Chapter 468: Value

Guderian’s renowned 1st Panzer Division was on the flank of the 502nd Battalion. When you mention the 1st Panzer Division, you can’t help but think of its astonishing combat record, which began all the way back in Poland. If the German panzer forces were the elite, then the 1st Panzer Division was the elite of the elite. This unit deployed a full 350 Panther tanks on the Soviet defenders’ front and, in just one morning, tore open their defensive lines and advanced 50 kilometers in a single push.

In the eastern regions of Poland, the German panzer forces had once again rediscovered their rhythm of advancing a thousand li in a day, proving with their sharp offensive that their blades were far from dull. The eastern part of Poland and the western part of the Soviet Union were hilly and plain regions, very suitable for large-scale tank battles, so massive armored warfare became the main theme.

Guderian, after thorough preparation, had led his panzer forces to the German-Soviet border the moment Field Marshal von Brauchitsch had ordered the counter-attack. And on his flank, providing cover, was merely a single armored battalion with 40 tanks.

The Soviet offensive, codenamed “Red Flag,” had ended in failure; no analysis was needed to see that. Approximately 1.1 million Soviet troops were trapped in the German encirclement, and the price of their offensive was as high as 70,000 casualties. Even the most optimistic estimate would say that no more than 100,000 of these troops would ever make it back to the Soviet Union.

The entire first wave of nearly 1.2 million men had been annihilated. The follow-on forces had not even left their own doorstep before they were smashed to pieces by the charging German panzer units. Khrushchev knew that this time, he was likely to be wiped out.

His troops were on the road, desperately trying to reach the German-Soviet border to join the offensive—but now the Germans had counter-attacked. Those Soviet units were caught on the march, not yet deployed. Some units had not even had time to distribute their ammunition. If they were to be hit by the German army at this time, Khrushchev could not imagine any outcome other than a complete rout.

Of course, the more than one million men in the encirclement could not be abandoned under any circumstances. At least at this stage, they were the only forces capable of counter-attacking the German army. So, without a second thought, Khrushchev and Marshal Voroshilov issued an order to the Soviet commanders in the encirclement: Hold every inch of ground, counter-attack the Germans and advance on Warsaw, no surrender!

This short order was in itself contradictory and baseless. If the Red Army had the ability to hold every inch of ground and attack Warsaw, how could they possibly be in a position to surrender? They had already reached the stage of surrendering or not surrendering, what damn counter-attack could they launch?

In a farmhouse, the Soviet radioman and officers were escorted out of the house by German soldiers with rifles. Half an hour earlier, they had received the order to lay down their weapons and cease resistance. These soldiers, their hands on their heads, walked out of the room, joined the stream of people, and finally, slowly marched west along both sides of the road.

Their destination was the same as the direction of their attack: near Warsaw. There, new concentration camps and settlements had been established. They would be responsible for labor there, adding a brick to the German war machine.

A German battalion commander leaned against the farmhouse door, a cigarette dangling from his lips. He watched as the Soviet radio continued to work, transmitting a series of codes. Two German soldiers were checking the messages against a captured Soviet codebook, then smiled and handed the translated text to their superior.

“Counter-attack? Hold their positions?” the battalion commander sneered, then threw the message on the ground at his feet. “Are the Soviet commanders in the rear sleeping soundly? They don’t even have any ammunition, and they’re still thinking of counter-attacking?”

On the table was spread a Soviet version of the operational map, which was so blurry it was outrageous. With such a crude map, the most these Soviet commanders could do was not get lost. To say they could command an offensive was an absolute joke. The German battalion commander looked at the maps, then compared them with the map he took from his own map case, which was filled with annotations and German text, and curled his lip in disdain.

This Soviet division-level combat unit had just surrendered. Their surrender was accepted by a German regimental commander. The Soviet unit’s flag and insignia were sent as trophies to the frontline headquarters in Warsaw. It was said that the frontline chief of staff, Manstein, was preparing to collect 100 unit flags to be sent back to Berlin for a victory parade for the German-Soviet war.

Field Marshal von Brauchitsch was more concerned with the counter-attack of Guderian’s Army Group G. After all, Army Group G and Army Group D were to conduct a coordinated operation to encircle the follow-on combat units in the Soviet central theater. According to air reconnaissance and pre-war estimates, this encirclement operation could trap at least 600,000 mainline Soviet troops.

“Attention!” With a loud command, two rows of German honor guards gripped their new Mauser 98k rifles. With a crisp, uniform sound, the soldiers presented their well-practiced standard rifle salute.

The military band played a rousing martial song. The majestic melody, accompanied by the continuous flash of reporters’ cameras, changed constantly. The commander of the German Army Group E, List, was accepting the surrender of the commander of the Soviet Red Army’s Ukrainian 1st Front.

“General, on behalf of the 4 army groups, 11 corps, and 31 divisions under my command, a total of 501,700 men, I surrender to you,” the Soviet commander said with his head bowed in helplessness. He spoke very slowly, his voice filled with sorrow. Everyone knew why he was being so subservient. No one wanted to see their relatives and friends sent to the gallows, nor did anyone want their wives and children to be sent to the distant concentration camps of Siberia.

However, Stalin’s order to send the relatives of surrendering or defeated generals to Siberia had been in place since the beginning of the Great Purge. Countless famous Soviet generals and promising officers who could have become the backbone of the army were hanged, and countless families were sent to Siberia to be tortured to death. Khrushchev had carried out this order at the front. Just the day before, someone had been hanged for an ineffective attack, and the death sentence for his family had been read out on the spot.

The Soviet officers present, who looked as if they had just lost their parents, had truly just lost their parents. Today, they had surrendered for the sake of their own lives, and tomorrow, they would be sending their wives and children down the road to the underworld. But in the end, they still surrendered, without a moment’s hesitation.

Amidst the military music, the Soviet commander, having spoken his words, handed the flag of his unit to the German General List. List gripped the standard, which was embroidered with the unit’s insignia and adorned with golden tassels at the corners, and smiled gently for the reporters’ cameras. Beside him stood the bowing Ukrainian commander.

“Your defense is even more formidable than your offense,” the Soviet commander said dejectedly, as he faced the reporters’ cameras. “We thought we would strike first, but now it seems you were prepared all along… Why?”

List was very satisfied with his troops’ performance in this battle, so he had been smiling warmly the whole time. He did not hide anything from the defeated general. He smiled for the cameras and replied, “It’s very simple. We knew you would attack, so we decided to attrit a portion of your forces first.”

“Attrit? Attrit a portion of your forces? And then?” the Soviet general asked, stunned.

“Liberate Ukraine and Belarus! Not everyone longs for the rule of the Red Soviet Union. At the very least, the Führer believes that the Ukrainians and Belarusians do not long for the oppression and tyranny of the Russians,” List said, handing the captured flag to his subordinate after the photo session. He clasmed his hands behind his back and continued as he walked forward.

“You will counter-attack?” the general asked, trembling in astonishment.

“Hehe, the Germans do not have a tradition of not hitting back after being hit,” List replied proudly. “So from the moment you tore up the treaty and attacked Germany, you should have been prepared to bear Germany’s retaliation.”

Then List looked to the distant east and pointed to the gray horizon. “The counter-attack has already begun. An hour ago, our troops crossed the German-Soviet border. We have withstood your attack… Now, it’s our turn to make a move!”

“…” The Ukrainian general naturally knew the weaknesses of his own country. It could be said that apart from the first-line combat units, which were in a true “combat state,” more than half of the other rear-area units were not prepared for battle at all. Most of the rear-area armies were in an extremely chaotic “on the march” state.

At a time like this, a German counter-attack would be like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, no different from a slaughter. If the man supervising the rear was Timoshenko or the new-generation general Zhukov, he would still feel that there was a chance to avoid defeat. But now, it was Khrushchev, who was clueless about combat, and a marshal, Voroshilov, who never defied him. It could be said with great responsibility that the Soviet western front was finished, completely finished.

However, after thinking of this, the Ukrainian general seemed to feel a sense of release. Since the frontline troops were doomed to collapse, the flames of war would quickly spread to the Ukrainian region. At that time, his family should be able to protect themselves in the chaos, right? After all, it was not so easy to find a few people in a war-torn region.

So this Ukrainian general let out a deep breath and then said to List, who was walking in front of him, “I still have some… value.”

“I know! I know you are worried about your family,” List said, nodding, cutting him off. “I promise you, if we arrive in time, your family will receive the protection of the Reich… As for the value you speak of, you can tell that to the Führer. He will give you a satisfactory answer.”

Published: 2025-08-27T07:51:29.000+00:00
Last Edited: 2025-11-19T16:49:46.000+00:00
URL: https://www.patreon.com/caleredhair/posts/mtr-c468-value-137450579

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