Chapter 158 Bloody Cross

Watching the sergeant commander, who had lost his ability to move after a large piece of flesh was cut off from his thigh, being carried away on a stretcher, Malashenko realized that there was not much time left before the next wave of attack began, and then turned around and asked the remaining crew members beside him.

"Who has the highest rank among the remaining people among you?"

Faced with the question raised by Malashenko, a bearded tank soldier who looked to be nearly 30 years old stepped forward.

"Gunner Lavorov, sergeant rank. Please give instructions, comrade battalion commander."

Gunner? Why is it a gunner?

After hearing this, Malashenko frowned, and after thinking for a while, he spoke immediately.

"Sergeant Lavorov, have you received professional training courses for tank commanders?"

"Yes, Comrade Battalion Commander. Before being transferred to the First Heavy Tank Breakthrough Battalion, I was a tank commander and gunner of a T34 medium tank in my original unit, with more than 100 hours of command experience."

The answer from the gunner was undoubtedly the ideal answer that Malashenko hoped for most. In this way, the problem of temporary reorganization of the KV1 heavy tank crew would not be difficult to solve.

"In that case, Sergeant Lavorov, from now on you will be the temporary commander of your crew until the end of the battle."

"In the battle, you need to take care of the duties of both the gunner and the commander, but since you have served as the commander of the T34 tank before, I think this is not a problem for you."

"A crew member missing one person will definitely be limited in their ability to play in the battle, so don't force yourself to be heroic, and you must follow the main force. Now the life of the entire crew in the battle is determined by your orders, so you must be careful, understand?"

Faced with the last question raised by Malashenko, the gunner who knew how to answer immediately raised his right arm.

"Understood, comrade battalion commander, this is my duty."

After ending this little episode, Malashenko quickly returned to his car and prepared to get back on board.

Looking at the driver Seryosha who was adjusting the right front guide wheel of the tank with a wrench as thick as his arm, and Nikolai who was squatting beside him to help. Malashenko, who had just put his right arm on the tank turret, was about to say something, but the scene that he accidentally saw at the rear of his tank made Malashenko's eyes freeze here.

Next to the rear track of the vehicle, which still had residual heat from the engine, a large mass of bloody and twisted red human tissue was scattered all over the ground.

Needless to say, such a scene must be the result of a certain unlucky German soldier dying under the tracks of the 47-ton KV1 heavy tank. It stands to reason that Malashenko, who is already accustomed to such scenes, would not pay any attention to it.

But among this pile of blurred scarlet human flesh and internal organs, there is a small piece of dark black metal product that is shining under the refraction of the sun's rays. The refracted light under the sharp color contrast can naturally attract Malashenko's attention.

With the most essential curiosity of human beings in his heart, he walked forward slowly and bent down. He stretched out his right hand towards the bloody meat in front of him without blinking an eye. His right hand, which was stained with blood and turned deep scarlet, gently took out the small dark black metal product.

He picked up a relatively clean piece of clothing next to the meat and wiped the dark black metal product clean. A first-class Iron Cross medal with the embossed number 1939 was presented in full in front of Malashenko.

"Oh, it was not crushed by the tank track. I really don't know whether to say it is a miracle or God's will."

In early 1941, when the Soviet-German War had just broken out, the Iron Cross medal had not yet reached the level of being distributed everywhere on the streets when the Third Reich was already on the decline, and even the children's army composed of children could receive it.

As a first-class Iron Cross, which is a step above the second-class Iron Cross, it is undoubtedly difficult and extremely demanding to obtain. It is no exaggeration to describe the first-class Iron Cross as a reward earned at the cost of one's life.

No matter how difficult and dangerous the owner of this medal had to go through in his lifetime to win this medal, which symbolizes the supreme glory of German soldiers, the holder of this medal has undoubtedly become a pool of blurred meat that cannot even be distinguished from a human.

It is inappropriate to describe this first-class Iron Cross as a medal of honor that symbolizes glory.

At present, this small metal product that bears the weight of life is just a piece of trophy in the hands of Malashenko, the victor, nothing else.

Looking back at the wisps of mottled meat and blood that were still stained in the gaps between the tracks of his car, it can almost be concluded that this German soldier was crushed into a pulp by his car, and he simply put this first-class Iron Cross directly into his pocket.

"No matter what your name is or what your story is, we are still the same kind of people who have come to the same destination in different ways, but that's all."

When Malashenko returned to his car and ordered Seryosha to get ready, Zhukov, who was far away in the direction of Gzhatsk, where the rear headquarters of the reserve front was located, also received the latest front-line battle reports.

"The tentative attack on the second line of defense was blocked. The Germans deployed sophisticated anti-tank firepower and machine gun positions on the second line of defense. It is expected that the attack will be difficult? What kind of nonsense and idiotic logic is this!"

He crumpled up the telegraph newspaper that had just been handed to him by the Chief of Staff of the Front Army and threw it into the trash can. Zhukov, who had always had a hot temper, was nervous and angry at the moment.

"Call back and tell Rakutin that the new secret weapons and heavy artillery units directly under the front army that I have equipped him are not waiting to parade in the streets after recapturing Yelnya!"

"Use heavy artillery fire to smash the Germans' second defensive position, and then immediately launch an attack! The Germans will continue to bombard as long as there are still living figures on the position. The reason why the attacking troops are blocked can only explain the artillery bombardment he launched. It’s not strong enough. What I want to hear is the news that his 24th Army has invaded Yelnya City! It’s not just these casual excuses!”

Facing Zhukov's obviously displeased words, the chief of staff, who frowned slightly, immediately added something.

"But our leading offensive force, which has just occupied the German first defensive position, is less than one kilometer away from the German second defensive position. If an artillery attack of the size of an army group is launched at this distance, the possibility of accidental damage is Potential problems that cannot be avoided.”