After finishing the call with Sokov, Krelov called his chief of staff and said with a serious expression: "Comrade Chief of Staff, the enemy has occupied the town of Bile. Colonel Sokov intends to command his troops to counterattack the enemies occupying the town at 2 pm. I want to ask, which unit is closest to Bile?"
"The 379th Infantry Division stationed in Lutuheen," the chief of staff pointed to the map and reported to Krelov: "Their defense zone is 20 kilometers away from Lugansk and 18 kilometers away from the town of Bile."
"How long does it take for the division to complete the assembly and put into battle?"
"I guess it will take about three hours."
After listening to the time the Chief of Staff said, Krelov thought in his mind: it would take three hours to assemble the troops, and another hour to rush over. By the time he entered the combat area, it was almost four o'clock in the afternoon and could not even catch up with the troops of the 41st Guard Division.
"No, comrade Chief of Staff, we can't wait that long." Krelov told the Chief of Staff: "I give the troops an hour to assemble, so that they must arrive at the designated combat area around two o'clock."
"Comrade Commander," the chief of staff showed a embarrassed expression on his face when he heard the order: "The division's troops are very scattered and it takes a long time to assemble. Three hours is the most conservative estimate."
"Now the Germans have occupied the town of Bile. If we delay for a longer time, the more German troops will have in the town and the stronger the defense will become." Krelov said: "If we really wait four hours before putting the troops into battle, we may pay a heavier price."
"What should I do?" asked the chief of staff at a loss: "You know, it is absolutely impossible to complete the assembly of troops in one hour."
"Chief of Staff, I know that it is unrealistic to get a division to assemble within an hour." Seeing the Chief of Staff's helpless look, Krelov said to him: "But we can continue to assemble in regiments, and go to the combat area one by one."
"Only one regiment is invested at a time?" the chief of staff asked unexpectedly: "Will our troops become too weak?"
"No, you know, we are not fighting alone." Krelov continued: "Sokov's guard division will launch an attack on Bile Town at 2:00 pm. Even if we only spend an hour completing the assembly and another hour rushing to the battlefield. When we reach our goal, it may be more than the agreed time."
After Krelov's explanation, the Chief of Staff immediately understood: "Comrade Commander, if Colonel Sokov's troops had already launched an attack on the German army before our troops entered the battle, the enemy's attention would definitely be on their side. In this way, even if we invested less troops, it would probably not become the focus of the German attack."
"You are right." Seeing that the Chief of Staff understood his intentions, Krelov nodded with satisfaction. "I have had a long time dealing with Colonel Sokov and knew that his troops were very strong in combat. If we entered the battlefield later than them, I am afraid that the German army would have been defeated by them. At that time, our troops might be able to pick up a ready-made one, completely eliminate or drive away the enemies occupying the town."
…………
After putting down the phone, Sokov excitedly said to his colleagues standing around him: "Comrades, let me tell you good news. General Krelov has agreed to send an infantry division to assist our attack."
"Comrade Commander," Sidolin was naturally happy to learn that the 21st Army would send a division to participate in the war, but he also raised his concerns: "The two divisions should have a unified command in joint combat. Otherwise, if they fight on their own, it would be difficult to repel the enemy in a short time."
"Chief of Staff, what you said makes sense." Sokov had long thought of the issue that Sidolin was worried about: "If you want to drive the enemy out as soon as possible, the two teams that fight together must have a unified command. Otherwise, once they fight, they will be in chaos, which will give the enemy an opportunity. Therefore, I plan to command this battle myself."
"Comrade Commander, the frontier is too dangerous." Hearing that Sokov wanted to go to the frontier again, Sidolin hurriedly dissuaded: "You should stay at the command of the division headquarters."
"Yes, Misha." Bi Lei continued, "It's too dangerous ahead. As the commander of the first division, you should stay in the division headquarters to command the battle." After saying this, he recommended himself, "Anyway, I plan to lead two tank battalions to fight in person, and I think I'll be the commander."
"Comrade Deputy Division Commander, stop arguing with me." Sokov waved his hand and said, "The situation on the battlefield is changing rapidly. How do you stay in a tank? I think I will command this battle."
"But, Comrade of the Division," Cidolin reminded Sokov again: "The division commander who is probably coming is a general. By then, his rank is higher than yours, so you can only obey his command."
"Even a general, there is nothing to worry about." Sokov waved his hand and said confidently: "You know, there are not many generals in the combat cluster established in the later stages of the Stalingrad Defense War. Don't worry, General Krelov will arrange it in advance and will not let us fight together and fight together."
Sokov spoke with confidence, but he was not at all in his heart. He knew that the command was chaotic and fighting on the battlefield was a disadvantage of the Soviet army. However, in order not to affect the morale of the troops, he could only say this with a slightest slightest. He raised his hand and looked at his watch, and said, "It's getting late, prepare to set off."
At 155 pm, Sokov received a call from Bere from the tank: "Misha, my two tank battalions have all entered the attack position."
"When three red signal flares rise in the sky, the tank troops you command launched a charge and guided the infantry to rush to Bile Town." Sokov was worried that Beretre rushed too hard, so he rushed to the front of all the tanks, and he also specifically told him: "Comrade Deputy Division Commander, you are the commander, don't rush in front like ordinary tank soldiers, do you understand? If something happens to you, the entire tank troops will fall into chaos because they lose unified command."
Chapter completed!