On the way back to the headquarters, Sokov thought about what to do with the patrol leader. Although he did not dare to take things belonging to ordinary people without authorization, according to Germon, the Odzhansky family was suspected of collaborating with the enemy. Did the German scouts enter his house accidentally, or was it arranged for them by his son? Accommodation, I can't tell you. but
If this family is really collaborating with the enemy, there seems to be nothing wrong with their subordinates taking things from his house. The things they take belong to the enemy, and when they get into their hands, they should be regarded as spoils of war.
Just when Sokov was thinking wildly, he suddenly felt someone touching his arm. When he turned around, he saw that it was Ponejelin. Seeing Sokov's eyes looking at him, Ponedelin quickly asked: "Comrade Commander, what do you plan to do with that captain?"
If Ponedelin had asked this before going to the village, Sokov would have definitely said that he would take it seriously without hesitation. But at this moment, he seemed very hesitant, wondering whether he should deal with this captain. After a long time, he sighed softly and said, "Forget it, if it doesn't happen next time, let's forget it this time."
As soon as Sokov finished speaking, he heard Koshkin, who was sitting in the passenger seat in front, seem to let out a long sigh and feel a sense of relief.
"Comrade Commander." Although Ponejelin felt that the patrol leader should not be punished during this trip to the village, but hearing what Sokov said at this moment, he was a little unsure why the other party would do this, so he tried He asked: "Do you really think what Village Chief Jiemeng said is true?"
Sokov knew very well in his heart that Germon hated Odzhansky's son very much. This pig took his own pig away regardless of his cabbage. It is estimated that when his son-in-law met, he would bite him to death. All thoughts. In this case, what he said must have a certain tendency.
"Comrade Deputy Commander, I understand what you want to express." Sokov said to Ponedelin: "The situation here is very complicated now. Regardless of whether what Djemon said is true or false, we can only believe it. Half. Koshkin." What he said later was to Koshkin, who was sitting in the passenger seat. but
"Comrade Commander," Koshkin quickly turned around and asked, "What are your instructions?"
"Send two people to monitor that Odzhansky." Sokov said to Koshkin: "Although I didn't see him in person today, I always feel that there is something wrong with him. We must keep a close eye on him. If you find anything, please report it to me in time."
As soon as Sokov returned to the headquarters, he heard Sidorin say to him: "Comrade Commander, you are finally back. Comrade Marshal has called you twice."
"Marshal called me?" Sokov asked, "What's the matter with him?"
"I don't know." Sidorin shook his head: "Comrade Marshal didn't say anything. He just asked you to call him immediately after you come back."
Although Sokov didn't understand why Rokossovsky was in a hurry to find him, he actually called twice during his absence. There must be something important. He did not dare to neglect, and quickly ordered the director of the communications corps to connect the phone to the front army headquarters.
After hearing Rokossovsky's voice, he quickly said: "Hello, Comrade Marshal, I am Sokov. Could you please call me and have any important instructions?" But
"Where did you go and why did you come back?"
"I went to a nearby village." Sokov felt that it was not appropriate to talk about the patrol leader at this moment, so he avoided the main point and said, "I also had a meal at the village chief's house."
"It seems that you have a good relationship with the local people." After Rokossovsky said this, he returned to the subject: "Misha, I called you for two purposes. One is to congratulate you. New Year; secondly, I want to ask, are your troops ready for battle?"
Hearing Rokossovsky's question, Sokov suddenly remembered an important thing in his mind. The Germans launched the Ardennes Counterattack in the late war, which should be during this period. He silently calculated in his mind that in the early stages of this battle, the U.S. military did not expect that the dying German army would launch a desperate counterattack, and was immediately beaten to pieces. The elite 106th Infantry Division even had two regiments organized to attack The Germans surrendered.
Now that he thought of the Ardennes Counterattack, Sokov guessed the main reason for Rokossovsky's call. Because the U.S. military was in a critical situation, Roosevelt asked Stalin for help, hoping that the Soviet army could act in time to contain the German forces so that they could not dispatch more troops to the Ardennes region, thereby alleviating the pressure on the Allied forces in the region.
Thinking of this, Sokov asked tentatively: "Comrade Marshal, is the offensive campaign going to be advanced?"
"Yes, Misha." Seeing that Sokov guessed his intention so easily, Rokossovsky did not hide it, but nodded and said: "Maybe in the near future, we will have to ask The enemy has launched a new round of attack. Before that, I first need to know how prepared you are."
"Please rest assured, Comrade Marshal." After such a long period of preparation, Sokov knew very well that even if the offensive campaign started tomorrow, his troops would be able to go into battle, so he said confidently: "My troops have already done the work. All battle preparations are made, and you can go into battle at any time."
"Very good! Very good!!" After saying "very good" twice in a row, Rokossovsky suddenly said: "By the way, Chuikov called me not long ago and said he wanted to talk to you. If you have If you have time, remember to give him a call."
When Sokov put down the phone, Ponedelin came over and asked curiously: "Strange, why did our attack advance?"
As an insider from later generations, Sokov would naturally not tell them that the US military was beaten to the point of crying by the Germans in the Ardennes region and had to ask the Soviet army for help. The purpose of launching an offensive campaign in advance was to attract the attention of the German army and prevent the German high command from shifting its attention to the west.
But since Ponejelin asked this question, Sokov could not answer it. He could only pretend to think about it, and then said: "I don't know the specific situation. But since we have to launch an offensive campaign in advance, I think it must have been authorized by the Supreme Command."
As soon as Sokov mentioned the Supreme Command, Ponedelin knew that even if he continued to ask about this matter, he might not get the answer he wanted, so he wisely kept his mouth shut.
"Comrade Chief of Staff," Sokov turned to Sidorin and said, "Marshal just told me that when Chuikov would call him, he hoped that I could call him back. Do you have a way to get through the call over there? ?" But
Since Sokov's troops are still in the First Belarusian Front, calling Chuikov is a piece of cake. But now they are on different fronts, and it will be much more troublesome to make phone calls. Sure enough, Sidorin seemed a little hesitant after hearing Sokov's words: "Although it is a bit troublesome, it is not a big problem to call General Chuikov."
With the help of the director of the communications corps, Sokov finally got through to Chuikov's headquarters.
The person who answered the phone was Chief of Staff Belyavsky. He was very happy to hear Sokov's voice and said loudly: "General Sokov, Happy New Year! I'm glad to hear your voice. May I ask if you have any questions?" What's the matter?"
"Hello, General Belyavsky. I also wish you a happy New Year!" After expressing his basic greetings, Sokov went straight to the topic: "Is General Chuikov here? I called him specifically. .”
"Comrade Commander is not here." Hearing that Sokov wanted to find Chuikov, Beleyavsky said apologetically: "If you have anything to do, you can tell me. When he comes back, I will convey your message to him." he."
"Forget it if he's not here." Sokov thought that it was Chuikov who called him. Since he was not here at the moment, he couldn't explain some things clearly for a while, so he replied vaguely: "Then I'll call him later." .”
Just when Sokov was about to hang up the phone, he heard Belyavsky exclaimed: "General Sokov, please don't hang up the phone yet. The commander seems to be back." Then Soko Then my husband heard Belyavsky shouting loudly on the other end of the phone, "Comrade Commander, phone, your phone." But
Sokov first heard a rush of footsteps, and then Chuikov's familiar voice came: "Chief of Staff, who called?"
"It's General Sokov, the commander of the 48th Group Army. He seems to have something to ask you."
"Hello, General Sokov." Chuikov's clear voice came from the receiver: "I am Chuikov!"
"Hello, General Chuikov!" After Sokov said this, he was stunned for a moment, and then hurriedly added: "Happy New Year!"
"Happy New Year!"
"General Chuikov," after greeting him, Sokov began to ask questions he was concerned about: "When I called Comrade Marshal, he told me that you had called him and asked me to call him at a convenient time. Give you a call.”
After hearing Sokov's question, Chuikov fell silent. but
Realizing that there was no sound in the receiver, Sokov's first reaction was that the other party had hung up the phone, but after he listened carefully, he found that he could still vaguely hear some movements from the other party's headquarters. Obviously, Chuikov didn't hang up the phone, he just didn't speak.
Sokov became more and more curious. Chuikov asked him to call him, but after the call was answered, he remained silent. What did this mean?
Just when Sokov was about to ask a question, Chuikov spoke first: "General Sokov, it's actually a difficult thing for me to ask you to call me. I want to ask you for help."
"Something difficult?!" Sokov said heartily: You have something difficult, how can I help you? Thinking of this, he asked tentatively: "General Chuikov, I wonder what difficulties you have?"
"It's about Cidolin."
When Sokov heard this, he couldn't help being shocked. He glanced at Sidorin and Ponyjelin who were standing not far away, then covered the microphone with his hand and said to them: "Comrade Chief of Staff, Deputy Commander , I have something important to say to General Chuikov, please stay away for now."
You know, when Sokov called, he never asked others to avoid it. Therefore, Sidorin and Ponedelin couldn't help but have strange expressions on their faces when they heard what Sokov said. But now that he had spoken, it seemed not good to stand here anymore, so the two nodded and turned to leave. At the same time, he ordered the staff in the room not to get close to Sokov, so as not to disturb his call with the friendly commander. but
After Sidorin and Ponedelin left, Sokov released his hand covering the microphone and said: "General Chuikov, my chief of staff and deputy commander have gone away. If you have anything to say, please Just say it.”
"That's it, General Sokov." Chuikov continued: "Yesterday, I received an order from Marshal Zhukov to increase our reconnaissance behind enemy lines. In order to effectively implement the Marshal's order, I sent many reconnaissance teams , one of the groups includes Lieutenant Sidorin..."
"Wait a minute, General Chuikov." When Sokov heard Chuikov mention the surname Sidorin, he interrupted him and asked tentatively: "Is the Lieutenant Sidorin you are talking about my chief of staff?" General Sidorin’s son?”
"Yes, that's him." Chuikov said with certainty: "He is the youngest lieutenant in our army. He just turned 18 this year."
At this time, Sokov finally understood that the embarrassing thing Chuikov was talking about must have something to do with Little Sidolin. After he hummed, he said, "Please continue."
"While performing the mission, his reconnaissance team captured a German staff officer and seized an important piece of military intelligence." Chuikov continued on the other end of the phone: "But on the way back, he was discovered by the Germans. . In order to ensure that the intelligence can be sent back smoothly, Xiao Xidorin led three scouts to the rear and covered the transfer of the two scouts carrying the intelligence."
Hearing this, Sokov couldn't help but feel a little bit in his heart, secretly wondering whether Little Sidolin died while covering the transfer of his comrades? Although he remembered that Sidorin lived until the war and even served as a regimental commander in the fifties. But he was worried about the fate of little Sidorin, who might have changed because of his appearance. You know, Sidorin, who was Chuikov's subordinate, had already sacrificed his life in the Battle of Stalingrad, but because of his existence, Not only did he survive, he was now his own chief of staff and a general. Could it be that the fate of sacrifice will be passed on to Xiao Xiduolin. but
But the next moment, Sokov realized that his guess was wrong, and it was very wrong. Just listen to Chuikov continue: "At that time, one of our troops nearby heard the sound of firefighting nearby, and immediately rushed to the rescue, drove away the enemy, and rescued Xiao Xidorin and others."
"So, Little Cidolin and the others are out of danger."
"Yes, we are out of danger."
When Sokov heard this, he couldn't help but wonder: "General Chuikov, little Sidolin encountered a little danger while performing his mission, and is now safe. If you have anything to do, you can tell my chief of staff directly. , there is nothing to be embarrassed about."
"General Sokov, it would be great if it really went so smoothly." Chuikov continued: "When they were returning to our position, they were attacked by a burst of artillery fire from the German army. A shell fell just a short distance away from Little West Dolin. There was an explosion not far away, and the two soldiers next to the explosion point were blown away without a trace, and Xiao Xidorin was also cut down by flying shrapnel."
When Sokov heard this, he confirmed that his guess was correct. The reason why Chuikov did not dare to call his headquarters directly was probably because something happened to Xiao Xidorin, and he did not know how to face his former subordinates. .
