However, before making the call, the chief of staff asked Tsvetayev another question: "Comrade Commander, before I make the call, there is an urgent problem that needs to be solved."
"what is the problem?"
The chief of staff glanced at Sokov, and then continued: "Two troops fighting in the same area must have a unified command. Now the 300th Division does not belong to our army organization. After the 87th Division was transferred, they will be in command.
What about us, or do we command them?”
When Tsvetayev heard what the Chief of Staff said, he thought it made sense. After nodding slightly, he curiously asked Sokov: "General Sokov, tell me, two troops are deployed in the same area, who should be commanded?"
Who fights?"
"General Tsvetaye, I don't think this should be a headache." Sokov replied with a smile: "Although it is a coordinated operation, it does not attack the enemy's defense areas at the same time, and there should be no need for unified command.
.The reason why I ask you to send troops to this area is just to prevent the 300th Division from being insufficient to block the attack of the Viking Division. The mission of the 87th Division is just to send troops to support the 300th Division when the situation is critical."
"Comrade Chief of Staff," Tsvetayev said to his Chief of Staff after waiting for Sokov to finish speaking: "Did you hear what General Sokov said? The 87th Division used to assist the defense of friendly forces, not attack the enemy.
A joint attack does not require any unified command. You call the 87th Division immediately and ask them to go to the Fesky Collective Farm as soon as possible."
When Sokov saw that Tsvetayev not only was not angry about the 300th Division, but also acted very cooperatively, he couldn't help but be filled with questions: "Comrade General, are you really not angry with me?"
Tsvetayev smiled and asked: "General Sokov, why should I be angry with you?"
"Because of me, the superiors put the 300th Division under our command." Sokov knew that he could not hide his forced recruitment of friendly troops from Tsvetaev, so he simply told the truth: "Aren't you angry?
?”
"To be honest, when I first heard the news, I was really angry." Since Sokov was honest with him, Tsvetayev did not hide it. After he asked Sokov to sit down, he continued
He continued: "But I quickly figured it out. There must be comprehensive considerations when the superiors put the 300th Division under your command. Even if I get angry again, I can't change the established fact. You are a legend in our army.
I think there are only advantages and no disadvantages to having a good relationship with you. Is that right for you, General Sokov?"
Sokov didn't know how to respond, so he just grinned.
"General Sokov, you may not know yet. In a while, our group army will be transferred from the Voronezh Front to the Southern Front." Tsvetayev reminded Sokov: "If you have any cooperation,
It’s best to make suggestions now. Otherwise, when we transfer to the Southern Front and want to cooperate, I’m afraid it won’t be as easy as it is now.”
Sokov believed Tsvetayev's statement. He was familiar with Zhukov, and Zhukov could speak for him in front of Vatutin, so the 300th Division could be placed under his command so easily. If the assault group army
Being placed under the command of the Southern Front, he had no chance to communicate at all.
He asked cautiously: "General Tsvetaev, is the news that you are about to transfer to the Southern Front reliable?"
"Reliable, completely reliable." Tsvetayev said in a positive tone: "We have heard the news, and we will transfer it to the Southern Front by the end of this month at the latest."
When he learned that the Assault Group Army would be placed under the command of the Southern Front, Sokov felt a little disappointed. Originally, this unit was close to him and could also play a role as an aid. If they were really transferred, he would have fewer troops.
He had a force he could rely on. Thinking of this, he continued to ask Tsvetayev: "Comrade General, can you tell me the defense situation of your army group?"
The chief of staff, who had just finished the phone call, heard Sokov's question and immediately asked vigilantly: "General Sokov, why are you asking this?"
From the tone of the chief of staff's words, Sokov realized that his words had caused ambiguity to the other party, so he explained: "The thing is like this, the reason why I want to know your defense situation is because you are adjacent to our combat area.
." He pointed at the map on the table with his hand and said to everyone: "We have just opened a landing site on the east bank of the Oude River, but we do not have enough troops to launch an attack from there. If we can get your help, believe us.
Combined forces will be the first to storm Kharkov."
As a senior general, Tsvetayev was much better informed than Sokov. Not long ago, he heard that the divisions that were the first to rush into Belgorod and achieve outstanding results would be awarded Belgorod.
The honorary title of Rhodes Division. His troops had missed the battle to liberate Belgorod. Now that the results of capturing Kharkov were in front of him, he was not willing to give up easily.
Thinking of this, he said to Sokov: "General Sokov, what can we do for you?"
Sokov picked up the red and blue pencil on the table, pointed at the second landing site with the tip of the pen, and said to Tsvetayev: "Comrade General, if you can move your troops to this area, we can strengthen our
Attacking force."
"General Sokov, I think you chose a poor location to cross the river." Before Tsvetaev could speak, his chief of staff said first: "This area is the widest section of the Oud River, although the water flow is gentle.
, but there is no bridge to carry the troops across. Even if a pontoon bridge is set up, enemy artillery and aircraft will blow it up. In other words, our commanders and soldiers can only cross the river by boat, and they cannot carry heavy weapons."
"Yes, General Sokov." Tsvetayev expressed support for the chief of staff's statement: "If we cannot transport heavy weapons such as tanks and artillery across the river, I am afraid that no matter how many infantry we have in the past, we will not be able to transport heavy weapons like tanks and artillery across the river.
It is no match for the German armored forces."
"General Tsvetaev, you can rest assured on this." Sokov comforted him when he saw that Tsvetaev was somewhat interested in his plan, but his only concern was that he could not get the tanks and artillery across the river.
: "We have special transportation tools that can transport tanks and artillery."
When Tsvetayev heard what Sokov said, he asked with some surprise: "Have you got a large barge?"
"No." Sokov shook his head and said, "Except for some small wooden boats that can carry people, there are no large barges on the river."
"If there are no barges, how can we transport the tanks there?" Tsvetayev reminded Sokov: "You know, wooden ships cannot bear the weight of dozens of tons."
"General Tsvetaev," Sokov said with a smile: "You don't have to worry about this. We have special transportation vehicles that can transport such large weapons and equipment."
When Tsvetayev saw Sokov mentioning special transportation tools again, he couldn't help but curiously asked: "General Sokov, I wonder what the special transportation tools you are talking about are?"
Although many people now know the existence of hovercraft, Sokov still wants to keep this secret. He can only say vaguely: "General Tsvetaev, if you want to see it, I can take it personally."
You go to see our new transportation tools. What do you think?"
Faced with Sokov's invitation, Tsvetaev, who was eager to see it, could not agree. He nodded quickly and said: "Okay, General Sokov, then I will follow you to see it."
"
Sokov glanced out the window and found that it was already dawn, so he asked tentatively: "General Tsvetaev, if we set out now, won't we be attacked by German air attacks?"
"General Sokov, you can rest assured." Tsvetayev comforted Sokov and said: "Now the air supremacy on the nearby battlefield is firmly in the hands of our air force. If the German planes do not crash,
That's all. If they appear, our air force will shoot them all down without hesitation."
On the way to the new landing site, as Tsvetaev said, there were Soviet fighter planes and attack planes patrolling the sky, and there was no trace of enemy planes at all. However, Sokov still did not dare to let down his guard and was ready at any time.
Be prepared to jump out of the vehicle in the event of an air raid.
When we arrived at the Oude River, it was a busy scene. Hovercrafts were transporting commanders, technical equipment and various military supplies to the other side in batches. The shells fired by the German artillery fell in the river and exploded, setting off a
A water column reaches the sky. But the hovercraft travels very fast, and these shells fired without a target cannot hit the target accurately at all.
Seeing the convoy appearing here, soldiers on duty immediately came forward to question him. But when they saw Sokov coming out of the car, they quickly took a step back, stood at attention and saluted Sokov.
"Comrade soldier," Sokov called a soldier very close to him and asked politely: "Do you know where your division commander is?"
"Yes, Comrade Commander." The soldier replied respectfully, "Please allow me to lead the way for you."
When Sokov appeared at Major General Gritsenko's headquarters, the other party was assigning tasks to his commanders. Seeing Sokov's sudden appearance, he couldn't help being surprised and asked quickly: "Comrade Commander, do you have any questions?"
What instructions?"
"General Gritsenko," Sokov asked while shaking hands with the other party: "How is the situation here?"
"The enemy is constantly launching attacks on the landing sites on the east coast." Gritsenko reported: "But our soldiers tenaciously blocked the enemy's attack."
"Is there any difficulty?"
"There are difficulties, Comrade Commander." Gritsenko glanced at Tsvetaev standing behind Sokov and said with some hesitation: "Currently there are no tanks that can be transported to the east coast to face the German armor.
Assault, our casualties were a bit high."
Sokov noticed that Gritsenko kept looking at Tsvetayev, and remembered that he had not introduced the two to each other. According to tradition, he introduced Gritsenko to Tsvetayev, who had a higher military rank: "
General Tsvetaev, this is Major General Gritsenko, commander of the 384th Division."
"General Gritsenko, let me introduce you: this is Lieutenant General Tsvetaev, commander of the 5th Shock Army."
When he learned that the person standing in front of him was actually the commander of the Assault Group Army, Gritsenko immediately stood in awe. He raised his hand to salute him and said politely: "Hello, comrade general, nice to meet you."
After Tsvetayev shook hands with Gritsenko, he couldn't help but asked curiously: "Comrade Commander, I'm curious, what kind of boat is running on the river, and why is it so fast?"
Facing Tsvetayev's curiosity, Gritsenko did not dare to answer easily. Even though the hovercraft had participated in many battles, it was still a confidential new equipment. He could not do it casually before obtaining Sokov's permission.
You can't tell anyone, even if the other person is the commander of a friendly army group.
Sokov nodded to Gritsenko, indicating that he could tell Tsvetayev about it.
Gritsenko waited until Sokov acquiesced before speaking: "Comrade General, what you are seeing is a hovercraft, which was developed by our military-industrial force not long ago. Although the number is not large, it has provided us with
Provided great help.”
Before coming here, Tsvetayev was still worried about how to quickly cross the Oud River with his troops. Now that he saw such a convenient hovercraft, his worries were relieved a lot, but he still asked cautiously: "I wonder what this means?"
Can a hovercraft carry a tank across a river?"
"Of course, Comrade General." After giving Tsvetaev a positive answer, Gritsenko said cautiously: "However, because the weight of the tank itself is too heavy, the speed of the hovercraft will be greatly slowed down."
"It doesn't matter. No matter how slow the speed is, it's still faster than transporting it by barge. What's more, we can't get a barge here to transport the tank to the other side."
Tsvetayev's words made Gritsenko feel confused. He looked at Sokov with puzzled eyes, trying to figure out Tsvetayev's intention in saying these words.
"Comrade Division Commander," Sokov said with a smile: "I have already discussed joint operations with General Tsvetaev, but he is worried that there is no bridge in this area and the tanks cannot be transported to the other side. Now that there are hovercrafts,
This is equivalent to solving the headache problem for him, and he can send tank troops as soon as possible to assist your attack."
"This is great, Comrade General." Gritsenko couldn't help but be overjoyed when he heard this: "I am just because the army does not have tanks, and it is very difficult to deal with the German armored forces. If we have the tank troops you sent, we will
The landing field on the east coast can be expanded.”
Now that tanks could cross the river, let alone infantry, Tsvetayev’s worries were finally wiped away. He turned around and ordered a communications staff officer who followed him: “Send a telegram to the headquarters immediately and inform the chief of staff.
Transfer the 315th Infantry Division and a tank brigade from the Seventh Tank Corps to assist friendly forces in expanding the landing sites on the east coast."
Hearing the number reported by Tsvetayev, Sokov couldn't help but be stunned for a moment, and then asked tentatively: "Comrade General, isn't the 315th Infantry Division the predecessor of the 8th Guards Division?"
"You are mistaken, General Sokov." Tsvetayev said with a smile: "The predecessor of General Panfilov's 8th Guards Division was the 316th Infantry Division, not the 315th Division."