixth Army. We must completely annihilate this Russian Army within two days."
"Understood, Your Majesty Marshal." The Chief of Staff knew that the Soviet Sixth Army was now surrounded and it would not be difficult to eliminate them, so he replied loudly: "I immediately issued an order to the troops besieging the Russians. Let them wipe out this Russian army in the shortest possible time."
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