Steel Soviet Union

Malashenko rarely needs his own division headquarters security force. In most cases, this elite guard company stays behind the division headquarters, serving as an elite light infantry force to protect the division headquarters and accompany the political commissar comrades. Read Malashenko is escorted by another equally elite heavy tank company on the battlefield. They are the last line of defense to protect the safety of the division commander on the battlefield.

Therefore, it is really rare for Malashenko to personally take the divisional security company out to pick up people like now, and Malashenko himself seems a little unfamiliar. Fortunately, Malashenko, who led the team out to pick up the people, did not wait too long. Vatutin's motorcade appeared in the field of vision and drove in front of him after a short while.

"I thought it was Petrov who would come to pick me up. I heard that you were busy leading the battle yourself."

Vatutin, who got out of the back seat of the Gas Jeep in the middle of the convoy, was still the same as before. He was dressed in the uniform of a general. He could not be said to be fat, but it definitely had nothing to do with thin. His horizontal figure and chubby face made the front commander The waiter looks more like a kind neighbor uncle who seems to ask you at any time, "Are you hungry? Dinner is just about to open at my house."

Malashenko and Vatutin already have an extraordinary relationship that goes beyond ordinary superiors and subordinates. They both know this very well, so Malashenko doesn't bother to use polite words in front of people they don't know. If you talk too much, it is really unnecessary for you, and it will make you look unfamiliar.

"In fact, the battle has just ended, or today's battle has been forcibly interrupted from the original plan, and there is no need to continue."

"oh?"

Vatutin, who was walking with Malashenko on the road to the division headquarters with his hands behind his back, became interested. He knew that Malashenko would definitely explain in detail next.

"The Germans who were facing the enemy surrendered. A patchwork infantry field group with no armor and very little artillery assembled eight under-equipped infantry regiments to try to resist our offensive and take command. He is a major general of the National Defense Forces.”

"As a result, in just one day and one night, we almost completely cleared out the position yesterday evening and completely surrounded the suburbs. We planned to finish off the leftovers early this morning and then continue to advance north to meet up with friendly forces. Who would have thought that these cowards would actually I couldn’t bear the pressure and surrendered early in the morning. It is said that this was the result of thinking all night, but who knows the truth.”

There is indeed some discrepancy between the situations reported by Malashenko and what Vatutin knows. After all, Vatutin's understanding of the overall battle situation is still based on the summary report of the front army's battle situation last night. This morning, before it was fully light, he got up early and set off, heading straight for Malashenko's leadership division. It is normal to not know whether the latest situation that just happened is true. Wingdings: ♦︎♦︎⬧︎♦︎◆︎⌧︎♦︎♦︎□︎❍︎

"Well, it seems that our tank hero is terrifyingly strong. Fasis is now able to make wise choices after briefly thinking about life. Now he has saved the lives of many outstanding young men for the motherland. This kind of victory is the best result. Meaningful, am I right?”

The first half of Vatutin's sentence was a boast, the second half was a matter of fact, and at the end, he even added a "yes or no" question to Malashenko. This actually made Comrade Ma, who doesn't like to be arrogant, It was a bit dumbfounding.

"The sacrifice of the motherland is too great, Comrade Commander. As long as more young hopes can be preserved, I think this is meaningful, and I agree with you on this point."

Two generals, one senior and one junior, walked in front of the team, chatting as they walked. Behind and on the left and right were the guard company brought by Malashenko and Vatutin's entourage, staff and guards.

Not long after walking, they arrived at the temporary base of Stalin's 1st Guards Tank Division. Vatutin could see one IS6 heavy tank after another ready to go. Many of the crews who had temporarily disembarked were surrounding or leaning against each other. Smoking and chatting beside his car, waiting for the attack order to be issued, the tense atmosphere of an imminent war seemed to not exist at all.

"I believe this is due to strength. Having absolutely invincible strength makes everyone like this, right?"

Vatutin had a lot of questions today, and Malashenko certainly knew what Comrade Commander was referring to, so he answered with a smile.

"Relaxation can relieve stress and better cope with battles. As a division commander, I don't want my soldiers to go to the battlefield with huge psychological pressure and fear of the enemy. This is of no benefit at all. Since we have the ability to crush If you want to kill the strength of those Germans, there is absolutely no need to do this. This is completely different from being careless and underestimating the enemy. Everyone knows what kind of enemy they will face. They are like this just because they firmly believe that they can win, that's all."

Vatugin, who was listening as he walked, nodded frequently, clearly agreeing with Malashenko's explanation.

When he was still two hundred meters away from the division headquarters camp, Vatutin suddenly changed the subject and talked about something that surprised Malashenko.

"You know, you have actually helped me a lot and resolved many difficult troubles and crises for me. I have always wanted to say thank you to you. This is what I should say."

""

Vatutin's unexpected words caught Malashenko by surprise, but after he realized what he said, Comrade Ma wanted to give back this great contribution with a few words of humility. Malashenko does not want Vatutin to feel that he owes him anything. Malashenko does many things because he wants to do them. This has nothing to do with deliberately currying favor with the leader or following the trend.

As if he had expected such a reaction from Malashenko, and could even guess what Malashenko wanted to say next, Vatutin, who did not intend to hand over the right to speak, just raised his hand slightly to signal Malashenko. Don't interrupt first, and then continue to walk and talk on your own.

"Where to begin? Let's start with Kursk."

"The criticality of the situation on the southern front really exceeded my expectations. There were several times when I even realized clearly that the 1st Guards Heavy Tank Brigade was in danger. The destruction of such an ace unit would have a huge impact on my military career. The stain, and more importantly Prokhorovka and the entire southern Kursk front, will collapse, and the results will be catastrophic."

"But just like Marshal Zhukov said of you: Malashenko is good at creating miracles, and he will always surprise you."

"I have to admit, I didn't expect you to withstand the pressure in such a critical situation and hold on until the reinforcements arrived. You completed your mission brilliantly and completely ruined the German offensive plan."

"After that, Marshal Zhukov told me half-jokingly, you have to thank Malashenko. In order to help you save the situation, he is still lying in a Moscow hospital with a bullet hole in his stomach and almost died. All lives are lost.”

"It may sound a little pretentious, but I really wanted to see you in the hospital at that time, even if it was just on my way. Unfortunately, time did not give me this opportunity. By the time I returned to Moscow to give a report and inquire about you, you had already gone to see Kogin. Let’s talk about you two. When we meet again, you will be back on the front line.”