After settling General Popov, Zhukov said to Sokov: "Misha, you rescued Popov's remnants and may face crazy revenge from the German army next, and you need to prepare in advance."
"Comrade General, we are ready to face the enemy." Sokov replied: "The enemy will have to suffer huge casualties before they will have the opportunity to break into the city."
Zhukov was still half-believing and half-doubted about Sokov's statement. He asked tentatively: "If the enemy uses a frontal feint attack and two-sided detour tactics, how do you plan to deal with it?"
"To the south of the city is the 379th Infantry Division of the 21st Army. They now control the town of Bile and can attack the enemy's flanks in the south of the city." Sokov said confidently: "And to the north of the city, there is a friendly guard. When we are attacked, we can ask them for help and let them attack from the enemy's flanks."
"What if you go to ask them for help and the commander of the Guard tells you that they have not received any orders from their superiors and cannot provide you with assistance?"
To avoid Zhukov's question being so picky, Sokov replied after thinking for a while: "Comrade General, if the troops in the north of the city cannot get the support of friendly forces, I will mobilize Colonel Gorishne's Guards' 75th Division to strengthen the defense in the north of the city." Speaking of this, Sokov deliberately paused for a moment and said with a smile, "But as long as you sit here, when the nearby friendly forces find Luhansk being attacked by the enemy, even if there is no order from their superiors, they will take active actions to support us."
Zhukov couldn't help laughing at Sokov's statement. He felt that the other party was right. As long as he was still in Lugansk for one day, when the city was attacked by the enemy, the nearby troops would not dare to see him die and refuse to save him.
"Also, comrade General, if the city is attacked by the enemy, it may only last for about ten days by relying on the material reserves in the city." Considering that once the city's offensive and defensive war begins, the consumption of various ammunition will be an astronomical figure. Relying on the reserves in Lugansk City will not last long. Therefore, Sokov took the opportunity to ask Zhukov: "I wonder if you can contact your superiors and let them allocate materials to us as soon as possible?"
"Misha, you treat me as your logistics minister. Just give orders directly if you want." Zhukov shook his head and said jokingly: "But you are the highest commander of this city. Since you have given the order, I will firmly implement it. I will contact Moscow as soon as possible and let them transport the materials you need through the railway."
After dark, Colonel Bere called Sokov and reported to him: "Misha, something strange happened. The German army, who was still fighting with us during the day, was retreating."
"What, the Germans are retreating?" Sokov was very surprised when he heard Bereth say this. He quickly asked, "Comrade Colonel, are you sure?"
"It's totally confirmed." Bere continued: "I was worried that it was the enemy's conspiracy, so I specially sent someone to conduct reconnaissance and found that the enemy was really retreating. Not only the armored troops were retreating, but even the infantry were retreating."
"Damn, what's going on?" Sokov was a little confused. Logically, his troops had just broken through the German siege and rescued Popov's troops. The Germans suffered such a big loss, so why would they give up? They would definitely take crazy revenge, but the other party chose to withdraw. This is too illogical. "I understand. I'll monitor the enemy closely. If there is any latest news, report to me immediately."
After putting down the phone, he said to Witkov: "Chief of Staff, call the commanders of each division and let them immediately contact the squads operating behind enemy lines to understand the enemy's movements."
After all this, Sokov came to Zhukov's residence and reported to him the abnormal situation.
Zhukov walked back and forth around the house with his hands behind his back for a few times, stopped and asked, "Tell me, how did you analyze this matter?"
"Comrade General, although our comrades have seen the enemy retreat." Sokov said in an uncertain tone: "But whether the enemy is truly retreating is still a conspiracy, and it is still difficult to judge now."
Zhukov sat down at the table, looked up at Sokov and asked, "Misha, then let me talk about it, why did the enemy retreat at this time?"
"I think the Germans' combat plan should be to defeat General Vatutin's southwestern front, and then turn around to attack General Golikov's Voronezh front, and retake Kharkov, Belgorod and other places." Sokov replied: "Once they achieve this battle goal, they will be able to take the initiative on the battlefield and continue to threaten Moscow's security from the south."
"What is the reason for the enemy's fake retreat?" Zhukov did not express his opinion about what Sokov said, but continued to ask.
"The enemy's retreat may be a conspiracy. In fact, they did not go far, but used the terrain to hide, and were ready to catch us off guard when our army relaxed its vigilance."
"Misha, your analysis is very reasonable." Zhukov nodded slightly and said, "But as the highest commander in the city, you have to find a correct answer from your own judgment in order to formulate a correct combat plan based on it. Do you understand what I mean?"
"I understand, Comrade General."
Sokov has not yet had much information and the German intentions are temporarily unable to judge. As soon as he returned to his command, he asked Vitkov: "Chief of Staff, is there any news about those small teams behind enemy lines?"
"The enemy-behind team of the 75th Guards Division reported that they saw an armored column advancing northwest along the highway. The column's total length is about ten kilometers, and the enemy should be retreating."
"Where is the number?" Sokov asked, "Have you figured out the number of the enemy?"
"They captured a prisoner, and after interrogation, they confirmed that the other party was the 7th Armored Division of the German Army."
"Then where did they find the enemy armored division?"
"Here." Witkov pointed at a location on the map and said in a positive tone: "It's about seventy kilometers away from the city."
When Sokov realized that the enemy's armored division had been withdrawn, he realized that Lugansk's defense battle should not be fought. Without the support of the armored division, even if the German army dispatched two infantry divisions, they might not be able to capture Lugansk. He pinched his chin with his hand and said thoughtfully: "So, the Germans are really retreating."
"It should be like this."
"Although the chance of the enemy retreating is very high, we cannot take it lightly." Sokov told Vetkov: "We should still be vigilant to prevent the enemy from retaliating."
"Don't worry, Comrade Commander." Witkov replied: "Our soldiers have long been guarding against the Germans. As long as the Germans have any trouble, they can discover them in time."
The next morning, Sokov received another call from Bere.
Berley said excitedly on the phone: "Misa, now it is completely certain that the Germans have retreated, they have really retreated."
"Is this true?"
"Of course it's true." Bellei continued to say: "The scouts I sent carefully searched the area within a radius of twenty or thirty kilometers, and no German discovered it, proving that the enemy was really retreating."
After finishing the call with Bere, Sokov called Sivakov, the commander of the 71st Division of the Guards, and asked: "Comrade Colonel, how is your situation there?"
Chapter completed!