Sokov did not expect that his troops would inadvertently have as many as seven infantry divisions, one infantry brigade, one tank corps, two artillery divisions, and several directly subordinate tank brigades.
He said to Sameko: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I really didn't expect that unknowingly, the size of our army group has grown to seven infantry divisions, plus a number of troops. It is a good thing that the troops have grown, but it also brings us It’s an inconvenience.”
"Yes." Sameko agreed: "In the past, when there were five divisions, it might only take five or six minutes to issue an order. Now that there are so many troops, it will take at least half a minute for us to convey the order. Hour."
"It takes half an hour to convey a combat order, which is not acceptable." Sokov said: "You know, every minute is precious in a war, so it is easy to delay the fighter plane."
"Comrade Commander, you are right." Lunev interjected: "I heard that starting from this year, infantry corps-level units have appeared in many group armies, and each army has three or four divisions. . If the superiors give us the organization of two infantry corps, it will facilitate your command in future battles."
"Comrade Military Commissar, you are right, the superiors do have plans in this regard." Sokov said to the two men: "When I went to the front headquarters today, General Konev told me that it may be possible soon. Add corps-level structures to our army to facilitate our command."
"Then when can the infantry corps be added?" Sameko asked.
Although Sokov knew the date when the unit was renamed, he did not know when the infantry corps was restored within the organization of each group army. He could only shake his head and said: "I don't know."
After receiving Sokov's call, Fomenko and Khokhlov immediately rushed to the headquarters in the shortest possible time to accept the combat mission.
After shaking hands with the two men one by one, Sokov asked with concern: "How are you, two comrades, division commanders, can your troops continue to fight?"
"Of course we can continue to fight." When Fomenko thought about the thousands of commanders and fighters he had just added, the corners of his mouth could not help but curl up slightly: "You have just added so many experienced commanders and fighters to us, and they are fully capable of carrying out any combat mission. .”
"What about you, Colonel Khokhlov?"
"Comrade Commander!" Hearing Sokov ask himself, Colonel Khokhlov quickly stepped forward and replied with some excitement: "Since our division added a large number of new soldiers in the late stage of the Kursk Battle, you have been Let us serve as a reserve force, and no combat missions are assigned to us. A large number of experienced commanders and combatants were added to us in the past two days, which has greatly improved the combat effectiveness of our division, and we are also capable of completing any combat missions assigned by our superiors."
Seeing that the two division commanders were so confident, Sokov nodded with satisfaction, and then said: "Very good, since you are so confident, then I will assign you combat missions. Although our army liberated Kharkov, But there are still a large number of German troops in the west, southwest and south of the city. If we want to reach the Dnieper River smoothly, we must find a way to eliminate them."
Fomenko asked: "Comrade Commander, I wonder where our attack target is?"
"Merefa Fortress!"
"Merefar Fortress?!"
"Yes, Merefa Fortress." Sokov said to the two of them: "If you want to capture Merefa Fortress and the railway hub, you must first cross the Muza River and find a way to eliminate the enemies hiding on the steep river banks. and establish a landing field on the left bank.”
Knowing that the target of his attack was Merefa Fortress, Fomenko couldn't help but frowned: "Comrade Commander, the rivers in that area are not conducive to the deployment of mechanized troops. If we want to carry out a forced crossing, I'm afraid we won't be able to get artillery support." .”
"General Fomenko," Sokov comforted the other party: "You don't have to worry about the artillery, but when the cross-river operation begins, I will deploy the tank brigade and artillery by the river to directly provide you with artillery cover."
"Comrade Commander," as soon as Fomenko's problem was solved, Khokhlov raised his concerns: "Now that Colonel Yakov's hovercraft detachment has left, we can only use ordinary ships to carry out forced crossings. To pass through Mu To reach the river and climb the steep river bank, I am afraid that great sacrifices will be made.”
"Colonel Khokhlov, we have also taken your concerns into consideration." Samyko said: "In order to avoid unnecessary sacrifices, we have formulated two plans. One is to send troops to sneak across from the upper reaches of the Muza River, and the other is to After the illegal crossing failed, we launched a forced crossing operation from the front."
After Fomenko waited for Samyko to finish speaking, he asked cautiously: "Chief of Staff, which unit do you plan to send to smuggle people over, and which unit will launch a forced crossing operation from the front after the smuggling attempt fails?"
"General Fomenko," Samyko looked at Fomenko and said, "Colonel Khokhlov's 182nd Division, due to various reasons, is now at the bottom of the entire army in terms of combat effectiveness. If they are responsible for the forced crossing mission, they will definitely It was not suitable, so Comrade Commander thought that they could carry out the stowaway mission.
As for your 84th Division, its combat effectiveness is among the best in our group army. It is undoubtedly the most suitable for you to be responsible for the frontal crossing mission. Comrade Commander and I are relieved. "
Hearing Samyko's praise, Fomenko couldn't help but smile. He quickly expressed his stance to Samyko: "Don't worry, Comrade Chief of Staff, we will never betray the trust of you and Comrade Commander. Once the battle begins, we will We will cross the Muza River in the shortest possible time and rush towards Merefa Fortress so quickly that the enemy will not have time to react."
"General Fomenko, I'm glad to see you have such confidence, but you can't underestimate the enemy." Sokov said with a smile: "Although the Germans were driven away from Kharkov by us, to be fair, their Combat power should not be underestimated. If you think that the enemy is vulnerable because of this, you will suffer a big loss."
Samyko continued: "General Fomenko, I'm afraid it will be difficult for your superiors to provide you with enough ships, so you must prepare enough river crossing equipment within one day for use in the forced crossing."
Hearing what Samyko said, Fomenko couldn't help but have a headache. Since riding a hovercraft, he has despised all boats and feels that no matter how good a boat is, it cannot compare with a hovercraft. The hovercraft not only travels fast on the river, but also runs very slowly on flat ground. It is a pity that it has been transported back to Moscow, otherwise it would be of great use in the next battle.
"Comrade Chief of Staff," Fomenko asked Samyko with a grimace: "Where should I go to get ships?"
"The superiors will allocate part of it to us." Sameko replied: "But the quantity is far from meeting our river crossing needs, so you must find a way to get some river crossing equipment yourself. For example, door panels, coffins or logs, these are all It can be used as a river crossing equipment." Sokov did not expect that his troops would inadvertently have as many as seven infantry divisions, an infantry brigade, a tank corps, two artillery divisions, and several directly affiliated tank brigades.
He said to Sameko: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I really didn't expect that unknowingly, the size of our army group has grown to seven infantry divisions, plus a number of troops. It is a good thing that the troops have grown, but it also brings us It’s an inconvenience.”
"Yes." Sameko agreed: "In the past, when there were five divisions, it might only take five or six minutes to issue an order. Now that there are so many troops, it will take at least half a minute for us to convey the order. Hour."
"It takes half an hour to convey a combat order, which is not acceptable." Sokov said: "You know, every minute is precious in a war, so it is easy to delay the fighter plane."
"Comrade Commander, you are right." Lunev interjected: "I heard that starting from this year, infantry corps-level units have appeared in many group armies, and each army has three or four divisions. . If the superiors give us the organization of two infantry corps, it will facilitate your command in future battles."
"Comrade Military Commissar, you are right, the superiors do have plans in this regard." Sokov said to the two men: "When I went to the front headquarters today, General Konev told me that it may be possible soon. Add corps-level structures to our army to facilitate our command."
"Then when can the infantry corps be added?" Sameko asked.
Although Sokov knew the date when the unit was renamed, he did not know when the infantry corps was restored within the organization of each group army. He could only shake his head and said: "I don't know."
After receiving Sokov's call, Fomenko and Khokhlov immediately rushed to the headquarters in the shortest possible time to accept the combat mission.
After shaking hands with the two men one by one, Sokov asked with concern: "How are you, two comrades, division commanders, can your troops continue to fight?"
"Of course we can continue to fight." When Fomenko thought about the thousands of commanders and fighters he had just added, the corners of his mouth could not help but curl up slightly: "You have just added so many experienced commanders and fighters to us, and they are fully capable of carrying out any combat mission. .”
"What about you, Colonel Khokhlov?"
"Comrade Commander!" Hearing Sokov ask himself, Colonel Khokhlov quickly stepped forward and replied with some excitement: "Since our division added a large number of new soldiers in the late stage of the Kursk Battle, you have been Let us serve as a reserve force, and no combat missions are assigned to us. A large number of experienced commanders and combatants were added to us in the past two days, which has greatly improved the combat effectiveness of our division, and we are also capable of completing any combat missions assigned by our superiors."
Seeing that the two division commanders were so confident, Sokov nodded with satisfaction, and then said: "Very good, since you are so confident, then I will assign you combat missions. Although our army liberated Kharkov, But there are still a large number of German troops in the west, southwest and south of the city. If we want to reach the Dnieper River smoothly, we must find a way to eliminate them."
Fomenko asked: "Comrade Commander, I wonder where our attack target is?"
"Merefa Fortress!"
"Merefar Fortress?!"
"Yes, Merefa Fortress." Sokov said to the two of them: "If you want to capture Merefa Fortress and the railway hub, you must first cross the Muza River and find a way to eliminate the enemies hiding on the steep river banks. and establish a landing field on the left bank.”
Knowing that the target of his attack was Merefa Fortress, Fomenko couldn't help but frowned: "Comrade Commander, the rivers in that area are not conducive to the deployment of mechanized troops. If we want to carry out a forced crossing, I'm afraid we won't be able to get artillery support." .”
"General Fomenko," Sokov comforted the other party: "You don't have to worry about the artillery, but when the cross-river operation begins, I will deploy the tank brigade and artillery by the river to directly provide you with artillery cover."
"Comrade Commander," as soon as Fomenko's problem was solved, Khokhlov raised his concerns: "Now that Colonel Yakov's hovercraft detachment has left, we can only use ordinary ships to carry out forced crossings. To pass through Mu To reach the river and climb the steep river bank, I am afraid that great sacrifices will be made.”
"Colonel Khokhlov, we have also taken your concerns into consideration." Samyko said: "In order to avoid unnecessary sacrifices, we have formulated two plans. One is to send troops to sneak across from the upper reaches of the Muza River, and the other is to After the illegal crossing failed, we launched a forced crossing operation from the front."
After Fomenko waited for Samyko to finish speaking, he asked cautiously: "Chief of Staff, which unit do you plan to send to smuggle people over, and which unit will launch a forced crossing operation from the front after the smuggling attempt fails?"
"General Fomenko," Samyko looked at Fomenko and said, "Colonel Khokhlov's 182nd Division, due to various reasons, is now at the bottom of the entire army in terms of combat effectiveness. If they are responsible for the forced crossing mission, they will definitely It was not suitable, so Comrade Commander thought that they could carry out the stowaway mission.
As for your 84th Division, its combat effectiveness is among the best in our group army. It is undoubtedly the most suitable for you to be responsible for the frontal crossing mission. Comrade Commander and I are relieved. "
Hearing Samyko's praise, Fomenko couldn't help but smile. He quickly expressed his stance to Samyko: "Don't worry, Comrade Chief of Staff, we will never betray the trust of you and Comrade Commander. Once the battle begins, we will We will cross the Muza River in the shortest possible time and rush towards Merefa Fortress so quickly that the enemy will not have time to react."
"General Fomenko, I'm glad to see you have such confidence, but you can't underestimate the enemy." Sokov said with a smile: "Although the Germans were driven away from Kharkov by us, to be fair, their Combat power should not be underestimated. If you think that the enemy is vulnerable because of this, you will suffer a big loss."
Samyko continued: "General Fomenko, I'm afraid it will be difficult for your superiors to provide you with enough ships, so you must prepare enough river crossing equipment within one day for use in the forced crossing."
Hearing what Samyko said, Fomenko couldn't help but have a headache. Since riding a hovercraft, he has despised all boats and feels that no matter how good a boat is, it cannot compare with a hovercraft. The hovercraft not only travels fast on the river, but also runs very slowly on flat ground. It is a pity that it has been transported back to Moscow, otherwise it would be of great use in the next battle.
"Comrade Chief of Staff," Fomenko asked Samyko with a grimace: "Where should I go to get ships?"
"The superiors will allocate part of it to us." Sameko replied: "But the quantity is far from meeting our river crossing needs, so you must find a way to get some river crossing equipment yourself. For example, door panels, coffins or logs, these are all It can be used as a river crossing equipment.”
