After this operational meeting of the Supreme Headquarters, chaired by the loving father Stalin, the generals present at the meeting left with Stalin's orders in mind. Only Marshal Timoshenko was waiting in an inconspicuous corner of the floor.
Looking for the person he wants to wait for.
Not long after, Zhukov, who had a final private conversation with Stalin but still had no results, walked out of the conference room somewhat dejectedly.
Zhukov, who had felt confident and determined throughout the Winter War, had never been so frustrated.
Zhukov could almost predict that the counterattack against the German army would never end in victory, if not the defeat of the Red Army.
For a few days, whenever Zhukov lay in bed in the dead of night, he would think of Malashenko's anxious face. Zhukov even wondered whether Malashenko knew something he didn't know, that kind of indescribable
Zhukov had an expression he had never seen on anyone else before. It was as if... he was as confident as if he could peek into the future, but he didn't dare to express it.
After much thought, Zhukov, who was finally defeated by reason, thought that he was overthinking because he was too tired, but what Malashenko told Zhukov was truly imprinted in the heart of the Red Army god of war.
Stalin refused to listen to his words, just like his expression when he persuaded Stalin to abandon Kiev.
As the supreme leader of the Soviet Union, Stalin was stubborn and insisted that only by launching a counterattack against the German army could he turn the offensive and win the strategic initiative on the battlefield.
Zhukov's repeated insistence on the "defend first, then counterattack" tactic was severely reprimanded by Stalin mercilessly. Stalin accused Zhukov of being carried away by the victory of the Winter War and wanted to use the same tactic on the Germans a second time.
win.
"Hitler would not fall in the same place a second time! And there is no way I would make such a stupid mistake!"
With Stalin's almost roaring farewell words echoing in his mind, Zhukov, who was only sighing and worried, walked towards the stairs aimlessly like a puppet who had lost his soul.
"Comrade Zhukov, cheer up! This is not like you used to be."
Zhukov's confident words interrupted Zhukov's thoughts. Zhukov turned his head slightly and looked at the corner of the stairs beside him, and then he saw a familiar face.
"Comrade Marshal, what's the matter?"
He heard something fishy in Zhukov's name for him, but Timoshenko, who frowned slightly, did not care about it and chose to take it too seriously.
"I know what you are thinking, Zhukov, and in a sense I don't even think your thoughts and opinions are wrong. The tactics you advocate do have a high success rate and are more secure, but you
You need to know what Comrade Stalin needs now and think about it for him. What he needs is an unprecedented victory to inspire people and morale, and this victory needs to be won by the Red Army's initiative to be more convincing.
"
There were only Zhukov and Timoshenko at the corner of the empty staircase, and no other person could hear their conversation.
Faced with Timoshenko's initiative to open up his heart, Zhukov, who stood there for a moment, finally spoke with some hesitation.
"So you echoed Comrade Stalin's idea and advocated taking the initiative? But this is too risky. You and I both know that the gain outweighs the loss. Once it fails, we will face an unprecedented disaster, even more serious than the one in Moscow."
Having already expected Zhukov's answer, Marshal Timoshenko spoke slowly in a way that Zhukov did not expect.
"You know? Before I came to the meeting, a person told me similar thoughts to yours and tried to persuade me to persuade Comrade Stalin, although those words were very obscure."
"There is another person who has a similar idea!?"
A tone full of surprise and doubt was Zhukov's way of answering. Zhukov, who was completely unexpected, spoke next almost in disbelief.
"Who is he? Who else could say such a thing to you?"
Facing Zhukov's curiosity-aroused questioning streak, he didn't take it too seriously, but the answer Timoshenko gave immediately made Zhukov stunned on the spot as if he had been struck by lightning.
"Dmitri Drukovich Malashenko, our well-known tank hero in the Soviet Union. Immediately after he reported to me, he said something similar to yours. He looked a little anxious. I guess
This young man should have said the same thing to you, right?"
Zhukov would not have expected that Malashenko, who was so courageous and only wanted to avoid being thrown into the fire pit of Stalingrad, would directly ask Temu, who was more senior than Zhukov, on the first meeting.
Marshal Xinge gave his advice bluntly.
Although Malashenko spoke very tactfully at first, in Zhukov's opinion Malashenko was still too bold and boundless!
Zhukov, who didn't know where to start, was stunned for a moment, and finally blurted out his rather helpless words to Marshal Timoshenko after some contemplation.
"He is an outstanding young man, Comrade Marshal, I hope you will not blame him for this. I can see many excellent characters in him, perseverance, bravery, firm beliefs and fearlessness, and at the same time he has a high level of ability to fight on the front line.
With his commanding talent, he is always able to resolutely carry out the tasks I entrust to him."
"I believe that Malashenko will do greater things for our Red Army in the future. We lost too many outstanding talents in that past incident. Sometimes I even regard Malashenko as a
A kind of compensation for what happened back then, if we can really reuse him reasonably."
It was the first time in history that he heard such high praise from Zhukov. Marshal Timoshenko, who was slightly surprised with a smile, then spoke again.
"In fact, I basically had the same view as you until Malashenko reported to me in person. He is indeed a very amazing young man, and I had an indescribable first impression. Now it seems that I have
It was the right choice for him to come to my side."
The word "miraculous" rather than "excellent" is used because Timoshenko does not know Malashenko well enough. Marshal Timoshenko is bold but can also see clearly a young man. His wording is very precise, at least for him.
That's true for him personally.
This impromptu conversation only lasted about ten minutes. Timoshenko convinced Zhukov of the necessity of the upcoming offensive, although Zhukov still believed in his heart that the strategy of defending first and then counterattacking was the best strategy.