For Manstein, both Kleminchug and Cherkasy were the two most important points on his Dnieper River defense line. Kleminchug had been occupied by Sokov's troops, and he
The troops dispatched launched numerous attacks on the landing site on the right bank, but all ended in failure.
But losing just one point was not a big deal for Manstein. Even if he could not drive the Soviet troops who had established a landing site into the Dnieper River, he could still use his troops to block the opponent's path of expansion.
But now the Soviet army has established a new landing site near Cherkasy, trying to use it as a springboard to seize Cherkasy and completely break through its Dnieper River defense line. This is something he will never tolerate.
The troops originally placed south of the 27th Army's landing site included five divisions, including the armored division. However, in order to eliminate the Soviet landing site near Cherkasy as quickly as possible, Manstein decided to allocate troops from here after repeated thinking.
troops to participate in the battle to eliminate the Soviet troops near the Chijilin area.
He knew very well that if he transferred troops from the front of Sokov's position, he might suffer big losses if he was not careful. Therefore, he initially only transferred one division and moved slowly in the direction of Chigilin to observe the movements of the Soviet army.
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When all the transferred divisions evacuated the defense area, the Soviet army on the opposite side not only showed no sign of attack, but on the contrary, they also overhauled the defense fortifications in the defense area, laid minefields and stretched barbed wire in front of the position, assuming a defensive posture.
After learning the news, Manstein thought for a long time and realized that his worries were unfounded. Since the Soviet army was carrying out large-scale construction projects and assuming a defensive posture, it proved that they would not attack. So he decisively issued the order, except in the distance.
Except for one armored division and one infantry division left to continue to serve as security, the rest of the troops immediately rushed to the northwest battle area.
To be fair, if other Soviet troops were deployed at the landing site, Manstein's decision was undoubtedly correct, because most Soviet commanders had rigid tactical thinking and did not know how to actively search for fighters.
If the superior orders them to establish a defensive position somewhere, no matter how good the opportunity is, the commander may not switch from defense to offense in time and miss the opportunity in vain.
But the troops commanded by Sokov are different. They know how to use every opportunity to severely attack the enemy. However, before each battle, in order to prevent the enemy from noticing their intentions, they often make a series of false moves.
For example, the purpose of this overhaul of fortifications is to confuse the enemy.
Fortunately, Sokov's plan successfully deceived Manstein. The German marshal was eager to eliminate the Soviet landing site that threatened the safety of Cherkasy, and simply confirmed that Sokov's troops would not launch an attack.
When it threatened the flanks and rear of our own troops, we decisively dispatched a large number of troops to reinforce the troops attacking the 7th Guards Army.
Although the German army's large-scale retreat was carried out at night, it had been clearly seen by the Soviet scouts hiding nearby, and then the intelligence was continuously sent back to the rear through the radios they carried.
After receiving the intelligence from the scouts ahead, the director of the reconnaissance department hurried over to see Sokov and Samyko after briefly sorting it out.
Seeing the director of the reconnaissance department rushing over, Samek immediately guessed that the other party must have brought intelligence about the German army. He quickly put down what he was holding, stood up straight and asked: "Comrade director, do you have anything important?"
Do you want to report the information to us?"
"Yes, Comrade Chief of Staff." The director of the reconnaissance department glanced at Sokov, who was standing by the wall with his back to him looking at the map, and continued: "The scouts in front just sent back the information, saying that the German army has new attacks.
The troops began to retreat."
Sokov had his back to the table and was looking at the map hanging on the wall. When he heard the words of the Director of the Reconnaissance Division, he immediately turned around and asked: "Comrade Director, tell me quickly what the situation is."
The director of the reconnaissance department nodded and began to report to Sokov and Samek: "According to the scout's report, the enemy withdrew an infantry division before dark. They thought that the enemy would make no more movements.
, but two hours ago, they suddenly discovered that a tank parked in the forest began to move in one direction, and they quickly followed it. After walking for almost half an hour, they found that a German tank drove into a station and
Start boarding the trains one after another on the platform."
"Wait a minute, Comrade Director." Samek heard this and interrupted the Director of the Reconnaissance Division: "Can they confirm which direction the train is heading?"
"It has been confirmed, Comrade Chief of Staff." The director of the reconnaissance department replied: "There is a soldier in our scouts who was a road maintenance worker in this area before joining the army. He accurately judged the train from the platform where the German tanks boarded the train.
The direction of travel is northwest, which is the Qijilin area."
When Sokov heard this, he turned to Sameko and said with a smile: "Comrade Chief of Staff, it seems that there are soldiers of various professions in the army, which is also a good thing for us. This can save comrades the scouts a lot."
Time for reconnaissance.”
"Yes, Comrade Commander. This soldier who has worked as a road maintainer has made great contributions, allowing our scouts to figure out the enemy's whereabouts in the shortest possible time." After Sameko finished speaking.
, and asked the director of the reconnaissance department: "Comrade director, can you figure out how many troops the enemy has transferred?"
In response to Sameko's question, the director of the reconnaissance department hesitated for a moment and answered cautiously: "Comrade Chief of Staff, according to the intelligence we have, the German troops still in the defense zone currently have only one infantry division and one armored division.
And they are all the kind that are weakened in battle."
"Oh, there are only one infantry division and one armored division left in the German defense area that were weakened in the battle?" Sammeko heard this and asked in surprise: "Comrade Director, is this news reliable?"
"Completely reliable, Comrade Chief of Staff." The director of the reconnaissance department said with certainty: "We have as many as fifteen reconnaissance groups at the front, and they completely cover the entire German defense area. Therefore, how many are left in the enemy's camp?
They should not be mistaken about the strength of the troops."
"Comrade Director," Sokov suddenly interjected: "After our army captures Alexandria and Kirovgrad, I will definitely ask the Military Commissar to award you a medal. It is precisely because of your responsibility.
Our reconnaissance work laid a solid foundation for our final victory."
Hearing what Sokov said, the reconnaissance director's face turned red with excitement and his breathing became rapid. After a while, he excitedly said to Sokov: "Comrade Commander, this is all my fault."
What we should do. We are a reconnaissance department, and it is our job to figure out the enemy's strength and deployment."
After Sokov praised the other party for a few words, he sent him away as he could not find any more useful information.
As soon as the director of the reconnaissance department left, Sameko couldn't wait to ask: "Comrade commander, do we need to report the reconnaissance information to the front army headquarters immediately?"
When Sokov heard what Samyko said, he began to think: "If Konev is reported to Konev at this time about the situation here, he will definitely be worried about the safety of the 7th Guards Army's flanks and rear, and he will definitely order himself to mobilize troops at that time.
To contain the German troops and ensure the safety of the new landing site."
Samyko saw Sokov's thoughts and asked tentatively: "Comrade Commander, are you worried that if we report the situation here to the front army headquarters, General Konev will order to ensure the safety of the new landing site?
We send troops to contain the enemy, thereby ruining our original attack plan?"
Seeing that Samek had guessed what he was thinking, Sokov nodded and said affirmatively: "Yes, that's what I thought. Comrade Chief of Staff, do you have any good suggestions?"
Samek thought for a while, then said seriously with a straight face: "Comrade Commander, although according to the scout's report, the enemy only retained one infantry division and one armored division on the original position, and both of them are still intact.
It was weakened during the battle. However, this information has not been finally confirmed. We cannot easily report unconfirmed information to our superiors, otherwise it will easily mislead our superiors."
"Yes, yes," the words woke up the dreamer. Samyko's words gave Sokov confidence: "Although according to the reconnaissance intelligence compiled, the German defenders in the original defense zone only had one infantry division left.
and an armored division, but we need to verify this information repeatedly. Only after final confirmation can we report it to the front army headquarters to avoid misleading our superiors."
After the two reached a consensus on the matter, Sokov then asked Samyko: "Comrade Chief of Staff, is there any latest news from Guchakov?"
Sameko shook his head and said: "The information was from two hours ago. The first battalion had set off shortly after dark. The road they were traveling happened to intersect with the route of the German army. I hope there will be no mistakes."
Sokov knew very well that if the first battalion was discovered by the Germans, then his pre-planned plan would be completely in vain. And the troops performing the mission would also encounter great danger.
Thinking of this, he pointed at Samyko and ordered: "Comrade Chief of Staff, call Major Guchakov immediately and ask him if there is any latest news."
Sameko knew that the success of the first battalion's operation was related to the subsequent battle, so he quickly picked up the phone on the table and called the 73rd Infantry Brigade headquarters.
Although it was already midnight, the call was quickly connected. The person who answered the phone was Chief of Staff Askel. He recognized Sameko's voice and immediately asked respectfully: "Hello, Comrade Chief of Staff.
The brigade commander is taking a rest, do you need me to wake him up to answer the phone?"
Considering the situation in the brigade, which Askel should know very well as the brigade chief of staff, Samek said casually: "No need, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I just want to ask you something: Is there any new news from the First Battalion?"
?”
"No, Comrade Chief of Staff." Askel answered simply: "There is no news."
"Comrade Lieutenant Colonel," Askel's answer was already expected by Samek. He asked tentatively: "Tell me the truth, the march route of the first battalion overlaps with the enemy's transfer route. Is it true?"
Isn't there any danger?"
"Don't worry, Comrade Chief of Staff." Askel comforted Sameko and said, "This operation was personally commanded by Captain Mikhailev. He is a commander with rich command experience, and he speaks German
That's good, even if there is any trouble on the road, I believe he can handle it easily."
Sameko originally wanted Askel to send a telegram to Mikhailev to learn about the march of the troops. But then he thought, if the first battalion had come into contact with the German troops at this time, it would not be right to send a telegram at this moment.
Will he put them in danger? Thinking of this, he could only change his words and said: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, if you have the latest news about Captain Mikhailev, please remember to inform me in time."
"Don't worry, Comrade Chief of Staff." Askel replied: "I will definitely report to you as soon as I have news about them."
"Okay, Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, I'm waiting for your news." Sameko emphasized at the end: "The commander and I are both on duty at the headquarters tonight. If there is any news, please call us in time."
After Samek put down the phone, he said to Sokov with a look of regret: "Comrade Commander, I asked the brigade chief of staff, Lieutenant Colonel Askel, and he said they have no latest news about the 1st Battalion."
Seeing Sokov frowning slightly, he quickly added: "But Lieutenant Colonel Askel assured me that Captain Mikhailev is a commander with rich command experience, and his German is excellent, so he is fully qualified.
We are capable of handling any emergencies that occur along the way. You can rest assured.”
Things have reached this point. No matter how worried Sokov is, he can't change anything. He can only say helplessly: "Hey, Comrade Chief of Staff, we can only resign ourselves to fate now. I hope Captain Mikhailev and the others can go smoothly."
Enter Pavlish and seize the enemy's material transfer warehouse."
Just as the two were worried about the fate of Camp Mikhailov, the phone on the table rang without warning. Samyko stared at the phone and said to Sokov excitedly: "Comrade Commander, maybe
It's a call from the Infantry Brigade, Lieutenant Colonel Askel is preparing to report to us on the situation of the 1st Battalion."
Sameko grabbed the microphone, put it to his ear and asked excitedly: "Is it Lieutenant Colonel Askel? I am Sameko, do you have any good news to tell me?"
"What Askel?" Unexpectedly, the voice coming out of the microphone was not Askel: "I am Zakharov, you are the chief of staff of Samyko, right?"
"Hello, Comrade Chief of Staff." Hearing that the person on the other end of the phone was Zakharov, Samyko's heart skipped a beat. He winked at Sokov, who was sitting next to him, and asked tentatively: "
Any instructions?"
"Comrade Samyko," Zakharov on the other end of the phone asked in a stern tone: "I heard that the enemies south of your landing site are moving on a large scale. Is this true?"
Samyko glanced at Sokov again and saw that he had already walked to his side. He couldn't help but replied with a guilty conscience: "Yes, General Zakharov, the enemies south of our landing site are indeed moving."
"Since the enemy is moving, why don't you report it in time?" Zakharov said angrily: "Do you know that perhaps because you did not report in time, it will lead to deviations in the formulation of the battle plan by the front army headquarters?"
Seeing that Samyko was speechless for a moment, Sokov reached out to take the microphone in his hand, put it to his ear and said: "Hello, Comrade Chief of Staff of the Front Army, I am Sokov."