Accompanied by the director of the personnel department, Vasily followed the young man to the factory office, and sure enough he saw a microphone placed on the table in the room.
"Comrade Vasily," the young man pointed to the microphone on the table and said to him, "I hope the other party hasn't hung up on your call yet."
Vasily thanked the young man, walked to the table, picked up the microphone, and put it to his ear: "I am Vasily Zaitsev, who is looking for me?"
"Hello, Comrade Vasily." A familiar voice came from the receiver: "I am Major Lapko from the Military Service Office of the Eastern District of Moscow."
"Hello, Comrade Major." Vasily heard that someone from the Military Service Office was looking for him, and thought there was something wrong with his retirement procedures. He quickly explained: "I followed the regulations and completed all the retirement procedures before leaving.
Moscow came to Kuibyshev Metallurgical Plant to report, could something have gone wrong?”
"Yes, something did go wrong and you need to return to Moscow immediately."
"Go back to Moscow now?" Vasily said with some surprise: "But I just finished my report at the metallurgical factory. Even if I want to go back to Moscow, I have to wait until the factory is closed."
"Someone will negotiate with the metallurgical factory about your work." Lapko said on the phone in an unquestionable tone: "You must return to Moscow immediately."
Vasily felt a little uneasy about urging him to return to Moscow so anxiously. He tried his best to avoid returning to Moscow, so he found a new reason to refuse: "Comrade Major, I don't know when I can buy a ticket to return to Moscow."
ticket."
"You don't have to worry about this." Major Lapko said on the phone: "I will immediately send someone from the local military service office to pick you up and then send you directly back to Moscow. Are you at the metallurgical plant now?"
"Yes, I'm in the metallurgical factory at the moment."
"Where is the metallurgical plant located?"
"Factory Office."
"Okay, Comrade Vasily. Listen, you can't go anywhere until the people from the local military service office arrive. Do you understand?"
"Understood, Comrade Major."
The director of the personnel department waited for Vasily to put down the phone and couldn't wait to ask: "Comrade Vasily, what happened?"
Vasily was also confused at the moment. He replied: "I don't know what happened. The people from the Moscow Military Service Office asked me to return to Moscow immediately. They also said that they would send someone from the local Military Service Office to pick me up and drive directly."
Send me back to Moscow."
"Driving you back to Moscow directly?" The director of the personnel department said with some surprise: "Comrade Vasily, I don't think you can stay in the metallurgical plant anymore. But before leaving, you should say hello to the comrade director.
"
Vasily thought that it was the director of the factory who brought him into the factory. Now he wanted to leave and say hello to the other party. This was basic courtesy. "Comrade Director," he looked at the director of the personnel department and asked, "can you take me there?"
The factory director’s office?”
At first, the factory director handed Vasily over to the director of the personnel department. Now that Vasily wanted to see the factory director, the director of the personnel department naturally obliged: "Okay, Comrade Vasily, come with me, and I will take you to see the factory director.
.”
In this way, Vasily, led by the director of personnel, arrived at the factory director's office on the third floor.
Factory director Ribinvich, who was sitting in his office, saw the director of personnel and Vasily coming in from the outside with a look of astonishment on his face: "Didn't I ask you to take him to the warehouse? Bring him to me."
What are you doing here?"
"Comrade Factory Director, things have changed a little. I'm afraid Comrade Vasily can no longer work in our factory." At this point, without waiting for Ribinvich to ask questions, he turned to Vasily and said: "Vasily
Comrade, I think you should report to the factory director in person."
"Comrade Vasily," Ribinvich looked up at Vasily and urged him with some urgency: "Tell me quickly, what is the problem?"
"That's right, Comrade Factory Director." Vasily replied: "In a few minutes, I received a call from the Moscow Military Service Office, saying that there was something important and I needed to return to Moscow immediately. And based on the other person's tone, I
I may not have the opportunity to continue working in a metallurgical plant in the future."
"How could this happen?" Ribinvich said in surprise: "Is there something wrong in Moscow?"
"I'm sorry, Comrade Factory Director, I don't know either." Vasily felt ashamed that he could not answer Ribinvich's question: "The other party just asked me to return to Moscow as soon as possible. I originally wanted to delay it for two days and wait.
After I figured out what was going on, I decided whether to return. But the other party said that they would send local military service office personnel to find me soon and take me back to Moscow in a car.”
When Ribinvich heard that Vasily said he was going to return to Moscow, the first thought that came to his mind was that something happened to Vasily and he would definitely be punished if he returned to Moscow this time. Should he stay away from him to avoid being implicated?
But then I thought about it, Vasily is the recipient of the Gold Star Medal and the honorary title of Hero of the Soviet Union, so I'm afraid nothing will happen to him.
"Comrade Factory Director," the HR Director saw Ribinvich sitting in a daze behind his desk, so he called him: "How should we deal with Comrade Vasily's working relationship?"
Ribinvich looked at the Director of Personnel and said: "The information hasn't been filed yet. Just destroy it."
"Comrade Vasily," Ribinvich stood up, walked around from behind the desk, and held Vasily's hand: "I think your superiors called you back to Moscow urgently, maybe because there is more important work to be entrusted to you.
But don’t have any psychological burden.”
"I am already a disabled person. What important job can be arranged for me?" Vasily said with a wry smile: "If I had to choose, I would rather stay in the metallurgical factory."
No matter how much Ribinvich wanted to keep Vasily, he could only reluctantly give up at this moment. He raised his hand and patted Vasily gently on the shoulder twice, and asked: "Where are the people from the local military service office?
Coming to find you?"
"I told them that I was in the factory office." Vasily replied: "The other party will go there to find me later."
"Since the other party wants to come to the factory office to find you, let's go there and wait for him." After saying that, Ribbenvich walked out with his hands behind his back.
Out of courtesy, Vasily was prepared to wait for Ribinvich and the Director of Personnel to leave the office before following him out. But Ribinvich took two steps and found that Vasily was still standing there, so he left.
He came over, put an arm on his shoulder, and carried him outside: "Comrade Vasily, what's the matter with you? Didn't you hear what I said?"
Vasily was really not used to the other party's enthusiasm, and replied with some embarrassment: "I want to wait until you go out before going out."
Arriving at the factory office, the young man hurriedly came forward to say hello: "Comrade Factory Director, why are you here?"
"I heard that Comrade Vasily is leaving soon, and I came here specifically to see him off." After Ribinvich asked Vasily to sit down, he told the young man: "What are you doing standing there? Why don't you hurry up and pour it?"
Tea."
When the young man went to pour tea, Ribbenvich said to the director of the personnel department: "Comrade director, you have nothing to do here. You can go back to the office."
"Comrade Factory Director," the Director of the Personnel Department said with a smile, "Anyway, I have nothing to do when I go back now. I just stay here and listen to Vasily's stories about the past when he defended Stalingrad."
When Ribinvich heard this, he knew exactly what he meant. The reason why he accompanied Vasily to the factory office was because he wanted to listen to him tell stories about the battle to defend Stalingrad while waiting for the people in the military service office.
"Comrade Vasily," Ribinvich said to Vasily with a smile on his face: "Although we have heard many legends about you, they are all processed by newspapers and broadcasts. We would rather hear from you in person.
That legendary experience.”
Faced with Ribinvich's hospitality, Vasily could not put it off. Anyway, he did not know when the personnel from the local military service office would arrive, so he began to tell the two men the story of what happened during the Battle of Stalingrad.
At first, there were only two people in the audience, Ribbenvich and the director of personnel. Then the young man serving tea also joined in. I don’t know how the news spread, saying that more than 200 German soldiers were killed in the Battle of Stalingrad.
Vasily was in the factory office at the moment, so everyone in the building put down their work and ran upstairs to listen to the story.
When the lieutenant from the military service office arrived, he found that the corridor leading to the factory office was crowded with people. Although there were many people, no one spoke. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I would have thought that there was no one in the corridor.
.
The lieutenant patted a worker in front and asked tentatively: "Hey, man, what are you doing here?"
The worker turned and glanced at the lieutenant, then put a finger in front of his lips: "Shh, keep your voice down, we are listening to Comrade Vasily the sniper tell a story, do you understand?"
Hearing that Vasily was telling stories inside, the lieutenant who was ordered to pick up Vasily couldn't wait. While pushing aside the people in front of him, he said loudly: "Please give way, please give way, I am
I was ordered to pick up Comrade Vasily."
The people who were standing in the corridor were quite unhappy to be interrupted from listening to the story, but when they heard that he had come to pick up Vasily, they all made way for him to come smoothly.
Arrive at the door of the factory office.
After the lieutenant entered the door, he saw that the place was also crowded with people. He couldn't help but sweat and asked repeatedly: "Vasily, where is Comrade Vasily?"
"I'm here." A young man in military uniform stood up at the table and said to the lieutenant: "I am Vasily."
"Hello, Comrade Vasily." Although Vasily had taken off his military uniform, he was the recipient of the Gold Star Medal and the honorary title of Hero of the Soviet Union, so the lieutenant saluted him through the crowd and said respectfully: "
I was ordered to take you to Moscow."
When the lieutenant took Vasily away, everyone present was talking: "What's going on? Why are you sending Vasily to Moscow? Did something happen to him?"
"How is this possible? Now that the war is not over yet, if he is asked to return to Moscow urgently, there must be more important tasks for him."
Not only the workers at the metallurgical plant did not know the reason why Vasily returned to Moscow, but Vasily and the lieutenant who drove him also did not know the reason. The lieutenant thought very simply, my task is to take Comrade Vasily to Moscow
Moscow, as for what happens next, it has nothing to do with me.
The distance from Kuibyshev to Moscow is more than a thousand kilometers, and the current road conditions are not ideal. The jeep got stuck in the quagmire on the roadside several times, and Vasily had to get out of the car to help push the cart.
In this way, he arrived in Moscow on the evening of the next day and was driven to the military service office by the lieutenant.
The extremely tired lieutenant and Vasily walked into the building where the military service office was located, and under the guidance of others, they found Major Lapko's office.
The two came to the office, and the lieutenant stepped forward to salute Lapko and said: "Comrade Major, I have been ordered to send Comrade Vasily back to Moscow."
"Well done, Comrade Lieutenant." After praising the other party, Lapko said with concern: "You must be very tired after driving all day and all night. You go out to rest first, and after you have a good sleep,
Come find me here again."
After the lieutenant left, Lapko asked Vasily to sit down, poured him a cup of tea himself, and said: "Comrade Vasily, you must feel strange. Since you have been arranged to retire, why are you in such a hurry to recall you?"
.”
"Yes, Comrade Major." Vasily acquiesced to Lapko's statement, but then asked: "Can you tell me the reason for recalling me?"
"The reason is very simple. Someone hopes that you can return to the army?"
As soon as he heard that he could return to the army, Vasily's heart beat faster than expected. He asked in a slightly trembling voice: "Comrade Major, can you tell me who it is?"
"Logically speaking, this is a military secret and I can't tell you casually." Lapko said reasonably: "But you will know the answer tomorrow at the latest. It doesn't matter if I tell you in advance now. People who want you to return to the army
, that’s your old superior—General Sokov!”
"Is it General Sokov?" Hearing that it was Sokov who wanted him to return to the army, Vasily was naturally ecstatic, but then he thought that one of his eyes was disabled and he could not continue to serve as a sniper.
He became gloomier again: "What use will I do even if I return to the army like this?"
"Comrade Vasily, I know your situation very well." Major Lapko, who personally helped Vasily handle the retirement formalities, naturally knew Vasily's situation well: "Although there is something wrong with one of your eyes, you cannot continue to act as a sniper.
, but you can be a trainer and train more snipers for the army."
Knowing that Sokov planned to let him serve as an instructor to help train snipers, Vasily's hope was rekindled in his heart. He suddenly stood up from where he was sitting, looked at Lapko and asked: "Comrade Major,
I wonder when I can return to the front line?"
"Don't be anxious, Comrade Vasily." Lapko waved to him and said with a smile: "You have to go to the General Staff Headquarters tomorrow to meet General Shtemenko. He will personally help you and
Another sniper handed over the mission."
"Another sniper?!" Vasily captured the key words from Lapko's words: "So, I am not the only one who returned to the front line, there is another sniper?"
"Yes, Comrade Vasily." Lapko nodded and said, "It is said that that man is also an excellent sniper. He once killed more than three hundred enemies."