Chapter 832: The Unfinished Poem

A German sniper was leaning in his trench. He was not one of those super-snipers who specialized in hunting distant targets, but rather a “marksman” responsible for medium- to long-range attacks within his own unit. He had only a 3x optical scope on his Mauser 98k rifle, which was easy to produce, use, and maintain.

Because of this weapon, the German army had already widely distributed this sniper-like infantry in many of its frontline combat units. Their combat capability might not be enough to deal with enemy snipers, but they could inflict considerable casualties on the opponent’s ordinary infantry.

Moreover, the German army was gradually standardizing their individual combat weapons, a concept similar to the “family of weapons” design proposed by weapons experts after World War II. Based on the exceptionally outstanding performance of the MP-44 assault rifle in combat, the German weapons department, in conjunction with its branches in Belgium and France, began to issue individual weapons that used the same ammunition and common parts.

This series of weapons included the MP-44 assault rifle, which could be fitted with an individual grenade launcher; the MP-44 assault rifle, which could be used with an infrared night vision device; the MG45 squad light machine gun; the G44 new-model semi-automatic rifle; and the G44 sniper-specific semi-automatic rifle with a scope.

This series of weapons could greatly simplify the repair of parts for German firearms and also simplify logistical production. It was considered by the German military to be a revolutionary product that could replace the existing individual weapons and completely phase out weapons like the Mauser 98k rifle. These weapons had already begun to be issued on a large scale, but due to production capacity issues, they had not yet been fully distributed—after all, to arm over 5 million men was not something that could be done in a day or two.

So now the German army was still using a hodgepodge of various weapons: the Mauser rifle, which was similar to the weapons used in the First World War; the more advanced G43 semi-automatic rifle; and the MP-44 assault rifle.

The German infantry marksman, holding his weapon, saw a Soviet soldier through his scope who was attempting to open fire. The other man was clearly not very familiar with his own weapon. He fired a shot from behind a low wall and was almost knocked over by the recoil.

He gave a cold laugh, then aimed his rifle at the Soviet soldier who had fired. Because the Soviet soldiers on the front line had already collapsed under the threat of the tanks, he had no need to focus his main energy on the main battlefield. What he had to do was to finish off the scattered Soviets who dared to resist and to ensure that his own unit could capture this infiltrated bridgehead.

And so, he held his rifle, waiting for the Soviet behind the low wall to show his head again. At times like this, he would envy those soldiers who had been promoted to frontline snipers. They had their own assistants and could choose their own combat positions. It was a very enviable way to fight.

It should be known that Field Marshal von Rundstedt had not suddenly gone mad when he had ordered his troops to begin advancing into Smolensk at all costs, to fight a street battle he was not good at. It was just that a German infantry battalion, having been experimentally equipped with new firearms and staffed with a large number of veterans and snipers who were familiar with urban warfare, had been ordered to infiltrate the city of Smolensk to test a new type of special urban street fighting tactic.

This unit was formed with reference to the special operations units of the special forces. It had more advanced individual walkie-talkies and a dedicated battalion-level radio channel. It could call for air and artillery support from the army group’s subordinate units and the headquarters’ direct artillery. By relying on short, sharp assaults and precise coordination, it aimed to clear out the enemy in street fighting, emphasizing the use of firepower and the killing of the enemy’s effective strength.

The plan had been proposed by the High Command, where the Führer himself was, so Rundstedt had agreed to test this combat model in one of his infantry divisions. For this, he had even deliberately allocated various calibers of artillery for support, as well as helicopters and attack planes.

As for why he had so impatiently ordered the attack on Smolensk, it was mainly because he wanted to deal with the large Soviet force that was surrounded behind his own defense line before the main German offensive shifted to the south, and to stabilize his own front. After all, once the military supplies were diverted to the southern front, to have a Soviet-occupied city behind his own defense line was definitely not good news.

And so, he had ordered the assault on Smolensk to begin, under the pretext of an experiment, hoping to clear out the Soviet defenders here and completely occupy Smolensk with relatively few casualties.

The first step of the plan was very simple: to use the German firepower advantage to compress the Soviet troops within the city. Because soon, the German Air Force’s last large-scale bombing raid was about to begin—and this time, they would be using a large amount of napalm, and the effect would surely be much better than the previous conventional bombs.

The German rifleman, lying in wait, aimed at the low wall, waiting for his target to appear. After all, even if he was a Soviet new recruit, a Soviet new recruit who dared to open fire was still worth killing. But soon, an advancing German tank blocked his view, and he had no choice but to continue to wait patiently.

Behind that low wall, this Soviet teacher had loaded his rifle. He had just poked his head out when he saw a German tank, painted in white camouflage, right in front of him. The machine gun on the front of its hull was spitting a fierce tongue of fire, sending sparks flying against some of the surrounding walls. A Soviet soldier wanted to get close to this German tank, but he was quickly turned into a sieve by the grenadiers following behind the tank.

BOOM! The “tank” that was covering the German charge opened fire. The shell spewed from its long-barreled 75mm cannon. It was not actually a real tank, but a German Panzer III assault gun. Unfortunately, in the eyes of the Soviet soldiers, these steel monsters were all called tanks, and they were all very deadly.

The shell fired from the Panzer III assault gun slammed into the building behind the Soviet troops. The huge explosion kicked up a cloud of smoke, forcing the surrounding Soviet soldiers to close their eyes and protect their steel helmets. The situation behind the low wall was not much better. The shockwave, carrying debris and dust, swept over the area, making the cowering teacher miserable.

After a few coughs, the foul, choking dust finally passed. Everything seemed to have returned to a state of calm. The ringing in his ears gradually subsided, and the sound of guns and cannons, which had seemed to be in the distance, began to be incessant again. He struggled to get up from the ground, picked up his steel helmet and put it on his head, then grabbed his rifle and poked his head out.

These damn enemies, their tanks were like monsters, devouring people’s lives. Their weapons looked incredibly powerful, completely unstoppable. But as a Soviet, he had to stop the invaders from running rampant, to stop them from continuing to invade the Soviet territory behind him.

His eyes had just cleared the low wall. He saw that the German tank had moved from its position. His hands had just wanted to move, to rest the rifle in his palms on the edge of the low wall. He was confident he could hit the enemy with another shot. After all, he had already understood just how powerful that terrible recoil was.

He saw on the position opposite him, in a not-so-conspicuous corner, a bright flash suddenly appeared. Before he could even remember what this light meant, he felt a huge force strike his steel helmet, sending his head flying backward, and a searing pain shot through his forehead.

All of this had happened in an instant. In his last shred of consciousness, he remembered the old soldier’s warning, that the Germans had some very skilled snipers who hid in the dark and ambushed the enemy. These snipers’ shooting was very accurate. By the time you knew they were there, someone had already been shot and had fallen.

“Damn it!” he thought he had muttered, but in fact, his body had not moved at all. He lay on his back on the ground, his legs still twisted at a strange angle from his previous posture of squatting against the wall. His eyes had not yet had time to close, as if with a trace of unwillingness, unwilling to leave this enchanting world.

The poem wasn’t finished, was it? In terms of length, it seemed a bit too short. What came next? Were there any brilliant lines? Right… sniper, right, the sound of the machine gun…

“The sniper’s bullet,

Screams in a straight line;

The heavy machine gun returns the favor,

Cutting down the crowd.

Between the living and the dead,

Only the white snow lingers;

The flag, riddled with holes,

The military cap, pierced by a bullet.

On that cold steel helmet,

Only the national emblem shines;

In this domain of death,

Countless souls are burning.”

Unfortunately, his body was already cold. Unfortunately, those cold leather boots were passing by his side. These German soldiers in their white smocks were so young, their faces also so youthful. What had driven them to come to such a distant place, to fight with some innocent people, to take their lives?

In the sky, a dense mass of bombers passed by in a sky-blotting swarm, like a dark cloud obscuring the boundless azure blue. These planes carried terrifying bombs and were about to sweep through all of Smolensk. This battle was far from over, or rather, it had just begun. Every inch of land here was to be roasted by fierce fire, and every life here was to struggle in the cruelest of environments, to struggle to continue to survive.

On March 17, 1939, the German Air Force dropped 300 tons of napalm on Smolensk, burning the entire city into a scorched earth. Civilian losses were in the tens of thousands. More than seven hundred houses were destroyed on the spot, and another 1,100 buildings were destroyed in the subsequent fires. The Soviet army, in despair, continued to fight. Casualties continued to rise. The German army committed all kinds of advanced weapons. The brutal street fighting of Smolensk had thus begun.

Advance chapters at Nightjar Reads · nightjarreads.com