Summary of Y. Bondarev's novel "Hot Snow".

The division of Colonel Deev, which included an artillery battery under the command of Lieutenant Drozdovsky, among many others, was transferred to Stalingrad, where the main forces of the Soviet Army accumulated. The battery included a platoon commanded by Lieutenant Kuznetsov. Drozdovsky and Kuznetsov graduated from the same school in Aktobe. At the school, Drozdovsky "stands out for his underlined, as if innate bearing, the imperious expression of a thin, pale face - the best cadet in the division, a favorite of combatant commanders." And now, after graduating from college, Drozdovsky became Kuznetsov's closest commander.

Kuznetsov's platoon consisted of 12 people, among whom were Chibisov, the gunner of the first gun Nechaev and senior sergeant Ukhanov. Chibisov managed to visit German captivity. They looked askance at people like him, so Chibisov tried his best to oblige. Kuznetsov believed that Chibisov should have committed suicide instead of surrendering, but Chibisov was over forty and at that moment he only thought about his children.

Nechaev, a former sailor from Vladivostok, was an incorrigible womanizer and, on occasion, liked to court Zoya Elagina, the battery medical instructor.

Before the war, Sergeant Ukhanov served in the criminal investigation department, then he graduated from the Aktobe military school together with Kuznetsov and Drozdovsky. Once Ukhanov was returning from AWOL through the toilet window, stumbled upon the division commander, who was sitting on the push and could not help laughing. A scandal broke out, because of which Ukhanov was not given an officer's rank. For this reason, Drozdovsky treated Ukhanov with disdain. Kuznetsov accepted the sergeant as an equal.

Medical instructor Zoya at every stop resorted to the cars that housed Drozdovsky's battery. Kuznetsov guessed that Zoya had only come to see the battery commander.

At the last stop, Deev, the commander of the division, which included Drozdovsky's battery, arrived at the echelon. Next to Deev, “leaning on a stick, walked a lean, slightly uneven in gait unfamiliar general.<…>It was the commander of the army, Lieutenant General Bessonov. The general's eighteen-year-old son went missing on the Volkhov front, and now every time the general's eyes fell on some young lieutenant, he remembered his son.

At this stop, Deev's division unloaded from the echelon and moved on horse-drawn. In Kuznetsov's platoon, the horses were driven by Rubin and Sergunenkov. At sunset we made a short halt. Kuznetsov guessed that Stalingrad was somewhere behind him, but did not know that their division was moving "towards the German tank divisions that had launched an offensive in order to release the thousands of Paulus army surrounded in the Stalingrad area."

The kitchens fell behind and got lost somewhere in the rear. People were hungry and instead of water they collected trampled, dirty snow from the roadsides. Kuznetsov spoke about this with Drozdovsky, but he sharply reined in him, saying that they were on an equal footing at the school, and now he is the commander. "Every word of Drozdovsky<…>raised in Kuznetsov such an irresistible, deaf resistance, as if what Drozdovsky did, said, ordered him was a stubborn and calculated attempt to remind him of his power, to humiliate him. The army moved on, in every way cursing the elders who had disappeared somewhere.

While Manstein's tank divisions began to break through to the grouping of Colonel General Paulus surrounded by our troops, the newly formed army, which included Deev's division, was thrown south by Stalin's order, towards the German shock group "Goth". This new army was commanded by General Pyotr Aleksandrovich Bessonov, a middle-aged, reserved man. “He did not want to please everyone, did not want to seem like a pleasant conversationalist for everyone. Such a petty game in order to win sympathy always disgusted him.

Recently, it seemed to the general that "the whole life of his son passed monstrously imperceptibly, slipped past him." All his life, moving from one military unit to another, Bessonov thought that he would still have time to rewrite his life cleanly, but in a hospital near Moscow, he “for the first time got the idea that his life, the life of a military man, probably, could only be in a single version, which he chose once and for all." It was there that his last meeting with his son Victor, a freshly minted infantry junior lieutenant, took place. Bessonov's wife, Olga, asked him to take his son to him, but Victor refused, and Bessonov did not insist. Now he was tormented by the realization that he could have saved his only son, but did not. "He felt more and more acutely that the fate of his son was becoming his father's cross."

Even during a reception at Stalin's, where Bessonov was invited before a new appointment, the question arose about his son. Stalin was well aware that Viktor was part of the army of General Vlasov, and Bessonov himself was familiar with him. Nevertheless, Stalin approved the appointment of Bessonov as a general of the new army.

From November 24 to November 29, the troops of the Don and Stalingrad fronts fought against the encircled German group. Hitler ordered Paulus to fight to the last soldier, then an order was received for Operation Winter Thunderstorm - a breakthrough of the encirclement by the German Don army under the command of Field Marshal Manstein. On December 12, Colonel-General Goth struck at the junction of the two armies of the Stalingrad Front. By December 15, the Germans had advanced forty-five kilometers towards Stalingrad. The introduced reserves could not change the situation - the German troops stubbornly made their way to the encircled grouping of Paulus. The main task of Bessonov's army, reinforced by a tank corps, was to detain the Germans and then force them to retreat. The last frontier was the Myshkova River, after which flat steppe stretched all the way to Stalingrad.

At the army command post, located in a dilapidated village, an unpleasant conversation took place between General Bessonov and a member of the military council, divisional commissar Vitaly Isaevich Vesnin. Bessonov did not trust the commissar, believed that he was sent to look after him because of a fleeting acquaintance with the traitor, General Vlasov.

Late at night, the division of Colonel Deev began to dig in on the banks of the Myshkova River. The battery of Lieutenant Kuznetsov dug guns into the frozen ground on the very bank of the river, scolding the foreman, who was a day behind the battery along with the kitchen. Sitting down to rest a bit, Lieutenant Kuznetsov remembered his native Zamoskvorechie. The lieutenant's father, an engineer, caught a cold at a construction site in Magnitogorsk and died. Mother and sister stayed at home.

Having dug in, Kuznetsov, together with Zoya, went to the command post to Drozdovsky. Kuznetsov looked at Zoya, and it seemed to him that he “saw her, Zoya,<…>in a house comfortably heated for the night, at a table covered with a clean white tablecloth for the holiday, ”in his apartment on Pyatnitskaya.

The battery commander explained the military situation and stated that he was dissatisfied with the friendship that arose between Kuznetsov and Ukhanov. Kuznetsov countered that Ukhanov could have been a good platoon leader if he had been promoted.

When Kuznetsov left, Zoya stayed with Drozdovsky. He spoke to her in the "jealous and at the same time demanding tone of a man who had the right to ask her like that." Drozdovsky was unhappy that Zoya visited Kuznetsov's platoon too often. He wanted to hide his relationship with her from everyone - he was afraid of gossip that would begin to walk around the battery and seep into the headquarters of the regiment or division. Zoya was bitter to think that Drozdovsky loved her so little.

Drozdovsky was from a family of hereditary military men. His father died in Spain, his mother died the same year. After the death of his parents, Drozdovsky did not go to an orphanage, but lived with distant relatives in Tashkent. He believed that his parents had betrayed him and was afraid that Zoya would betray him too. He demanded from Zoya evidence of her love for him, but she could not cross the last line, and this angered Drozdovsky.

General Bessonov arrived at the Drozdovsky battery, who was waiting for the return of the scouts who had set off for the "language". The general understood that the turning point of the war had come. The testimony of the "language" was supposed to provide the missing information about the reserves of the German army. The outcome of the Battle of Stalingrad depended on this.

The battle began with a Junkers raid, after which German tanks went on the attack. During the bombing, Kuznetsov remembered the gun sights - if they were broken, the battery would not be able to shoot. The lieutenant wanted to send Ukhanov, but realized that he had no right and would never forgive himself if something happened to Ukhanov. Risking his life, Kuznetsov went to the guns along with Ukhanov and found the riders Rubin and Sergunenkov there, with whom the seriously wounded scout was lying.

Having sent a scout to the OP, Kuznetsov continued the fight. Soon he no longer saw anything around him, he commanded the gun "in an evil ecstasy, in a reckless and frantic unity with the calculation." The lieutenant felt "this hatred of possible death, this fusion with the weapon, this fever of delusional rabies and only the edge of consciousness understanding what he was doing."

In the meantime, a German self-propelled gun hid behind two knocked out tanks by Kuznetsov and began firing point-blank at a neighboring gun. Assessing the situation, Drozdovsky handed two anti-tank grenades to Sergunenkov and ordered him to crawl up to the self-propelled gun and destroy it. Young and frightened, Sergunenkov died without fulfilling the order. “He sent Sergunenkov, having the right to order. And I was a witness - and for the rest of my life I will curse myself for this, ”thought Kuznetsov.

By the end of the day, it became clear that the Russian troops could not withstand the onslaught of the German army. German tanks had already broken through to the northern bank of the Myshkova River. General Bessonov did not want to send fresh troops into battle, fearing that the army would not have enough strength for a decisive blow. He ordered to fight to the last shell. Now Vesnin understood why there were rumors about Bessonov's cruelty.

Having moved to the Deeva command post, Bessonov realized that it was here that the Germans had directed the main blow. The scout found by Kuznetsov reported that two more people, along with the captured "tongue", were stuck somewhere in the German rear. Soon Bessonov was informed that the Germans had begun to surround the division.

The head of counterintelligence of the army arrived from the headquarters. He showed Vesnin a German leaflet, which contained a photograph of Bessonov's son, and told how well the son of a famous Russian military leader was being looked after in a German hospital. At the headquarters they wanted Bessnonov to stay in the army command post, under supervision. Vesnin did not believe in the betrayal of Bessonov Jr., and decided not to show this leaflet to the general for the time being.

Bessonov brought tank and mechanized corps into battle and asked Vesnin to go towards them and hurry them up. Fulfilling the request of the general, Vesnin died. General Bessonov never found out that his son was alive.

Ukhanov's only surviving gun fell silent late in the evening, when the shells obtained from other guns ran out. At this time, the tanks of Colonel-General Goth crossed the Myshkov River. With the onset of darkness, the battle began to subside behind.

Now for Kuznetsov, everything was “measured by other categories than a day ago.” Ukhanov, Nechaev and Chibisov were barely alive from fatigue. "This is the only surviving weapon<…>and there are four of them<…>were rewarded with a smiling fate, an accidental happiness to survive the day and evening of an endless battle, to live longer than others. But there was no joy in life.” They ended up behind German lines.

Suddenly, the Germans began to attack again. By the light of the rockets, they saw a human body a stone's throw from their firing platform. Chibisov shot him, mistaking him for a German. It turned out to be one of those Russian intelligence officers that General Bessonov was waiting for. Two more scouts, together with the "tongue", hid in a funnel near two wrecked armored personnel carriers.

At this time, Drozdovsky appeared at the calculation, along with Rubin and Zoya. Without looking at Drozdovsky, Kuznetsov took Ukhanov, Rubin and Chibisov and went to help the scout. Following Kuznetsov's group, Drozdovsky also got in touch with two signalmen and Zoya.

A captured German and one of the scouts were found at the bottom of a large funnel. Drozdovsky ordered a search for a second scout, despite the fact that, making his way to the funnel, he attracted the attention of the Germans, and now the entire area was under machine-gun fire. Drozdovsky himself crawled back, taking with him the "language" and the surviving scout. On the way, his group came under fire, during which Zoya was seriously wounded in the stomach, and Drozdovsky was shell-shocked.

When Zoya was brought to the calculation in her unfolded overcoat, she was already dead. Kuznetsov was like in a dream, "everything that kept him in unnatural tension these days<…>suddenly relaxed in him. Kuznetsov almost hated Drozdovsky for not saving Zoya. “He cried so alone and desperately for the first time in his life. And when he wiped his face, the snow on the sleeve of the quilted jacket was hot from his tears.

Already late in the evening, Bessonov realized that the Germans could not be pushed off the northern bank of the Myshkova River. By midnight, the fighting stopped, and Bessonov wondered if this was due to the fact that the Germans used all the reserves. Finally, a "language" was delivered to the command post, which said that the Germans had indeed committed reserves to the battle. After interrogation, Bessonov was informed that Vesnin had died. Now Bessonov regretted that their relationship "through his fault, Bessonov,<…>did not look like Vesnin wanted and what they should have been.

The front commander contacted Bessonov and said that four tank divisions were successfully reaching the rear of the Don army. The general ordered the attack. Meanwhile, Bessonov's adjutant found a German leaflet among Vesnin's belongings, but did not dare to tell the general about it.

About forty minutes after the start of the attack, the battle reached a turning point. Following the battle, Bessonov could not believe his eyes when he saw that several guns had survived on the right bank. The corps brought into battle pushed the Germans to the right bank, captured the crossings and began to surround the German troops.

After the battle, Bessonov decided to drive along the right bank, taking with him all the available awards. He rewarded everyone who survived this terrible battle and the German encirclement. Bessonov "did not know how to cry, and the wind helped him, gave vent to tears of delight, sorrow and gratitude." The Order of the Red Banner was awarded to the entire crew of Lieutenant Kuznetsov. Ukhanov was hurt that Drozdovsky also got the order.

Kuznetsov, Ukhanov, Rubin and Nechaev sat and drank vodka with orders lowered into it, and the battle continued ahead.

Yuri Bondarev

HOT SNOW

Chapter first

Kuznetsov couldn't sleep. More and more pounded, rattled on the roof of the car, blizzard hit the overlapping winds, more and more tightly clogged with snow the hardly guessed window above the bunks.

With a wild, blizzard-rending roar, the locomotive drove the echelon through the night fields, in the white murk rushing from all sides, and in the thundering darkness of the car, through the frozen squeal of the wheels, through the anxious sobs, mumbling in a dream of a soldier, this roar continuously warning someone was heard locomotive, and it seemed to Kuznetsov that there, ahead, beyond the blizzard, the glow of the burning city was already dimly visible.

After the stop in Saratov, it became clear to everyone that the division was being urgently transferred to Stalingrad, and not to the Western Front, as was originally supposed; and now Kuznetsov knew that he had only a few hours to go. And, pulling the hard, unpleasantly damp collar of his greatcoat over his cheek, he could not get warm, gain warmth in order to fall asleep: a piercing breeze blew through the invisible cracks of the swept window, icy drafts walked along the bunks.

“So I won’t see my mother for a long time,” thought Kuznetsov, cringing from the cold, “they drove us past ...”.

What was a past life - the summer months at a school in hot, dusty Aktyubinsk, with hot winds from the steppe, with the cries of donkeys on the outskirts choking in the sunset silence, so precise in time every evening that platoon commanders in tactical exercises, languishing with thirst , not without relief, they checked their watches against them, marches in the stupefying heat, sweaty and white-scorched tunics in the sun, grit of sand on their teeth; Sunday patrols of the city, in the city garden, where in the evenings a military brass band played peacefully on the dance floor; then release to the school, loading on alarm on an autumn night into wagons, a gloomy forest covered in wild snows, snowdrifts, dugouts of a formation camp near Tambov, then again on alarm at a frosty pinking December dawn, a hasty loading into a train and, finally, departure - all this unsteady , temporary, someone controlled life has faded now, remained far behind, in the past. And there was no hope of seeing his mother, and quite recently he had almost no doubt that they would be taken west through Moscow.

“I’ll write to her,” Kuznetsov thought with a suddenly heightened sense of loneliness, “and I’ll explain everything. After all, we have not seen each other for nine months ... ".

And the whole car was asleep to the rattle, squeal, to the cast-iron rumble of runaway wheels, the walls swayed tightly, the upper bunks shook at the frantic speed of the echelon, and Kuznetsov, shuddering, finally vegetating in the drafts near the window, turned back his collar, looked enviously at the sleeping commander of the second platoon lieutenant Davlatyan - his face was not visible in the darkness of the plank.

“No, here, near the window, I won’t sleep, I’ll freeze to the front,” Kuznetsov thought to himself with annoyance and moved, stirred, hearing the frost crunching on the boards of the car.

He freed himself from the cold, prickly crampedness of his place, jumped off the bunk, feeling that he needed to warm himself by the stove: his back was completely numb.

In the iron stove at the side of the closed door, flickering with thick hoarfrost, the fire had long since gone out; But down here, it seemed a little warmer. In the twilight of the carriage, this crimson glow of coal weakly illuminated the new felt boots, bowlers, knapsacks under their heads in various ways sticking out in the aisle. The orderly Chibisov slept uncomfortably on the lower bunk, right on the feet of the soldiers; his head was hidden in the collar up to the top of the cap, his hands were thrust into the sleeves.

Chibisov! - Called Kuznetsov and opened the door of the stove, which wafted from within a barely perceptible warmth. - Everything went out, Chibisov!

There was no answer.

Daily, do you hear?

Chibisov jumped up in fright, sleepy, rumpled, his hat with earflaps pulled down low, tied with ribbons at the chin. Still not waking up from sleep, he tried to push his earflaps off his forehead, to untie the ribbons, crying out incomprehensibly and timidly:

What is me? No, fell asleep? Exactly stunned me with unconsciousness. I apologize, Comrade Lieutenant! Wow, I was drowsy to the bone! ..

We fell asleep and the whole car was chilled out, ”Kuznetsov said reproachfully.

Yes, I didn’t want to, Comrade Lieutenant, by chance, without intent, - Chibisov muttered. - Dropped me...

Then, without waiting for Kuznetsov's orders, he fussed with excessive cheerfulness, grabbed a plank from the floor, broke it over his knee, and began to push the pieces into the stove. At the same time, stupidly, as if his sides were itching, he moved his elbows and shoulders, often bending down, busily looked into the blower, where the fire crawled with lazy reflections; Chibisov's revived, soot-stained face expressed conspiratorial obsequiousness.

I'm now, comrade lieutenant, I'll catch up warmly! Let's heat it up, it will be exactly in the bath. I'll die for the war myself! Oh, how I've been chilling, it breaks every bone - there are no words! ..

Kuznetsov sat down opposite the open door of the stove. The exaggeratedly deliberate fussiness of the orderly, this obvious allusion to his past, was unpleasant to him. Chibisov was from his platoon. And the fact that he, with his immoderate diligence, always trouble-free, lived for several months in German captivity, and from the first day of his appearance in the platoon was constantly ready to serve everyone, caused him wary pity.

Chibisov gently, like a woman, sank down on the bunk, his sleepless eyes blinked.

So we're going to Stalingrad, Comrade Lieutenant? According to reports, what a meat grinder there! Aren't you afraid, Comrade Lieutenant? Nothing?

We’ll come and see what kind of meat grinder it is,” Kuznetsov replied languidly, peering into the fire. - What are you afraid of? Why was asked?

Yes, you can say that there is no fear that before, - Chibisov answered falsely cheerfully and, sighing, put his small hands on his knees, spoke in a confidential tone, as if wanting to convince Kuznetsov: - After our people released me from captivity , believe me, comrade lieutenant. And I spent three whole months, exactly a puppy in shit, with the Germans. They believed... What a huge war, different people are fighting. How can you believe right now? - Chibisov squinted cautiously at Kuznetsov; he was silent, pretending to be busy with the stove, warming himself by its living warmth: he concentratedly squeezed and unclenched his fingers over the open door. “Do you know how I got captured, Comrade Lieutenant? I didn’t tell you, but I want to tell you. The Germans drove us into the ravine. Under Vyazma. And when their tanks came close, surrounded us, and we no longer had shells, the regiment commissar jumped out on top of his "emka" with a pistol, shouting: "Better death than being captured by fascist bastards!" and shot himself in the temple. It even splashed from the head. And the Germans are running towards us from all sides. Their tanks are strangling people alive. Here and ... the colonel and someone else ...

A division of Colonel Deev was sent to Stalingrad. In its brave composition was an artillery battery, which was led by Lieutenant Drozdovsky. One of the platoons was commanded by Kuznetsov, Drozdovsky's classmate at the school.

There were twelve fighters in the Kuznetsov platoon, among whom were Ukhanov, Nechaev and Chibisov. The latter was in Nazi captivity, so he was not particularly trusted.

Nechaev used to work as a sailor and was very fond of girls. Often the guy looked after Zoya Elagina, who was a battery orderly.

Sergeant Ukhanov worked in the criminal investigation department in peacetime, and then graduated from the same educational institution as Drozdovsky and Kuznetsov. Due to one unpleasant incident, Ukhanov did not receive the rank of officer, so Drozdovsky treated the guy with disdain. Kuznetsov was friends with him.

Zoya often resorted to the trailers where the Drozdov battery was located. Kuznetsov suspected that the medical instructor had appeared in the hope of meeting with the commander.

Soon Deev arrived along with an unknown general. As it turned out, it was Lieutenant General Bessonov. He lost his son at the front and remembered him looking at the young lieutenants.

The field kitchens lagged behind, the soldiers were hungry and ate snow instead of water. Kuznetsov tried to talk about this with Drozdovsky, but he abruptly interrupted the conversation. The army began to move on, cursing the foremen who disappeared somewhere.

Stalin sent the Deevsky division to the south to detain the Nazi shock group Goth. This formed army was supposed to be led by Petr Alexandrovich Bessonov, a reserved and elderly soldier.

Bessonov was very worried about the loss of his son. The wife asked to take Victor into her army, but the young man did not want to. Pyotr Alexandrovich did not force him, and after a while he very much regretted that he had not saved his only child.

At the end of autumn, Bessonov's main goal was to detain the Nazis, who stubbornly made their way to Stalingrad. It was necessary to make the Germans retreat. A powerful tank corps was added to Bessonov's army.

At night, Deev's division began to prepare trenches on the banks of the Myshkova River. The fighters dug the frozen ground and scolded the chiefs, who fell behind the regiment along with the army kitchen. Kuznetsov recalled his native places, his sister and mother were waiting for him at home. Soon he and Zoya went to Drozdovsky. The guy liked the girl and he imagined her in his cozy house.

The medical instructor stayed face-to-face with Drozdovsky. The commander stubbornly hid their relationship from everyone - he did not want gossip and gossip. Drozdovsky believed that his dead parents had betrayed him and did not want Zoya to do the same with him. The fighter wanted the girl to prove her love, but Zoya could not afford to take some steps ...

During the first battle, "Junkers" flew in, then they began to attack fascist tanks. While the active bombardment was going on, Kuznetsov decided to use the gun sights and, together with Ukhanov, headed towards them. There, friends found riders and a dying scout.

The scout was promptly taken to the NP. Kuznetsov selflessly continued to fight. Drozdovsky gave the order to Sergunenkov to knock out a self-propelled gun and gave a couple of anti-tank grenades. The young boy failed to carry out the order and was killed along the way.

At the end of this tiring day, it became obvious that our army would not be able to hold back the onslaught of the enemy division. Nazi tanks broke through to the north of the river. General Bessonov ordered the rest to fight to the end, he did not attract new troops, leaving them for the final powerful blow. Vesnin only now realized why everyone thought the general was cruel.

The wounded scout reported that several people with "language" were in the rear of the Nazis. A little later, the general was informed that the Nazis began to surround the army

The counterintelligence commander arrived from the main headquarters. He handed Vesnin a German paper with a photo of Bessonov's son and a text describing how wonderfully he was looked after in a German military hospital. Vesnin did not believe in Victor's betrayal and did not give the leaflet to the general until he began.

Vesnin died while fulfilling Bessonov's request. The general was never able to find out that his child was alive.

The German surprise attack began again. In the rear, Chibisov shot at a man, because he mistook him for an enemy. But later it became known that it was our intelligence officer, whom Bessonov never waited for. The rest of the scouts, along with the German prisoner, hid not far from the damaged armored personnel carriers.

Soon Drozdovsky arrived with a medical instructor and Rubin. Chibisov, Kuznetsov, Ukhanov and Rubin went to help the scout. They were followed by a couple of signalers, Zoya and the commander himself.

"Language" and one scout were quickly found. Drozdovsky took them with him and gave the order to look for the second one. The Germans noticed Drozdovsky's group and fired - the girl was wounded in the abdomen, and the commander himself was shell-shocked.

Zoya was hurriedly carried to the crew, but could not be saved. Kuznetsov cried for the first time, the guy blamed Drozdovsky for what had happened.

By evening, General Bessonov realized that it was not possible to detain the Germans. But they brought a German prisoner, who said that they had to use all the reserves. When the interrogation ended, the general learned of Vesnin's death.

The front commander contacted the general, saying that the tank divisions were safely moving to the rear of the Don army. Bessonov gave the order to attack the hated enemy. But then one of the soldiers found among the belongings of the deceased Vesnin a paper with a photograph of Bessonov Jr., but he was afraid to give it to the general.

The turning point has begun. Reinforcements pushed the fascist divisions to the other side and began to surround them. After the battle, the general took various awards and went to the right bank. All those who heroically survived the battle received awards. The Order of the Red Banner went to all the soldiers of Kuznetsov. Drozdovsky was also awarded, which displeased Ukhanov.

The battle continued. Nechaev, Rubin, Ukhanov and Kuznetsov drank alcohol, dropping orders into glasses ...

Belongs to the glorious galaxy of front-line soldiers who, having survived the war, displayed its essence in vivid and solid novels. The authors took the images of their heroes from real life. And the events that we calmly perceive from the pages of books in peacetime happened for them with their own eyes. The summary of "Hot Snow", for example, is the horror of the bombing, and the whistle of stray bullets, and frontal tank and infantry attacks. Even now, reading about this, an ordinary peaceful person plunges into the abyss of the gloomy and formidable events of that time.

Front-line writer

Bondarev is one of the recognized masters of this genre. When you read the works of such authors, you are involuntarily amazed at the realism of the lines that reflect various aspects of the difficult military life. After all, he himself went through a difficult front-line path, starting at Stalingrad and ending in Czechoslovakia. That is why novels make such a strong impression. They amaze with the brightness and truthfulness of the plot.

One of the bright, emotional works that Bondarev created, "Hot Snow", just tells about such simple but immutable truths. The very title of the story speaks volumes. In nature, there is no hot snow, it melts under the sun's rays. However, in the work he is hot from spilled blood in difficult battles, from the number of bullets and fragments that fly into brave fighters, from the unbearable hatred of Soviet soldiers of any rank (from private to marshal) for the German invaders. Here is such a stunning image created by Bondarev.

War is more than just fighting

The story "Hot Snow" (a summary, of course, does not convey all the liveliness of style and tragedy of the plot) gives some answers to the moral and psychological literary lines begun in the author's earlier works, such as "Battalions ask for fire" and "Last volleys".

Like no one else, telling the cruel truth about that war, Bondarev does not forget about the manifestation of ordinary human feelings and emotions. “Hot Snow” (the analysis of his images surprises with the lack of categoricalness) is just an example of such a combination of black and white. Despite the tragedy of military events, Bondarev makes it clear to the reader that even in war there are quite peaceful feelings of love, friendship, elementary human hostility, stupidity and betrayal.

Fierce fighting near Stalingrad

Retelling the summary of "Hot Snow" is quite difficult. The action of the story takes place near Stalingrad, the city where the Red Army finally broke the back of the German Wehrmacht in fierce battles. A little south of the blockaded 6th Army of Paulus, the Soviet command creates a powerful line of defense. The artillery barrier and the infantry attached to it should stop another "strategist" - Manstein, rushing to the rescue of Paulus.

As is known from history, it was Paulus who was the creator and inspirer of the infamous Barbarossa plan. And for obvious reasons, Hitler could not allow an entire army, and even led by one of the best theoreticians of the German General Staff, to be surrounded. Therefore, the enemy spared no effort and means in order to break through an operational passage for the 6th Army from the encirclement created by the Soviet troops.

Bondarev wrote about these events. "Hot Snow" tells about the battles on a tiny patch of land, which, according to Soviet intelligence, has become "tank dangerous". A battle must take place here, which, perhaps, will decide the outcome of the battle on the Volga.

Lieutenants Drozdovsky and Kuznetsov

The task of blocking the enemy's tank columns is given to the army under the command of Lieutenant General Bessonov. It is in its composition that the artillery unit described in the story, commanded by Lieutenant Drozdovsky, is included. Even a brief summary of "Hot Snow" cannot be left without describing the image of a young commander who has just received an officer's rank. It should be mentioned that even at the school Drozdovsky was in good standing. Disciplines were given easily, and his position and natural military bearing amused the eyes of any combat commander.

The school was located in Aktyubinsk, from where Drozdovsky went straight to the front. Together with him, another graduate of the Aktobe Artillery School, Lieutenant Kuznetsov, was assigned to one unit. By coincidence, Kuznetsov was given command of a platoon of exactly the same battery commanded by Lieutenant Drozdovsky. Surprised by the vicissitudes of military fate, Lieutenant Kuznetsov reasoned philosophically - his career was just beginning, and this was far from his last appointment. It would seem, what a career, when there is a war around? But even such thoughts visited the people who became the prototypes of the heroes of the story "Hot Snow".

The summary should be supplemented by the fact that Drozdovsky immediately dotted the “and”: he was not going to remember the cadet time, where both lieutenants were equal. Here he is the battery commander, and Kuznetsov is his subordinate. At first, reacting calmly to such vital metamorphoses, Kuznetsov begins to quietly grumble. He does not like some of Drozdovsky's orders, but, as you know, it is forbidden to discuss orders in the army, and therefore the young officer has to come to terms with the current state of affairs. In part, this irritation was facilitated by the obvious attention to the commander of the medical instructor Zoya, who, deep down, liked Kuznetsov himself.

Diverse team

Focusing on the problems of his platoon, the young officer completely dissolves into them, studying the people he was to command. The people in the platoon at Kuznetsov were ambiguous. What images did Bondarev describe? "Hot Snow", the summary of which does not convey all the subtleties, describes in detail the stories of the fighters.

For example, Sergeant Ukhanov also studied at the Aktobe Artillery School, but due to a stupid misunderstanding, he did not receive an officer's rank. Upon arrival at the unit, Drozdovsky began to look down on him, considering him unworthy of the title of Soviet commander. And Lieutenant Kuznetsov, on the contrary, perceived Ukhanov as an equal, maybe because of petty revenge on Drozdovsky, or maybe because Ukhanov really was a good artilleryman.

Another subordinate of Kuznetsov, Private Chibisov, already had a rather sad combat experience. The part where he served was surrounded, and the private himself was taken prisoner. And with his irrepressible optimism, the gunner Nechaev, a former sailor from Vladivostok, amused everyone.

tank strike

While the battery was advancing to the appointed line, and its fighters were getting to know each other and getting used to each other, in strategic terms the situation at the front changed dramatically. This is how events unfold in the story "Hot Snow". A summary of Manstein's operation to liberate the encircled 6th Army can be conveyed as follows: a concentrated tank strike end-to-end between two Soviet armies. The fascist command entrusted this task to the master of tank breakthroughs. The operation had a loud name - "Winter Thunderstorm".

The blow was unexpected and therefore quite successful. The tanks entered the butt of the two armies and went deep into the Soviet defensive formations for 15 km. General Bessonov receives a direct order to localize the breakthrough in order to prevent tanks from entering the operational space. To do this, Bessonov's army is reinforced with a tank corps, making it clear to the commander that this is the last reserve of the Headquarters.

The Last Frontier

The frontier, to which Drozdovsky's battery advanced, was the last. It is here that the main events about which the work "Hot Snow" is written will take place. Arriving at the place, the lieutenant receives an order to dig in and prepare to repel a possible tank attack.

The commander understands that Drozdovsky's reinforced battery is doomed. The more optimistic divisional commissar Vesnin does not agree with the general. He believes that thanks to the high fighting spirit, the Soviet soldiers will survive. A dispute arises between the officers, as a result of which Vesnin goes to the front line to cheer up the soldiers preparing for battle. The old general does not really trust Vesnin, considering deep down his presence at the command post as superfluous. But he has no time to conduct a psychological analysis.

The "hot snow" continues with the fact that the battle on the battery began with a massive bomber raid. The first time falling under the bombs, most of the fighters are afraid, including Lieutenant Kuznetsov. However, pulling himself together, he realizes that this is only a prelude. Very soon, he and Lieutenant Drozdovsky will have to apply all the knowledge that they were given at the school in practice.

heroic efforts

Self-propelled guns soon appeared. Kuznetsov, together with his platoon, courageously accepts the battle. He is afraid of death, but at the same time he is disgusted by it. Even the brief content of "Hot Snow" allows you to understand the tragedy of the situation. The tank destroyers sent shell after shell at their enemies. However, the forces were not equal. After some time, only one serviceable gun and a handful of fighters remained from the entire battery, including both officers and Ukhanov.

There were fewer and fewer shells, and the fighters began to use bundles of anti-tank grenades. When trying to undermine a German self-propelled gun, young Sergunenkov dies, following the order of Drozdovsky. Kuznetsov, in the heat of battle, throwing back his chain of command, accuses him of the senseless death of a fighter. Drozdovsky himself takes the grenade, trying to prove that he is not a coward. However, Kuznetsov restrains him.

And even in battle conflicts

What does Bondarev write about next? "Hot snow", a summary of which we present in the article, continues with a breakthrough of German tanks through the Drozdovsky battery. Bessonov, seeing the desperate situation of the entire division of Colonel Deev, is in no hurry to bring his tank reserve into battle. He does not know if the Germans used their reserves.

And the battery was still fighting. Zoya, the medical instructor, dies senselessly. This makes a very strong impression on Lieutenant Kuznetsov, and he again accuses Drozdovsky of the stupidity of his orders. And the surviving fighters are trying to get hold of ammunition on the battlefield. The lieutenants, taking advantage of the relative calm, organize assistance to the wounded and prepare for new battles.

tank reserve

Just at this moment, the long-awaited intelligence returns, which confirms that the Germans have committed all reserves to the battle. The fighter is sent to the observation post of General Bessonov. The commander, having received this information, orders to bring into battle his last reserve - a tank corps. To speed up his exit, he sends Deev towards the unit, but he, having run into the German infantry, dies with a weapon in his hands.

It was a complete surprise for Goth, as a result of which the breakthrough of the German forces was localized. Moreover, Bessonov receives an order to develop success. The strategic plan succeeded. The Germans pulled all the reserves to the site of the operation "Winter Thunderstorm" and lost them.

Hero Rewards

Watching from his NP for a tank attack, Bessonov is surprised to notice a single gun, which also fires on German tanks. The general is shocked. Not believing his eyes, he takes out all the awards from the safe and, together with the adjutant, goes to the position of the defeated Drozdovsky battery. "Hot Snow" is a novel about the unconditional masculinity and heroism of people. The fact that regardless of their regalia and ranks, a person must fulfill his duty, not worrying about rewards, especially since they themselves find heroes.

Bessonov is struck by the steadfastness of a handful of people. Their faces were smoked and burned. No insignia is visible. The commander silently took the orders of the Red Banner and distributed them to all the survivors. Kuznetsov, Drozdovsky, Chibisov, Ukhanov and an unknown infantryman received high awards.

Yuri Vasilievich Bondarev

"Hot Snow"

Summary

The division of Colonel Deev, which included an artillery battery under the command of Lieutenant Drozdovsky, among many others, was transferred to Stalingrad, where the main forces of the Soviet Army accumulated. The battery included a platoon commanded by Lieutenant Kuznetsov. Drozdovsky and Kuznetsov graduated from the same school in Aktobe. At the school, Drozdovsky "stands out with his underlined, as if innate bearing, the imperious expression of a thin, pale face - the best cadet in the division, a favorite of combatant commanders." And now, after graduating from college, Drozdovsky became Kuznetsov's closest commander.

Kuznetsov's platoon consisted of 12 people, among whom were Chibisov, the gunner of the first gun Nechaev and senior sergeant Ukhanov. Chibisov managed to visit German captivity. They looked askance at people like him, so Chibisov tried his best to oblige. Kuznetsov believed that Chibisov should have committed suicide instead of surrendering, but Chibisov was over forty and at that moment he only thought about his children.

Nechaev, a former sailor from Vladivostok, was an incorrigible womanizer and, on occasion, liked to court Zoya Elagina, the battery medical instructor.

Before the war, Sergeant Ukhanov served in the criminal investigation department, then he graduated from the Aktobe military school together with Kuznetsov and Drozdovsky. Once Ukhanov was returning from AWOL through the toilet window, stumbled upon the division commander, who was sitting on the push and could not help laughing. A scandal broke out, because of which Ukhanov was not given an officer's rank. For this reason, Drozdovsky treated Ukhanov with disdain. Kuznetsov accepted the sergeant as an equal.

Medical instructor Zoya at every stop resorted to the cars that housed Drozdovsky's battery. Kuznetsov guessed that Zoya had only come to see the battery commander.

At the last stop, Deev, the commander of the division, which included Drozdovsky's battery, arrived at the echelon. Next to Deev, “leaning on a stick, walked a lean, slightly uneven in gait unfamiliar general.<…>It was the commander of the army, Lieutenant General Bessonov. The general's eighteen-year-old son went missing on the Volkhov front, and now every time the general's eyes fell on some young lieutenant, he remembered his son.

At this stop, Deev's division unloaded from the echelon and moved on horse-drawn. In Kuznetsov's platoon, the horses were driven by Rubin and Sergunenkov. At sunset we made a short halt. Kuznetsov guessed that Stalingrad was somewhere behind him, but did not know that their division was moving "towards the German tank divisions that had launched an offensive in order to release the thousands of Paulus army surrounded in the Stalingrad area."

The kitchens fell behind and got lost somewhere in the rear. People were hungry and instead of water they collected trampled, dirty snow from the roadsides. Kuznetsov spoke about this with Drozdovsky, but he sharply reined in him, saying that they were on an equal footing at the school, and now he is the commander. "Every word of Drozdovsky<…>raised in Kuznetsov such an irresistible, deaf resistance, as if what Drozdovsky did, said, ordered him was a stubborn and calculated attempt to remind him of his power, to humiliate him. The army moved on, in every way cursing the elders who had disappeared somewhere.

While Manstein's tank divisions began to break through to the grouping of Colonel General Paulus surrounded by our troops, the newly formed army, which included Deev's division, was thrown south by Stalin's order, towards the German shock group "Goth". This new army was commanded by General Pyotr Aleksandrovich Bessonov, a middle-aged, reserved man. “He did not want to please everyone, did not want to seem like a pleasant conversationalist for everyone. Such a petty game in order to win sympathy always disgusted him.

Recently, it seemed to the general that "the whole life of his son passed monstrously imperceptibly, slipped past him." All his life, moving from one military unit to another, Bessonov thought that he would still have time to rewrite his life cleanly, but in a hospital near Moscow, he “for the first time got the idea that his life, the life of a military man, probably, could only be in a single version, which he chose once and for all." It was there that his last meeting with his son Victor, a freshly minted junior lieutenant of the infantry, took place. Bessonov's wife, Olga, asked him to take his son to him, but Victor refused, and Bessonov did not insist. Now he was tormented by the realization that he could have saved his only son, but did not. "He felt more and more acutely that the fate of his son was becoming his father's cross."

Even during a reception at Stalin's, where Bessonov was invited before a new appointment, the question arose about his son. Stalin was well aware that Viktor was part of the army of General Vlasov, and Bessonov himself was familiar with him. Nevertheless, Stalin approved the appointment of Bessonov as a general of the new army.

From November 24 to November 29, the troops of the Don and Stalingrad fronts fought against the encircled German group. Hitler ordered Paulus to fight to the last soldier, then the order came for Operation Winter Thunderstorm - a breakthrough of the encirclement by the German Don army under the command of Field Marshal Manstein. On December 12, Colonel-General Goth struck at the junction of the two armies of the Stalingrad Front. By December 15, the Germans had advanced forty-five kilometers towards Stalingrad. The introduced reserves could not change the situation - the German troops stubbornly made their way to the encircled Paulus group. The main task of Bessonov's army, reinforced by a tank corps, was to detain the Germans and then force them to retreat. The last frontier was the Myshkova River, after which flat steppe stretched all the way to Stalingrad.

At the army command post, located in a dilapidated village, an unpleasant conversation took place between General Bessonov and a member of the military council, divisional commissar Vitaly Isaevich Vesnin. Bessonov did not trust the commissar, believed that he was sent to look after him because of a fleeting acquaintance with the traitor, General Vlasov.

Late at night, the division of Colonel Deev began to dig in on the banks of the Myshkova River. The battery of Lieutenant Kuznetsov dug guns into the frozen ground on the very bank of the river, scolding the foreman, who was a day behind the battery along with the kitchen. Sitting down to rest a bit, Lieutenant Kuznetsov remembered his native Zamoskvorechie. The lieutenant's father, an engineer, caught a cold at a construction site in Magnitogorsk and died. Mother and sister stayed at home.

Having dug in, Kuznetsov, together with Zoya, went to the command post to Drozdovsky. Kuznetsov looked at Zoya, and it seemed to him that he “saw her, Zoya,<…>in a house comfortably heated for the night, at a table covered with a clean white tablecloth for the holiday, ”in his apartment on Pyatnitskaya.

The battery commander explained the military situation and stated that he was dissatisfied with the friendship that arose between Kuznetsov and Ukhanov. Kuznetsov countered that Ukhanov could have been a good platoon leader if he had been promoted.

When Kuznetsov left, Zoya stayed with Drozdovsky. He spoke to her in the "jealous and at the same time demanding tone of a man who had the right to ask her like that." Drozdovsky was unhappy that Zoya visited Kuznetsov's platoon too often. He wanted to hide his relationship with her from everyone - he was afraid of gossip that would begin to walk around the battery and seep into the headquarters of the regiment or division. Zoya was bitter to think that Drozdovsky loved her so little.

Drozdovsky was from a family of hereditary military men. His father died in Spain, his mother died the same year. After the death of his parents, Drozdovsky did not go to an orphanage, but lived with distant relatives in Tashkent. He believed that his parents had betrayed him and was afraid that Zoya would betray him too. He demanded from Zoya evidence of her love for him, but she could not cross the last line, and this angered Drozdovsky.

General Bessonov arrived at the Drozdovsky battery, who was waiting for the return of the scouts who had set off for the "language". The general understood that the turning point of the war had come. The testimony of the "language" was supposed to provide the missing information about the reserves of the German army. The outcome of the Battle of Stalingrad depended on this.

The battle began with a Junkers raid, after which German tanks went on the attack. During the bombing, Kuznetsov remembered the gun sights - if they were broken, the battery would not be able to fire. The lieutenant wanted to send Ukhanov, but realized that he had no right and would never forgive himself if something happened to Ukhanov. Risking his life, Kuznetsov went to the guns along with Ukhanov and found the riders Rubin and Sergunenkov there, with whom the seriously wounded scout was lying.

Having sent a scout to the OP, Kuznetsov continued the fight. Soon he no longer saw anything around him, he commanded the gun "in an evil ecstasy, in a reckless and frantic unity with the calculation." The lieutenant felt "this hatred of possible death, this fusion with the weapon, this fever of delusional rabies and only the edge of consciousness understanding what he was doing."

In the meantime, a German self-propelled gun hid behind two knocked out tanks by Kuznetsov and began firing point-blank at a neighboring gun. Assessing the situation, Drozdovsky handed two anti-tank grenades to Sergunenkov and ordered him to crawl up to the self-propelled gun and destroy it. Young and frightened, Sergunenkov died without fulfilling the order. “He sent Sergunenkov, having the right to order. And I was a witness - and for the rest of my life I will curse myself for this, ”thought Kuznetsov.

By the end of the day, it became clear that the Russian troops could not withstand the onslaught of the German army. German tanks had already broken through to the northern bank of the Myshkova River. General Bessonov did not want to send fresh troops into battle, fearing that the army would not have enough strength for a decisive blow. He ordered to fight to the last shell. Now Vesnin understood why there were rumors about Bessonov's cruelty.

Having moved to K.P. Deev, Bessonov realized that it was here that the Germans had directed the main blow. The scout found by Kuznetsov reported that two more people, along with the captured "tongue", were stuck somewhere in the German rear. Soon Bessonov was informed that the Germans had begun to surround the division.

The head of counterintelligence of the army arrived from the headquarters. He showed Vesnin a German leaflet, which contained a photograph of Bessonov's son, and told how well the son of a famous Russian military leader was being looked after in a German hospital. At the headquarters they wanted Bessnonov to stay in the army command post, under supervision. Vesnin did not believe in the betrayal of Bessonov Jr., and decided not to show this leaflet to the general for the time being.

Bessonov brought tank and mechanized corps into battle and asked Vesnin to go towards them and hurry them up. Fulfilling the request of the general, Vesnin died. General Bessonov never found out that his son was alive.

Ukhanov's only surviving gun fell silent late in the evening, when the shells obtained from other guns ran out. At this time, the tanks of Colonel-General Goth crossed the Myshkov River. With the onset of darkness, the battle began to subside behind.

Now for Kuznetsov, everything was “measured by other categories than a day ago.” Ukhanov, Nechaev and Chibisov were barely alive from fatigue. "This is the only surviving weapon<…>and there are four of them<…>were rewarded with a smiling fate, an accidental happiness to survive the day and evening of an endless battle, to live longer than others. But there was no joy in life.” They ended up behind German lines.

Suddenly, the Germans began to attack again. By the light of the rockets, they saw a human body a stone's throw from their firing platform. Chibisov shot him, mistaking him for a German. It turned out to be one of those Russian intelligence officers that General Bessonov was waiting for. Two more scouts, together with the "tongue", hid in a funnel near two wrecked armored personnel carriers.

At this time, Drozdovsky appeared at the calculation, along with Rubin and Zoya. Without looking at Drozdovsky, Kuznetsov took Ukhanov, Rubin and Chibisov and went to help the scout. Following Kuznetsov's group, Drozdovsky also got in touch with two signalmen and Zoya.

A captured German and one of the scouts were found at the bottom of a large funnel. Drozdovsky ordered a search for a second scout, despite the fact that, making his way to the funnel, he attracted the attention of the Germans, and now the entire area was under machine-gun fire. Drozdovsky himself crawled back, taking with him the "language" and the surviving scout. On the way, his group came under fire, during which Zoya was seriously wounded in the stomach, and Drozdovsky was shell-shocked.

When Zoya was brought to the calculation in her unfolded overcoat, she was already dead. Kuznetsov was like in a dream, "everything that kept him in unnatural tension these days<…>suddenly relaxed in him. Kuznetsov almost hated Drozdovsky for not saving Zoya. “He cried so alone and desperately for the first time in his life. And when he wiped his face, the snow on the sleeve of the quilted jacket was hot from his tears.

Already late in the evening, Bessonov realized that the Germans could not be pushed off the northern bank of the Myshkova River. By midnight, the fighting stopped, and Bessonov wondered if this was due to the fact that the Germans used all the reserves. Finally, a "language" was delivered to the command post, which said that the Germans had indeed committed reserves to the battle. After interrogation, Bessonov was informed that Vesnin had died. Now Bessonov regretted that their relationship "through his fault, Bessonov,<…>did not look like Vesnin wanted and what they should have been.

The front commander contacted Bessonov and said that four tank divisions were successfully reaching the rear of the Don army. The general ordered the attack. Meanwhile, Bessonov's adjutant found a German leaflet among Vesnin's belongings, but did not dare to tell the general about it.

About forty minutes after the start of the attack, the battle reached a turning point. Following the battle, Bessonov could not believe his eyes when he saw that several guns had survived on the right bank. The corps brought into battle pushed the Germans to the right bank, captured the crossings and began to surround the German troops.

After the battle, Bessonov decided to drive along the right bank, taking with him all the available awards. He rewarded everyone who survived this terrible battle and the German encirclement. Bessonov "did not know how to cry, and the wind helped him, gave vent to tears of delight, sorrow and gratitude." The Order of the Red Banner was awarded to the entire crew of Lieutenant Kuznetsov. Ukhanov was hurt that Drozdovsky also got the order.

Kuznetsov, Ukhanov, Rubin and Nechaev sat and drank vodka with orders lowered into it, and the battle continued ahead. retold Yulia Peskovaya

Kuznets and his classmates are supposedly going to the Western Front, but after stopping in Saratov it turned out that the entire division was being transferred to Stalingrad. Shortly before unloading at the front line, the locomotive makes a stop. The soldiers, waiting for breakfast, went out to stretch.

Medical instructor Zoya, in love with Drozdovsky, the battery commander and classmate of Kuznetsov, constantly came to their cars. At this parking lot, Deev, the division commander, and Lieutenant General Bessonov, the army commander, joined the squad. Bessonov was approved in person by Stalin himself, presumably because of his reputation for being brutal and willing to do anything to win. Soon the entire division was unloaded from the composition and sent towards the army of Paulus.

The division went far ahead, and the kitchens were left behind. The soldiers were hungry, eating dirty snow, when the order came to join the army of General Bessonov and go out to meet the fascist strike group of Colonel-General Goth. Before the army of Bessonov, which included the division of Deev, the supreme leadership of the country was tasked with any sacrifice to keep the army of Goth and not let them go to the Paulus group. Deev's division dug in at the line on the banks of the Myshkova River. Fulfilling the order, Kuznetsov's battery dug in guns near the river bank. After Kuznetsov takes Zoya with him and goes to Drozdovsky. Drozdovsky is unhappy that Kuznetsov makes friends with another of their classmates, Ukhanov (Ukhanov could not get a decent title, like his classmates, only because, returning from an unauthorized absence through the window of the men's toilet, he found the general sitting on the toilet and laughed for a long time). But Kuznetsov does not support Drozdovsky's snobbery and communicates with Ukhanov as an equal. Bessonov comes to Drozdovsky and waits for the scouts who left for the "language". The outcome of the battle for Stalingrad depends on the denunciation of the "language". Suddenly, a fight begins. Junkers flew in, followed by tanks. Kuznetsov and Ukhanov make their way to their guns and find a wounded scout in them. He reports that the “tongue” with two scouts is now in the fascist rear. Meanwhile, the Nazi army encircles Deev's division.

In the evening, all the shells at the last surviving dug-in gun, behind which Ukhanov stood, ended. The Germans continued to attack and advance. Kuznetsov, Drozdovsky with Zoya, Ukhanov and several other people from the division find themselves behind German lines. They went to look for scouts with a "language". They are found at the explosion crater and they try to rescue them from there. Under fire, he concusses Drozdovsky and wounds Zoya in the stomach. Zoya dies and Kuznetsov blames Drozdovsky for this. He hates him and sobs, wiping his face with hot snow from tears. The "language" delivered to Bessonov confirms that the Germans have brought in reserves.

The turning point that influenced the outcome of the battle was the guns dug in near the shore and, by a lucky chance, survived. It was these guns, dug in by the Kuznetsov battery, that pushed the Nazis back to the right bank, held the crossings and allowed the German troops to be surrounded. After the end of this bloody battle, Bessonov collected all the awards that he had available and, driving along the banks of the Myshkova River, rewarded everyone who survived in the German encirclement. Kuznetsov, Ukhanov and several other people from the platoon sat and drank.

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