As soon as he returned to the headquarters, the director of the communications corps came over to report to him: "Comrade Commander, Marshal Konev's phone number."
Sokov saw the microphone on the table, rushed over in three steps and grabbed the microphone: "Hello, Comrade Marshal, I am Sokov."
"Comrade Sokov," Konev asked with a smile on the phone: "I heard that you went to pick up Mr. Morozov?"
"Yes, Comrade Marshal." Sokov replied: "I just took someone to the airport to greet him personally and have already brought him back."
"How are you, old man? Is he easy to get along with?" Konev was worried that Morozov would become too old and his temper would become weird. If he said something excessive, Sokov might not be able to stand it, so he kindly reminded him
Sokov: "If you think the old man has a bad temper, don't be angry. Just tell me and I will find a way to get him back to Moscow."
"Comrade Marshal, the old man is a nice person and easy to get along with." Sokov knew what Konev would ask next, so he took the initiative and said: "Since the old man had experience as a sniper before, I asked him to meet Liu De
Mira and Vasily work together and are responsible for training the snipers in the army."
"Oh, you arranged for him to train as a sniper?!" Hearing that Sokov had settled the old man, Konev was stunned for a moment, and then said happily: "This is not bad, as it satisfies his desire to go to the front line.
, and there will be no life-threatening danger.”
"Comrade Marshal," Sokov continued: "The old man is a valuable asset to our country. Since he is in my defense zone, I naturally have to find a way to protect his safety."
"You did the right thing, Comrade Sokov." After Konev praised Sokov, he paused for a moment and then continued: "I received a call from Korodeev, saying that his troops were in
With your cooperation, we have successfully occupied the German positions on the right bank of the Dniester River, and are now repairing the fortifications in preparation for a possible German counterattack."
"Comrade Marshal, I think the chance of the German army launching a counterattack is low." After hearing Konev mention the right bank positions, Sokov took the initiative and said: "The German army has been further weakened after being hit by us repeatedly. Now.
Our frontal enemies are basically the Romanian army."
"Oh, the enemies in front of you are mainly Romanian troops?" Konev is really not sure about the situation Sokov mentioned. At least on his combat map, the enemy numbers displayed are basically the same.
The German army is the main force, but the Romanian army, which is a slave country, is rarely marked. "Is what you said reliable?"
"Completely reliable, Comrade Marshal." Sokov explained: "This is the conclusion we learned after reconnaissance."
"Will there be any deviation?" Konev must have a good idea of the distribution of German troops before formulating the next battle plan: "Is it possible that your scouts mistook the German troops for the Romanian army?
Woolen cloth?"
"This is absolutely impossible, Comrade Marshal." Faced with Konev's doubts, Sokov explained: "After the intelligence feedback from the scouts came back, I also specifically verified it with Lieutenant Colonel Abrani of the 59th Romanian Regiment.
However, he believes that the information provided by our scouts should be very accurate."
"So, as long as we continue to attack, we can quickly advance to the Romanian border." After Konev said this to himself, he asked Sokov directly: "Comrade Sokov, your troops
When can we attack again?"
"It's hard to say." Seeing that Konev did not mention weapons and ammunition, Sokov reminded him tactfully: "If the superiors can give us enough weapons and ammunition, I can launch a new round of attack in the afternoon.
.But if we can’t get supplies, we can only stop where we are and wait.”
He once again mentioned the reason why it is impossible to attack without ammunition: "Without enough ammunition, the weapons in the hands of our officers and soldiers are not much stronger than fire sticks. If we want to destroy the enemy, we can only fight with them with bayonets."
Although Konev also understood the principle of speed, but he knew better that if the troops did not have enough weapons and ammunition, if they wanted to break through the German defense line and win the final victory, they could only use human lives to fill such a thing.
It couldn't be done, so after a long silence, he said: "The railway line leading to your place is currently undergoing emergency repairs. If everything goes well, it will be open to traffic by the morning of tomorrow at the latest."
Sokov knew that Konev was waiting for his statement when he said this, but he was not in a hurry to make any guarantee to the other party, but asked tentatively: "Comrade Marshal, can I ask about your new plan?"
What’s the battle plan?”
"There is no new battle plan." Konev replied: "It is still the original plan, to eliminate as many effective German forces as possible, liberate more territory, and be prepared to completely drive the enemy out of our territory.
"
After learning that there was no new combat plan, Sokov felt much more at ease. He was worried that Konev suddenly added combat tasks to him, which would disrupt his long-established combat plan. "I understand, Marshal.
Comrade," he said, "as soon as the weapons and ammunition provided by our superiors arrive, we will immediately launch a new round of attack."
Trofimenko waited for Sokov to put down the phone and asked cautiously: "Comrade Commander, I wonder what new tasks Marshal Konev has assigned us?"
"Comrade Deputy Commander, there are no new tasks." Sokov looked at Trofimenko and said: "Our combat plan is still the same as before, constantly launching attacks on the German defense lines, and breaking through them again and again.
While building a line of defense, we can liberate more land and liberate our people from the iron heel of the enemy."
"When will the superiors prepare to replenish our weapons and ammunition?" Trofimenko then asked: "If we don't have enough weapons and ammunition, our attack may be seriously affected."
"I have already asked Marshal Konev. He said that the railway department is currently repairing the road and it will be open to traffic no later than the morning of the day after tomorrow. By then, a steady stream of supplies will be delivered to us."
"Comrade Commander, I have an idea." Trofimenko said to Sokov: "See if we can send engineering troops to repair the railway lines in the defense area. In this way, the military trains can be shortened.
The opening time will enable our army to obtain supplies as soon as possible and launch an attack on the enemy?"
Trofimenko's proposal made Sokov think about it for a while, and he felt that it was quite reasonable, so he nodded and said: "Comrade Deputy Commander, your proposal is very reasonable. I think so, the 27th Army
The engineering troops of the 53rd Group Army will be responsible for the repair work of the railway lines, while the engineers of the 53rd Group Army will continue to be on standby."
Trofimenko did not have any objections to Sokov's arrangement. After all, the engineering troops affiliated to the group army still had a lot of work to do. If they were sent to repair railway lines, there would be work such as paving roads, building bridges, and clearing landmines.
Still doing it or not?
"Okay, Comrade Commander." Trofimenko replied readily: "I immediately gave the order to the engineering troops to participate in the repair work of the railway line."
The work here was almost busy. Yakov wandered to the headquarters. After greeting Sokov, he said straight to the point: "Misha, I'm going back to Moscow."
"Ah, you want to go back to Moscow now?"
"Yes." Yakov nodded and said: "Most of the hovercraft can no longer work. I want to transport them back to the weapons and equipment department as soon as possible for a thorough overhaul. If they are really irreparable, we will destroy them directly.
.”
"Hey, what a pity." After learning that the hovercraft would be destroyed after being returned to Moscow, Sokov felt very regretful in his heart: "If it can be repaired and continued to be used to transport supplies, it can alleviate the weapons of our combat cluster.
The difficulty of running out of ammunition.”
"No way, Misha." The hovercraft will be destroyed, and the one who will suffer the most is Yakov. Since the advent of the hovercraft, Yakov has been a participant in every mission it has performed. These hovercrafts have become his life
Part of him felt extremely heavy since he learned that the hovercraft would be destroyed after he returned to Moscow: "I am also following orders from my superiors. You should know in your heart how I feel about these hovercrafts."
.”
"Is there really no room for recovery?" Sokov asked reluctantly: "Although hovercrafts are breaking down for an increasingly longer time now, if they are completely overhauled, they may be able to become brand new.
"
"An order is an order, and there is no room for bargaining." Yakov said to Sokov with a heavy heart: "Misha, I'm sorry."
Looking at Yakov's leaving figure, Sokov felt extremely heavy. Both Smirnov and Samyko had seen the magic of the hovercraft with their own eyes, and naturally understood that this new type of transportation had a profound impact on Sokov.
status.
Seeing that Sokov was in a low mood, Samyko came over and put a hand on his shoulder, comforting him and saying: "Comrade Commander, don't be sad. The hovercraft unit commanded by Colonel Yakov has been completed."
Their historical mission. Maybe not long after, there may be better means of transportation to replace them."
Sokov knew very well that even in ten or twenty years, let alone a few months, he would not be able to find a means of transportation that could replace the hovercraft. However, in order not to displease Sameko, he still forced a smile and said
: "Comrade Chief of Staff, you are right. With the innovation capabilities of the Weapons and Equipment Department, a new transportation tool may be launched in a few months, which will be able to continuously transport a large amount of materials for us."
After chatting for a while, we got back to business. "Comrade Commander," Sameko asked, "Where do you think our next attack direction should be?"
Sokov did not answer immediately, but asked: "Do you have any ideas?"
"We feel that the best offensive route is to go up the Dniester River and attack Huoking and Bolschov."
"No, Comrade Chief of Staff, I don't think this route should be used to carry out the attack." After staring at the map for a while, Sokov rejected Samyko's proposal: "Look, this road is full of people.
Lakes, forests, swamps and rivers are not conducive to the deployment of our troops at all. In the next offensive, if we do not receive the support of tank troops, we will pay a heavy price for every step we take."
Sameko naturally knew what Sokov said. The reason why he insisted on proposing such a plan was entirely because these places did not have the conditions to build solid fortifications. Even if they relied on pure infantry attacks, they could break through the German defense lines.
At this moment, seeing that Sokov rejected his proposal, he was not angry, but asked: "Comrade Commander, tell me, in which direction should we attack?"
"Murovani Kurilivtsi's troops advanced westward, first to capture Khoktin, and then turned southwest to liberate Chernivtsi." The Chernivtsi mentioned by Sokov was not already there.
The city that became the rear of the defense zone. Chernivtsi belonged to Ukraine, but the city designated as the target of the attack by Sokov belonged to Moldavia, and was no more than 20 kilometers away from the Romanian border.
"What about the defenders of Sokilyani?" After listening to Sokov's words, Samyko raised his own question: "If Lieutenant Colonel Ponedelin's troops change the direction of attack, they will block the nearby area.
The route of the 18th Guards Army."
"Since the offensive direction of the Ponejelin troops has been adjusted, the offensive direction of the 18th Guards Army will naturally have to be adjusted accordingly." Sokov pointed to the map and said to Samyko: "They
After we can capture Brichny, we can continue to advance westward and join forces with Ponedelin's troops at Chernivtsi."
Trofimenko came over and listened for a while. After Sokov stopped talking, he promptly expressed his opinion: "I think Comrade Commander's plan is very good. As he just said, the German army in Dne
There will not be any decent fortifications and not many troops in the upper reaches of the Sturt River. If we blindly attack along the river, a huge gap will appear in the middle of the two armies. As long as the German army discovers this gap and launches
If we attack, the two armies will be separated."
"The attack in the southwest overcomes this shortcoming. Not only do the Ponejelin Combat Group and the 18th Guards Army become a whole, they don't have to worry about being divided by the German army. When they attack, they can also get support from the left wing.
Support from the 52nd Army."
"General Trofimenko, what you said makes perfect sense." Sokov waited for Trofimenko to finish and then agreed with him: "Ponejelin Combat Group and the 18th Guards Army
As a whole, they can attack toward the southwest, which is enough to destroy the enemy's resistance along the way. At the same time, they will also receive support from the left wing."
"Chief of Staff," Sokov waited for Trofimenko to finish and then ordered Samyko: "Immediately call your Lieutenant Colonel Ponedelin and General Afunin and ask them to send out scouts as soon as possible. Conduct reconnaissance of the area to be attacked and wait for the attack order from the headquarters."
"Okay, Comrade Commander." Sameko nodded and said very cooperatively: "I will call the two commanders immediately to get their troops ready for battle."
As soon as Samyko left, Sokov received another call. When the other party reported his name, Sokov couldn't help but froze, wondering why the old man called me?