Sokov's heart sank suddenly. In the current situation, missing means sacrifice or capture. Zhukov and Dyubro are fine, but Romanov is different. He is an important historical figure for future generations.
If something happens to a character, it may have an uncontrollable impact on future history.
After a brief silence, Sokov asked again reluctantly: "Did you really not see Romanov?"
Chursin was stunned and thought to himself: Why is Captain Sokov so interested in a recruit who has just joined the army? Is it because they broke out from Kiev together and have a deep relationship with each other? But then he thought about it,
No, Second Lieutenant Zhu Kewen, Dyubro, and Air Force Lieutenant Yegor also escaped from Kiev together. Why did he just ask these people casually and not ask any more questions?
With this question, Chulsin asked curiously: "Comrade Captain, why do you care so much about Romanov?"
Sokov was stunned by Chursin's words. When he was thinking about how to answer, Second Lieutenant Konstantin came over and said to Sokov: "Comrade Captain, the newly withdrawn comrades basically don't carry dry food. You see
, should we give some of our soldiers to them?"
"Second Lieutenant, this is what it should be." Sokov wanted to escape completely. He felt that the encirclement would take a long time. He couldn't favor one and let these newly joined soldiers starve, so he said decisively: "Let's put it down."
We will give half of the dry food we carry to the new comrades, and when they are full, we will continue on our way."
When the new soldiers were sitting by the lake drinking water and eating, Vlasov walked up to Sokov and asked: "Captain Sokov, there are only so many people left around us, do you think we have any
Do you want to escape the German encirclement?"
Facing the question raised by Vlasov, Sokov was silent for a moment, and then said: "Comrade Commander, the soldiers around us come from different armies and have just lost the battle. I am afraid they are in a state of low morale.
Coupled with the lack of ammunition, if we have to fight the Germans, we may only end up with the entire army annihilated. Therefore, we must find ways to avoid the enemy and jump out from the gaps in the enemy's encirclement."
"We were walking in a hurry, and we didn't even have a map." Colonel Del said with a headache: "Wandering aimlessly in the forest like this, even if we don't meet the enemy, whether we can get out is still a problem."
Sokov thought to himself that it would be great if Dyubro was here. He was a hunter, and he would definitely not get lost in such a forest. But at the moment, Dyubro and Zhu Kewen were missing, and they could only find them from the soldiers around them.
A person who can know the way in the forest will prevent this small army from getting lost and being trapped in the forest.
Thinking of this, Sokov said to Vlasov: "Comrade Commander, we need to ask the soldiers around us to see if any of them are hunters or have been rangers. If there are these two kinds of people,
We will be more confident when we get out of the forest."
The words awakened the dreamer, and Sokov's words reminded Colonel Del. He quickly said: "I'm going to ask now to see if there are any hunters or rangers among the soldiers."
A few minutes later, Colonel Del picked out three former hunters and rangers from among the soldiers, and under their leadership, the small force set off on the road again.
At the same time, in the Kremlin in Moscow, Stalin, smoking a pipe, asked a general standing in front of him expressionlessly: "Has the contact with the 37th Army Headquarters not been restored yet?"
"Yes, Comrade Stalin." The general replied tremblingly: "We have tried every means, but we are unable to establish contact with the 37th Army Headquarters. According to my estimation, they may have encountered something unexpected."
Unexpectedly, it was this sentence that angered Stalin: "What I want to hear is an accurate answer, not your estimate. As long as the German army does not announce their victory, it means that the 37th Army has not been annihilated by the Germans, Vlasov
There is still the possibility of returning to Moscow."
The general knew that Vlasov was Stalin's favorite general, and his disappearance affected Stalin's heart. However, he was also worried. Seven or eight radio stations kept calling the 37th Army Headquarters, but there was no reply.
What's more, according to accurate information, the Yagotin area where the 37th Army Headquarters is located has been completely occupied by the Germans before noon today. There are only two reasons why Vlasov lost contact, he was either captured or sacrificed, and later
The possibility is even greater.
For a moment, Comrade General did not dare to express his opinions casually, lest he angered the Supreme Commander again, so he could only ask in fear: "Comrade Stalin, what should we do next? Continue to call the 37th Army Headquarters?"
"Of course, such calls should not stop before getting in touch with the 37th Army Headquarters." Stalin said: "Also, you send a telegram to Marshal Timoshenko and ask him to send troops in the direction of Yagotin.
Search troops to find Vlasov’s whereabouts.”
"Yes, Comrade Commander." The general agreed: "I will convey your wishes to Marshal Timoshenko immediately."
A quarter of an hour later, Timoshenko, who had just taken over as commander of the Southwest Front, received a telegram from the headquarters of the Supreme Command, which asked him to send personnel to search for Vlasov's whereabouts in the direction of Yagotin.
Timoshenko placed the telegram in front of Khrushchev and said with a serious expression: "Comrade Khrushchev, look, this is enough telegram to be sent to us from the headquarters of the headquarters, asking me to send a search force to
Looking for the whereabouts of General Vlasov, the commander of the 37th Army. What do you think we should do next?"
After reading the telegram, Khrushchev raised his head and said to Timoshenko: "Comrade Marshal, needless to say, we should definitely follow Comrade Stalin's order and send personnel to the direction of Yagotin to search for the whereabouts of General Vlasov.
.You know, he is Comrade Stalin's favorite general. If something goes wrong with him, the consequences will be very serious."
"I understand, Comrade Khrushchev." Timoshenko said, somewhat dumbfounded: "When I took over as commander of the Southwest Front, I once heard a rumor that since General Kilponos fought in the breakout
After his death in the battle, Comrade Stalin originally planned to let Vlasov serve as the new commander of the front army. It was precisely because he was trapped in the encirclement of the German army that this position fell on me by luck."
"How is this possible, Comrade Marshal." Major General Pokrovsky, the newly appointed chief of staff, said: "You are the Marshal, and General Vlasov is just a lieutenant general. How can you hold the position of commander of the front army?
?”
"There is nothing impossible about this, Comrade Chief of Staff." Khrushchev said: "Before the Battle of Kiev broke out, General Vlasov was just a commander of the mechanized army, but Comrade Stalin personally summoned him to Moscow.
Appointing him as the commander of the 37th Group Army and also the commander of the Kiev garrison shows how highly he is valued. Therefore, it should not be a rumor to appoint him as the commander of the front army."
When Pokrovsky heard that Vlasov was so valued by Stalin, if something really happened, the front army headquarters would probably be punished. He quickly said to Timoshenko: "Comrade Marshal, if you don't
If you object, I am willing to personally lead the search troops to the direction of Yagotin to find the whereabouts of General Vlasov."
Regarding Pokrovsky's self-recommendation, Timoshenko shook his head and said: "General Pokrovsky, don't forget your identity. You are the chief of staff of the front army, not a regimental commander or battalion commander. Such a dangerous thing
How can you lead the mission? Besides, the new front army headquarters has just been established, so I still need your full assistance."
Since Timoshenko said this, Pokrovsky naturally could no longer mention the matter of leading people to find Vlasov. He could only ask tactfully: "Comrade Marshal, what are your plans?"
Timoshenko looked at the map in front of him and thought about the question raised by Pokrovsky.
After a moment, he pointed to a location on the map and said: "Deploy a battalion of troops from here and go to the direction of Yagotin to find the whereabouts of General Vlasov. Chief of Staff Pokrovsky, you must warn the other party,
Go 20 to 30 kilometers deep at most, and if there is no whereabouts of Vlasov, withdraw immediately."
Khrushchev heard the implication of Timoshenko's words, nodded and said: "Yes, the enemy may soon launch an attack on our newly established defense line, and we should not distract our precious troops for a long time.
Therefore, a search area should be designated, and if the whereabouts of General Vlasov are not found there, they should end the search and return to their original base to prepare for a new round of German attacks."
Pokrovsky hesitated for a moment and asked cautiously: "Comrade Military Commissar, if we fail to find the whereabouts of General Vlasov, won't the High Command blame us?"
"Comrade Chief of Staff," Khrushchev looked up at Pokrovsky and said, "Let me remind you that finding the whereabouts of General Vlasov is indeed the task given to us by the base camp. But our main task is
It is to block the German attack and prevent them from rushing to Moscow. Do you understand?"
"Understood, Comrade Military Commissar." Pokrovsky replied quickly: "I immediately sent a telegram to the troops and asked them to find the whereabouts of General Vlasov."
Just when Pokrovsky was about to send a telegram to the front, Khrushchev stopped him again: "Comrade Chief of Staff, I wonder what area you plan to search in?"
"Of course, search along the railway or highway." Pokrovsky replied: "This is the fastest way to retreat."
Unexpectedly, after his words came out, Khrushchev shook his head and said: "Comrade Chief of Staff, if there is transportation, it is undoubtedly the fastest to retreat by railway or road. But have you ever considered it, Vlasov?"
If they had not died or become prisoners of the Germans, they might not have been able to find any means of transportation if they wanted to retreat."
Pokrovsky looked at Khrushchev and asked with a blank expression: "Then where will they retreat from?"
"Of course it's the forest." Khrushchev pointed to the map and said: "Although retreating by road or railway can reach our army's new defense area as quickly as possible, it is not the safest route and will be bombed by enemy planes along the way.
, as well as the attack by the airborne group. If Vlasov and the others are not sacrificed or become prisoners, the most ideal retreat route is to pass through the forest area, avoid the German blockade, and return to our army's defense zone."
Hearing Khrushchev's explanation, Pokrovsky immediately understood. He nodded and said: "Understood, Comrade Military Commissar, I will inform the search troops to search in the forest area and find a way to find Frasso."
Husband General."
"Also, there is a distance of almost two hundred roads from the Yagotin area to our defense front." Timoshenko interjected: "If they escape from the German encirclement through the forest area, they will have to walk for at least a week or even more.
A longer time. They retreated in a hurry, and they certainly would not carry much food with them. Therefore, before the search troops set off, they must carry a sufficient amount of food and medicine, and wait for them to meet up with General Vlasov and provide them with food in time.
Provide supplies.”
An hour later, an infantry battalion deployed in Belopoliye, carrying a sufficient amount of food and medicine, left its defensive position and entered the continuous forest to launch a search and rescue operation for Vlasov.
Before the battalion commander left, the regiment commander who assigned him the task specifically told him: "Major, your battalion's mission is to find the whereabouts of General Vlasov, the commander of the 37th Group Army, in the forest area. But the superiors considered that Vlasov
The loss of contact with General Vlasov was due to his death or capture. Therefore, your search operation is not indefinite. You only need to go deep into the forest area for twenty or thirty kilometers. If you have not found the whereabouts of General Vlasov,
Just withdraw immediately. Do you understand?"
"Understood, Comrade Commander." The battalion commander assured the commander: "Our battalion will definitely find a way to find Vlasov."
Since the vanguard of the German army had been discovered near the search area, the battalion commander did not disperse after leaving the defense area with his battalion. He still entered the dense forest as a battalion unit and launched a search operation.
Vlasov, Sokov and others knew nothing about the search operation carried out by the Southwest Front. Under the leadership of three soldiers, they advanced in the northeast direction. Along the way, from time to time,
Most of the lone soldiers I met on the ground had escaped from the Yagogin area.
Faced with such stragglers, Sokov naturally would not let them go easily. He incorporated them into his own army and appointed Constantine as his deputy to manage these soldiers. These soldiers were originally walking alone in the forest.
I don't know if I have the ability to get out of this forest. Whenever I see someone willing to take me in, I naturally want it.
When they fled into the forest on the 26th, Vlasov and others had only a dozen soldiers with them. By the dusk of the 27th, the force had expanded to hundreds of people.
The expansion of his troops gave Sokov the confidence that even if he encountered the enemy's airborne team, he would still be able to fight and even annihilate them. But while he was happy, he also had something to worry about, and that was the original
There was enough food for five days, but as the number of people increased, it was barely enough for three days. If they could not get out of this vast forest within three days, the soldiers would face starvation, which was really a worrying thing.