Republic of China game

Page 484

"Not enough! Not enough! Thirty armies are too few. Even if they are full, they will not be able to defend Moscow. We need more troops..." Zhukov felt a little insulted, and he looked at Stalin with some anxiety.Stalin put down the arm holding the pipe, nodded thoughtfully, and said: "You are already thinking about the defense of Moscow, and now it seems inevitable, Konstantinovich, do you think this defense When will the war happen?"

"Next summer!" Zhukov said with certainty: "The enemy will choose to completely wipe out the three fronts of the besieged Red Army this winter, and then launch an attack on Moscow in May next year! It is estimated that the siege of Moscow will take place before the end of June. And this battle will concern the survival of the Soviet motherland!"

"What about the Second Baltic Front and the Western Front? There are more than 200 million people there! Is that all?" Stalin shouted.

Zhukov shook his head and smiled wryly: "But we don't have the power to save them now, especially the power to stop the German armored group that is heading south... According to my estimation, this German armored group died around December 12th. Can take Smolensk and cut off the connection between the Western Front and Moscow! The only feasible way now is to order the Western Front and the Second Baltic Front to concentrate around Minsk and use the fortifications and material reserves there to hold on... Although it will be difficult in the end They escaped the bad luck of being annihilated by the German army, but their sacrifice can greatly consume the strength of the German army and create conditions for the victory of the Moscow defense battle!"

There was a dead silence in the room. After an unknown period of time, Stalin turned his attention to Voroshilov and Berzin again. "Do you have a better way?"

Voroshilov and Berzin glanced at each other, and Berzin said: "From the map, the two armored groups in the north and the south of Germany also have a situation of solitary in-depth... Maybe we can suggest that the commander-in-chief of the Western Front Ubolie Comrade Vichi mobilized troops to strike hard at this armored group on the southern front! Even if we can't defeat them, as long as we can stop the advance of this armored force, we can make the Second Baltic Front retreat southeast, perhaps to Kiev... ..."

Zhukov shook his head in his heart, this is completely wishful thinking, the enemy army is an armored group composed of 3000 tanks!There are still thousands of planes in the sky providing air support, and you ask Ubolevich to mobilize the infantry to defeat them?It also wants the Second Baltic Front, with more than 100 million people, to retreat to Kiev, hundreds of kilometers away, under the threat of enemy planes and tanks.This kind of thing is simply a fantasy!This kind of worthless counterattack is a waste of troops. It is delusional for the army to abandon the city and turn hundreds of kilometers away. It is more valuable to let the troops go to Minsk to defend.

But Stalin seemed to have grasped at a life-saving straw, and nodded heavily: "Okay! Let's do this, order Ubolevich to fight against the invading German fascist bandits! Let them come and go." He waved it vigorously. Holding the pipe in his hand, he said again: "Of course, we also have to be prepared, order Comrade Kulik to prepare to abandon Leningrad, and all important facilities and buildings in the city must be destroyed! The enemy cannot use them... Order Ukraine The front army is withdrawing to Kiev, preparing to defend Kiev. Also, we will form the Moscow front army to surround our capital!"

As he spoke, he glanced at Zhukov. "Promote Comrade Zhukov to General, appoint him as Commander of the Moscow Front, and appoint Comrade Khrushchev, First Secretary of the Moscow City Party Committee, as Political Commissar of the Front."

……

On December 12, the attacks of the two major armored groups of the German army, the north and the south, continued.The No.3 Armored Army that captured Neville continued to rush forward as if it had entered no one's land. Taking advantage of the emptiness of the Soviet army, the army was advancing towards Smolensk at an unimaginable speed.Even the telegram sent by the headquarters of the Soviet Red Army to the commander-in-chief of the Western Front, Ubolevich, lamented: "At present, there is no way to stop the advance of the German armored group on the northern front. It is expected that they will be able to attack by December 19 at the latest. On the outskirts of Smolensk, cut off your communication with Moscow..." Then the telegram from the headquarters stated: "The German armored group on the southern front has already advanced alone. You can try to concentrate your main force and attack it in the Baranovich area Threat! After defeating or blocking the enemy's armored group on the southern front, try to break out to the southeast to Kiev or concentrate the main force around Minsk and stand by for reinforcements."

Ubolevich, who received instructions from the base camp, just shook his head and smiled wryly.In fact, the progress of the German armored group on the southern line was no slower than that of the northern line group, especially the offensive of the Chinese Eighth Armored Division was particularly sharp. After the great victory, Wei marched forward all the way, and captured Kobrin on the evening of December 12. On the morning of December 2, they took advantage of the confusion during the retreat of the Soviet army and defeated two units of the Soviet 12nd Infantry Army in Belyozha. A division, and has now entered the urban area of ​​​​Beliozha, it is expected that the city will fall tonight!

Moreover, behind the advancing German armored group, there are hundreds of thousands of infantry, and these infantry are not inferior to the armored forces.Along the way, they consolidated the positions captured by the armored forces, seized isolated strongholds, and launched an attack from the flanks of the Soviet defense line, cooperating with the German infantry attacking from the front to attack the main force of the Soviet Western Front on the east bank of the Buwag River... The 10 infantry corps of this front army have been beaten to pieces now, and it is estimated that they will not last long.Now the Soviet army on the western front only has the second Baltic Front which is fairly complete. They defend the northern line of defense of Belarus, and the German attack on them can only be regarded as diversionary at best.But this does not mean that Ubolevich can easily withdraw them from the front line and use them to counterattack the German armored group, because the Germans have completely controlled the sky!It is impossible for a front army of more than 100 million troops to go south under the indiscriminate bombing of thousands of planes, at least during the day.

At this time, the newly appointed Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Western Front, General Pavlov, suddenly trotted from the telegraph office to the office of Marshal Ubolevich.The general walked up to Ubolevich with a livid face, glanced left and right, and the staff members of several headquarters left wisely.He handed the tightly held telegram to the Marshal, and said in a low voice: "Comrade Marshal, Stalin is angry. In the telegram he accused our Western Front Command, the commanders of the Second Baltic Front Army and the Western Front Army He panicked during the attack and lacked the confidence to defeat the invaders! He wants us to start preparing for a counterattack immediately, otherwise we will be cowards and traitors..."

Ubolevich snatched the telegram from Pavlov and read it again and again.A thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead unknowingly.He was quite frightened now, now is an extraordinary period, the Soviet army is defeated on all fronts, maybe Stalin is looking for an opportunity to make an example of others!

"Comrade Pavlov, how many troops can we mobilize now?" The marshal put down the telegram and asked with a frown.

"Two armies have just been withdrawn from the northern defense line, and there is also the reserve of the Second Baltic Front Army, the 18th Army, which has four infantry armies, but one of them has been defeated by the enemy in today's battle ’” Pavlov replied.

"That means there are still five armies." Ubolevich strode to the front of the map table, leaned over to look at it for a while, pointed to Baranovich on the map and said, "It's there to stop the German army." Armored group! Baranovich has the fortifications left by the Poles, and you can use it. Comrade Pavlov, I will hand over these 5 armies to you. You go to Baranovich to organize Solid defense. Be sure to block the enemy! Because this is related to the fate of the entire Second Baltic Front!"

……

December 12, morning.In Belyozha, 4 kilometers from Baranovic.Inside the headquarters of the Eighth Armored Division of the Chinese National Defense Army.

The Chief of Staff of the Eighth Armored Division, Major General Qiu Weida, saluted Hu Lian, and then said loudly, "Division seat, Air Force reconnaissance has found that a large group of Soviet troops of about four to five corps is leaving Minsk and heading south. It is estimated that their target is It's Baranowicz and its environs."

"Oh?" Hu Lian stood in front of the table covered with a huge military map, studied it carefully for a while, and then said: "They want to stop us in Baranovich and win the southeast direction for the Second Baltic Sea Front Army." A chance to retreat to Kiev, this is their only way out!"

"Five infantry corps can't stop our four armored divisions and two motorized infantry divisions! Stalin's wishful thinking will definitely come to nothing."

"Is it unstoppable? I don't think so." Hearing Qiu Weida's analysis, Hu Lian shook his head with a sneer: "There is no problem for our 16th Armored Army to defeat Baranovich's five armies." Yes. But once this Soviet army is defeated, the remnants of the Soviet Second Baltic Front and the Western Front may withdraw to Minsk and stick to it. According to intelligence, Minsk is the most important stronghold above Stalin’s line of defense, surrounded by a large number of The fortifications were dug and anti-tank trenches were two to three hundred kilometers long... The material reserves are also extremely rich. If the more than one million troops of the Second Baltic Front retreat into Minsk, we will besiege them. There will not be a year when they will not be starved. Yes, a strong attack would cost tens of thousands of casualties! But what if more than a million people here give up Minsk and refuse to defend the city?"

Qiu Weida suddenly realized: "The teacher is brilliant! It is more than 500 kilometers from Minsk to Kiev, and more than 100 million people can't get there in ten days, and the thousands of bombers of the Germans are not just for nothing. Wait until they are bombed We are in a mess, and our armored forces will make a follow-up raid. I am afraid that more than 100 million people will be taken as prisoners!"

"Deputy Chief of Staff Wu is still with Admiral Hopner, right? Let him submit our proposal to the Germans." Hu Lian straightened up and said with a smile.

"By the way! Master, there is another piece of good news!" Qiu Weida smiled and took out another telegram. "This is a message from the Russian First Group Army. The White Russian spies lurking in Leningrad have sent a message. The Soviet Red Army is placing explosives in various important buildings. The important organs of Leningrad have begun to retreat. It seems that they are ready to abandon Leningrad. Grad! Now Alexander the Great has personally led two Russian troops to Leningrad day and night, trying to seize it before the Soviet Red Army destroys the city!"

"Leningrad, no, Petersburg is about to be acquired! Hehe! It's really good news!" Hu Lian chuckled, put his head next to Qiu Weida's ear and whispered: "The empress who is our assistant commander should be happy now. broken……"

Hu Lian's proposal was quickly supported by Admiral Hopner, commander of the No.16 Armored Army, and Halder, commander of the Southern Army Group.So the No.16 Armored Army, which was advancing all the way, was temporarily blocked after advancing to Baranovic!However, Halder did not let the four armored divisions idle, but ordered them to advance northward and attack the flanks of the Soviet Second Baltic Front and Western Front, prompting the collapse of the defense lines of these two fronts.

On the other hand, the Soviet army's "successful persistence" in Baranowitz was hyped up by Soviet propaganda tools as the "Baranovich Miracle", and it was compared with the Marne River Miracle in World War I!General Pavlov, who was ordered to guard Baranovich, also had good luck, was named a marshal by Stalin, and was also awarded the title of "Hero of the Soviet Union"!

However, the good mood of the Soviets did not last long. On December 1937, 12, Leningrad, the city named after their late revolutionary leader, was captured by the Sino-Russian-Italian coalition forces with the signboard of the Russian First Army!The tricolor flag symbolizing the Russian Empire and the yellow and black flag of the Romanov dynasty are flying over the Winter Palace again after 15 years!

Chapter 0757 Encirclement ([-]) Collapsed Front Army

In mid-December 1937, unpleasant news reached the ears of Moscow citizens one after another, some through the deep and solemn voice from the tweeters scattered in the streets and alleys of Moscow, and some were dropped by German planes leaflets.Of all these news, nothing shocked Muscovites more than the fall of Leningrad!Now it's Petersburg again, and the whore of the Romanov dynasty is about to rule Russia in the Winter Palace... What is the owner of the Kremlin thinking now?Why didn't he think of a way to stop this from happening?The Muscovites thought to themselves: "If even Stalin is helpless, the Soviet motherland will really perish, right?"

Stalin now really feels helpless!Not because of Petersburg, nor because of Empress Anastasia, but his three collapsing fronts—the First Baltic Front, the Second Baltic Front, and the Western Front...of course, the Far Eastern Front has also actually collapsed. Hovering on the verge of collapse, but Stalin temporarily ignored them.What is imminent now is to find a way to save as much troops as possible from the German encirclement, so that they can be used in the defense of Moscow next summer!If Moscow can't keep it, then everything is really over...

On this night, the Kremlin is once again brightly lit.Stalin's spacious and luxurious office was full of stars, Voroshilov, Berzin, Baranov, Zhukov, Voronov, Kulik, Khrushchev...all those who were considered military talents by Stalin Senior generals were called here.

"Comrade Berzin, what advice do you have?" Stalin's tone was cold. The chief of the general staff who once helped him eliminate Trotsky has lost his favor now, but there is no suitable person to replace him, so he can only Let him continue to sit in that chair.

Berzin moved closer to one of the other maps.

"I suggest," he began, lowering his voice to conceal his uneasiness, "first of all, let the Central Front (formed by the merger of the Second Baltic Front and the Western Front) emerge from the encirclement that the enemy has not yet closed, and retreat to the The area around Kiev is reorganized. To this end, we need the full cooperation of the Southwest Front (Ukrainian Front) and the First Baltic Front. Among them, the Southwest Front should draw at least one army group north to support the Central Front; While breaking through, break out to the east..."

Stalin nodded with satisfaction. The Central Front Army still has nearly 200 million people, and if it can exceed half, it will be sure to win the Moscow defense battle next year.He raised his head, and just as he was about to say something, he saw Zhukov, the commander of the Moscow Front, frowning tightly, as if he wanted to say something.

"Comrade Zhukov, what's your opinion?" Stalin asked.

"Yes, there are some opinions." Zhukov replied, looking very worried, "I think the retreat route southeast of Minsk to Ukraine is a trap for the Germans. Because on the east side of this passage, Smolens There is the German Guderian cluster in the direction of Sk. This is an extremely powerful armored cluster with at least 5000 tanks! And to the west of this passage, in the Baranovic area, there is also the German Hoppner cluster , this is also a powerful armored group, with at least 3000 tanks! The mobility of these two armored groups is much higher than that of the central front army around Minsk. If the front army leaves the strong fortifications near Minsk, they will definitely be affected by this A pincer attack by two German armored groups will inevitably lead to a rapid collapse!"

"Then shall we just watch the Central Front Army being pocketed by the enemy?" Voroshilov looked distressed. "That's a full 200 ​​million people! It's the key to defending Moscow. Even if we can withdraw half of them, it would be good."

"Can half of them be withdrawn?" Stalin asked Zhukov with a gloomy face.

Zhukov shook his head and said, "I don't know. If 200 million people fought bravely, even 8000 tanks would not be able to take them down, but they..."

"What is the use of the two million people who have lost their fighting spirit in Minsk? Will they surrender their allegiance to that whore?" Stalin said coldly, scanning the crowd with a cold look, thinking to himself, the two million people around the city of Minsk After a long siege, there is a good chance of surrendering to Empress Anastasia, then Hitler would not have to send the Germans to Moscow, just let the Russians kill each other...

"They should fight to the end." As soon as Zhukov's words came out, he knew that they were not convincing. He bowed his head deeply, like a schoolboy who said something wrong.

Stalin had expected this sentence a long time ago, and he also understood that it would be very dangerous for the Central Front Army to break through, but it was still better than a whole front army system going to the side of Empress Anastasia.

"Berzin, tell us about the arrangements for the breakout." After a breathless silence, Stalin said again.

"Okay, Comrade Stalin, the plan of the General Staff is..." Berzin, who could at best be a minister of intelligence in terms of intellect, began to explain intermittently the breakout plan that he had exhausted his mind.While speaking, he glanced at the ashen-faced Zhukov with the corner of his eyes. If possible, he would be very happy to hand over his position of chief of general staff to him.

……

The command post of the Central Front Army has now been moved to a fortification with a high level of architectural craftsmanship.There are bullet shelters for commanders in the fortifications, as well as bullet shelters for various departments such as the Military Committee, Staff Department, Political Department, and Logistics Department, which are covered with thick reinforced concrete.The four walls are erected with pillars also made of reinforced concrete, and the interior space is decorated with luxurious wood that exudes the fragrance of resin.The reinforced concrete layer at the top of the headquarters is covered with a thick layer of soil. According to the design of the engineers, whether it is a bomb or a shell, it will not blow through even if it is directly hit.

Iyeronim Petrovich Ubolevich sat in this impenetrable fortification, but he did not feel the slightest sense of security.It wasn't because he felt that he was in a dangerous situation, but because the battle situation on the front line was complicated, and the orders from above... Well, in short, he felt panic and uneasy about the current situation.

Now, sitting at the table, staring at the map, he can clearly see the configuration of his own armies and divisions, as well as the deployment of the enemy's armies, and the whole situation can be seen at a glance.The north, west and east of his Central Front are now Germans!There is only a 170-kilometer-wide passage in the southeast corner—this is the only passage for the entire front army to maintain contact with the outside world, but two powerful German armored groups are now on both sides of the passage, and the gate can be closed at any time, and 100 million people The Central Front Army uniform into the pocket!But they are not acting now.This is very abnormal, it seems that the enemy wants to escape from this passage!Years of military experience tell the Marshal that the enemy will not do what you want the enemy to do on the battlefield; and what the enemy wants you to do must not be done!But now he has to do it, because Moscow ordered him to break out!Just break through the [-]-kilometer-wide passage to Kiev, and then rest there for a while, and then go to Moscow to join the Moscow Front Army.

The plan to break out of the siege has also been sent to the headquarters of the Central Front Army by telegram. Moscow ordered the nearly 200 million people around Minsk (actually less than 170 million) to be divided into four clusters, of which two to three armies form the rear The troops defended Minsk to attract the attention of the enemy; five armies were used to hold back the enemy's Hoppner group; six armies were used to resist the Guderian group; Retreat southeast.Especially the four tank corps and ten cavalry corps of the Central Front Army, these mobile units must be the first to break through...

However, Ubolevich knew very well that it was impossible to hold back the 11 German tanks with 8000 infantry corps!Moreover, the four tank armies marching south mightily cannot escape the bombing of thousands of German planes in the sky!The infantry may still break up into pieces and protrude out, but it is impossible for the armored soldiers to escape.But this is an order from Moscow, an instruction from the great leader Stalin!As a Red Army commander, he must obey unconditionally!

At this time, footsteps sounded outside the door, and the cadres above the division level of the Central Front Army had arrived. They came to the headquarters for a meeting under the order of the Front Army Headquarters, and accepted their respective tasks—the task of breaking through the encirclement or sending them to death!

……

On December 1937, 12, at 15:3 am, on the plain south of Baranowicz.

Lieutenant General Hu Lian stood on top of a half-tracked armored vehicle. In front of his eyes were all movable tanks, assault artillery, and armored vehicles of the Eighth Armored Division of the Chinese National Defense Army. There were a total of 265 No. 75/342 tanks, three There are 668 No. 7 assault guns/No. 16 self-propelled artillery/No. 1600 anti-aircraft combat vehicles, 16 half-track armored vehicles of various types, and [-] trucks.In addition, there is an armored grenadier brigade of more than [-] infantry.On the two wings of the Chinese [-]th Armored Division are the remaining three armored divisions of the German [-]th Panzer Corps, the German [-]rd, [-]th, and [-]th Armored Divisions.More than [-] tanks and assault artillery were neatly lined up on the snow-covered Belarusian wasteland, quietly waiting for the order of General Erich Hoepner, commander of the German [-]th Panzer Army, to set off!

Just as the Soviets had grasped, the 16th Panzer Army was in the west and the 19th Panzer Army was in the east. Like two ferocious wolves, they firmly guarded the Soviet Central Front Army!And the German Central Army Group and the Southern Army Group continued to exert pressure on the nearly 200 million troops of the Soviet Central Front Army (Germany does not know how many people there are) from the northwest.These two army groups are like two huge steamrollers, slowly rolling in from the northwest direction. After eight days and eight nights of bloody battle, the Soviet Central Front Army was defeated by the superior firepower, troops and huge air superiority of the German army. , the troops suffered heavy casualties, and strategic locations were lost one after another!