He was determined to pick up the ready-made Sokov, but he never dreamed that his troops would have the opportunity to go to the battlefield so soon.
After receiving the notice from Konev, Sokov hesitated for a moment and asked, "Comrade Commander of the Front Army, I want to ask, can I add an artillery unit to us?"
Konev had long guessed that Sokov would definitely put forward conditions to him after receiving the order. He thought that the other party would ask him to replenish his troops and tank troops, but what he needed was artillery. He asked in confusion: "Comrade Sokov, why do you need artillery?"
"Comrade Commander of the Front, as far as I know, the most intense area of ​​war now is outside the city of Prokholovka." Sokov explained to Konev: "If we are assigned to the command of the Voronezh Front, I think the first order issued by General Vatukin is to order our troops to move towards Prokholovka and assist friendly forces in repelling the enemies outside the city of Prokholovka. Since we want to attack, if we do not have the cover of artillery and rely solely on infantry to attack, we will pay a huge price."
Konev was silent about Sokov's request, because shortly after Vasilevsky called him, he received another call from Antonov on behalf of the Supreme Command, ordering Major General Rezorov's 47th Army, Major General Obkhov's 3rd Army of Mechanized Guards, and Lieutenant General Solomatin's Tank Soldier to carry out joint assault from the north to eliminate the enemy group that was heading towards Korocha, and then towards the Oskor River.
The battles faced by these three troops would be extremely cruel, so Konev planned to allocate artillery units directly under the Front for them to use. Unexpectedly, Sokov also proposed the need for artillery, which made him a little embarrassed. If you give it, it will inevitably weaken the attack power in the north; if you don't give it, Sokov's troops are mainly infantry, but they will inevitably pay a heavy price to deal with the mechanized German troops.
"Comrade Sokov," Konev felt that this matter needed to be carefully considered and hesitantly could not make a decision. He said hesitantly: "As for artillery, after I discuss with other front leaders, I will give you a positive answer."
"Okay, Comrade Commander of the Front Army." Sokov knew that Konev was not having a good time now, and it was probably not easy for him to get artillery from his hands. Since the other party took the initiative to consider it, it proved that there was still a glimmer of hope, so he nodded and said, "I'll wait for your reply."
As soon as Sokov put down the phone, he ordered Sameko: "Chief of Staff, call several division commanders and order them to rush to the command center to have a meeting immediately. We have a big battle."
Now the 27th Army controls a large area south of the Pushore River. Except for the relatively bad situation in the 188th Division, the commanders and soldiers are basically in a state of nothing to do in the rest of the areas. After receiving the notice from Samek, the commanders of each division immediately rushed to the headquarters as quickly as possible.
"Comrades in Command," Sameko said to everyone when he saw that all the division commanders had arrived, "We're having a meeting now."
"Comrade Chief of Staff," Colonel Shechtmann, the commander of the 254th Division who had basically not been able to get a war since the beginning of the battle, could not wait to ask: "Are we summoning to have a meeting today? Are you preparing for a big war?"
"You guessed it right, comrade Colonel." Sameko smiled and said to Shechtmann: "The troops do have big actions, and we must take the initiative to attack the Germans."
"Start an attack on the enemy?" Hearing this news, the happiest thing was Colonel Koida, the commander of the 188th Division. His troops were stationed in the south for several days and had been fighting defensive battles, which made him feel particularly frustrated. When he heard Sameko saying he wanted to launch an attack, he immediately rushed to say: "This is really great. The Sixth Armored Division in front of us has been crippled. As long as we turn the defense into offense, it is only a matter of time to eliminate them."
"Col. Koida," Sokov interrupted as soon as he finished speaking: "We will not attack the German 6th and 18th Armored Divisions for the time being, lest we stimulate the 48th Armored Army and the 52nd Infantry Army in the northwest. Once they turn around and attack us, we will have to fight in both directions at the same time."
The division commanders who came to attend the meeting all calmly and listened quietly to what Sokov said: "Col. Koida's 188th Division, Col. Kokhlov's 182nd Division, as well as an infantry brigade and two marine brigades, continue to stick to the existing positions. Major General Fomenko's 84th Brigade and Major General Gritzenko's 384th Brigade are responsible for the defense tasks between the Pshore River and the southern positions..."
Koida was a little disappointed when she learned that his troops had to stick to their existing positions. But then she thought, if Sokov really commanded his troops to attack outside Prokholovka City, the enemy in the northwest would definitely pounce on him. At that time, she would need to rely on herself and Colonel Khokhlov's troops to block the enemy's attack and ensure that the offensive in the east was progressing smoothly.
After Sokov explained that those troops would hold their positions, he said to Shechtman: "Comrade Colonel, this time I plan to let your troops attack the enemies outside Prokholovka under the cover of a tank brigade. How about it, are you confident to complete the mission?"
Shechtman knew that the German troops in the west of Prokholovka were the Skeleton Division and the Flag Guard Division, who had suffered losses under Sokov's men, so he stood up and patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, comrade Commander, it's no problem to deal with two defeated men."
"Comrade Colonel," it is good to have confidence, but if you underestimate the enemy, you will easily suffer a great loss. Sokov specifically reminded the other party: "Although we annihilated the Imperial Division and have also severely damaged the Skeleton Division and the Flag Guard Division, if we relax our vigilance, we may suffer a great loss."
"I understand, Comrade Commander." Shechtmann said somewhat disapprovingly: "We will definitely remain vigilant enough when fighting these enemies."
Sokov found out from the other party's expression that he did not take the 2nd SS Armored Army troops seriously. Sokov understood that no matter how much he said, the other party would probably not remember it in his heart. After a brief thought, he made a decisive decision: "In order to ensure victory in the offensive, I am ready to act with the 354th Division."
As soon as Sokov's words were spoken, they immediately caused Sameko's panic: "Comrade Commander, the war in the east is fierce, and if you want to go, you may encounter danger."
"It's okay, it's not my first day on the battlefield. I know how to protect myself." Sokov waved his hand and said, "I believe that my own actions can boost morale."
Sameko had long been accustomed to Sokov's character. Seeing that he had already made up his mind and knew that it would be useless to persuade him, he could only nod and said helplessly: "Okay, Comrade Commander, since you have made a decision, you must pay attention to protecting your safety in the next battle."
"Comrade Commander," saw that Sokov decided to personally command the troops to attack the enemy outside Prokholovka City, General Poluboyorov, the chief of the tank army, stood up and said, "I think if you want to use tanks, you can fully mobilize the 85th and 483rd Battalions of independent tanks directly under the regiment. If I remember correctly, they have not participated in any battles and are still in full force."
One word woke up the dreamer. Sokov just considered the use of tank troops to attack the Skeleton Division and the Flag Guard Division, but forgot that there were two independent tank battalions in his direct troops. Since Poluboyarov reminded him, he went with the flow and said: "General Poluboyarov, you are right. This time, you can indeed use these two independent tank battalions when you attack the enemy in the east. In this way, I don't have to disrupt your army's existing deployment."
"Comrade Commander," Sameko heard General Poluboyarov suggesting Sokov to use two independent tank battalions, and reminded Sokov: "The two independent tank battalions have only fifty tanks in total. One third of the old T-70 tanks, if they encounter a large number of German tanks, they may suffer a great loss."
"Comrade Chief of Staff, don't worry." Sokov thought to himself. The one or two hundred tanks of the Skeleton Division and the Flag Guard Division had probably lost most of the losses in the past two days of battle. The rest were still fighting with Rotmistrov's troops. He probably couldn't take action to deal with him. Even if the old tanks in the two tank battalions accounted for a considerable proportion, he was still sure to win: "The enemy's armored power was dragged outside the city of Prokorovka, which would not pose too much threat to us."
Sokov raised his hand and looked at his watch, saying to Colonel Shechtman: "Comrade Colonel, hurry back to the army immediately and let the commanders and fighters prepare everything before departure. Before dark, we will attack the enemy."
"Open the attack before dark?" Sokov's words confused Shechtman: "Comrade Commander, if you attack before dark, the battle will not last long and it will be dark. How can you fight then?"
"Comrade Colonel, don't forget that close combat and night battles are the strengths of our army." Sokov said proudly: "When it gets dark, the enemy tanks, planes and cannons will lose their effect. Then our infantry will be able to fully utilize our strengths and make the enemy dizzy."
In fact, there was no way for Sokov to order the troops to engage in night battles. The air support promised by his superiors has not been fulfilled until now; and this time, there was no artillery attack on the enemy outside Prokorovka City. If we follow the conventional offensive style, the final casualties will be very heavy. In order to avoid this situation, Sokov could only choose the night battle and melee battles that the Soviet army is best at.
After the meeting, while Shechtman went back to assemble the troops, Sokov sat at the table waiting for Konev's call. He thought to himself that if Konev could provide himself with artillery, even an artillery division or two self-propelled artillery regiments, his attack on the Skeleton Division and the Flag Guard Division could be carried out two or three hours in advance, and he would strive to resolve the battle before dark.
Although these two elite SS advisors can harden one or two armies of the Soviet army, as long as they meet their nemesis, their combat effectiveness will be greatly reduced. Unexpectedly, once their troops rush, the defense line established by the German army will collapse in an instant.
After sitting for more than an hour, Konev's phone call came, but waited for Shechtman's phone: "Comrade Commander, my troops have been assembled and can set off at any time."
"I understand." Sokov said lightly: "Wait, I will notify you when it's time to set off."
When Lunev saw Sokov's sad look, he asked tentatively: "Comrade Commander, are you still waiting for General Konev's call?"
"Yes." Sokov naturally would not hide his true thoughts from his deputy: "If artillery helps, our attack on the German army will be smoother."
"Comrade Commander, I have an idea, I don't know whether to say it or not."
"Military Commissioner, if you have any ideas, just say it."
"I look at the enemy-to-me situation on the map. The enemies outside Prokholovka are not only Skeleton Division and Flag Guard Division, but also Kenfu combat clusters. The enemy's strength is not weak." Lunev pointed to the map and said to Sokov: "I think you should deploy the second echelon. Once you attack the Skeleton Division and Flag Guard Division and are attacked from the flank of the Kenfu combat cluster, our second echelon can rush up in time to help you resolve the crisis."
"There is no need for this." Sokov shook his head and said, "If the enemy wants to destroy us, he must first have a good teeth. Otherwise, he will not only not be able to eat us, but may even break the front teeth."
Sokov raised his hand and looked at the watch. He felt that it was getting late. Konev's phone call was delayed, proving that the other party's great concept could not provide artillery for himself, so he stood up and said to Sameko: "Chief of Staff, inform Colonel Shechtman and the two tank battalion commanders that it's time for us to set off."
After the order was reached, the troops that had been on standby for a long time began to move towards Prokholovka in the east. Colonel Shekhtman, who was walking with Sokov, asked Sokov tentatively: "Comrade Commander, will we advance east with such a great fanfare, and will the enemy be discovered?"
Chapter completed!