Chapter 726 Muddy War

The road from the center of the train station to the south of the train station is not easy to walk on.

The heavy rain that lasted for a day and a night turned the exposed soil layer under the brick and stone road that was shattered by the German bombing and artillery into a swamp. The most common situation here is sewage and mud everywhere. The muddy water that flows back and covers the original bomb crater, making it look like an ordinary muddy ground.

But it is a different scene after stepping on it, especially for the German army, which needs to move to launch an attack as the attacking party, it is normal to miss the step and fall into the mud pond of the bomb crater with a face full of shit.

Malashenko, holding his tank commander's periscope, can see that the German soldiers next to the Chang 75 No. 4 that was killed by Iushkin's shot are already in chaos.

He shouted and called on his comrades to leave this dangerous place that has been exposed to the direct aim of the Soviet gun and has no cover. Many German soldiers were so busy looking around that they didn't have time to be careful of their feet, so they slipped and fell to the ground.

"Get up! Get up quickly! Do you want to be beaten into a pulp by the Russians? Get up quickly!"

"Damn it! Damn it! I can't stand it. This is not a place for people to stay! This is simply hell!"

"Be careful, the Russian tanks are here!"

People who talk too much nonsense on the battlefield will always be rejected by the goddess of luck, just like this German soldier who was blown into two pieces by a 120mm high-explosive mortar shell and flew backwards on the spot with a shrill wail in his mouth.

Division Commander Chelchenkov arranged the entire mortar artillery position just right, just behind a two-meter-high pile of ruins and bricks behind his own infantry position.

The mortar's curved trajectory allows it to easily cross the bunker in front of it, and it can also be immune to most of the direct attacks of German artillery and machine guns.

Several artillery observers lying on the ruins with only telescopes sticking out constantly reported the calibration coordinates to their comrades behind them. The Soviet mortar positions, which were well coordinated, harvested the lives of those poor German soldiers more and more accurately.

The armored behemoths in front of them could not stop the heavy mortar shells fired from the curved trajectory. The German soldiers who were blown up in horror had nowhere to hide.

Countless people fell into the mud puddle and struggled to get up repeatedly but slipped and fell again. The 1st Guards Tank Breakthrough Regiment led by Malashenko was like an unyielding wall lying in front of the position and was indestructible. The German army, which could not tear open the Soviet defense position in a short time, was suffering heavy casualties.

The German army's most adept rapid insertion and detour did not work in the city of Stalingrad, which was full of ruins and buildings.

In this cruel meat grinder, there was no other way to win except to advance step by step with coordinated infantry and tanks to cover the advance. The German army, which used its least skilled tactics to fight this battle at a disadvantage for the attacking side, finally couldn't bear it. After leaving behind more than 500 corpses and more than 20 tank wreckages, they retreated quickly like a tide.

"Huh, I thought these Germans were really invincible, but it turns out that they are also afraid of death. What a irony."

In the front-line command post, the division commander Chelchenkov, who had been holding the telescope in his hand, slowly put down his words and mocked. The division chief of staff, who was also closely following the battle situation, immediately responded with a look of approval.

"Who said it wasn't? Comrade Division Commander. Since the battle moved into the city, I found that although the battle was fierce and cruel, it seemed that the Germans were less adapted to the combat environment here than us."

"In Stalingrad, their blitzkrieg became a waste, and the air force was greatly restricted by the terrain and the distance of engagement. Yesterday, I heard that German planes in some blocks risked dropping bombs at close range, but ended up dropping bombs on their own people without distinguishing between friend and foe."

"That group of unfortunate German infantry had just occupied that street, but they were blown to pieces by their own planes. I have to say that the Stuka pilot might be an anti-fascist hero hiding behind enemy lines."

Battlefield jokes can always ease the tense atmosphere and bring joy to those soldiers who are always accustomed to meticulousness.

After listening to what his chief of staff said, Division Commander Chelchenkov smiled and spoke again slowly with a look of approval on his face.

"You're right. The current battle situation is indeed more favorable to us than before. The overall environment is much better. At least the sacrifice of our soldiers is more significant. The casualties suffered by the Germans have been greatly increased compared to before."

In the previous suburban battles, the German armored forces that could rush in without restraint took advantage.

At that time, the death of a hundred Red Army soldiers often killed only 20 to 30 or even fewer German soldiers. The exchange ratio was seriously disadvantageous to the Soviet army. Even the division commander Chelchenkov himself was frowning all day and couldn't think of any better way to solve the problem.

But when the battle moved into the city, everything was different from before.

In this city full of ruins and subject to great tactical restrictions, the German army had to pay a greater price than before to eliminate a hundred Red Army soldiers. It was normal for sixty to seventy German soldiers to die, or even the same casualties as the Soviet army.

The brutal street fighting made the always invincible German Sixth Army feel for the first time how frustrating it was to play the attacking role.

Those Soviet soldiers who were guarding the houses and refused to come out only needed to wait for the Germans to come to them. Many German soldiers who lacked flamethrowers and other powerful offensive weapons had to bite the bullet and charge into the building to engage in close combat with the Soviets.

The Germans had thought about using direct-fire artillery to knock down the building, but these honest Russians built thicker and thicker houses!

Not to mention the solid brick walls, high-rise buildings with a slightly larger area, such as government buildings or landmark buildings, basically have solid bricks of more than three layers on the outer walls. A shot from the StuG-3 would make a shallow pit.

The most disgusting time was when a German siege team used up all the ammunition in the two StuG-3s, but they did not even knock down the first floor of a Russian building that should be a supply and marketing cooperative. The solidity of the building was simply shocking to the Germans.

The German soldiers occupied the living room and shouted at the Soviet soldiers stationed in the kitchen to surrender. The only response they got was a Russian curse and a barrage of PPSh. The Soviet soldiers, who were so angry that they wanted to kill everyone, would drag a few more German soldiers with them even if they died.