Steel Soviet Union

Stalin wanted to use a clean counterattack to crush the German army's sharp-edged intention to capture Stalingrad. Such a plan was indeed feasible on paper and the results were attractive, but it had almost reached the point where Zhukov could only live with his fingers. But I really don't want to do this.

After actually arriving in Stalingrad and inspecting the specific situation, Zhukov discovered that the current situation in Stalingrad was far worse than the data on paper documents he studied in Moscow.

None of the available troops on hand is fully equipped. The troops in slightly better condition can reach 70-80% of the full strength, and the troops in worse condition can not even reach half of the full strength.

Of course, the worst thing was the First Guards Heavy Tank Breakthrough Regiment led by Malashenko. As soon as Zhukov arrived at the headquarters, he heard Vasilevsky mention that Malashenko only had eight tanks left. The tragedy of the time.

To be honest, even Zhukov, who knew a lot about Malashenko, was quite surprised at the time. Although he was called a regiment in name, the actual force was larger than a division and only eight tanks were left to fight back. Such a thing If it is not a miracle, then there is nothing in the world that can be described as a miracle.

Zhukov told Stalin on the phone that the morale of the grassroots commanders of the army was high. This was indeed a fact without any bragging. For example, Malashenko, who was almost buried by the Germans, had repeatedly "made a comeback" and is still fighting against the Germans. Fight to death.

But Zhukov, who reported good news but not bad news, did not tell Stalin another thing: At present, many middle and senior commanders of the Stalingrad Front are full of worry and frustration about the outcome of the war. It can even be said that they are full of fear deep in their hearts.

After Zhukov arrived in Stalingrad and took office, he has been inspecting the frontline army-level headquarters for many days in a row. The commander of the 62nd Army Lopatin is the best example of not being strong-willed enough.

As the commander of the group army, Lopatin was brave enough during the battle, but in front of Zhukov, he repeatedly mentioned how ferocious and powerful the Germans were, and was full of pessimism about the future of the entire war situation.

The depressed Lopatin is obviously no longer suitable to serve as the commander of the 62nd Army, the main force. Zhukov is planning to replace him with Lieutenant General Chuikov, but it will take a few days for this process to be completed.

The grassroots commanders and soldiers below have high morale, but the middle-level commanders and fighters are full of gloom and their will is wavering.

Such a situation inevitably reminds Zhukov of the scene during the Battle of Kiev last year. If the situation continues, Zhukov will have to consider the possibility of repeating the same mistakes. Middle-level commanders play an extremely important role in the success or failure of the entire battle. Under such circumstances, you can almost guess what the result will be if you launch a counterattack with insufficient troops.

"The planned counterattack will not develop in such a good direction at all. Comrade Stalin is a little too optimistic."

No matter what Zhukov, who was secretly muttering to himself, thought, the upcoming counterattack against the German troops on the northern outskirts of the city was already a certainty, and he could no longer delay or change it.

To launch a counter-offensive that has actual results and is by no means a pure waste of troops, it is necessary to gather powerful offensive energy.

To achieve this goal, it is necessary to use the only remaining tank troops on hand. Zhukov has reason to believe that a pure infantry attack is tantamount to hitting a stone with an egg against the powerful German offensive group.

The slowly advancing infantry units will be pushed back by the German army before an actual breakthrough is achieved. Not only does this approach not work, but it will also waste a huge amount of troops. But where can we find a suitable tank unit to act as an offensive vanguard now? But it is a headache.

Zhukov, who sat at his desk and used a pencil and compass to draw on the battlefield map for more than an hour, had no other choice. When he was so poor that he had no troops to spare, he had no choice but to call the 1st Guards Heavy Tank Breakthrough Regiment. Department phone number.

"Is it me, Zhukov, Commissar Petrov? Please tell Malashenko to come to the front army headquarters immediately. There is a very important task to be assigned to him. Okay, I understand, that's it."

Holding a piece of chalk in his hand, Malashenko was teaching tactics to the regrouped stragglers below. He almost broke the blackboard with his fingers. His mouth was dry and he was about to pick up the kettle on the table. After taking two sips, Commissar Petrov trotted over without warning and then conveyed the order from Zhukov to Malashenko.

"Going to the front headquarters? Now? What happened?"

Political Commissar Petrov had no right to inquire and had no idea what tasks Zhukov was going to assign to Malashenko, so he could only respond by shaking his head.

"Okay, I'll go over there right now. The course has talked about interludes and detours. You can continue to talk and tell them our usual combat modes. Many people only have those rigid teaching materials in their heads and can't teach them at all. It will come in handy. Lavrinenko will come over later to take over, and he is now understanding the situation with Karamov."

Malashenko, who dropped the chalk in his hand and didn't even have time to wash it, gave a brief explanation to Political Commissar Petrov, and then immediately drove to the front army headquarters to report. Zhukov could call himself immediately at this time It's probably not a good thing to go over there.

Sure enough, when Malashenko arrived at the front army headquarters in a dusty journey to report, Zhukov, who was reviewing and approving the report on the delivery of supplies to the counterattack forces, was obviously not very interested.

"Sit down and talk, it may take some time. I'm calling you here not only to arrange combat tasks, but also to hear your opinions on some situations."

Since the "prophecies" Malashenko said last year about the German army have been gradually fulfilled this year, Zhukov's feeling of being incomprehensible to the young man Malashenko has become more and more subtle.

Most people who want to listen to Malashenko's suggestions have a try-it-your-luck mentality. Zhukov secretly feels that if Malashenko reveals even a little bit of divergent thinking, he might be able to suddenly find something. The new direction is just like the report on the German army submitted to Moscow last year.

After signing the document with a pen in his hand, he closed the folder and put it aside temporarily. After finishing his work, Zhukov turned around and his first words made Malashenko's heart skip a beat.

"The situation has changed, Malashenko. The 1st Guards Heavy Tank Breakthrough Regiment needs to participate in the upcoming northern counterattack. You will be transferred to the offensive direction of the 24th Group Army to serve as a vanguard force to participate in the operation."