On the other end of the phone, Vatutin, who had just finished handling the battle damage report for the day, seemed a little exhausted physically and mentally, and even his tone of voice when talking to Malashenko had changed a bit.
"The Germans used three SS divisions as the vanguard and cooperated with other troops to tear apart our first strategic line of defense and severely damaged the second line of defense."
"I have received a large number of casualty reports here. Malashenko, no less than 6 divisions of troops have lost their combat effectiveness and must retreat and reorganize. The Germans dispatched about 1,000 aircraft sorties to bombard us in one day.
Indiscriminate bombing caused the most serious losses to technical equipment, especially anti-tank firepower and artillery units."
"I originally didn't want to commit your troops so quickly, but now it seems I have no choice. The second line of defense must be held at all costs, otherwise we will lose everything and no longer be able to stop those Germans from attacking.
Breakthrough in the direction of Belgorod, you know what this means."
At this point, Malashenko could roughly guess what Vatutin was going to say next, and his already straight back immediately stood at attention without saying a word.
"The 1st Heavy Tank Brigade of Stalin's Guards has made all preparations, Comrade Commander. Even if the Germans have thousands of times more troops to attack us, we will resolutely fulfill the order and fight to the last moment and never retreat! Use reality.
Act to demonstrate your loyalty to the motherland!"
These words came out of Malashenko's mouth without thinking, which made Vatutin, who already knew Malashenko very well on the other end of the phone, feel a rare sense of peace of mind in the day.
At this moment, the words blurted out again without hesitation.
"Now I order, lead your troops to move to the frontal defense area in the direction of Oboyan, Malashenko. Assist the 7th Guards Army there to hold the position. Your task is to directly support the defense line and provide direct anti-tank firepower for the infantry.
Support and repel every wave of enemy attacks."
"We have reached the final moment of life and death. Be sure to hold on to every tank in your hand, Malashenko. The first task is to resist the German attack. No counterattack against the enemy is allowed without an order from the front army headquarters. First,
The tank army will try its best to support your defense from the flanks, causing trouble for the German offensive and increasing pressure."
"But the main force of the entire battle is still your Stalin Guards 1st Heavy Tank Brigade. The 1st Tank Army has already suffered considerable losses in today's battle. T34 and KV1 have once again been proven to be unable to effectively deal with the new Germans.
Tanks, be sure to pay attention to the trends of these new German weapons. The place where these monsters appear in groups will be the center of the battle."
After once again making a promise to Vatutin to resolutely complete the mission, he finally put down the phone. Malashenko, who turned around in the eyes of everyone's expectations and eagerness, brought everyone the message they had been waiting for for too long.
The command.
"Let's go! The target is the frontal defense area in the direction of Oboyan. Our mission is to assist the 7th Guards Army there to resist the Krauts' madness. The primary goal is to kill all the moving Krauts' steel garbage on the battlefield!"
"Now, comrades! Let those fascist pigheads know whose territory they are running wild on! Kill these anti-human bastards in the name of the supreme leader! Ula!"
The roar to boost morale resounded in every corner of Stalin's Guards 1st Heavy Tank Brigade under the starry night sky. All the soldiers were busy preparing with the belief that they couldn't wait to crush the enemy.
For Malashenko himself, there is still one step left to complete in the final preparations before departure.
Looking at the three brand-new steel behemoths covered with stars and moonlight in front of him, Malashenko, with the last trace of doubt in his heart, could not help but ask questions.
"Are you sure they are okay? We have no extra time to test. The Germans have pushed us to the edge of the cliff."
Karamov is not an engineer who builds tanks. He can only rely on his professional skills to do his own job and ensure that these three steel behemoths that even he himself cannot fully understand can be used.
Go to the battlefield in the best condition.
"If I personally promise that there is absolutely no problem at all, it can only be a meaningless lie, Comrade Brigadier."
"I have been busy with the most experienced comrades in our battalion from noon until now, and no one has spared even five minutes to eat something to fill their stomachs."
"The only thing I can say is that these three tanks have reached the best state of mechanical engineering. With my ability, I cannot find any potential hidden dangers and problems. Other comrades are the same as me. This is our
It’s the limit of what I can do. If I say unnecessary nonsense and make extra guarantees, it will just be a lie that I am not even sure of.”
In his heart, he still had lingering fears about the is6 explosion in history. Malashenko, who found the final answer from Karamov, kept hinting to himself that that guy Kotin should not use a broken car that could explode at any time to kill him.
It would be like this if you were tricked into dying on the battlefield.
Throwing the cigarette butt with only the last spark left on his lips to the ground and stamping it out with his feet, Malashenko, who had just received the is2, once again made an important decision that would change his future destiny.
"Iushkin, Seryosha, Kirill, get in the car, get familiar with the tank in ten minutes, and then let it move and follow the large army!"
After saying this, Malashenko turned his head again, and without waiting for his crew members to answer, he turned to the other side and asked questions.
"What about you? Do you want one for each of you? If not, I will call the other battalion commanders over. Everyone wants the new car."
Lavrinenko and Kulbalov, who were asked by Malashenko like this, looked at me and I looked at you. They seemed to have no choice but to blurt out their answers in unison.
"Of course, is there any reason to refuse?"
Kogin led his "Guards Engineering Corps" to work hard 24 hours a day, and used his right-hand man Shasmulin as an overdraft animal. He himself only slept for two hours a day for three days and three nights. The gift: three 253 construction machinery
The transmission prototype is a non-electric transmission IS6 heavy tank that was intentionally spawned by Malashenko and is not an existing historical product.
Finally, just before Malashenko led his team to fight against the Germans, he got off the train and didn't even have time to notify someone to pick up the car. The test workers from the factory were responsible for driving, and they drove all the way to the first heavy-duty Stalin Guards.
The tank brigade station was finally successfully handed over to Malashenko, a partner of Kotin, in such a way that no one expected.