Chapter 301 Hunger

Compared with Malashenko, who lives in Moscow all day long and has no worries about food, clothing, housing, transportation and life safety, Lavrinenko and his party who are still stranded in Leningrad are obviously suffering much more.

Lavrinenko, who had already reached the end of his rope, led Iushkin and other remaining tank soldiers to hold on to the position. The food supplies were getting less and less and had been reduced to a pitiful amount of less than 400 grams of bread per day, which was obviously not enough for this group. The five big and three thick men fill their bellies.

Leading the troops to fight during the day, they were so hungry at night that they were so frightened that they could not sleep at all while tossing and turning. Lavrinenko and his team even started to dig weeds in the ground to satisfy their hunger. Having eaten almost all non-human things that could run and jump in the fields around the position, these Red Army tank soldiers had no choice but to eat this extremely unpalatable animal food.

"Ugh, vomit, vomit."

After pouring a lunch box of grass soup boiled with water into his mouth, it was really difficult to swallow. Iushkin vomited all the food in his mouth while retching, and he only felt his own His stomach was churning like a turbulent sea. This feeling of being hungry to the point of stomach cramps but having nothing to eat was simply worse than death.

"No, I really can't eat these things! How many days in a row have we not eaten normal food!? If this continues, let alone repelling those damn fascists, we will have to starve to death on the battlefield first !”

Although he used some slightly exaggerated techniques, the words spoken by Iushkin are the real truth that cannot be denied. If he continues to be hungry like this, let alone fight with the well-fed Germans. , Seryozha has almost lost the strength to push the KV1 joystick in the past two days.

"We can't continue like this. How can we defend Leningrad when people are starving to death? We must find a way to get some food, Iushkin."

"Get food? Find a way?"

Iushkin, who was so hungry that his chest was pressed against his back, almost didn't have the energy to complain about Lavrinenko's words that seemed like a mirror to a mirror.

"The German artillery is enough to cover our entire defensive position. It's so dark at night that we can't see anything. We've even caught all the rats in the surrounding fields. Where are you going to get food?"

Throwing the last cigarette butt in his hand to the ground, Lavrinenko, who was determined to risk his life, immediately turned his head and spoke firmly to Iushkin, who still had a question mark on his face.

"I counted them when the sun was about to set during the day. There were a total of eight German tanks left in front of our position, and they were only less than two hundred meters away. Those Germans did not dare to risk their lives to give them to them. People collect corpses, and this is our opportunity!”

Hearing this, Iushkin, who had roughly guessed what Lavrinenko's plan was, couldn't help but be startled.

"Damn it! You don't want to get food from the wreckage of the German tank, do you?"

"If you have a better idea, I'm all ears."

Iushkin responded directly without thinking. Iushkin was immediately unable to utter a word. Iushkin pursed his lips for a long time and could not answer a word. He was obviously shocked by this bold and crazy plan. Not light.

Although he wanted to reject Lavrinenko's almost crazy plan, the burning feeling coming from his stomach forced Iushkin to swallow back the words that came to his mouth. When he thought of the previous Food such as sausages and canned meats were looted from the corpses of the German soldiers. Iushkin, whose saliva was swirling in his mouth, immediately stood up from the ground with a heavy breath and a loud sound.

"Then it's settled, when will we take action? Are we going to call those people over again to help?"

Facing the rhetorical question from Iushkin's mouth, Lavrinenko shook his head slightly and immediately replied without thinking.

"Too many people can easily expose the target. Each of us carries a large empty bag. The food in the two bags can be enough to last the remaining people in our camp for a week, provided that the Germans' Don’t really carry anything in the wreckage of the tank.”

About ten minutes later, Lavrinenko and Iushkin, who had not notified any friendly forces or superior units, greeted the sentry on duty and told him to keep quiet, and then picked up the two weapons that were originally used. The large linen bag containing tank parts bypassed his own machine gun position and sneaked out.

The battlefield that had been burning in the flames of war all day had already completely cooled down under the icy night.

Some of the burning tank wreckage and bushes had long been extinguished, but only the air mixed with the strong smell of blood and gunpowder smoke still reverberated in the air, raising alarm.

"Did you see it? At two o'clock, about ninety meters away, there is the wreckage of a German Panzer IV tank. It doesn't look like it has been burned or exploded. This is our first target. Go over quietly, hurry up. !”

He tried his best to keep his voice as low as possible and completed the final mission briefing with Iushkin beside him. The two men, who had already become veterans on the cruel battlefield, were still capable elite tank soldiers even after leaving the tank. With their entire bodies lying on the ground, the two people immediately and quietly moved towards the target that was close at hand, like swimming snakes.

The wreckage of the German Panzer IV tank that broke down in front of the position was unlucky to say the least. A veteran of the Red Army who had destroyed two German tanks in the previous few days of battle was eyeing him during the daytime battle with a terrifying caliber. The 5mm Simonov anti-tank rifle finally penetrated the weak point of the driver's window of the car body after repeatedly firing three shots.

The German driver, whose head was directly hit to pieces by the 5mm armored warhead, immediately fell limp and fell on the driver's seat. After the successful blow, the Red Army veteran continued to calibrate the muzzle and pointed the gun based on his past successful experience. Fire several shots at the same location.

The remaining German tank soldiers who were a little panicked because of the death of their crew members in the tank were killed on the spot. A pair of them were killed on the spot. The bloody fact that both the tank commander and gunner went to hell together made the remaining electromechanical personnel and loaders no longer able to withstand the huge load. Due to psychological pressure, he immediately opened the escape hatch on the side of the turret and quickly abandoned the vehicle to escape without even bothering to get self-defense weapons.

After touching the edge of the tank, he quietly crawled to the other side of the blind spot of the German offensive starting position and quietly stood up. The escape hatch on the side of the turret was wide open in front of him. Even now, there is still a fishy and choking smell of blood. radiating outward.