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Volume 3 Far East Story Chapter 416 Keeping the Green Mountains

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    Tsaritsyn Southern Front Headquarters at 20:15 on July 13, 1918

    "Comrade Sergin, Comrade Joseph, urgent call from Moscow!" Gidis, Chief of Staff of the Southern Front, hurriedly opened the door of the headquarters conference room, startling the political commissar of the Southern Front Joseph and Commander Sergin who were discussing.

    The Southern Front of the Soviet Red Army was formed on the basis of the three battles to defend Tsaritsyn and consisted of three armies: the 8th, 9th and 10th.  After the supply of prisoners of war was replenished, the three armies of the Southern Front reached a peak of more than 200,000 people. Among them, Yegorov's Ninth Army had seven infantry divisions and a Budyonny special cavalry division, with a total strength of more than 80,000 people.

    Voroshilov¡¯s Tenth Army has seven infantry divisions with a total strength of more than 70,000 people, while Chernavin¡¯s Eighth Army has five divisions with a total strength of more than 50,000 people.

    Front Army Commander Sergin got up and went to Gidis to receive the telegram, but the Front Army Chief of Staff said with an embarrassed look, "It was sent by the Moscow Central Committee to Comrade Joseph, a member of the Revolutionary Military Commission."

    Although Joseph also served as political commissar in the Southern Front, he was a member of the North Caucasus Revolutionary Military Committee of Soviet Russia and a member of the Central Committee of the Soviet Central Committee. He was the de facto supreme leader of Soviet Russia in the direction of Tsaritsyn. Of course, he also served as  Bubnov, chairman of the Tsaritsyn Soviet and member of the Revolutionary Military Council of the North Caucasus, was also a member of the Central Committee.

    "Comrades! Moscow seems to have believed the enemy's rumors and believes that our Soviet Red Army has failed on the right bank of the Volga River. They plan to negotiate an armistice with the Ufa Allied Forces and seek the opinions of our Southern Front! What the hell! This must be Trotsky  That means!" Joseph hurriedly read the telegram, slammed the table, and said with a livid face.

    At this time, Central Committee member Bubnov, who had just gone to the bathroom, also hurried in and asked, "I heard that there was a telegram from Moscow. Did they tell you how to get Yegorov and the others back? How many troops can Moscow still mobilize?  Come to the Eastern and Southern Fronts?¡±

    "Comrade Bubnov, you came just in time. Moscow did not mention how to get the main force of Egorov's Ninth Army across the river. Instead, it planned to negotiate an armistice with the Ufa Allied Forces and even asked for our opinion on abandoning Tsaritsyn.  !" The pipe in Joseph's hand was trembling slightly, and Moscow's move was completely unacceptable to him for a moment!

    The commander of the Southern Front, Sergin, and the chief of staff, Gidis, looked at each other and were speechless. Joseph and Bubnov were both members of the Central Committee. The commander of the Southern Front, Sergin, was not even an alternate member of the Central Committee in the Bolshevik Party, and Joseph had not been a member of the Central Committee since he came.  After Tsaritsyn took charge of the work in the North Caucasus, he basically controlled all the power of the party, government and military in the direction of Tsaritsyn.

    The little Central Committee member who was born as a Georgian blacksmith did not even look down on Trotsky, the chairman of the Supreme Revolutionary Military Committee of Soviet Russia. Therefore, although Sergin was the commander of the front army, his status and qualifications in the party were far behind that of Joseph. As a military officer  For experts and Sergin, a former Tsarist Russian general who joined the Bolsheviks under Trotsky's shadow less than a year ago, keeping his tail between his legs is the only wise choice to protect himself.

    "Abandon Tsaritsyn? How could this happen?" Bubnov's qualifications and reputation in the party are no less than Joseph's. In fact, before and during the October Revolution, Central Committee member Bubnov was well-known among the Bolsheviks.  And the influence is much greater than that of Joseph.

    When Joseph came to the North Caucasus to be a member of the Revolutionary Military Committee, Bubnov was a member of the Ukrainian Revolutionary Military Committee and political commissar of the Don Military District. He only gave up Belarus and Ukraine during the armistice negotiations between the Soviet Central Committee and Germany and Austria, and recognized  The local self-government and government forced Bubnov to come to the North Caucasus.

    "That's it! It must be Trotsky's idea. The failure of the Eastern Front on the right bank of the Volga River frightened many people! Moscow asked us both if we agreed to abandon Saratov and go to the area south of Kursk in exchange for peace.  The armistice of the Ufa coalition forces, the two sides stopped all military operations with the Volga River as the boundary, and prepared to recognize each other! "

    Joseph's face was livid, and the pipe in his hand was rattling. The commander of the Southern Front Sergin and the chief of staff Gidis were silent. Obviously, Moscow was asking about the two men in front of Tsaritsin who were presiding over the work.  The Central Committee members did not have the right to interfere with their opinions. Although they were extremely surprised to give up Tsaritsyn, they did not expect Moscow to be so determined. Of course, it was all due to the huge appetite of the Ufa Allied Forces!

    "The telegram said that we should carefully consider whether we can hold the line along the Volga River if there is no ceasefire. Now the main force of the Eastern Front has basically been lost. The Third Army on the left bank of the Volga River only has more than 70,000 people. Plus the Fifth Army  The remaining two divisions of the group army numbered no more than 100,000 men. Almost all the artillery was taken to the right of the Volga River by the Southern Group.??In this case, it is very difficult to rely on the Third Army alone to defend the Kazan front line!  "

    Bubnov sighed inwardly as he spoke. It seemed that Vacetis was having a hard time in the Eastern Front, and the disastrous defeat of the Southern Group of the Eastern Front made the situation show signs of collapse. In this case, count on Moscow.  It is impossible to find a way to rescue Yegorov's main force who is still on the right bank of the Volga River. Perhaps negotiating a truce with the Ufa coalition is the only way to retain vitality and main force?

    "Leave Vacetis to figure out a solution for the Eastern Front. It is his responsibility to defend the Kazan front line. Our Southern Front Army is only responsible for the defense of the Tsaritsyn front line. Comrade Sergin, do you think it is impossible to rely on the remaining third party troops?"  Eighth Army and Tenth Army, can we hold the banks of the Volga River?" Joseph looked at the commander of the Southern Front with hope.

    In these days, with Trotsky's concessions under Ulyanov's mediation, and of course with Trotsky's return to central Moscow, the relationship between Joseph and Sergin was not bad. Joseph knew that Gamini  My husband is also seeking the position of commander of the Front Army. Instead of letting Kamenev, who has the title of Central Committee member and much higher qualifications and reputation than himself, come to the Southern Front to be the spokesperson, of course, I still focus on Sergin, who has the title of military expert.  A little easier to fiddle with and manipulate.

    After hearing this, Sergin thought for a while and said unhurriedly, "The Eighth and Twelfth Army now have a total of 120,000 people. If food and ammunition are guaranteed, it will not be a problem to defend the banks of the Volga River. We can still  There is a fleet in the Volga River area that can be used, but the premise for making this judgment is that the attacking force is Kolchak's White Guards, which cannot exceed 200,000 people!"

    "If the Ufa coalition launches the attack, it's hard for me to make a judgment on this. Yegorov crossed the river with 80,000 people, the main force of the Ninth Army. The telegram I received today said that he only had 33,000 infantry and Budyonny left.  The cavalry division is still there, and the rest have lost almost half of their strength, and this is without a direct encounter with the Ufa coalition ground troops!" Sergin's analysis obviously has great reservations.

    "Comrade Political Commissar, although I don't know if the battle report released by the Ufa Allied Forces to the world's media today is an exaggeration, it is true that Yegorov's troops suffered heavy losses in a large-scale air attack by the enemy's air force, and before that, Slavin's third  The nearly 30,000 troops of the three divisions of the Fifth Army's Northern Route Army were completely wiped out by the coalition forces overnight. In this case, only our two remaining armies were left to guard Tsaritsyn and the Volga River.  The river bank is very difficult!¡±

    Chief of Staff Giddis said from the side, while this guy was muttering in his heart, "Nima, Yegorov and Tukhachevsky's five armies with more than 230,000 people and hundreds of cannons failed to win.  In the Battle of Ufa, how could the remaining two armies of our Southern Front, with 120,000 people armed with rifles and machine guns, win?

    "It would be a miracle if we could win this battle. Comrade Joseph thought he could win the battle by shooting a few division commanders and brigade commanders. I don't know when he will wake up from the illusion!"

    "Uh" Joseph was thrown cold water on what Sergin and Gidis said. After thinking about it carefully, it was really a bit difficult to deal with. Although this guy was not angry with Trotsky and not with Vatsedis, but  I still know a lot about Slavin, Lezhevsky, including Tukhachevsky, the youngest commander of the Eastern Front Army who was so arrogant before. When it comes to leading troops in war, these people are definitely two-handed.

    "Yegorov said that the main force of his Ninth Army was knocked upside down by the opponent's air strike before the main force of the Ufa Allied Army's ground forces met. The Ufa Allied Army's air-ground coordination and the density of machine guns and artillery fire were only feared by Bede.  The main force of Austria is not much different. You must know that when Tukhachevsky first led the Southern Group to attack Ufa, he had a force of 160,000 troops and 33 artillery batteries. He was beaten to pieces," Sergin added.  .

    "Comrade Political Commissar, our current artillery batteries of the 8th and 12th Army of Tsaritsyn only total twelve, which is completely incomparable with the Southern Group of the Eastern Front. We are required to defend the banks of the Volga River and guard Tsaritsyn.  To be honest, we can't hold it, as long as the Ufa coalition is attacking!" Giddis, Chief of Staff of the Southern Front, also continued.

    "Can't we defend the Volga River despite the natural dangers? Kolchak's White Guards don't have a fleet in the Volga River. We block it from the water and prevent the other party from forcing the crossing! Isn't this also possible?" Joseph struggled and asked unwillingly.

    "The Volga River can play a certain role in defense, but how to defend the more than 800 kilometers of river bank from Kazan to Tsaritsyn? The opponent's aviation fleet aircraft are not afraid of the natural dangers of the Volga River. With the strength of the coalition forces, we must  We will definitely find a way to cross the river!" Sergin obviously had no confidence in holding the banks of the Volga. The key was that the performance and record of the Ufa coalition in the Battle of Ufa scared almost everyone.

    ¡°Whether it is Yegorov of the Southern Front Army or Tukhachevsky of the Eastern Front Army, they are both generals with real talent and learning who dare to fight tough battles, butIn Ufa, he was beaten so hard that he crawled on the ground, and now Tukhachevsky's life and death were unknown. Although Yegorov ran the farthest and did not get surrounded, he was still at the end of his game and could not find a place to cross the river.  It's all for nothing.

    Even if the weather clears up, it¡¯s hard to say whether Yegorov¡¯s Ninth Army can still escape the pursuit of the coalition forces!

    "There is no need to worry about having no firewood to keep the green hills, Comrade Joseph, since the people in Moscow asked us this, it is obvious that the majority of the Central Committee members in Moscow have reached a unanimous opinion. Perhaps, in order to preserve our strength, we must reluctantly give up Tsaritsyn!"

    Andrei Sergeyevich Bubnov, member of the Soviet Central Committee, member of the North Caucasus Revolutionary Military Commissar, and chairman of the Tsaritsyn Soviet, put his hand on Joseph's shoulder with a heavy face, looked into the other person's eyes and said.
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