Chapter 115 Defense Master
Yelets, Bryansk Front Command, Rokossovsky sat behind his desk and raised his wrist to look at his watch again. This was the nth time he had looked at his watch in the past few hours.
Four and a half hours had passed since he received the call from Novosili, and he still had not received a call from Chibisov. In other words, the 38th Army may have lost the opportunity to reach the combat position before the Germans.
Rokossovsky was very angry at this time. For the first time in his life, he felt that he had lost control of the troops he commanded. First, the 5th Tank Army was attacked by the Germans, but never tried to contact the front headquarters. Then the 38th Army was slow to respond and could not effectively execute the orders issued by the front headquarters. That was not all. Later, there was chaos in the Novosili direction. A German paratrooper battalion carried out an airborne landing in the area, and the troops there did not notice it until the Germans launched an offensive against the city.
All these troubles piling up on his desk gave Rokossovsky the idea of making large-scale personnel adjustments to the front.
Of course, what made Rokossovsky most angry was the incompetence of the communications corps. As the commander of the front, he still did not understand the battle situation in the direction of Noziarsky town.
If he did not know the situation in the direction of Noziarsky, how could he report to the Supreme Command? How could he make a second application to Comrade Stalin for retreat? Imagine if he submitted an application again and Comrade Stalin asked: What is the situation in Noziarsky? What should he answer? Should he say "I don't know yet"? If he really answered like that, it is estimated that Stalin's first order would be to remove him from his post.
In fact, by this time, before receiving Chibisov's call, Rokossovsky had already given up hope for the defense of Noziarsky. After all, four hours had passed. Who could expect the infantry brigade commanded by Yuri to hold out there for so long? This was an unlikely task.
Perhaps, it was time to make a decision. Although he knew that this retreat would have a significant impact on his command career, Rokossovsky did not dare to gamble with the fate of the entire front. What's more, this gamble was destined to result in more losses than wins.
Staring at the phone on the desk, Rokossovsky hesitated for a few minutes, and finally reached out to take the phone, holding the receiver with one hand and holding the handle with the other.
“Boom boom boom…”
Just as he was about to crank the handle, hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the open office door. The footsteps came very quickly from far away, and soon the figure of Chief of Staff Malinin flashed in.
"The battle in Nozyaalsky is still going on!" Comrade Malinin, who was always calm, rushed into the room and shouted loudly before he could even stand firm. "The battle in Nozyaalsky is still going on! Comrade Colonel Yuri Arkhipovich is holding the line there! We still have a chance! Konstantin, we still have a chance!"
Malinin was obviously too excited, his big face turned red, and he even forgot to address the commander as a respectful title.
"What did you say?" Rokossovsky's hand trembled and the receiver slipped onto the table.
"We still have a chance. The Germans have been blocked in Noziarski. Air Force 1 just called and said that their fighter fleet has already been involved in the battle on the Kosomovo Heights there," Malinin said quickly.
Rokossovsky was stunned. It was obvious that he could hardly believe this completely unexpected news.
"Where are Chibisov's troops?" However, he quickly calmed down and asked quickly.
"They have already attacked Pochezimovo, near Novosili," Malinin answered immediately.
"Tell him right away that I need his tanks to advance to Noziarsky within 20 minutes ," Rokossovsky didn't even look at the map. He knew exactly where Pochezimovo was. "Also, order the 28th Mechanized Army to launch an assault on the Germans from the Perikir direction and attack the enemy's flank."
"Yes, Comrade Commander, I will convey the order immediately!" Malinin agreed and turned to leave.
"Just use the phone here. We must cherish every minute now." Rokossovsky came out from behind the desk to make room for Malinin, and walked directly to the wall where the map was hung.
As long as Nodziarsky was not lost, they would have a chance to hold Novosili. No, after checking the map again, Rokossovsky's spirits suddenly lifted. Now, it was not only about defending Novosili, he also had to annihilate the German army that launched an offensive against Novosili and push the front line back to the banks of the Korobka River.
The previous situation was that if the German army captured Novosili, then its offensive forces would have completely broken through the Bryansk Front's defense line and advanced deep into the rear where the front lacked reserve forces, thus creating an opportunity to outflank the Bryansk Front's western group.
But the current situation is that the German offensive was frustrated near the town of Noziarsky. They failed to break through the front's defense line, but formed a salient about 20 to 25 kilometers inside the front's defense zone. On the left wing of this salient is the Soviet 28th Mechanized Army, and on the right wing is the 38th Army that quickly followed up.
At this time, if the 28th Mechanized Army could launch a decisive attack in the direction of Perikilbe and break through the defense line of the German salient, then this German unit would be surrounded by the Soviet army and would find it difficult to turn around.
However, in order to successfully implement this annihilation plan, the Bryansk Front still needs the cooperation of the Southwestern Front, so as to form a superior force in this area and squeeze the German army's retreat.
The idea of the Novosili-Perikirbe Campaign quickly took shape in Rokossovsky's mind, but it was too late to produce a feasibility report. Therefore, Rokossovsky decisively called the Supreme Command, reporting to Comrade Stalin on the latest progress of the battle and expounding on his own combat plan.
When he received the call, Stalin was still waiting for Zhukov to give him practical advice, but to his surprise, he no longer needed this advice. After consulting Zhukov and Vasilevsky on the new combat plan proposed by Rokossovsky, Stalin quickly approved it.
At this moment when everyone was surprised, Yuri was forgotten. Of course, no one would care to consider him at this time.
Chibisov's tank troops successfully entered the Kosomovo Heights when it was getting dark and immediately engaged in the battle. At this time, only 127 soldiers commanded by Tolonin, including the wounded, survived. In the nearly 5 hours of fighting before, more than 1,800 soldiers were killed. Even if it was a victory, it was a tragic victory.
However, if we raise our sights and leave the Kosovomo Heights to look at the overall situation, this was a huge victory. The deaths of nearly two thousand soldiers resulted in the consolidation of the Korobka River defense line of the Bryansk Front. At the same time, it also shattered the German army's plan to re-attack Tula and threaten Moscow before the arrival of summer.
Yuri, who was seriously injured, was evacuated from the battlefield as soon as possible and sent to the field hospital in Novosili. However, his injuries were too severe, especially in the abdomen, where shrapnel injured the lung lobes. The field hospital did not have the ability to treat such injuries.
Rokossovsky learned that Yuri was seriously injured that evening. He first arranged a flight to Moscow and then reported to the Supreme Command.
Comrade Stalin was very impressed with Yuri. After listening to Rokossovsky's report and learning that this young man blocked a German armored division for nearly 5 hours with a mere infantry brigade without any heavy firepower, and wrote about the situation of the war, he personally ordered Rokossovsky to arrange a plane to send Yuri to Moscow immediately. Subsequently, Stalin personally ordered Malenkov to dispatch the best experts to the Moscow State Hospital on standby within two hours.
At 9 o'clock that evening, the plane carrying Yuri arrived in Moscow. Afterwards, he was admitted to the National Hospital under the arrangement of relevant personnel. The team of experts responsible for his treatment came from major hospitals in Moscow, and each of them was an expert in the relevant field.
Also at 9 o'clock in the evening, the German troops that launched an offensive in the direction of Novosili began to retreat in the direction of the Korobka River, but for them, this retreat was obviously a failure. In the direction of the Korobka River, two infantry divisions of the Soviet 28th Mechanized Army cut off the retreat of the German army. On the south bank of the Korobka River , a cavalry army of the Southwestern Front also took advantage of the night to attack the German troops in that direction. Although they failed to break through the German defense line, they played an effective role in diversion. At the same time, the combat aircraft of the Air Force 1st Group were dispatched continuously at night to launch continuous air strikes on the German landing site on the north bank of the Korobka River.
At 10 o'clock in the evening, all four pontoon bridges built by the German army on the Kolobka River were blown up. The German troops crossing the river lost their last hope of retreat and were completely surrounded by the Soviet army.
At 9 o'clock the next morning, after more than ten hours of fierce fighting, the German troops gave up resistance and the remaining 4,600 German soldiers formally surrendered to the Soviet army. The Battle of Novosibirsk officially ended.
Later that day, at the Moscow State Hospital, after more than ten hours of rescue, although Yuri had not yet woken up, he was out of danger.
