The German rapid column advanced rapidly toward the Red Army Village along the northwest road. When they entered the ambush circle of the 125th Regiment, they were immediately attacked from both sides of the road. Faced with rocket launchers that were ahead of their time, German tanks and armored vehicles unfortunately became targets.
The tank soldiers who escaped from the tanks became the target of sharpshooters. As for the infantrymen sitting in the armored vehicles, most of them survived after the armored vehicles were destroyed. They immediately launched an attack on the anti-tank groups ambushing on both sides. Facing the large number of German infantry, several anti-tank groups were quickly annihilated.
After Sidorin learned about the battle on the front line by phone, he reported to Sokov: "Comrade division commander, the German rapid column has entered the ambush circle of the 125th Regiment, and the battle is ongoing."
"What kind of results have been achieved?" Vitkov, who was sitting next to Sokov, asked impatiently: "Have you dealt a heavy blow to the enemy's fast column?"
"It went very well at first," Sidorin replied: "Since the German fast column marched for two kilometers, we attacked only the first half of the march. The enemy discovered that we had a large number of anti-tank weapons. , the soldiers on the armored vehicles behind all got off their vehicles to fight. Some of our anti-tank groups were wiped out by the enemy."
"What, an anti-tank group was wiped out by the enemy?" Upon hearing the news, Vitkov couldn't help but frown. He looked at Sokov and asked: "Comrade Commander, if the enemy captures our rocket launcher, But what should we do? With their production capacity, they can produce a large number of imitations of such weapons within a month or two. In this case, our advantage in anti-tank will be completely lost."
"No way, Comrade Colonel." Sokov said with a wry smile: "The only way to prevent our new weapons from being captured by the Germans is not to use them at all. As long as the new weapons are not used on the battlefield, even if the enemy wants to capture them , and there is no place to seize it.”
"Colonel Sidorin," Sokov felt that it was really inconvenient for the division headquarters and the cluster headquarters to be together. Some called him division commander, and some called him commander. It was confusing to him, let alone others. . Even when giving an order, he had to call out the other party's name: "Call Colonel Yershakov and order him to immediately put Major Shamrih's third battalion into battle. I believe that with the combat effectiveness of the sailors, soon This enemy can be defeated.”
Shamrih's third battalion did not participate in the ambush, but stayed behind as a reserve for the entire regiment. Listening to the gunfire from the front, his comrades and the enemy were fighting fiercely, but he was still on standby in the simple fortification. The commanders and soldiers, mainly sailors, seemed extremely agitated.
But after hearing Yershakov's order to attack, the commanders and fighters of the third battalion immediately cheered. They followed the road and launched an attack on the enemy who was still fighting fiercely with their comrades in the distance. They used the destroyed tanks and armored vehicles on the road to charge while dropping bombs and shooting, and moved step by step closer to where the enemies gathered.
Although there were still a lot of enemies in the distance, they could see a group of Soviet troops rushing towards where they were. They initially wanted to find a suitable place to block the attack, but found that they were surrounded by open areas and could not rely on fortifications for defense. He couldn't help but become panicked.
The anti-tank fighters hiding in the snow on both sides of the road felt somewhat powerless when they were attacked by the German infantry. But at this moment, seeing the commanders and fighters of the third battalion rushing forward, morale immediately rose. When the forces were united and the attack continued, the anti-tank crews became the main force in clearing obstacles.
When they saw German soldiers hiding in tanks or armored vehicles and firing machine guns at the charging troops, they used rocket launchers to destroy the German tanks or armored vehicles and clear the way for the infantry. When the enemies behind saw the large Soviet troops coming up, they did not dare to fight anymore. They turned around and fled towards the armored vehicles behind them. They fled in the direction they came from last time.
Hearing that the Germans had retreated, Sokov quickly ordered his troops to stop the pursuit. Now that the large forces have not arrived, the Red Army Village is basically an empty city. If the enemy emerges from other directions, the city may be lost. The 125th Regiment, which was advancing alone, was also in danger of being cut off.
While waiting for the large force to be brought in, Vitkov pointed to the map and said to Sokov: "Comrade Commander, look, if the troops of the Southern Group Army can move north, the troops of the 21st Army will also move west. Then we can form a huge defensive position with Donetsk - the Red Army village in the center."
"It's a good idea, but the Germans will definitely not allow this situation to happen." Sokov analyzed to Vitkov: "Why did General Vatutin's Southwest Front Army be defeated in just ten days? Was the German army defeated? In addition to their lack of supplies, another important factor was that the German army regrouped a large number of troops and launched an offensive against the weak parts of our army.
If we really follow what you said and gather the Southern Front Army and the 21st Group Army in the existing area, then it will definitely become a thorn in the side of the German army, and they will definitely try every means to eliminate us. But if we only control the Donetsk-Red Army Village line, it will give the Germans the illusion that we only have the ability to control the existing area, so they will shift their attention to other directions. "
"If the enemy really turns their attention in other directions, once they destroy our friendly forces, won't I also become dangerous?"
While the two were analyzing the occupation, Sidorin, Anisimov and others sat aside and listened quietly, and no one expressed their opinions. Hearing the phone ringing, Sidorin picked up the phone and put it to his ear: "I am Colonel Sidorin, where are you?"
After listening for a while, Sidorin's face showed joy. He covered the microphone with his hand and reported to Sokov: "Comrade division commander, Major Tenev, commander of the security battalion, reported that the personnel they sent to search the nearby forest, Some scattered teams were found. According to these commanders and fighters, they have been trying to find a way back to our defense lines."
"how many people?"
Sidorin quickly moved his hand from the microphone and asked: "Comrade Major, how many people have your subordinates taken in?"
"Comrade Commander," Sidorin quickly gave Sokov an approximate figure: "About six hundred people."
"Six hundred people." Sokov thought for a while and said to Sidorin: "During the battle to capture the city, the 1st Battalion of the 125th Regiment suffered relatively heavy casualties, so let's replenish all of these soldiers for them. By the way, I’m asking Major Tenev how many of these officers and soldiers are wounded so that I can arrange for health workers to bandage and treat them.”
When Sidorin called, Sokov specifically added: "For those who do not want to be incorporated into the army, bring them all to the division headquarters and let me talk to them personally."
The problems Sokov was worried about at that time did not happen. Among the detained commanders and fighters, there were several school-level officers. When they heard that they had been incorporated into the first battalion as soldiers, they were not upset at all. On the contrary, they were very cooperative.
Sokov found it strange and sent someone to inquire about it. These commanders and fighters all came from the Popov Rapid Group. They had several tank corps and many infantry divisions. They fought here for a long time. Not only did they fail to capture Donetsk and the Red Army Village, on the contrary, they were also defeated by the Germans. Beaten to pieces.
Now the troops of the 41st Guards Division easily captured the city with only one regiment. People of any era respect the strong. Since the troops of the 41st Guards Division can easily defeat the Germans, it is simply an honor for me to be included in this unit.
After the German army retreated and the lost troops were replenished to a certain extent, the 125th Regiment withdrew to its original defensive position and began to repair the fortifications.
Some newly recruited officers complained a little when they heard that they were asked to dig fortifications by themselves. But when they saw the regiment leader Yershakov personally holding a shovel and digging a trench, they immediately shut up obediently, picked up the tools, and started building fortifications.
At dawn, the two division commanders Sivakov and Gorishny came to Sokov's headquarters. After saluting him and Vitkov, they reported: "Comrade Commander, Comrade Chief of Staff, 71st Guards ( 75) The division has arrived with orders, please give instructions!”
After Sokov stepped forward to shake hands with the two men, he said to them sincerely: "Comrade division commanders, I know that after a long journey, the commanders and soldiers are very tired. But it is not time to let them rest yet, the enemy is working hard day and night. They rushed towards us at all times, trying to recapture the positions recovered by our army in the shortest possible time.
Therefore, after the two of you return to your respective units, you must immediately mobilize everyone, overcome fatigue, and seize the time to build fortifications. This way, when the enemy comes back, you will have fortifications that you can rely on. "
"Understood, Comrade Commander." The two division commanders replied in unison: "We will return to the troops immediately and urge the soldiers to repair the fortifications to resist the enemy's attack."
By noon, Colonel Bely arrived with his tank brigade.
Seeing Bely's appearance, Sokov was really overjoyed. He stepped forward to hold the opponent's hand and said excitedly: "Colonel Bely, you came at the right time. We now have enough infantry in the city, but we just lack artillery and artillery." Tank soldiers, if the enemy uses armored troops to launch an assault, we really can't stop them. With your coming, we immediately have confidence."
"Hello, colonel! Nice to see you." Vitkov held Belly's hand and asked with concern: "How is it? Can your tank be put into battle?"
"The roads leading here were basically destroyed by the Germans, which caused us to move very slowly." Bely replied: "There are about twenty tanks that can be put into battle now. The remaining tanks have some malfunctions. It needs to be overhauled before it can be put into battle."
"Twenty tanks would be good." Sokov knew in his heart that Colonel Bely's tank brigade is equipped with the best T-34 tanks today. Even if it encounters a Tiger, there is no need to worry about falling behind. "This way, our soldiers don't have to risk their lives to deal with German tanks."
"Misha, where do you think the Germans will emerge from?" Bely asked: "As long as we know where the enemy may appear, we can cooperate with the infantry in that direction."
"There is a highway in the west and northwest of the city, which can enter the city from the outside." Sokov said to Bely: "Yesterday before dark, the 125th Regiment ambushed a fast German column on the northwest highway and Successfully repulsed them, adding valuable time to our defense.
If the German army wants to attack the city again, the only way they can choose is to enter the city from the due west, where we can wait for their arrival! "
"Well, what you said makes sense, Misha!" Bely waited for Sokov to finish and said approvingly: "I think the road to the northwest must be filled with the wreckage of destroyed tanks and armored vehicles. Germany Human armored vehicles may not be able to pass, so the west will be their only road."
After assigning the task, Bely suddenly put a hand on Sokov's shoulder, looked at him and said: "Misha, can we find a quiet place to have a good talk?"
Fortunately, in cities during the war years, there was never a shortage of vacant houses. Soon, the two found a place to sit down in a roofless, half-collapsed room. After smoking a cigarette silently with each other, Bely said: "Misha, I just saw Asiya and Ada. , seems to be heading west of the city. How could you put the two of them in danger? "
Bely's words reminded Sokov that during this period, he was busy directing operations and did not care enough about Asiya and Ada. They must have taken the initiative to go to the front to treat the wounded out of boredom.
"Samoilov," Sokov was very anxious when he learned that Asiya and Ada were in danger. If Asya is in danger, he will feel distressed; but once Ada is in danger, he will have no way to explain to Rokossovsky, so he decided to find a way to keep the two of them in a safe place.
After he separated from Bely, he returned to the headquarters and ordered his most trusted guard platoon leader: "Samoilov, you immediately bring a few people to bring back Asya and Ada."
Samoylov, who followed Sokov all over the world, naturally understood that the two people his division commander cared about most were Asiya and Ada. He did not dare to neglect them, quickly raised his hand in salute, turned around and walked out of the headquarters.
Looking at Samoilov's back, Sokov secretly murmured in his heart: Should he issue a special order to Asiya and Ada so that they must not go to the front line to treat the wounded at any time? After all, the original health team has now been upgraded to a field hospital. Not only do health workers need to be on the frontline to treat the wounded, but someone is also needed to treat the wounded in the hospital.
