Steel Soviet Union

The offensive led by Lavrinenko is still continuing. The shabby little SS position in the precarious situation is like a lonely boat in the sea. It is constantly being beaten and swept by the red storm and becomes increasingly precarious.

If the situation continues like this, then Lavrinenko will probably win the victory that is almost within reach, together with the Red Army soldiers he leads.

But it would be nice if everything on the battlefield went as expected. Unexpected huge variables were approaching like dark clouds towards this small village that had been beaten to pieces.

Political Commissar Petrov had mentioned to Malashenko before that when the advance reconnaissance unit arrived around the village, it had actually been discovered by the SS security troops deployed outside the village. After all, the roar of diesel engines from dozens or twenty tanks at every turn could not be covered up in any way. The ears of those SS soldiers were not deafened to this extent.

Political Commissar Petrov, who was not a roundworm in the belly of the enemy, did not know what the SS did after they sensed the enemy's attack, and Lavrinenko could not guess the truth either.

But soon, the real consequences of what the SS did after discovering a large-scale tank concentration outside the village came to Lavrinenko's head.

The fierce battle with artillery fire in the village continued, and the sound of explosions and various gunfire made the battlefield boil like boiling hot water.

It was at this time that the roar of tank engines sounded again outside the village, but this time it was the sound of a gasoline engine instead of a diesel engine.

The main force, the Skeleton Division, which was also rushing all the way, arrived on the battlefield before the Stalin Guards 1st Heavy Tank Brigade.

The Black Panthers and No. 4 who were at the front of the marching column obviously knew that the battle in the village was extremely fierce and was moving in a direction that was not beneficial to their own side. The SS Panzergrenadiers, who were lying on top of the tank to move faster, did not even have the chance to get off the car and walk. They were directly carried by their own tanks and rushed all the way to the village.

"Comrade Deputy Brigadier, enemy tanks were spotted outside the village! They are rushing over from the west!"

"What!?"

Lavrinenko was stunned for a moment when he heard this terrible and abrupt news. The German support troops rushed to the scene at this most critical moment, which indeed exceeded Lavrinenko's expectations.

If Lavrinenko was given another twenty minutes, no, even just ten minutes.

Lavrinenko was absolutely sure that he would crush the stubborn SS fanatics in the village into a pulp, and let the flesh and blood of these bastards provide maintenance for his tank tracks. After that, the village would be was brought back under the control of the Soviet Red Army.

The German reinforcements, who were like shit sticks, arrived at this moment without hesitation. Lavrinenko, who was holding the commander's periscope in his hand, could see the scene described on the radio, another wave of dusty, full speed ahead. The SS tanks were indeed imminent and were about to arrive. Lavrinenko, who felt as if he had eaten flies in his mouth, had the urge to curse.

"Damn it, bastard! You're here at this time, okay!"

The development of the war situation is no longer up to Lavrinenko to do whatever he wants. Now he must adjust his plan and make countermeasures for this sudden emergency.

"Kulbalov, bring a few cars over and block the Germans at the outskirts of the village! I'll stay and continue to command, and end the battle here as soon as possible!"

Even now, Lavrinenko still does not intend to give up this last hope, and still wants to use this wave of aggressive offensive to gain control of the village and hold it in his hands.

Is Lavrinenko greedy for credit and rash?

Not really, because it actually has nothing to do with greed for merit.

Generally speaking, the most suitable plan for Lavrinenko at the moment is to immediately retreat with his troops, quickly break away from contact with the enemy, and avoid being disrupted by the large enemy troops arriving later, or even being divided and surrounded until they are completely annihilated. .

Lavrinenko, whose available troops were only about the same as the vanguard of the SS in the village, did not have any capital to compete with the main force of the Skeleton Division.

This kind of high-lying village with no danger of being defended is extremely unsuitable for defending against armored force raids, that is, there are no preset anti-tank fortifications and positions, and there is no strategic depth at all. This can be seen in the village from the poor defensive performance of the SS when facing Lavrinenko's extremely fast surprise attack.

The basic summary is that it is not that the SS did not work hard, but that this village is really difficult to defend against an armored assault. If we do not continue to expand and dig deep anti-tank fortifications and bunkers, it will only be regarded as a garrison point rather than a suitable one. defensive position.

Therefore, even if Lavrinenko really leads people to take over the village, how to fight the defensive battle that will surely follow is a big problem. If you think about it this way, the value of this small ruined village may not be very high, but Lavrinenko doesn't think so simply now.

Since the SS's follow-up support force has arrived, it means that our movement trajectory and retreat direction have been captured by the enemy. SS troops who smell the fishy smell will quickly swoop towards their side in all movements around them. If this village is lost, it will be equivalent to the final breakthrough being completely closed, and the only remaining hope will be killed in the pocket. .

Even if one waits until Malashenko arrives with a large force and then quickly assembles a wave of offensive, by then the enemy will have strengthened due to the arrival of reinforcements. Moreover, there must be only a lot more enemies approaching the current position, and the total force will be many times more than our own.

Therefore, even if he goes all out, Lavrinenko must capture this village and prevent the enemy in motion from occupying a favorable defensive position again.

As long as we can do this and hold on until Malashenko, who will arrive soon with a large force, arrives, then the possibility of a successful breakout not only still exists, but is still very high! There is a very high degree of confidence that we can jump out of this encirclement that has not yet been completely closed, and quickly cut through the mess and end everything before the large SS troops can react.

But there is a premise for all of this. The control of the village must be in the hands of the Red Army. Only by obtaining this key node can they be qualified and possible to plan subsequent actions. Otherwise, everything can only be empty talk.

The key to success or failure lies only in the next hour or even half an hour.