Chapter 1035 I Am Who I Am

Time passed day by day in relative peace and tranquility. Every day that was considered a possible attack by the German army was spent peacefully. The undercurrent hidden under the tranquil appearance was enough to make everyone feel uneasy, and Malashenko himself was no exception.

"It's already July 4th, and the Germans haven't made any moves yet. What do you think they are planning?"

Faced with the question raised by Political Commissar Petrov, Malashenko, who was scratching his simple dinner on the plate, shook his head.

"Maybe they are accumulating tanks. Didn't Manstein get a lot of new equipment? Or they are doing something else. Who knows? I'm not a bug in the Germans' stomach. How can I know what they are planning?"

In the existing history, the reason why the German army delayed the "Fortress" operation, that is, the Kursk Offensive, was because the monthly production of 50 and 25 Panthers and Tigers respectively could not meet the needs of the operation. The few new equipments at hand could not bring about a qualitative change. We must be patient and accumulate more new vehicles. Only by using them together can we win the victory in one fell swoop.

Based on this, Malashenko originally thought that the German offensive should start on the 1st or 2nd. For this reason, he went to inspect the troops every day to ensure that the four tank battalions responsible for the main battle and one self-propelled artillery battalion were all ready to go to the front line at any time.

Malashenko and Lavrinenko have become the busiest people in recent times. Including Major Valosha, a total of five combat battalion commanders did not dare to neglect them, for fear that they would be caught by the two brigade commanders and used as spinning tops. If that happened, it would become a joke of the whole brigade.

Although they were not fighting, the entire Stalin Guards 1st Heavy Tank Brigade could feel an almost suffocating atmosphere.

There were fewer soldiers who gathered in groups to chat. Almost all the soldiers were either training or maintaining their equipment. Those who had already done maintenance continued to do so and wiped the car with a rag. In short, they could not stay there idle and be caught. In the end, even the armor of the new tank was polished to a shiny silver and reflective.

But even in such a situation, Malashenko, who was ready to fight the Germans at any time, still miscalculated.

Not only did the Germans not launch an attack on the first and second days, but the following three and four were also mediocre. This made Malashenko, who was already ready for everything except the east wind, inexplicably feel a sense of frustration that "I took off my pants and you showed me this", and the preparations he had started in advance seemed to be in vain.

"It's really strange. The amount of new equipment should be quite a lot. What are these Germans waiting for?"

If Malashenko, who had a lot of question marks on his head, knew that the Germans were busy repairing the car and there were not enough new tanks to launch an attack, his jaw would drop to his feet.

But the truth is often so funny and beyond imagination. It has always been like this. Many things you can't expect are even more ridiculous than the soap operas made by Korean sticks.

He picked up the last piece of luncheon meat sent by the Americans on the plate with a fork and put it into his mouth. While chewing this food, which was already a high-quality meal, Malashenko made up his mind. In the days to come, no matter what, he must be prepared. Even if it's in vain, he can't wait for the Germans to attack and still sleep and brag throughout the brigade.

Some things are better prepared but not used than to find that they are not prepared at all when they are needed.

The "condom law" proposed by the Americans in the 21st century makes sense if you think about it carefully.

"No matter when the Germans attack, our brigade's preparations must continue. Tomorrow morning I will go to Kulbarov's battalion, and Lavri will go to monitor his self-propelled howitzer battalion. The remaining battalions are left to you. Catch those who are absent-minded and lazy and pull them out as examples and punish them severely. Now is not the time to be merciful."

Political Commissar Petrov, who has a much smaller appetite than Malashenko, had already finished his share of food. He wiped his mouth, shook his head and smiled and replied.

"I heard a joke when I went to Karamov today. He told me that there were new soldiers in his battalion complaining that the brigade commander ordered his comrades around like capitalists ordering workers around. After completing the day's tasks, he felt that his hands did not belong to him when he lay down at night."

"As a result, this new soldier was called by Karamov to maintain 28 tank engines in one day. He was not allowed to sleep until the work was done. He had to reflect on his wrong remarks about the brigade commander during the work. I heard that this soldier cried until almost midnight before he finished the work. Karamov also specifically ordered that whoever dared to help him would be given more than 20 engines. It was only at night that someone dared to help him secretly."

A cigarette after dinner is better than a living god.

Malashenko, who was puffing smoke, shook his hand and closed the German lighter he had seized. Then he grinned and answered the political commissar.

"Someone dared to help this new soldier, which shows that the cohesion and unity of the field maintenance battalion, as well as the political and ideological education, are still very good. At least they will not abandon their comrades, even if they are new. This is the most important thing."

"If no one dared to help, I would have to hold Karamov accountable."

"Dare to disobey orders and not abandon your comrades. This is a soldier with flesh and blood, not a cold order execution machine."

After Malashenko said this, Political Commissar Petrov became interested.

"In that case, aren't you worried that someone will suddenly disobey your orders one day? The reason is also not to abandon your comrades and comrades."

It seems that he has the power to stop time.

Before Political Commissar Petrov finished his quiet question, Malashenko's right hand holding the cigarette, which was about to flick the ash, stopped in mid-air.

After a long time, Malashenko, who seemed to be thinking about something, finally spoke again quietly when a long piece of ash fell.

"This is always a contradictory issue. Those who faithfully carry out military orders are called soldiers, but do those who abandon their comrades have the right to be soldiers? How can those who can abandon their comrades win the trust of others? Without trust and sincerity, what can an army rely on to win the battle?"

"If one day you are in danger, then I ask myself that even if I disobey Comrade Stalin's order, I will die on the way to save you."

"I don't care about other people's opinions, and I will leave the judgment of right and wrong to future generations."

"I am who I am, Dimitri Drukovich Malashenko, a Soviet hero, a colonel commander of the 1st Heavy Tank Brigade of Stalin's Guards, but also a pure soldier. A person with heart and blood, who will feel the pain of being torn apart when losing important people, an ordinary person like you, like him, and like everyone else who fights for their beliefs."