Chapter 2768

"You are right." Timoshenko nodded after hearing this, and agreed: "You are right. I have been in the army for decades, and this is the first time that I have seen someone who can obtain a salary after just a few months of joining the army. A commander like this who holds the Order of Lenin must be given a more suitable position to match his talents.”

After the two reached an agreement, Khrushchev said to Sokov: "Captain Sokov, the two generals Vlasov and Potapov will take the plane we prepared for them later. Return to Moscow. After discussion, we decided to let you return to Moscow with them. Do you have any objections?"

Sokov learned that he could follow Vlasov and Potapov back to Moscow. He really wanted it, so how could he refuse? He nodded vigorously and replied decisively: "Comrade Military Commissar, I resolutely obey the orders of you and Comrade Marshal."

Half an hour later, five people, including Vlasov, Colonel Der, Nikolsky, Potapov and Sokov, boarded the transport plane bound for Moscow.

After the door was closed, Colonel Del looked outside and found that except for the taxiing transport plane, he saw no other aircraft. He quickly approached the pilot and asked loudly: "Comrade pilot, why are we the only one?" Doesn’t the plane have fighter escorts?”

The pilot turned his head and glanced at Colonel Del's rank, and then replied loudly: "Comrade Colonel, we don't have enough fighter jets. They are competing for air supremacy with the enemy in some important airspaces, so we have no aircraft escort this time." It might be. Seeing Colonel Del's concern, he added, "However, the route we are about to fly is in our military's defense zone, and the chance of encountering enemy aircraft along the way is very small."

After hearing this, Colonel Del returned to sit down next to Vlasov dejectedly, and said with a grimace: "Comrade Commander, I just asked the pilot, and he said that there will be no fighter escort along the way to Moscow this time."

But Vlasov didn't seem to care at all whether there were fighter escorts. After hearing this, he just waved his hand and said: "No, there is no one. From here to Moscow, it is now an area controlled by our army. As long as we are not too lucky, Well, you don’t have to worry about encountering enemy planes at all.”

At the same time, Khrushchev called Stalin and reported to him that Vlasov and Potapov returned to Moscow by plane.

Stalin was naturally very happy when he learned that Vlasov had returned to Moscow by plane. After all, he was his beloved general, and it was a gratifying good thing to escape from the German encirclement. However, when he heard Khrushchev mention Potapov's name, he couldn't help but frowned: "Comrade Khrushchev, General Potapov's 5th Army, performed extremely well in the battle to defend Kiev. Isn’t it too bad, otherwise how could the Germans occupy Kiev in such a short period of time?”

Facing Stalin's doubts, Khrushchev quickly explained to him: "Comrade Stalin, General Potapov cannot be blamed for the fall of Kiev. You know, the 5th Army under his command fought in the battle to defend Kiev. Very tenacious. But after the German army surrounded our troops in Kiev, Potapov first received the order to retreat, but when the troops began to retreat, he received the opposite order, telling him to hold Kiev at all costs.

It was precisely because these two completely opposite orders completely disrupted his deployment and gave the Germans an opportunity. If General Potapov's original style of play was followed, Kiev would have been able to hold on for at least a week or more under the fierce German attack, buying valuable time for our army to build new defenses in the direction leading to Moscow. . "

A month or two ago, if anyone had just mentioned that the Germans might rush to Moscow, Stalin would have scolded him, because in his view, this was a completely defeatist argument and would have a negative impact on military morale and morale. produce adverse effects. But when he heard Khrushchev mention this, he remained silent.

After a while, he slowly asked: "Comrade Khrushchev, how do you think we should arrange Potapov?"

"Comrade Stalin," Khrushchev replied cautiously: "I heard that the headquarters of the Supreme Command is planning to rebuild the Third Army. I think you can let him continue to serve as commander of the Third Army. Of course, if you have As for other suitable candidates, I have not mentioned it.”

"Yes, I do have other candidates for the position of commander of the soon-to-be-reconstructed Second Army Group."

: "Who is he, Comrade Stalin?" Khrushchev thought that the 5th Army was originally part of the Southwest Front Army. If it was reorganized at this time, the probability of being reorganized into the Southwest Front Army was relatively high. He wanted to find out in advance who the new commander was. Totally necessary: ​​"Do I know him?"

"Yes, Comrade Khrushchev, you know him." Stalin said: "He is Major General Lelyushenko, deputy director of the Automobile, Armored and Tank Headquarters. At today's meeting, we are going to appoint him as the 1st Infantry Guards. Army Commander, and then appoint him as the Commander of the Third Army after he adapts to his new identity."

When Khrushchev heard this, he immediately understood that Lelyushenko had no experience in commanding troops. It would obviously be inappropriate for him to directly serve as the commander of the group army, so he was arranged to serve as the commander of the 1st Guards Infantry Corps for a transitional period. , and after confirming that his ability is suitable for holding higher positions, he will be officially appointed as the commander of the 5th Army.

Although Stalin already had a suitable candidate for the position of commander of the 5th Army, Khrushchev was not willing to give up easily. He asked tentatively: "Comrade Stalin, are you really not going to consider Bota?" General Boff?"

"Potapov has been fighting for several months since the outbreak of the war. I believe he is exhausted both physically and mentally." Stalin waited for Khrushchev to finish speaking and then said calmly: "I think there is It is necessary to arrange for him to go to the hospital for a physical examination, find a place to rest for a few months, and then consider arranging his work. "

Hearing what Stalin said, Khrushchev fell silent. He knew very well that Stalin's arrangement was tantamount to hiding Potapov in the snow. As for when it would be activated, it was still unknown. Thinking of this, he silently mourned for Potapov for a few seconds.

"What about General Vlasov?" Khrushchev then asked.

"The establishment of the 37th Group Army was canceled this morning." Stalin said: "I plan to let him take a break for a while. As soon as a new unit is formed, he will be assigned a job immediately."

Although Potapov and Vlasov will not arrange work immediately after returning to Moscow. But the situations of the two are quite different. The former is facing the fate of being hidden, while the latter is just taking a real break.

"By the way, how is the situation there?" Stalin did not get entangled with Vlasov and Potapov, but directly changed the subject: "Can you defend Kharkov?"

Upon hearing Stalin's question, Khrushchev's face became serious. He quickly covered the microphone with his hand and said to Timoshenko: "Comrade Stalin asked us if we can hold Kharkov?"

Timoshenko frowned and thought for a moment, and then said in a firm tone: "Comrade Khrushchev, please tell Comrade Stalin that we will defend Kharkov even if we fight to the last man."

After hearing Timoshenko's reply, Khrushchev released his hand covering the microphone and said seriously: "Comrade Stalin, although the enemy is far more powerful than us, we will fight the enemy bravely, even if it is just Even if there is only one soldier left, Kharkov will never be abandoned.”

Stalin was very satisfied with Khrushchev's answer. He nodded with a smile and said: "Comrade Khrushchev, I feel reassured when I hear that you have such confidence. Although we lost in the Kiev area, The battle between us and the Germans is not over yet, and I hope you can teach the Germans an unforgettable lesson in the Kharkiv area.”

"Don't worry, Comrade Stalin." Khrushchev vowed: "We will definitely crush the Germans' attempt to occupy Kharkov."

After putting down the phone, Khrushchev looked at Timoshenko and asked: "Comrade Marshal, do you think we can really hold Kharkov?"

Timoshenko replied with a wry smile: "If the Germans are not allowed to occupy Kharkov within a week or two, I can still guarantee it. But if it takes a long time, it will be difficult to say."

"So, the loss of Kharkov is just a matter of time?"

"That's right." Timoshenko nodded and said: "You also know that the Southwest Front Army we took over was originally under-organized. In addition, the original leaders of the Front Army died in the breakout battle, which is said to be a great blow to the troops. It is impossible to have no impact on the morale and morale of the army. With insufficient troops, limited ammunition, disorganized troops and low morale, can they defeat the Germans who just won the Battle of Kiev? "

When the two were talking, no one may have thought that in the next two years, Kharkov would become a nightmare for the Soviet army. With the victory in the Battle of Moscow, many senior commanders began to underestimate the enemy and felt that the Germans were nothing more than that. Therefore, when organizing the second Battle of Kharkov, there were huge problems in combat deployment. As a result, after the battle began, the Soviet army won first and then lost. Not only did it suffer heavy losses, the German army also took the opportunity to launch a summer offensive and pointed its troops at Stalingrad, thus triggering this great battle known as the turning point of World War II.

The Third Battle of Kharkov was jointly launched by the Southwestern Front Army and the Voronezh Front Army after the victory in the Battle of Stalingrad. At that time, the Soviet army had an absolute advantage in terms of strength and equipment. No matter how you look at it, the Germans holding on to this area are doomed.

Who knew the final ending would be shocking. Facing the attack organized by Manstein, both the Southwestern Front Army and the Voronezh Front Army were beaten to pieces. After the battle, the idiot Vatutin, the commander of the Southwestern Front, escaped punishment because he was loved by Stalin and was transferred to the position of commander of the Voronezh Front. Another front commander, Golikov, became a scapegoat and was dismissed from his post by Stalin.

"Kharkov is our important tank production base." Khrushchev said: "If it really falls into the hands of the Germans, then the tanks used by our army can only pass through Leningrad and Stalingrad. The former is now surrounded by the Germans, and it may not be an easy task to transport the built tanks out of the city. The situation in Stalingrad is not much better. Transporting the tanks from such a long distance requires a waste of our precious transport capacity.”

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"You are right, Comrade Khrushchev." Timoshenko agreed with Khrushchev's statement: "Kharkov is an important industrial base for us. There are a large number of military-industrial enterprises here. If it really falls into the hands of the Germans, it will be a disaster for us. Therefore, we must do everything we can to defend this city."

When Timoshenko and Khrushchev discussed how to defend Kharkov, the plane flying to Moscow had successfully landed at a military airport in the south of the city after an hour and a half of flight.

As soon as everyone got off the plane, several cars drove in from the runway.

Seeing a car coming, Vlasov guessed that it should be to pick him up, so he stood there without moving.

Soon, several cars stopped in front of them.

The door opened, and a lieutenant colonel got out. After raising his hand to salute, he asked politely: "Excuse me, are you General Vlasov and General Potapov?"

"Yes, I am Vlasov." Hearing this, Vlasov stepped forward and replied: "He is Potapov."

"Comrade generals," the lieutenant colonel said to the two men, "I have been ordered to send you to the garrison headquarters first, and then go to the Kremlin tomorrow afternoon to meet Comrade Stalin."

Vlasov looked back at Colonel Del, Nikolsky and Sokov behind him, and then turned to the lieutenant colonel and asked: "Comrade Lieutenant Colonel, where are my colleagues and subordinates, how do you plan to accommodate them?"

"They will naturally live in the garrison headquarters." The lieutenant colonel waved his hand: "Get in the car."

Sokov was ecstatic when he learned that he and others would be sent to the garrison headquarters. The last time he came to Moscow, he was placed in the garrison headquarters, and the officers and soldiers he brought with him were incorporated into the garrison commander. This time, he will definitely see a lot of familiar faces. He even thought that if he could leave the garrison headquarters tomorrow, he would go to Victoria and have a good chat with her, and discuss privately how to return to the modern era.

Soon, the convoy arrived at the yard of the garrison headquarters.

When everyone got off the car, Sokov saw an acquaintance walking in the yard, so he shouted loudly: "Andre, Andre!"

Andre, who was not far away, was stunned when he heard someone calling him, but soon saw clearly that the person calling him was Sokov, and immediately walked over quickly and hugged Sokov. He patted Sokov's back and asked excitedly: "Sokov, thank God, I'm so happy to see you alive."

"Why, did you think I was dead?"

"I heard that our troops deployed in the Kiev area were annihilated by the Germans." Andrei looked around and found that they were all important people. He was worried that what he said would be heard by the other party and he would be criticized, so he lowered his voice and said: "You followed Vlasov to Kiev, it would be strange if I didn't worry about you getting into trouble."