Chapter 373 The Insidious Person

Standing in the snow and wind at the door of the tent, he greeted the people who were still arguing. The people who were caught off guard by the sudden voice quickly turned around and saw a resolute figure with one arm in front of them.

"Is he the one-armed political commissar?"

Looking at the face of the man at the end of his vision, which was vicissitudes but full of determination, Lieutenant Colonel Andrei, who rushed to the Moscow front from the distant Siberian Military Region, obviously recognized the true identity of the person in front of him. To be precise, the reputation of this one-armed political commissar on the front line is even greater than that of Malashenko, who was named the Red Army tank hero.

The reason why Political Commissar Petrov became "famous" was not only because of his unique one-armed posture, but also because he was a unique combination of a political officer and a military officer, a colonel political commissar and a lieutenant colonel regiment commander. If Andrei still couldn't recognize his true identity with such a prominent appearance, then there was something wrong with his eyesight.

"Humph, he didn't come here, but sent his partner to perfunctorily handle the matter. He is really arrogant."

No matter what Lieutenant Colonel Andrei, who was still angry and dissatisfied, thought, Colonel Kironov, who was in charge of the overall situation, was naturally delighted by the arrival of Political Commissar Petrov.

"It's good that you're here, Comrade Petrov, sit here, our combat meeting is about to begin."

While seeing Andrei's indifferent eyes and expressions, he did not respond with any dissatisfaction. Political Commissar Petrov, who came with a mission and responsibility, naturally knew that everything should be based on the overall situation. Moreover, Political Commissar Petrov had already come into contact with countless people like Andrei in his military career.

Pulling out the chair in the direction of Colonel Kironov's finger and sitting down, Colonel Kironov immediately changed the subject after seeing that the chief officers of all the participating troops were present.

"Comrades, regarding the second phase of the counterattack in Istra that is about to begin, my tentative combat deployment is as follows"

The not-so-long combat meeting soon came to an end with Colonel Kironov's final decision.

Although he was the temporary battlefield commander appointed by the frontline headquarters, he nominally had the battlefield command power over three infantry divisions and a Guards heavy tank breakthrough regiment.

But he knew that the Guards 1st Heavy Tank Breakthrough Regiment led by Malashenko was not an ordinary unit. The German tanks under Malashenko's command had destroyed more battles than a tank army.

The mature and steady Colonel Kironov gave Political Commissar Petrov full voice and opportunity to make suggestions at the meeting. Although this made the already unruly Lieutenant Colonel Andrei even more dissatisfied, the isolated and helpless situation at the meeting eventually made the young division commander from the political work background not say any more unnecessary words. Lieutenant Colonel Andrei was very clear about what to say and what not to say in a specific situation.

The conclusion of this short pre-war meeting was that Malashenko's First Guards Heavy Tank Breakthrough Regiment would take on the main frontal attack mission, and Colonel Popov's Infantry Division would go all out to attack with Malashenko's troops in a coordinated manner. The main regiment under his command was the troops of Commander Yakov, who had previously captured the village with Malashenko.

At the meeting, it was clearly stated that the Andrei Infantry Division, which had clearly stated that its troops were not fully organized and lacked the necessary heavy equipment, was deployed on the two wings of the frontal offensive to ensure safety.

Before the end of the meeting, Colonel Kironov still clearly emphasized that Andrei's main task was to resist the possible flank detour of the German army rather than to capture the city. Colonel Kironov, who was accustomed to such young people in his past experience, was still worried about this young division commander who was born in a political worker and had a lot of scheming.

As for the largest infantry division led by Colonel Kironov, it served as a reserve force. Fearing that Andrei's collapse would lead to irreversible consequences, Colonel Kironov finally chose to keep a hand.

Although the combat deployment of not investing all the troops at one time to determine the outcome of the battle seems to be a bit of a tactic, the mature and experienced Colonel Kironov, who seeks victory in a stable manner, hopes to avoid the annihilation of the troops under his command. From this perspective, the tactical plan he formulated is still well considered.

Facing the final combat order issued by Colonel Kironov, Political Commissar Petrov, who understood the meaning of seeking victory in a stable manner, did not raise any objections and nodded immediately to show his approval. In contrast, Lieutenant Colonel Andrei, who got the easy combat mission he hoped for, also remained silent and did not raise any objections.

Only Colonel Popov, who had a hot temper like Lieutenant Colonel Yakov, stood up from his chair and waved his clenched fist.

"Don't worry, Comrade Kironov, our division will let those damn fascists see what the real Red Army iron fist is! Let them see how the Red Army troops of the Siberian Military District conquered their fragile souls in the ice and snow! Don't the Germans always believe that there are God and the devil in this world, so I will send them to see it myself."

In the earlier battle, he had come into contact with Colonel Popov's capable general, Colonel Yakov. Commissar Petrov suddenly realized where Yakov's tyrannical temper that wanted to eat the Germans alive came from.

With such a division commander who has violent genes in his bones, it would be the most incredible thing if Captain Yakov was really timid and afraid of fighting. In this respect, he is somewhat similar to Malashenko. Don’t you see that even Kirill, who graduated from the Music Department of Moscow University, kills Germans as easily as eating and drinking water?

After the short pre-war meeting, Political Commissar Petrov quickly drove back to the regiment headquarters. Colonel Kironov, who personally sent him to the car before leaving, repeatedly urged Political Commissar Petrov to tell Malashenko that he must do his best to withstand the pressure and tear open the German front line of defense. This is the key and only hope for their victory in this counterattack.

"So, Comrade Andrei, who is full of tricks in his mind, is very dissatisfied with my not attending the pre-war meeting? Is that right, Comrade Political Commissar."