After discussing the matter of conferring medals on Udrea, Samyko asked Sokov a serious question: "Comrade Commander, after a long battle, each unit has lost a lot of troops, but the supplies from superiors are enough." Very slow and very few. Look, is there any way we can quickly replenish the troops in the army?"
"It's simple." Victor knew that for a certain period of time, there would be no reinforcements from superiors or prisoner of war camps. The main source of troops could only rely on soldiers who had recovered and been discharged from the hospital, so after some decision-making, they made made a bold decision.
Sokov told Samyko: "Comrade Chief of Staff, later you will give orders to the commanders of each division and ask them to organize a reception team to take in the scattered squads." He remembered that he was in Otac. While walking on the street, he saw that there were still many young and strong men in the city, and added, "If there are enough soldiers to be supplemented in this way, we can issue a recruitment announcement to the residents who have evacuated to the garrison, calling on them to join our army. Take up arms and fight the Germans tenaciously."
Regarding Sokov's arrangement, Samyko said with some embarrassment: "Comrade Commander, is it appropriate to recruit a large number of new soldiers into the army without going through the Military Service Bureau?"
"Comrade Chief of Staff, there is nothing inappropriate. You must know that this is war time." Victor said with confidence: "Let these residents who have been oppressed by the Germans take up arms and join us to fight against the German invasion." However, I believe they are still willing to do their best."
Hearing what Sokov said, Samek guessed that the other party must have had a plan in mind for a long time, so he nodded, and then asked: "Comrade Commander, how many new recruits do you think we should recruit?"
"We can recruit as many as we can. Anyway, the weapons and ammunition supplied to us by our superiors can fully meet the needs of the new troops." Victor remembered that he had read a piece of information before. During the Great Patriotic War, more women joined the army. With a total of 800,000 people, he specifically emphasized: "In addition to adult men, if there are young women of appropriate age who are willing to join our team, they can also be recruited into the army."
"What, recruiting female soldiers?" Hearing what Sokov said, Samyko almost threw away the pen and paper in his hand. He said in shock: "Comrade Commander, originally we recruited new soldiers without authorization, even if in the future If the superiors blame it, we have enough reasons to deal with it. But if you recruit female soldiers..."
Sokov interrupted Samyko before he could say anything: "Don't worry, Comrade Chief of Staff, in the war to defend the motherland, there has always been only a difference between soldiers and non-soldiers, and there is no distinction between men and women. You just Feel free to convey my orders boldly. If the superiors really blame me in the future, then all the responsibilities will be borne by me."
Seeing that Sokov was so confident, Samyko didn't know what to say. He quickly picked up the phone on the table and prepared to call the division commanders to convey Sokov's latest order.
"Comrade Commander," Trofimenko said when Samyko called: "Have you ever considered that the newly recruited local recruits have not received any training at all because they have been under German rule for a long time? Military training. In other words, their joining has increased the number of troops, but it has diluted the combat effectiveness of the troops, which is very detrimental to us."
"Comrade Deputy Commander," Sokov said to Trofimenko: "No one is born to fight. These recruits only need to undergo a short period of training before they can be formally incorporated into the army. Then each recruit The squad is equipped with two combat backbones, and they teach the new recruits step by step. I believe that the troops with new recruits will soon form combat effectiveness."
"Okay, Comrade Commander." Seeing that Sokov said so much in one breath, Trofimenko couldn't refute, so he could only say helplessly: "Then I'll do as you say."
Two hours later, Melekhov called to tell Sokov the good news: "Comrade Commander, good news, good news!"
After listening to the other party's voice, Sokov knew that the agreement with the Romanian 20th Division had been signed, so he asked tentatively: "Have the negotiations with General Octave's troops been completed?"
"Yes, Comrade Commander." Melekhov's voice was full of uncontrollable joy: "Not only have the negotiations been completed, but the 116th and 130th Infantry Divisions have already entered the defense area of the Romanian 20th Infantry Division. When the 52nd Army launches an attack on the German positions, our troops can attack from the enemy's flank and rear, catching them off guard."
"Well done, General Melekhov." Sokov said into the microphone: "When this battle is over, the meritorious personnel will be rewarded."
"Really? That's great." For the honor-loving Soviets, hearing the news that they were about to receive an award was more exciting than seeing a bottle of vodka: "Comrade Commander, I will send you If you want to, tell it to the commanders and soldiers of the two participating armies. I believe that your words will definitely have a morale-boosting effect."
As soon as I put down the phone, a new call came in. Before Sokov could raise his hand, Samyko had already picked up the phone and put it to his ear: "I am Samyko, where are you from?"
Soon, the expression on Sameko's face changed, as if he heard something that embarrassed him. Seeing this, Sokov quickly asked: "Comrade Chief of Staff, what's the matter?"
"Comrade Commander," Samyko reported to Sokov after hanging up the phone: "The officers responsible for recruiting women below have some objections to the order you issued to recruit female soldiers. After they saw this order, everyone's first thoughts were At first reaction, the superiors must have made a mistake. How could those delicate young girls charge into battle with rifles that are almost as tall as them? So the call from the troops below wanted to verify whether you personally gave the order.
Unexpectedly, the phone on the table rang again. This time it was an officer in charge of recruiting soldiers, calling directly to inquire. At the beginning, Sameko explained patiently, but the phone rings one after another made him very upset. The phone here had just been hung up, and before I could take a breath, the other phone rang again.
Samek grabbed the earphones, put them tightly on his ears, and asked viciously: "Hey, who is it this time?"
The other party was silent for a moment, and then said: "What's wrong, Chief of Staff Sameko, who are you angry at?"
Hearing this voice, Sameko, who was sitting in his seat, immediately stood up, held the microphone with both hands, and said respectfully: "Hello, Comrade Marshal, what are your instructions?"
"That's right, Chief of Staff Samyko." Konev asked slowly on the phone: "I just heard a message that your 27th and 53rd Army Groups have established recruitment stations to recruit new soldiers from local residents. , is there such a thing?"
"Yes, Comrade Marshal." After hearing Konev's question, Samyko replied politely: "Yes, the Combat Group Headquarters did issue such an order for each division-level unit to set up recruiting stations. , Recruiting new soldiers on the spot.”
"Oh, that's it." Konev nodded after hearing this and continued: "It's right to set up a recruitment station and recruit new soldiers on the spot to supplement the troops. But I also heard that what you said According to the order issued, in addition to recruiting local male soldiers, female soldiers of suitable age who are willing to serve can also be recruited into the army. What is going on? "
Samyko turned to look at Sokov and said cautiously: "This order to recruit female soldiers was personally issued by Comrade Commander."
After hearing this, Konev directly ordered Samyko: "Sokov is with you, right? Ask him to answer the phone. I want to ask what is going on."
Sokov took the microphone from Samyko's hand, put it to his ear and said: "Hello, Comrade Marshal, I am Sokov."
"Comrade Sokov, I want to hear your explanation why you made the decision to recruit women into the army without consulting your superiors. It is simply too lawless." Konev said on the phone: "I hope Give me a reasonable explanation."
"Comrade Marshal," Sokov was not intimidated by Konev. On the contrary, he began to try to persuade the other party: "You should know that from the outbreak of the war to now, tens of thousands of women have joined our army, and they have almost Participated in all battles, and like male soldiers, took on various dangerous tasks, serving as snipers, machine gunners, scouts, tank crews, pilots, etc. After a long period of combat in my unit, each division had varying degrees of attrition. According to the situation, it is not enough to rely solely on superiors or supplements from prisoner-of-war camps, so I came up with this method to recruit a group of female soldiers and let them share some of the work of male soldiers."
After listening to Sokov's explanation, Konev's tone became much gentler. He asked slowly: "Then what kind of arms are you going to let these female soldiers engage in?"
"Snipers and pilots cannot be trained overnight." From Konev's tone of voice, Sokov could tell that the other party's anger had dissipated a lot, so he explained to him: "So I plan to let these female soldiers Serving as medics, signalmen, anti-aircraft gunners, machine gunners, scouts and tank crews.”
Konev heard this and interjected: "Comrade Sokov, don't forget that tank soldiers are also a technical branch. If you want to train a female tank pilot, I'm afraid it won't take too short a time."
"Comrade Marshal, have you forgotten that the collective farms in our country use crawler tractors?" Sokov explained with a smile: "The driving method of a crawler tractor is similar to that of a tank. As long as you drive the crawler tractor in the collective farm A female tractor driver can skillfully drive a tank after only a very short period of training."
"Yes, yes, you are right." Sokov's words reminded Konev, and he thought that since the beginning of the war, the armored vehicles used by our side were all tracked vehicles, unlike the German armored vehicles, which were mostly tracked vehicles. Most are half-tracked. This is because a track car is driven using a joystick, while a half-track is driven by a steering wheel. The Soviets, who used crawler tractors extensively, were naturally far better at driving tanks than the Germans: “There are indeed many tractor drivers who have driven crawler tractors, and after a very short period of training, they can skillfully drive tanks. "
"Comrade Marshal, speaking of female tank drivers, do you think I should give an order to Generals Bogdanov and Kravchenko to recruit some local female soldiers to serve as tank drivers?"
"It's best not." Sokov did not expect that his plan was directly rejected by Konev: "You set up a recruitment station without getting in touch with the Military Service Bureau. This is against the regulations. Also , your recruitment of female soldiers will definitely attract a lot of criticism. Everyone will say: Men in Russia... No, we are in Ukraine now. It should be said that until all Ukrainian men die, those young girls will not have their turn. Put on the uniform and fight like a man."
Konev's words made Sokov realize that his approach might be a bit hasty. Although it is known that the army can recruit recruits locally, the necessary procedures should still be followed, such as contacting the relevant military service bureau, and finally they will come forward to recruit recruits. At that time, no matter what goes wrong, someone will take responsibility, but you can stay out of it.
"Hey, forget it then." Sokov said a little disappointed: "I think the recruitment of female soldiers will be carried out between the 27th and 53rd Army. Other units will not participate, so as not to cause some gossip. , affecting the mood of the officers responsible for recruiting troops.”
"I think this is good." Konev comforted Sokov and said: "If someone wants to investigate this matter, I will come forward to help you explain. Just say that you think that in many branches of the army, only female soldiers are qualified. This Only then did we begin to recruit female soldiers extensively.”
Seeing Konev stepping down the ladder, Sokov quickly seized the opportunity and said: "Comrade Marshal, although I am the commander of the combat group, the order I gave will inevitably lead to many officers responsible for recruiting troops below. Resistance. In order for this recruitment work to be completed smoothly, do you think you would allow me to issue such an order again in your name?"
"I don't think it's necessary, Comrade Sokov." Konev said with a smile: "You know, you are the commander of the combat group, not me. If you give orders, these subordinates will not be able to If you obey unconditionally, then you are incompetent as the commander, so I think it’s better to replace him as soon as possible.”
"I understand, Comrade Marshal, I know what to do." Although Konev did not explicitly support Sokov, as long as he did not say anything against it, he expressed support: "I will tell those responsible for recruiting soldiers Officers, this matter has been authorized by Marshal Konev, and the door must be wide open for girls who are willing to join the army."
After hearing what Sokov said, Konev laughed twice and hung up the phone.
Sokov put aside what was on his mind, hung up the phone, and said with a smile to Samyko, who was standing across the table: "Okay, Comrade Chief of Staff, I have already explained to Marshal Konev, what he said about our He agreed with the approach and also allowed us to use his name to inform the newly built recruitment stations and let them carry out my orders unconditionally."
Since it was something Marshal Konev nodded and agreed to, Samyko felt more confident when he re-delivered the order. When he met those commanders who had complaints, even though he knew they couldn't see it, he would still glare and say in a stern tone: "Marshal Konev agreed to recruit female soldiers, don't you want to disobey? "
These officers originally wanted to complain, but when they heard that Samyko had invited Marshal Konev out, they dared to refute. They could only honestly follow Sokov's order and start recruiting new soldiers locally. .
