Red Moscow

Chapter 2495

 Everyone came to a coffee shop by the lake. Maybe it was because of the festival, but it was actually packed with people. Sokov looked around for a long time, but did not see any vacancies. Just when he was about to leave, a middle-aged man came to him and said with a smile: "Hello, Comrade General! I am from this cafe. Manager, I wonder if there is anything I can do for you."

“Hello, Comrade Manager.” Sokov nodded to the other party, and then said: “I will sit here to drink coffee and eat something, but it seems that there is no room for you!”

"Comrade General, if it were someone else, there might not be a seat, but since you are looking for a seat, I will definitely arrange it for you." The manager said to Sokov respectfully: "Please come with me, Comrade General, I will give you a seat." Please arrange a quiet room."

Soon, Sokov and others were sitting in the room specially arranged for them by the manager. Not long after we sat down, two waitresses came in with trays, put down the coffee, sugar cubes and some pastries on the trays and left.

The manager said to Sokov: "Comrade General, I'm next door. If you need anything, just call me."

After the manager left, Asiya asked in surprise: "Misha, do you know this manager?"

"I don't know him." Sokov shook his head and replied, "It's the first time we met today." When he said this, he was also wondering in his heart whether the manager had met him before, otherwise it would be impossible for him to know him. I am so enthusiastic. As for not having this person in my memory, it may be because I have seen too many people and forgot about it for a while.

Sokov took a sip of coffee and began to recall information about Gavrilov.

In real history, after Gavrilov was rescued, he was indeed appointed as the head of a prisoner of war camp in Siberia. But soon after, due to large-scale disarmament, disabled soldiers like him naturally could no longer stay in the army. After he returned to his hometown, he worked on a farm and in a pottery factory, but he was dismissed because of his experience as a prisoner. As a result, this experienced man who graduated from a prestigious school and was nearly fifty years old was forced to look for jobs everywhere. , relying on odd jobs to make ends meet.

Later, Gavrilov, who was lonely and poor, met a woman with the same miserable fate, and the two formed a new family to support each other. They lived in a remote and broken adobe house without any children to accompany them. After living like this for several years, Gavrilov learned that his ex-wife was still alive. He immediately rushed to the Home for the Disabled in Berest Oblast, took his ex-wife back, and together with his current wife, Together they cared for their ex-wife until her death.

What really changed Gavrilov's fate was a writer named Sergey Smirnov. This person liked to study the history of the Patriotic War. When looking through historical archives, he noticed some survivors, among whom was Gavrilov. Frilov. Since there was too little information about Brest Fortress, Smirnov wanted to dig out as many of these stories as possible, so after a lot of searches and interviews, he wrote the book "Brest Fortress".

This book caused a huge sensation as soon as it came out. The stories of the soldiers in the Brest Fortress who tenaciously resisted the enemy are touching. A lot of information proves that the vast majority of Soviet soldiers in the fortress are tenacious. Some of them did not surrender to the enemy until their death. And many of the captured commanders and fighters were incapacitated due to long-term lack of water and rice, and had no choice but to do so. captive.

In 1955, Soviet Radio broadcast a program called "Searching for the Heroes of Brest Fortress" and called on people from all over the country to actively provide clues, thus launching a nationwide search for heroes. It was under this circumstance that Gavrilov called the radio station and told the other party: "I am Major Gavrilov, the commander of the 44th Infantry Regiment who was captured during the war."

 When the news spread through the radio, the entire public opinion was boiling, and Gavrilov suddenly became the focus. His life changed as a result. He had a new place to live, various interviews and speaking invitations came one after another, and Gavrilov also began to write a memoir to tell the story of his past.

  In 1957, he was awarded the title of "Hero of the Soviet Union" and received the Gold Star Medal and the Order of Lenin.

Although Gavrilov finally received his honor after waiting for more than ten years, the waiting process was too long. If he hadn't lived long enough, he might not have been recognized by people the day he died. But now that Sokov has crossed paths with him, he decided to let Gavrilov get his share of honors in advance in his own way.

“Misha, Misha!” Seeing Sokov holding the cup in a daze, Asia guessed that he must be thinking about something again and quickly pushed him with his hand. After his eyes returned to him, he asked with concern: "Are you okay? You have been in a daze holding the cup for several minutes. Did you think of something?"

"Yes, I did think of something important." Sokov put down the cup in his hand, looked at Gavrilov opposite and said, "Comrade Major, I may have to tell you some bad news."

"Bad news?" Hearing what Sokov said, Gavrilov couldn't help but become nervous: "Comrade General, didn't you just say that my wife and children might still be alive? Are you lying to me? Were they actually killed by the Germans?"

Sokov was stunned for a moment, and then realized that the other party had misunderstood what he meant. He quickly waved his hand and said: "Comrade Major, you have misunderstood. What I am going to say next has nothing to do with your wife and children, but with you." Direct relationship."

"So that's it." After learning that what Sokov was going to say had nothing to do with his wife and children, Gavrilov breathed a sigh of relief, and then said: "As long as it has nothing to do with my wife and adopted son , then I feel much more at ease.”

"That's it." After Sokov waited for Gavrilov to calm down, he told him his analysis: "With the end of the war, our huge army will definitely have some outstanding military achievements due to large-scale disarmament. The troops are also within the scope of disbandment. As a result, I am afraid that a considerable number of personnel will be disbanded in the prisoner of war camp where you are located. You are now a disabled soldier, and the possibility of being disbanded is very high. If it is really disbanded, what's your plan?"

"What other plans can there be?" Gavrilov did not expect that what Sokov was going to say to him was actually such a thing. He smiled bitterly and said: "I resolutely obey the arrangements of my superiors and let me manage. I will manage the prisoner-of-war camp; if I am allowed to demobilize and go home, I will have no problem with it. I will work wherever my superiors arrange for me to work, whether it is in a factory or in the countryside."

"Comrade Major, I'm afraid things are not as simple as you think." Thinking of Gavrilov's tragic experience in the next ten years, Sokov felt a little unbearable: "You will definitely be in your file. Records of being captured. Once the person who arranges the work knows that you have been captured, they will deliberately make things difficult for you." Sokov said with a wry smile, "If I have certain authority, I will definitely find a way to take care of you. . But now I am also idle at home, and I am afraid it will be sooner or later before I retire." "Comrade General, I understand what you mean." From Sokov's words, Gavrilov realized the fate he would face next. , more difficult than you imagined. If your superiors order you to retire, but the record of being captured in your portfolio will become a stain in your life, you may encounter various difficulties when looking for a job. However, he still said confidently: "If I can't stay in the factory, I will go to the collective farm. Maybe I can find a job suitable for me there."

"Comrade Major, I just had a new idea, which is to write a story about the Brest Fortress." Sokov looked at Gavrilov and said: "The protagonists in the book are you, the defenders of the fortress. Or, let more people know how they fought against the enemy after the war broke out. I wonder if you are willing to help me? "

Gavrilov couldn't help but get excited when he learned that Sokov was going to write a novel about the Brest Fortress. He breathed a little and asked: "Comrade General, is there anything I can do for you?"

"You only need to share your own experience and the performance of the soldiers in the battle to defend the fortress, and I can transform your story into words, so that more people can understand that after the battle breaks out, despite the speed of the enemy's advance, Very quickly, but behind them, there are still our army’s commanders and fighters fighting tenaciously.”

"That's great, Comrade General, that's great." Gavrilov said movedly: "If you want to know anything, just ask me. I will definitely tell you everything I know. you."

"In my book, you will be an important character." Sokov continued: "I want to tell all readers through words that you are a soldier who has defended the country with your life, although you were once captured by the Germans , but he is neither a coward nor a traitor, but a true hero."

Hearing that Sokov planned to write a book for Gavrilov, Asya put her hand on the back of Sokov's hand and said softly: "Misha, I support you in writing such a book, like Gavrilov Heroes like Major Love should not be forgotten."

"You have given me a compliment." Gavrilov heard Sokov and Asiya's praise for him, and said with some embarrassment: "I just fulfilled the duties of a soldier."

 Then, Sokov took out a pen and paper and began to ask Gavrilov about some details of the defensive operations. He couldn't remember whether political commissar Fomin was with Gavrilov after the battle to defend the fortress began. As for the subsequent plot of Fomin being captured and sacrificed, he naturally couldn't ask anymore.

"Comrade Major," Sokov, after recording four or five pages of what Gavrilov said, looked up at him and asked, "I heard that the enemy used flamethrowers in the underground bunker, causing the walls to be destroyed. It was burned to the point of crystallization. Is this the case?"

Faced with the question raised by Sokov, Gavrilov thought carefully and then replied: "Whether the Germans used flamethrowers in underground bunkers, I did not see it with my own eyes and I don't know. But in order to quickly break through our army's defense, they used fire-breathing tanks to spray fire into the buildings defended by our army's officers and men. When the flames sprayed over, many officers and men covered in fire would run out of the building. , some of them were shot to death by German soldiers following the fire-breathing tanks, and some were burned alive."

Gavrilov recalled this experience, as if he saw his men again, dying tragically under the enemy's fire-breathing tanks. He unconsciously clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. If several Germans appeared in front of him at this moment, Sokov had no doubt that he would rush forward and deal with these Germans with fists and teeth.

“Calm down, calm down, Comrade Major.” Seeing that Gavrilov was a little excited, Sokov quickly comforted him and said: “These are things in the past, please keep a normal mentality.”

After hearing what Sokov said, Gavrilov quickly took a few deep breaths, stabilized his emotions, and said apologetically to Sokov: "I'm sorry, Comrade General, I think of those comrades who died in front of me. I can't hold back my hatred for the Germans in my heart, please forgive me for my gaffe."

"This is normal, Comrade Major." Sokov said reasonably: "After the Battle of Stalingrad, when groups of German prisoners were escorted by our army and walked out of the city, Occasionally, soldiers who lost their temper because of the sacrifice of their comrades would appear on the roadside and shoot at the prisoners' team, killing the prisoners."

“Misha, I was also in Stalingrad at that time. Why haven’t I seen this situation?” Asya asked curiously.

"The reason is very simple." Sokov said to Asiya with a smile: "In the later stages of the Battle of Stalingrad, you basically stayed in the operating room to treat the wounded. It is normal that you don't know what is happening outside. "

“Oh, that’s it, I just said why I’ve never seen this happen before.”

"Comrade General, I heard that the Battle of Stalingrad was very difficult." Gavrilov asked cautiously: "It is said that the 62nd Army commanded by General Chuikov had more than 100,000 people before the battle began. , by the end of the battle, there were only more than 300 people left. I don’t know whether this rumor is true or false.”

Regarding Gavrilov's question, Sokov organized the vocabulary in his mind, and then said: "Comrade Major, it's really hard for me to answer your question. You know, although the 62nd Army's troops suffered unusual casualties, It was tragic, but troops entered the city from the left bank of the Volga River every day to replenish the troops that were severely damaged in the battle. So how many troops did the 62nd Group Army have? Not to mention that I was just a small division commander at the time. I am afraid even the commander of the group army Chuikov General, there is no accurate file. You just need to remember one thing. In order to defend this city named after the leader, our officers and soldiers paid an unprecedented price."

"You are right, Comrade General." Gavrilov nodded and said in a positive tone: "In order to defend this heroic city, our army paid huge casualties. But in order to completely defeat the German aggression Or, no matter how high the price is, it is still what we can accept. Don’t you think so, Comrade General?!"

 (End of this chapter)