Chapter 548 Castle (25)

No one knew that while Zhukov and Stalin were discussing the armistice negotiations, the Bryansk Front was struggling desperately and in vain.

After Weichs led the Eastern Army Group to establish a solid encirclement around Tambov, he set out to encircle and annihilate the remaining nearly 200,000 Red Army troops, but he was not in a hurry to launch an offensive - the enemy who was trapped and fighting was quite terrible, and a forced attack would only bring unnecessary losses. He adopted the method of siege.

Tambov has always been an important base and headquarters of the Bryansk Front, but the material reserves are not much. In fact, it is impossible to have much. At present, the Soviet Union's material rationing has reached a precarious situation. It is very difficult to even maintain the necessary materials for the front line. This season is particularly difficult. Even at the headquarters of the front, materials are extremely scarce, especially food, which is simply stretched to the point of being stretched to the limit.

After the siege, the bread rations of all Red Army officers and soldiers dropped all the way, and the remaining thousands of horses were slaughtered and eaten. By the 15th day of the siege, the black bread rations of all personnel dropped to only 150 grams. Even this supply level could only last for another week. The city was full of starving and dizzy Red Army officers and soldiers. Fortunately, it is not a cold winter, otherwise non-combat casualties would be a very terrible thing under hunger and cold.

Stalin once vowed to send effective troops to rescue Tambov. This promise was fulfilled at the beginning, but after the Kirchner armored group attacked the Tula line and the Central Front almost collapsed, it was impossible for the Moscow Front to withdraw to the south. In addition to the encirclement of 400,000 troops around Tambov, there were also three armored groups waiting to besiege and attack the reinforcements. No one dared to take such a risk. If Meretskov was willing to pull out the main force of the Western Front to fight, it would be exactly what the German Army General Staff wanted - it would be much easier to fight a field battle around Tambov than to attack Moscow.

Leyter, the commander of the Bryansk Front, initially had hope for a relief, then waited endlessly, and finally had only deep despair.

The telegrams he sent to the headquarters evolved from pleading, hoping, and demanding to complaining, complaining, denouncing, and scolding, becoming increasingly impolite. Even so, the daily telegrams were still mainly empty encouragements - "The headquarters is mobilizing reinforcements, please continue to hold on!"

At first, Moscow tried every means to mobilize aircraft to airdrop supplies, but after these clumsy transport planes and bombers were shot down in batches by the German planes that swarmed over, even symbolic actions stopped. After learning of the Central Front's disastrous defeat, he finally realized that reinforcements were no longer possible, and what the headquarters was doing now was nothing more than using Tambov, the abandoned child, to attract the attention of the German army and gain time to reorganize the defense line.

He considered breaking out, trying to fight his way out with concentrated elite troops and tanks, but no matter how he tried, the troops could not break through the iron wall outside. Moreover, even if they broke out, what would happen? The German mobile forces could easily chase them down. After several attempts, he completely gave up this futile effort that cost him a lot of lives.

With a one-in-ten-thousandth hope, he let the troops build fortifications in the city, trying to win a glimmer of hope for himself with a solid line of defense. He originally thought that the Germans could not fight street fighting, but when the street fighting really started, he took a breath again: most of the people who performed street fighting tasks were not Germans, there were Ukrainians, Belarusians, Lithuanians, Estonians, Cossacks... Almost all the nationalities of the Soviet Union, and the enemy he least wanted to meet-the Russian Liberation Army. 90% of these troops were once members of the Red Army.

He finally understood why the Germans named it the Eastern Army Group. This is simply a hodgepodge of troops from Eastern countries, and it is also a gathering place for the former and current Red Army.

The Germans did not not participate in any war. They sent out very powerful and professionally organized street fighting troops - assault engineers and assault artillery. They held flamethrowers, STG43 assault rifles, G43 semi-automatic rifles, professional sniper rifles, and recoilless guns, and used fierce and fierce close-combat firepower to sweep away all infantry units.

What's more deadly is that the Germans also dispatched an unprecedented weapon - the Sturmtiger, which was originally Manstein's signature equipment left in Rostov to fight street battles with the Red Army, but it was never used. This time it was finally used in Tambov.

When the German army found suspicious targets, they usually called for close-range support artillery fire to attack, and the Sturmtiger was dispatched in places that were particularly strong, well concealed, and had complex terrain. No matter how strong the fortifications are, they can't withstand the greetings of a 380mm super-heavy rocket artillery shell - if there is, then two!

This kind of huge and ferocious vehicle that can destroy a whole area with one explosion is not just one or two, but a whole battalion - all of them are chassis ordered secretly by Dr. Porsche. The loud noise when it explodes can be heard throughout the city. Although Leyter did not see it with his own eyes, his subordinates have described to him more than once the horror of this weapon - if a T-34 is hit by a shell, it will be directly reduced to parts.

What makes people hate it the most is that the Germans used this weapon of mass destruction very sparingly. They did not push forward recklessly, but only swept some of the outer positions, and deployed a large number of automatic weapons around to prevent the Red Army infantry from approaching. The Germans used firepower to show their majesty to the Red Army. The entire city was blocked by the ubiquitous and blazing incendiary bombs. They flowed and brought endless flames to every ruin and fortification, as if they were flowing hellfire! Every time the German army used incendiary bombs to attack, there was always a disgusting fragrant smell in the air!

However, today, Leyter seemed to smell another fragrant and pungent smell. He firmly believed that there was nothing wrong with his nose and he accurately identified it among the smell of gunpowder, burning, smoke, and rotten smell.

"What's that smell?"

"The Germans are using field kitchens to seduce our soldiers..." The front's political commissar Susaikov's eye sockets were completely sunken, his cheekbones were prominent, and his body was pale. He had to take a breath after saying a few words, or he picked up a cup and drank water, as if he wanted to use this method to cover up the waves of hunger.

"Oh..." Leyter nodded to show that he understood. He knew what a field kitchen was. This trick was tried and tested during the civil war. He didn't expect that the other side would use this trick again now. It seems that the "old revolutionaries" are in charge.

"How many people ran away last night?"

"More than 300... There was also a lieutenant colonel among them." Susaikov said in a low voice, "According to your instructions, the troops did not chase too far, and firing was just a gesture."

"As long as they don't take their weapons away, it's fine."

The siege lasted longer and longer. Under the repeated attacks of the Russian People's Liberation Army's radio offensive and kitchen offensive, desperate soldiers secretly escaped every day. At first, the political department and the blue hats tried to arrest them, but when they realized that they would be shot on the spot if they were caught, the deserters simply fought their way out and fled. The prestige and means of the internal security forces could no longer suppress the desperate soldiers, and they were a minority in the Bryansk Front after all. They were powerless in the face of their superiors with ambiguous attitudes.

Susaykov asked, "Do you think we still have hope?"

Leyter did not answer the question directly, but only said, "Why don't you take a plane and leave?"

"You didn't leave either?"

"I can't let go of these children... They all suffered such a misfortune because of my incompetence."

"I am no exception?" Susaykov sighed, "Besides, do you think I can escape the Ministry of Internal Affairs by returning to Moscow? Baghramyan has already returned to Moscow and is now under investigation. He still has Zhukov to protect him. He may be able to get away with it. We... Only idiots like Sakharov think we can get away with it."

The Sakharov mentioned by the two was the chief of staff of the Bryansk Front. He secretly took a plane to leave the encirclement two days ago. There were also a group of middle and senior officers traveling with him, but the commanders and political commissars of the fronts named by Stalin gave up the opportunity to escape the encirclement on the grounds that the troops were important.

The two were talking halfway when someone came in and whispered something in Leiter's ear. Leiter raised his eyebrows and said, "Bring him in."

"Comrade Commander, Comrade Commissar." The black cloth on the eyes of the man was first removed. After adapting to the surrounding light, he saluted Leiter and Susaikov, "I am the negotiating representative Kononov."

"I know you. You are Vlasov's top general. You are good at fighting and treason. Many soldiers in the prisoner-of-war camp joined the puppet army after listening to your propaganda."

"Comrade Commander, I learned this from you."

"With me?"

Kononov nodded: "I heard that you were a colonel in the Tsarist army, and then you pledged allegiance to the Bolsheviks. You were not reused until you suppressed the sailors' rebellion."

Susaikov frowned, and Leiter shook his head and said, "That's different. Whether it's the Tsar or Lenin, they are all ours. The Russians are our own people."

"We can have a good talk about this matter."

"You are not qualified to talk to me, you are a division commander, I am the commander of the front."

"Who do you think is qualified to talk to you?"

"Who is the highest commander of your army?"

"The commander of the Eastern Army Group is Marshal Weichs."

"Well, go and change Weichs."

"That's impossible." Kononov smiled bitterly, "Please don't embarrass me."

"Haha, this fully shows that you are just a dog of the Germans..." Leyter laughed, "Well, the Germans are afraid of death, are there any Russians who are not afraid of death?"

"What do you mean?"

"Let Vlasov come, considering that he was the deputy commander of the front, I think he is barely qualified to talk to me."

"I will convey your opinions to the right place." Kononov left neatly.