The battle ended quickly. Gao Cheng, commander of the reconnaissance battalion directly under the army, found Chen Bannian who was writing a battle report.
"Brigadier Chen, we just interrogated those prisoners. According to their intelligence, their designation is the Independent Reconnaissance Battalion of the Soviet Uzbekistan Combat Corps. Their mission is to guard the border area between Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. If we are found
Please report your whereabouts as soon as possible."
Speaking of this, Gao Cheng grinned: "The Maozi soldiers were obviously surprised by our raid. They thought it was impossible for us to cross the desert to get here in the foggy weather. When these Maozi soldiers saw the fog, they stayed in the camp and didn't want to get up.
We made dumplings!"
"Haha, God is on our side!"
Chen Bannian said happily: "Mao Zibing doesn't know that we have a high-altitude airship for positioning. This fog is nothing to us."
Then Chen Bannian said distressedly: "The Soviets are really cruel. All the publicly published maps, even the military maps held by the Far East Military Region, the roads and bridges on them are all fictitious and make people confused about the real ones.
Fake, so we moved forward according to the map. There were many places marked with roads.
There are basically cliffs and dangerous mountains, but the Gobi and deserts on the map are smooth roads with roads. Now I admire the Soviets’ sense of confidentiality. Battalion Commander Gao, have you figured out where we are now?
, are there any enemies nearby? How many enemies are there?"
"Got it!"
Gao Cheng immediately replied: "According to the prisoners of war, we are now located in the forest at the mouth of the Amu Darya River in the south of the Aral Sea. The Amu Darya River brings abundant river water from the Pamir Plateau and forms a river intersection area here before entering the Aral Sea.
, the moisture content in the land is much higher than in other places, so such a large forest is formed on the edge of the desert.
"Near us, there is the Turan First Army of the Soviet Combat Corps of Uzbekistan. This army has three infantry divisions, as well as army-affiliated artillery regiments and artillery units. They are distributed in a ring around the forest. One of the divisions is very close to us.
, they are stationed in the town of Daukala, which is about ten kilometers southeast of us. The town has a population of about five thousand people. There is another important situation..."
Gao Cheng continued: "According to the prisoners' confessions, there are no troops guarding the town of Kornokazakdarya, which means that it is a completely empty town. In addition, those people also claimed that there is a fuel depot in the town.
It has stored half of the fuel reserves of the Soviet Uzbek Corps, which is enough to support our two front armies for a month."
"What? You said there's a lot of fuel stored there?"
After listening to Gao Cheng's report, stars immediately appeared in Chen Bannian's eyes. For mechanized troops, fuel means everything. Ever since the troops left Xufu, the entire army has been troubled by the problem of fuel.
On the way north into Mongolia, the thousands of oil tankers accompanying the troops were already empty. If it had not been for the large amount of coal obtained in Khovd,
The supply of chemical diesel and gasoline was probably paralyzed long ago. Later, they received assistance from the Far Eastern Army in Karaganda, and most of the oil tankers were filled with oil. However, as they traveled thousands of miles south to fight, the tankers now
One-third of the fuel has been used. Once the fuel supply cannot be found, as long as it persists for another ten and a half days, the army's offense and defense will have major problems.
Therefore, when he heard that there was fuel nearby, Chen Bannian almost danced with joy. He immediately waved to Major Zhang Yimin, the operations section chief next to him:
"Convey my orders immediately..."
Chen Bannian said loudly: "The entire brigade stopped repairs immediately and set off immediately! Our goal is the town of Kornokazakhdarya!"
Zhang Yimin was surprised: "Brigadier Commander, our mission is to serve as a frontline for the entire army and ensure that the roads are clear. If after we leave, the Soviet troops stationed in the town of Daukala quickly enter this dense forest, they will definitely attack us.
The movement of the main force poses a greater threat. I suggest you stick it here like a nail, and it is not too late to attack after rejoining the main force!"
"No, time does not wait for us, we must take action in advance!"
Chen Bannian explained: "The Soviet army still doesn't know our movements, so it launched an empty city strategy against an important supply base. However, once the Soviet army reacts, it will send heavy troops to defend it, and we will try to capture Keke."
The town of Ernokazakhdarya is very troublesome.
To take a step back, even if we can capture the town, if the enemy puts down a fire while retreating, or is simply hit by our artillery shells, the fuel base will be destroyed. Therefore, we must firmly grasp the initiative and advance in advance.
Seize this important supply point!"
At this point, Chen Bannian asked Gao Cheng: "Battle Commander Gao, how many brigades are following us?"
As the commander of the reconnaissance battalion directly under the army, Gao Cheng knew the location of each department well and answered without hesitation: "It is the second tank brigade commanded by General An Ruoyi. It is thirty-five kilometers away from us and is expected to enter soon."
Estuary Jungle Area.”
Chen Bannian nodded: "Call the Second Brigade immediately, tell them the exact location of the Soviet army, and let them take over our mission!"
After saying that, Chen Bannian put on a camouflage-colored steel helmet and waved to everyone: "Everyone get on the bus! The target is Kornokazak Darya Town, move forward!"
...
"What? A brigade went to capture the town of Kornokazakhdarya, and there is a Soviet division to the southeast of us?"
Major General An Ruoyi, commander of the Second Brigade of the First Tank Corps, who was sitting in the armored command vehicle, was a little surprised when he heard the news from Chen Bannian's brigade at the front station. He quickly asked Major Qiao Chongqing, chief of the operations section, to bring him a specious book published by the Soviets.
Use the military map to carefully check the location of the Soviet troops.
According to the marching regulations, originally the gap between the two brigades should not exceed ten kilometers. However, due to the influence of heavy fog and the need to take care of the rear group, the second brigade had no choice but to slow down the pace of the march, causing the distance between the two brigades to widen.
It has reached about 35 kilometers. According to the marching speed of the mechanized troops, it will take at least two to three hours to get closer. Now I suddenly heard that about a division of Soviet troops was actually on the flank of the main force. This made An Ruoyi feel invisible.
threats.
"brigadier--"
Major Lin Longji, chief of the intelligence section, said: "The First Brigade had just defeated a Soviet independent armored reconnaissance battalion in the front. They interrogated the relevant personnel and believed that the supply of fuel was more important than anything else at the moment. Rather than waste a few hours, the First Brigade
Waiting for us to meet up in the woods ahead, waiting for the Soviet army to close the loopholes in the defense.
It is better to take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness and seize the supply base. According to the intelligence they provided, to the southeast of us is the 3rd Amu Darya Division of the Soviet Turan First Army. This division is mainly responsible for the front-line defense of the river mouth forest. It mainly relies on
It's the forest in front of us, and I've sent a reconnaissance team to verify the situation."
"Brigadier Chen is so courageous. He even left his back to the Soviet army without fear of being dumped."
An Ruoyi looked at the map carefully while talking, and after a while he said solemnly:
"This Soviet army poses a great threat to us. We must make every effort to eliminate them, otherwise it will affect our army's southward movement. Order the 8th Motorized Infantry Battalion to immediately rush to Kizi Town on the southern edge of the Hekou Forest.
Establish a line of defense from the front there to prevent the opponent's reinforcements from entering the forest to fight, and the rest of the troops will advance at full speed in the five o'clock direction! We must defeat the defenders and establish a complete line of defense before the enemy's main force discovers us!"
...
Two hours later, in the town of Daukala, southeast of the river mouth forest, at the headquarters of the Amu Darya 3rd Division of the Soviet Turan First Army, division commander Kudryash looked solemn and stood in front of the map and thought carefully.
Just now, the Third Division received two telegrams, one of which was from the military headquarters. Army Commander Vishnyaksky ordered him to immediately march to the river mouth forest. Among several small towns in the forest,
Defenses were built in advance to prevent the Far Eastern Army from attacking Uzbekistan at any time. Shortly afterwards, the division's direct reconnaissance force sent an urgent message saying that an unknown number of mechanized troops had appeared to the north of the third division. This made Kudry
Yash felt very nervous.
Kudryash immediately reported to the military headquarters that the Far Eastern Army might have gone south and was currently rushing toward him from the east of the forest, asking how to deal with it.
The military obviously did not expect the enemy to arrive so quickly, and there was no reply for a long time. This made Kudryash very uncomfortable and had to think of countermeasures.
"Division Commander, although the order from the military headquarters has not been issued yet, we must not move, otherwise the defense line of Daukala Town will be opened, and the enemy can march straight in. At the same time, we should also ask for help from the Second Division stationed in Qinbai. We are still
If you don’t know the number of enemies, it’s better to be cautious,” suggested Colonel Menschak, chief of staff of the division.
"Absurd! We have enough troops now. The heroic Soviet Red Army is invincible. It would be better if the Far East Army didn't come. Let them see how powerful we are. These hateful traitors, our Third Division will not let them succeed.
Yes!" Political Commissar Zahvoki looked disdainful.
Before being promoted to division commander, Kudryash was just a lieutenant company commander. Because of his strong ideological and political skills, he was selected to study in a military academy. After half a year of studying at the Frunze Military Academy, he was appointed as the division commander of the third division.
, he knew deeply that in the army, the political commissar and the internal affairs committee member played an extraordinary role. Although he was disgusted with Zahwoki's arrogance in his heart, he did not dare to show it on his face at all, and said with a smile:
"Comrade Political Commissar, the presence of the Far East Army here shows that the situation has seriously deteriorated. Now our army will encounter the enemy, and our division's plan to defend the river mouth forest has to be terminated. Do you think you should send a telegram to the Military Headquarters or even the Corps Headquarters?
Move the Second Division northward and stationed at Kizi Town on the southern edge of the forest. On the one hand, it will help us block the enemy's attack direction. On the other hand, once we repel the Far Eastern Army's attack, we can join forces and enter the river mouth forest, using complex
Terrain, dealing with the Far East Army!"
Kudryash knew that blockage was better than sparseness, so he could only try his best to exaggerate the enemy's strength and force the top management to make changes. Kizi Town is only fifteen kilometers away from Daukala Town. If the Third Division fights too fiercely by then, the reinforcements will also
Come faster.
Zakhvoki is not completely incompetent. He also knows that Uzbekistan, which is located in the Turan Lowlands, is in no danger and can only rely on the special terrain of deserts and forests to fight the enemy. With the current tank equipment of the Uzbek combat corps, if
It was really a mechanized unit of the Far Eastern Army. The chance of victory of that corps was very slim, so he agreed to work with the internal affairs committee member Major Kazarinsky to make suggestions to his superiors.
Perhaps the golden sign of political commissar is more popular, perhaps it is the strong deterrent power of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, or perhaps the military department has just come to a unified conclusion, and the superiors quickly called back and agreed to the third division's request, not only mobilizing the second division
Going north, the two independent regiments assigned to the military district in Nukus will also be assigned to the southern line of the river mouth forest to block the enemy's attack.
For a time, the towns on the southern line of Hekou Forest became the focus of competition between the two armies, and a large-scale battle was about to begin.