As time went by, the situation of the Southwest Front Army became more and more serious. Even Vatutin, who had always been stubborn, discovered that the reason why he was able to occupy Zaporozhye was entirely a German conspiracy. Because only by placing their headquarters in a position where their own troops can attack can they attract more troops into the trap that the enemy has already laid.
Realizing that he had been trapped, Vatutin walked back and forth in the headquarters like an ant on a hot pot with his hands behind his back. Chief of Staff Major General Bogin said cautiously: "Comrade Commander, it is obvious that the Germans set a huge trap in the direction of the Dnieper River, and then used their headquarters as bait to lure our troops into their trap. "
"What should we do now?" Vatutin stopped and asked his chief of staff with some confusion: "Now the Sixth Army and Popov's rapid group have been surrounded by the German army, and what's more terrible is, Their supply lines have also been cut off by the German army. If the situation continues like this, they may be completely annihilated by the enemy."
"Comrade Commander, there is still a possibility of saving the situation." Bogin reminded Vatutin: "Order Popov to quickly retreat towards the Red Army Village, strive to break through the German encirclement, rush to Luhansk, and meet Sokov The colonel's combat groups have joined forces. I believe that as long as the two armies join forces, the enemy will be unable to do anything to them."
"But Popov's troops are still more than two hundred kilometers away from Luhansk." Vatutin asked with a wry smile: "Chief of Staff, do you think that with their current strength, they can fight without stopping? March 200 kilometers continuously to reach Luhansk?"
Seeing that Vatutin rejected his first proposal, Major General Bojin was not discouraged and continued: "If they cannot move closer to Lugansk, then they can only turn around and go north, break through the enemy's siege from the Izyum area, and rush Come and join the main force of the front army."
"But this direction is not suitable for armored vehicles." But after seeing the second route proposed by Bogin, Vatutin shook his head again and said: "If Popov is ordered to quickly cluster from this direction, To break through, I'm worried that in the end, our army will have to abandon a large number of tanks on the way back. I absolutely cannot tolerate throwing technical equipment to the enemy."
Seeing that both of his plans were rejected by Vatutin, Major General Bojin was completely disappointed. He knew that the two plans he proposed could help Popov quickly get out of the predicament, and any other method would only lead to a dead end. He sighed softly and asked cautiously: "Comrade Commander, what should we do?"
"Order Popov to switch to defense on the spot and rely on fortifications for defense." Vatutin stared at the map and said: "As long as he can hold on for a week, I can mobilize enough troops to rescue him from the encirclement."
"Comrade Commander, have you ever considered whether General Popov and his supplies can still last for another week?" Major General Bogin saw that Vatutin had given the wrong order and reminded him again: "In his hands There are not many tanks left, and their ammunition and fuel are almost exhausted. Facing the enemy's strong attack, they simply cannot complete the task of holding on for a week. In my opinion, let them choose to break out as soon as possible. If that doesn't work, We can only throw away those tanks that have exhausted their fuel and ammunition, and break out of the enemy's encirclement with light equipment."
"Comrade Chief of Staff, I just said that throwing technical equipment to the enemy is a criminal act." Vatutin said in a stern tone: "Even if our soldiers sacrifice their lives, they will find ways to keep these technical equipment." of."
…………
Vatutin and Chief of Staff Major General Bogin were arguing in the headquarters, while Popov on the battlefield already felt powerless in the face of the German onslaught. He asked his chief of staff with a grimace: "Chief of Staff, tell me, what should we do next? Should we continue to hold on or break through?"
"Comrade Commander," the Chief of Staff saw that Popov wanted to break out and quickly reminded him: "We cannot break out at all before we get the order to retreat from our superiors. Otherwise, if our superiors hold us accountable in the future, you and I will not be able to shoulder the responsibility." .”
"But judging from the current situation, if we continue to stick here, the entire army will be destroyed." Popov grabbed his hair with both hands and said painfully: "What should I do?"
This seemingly simple question stumped the chief of staff. Breaking out is obviously unrealistic. No one can bear the consequences of leaving the existing position without receiving orders from superiors. It seems impossible to hold on. With the supply line cut off by the Germans, the troops will soon face the situation of running out of ammunition and food.
It's really funny when you think about it. Paulus's Sixth Army had just been annihilated in early February, but less than a month later, his own troops were facing the same situation as Paulus was at that time. Fight, but you can't fight; withdraw, but you can't retreat. It's really hard to make a choice.
Just when the two of them were at a loss what to do, the silent political commissar sitting next to him suddenly said: "By the way, Comrade Commander. General Rokossovsky told you last time that once you are in danger, you can immediately Get in touch with the 41st Guards Division stationed in Luhansk and they will provide us with assistance."
"But they only have one division, so what role can they play in the face of the large German army?"
"Comrade Commander, I heard that this division suffered the fewest casualties in the battle to defend Stalingrad, but destroyed the most enemies." The political commissar continued: "I think the reason why the superiors deployed them in Lugan Sk, I’m afraid we just saw how they performed in Stalingrad. Maybe if we want to get out of trouble, we can only turn to him for help.”
"Chief of Staff," the political commissar's words gave Popov a glimmer of hope. He quickly asked the Chief of Staff: "Do you have Colonel Sokov's contact information?"
"Although we don't have a phone line to them here," the chief of staff replied, "but we can establish contact with them by sending a message."
"Then contact them immediately and see how they reply." Popov said to the chief of staff: "Their reply will allow me to decide whether to hold on or break out."
The chief of staff took the order and sent a telegram to the headquarters of the 41st Guards Division. While waiting for a reply, Popov was as restless as a primary school student waiting for the teacher to announce his results. He kept thinking: "How will Colonel Sokov reply to me after receiving my telegram?"
After waiting for more than ten minutes, the operator sitting not far away began to collect reports, which made Popov feel even more nervous. After finally waiting for the communications staff to finish translating the message, he couldn't wait to ask: "How is it? What did Colonel Sokov say?"
After taking the telegram and looking at it for a few times, the chief of staff immediately showed joy on his face: "Comrade Commander, good news. Now our army has assembled a combat group commanded by Colonel Sokov in Luhansk, with a total of four infantrymen. division, three tank brigades, one artillery and two rocket launcher battalions. Colonel Sokov asked us to break out immediately and decisively in the direction of Lugansk, and he will send troops to meet us."
Popov took the telegram sent by Sokov and pondered for a long time, and finally made up his mind. He gritted his molars and said: "Order the troops to prepare for a breakout. As soon as it gets dark, we will attack Lu Breakout in the direction of Gansk."
"But Comrade Commander, we did not receive an order from our superiors to retreat." The chief of staff reminded Popov: "If we retreat without authorization, I am afraid our superiors will deal with us severely."
"If we continue to stand here, I'm afraid our superiors won't even have a chance to deal with us, and our entire army will be destroyed." Popov said firmly: "I can't just watch our troops be ruined here. Chief of Staff , order the troops to prepare for a breakout. If my superiors hold me responsible in the future, I will bear the responsibility alone."
