Chapter 1542: No More Hesitation, Must Strike Hard!

The main thing was said, but the conversation between Malashenko and Vatutin did not stop there. Malashenko had something very important to tell Vatutin in person.

"Comrade Commander, I had already checked before I came to see you. I arrested two surrendered prisoners and asked them."

"The group of people who attacked you are not the Germans' lackeys and servants. They are a group of Ukrainian bandits in Cherkasy. The weapons in their hands were taken from battlefields and material storage points that had not been cleaned up in time during the chaos in 1941. The firepower is quite strong and there are many machine guns."

"More importantly, this group of bandits has not been completely wiped out. A bandit leader who was beaten half to death said before his death that the leader of this group of bandits He has already run away. He probably ran back to his old nest to get the things he had looted for many years and prepare to run away. We got the specific coordinates of the bandit's nest and a detailed route map. I plan to take people there immediately and pursue them to completely wipe them out. This group of lawless Ukrainian bandits must be sanctioned! "

"No more hesitation, we must strike hard! Completely wipe them out!"

Malachenko revealed all his plans without hesitation. As for whether it is allowed, it depends on whether Vatutin is willing.

Malachenko was eager for Vatutin to agree quickly. This group of Ukrainian idiots almost took his life. Malachenko thought that Vatutin should order him to go and completely kill them.

"Well, if that's the case, how far is the bandit's nest from here? Do you know how strong the defense is?"

Vatutin did not say yes or no directly, but changed the subject and began to ask Malachenko about the details, which surprised our old comrade Ma.

However, it’s not that I can’t tell you. Since you asked, I’ll just tell you straight away.

"The den is not far from here. According to the map, it is less than ten kilometers away in a straight line. As for the garrison, I don't think it is a problem. A group of bandits who rely on picking up scraps, robbing, and bullying the weak to strengthen themselves, what kind of combat power and heavy weapons can they have? The broken bandit den can be flattened by tanks without any effort."

""

"Well, what you said does make sense. But can your troops still bear it? I mean the loss of equipment. Your division has been fighting since the battle of Cherkasy, without stopping for a moment, and it is a mobile annihilation war, and the consumption of equipment and personnel is huge."

"If it really doesn't work, you can let other troops take over. There are troops of our front everywhere around here. The main battle is over. Any unit can do the work of suppressing bandits. Your division should really rest well."

If it weren't for the requirements of the war situation and the pressure of the war, Vatutin would not want to use such an elite fist tank unit as the Stalin Guards 1st Tank Division so solidly. This is really from the beginning of the battle to the end of the battle, and it is full of battles.

Although the Cherkasy encirclement campaign lasted less than half a month, if we put aside the blocking battles of the external siege and reinforcement, the actual number of people fighting on both sides in the internal encirclement was only at the level of hundreds of thousands.

This level of battle would be considered a large-scale battle on other battlefields, but in the battlefield of the Great Patriotic War, battles with less than one million people fighting on both sides were not worthy of being called large-scale battles. You should know that from the Battle of Moscow to Stalingrad to the Battle of Kursk, the number of people fighting on both sides in each battle was at the level of one million, and hundreds of thousands of people were killed and wounded in the end.

So even though the Cherkasy battle seemed small in scale, the Stalin Guards 1st Tank Division, whose record of annihilation accounted for nearly half of the entire front's record, was indeed exhausted and had extremely serious equipment losses. The motorized tanks were all lost in cross-country running. It would be a lie to say that Vatutin did not feel sorry for this ace unit.

Any commander who takes the overall situation into consideration will cherish and value the ace unit in his hands, and Vatutin is no exception.

Now that the battle is over, Vatutin naturally wants to let the troops have a good rest, even Malashenko, who has been commanding the battle for many days in a row, is the same. Vatutin, who cherishes talents, does not want to see such a dazzling Red Army star fall down at such a young age.

You must know that Malashenko's mentor: Marshal Zhukov, is still in the front headquarters. If Malashenko is hospitalized, he will not be able to give an explanation to the marshal.

Zhukov has always been a treasure of Malashenko and protected him very much. He regards Malashenko as his own disciple. He did not hesitate to praise Malashenko in front of Comrade Stalin. This is well known among the senior commanders and fighters of the Red Army.

But even though Vatutin has hinted so clearly what he wants to hear, Malashenko's next answer is still the same.

"Our division is fine, and we can continue to fight another battle, Comrade Commander!"

"As the division commander, I know the specific situation of the equipment and soldiers. The soldiers are now full of fighting spirit! After learning that a group of bandits almost took Comrade Commander's life, they all wanted to rush over and crush the enemies one by one without mercy! I hope you can give an order and give the soldiers a chance! This is my only request."

Hearing what Malashenko said, even the knowledgeable Vatutin couldn't help but laugh at this subordinate who was really good at talking, pointing at Malashenko and laughing and sighing.

"Haha, you kid! If I don't let you go, it will be as if I have become a villain who prevents the soldiers from fulfilling their wishes. Where did you learn this method? Why don't you learn something good in one day? Isn’t this a big criticism?”

Seeing that his little thoughts and tricks were exposed by Vatutin in front of him, Malashenko, who knew that Vatutin was joking with him, scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, stopped talking, and smiled foolishly. Waiting quietly for Vatukin's almost predictable order.

"Well, you, the division commander, must know more about the situation in your division than I, the commander of the front army. Since you have said so, let's take action. I allow you to completely wipe out these bandits!"

"But remember to make a quick decision and don't delay it for too long! The war has just ended, and your division still needs you, the division commander, to go back and take charge of many upcoming matters. Don't be away from duty for too long. Remember to let me know as soon as possible after you return. You are in your rightful place, do you hear me clearly?"