Chapter 771: Who Else Would Bother to Inform?

“Crash!” At the same time as Yamamoto Isoroku smashed his cup, on the distant Crimean Peninsula, inside the core fortifications of the Sevastopol fortress, Khrushchev also smashed his own cup. Just half an hour ago, the attacking German forces had spread a flag on the last road connecting Sevastopol and Kerch. The connection between him and Marshal Voroshilov had been completely severed.

Khrushchev’s mood was now very bad. After all, he was not a pure military command expert. To ask him to boost morale was something he could barely manage, but to ask him to deploy troops for battle was to ask an amateur. He now had no idea how to command the remaining troops, let alone any constructive opinions.

Some of the political commissars were loudly demanding a breakout to link up with Marshal Voroshilov’s Kerch front before making further plans. Others were clamoring to defend their positions to the last man and not to give up a single inch of the motherland’s territory. But whether to break out or to defend to the death, in the end, it was up to Khrushchev, the supreme commander, to make the decision.

On the radio, Marshal Voroshilov had used a code to request that Khrushchev break out to the east. He could send troops to support this military operation, to abandon Sevastopol and defend Kerch to the death. But even Khrushchev himself did not believe that he could gather his troops and launch a tactical counter-attack that could repulse the German army.

All he could do now was to throw a tantrum in his own office, to rage at the frontline commanders for repeatedly losing defensive positions that should not have been lost. But everyone knew that in the face of the superior German offensive, to want to hold these positions was simply an impossible task.

Manstein did not have many armored units under his command. The only force that could really be considered a force was the 13th Panzer Corps. The number of tanks under the command of this corps was not large. The main force was the 8th SS Panzer Division, and the rest were assault gun units belonging to some mechanized infantry divisions. He had gathered these forces and used them as a fist to smash into the open area between Kerch and Sevastopol.

In another timeline, Manstein was one of the few strategic and tactical masters in the German army. This general, who had led the German army to its most glorious peak, was truly talented. He could see at a glance that Sevastopol and Kerch were two tough nuts to crack, and that it would take a considerable price to crack them one by one. So he had used the limited armored forces in his hands to cut between the Soviet Red Army in the two directions, completing a conventional division and encirclement.

The more skilled a famous general is, the more their tactics tend to be simple and practical. The simpler the method of attack, the fewer the flaws. And the most important condition for victory is that one’s own side makes no mistakes. It sounds so simple, but if it were so easy to do, there would not have been so many brilliant and classic battles in history.

Looking back at the history of World War II, countless famous generals, to put it bluntly, were all using superior forces to crush their opponents. Most of the Allied generals were fighting the German army with several times, or even dozens of times, the number of troops, shifting the tactical disadvantage to the burden of logistics, production, and other advantageous aspects.

Specifically broken down into tactics, it was nothing more than flanking, central breakthrough, division and encirclement, and a few other methods. After being used repeatedly a few times, there was no so-called innovation to speak of. The so-called famous generals were, in fact, just commanders who could, based on the weather conditions, geographical environment, and army equipment, draw up the most suitable operational plan for their own army.

Coincidentally, Manstein was just such a precision planning machine. He was adept at drawing up offensive or defensive plans based on the actual situation of his own troops. He could utilize every bit of his strength, bring out the best in his entire unit, and use the most skilled and suitable tactics of his entire unit to achieve his strategic objectives to the greatest extent possible.

At least in the Battle of the Crimean Peninsula, Manstein’s attack was very effective. His main armored force had directly struck at the weakest point of the Soviet Red Army’s defense—Sudak. After taking that place, the Soviet Red Army in the direction of Kerch was cut off from the possibility of reinforcing Sevastopol by land.

Just as Khrushchev was still undecided on whether to defend the line to the death or to launch a counter-attack to retake Sudak, Manstein had already helped him make his choice. This German commander had no intention of delaying at all. He directly ordered his troops to begin a southern advance and launched a fierce attack on Alushta. In the few hours that Khrushchev was wavering, he had captured that place.

“Counter-attack! We must retake Sudak! The troops in the direction of Kerch can provide us with cover. As long as we advance a dozen or so kilometers, we can retake that place,” Khrushchev said, studying the map. He felt that he could still manage to command his troops to launch an attack if he gritted his teeth. At that time, everyone, in order to save their own lives, would charge forward bravely, rout the German army, and flee to Kerch. It was not an impossible thing.

As for the Sevastopol fortress, this place was also nearing its end. The German army opposite them, in order to free up troops to threaten Kerch as soon as possible, had already launched a frantic offensive on this place. Khrushchev was no idiot. He knew that the German army’s plan to attack him first was a typical case of “picking the soft persimmon.”

After giving the order to counter-attack, the Soviet forces within the Sevastopol defense line began to detach troops. About 3,000 men were assembled, preparing to launch a counter-attack to the east to retake Sudak, which had been lost for several hours.

“Comrades! I believe you are the bravest and most fearless soldiers under my command,” Khrushchev said, standing in front of the soldiers who were preparing to set off, beginning his specialty, the pre-battle inspirational speech. “As long as you take Sudak and hold the defense line there, our entire force in the Sevastopol fortress can link up with our friendly forces near Kerch. At that time, the German army will retreat due to insufficient forces!”

“For the motherland! Comrades. For the motherland! Fight to the last moment!” Finally, Khrushchev roared, waving his fist. The soldiers were already boiling with enthusiasm under his encouragement. They had decided to retake the important Sudak at any cost.

A Soviet commander hurried to Khrushchev’s side and said softly to him, “Comrade Khrushchev, about an hour ago, the German army launched an attack on Alushta. All of our soldiers there were killed in action, with no survivors. The position has been lost. A message from the Roman-Kosh mountain defense line asks us to send reinforcements to strengthen the defense line there.”

“What?” Khrushchev was taken aback when he heard this news, then frowned and looked at the officer who had come to deliver the message. “What did you say? You said the Roman-Kosh mountain defense line was lost? How could it be lost?”

“Comrade Khrushchev, I did not say that Roman-Kosh mountain was lost. I said that an hour ago, Alushta was lost,” the commander replied in a low voice. He also knew that the situation was critical now, but without Khrushchev’s approval, who would dare to randomly redeploy the defensive forces?

“Alushta was lost? You mean, after capturing Sudak, the Germans continued south and captured Alushta?” Only then did Khrushchev realize that an important defensive node had been lost, and lost in a very muddled way. If they did not retake Alushta, they could not retake Sudak behind it. And if they did not retake Sudak, then what was the practical significance of assembling troops?

“Yes, Comrade Khrushchev, Alushta has been lost,” the officer who had come to report repeated.

“Then have the troops set off immediately, retake Alushta. I’ll give you one hour. You must retake Alushta, and then continue to attack east… Yes, that’s right, attack east! Retake Sudak from the Germans,” Khrushchev gave the order to continue the attack, his words somewhat incoherent. But this time, the journey of the attack had become twice as long, and there was no telling how many despicable German soldiers would be blocking the way.

“…” To use 3,000 infantry to counter-attack the German armored forces, to retake the defense line that had just been lost, and then to continue to advance, to fight all the way to a place even further away. That commander suspected that his ears had heard wrong. He had to emphasize the news he had brought once again. “Comrade Khrushchev, the current battle situation is very unfavorable for us. It is imperative that we reinforce Roman-Kosh mountain. To send men to counter-attack at a time like this is not a good idea.”

“You… are you questioning me? Get out! Get out of my sight! The order I have given must be carried out! Retake Alushta for me! Retake Alushta! No matter what the cost! Retake it for me!” Khrushchev roared in a rage. He felt afraid. He felt he was losing control of his surroundings. He thought of Yezhov, who had fallen in a pool of blood, and of those despairing eyes.

When a powerful ruler experiences an emotion like fear, he is not far from his own end. Fear is an extension of the loss of control, and for a person in a high position, losing control means the betrayal of everyone. This is something that no superior can tolerate, nor can they compromise on.

Khrushchev immediately ordered his guards to arrest the poor officer and then take him to the execution ground to be shot. A perfectly good pep rally had turned into a farce. The pity was that the 3,000 Soviet Red Army soldiers, who had lost all their morale, still had to march towards their objective, to challenge the powerful German armored forces.

“This is not a counter-attack. This is ordering one’s own troops to commit suicide!” the Soviet Red Army commander who had just taken over command of this unit complained through clenched teeth. “Even the most stupid political commissar has never given such a muddled order.”

“Commander, we can go and station ourselves on the Roman-Kosh mountain defense line. In any case, he won’t know if the battle at the front has started or not,” his deputy said softly.

The commander was taken aback for a moment, then looked at his deputy. “Will that work? What if he finds out?”

The deputy sneered and replied, “Who else would bother to inform him of the combat situation at the front now?”

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