"Comrade Comrade Political Commissar," Fomenko said quietly before Manokhin could speak: "You wouldn't suggest that we look for the blueprint of the fortress, would you? You know, this fortress was built hundreds of years ago, even if If there are any damn blueprints, I probably won’t be able to find them.”
"Comrade Commander, you guessed wrong." Manoxin shook his head and said: "Even if there are design drawings left, it is probably in the hands of the Germans at this moment. We can only use other methods to lock the underground passage. Location."
He picked up a pencil, drew a line between the two bastions on the map, and said to Sokov and Fomenko: "Look, the shortest distance between two points is undoubtedly a straight line. This point is We should have learned this when we were studying.”
When Sokov heard this, he immediately guessed what Manokhin wanted to express: "Comrade Political Commissar, do you mean that the tunnels between these bastions are all straight lines?"
"That's right, Comrade Commander." Manoxin said in an affirmative tone: "Although we have no way of knowing how many meters from the ground the tunnel built by the Germans is, we only need to choose the middle of the two bastions and send people to dig. Find out what the Germans are like.”
"Comrade Political Commissar, I think your idea is really ridiculous." Fomenko expressed dissatisfaction with Manokhin's proposal: "Have you ever thought about it, if our soldiers carry out soil work between two bastions? , it is possible to be attacked by fire from two bastions at the same time, and a heavy price will inevitably be paid. For the sake of the safety of the soldiers' lives, I cannot agree to your proposal."
Seeing that Fomenko vetoed his proposal, Manokhin could only turn to Sokov for help, hoping to get support from him: "Comrade Commander, what do you think of this matter?"
"I think General Fomenko is right." Sokov stared at the map for a long time and felt that if he really followed Manokhin's method and sent a group of soldiers to dig a tunnel between the two bastions, it would be purely to let them To die, he agreed with Fomenko's opinion: "We have no right to let our soldiers die in vain."
Seeing that Sokov rejected his proposal, Manokhin showed a disappointed expression on his face. He asked with a wry smile: "Comrade Commander, what can you do?"
"I have two ways."
"Oh, do you have two good ideas?" Fomenko's eyes lit up when he heard what Sokov said, and he quickly asked: "Tell me quickly, what are they?"
"I agree with what Colonel Manokhin said. The shortest distance between two bastions is a straight line. As long as the center points of the two bastions are measured, the location of the German tunnel can be found."
"But didn't you just say that you don't want our soldiers to die between the two bastions?"
"Yes, I did say that." Sokov never denied what he said. He said truthfully: "We can use other methods to deal with the German tunnels."
"Comrade Commander," Fomenko lost his temper when he saw that Sokov kept trying to pass things off, and kept urging: "You should speak quickly."
"According to my observation, there are five or six hundred meters between each bastion, right?"
"Yes, it's more than five hundred and thirty meters."
"The Germans have built such a long tunnel, so they must find a way to solve the ventilation problem, otherwise it will easily cause suffocation." Sokov picked up the pencil and clicked a few more times at the location where Manokhin had drawn: "If I The Germans would have built some vents along the way to circulate the air in the tunnels."
After hearing Sokov's words, Manokhin said excitedly: "Yes, yes, comrade commander, you are so right. If the Germans want to build such a long tunnel, they must have every other section." distance, there will be an exhaust hole to ensure air circulation in the tunnel and avoid suffocation incidents.”
But within a few minutes of his happiness, his expression darkened again, "Even if we find an authentic exhaust hole, what should we do with it?"
"It's very simple," Sokov already had an idea in his mind: "Send someone to fill the exhaust hole with gasoline, and then throw a grenade down to detonate it. The violent combustion will deplete the oxygen in the channel and make the Germans inside People were suffocated to death.”
"Comrade Commander, what if we don't find the exhaust vent of the enemy tunnel?" Fomenko asked Sokov tentatively: "Then what should we do?"
"What else can we do? Of course we can only attack by force." Sokov shook his head and said: "Launch new rockets close to the bastion. I believe that after this weapon explodes in the bastion, it will also Because of the violent combustion, a large amount of oxygen was consumed, which was enough for the Germans in the bastion."
Fomenko was overjoyed after hearing this, and quickly ordered the chief of staff to call the commanders of each regiment, asking them to first send people to look for tunnel exhaust holes between the two bastions. Once found, they would immediately pour gasoline into it and use grenades. It detonated, causing the Germans inside to suffocate from lack of oxygen.
After Sokov waited for Fomenko to finish assigning the task, he said to him: "Comrade General, your choice of headquarters was not very good, and it was discovered by the Germans. When I came in just now, I almost got hit by a shell, if it hadn't been for Samoy Lieutenant Love tackled me just in time, and I was probably drinking coffee with God at the moment."
"Ah, is this happening?" Fomenko said in surprise, "Why didn't I know?"
Manokhin learned that Sokov was almost hit by a shell when he entered the door, and said in surprise: "Comrade Commander, is this true? If it is true, it proves that the location of our division has been discovered by the Germans. It must be moved immediately , it will be too late."
"I don't think it's necessary anymore." Sokov waved his hands and said, "When your artillery enters the fortress, I'm afraid the enemy's artillery will have no chance to fire. Don't ignore it. We'd better discuss how to capture the fortress." matters."
It is said that we are discussing details, but in fact there is really not much that can be discussed. After all, in the pre-war meeting, Sokov allowed the commanders participating in the war to speak freely, raise their own questions, and formulate relevant countermeasures one by one. If Fomenko and the others encounter any problems during their attack, they can just follow these rules.
Sokov thought that the troops attacking the fortress were not just the 84th Division. They knew how to deal with the German tunnels, but other troops did not. In order to avoid other troops taking detours, Sokov used the phone here to call the army headquarters. He said to Samyko who answered the phone: "Comrade Chief of Staff, record my order immediately."
"Comrade Commander," seeing Sokov urging him so urgently, he quickly took out a pen and paper and asked nervously: "I'm ready, please tell me."
"The 84th Division encountered a problem when it attacked the German bastion in the fortress." Sokov told Sameko about the problems the 84th Division encountered during the battle. Then, he talked about his own response measures. Finally, he told Sameko: "Comrade Chief of Staff, immediately teach these methods to the division leaders of several other divisions, and let them use the same methods to deal with the German tunnels."
"Okay, Comrade Commander, I will immediately transfer all these methods to deal with the Germans to the subordinate units." After Samyko promised Sokov, he finally added: "Commander Konev just attacked Called."
"Does he have any latest instructions?"
"He asked us when we can take the Merefa Fortress and the railway hub." Sameko asked tentatively: "Can it be done today?"
"No, definitely not." Sokov shook his head and replied: "There are a total of five bastions in the fortress, plus a railway hub outside the fortress. Although we have basically invested all our troops, we still have to capture so many targets. , it still takes a lot of time.”
"Comrade Commander, how long do you think it will take us to capture Merefa Fortress and the railway hub?"
Sokov thought for a while and replied: "I think according to the current fighting style, the battle should be resolved in 30 hours."
As the chief of staff, Sameko naturally understood how difficult it was to capture a fortress. The time it takes for other commanders to capture a fortress is basically measured in weeks. If the attack does not go smoothly, it is normal to take two or three months. After Sokov finished speaking, he asked cautiously: "Comrade Commander, can our troops really capture Merefa Fortress within 30 hours?"
"Of course." Sokov gave the other party an affirmative answer.
"Then if Commander Konev calls again to inquire, can I report to him for 30 hours to resolve the battle?"
"No, I don't think we can give him this number." Sokov explained to Samyko: "The 30 hours I mentioned are quite tight. Once there is some small problem, Commander Konev asked Please remember to tell him that we hope to resolve the battle within three days."
Samyko is also a smart man. He knew that Sokov said this to leave room for himself, and quickly echoed: "Understood, Comrade Commander, when Commander Konev calls again, I will tell you He, it will take us three days at the earliest to deal with the enemies in the fortress." "Comrade Political Commissar," Fomenko said quietly before Manokhin could speak: "You won't suggest that we go looking for him. The blueprint of the fortress, right? You know, this fortress was built hundreds of years ago. Even if there is any damn blueprint, I probably can’t find it.”
"Comrade Commander, you guessed wrong." Manoxin shook his head and said: "Even if there are design drawings left, it is probably in the hands of the Germans at this moment. We can only use other methods to lock the underground passage. Location."
He picked up a pencil, drew a line between the two bastions on the map, and said to Sokov and Fomenko: "Look, the shortest distance between two points is undoubtedly a straight line. This point is We should have learned this when we were studying.”
When Sokov heard this, he immediately guessed what Manokhin wanted to express: "Comrade Political Commissar, do you mean that the tunnels between these bastions are all straight lines?"
"That's right, Comrade Commander." Manoxin said in an affirmative tone: "Although we have no way of knowing how many meters from the ground the tunnel built by the Germans is, we only need to choose the middle of the two bastions and send people to dig. Find out what the Germans are like.”
"Comrade Political Commissar, I think your idea is really ridiculous." Fomenko expressed dissatisfaction with Manokhin's proposal: "Have you ever thought about it, if our soldiers carry out soil work between two bastions? , it is possible to be attacked by fire from two bastions at the same time, and a heavy price will inevitably be paid. For the sake of the safety of the soldiers' lives, I cannot agree to your proposal."
Seeing that Fomenko vetoed his proposal, Manokhin could only turn to Sokov for help, hoping to get support from him: "Comrade Commander, what do you think of this matter?"
"I think General Fomenko is right." Sokov stared at the map for a long time and felt that if he really followed Manokhin's method and sent a group of soldiers to dig a tunnel between the two bastions, it would be purely to let them To die, he agreed with Fomenko's opinion: "We have no right to let our soldiers die in vain."
Seeing that Sokov rejected his proposal, Manokhin showed a disappointed expression on his face. He asked with a wry smile: "Comrade Commander, what can you do?"
"I have two ways."
"Oh, do you have two good ideas?" Fomenko's eyes lit up when he heard what Sokov said, and he quickly asked: "Tell me quickly, what are they?"
"I agree with what Colonel Manokhin said. The shortest distance between two bastions is a straight line. As long as the center points of the two bastions are measured, the location of the German tunnel can be found."
"But didn't you just say that you don't want our soldiers to die between the two bastions?"
"Yes, I did say that." Sokov never denied what he said. He said truthfully: "We can use other methods to deal with the German tunnels."
"Comrade Commander," Fomenko lost his temper when he saw that Sokov kept trying to pass things off, and kept urging: "You should speak quickly."
"According to my observation, there are five or six hundred meters between each bastion, right?"
"Yes, it's more than five hundred and thirty meters."
"The Germans have built such a long tunnel, so they must find a way to solve the ventilation problem, otherwise it will easily cause suffocation." Sokov picked up the pencil and clicked a few more times at the location where Manokhin had drawn: "If I The Germans would have built some vents along the way to circulate the air in the tunnels."
After hearing Sokov's words, Manokhin said excitedly: "Yes, yes, comrade commander, you are so right. If the Germans want to build such a long tunnel, they must have every other section." distance, there will be an exhaust hole to ensure air circulation in the tunnel and avoid suffocation incidents.”
But within a few minutes of his happiness, his expression darkened again, "Even if we find an authentic exhaust hole, what should we do with it?"
"It's very simple," Sokov already had an idea in his mind: "Send someone to fill the exhaust hole with gasoline, and then throw a grenade down to detonate it. The violent combustion will deplete the oxygen in the channel and make the Germans inside People were suffocated to death.”
"Comrade Commander, what if we don't find the exhaust vent of the enemy tunnel?" Fomenko asked Sokov tentatively: "Then what should we do?"
"What else can we do? Of course we can only attack by force." Sokov shook his head and said: "Launch new rockets close to the bastion. I believe that after this weapon explodes in the bastion, it will also Because of the violent combustion, a large amount of oxygen was consumed, which was enough for the Germans in the bastion."
