Chapter 1821 They Belong to the Motherland

Strictly speaking, yesterday's battle did not cause much casualties to Stalin's 1st Guards Tank Division. A group of German infantrymen who lacked heavy defensive weapons could not cause a heavy blow to heavy armored forces like Stalin's 1st Guards Tank Division. The final result of reading it can only be that the defense line was pierced, divided and eroded, and ended up with a miserable defeat.

But for Malashenko, yesterday's battle was not so much a new battle as it was the end of the battle to annihilate the Great German Division the day before, and the prelude to the battle further north.

The latest intelligence confirmed that the German troops stockpiled near Danubeburg south of Riga are still increasing. The Germans' intention to desperately defend this salient and the last node connecting the north and south lines can be said to be very obvious.

For the Red Army, which has been advancing all the way and the offensive is progressing smoothly, it is impossible to leave the enemy's salient alone and bury hidden dangers. It will be imperative to erase this salient deliberately buried by the Germans from the map.

One is determined to get it, and the other is not willing to give it.

As the contradiction intensifies, an extremely fierce battle will inevitably break out in Danubeburg. Malashenko can even smell the strong smell of gunpowder in the air.

The large number of German troops entrenched near Riga and Danubeburg are the last important force to maintain the land connection between the Central Army Group and the Northern Army Group. Once this force fails, the Northern and Central Army Groups will be divided into two. Not only will the two army groups be unable to support each other, but their respective flanks will also be exposed to the Red Army, and the situation will quickly deteriorate to the extreme.

The Germans will not sit idly by and watch such a situation happen. No matter how much the German army is defeated at the moment, the Germans will invest their remaining fresh forces in this crucial battle.

The battle is likely to be more intense than the battle to encircle and annihilate the Great German Division, and it is still unknown how much supporting forces and reinforcements they can get at that time. The specific troop deployment and garrison situation of the Germans is also a problem. These can only be confirmed after Malashenko leads his troops to arrive in the war zone in person.

"What are you thinking about? You've been distracted from the beginning until now. I see your eyes are wandering to the horizon."

The 1st Stalin Guards Tank Division was like a long steel dragon galloping forward. The division commander's car was located in the center of the marching column, commanding from the center. Malashenko, as usual, half of his body was hanging outside the turret, and Iushkin, who was half hanging outside the turret in the same posture, was talking to others. It would be too boring if he didn't talk about something at this time.

"Hmm? Ah, nothing, I'm thinking about the next battle."

"After this battle, the Germans' Central Army Group will have its last hope wiped out, leaving these bastards with only despair. If you are smart, go back to Poland as soon as possible to clean up the remnants and reduce casualties. The future battles should be fought outside the country."

"The Germans must understand this, so we estimate that we will encounter the most intense resistance in this battle, and there may be large-scale armored counterattacks. The Germans always like to do this. So you should prepare early, the next few days may be quite exciting."

As long as conditions permit, Malashenko will now tell Iushkin more about tactics and command whenever he has the chance, just like now.

But before Malashenko's voice gradually fell and Iushkin opened his mouth to answer, the sound of the radio call had already reached Malashenko's ears.

"Malachenko, I received a new telegram. You need to read it immediately, right now."

""

Malachenko led the main force to set off first, and the field division headquarters, which had more miscellaneous belongings and trivial matters, stayed behind. After the political commissar presided over all the affairs, they would catch up, at least that was the original plan.

But at this moment, before the political commissar led his men to catch up, Malachenko received a radio call from the political commissar, and asked him to stop immediately.

Some people were curious and wanted to ask the radio on the spot, but then they thought that if the radio could solve the problem, the political commissar would probably not deliberately ask him to stop. It was almost useless to ask this question, so it was better not to ask.

"Does the army need to stop too? Or should I stop alone?"

Malachenko didn't know why the political commissar needed him to stop. He was referring to what the telegram said and what orders were given, so he asked this question after thinking for a while.

"Stop together. It won't take too much time. This telegram is very important! I'll bring people over now and meet you right away."

"Got it. We'll stop now."

After finishing the call with the political commissar, Malashenko immediately ordered the troops to stop advancing and stay on standby. Iushkin, who was puzzled and full of questions, asked.

"What happened? Why did you stop suddenly?"

After hearing this, Malashenko waved his hand casually and held the radio transmitter in his hand to indicate that he didn't know.

"Wait and see what the political commissar will say later."

Malashenko's wait did not last too long. Political Commissar Petrov quickly brought the entire division headquarters and related personnel to catch up by car.

"What's wrong? What happened? Why did you call the radio to stop me? Is there an ambush of Germans ahead?"

Malashenko's tone was still a bit half-joking at this time, but the political commissar who had just got off the car and was still holding the telegram in his hand had a completely different expression.

"Emergency, the front headquarters just sent a telegram, the situation is a bit tricky, you have to see it yourself."

""

The situation that can make Comrade Political Commissar say this must not be an overly optimistic situation.

With a frown on his face, Malashenko took the telegram without saying a word and unfolded it to read. The content recorded and conveyed on it was presented together with Comrade Political Commissar's detailed explanation.

"We have received the latest intelligence that the Germans are preparing to transport a batch of precious cultural relics, gold and jewelry, and high-value items looted from Ukraine and Belarus out of the Soviet Union. The comrades in the intelligence department have been tracking the whereabouts of the Germans for a long time, and it took a lot of effort to track down the specific information and location."

"The Germans are preparing to transfer and steal them at the nearest front-line station. This train has just come from other directions. The German-occupied areas that have not been recovered. Our division is the closest to the station, and it is also the most mobile and powerful unit."

"The front headquarters requires us to immediately send a capable force to intercept and stop this train. Everything on it belongs to the motherland and must not be allowed to drift overseas or leave the country."