Iron Cross

"This..." Strawitz did not expect this result in the end. He asked eagerly, "Am I promoted?"

"Your position is still that of battalion commander. Whether your military rank will be promoted depends on your performance in this battle." Hubei looked at this subordinate who was only 3 years younger than himself and said sincerely, "Politics is not something that soldiers can get involved in." , maybe one day you will accidentally become the scapegoat of an ambitious person - just like this time you were thrown out as an accomplice without doing anything. Count Strawitz, you have a good family background and have the ability to fight in battle. With your abilities and the love of your subordinates, why don't you try to improve your character? The head of state values ​​you very much and doesn't want to kill a promising armored commander just because you are confused. But you have to understand that in Germany. No matter how talented you are in this machine, you are just a part. No one is irreplaceable except the head of state. There are 7 marshals, including 1 imperial marshal - which one does not have more outstanding achievements and higher authority than you? Where are they now? "

Strawitz lowered his head. He did not live in a vacuum, and of course he knew that he had caused huge trouble - even though Father Huber was downplaying the whole thing except scolding himself fiercely. , probably to protect himself from quarreling with the superiors. Otherwise, with such a serious incident as the "treasonous group" and the Eastern Front being turned upside down, the Gestapo's dog nose would have come to the door a long time ago. How could it be so Easy to talk to?

Hubei sighed heavily at the end: "Behave in a new place... don't disgrace our division. There won't be so many people speaking for you in the future."

Strawitz, who was in his fifties, felt his nose was sore and almost shed tears.

So when he thought about this scene these days, he couldn't calm down. Although he had just spoken big words in the camp, he still didn't think maturely about how to talk to Father Hubei without getting upset. In the evening, just as I was about to trance, I received a call from the division staff: "Earl, the division commander asked you to go to his place."

"What's the matter?" he asked nervously.

"I don't know!" the other party said simply, "but the teacher's expression is very serious, you'd better be careful."

When he thought about the phone call he received before the last training with the same tone, his heart skipped a beat. He paced in place for three minutes, carefully thought about his performance in the recent period, and felt that there was nothing inappropriate. Finally, he decided Bite the bullet and go to the division headquarters to report.

"I haven't heard you complaining in the past few days." After meeting, Lieutenant General Hubei threw it over with a half-smile.

"How could this happen?" Strawitz didn't know the meaning and spoke cautiously - he was not afraid of Hubei criticizing him, but he was afraid that he would cause unnecessary trouble to Hubei.

"You're not telling the truth. Who is clamoring to petition me today?"

"Which guy can be so lax..." Strawitz secretly slandered him in his heart, while saying nice things with a smile on his face, "I obey all orders, obey my superiors, and work hard..."

"No, no, no, no, stop talking about these aimless nonsense that you don't even believe yourself." Huber immediately interrupted Strawitz's insincere statement, "Tell me what you really think."

He said angrily: "I just can't figure out why we are not allowed to attack? There is obviously only one Red Army infantry corps in front that has separated from the main force. As long as two armored divisions fight out, no, even if we only need our 16th Armored Division to fight out, One afternoon is enough to deal with them without damaging the marshal's follow-up plan and overall defense."

Huber suddenly laughed: "I suddenly felt that it might be quite suitable for you to go to the armed SS. Your temper, character, and style are so similar to them. Did you know that the guards led by Dietrich yesterday afternoon The Flag Guard Division also proposed a similar idea, but no matter who it was, their requests for an attack were all rejected by the marshal. Then they went to pester the newly arrived General Heinrich, and received a more outright rejection. ”

"Absolutely veto..." Strawitz was thinking about the meaning behind this sentence.

"The marshal has already thought about how to use the armored forces. Why do you have to think so hard about the issues that only the army group commander needs to think about?" Hubei only raised his right hand and waved it slightly, "I will. Let me ask you a question, do you want to fight?"

"Think about it, why don't you think about it, even in your dreams." Strawitz replied subconsciously, then suddenly asked, "Do you agree with our attack? Didn't you firmly oppose our decisive attack and eat them two days ago? The 27th Infantry Corps of the Red Army? Didn’t you just say that all army group command troops’ requests for attack are rejected?”

"So I say that your brain capacity is pitifully small. Not to mention the overall politics and strategy of the empire, you can't figure out the strategy of a group army. Will Marshal Manstein only focus on the 27th Army? Humph, you are really short-sighted. !” Father Hubei let out a heavy breath from his nose and pointed to Strawitz, “The marshal commanded hundreds of thousands of troops to retreat so much territory one after another, and generously gave up the Hebend Department to the opponent. Desperately blocking other Red Army units upstream and downstream who want to cross the river, General Heinrich was invited to serve as the commander of the 6th Army to take charge of defense - what is the real purpose of this series of actions? "

"This..." Strawitz still didn't understand.

Hube ignored Strawitz's surprised look, walked straight to the map, and wrapped the entire Don River bend in his arms with both hands: "He wants to eat the entire enemy 21st Army here. They even had to eat part of the 24th Army.”

"Twenty divisions? God, what an appetite!" Strawitz was stunned. He originally only wanted to eat 1-2 enemy divisions through a quick attack, but he did not expect that the target above was an entire group army with 20 divisions.

"To be precise, there are 22 divisions, 2 tank brigades and a Red Army Group Army headquarters. We have basically figured out the enemy's situation."

He asked Hubei in disbelief: "Just rely on us?"

"What, are you scared?"

"Of course not." He straightened his chest and said proudly, "Please give the order, we are already ready."

"According to the plan, our division will serve as the left-wing arrow. We will start from the left side of the defense line and go around Kletskaya in a big bend to defeat all the Red Army obstructions in front of us. On the other side, Dietrich will command the Guards Division to act as the right-wing arrow. We will attack A pincer-like offensive will be launched to launch a surprise attack on the Red Army in the Hebend, and finally the army will join forces at the pontoon ferry and firmly hold it to prevent the enemy from escaping." Hubei used a pencil to outline the general advance route on the map, "Except for the frontal defense line left behind. In addition to the 3 infantry divisions, our 4 infantry divisions will be responsible for sniping on the upper reaches of the Don River, and 7 infantry divisions will be responsible for sniping on the lower reaches of the Don River to eliminate all interference for us to annihilate the enemies in the river meander. The remaining 8 infantry divisions will follow the armored forces in a full-scale attack , cooperate with us to build an encirclement with the Don River as the boundary, and we are the sharpest spearhead of the attack. "

Upon hearing such a huge and exciting plan, Strawitz immediately became excited: "When will we start?"

"Tonight at 1 o'clock, your battalion will be the first to set off as the vanguard of the entire division. You must move quickly and strive to solve the problem within 72 hours."

"Why?" he asked puzzledly, "It is still difficult to eat an army of 100,000 people in three days."

"According to the weather forecast, there will be a strong cold current sweeping across the Don River in five days. The river will freeze by then. If we cannot destroy the enemy before it freezes, everyone will be able to escape from the ice once it freezes, and in turn everyone else will. The Red Army can reinforce from any place they want, and the blocking troops cannot stop them. Moreover, the time will drag on even longer, and the thickness of the ice continues to increase. I am afraid that even tanks can drive over the ice - that would be too much trouble. "Hu Bei stared at Strawitz with bright eyes, "Count, can I believe you?"

"Of course, don't worry!"

"Tell the boys the good news. I guess they are also anxious. As for me..." Lieutenant General Hubei, such a serious person, actually showed a smile, "I want to take some time to take a nap so that I can be energetic at night."

What a terrible life pattern - he can sleep at any time, and the more he fights, the more calm he becomes. This is what Strawitz admires about Father Huber.

While Strawitz was intensively preparing for the operation, in the Guards Division on the other side, an armored officer with blond hair, handsome face, and who could only be Strawitz's son was also giving a mobilization speech. , his name is Max Wünscher, the second-level SS Assault Group Captain, and is serving as the commander of the 1st Battalion of the Armored Regiment - the exact same position as Strawitz.

"Brothers, tonight our battalion will act as the sharp knife of the entire division and advance forward to cut through the Russian defense line - this is a task that I struggled to win from above. Dad (even his nickname is the same as Hubei) and 16 Armor The division made a bet, whichever division rushed to the Russian canal pontoon bridge first and effectively controlled it would win the bet - a new heavy armored battalion that would arrive in late November. So... He said with an excited expression and an infectious voice, "Whether it is to defend the honor of the Führer Division or for this heavy armored battalion, we must take the lead. Tell me, can you do it?"

"Yes!" There were enthusiastic voices all around.

"Sir, I propose that our platoon conduct a preliminary fire reconnaissance to find a suitable path for the entire division." Another voice suddenly rang. Max Wenshe looked at the young man who raised his hand to speak and smiled, "There Second Lieutenant Bentrop, your suggestion is very good. Please allow me to leave this task to you..."