On the war-torn Soviet-German battlefield, the situation was developing rapidly in a direction that was extremely unfavorable to the German army. The atmosphere inside the German High Command was as solemn as the silence before a storm. "Marshal Brauchic, how is the situation now?" Keitel asked worriedly with his brows twisted into the character "Chuan". His eyes were fixed on Marshal Brauchic, as if he wanted to find any sign of improvement in the situation on his face. Marshal Brauchitsch had a sad face, and his eyes showed deep worry, and he said slowly: "It's not good. The Soviet counterattack was too fierce. It was like an overwhelming force. The defense lines stretching for hundreds of kilometers were everywhere. Suffering a strong attack by the Soviet army, the troops suffered heavy losses. This is the telegram just sent by Marshal Model." As he spoke, he handed a telegram to Keitel. Keitel took the telegram and quickly scanned the words on it. His brows furrowed tighter and tighter, as if the words on the telegram were sharp knives cutting into his heart. After reading, he raised his head, looked at Marshal Brauchic, and asked again: "The war situation is very unfavorable to us now. What do you think? Marshal Brauchic." "Withdraw, we must retreat immediately!" Marshal Brauchic replied decisively without hesitation, "In addition, a large number of air forces must be dispatched to cover the withdrawal. Otherwise, if the fight continues like this, Army Group Center will not be completely wiped out. It will definitely be hit hard.” Marshal Brauchic knew in his heart that the Soviet army was too powerful. The strength of the Soviet army alone reached more than three million, like a sea of ​​​​people with no end in sight.

There are more than 50,000 artillery pieces of various types. The densely packed artillery pieces are like a steel jungle, each one capable of spitting out deadly flames. There are more than 30,000 tanks and armored vehicles, and the torrent of steel they form is enough to crush anything in front of them. More than 10,000 fighter planes roared past in the sky, like dark clouds covering the sky. Such a terrifying force cannot be resisted by Army Group Center at this time. What's more, the German army is now extremely lacking in logistics and the supply of materials is almost cut off. In this case, it is simply impossible to hold the line of defense. To make matters worse, the newly formed armored division was still struggling to reach the front line, and it would take at least half a month to arrive. Moreover, there is a serious shortage of key fuel. Those armored vehicles may stall halfway because they run out of fuel, becoming a pile of scrap metal on the battlefield. "How many fighter jets can the Air Force deploy?" Keitel turned his head, looked at Marshal Goering, and asked eagerly. Marshal Göring narrowed his eyes slightly, thought about it in his mind for a while, gritted his teeth and said: "A maximum of 1,500 fighters. The fuel consumption has been too fast recently. If there is enough fuel, I can take off 3,000 fighters." , give the Soviet army a head-on attack!" There was a hint of helplessness and unwillingness in his words, as if he was annoyed that he could not send more fighters. This is already the limit of the Luftwaffe. If it is any more, the plane will be unable to take off because it is out of fuel. However, Keitel ignored Goering's complaints and was nervously calculating the situation. At this time, the German Empire's oil reserves were indeed running low. Whether it is the army's large number of tanks and armored vehicles, or the air force's numerous fighter planes, they are all huge consumers of fuel. To be able to scrape together the fuel needed for so many fighter planes is already an exhaustive effort. Although Germany exploited a lot of oil in the occupied areas, many oil wells and oil storage facilities were bombed under the baptism of war. Not to mention, every battlefield is frantically consuming precious oil resources, and every drop is extremely precious. In addition, the Luftwaffe could no longer afford too many losses. After last month's statistics, there were only about 16,000 Imperial pilots.

This number is far lower than the national average. It takes a lot of time, energy and resources to train an excellent pilot, but in cruel wars, pilots suffer extremely rapid casualties. Every loss of a pilot greatly reduced the strength of the Luftwaffe. "We must withdraw. Don't worry about the gains and losses of one city or one pool." Keitel thought for a moment, and after clarifying his thoughts, he said slowly, "The Soviet army's territory is too big. It is impossible to completely occupy it." It's possible. If you can't defeat it, evacuate immediately instead of fighting the enemy to the end. We must find a way to lure the enemy deep, divide the enemy's forces, and then destroy the enemy on the move. " Keitel's words aroused the surprise of many people present. In their past impressions, Keitel was not such an easy person to compromise and easy to talk to. Unexpectedly, in the face of such a severe reality, he had to make the decision to give up some positions. "No need to be surprised, the current battle situation is very unfavorable for us." Keitel saw everyone's expressions and continued nonchalantly, "I can't think of a better way besides retreating. Look at the strength gap between the two sides. Huge, if you insist on fighting the enemy to the end at this time, isn't that asking for your own death? Do you really think that the enemy is a piglet waiting to be slaughtered? " The Soviet army has nearly 30 million troops, which is a shocking number and seems to be an endless source of power. As for the German army, the total number was only over 10 million. Moreover, the German army had to face the dilemma of fighting on two fronts. It had to defend against the Allied offensive on the western front and resist the powerful Soviet offensive on the eastern front. Such a huge territory requires the deployment of troops to garrison, and the number of troops that can be deployed to key battlefields is really very limited. If Army Group Center suffers another heavy loss, it is really possible that the Soviet army will push back all the way, leading to the collapse of the entire war situation. "How is the training of the servant army?" In order to make up for the huge gap in military strength, Keitel had previously recruited millions of servant troops from various countries. He looked at the officer in charge of training and asked. "It's still in training. Judging from the current progress, it will take at least two months to take shape and have a certain combat effectiveness." The officer in charge of the training replied hastily, with a hint of nervousness in his voice. "It's been too long. We simply can't wait that long." Keitel shook his head decisively and said, "Deploy half a million servants to join Manstein's armored forces to form a new second armored group. Order them Rush to the reinforcements of Army Group Center immediately, without delaying for a moment!" Keitel was thinking that the five newly formed armored divisions, plus half a million servants, would be a huge force. He believes that this fist force, which has been given high hopes, will play an important role at critical moments, produce a proud record, and reverse the current unfavorable battle situation. "Yes!" The officer responsible for conveying the order responded loudly, then quickly turned around and left quickly to carry out this urgent troop deployment task. "The Air Force immediately dispatched to cover the retreat of Army Group Center. Tell the pilots that this is a life-or-death mission and we must ensure the safe evacuation of the ground troops!" Keitel then issued an order to the Air Force. However, just as the German high command was nervously deploying retreat and reinforcement operations, the Soviet offensive on the front line became increasingly fierce. The Soviet Air Force dispatched 6,000 fighter sorties in one day, like locusts passing through the border, carrying out indiscriminate bombings against various frontline battlefields of Army Group Center that were still resisting. One after another, heavy bombs fell rapidly from the sky with a sharp whistling sound, and landed accurately on the German positions. In an instant, flames shot into the sky and the explosion was deafening. The battle lines were littered with corpses that had been blown to pieces, as well as cars that were overturned and destroyed by the shock wave. Even many of the sturdy tanks of the German army were hit during bombings, burst into flames, and turned into a pile of scrap metal. After the air raid, millions of Soviet troops, under the cover of tanks, were like a black tide, crossing the bombed positions and advancing deep into the German defense lines. Their steps were firm and powerful, and their shouts of killing shook the earth. Not long after, a large-scale offensive and defensive battle broke out in the area headed by Collinch. There is no mistake in every song, one post, one content, one 6 one, one book, one book, take a look! Marshal Model knew very well that if he wanted to retreat safely, he must have a force to stay behind. Otherwise, if the retreat was not organized properly, it would easily lead to a complete rout. By then, the losses of the German army will be even more severe and the consequences will be unimaginable.

In this brutal strangulation battle, both sides paid a huge price. The Soviet army, which had high morale, was well-equipped and was large in number, thought it could easily break through the German defense lines in this area, but it ended up being badly beaten here. Marshal Model carefully deployed a large number of fortifications in the Collinch area. Trenches crisscrossed each other, like a huge spider web, protecting the German soldiers. There are also dense barbed wire fences, shining coldly in the sun, blocking the Soviet army's advance. In addition, he also laid out large minefields in key areas. Those mines hidden underground are like lurking poisonous snakes, ready to give the enemy a fatal blow at any time. Model even deployed the Sixth Mountain Infantry Division, which had just completed its reloading. This force is equipped with advanced weapons, the soldiers are well-trained, and their combat effectiveness cannot be underestimated. It was precisely because of these careful arrangements and heroic troops that the Soviet army's fierce counterattacks were blocked again and again. However, even so, the situation of the German army was still not optimistic at this time. The situation on the battlefield is changing rapidly. If reinforcements do not arrive in time, or if they cannot retreat in an orderly manner immediately, the German army may still be surrounded by the Soviet army and fall into a desperate situation. "Asshole, is Zhukov crazy? He actually invested so many troops!" Marshal Model couldn't help being shocked after learning the details of the Soviet offensive forces, and immediately roared angrily. On the map in front of him, the Soviet offensive arrows were densely packed, with millions of troops pressing down on one front alone. What's even more frightening is that there are more than two million reserve troops behind them, like surging waves, one after another, seemingly endless. "How are the losses on the front line?" Marshal Model suppressed the anxiety in his heart, looked at the combat staff next to him, and asked. "It's very large. The battle is still fierce and accurate statistics cannot be made for the time being. But judging from the situation on the battlefield, the expected losses are definitely not low. However, the Soviet army's death rate is also very high under our tenacious resistance. "The combat staff replied with a worried look on his face. "They have so many people that it doesn't matter if they lose some. But we are different. Every loss of a soldier is a huge loss. Our troops are already stretched thin and can no longer withstand such consumption." Marshal Model was extremely troubled. He said with exhaustion and helplessness written all over his face. "Is there a telegram from the headquarters? Do you agree to our retreat?" Marshal Model asked again with a hint of expectation. "Not yet, but based on my understanding of the people in the headquarters, I think there is little hope of retreating. As you know, they have always been reluctant to give up their positions easily and choose to retreat." The combat staff said in a low voice. With a hint of uncertainty and worry. "Alas..." Marshal Model sighed deeply, as if he wanted to spit out all the helplessness in his heart. Immediately, he said decisively: "Wait another five minutes. If we haven't received the order from the headquarters, we will retreat according to the predetermined plan. We can't wait blindly any longer, otherwise the whole army will be in danger." At this moment, the communications staff hurried over panting and said: "Marshal, there is a call from the headquarters! The headquarters ordered us to retreat immediately. At the same time, the newly formed Second Armored Group led by Manstein is rushing to our aid. The headquarters hopes that we will retreat. The two units cooperate with each other and strive for a beautiful counterattack during the retreat! " After hearing this, Marshal Model finally showed a look of relief on his tense face. He immediately turned around and said loudly to the officers in the war room: "Immediately convey the order from the headquarters, and all ministries are preparing to retreat in an orderly manner! At the same time, we must do a good job in liaison with General Manstein's troops. We must seize this opportunity Opportunity to show off the German army’s majesty!” On the battlefield, the German army began a tense and orderly retreat. One thousand and five hundred Air Force fighter planes were hovering in the sky, engaging in fierce air battles with Soviet fighter planes, providing cover for the evacuation of ground troops. On the ground, the German soldiers stubbornly resisted the Soviet pursuit while moving to the rear in an orderly manner. On the other side, Manstein was leading the newly formed Second Armored Group, traveling day and night towards Army Group Center. A new battle was about to begin. "Let all the troops on the front line speed up the attack and never give the Germans a chance to breathe." Marshal Zhukov glanced at the casualty report in his hand, then threw it aside and gave a quick order. For him now, he doesn't care about the number of casualties at all. What he wants is to defeat the enemy in front of him.

"Yes, Comrade Marshal." The subordinates responded quickly. They knew Zhukov's temper, and they must do what he said. (End of chapter)