"Comrade Marshal," Yakov suddenly asked Rokossovsky after solving the gunman's problem: "How long will we stay in Germany?"
Rokossovsky did not understand Yakov's question and asked with some confusion: "Yasha, what did you say?"
Yakov realized that he had not stated clearly what he wanted to ask, and quickly added: "I want to ask, how long will our occupying German troops stay in this country?"
"I don't know, Yasha, I can only tell you, I don't know." After Rokossovsky understood the question the other party wanted to ask, he answered truthfully: "It all depends on the Supreme Command. They
We will stay in Germany as long as we are allowed to stay."
But Sokov, who came from a later generation, knew very well that it would take until 1994, three years after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, for all the 540,000 Soviet troops stationed in Germany to evacuate. However, even if he said this, no one would believe it.
Just shut up and watch the fun.
"It's getting late," Rokossovsky raised his hand and looked at his watch and said, "I have other things to do, so I won't take you to the airport. I wish you all a safe journey!"
When Sokov and others set off again, they no longer had only one jeep, but a convoy of seven or eight trucks, sandwiching them in the middle. Each truck had a machine gun on the driving platform, and the machine gunner
Observe the situation along the way vigilantly, and once you find something wrong, you will not hesitate to pull the trigger. After all, this is Germany, and the local situation is full of hostility to the Soviet army. The shooting incident just now happened again.
, is entirely possible.
Fortunately, the journey was uneventful, and Sokov and others arrived at the airport safely.
The pilot waiting here saw Sokov and others arriving, and after welcoming them onto the plane, he immediately took off and flew towards Moscow.
The distance from Berlin to Moscow is 1,900 kilometers. Sokov and the others were flying on a C47 transport aircraft aided by the United States, with a cruising speed of 260 kilometers per hour. Since the range of this aircraft is 2,600 kilometers, that is to say, there is no need to stop midway.
Come down and refuel and you'll reach Moscow.
When the plane passed over Kiev, Yakov approached Sokov and said: "Misha, I heard that you did not participate in the liberation of Kiev?"
Not being able to participate in the battle to liberate Kiev was a permanent pain for Sokov. Because he was seriously injured and sent to Moscow for treatment, the army was handed over to others. The 27th Army, which had great military exploits and strong combat effectiveness,
Due to command errors, not only did they fail to become the main force in the attack on Kiev, but they suffered heavy casualties and were relegated to the role of a reserve force. When other troops fought hard against the Germans on the Dnieper River and Kiev, they were originally supposed to be on offensive missions.
The 27th Army, however, became a bystander.
"Yes, Yasha." Sokov replied with a wry smile: "You should still remember that I was seriously injured at the time. After our army liberated Kiev, I was still lying on the hospital bed uncertain about my life or death."
"What a pity." Yakov said with regret: "I think if you were still in the army, the 27th Army under your command might be the first unit to rush into Kiev."
"Yes, that's the case." Sokov was still confident in the combat effectiveness of his troops. He said to Yakov: "Even when Kiev was liberated, my troops were not the first to rush into the city. But next time
In the battle, the German counterattack forces will never get close to Kiev, and I can completely defeat them in the direction of Zhitomir."
"Misha, I find that your luck seems to be a little worse." Yakov thought for a while and continued: "Think about it, you missed the battle to liberate Kiev because you were injured. And you missed the battle to liberate Berlin.
I still missed it. If the 48th Army you commanded had not been transferred to the Second Belorussian Front, you might still have a chance to participate in the attack on Berlin."
It was indeed a great regret for Sokov that he did not participate in the two battles to liberate Kiev and Berlin. But now that it has become a fact, no matter how upset he is, it is a fact that cannot be changed. Fortunately, he thinks openly and smiles
He said: "Yasha, although I was not able to participate in the two battles to liberate Kiev and Berlin. But now there is an opportunity to go to the Far East to participate in the war. If the troops under my command can defeat the most elite Kwantung Army in the past, then
The merit is no less than that of participating in the liberation of Kiev and Berlin."
"Go to the Far East to fight?" Although Yakov had heard Sokov say before that after the war in Europe subsided, he would apply to fight in the Far East. At that time, Yakov did not care. After all, it was still unknown when the Germans would be defeated.
Commanding troops to sweep across the Kwantung Army in the Far East will be a very distant thing. But now that Germany has surrendered, the next step to march into the Far East and defeat the Kwantung Army seems to have been on the agenda. "Misha, will your superiors agree to your request?
?”
"From the day Germany surrendered, I mentioned this matter to Marshal Rokossovsky and Marshal Zhukov respectively, but unfortunately nothing happened." When Sokov saw Yakov in front of him, he suddenly had an idea:
"Yasha, when you go home and see your father, can you put in a good word for me?"
"Misha, I can speak for you." Yakov looked at Sokov and said, "But you have to agree to one condition."
"Whatever the conditions are, as long as they are within my ability, I will definitely agree to it."
"If my father agrees to let you go to fight in the Far East," Yakov said with a smile, "I wonder if you can let me go with you? Even if I can't be your army chief of staff, it would be good to be an ordinary staff officer. You know
, after all, I served as deputy chief of staff in the Third Belarusian Front, so I still have some ability in the staff department."
Sokov thought to himself: The time for fighting in the Far East is very short. Even if Yakov goes with him, I am afraid he will not encounter any danger. On the contrary, if he agrees to Yakov's request, maybe Stalin will agree to him.
Participate in the battle in the Far East. Thinking of this, he nodded slowly and said: "Okay, Yasha, if your father agrees to my going to command the troops in the Far East, I can ask you to be my chief of staff."
Seeing Sokov readily agreeing to his request, Yakov couldn't help but smile. He knew very well that as long as he stayed by Sokov's side, there would be many opportunities to make achievements. Maybe after a Far Eastern battle, his chest
You can also get one or two more medals: "Misha, don't worry. When I return to Moscow, I will go to my father to talk about this matter. I will definitely ask him to agree to lead your troops to the Far East to compete with the Kwantung Army.
"
After nearly eight hours of flight, the transport plane finally landed at the military airport west of Moscow. Fortunately, it was already summer, and it got dark late in Moscow. The sun still did not set at eight o'clock in the evening and was still hanging in the sky.
When the plane came to a stop, a black car drove over and stopped not far from the cabin door.
When Sokov and Yakov got off the gangway, a major who walked out of a black car came to them. After raising his hand in salute, he asked politely: "Is this General Sokov from Berlin?"
General Koff?"
"Yes, it's me." Yakov took a step forward and asked, "Comrade Major, who are you?"
"Report to General Yakov!" the major said, facing Yakov: "I am Major Bezikov of the Central Guard Regiment, and I have been ordered to send you to a sanatorium in the suburbs."
"I want to go to the Kremlin first to see my father, is that okay?"
"I'm sorry, General Yakov." Major Bezikov obviously knew Yakov's true identity, but he still politely rejected Yakov's request: "The order I received was to send you to the suburbs.
Sanatorium. I will not return to the Kremlin until you arrive at the sanatorium.”
Seeing that Yakov wanted to argue with the major, Sokov quickly stopped him: "Yasha, he is also acting under orders, so don't embarrass him." Sokov pointed to the black car next to him.
, asked, "Comrade Major, are we going to the forest in the suburbs in this car?"
"Yes, Comrade General, this is the car." Bezikov knew that Sokov was helping him out, so he quickly came to the rear door, opened the door on his own initiative, and said politely: "Comrade General, please
Get in the car!"
Facing the open car door, Sokov did not get in the car immediately, but took the initiative to greet Asiya: "Asiya, you get in the car first!"
After Asya sat in, Sokov followed him into the car. But Yakov knew that his wish to return to the Kremlin was unattainable, so he had no choice but to get into the car.
Major Bezikov sat in the passenger seat, closed the door and told the driver: "Drive, comrade driver!"
After the black car left the city, it drove along the highway for more than half an hour, and then suddenly drove into a side road. This was a dirt road, the road condition was not very good, and there were potholes everywhere. Several times, Sokov was knocked out of his seat.
He jumped up and his head almost touched the roof of the car.
"Comrade Major," Sokov said with a wry smile to Bezikov who was sitting in the passenger seat: "The road conditions on this road are really bad."
Bezikov half-turned around and said apologetically to Sokov and Yakov: "Two generals, please forgive me. In order to prevent the target from being exposed, this road has never been repaired, even if it was detected by German reconnaissance.
Even if the machine discovers it, they won’t think it’s a valuable target to attack.”
"Comrade Major," Yakov said with some annoyance: "But now the war is over, and it has been more than two years since the Germans were driven away from Moscow by our army. Even the camouflage nets on the buildings in Moscow are no longer visible.
It has been demolished a long time ago, why hasn’t this road been repaired yet?”
Bezikov did not expect that Yakov would insist on this matter, and replied with some embarrassment: "General Yakov, I'm sorry, I don't know. After all, it is not my responsibility to build roads."
"Okay, Yasha, please don't embarrass the major." Sokov came out in time to smooth things over again: "Comrade major, how many guards are there in the nursing home where we live?"
The reason why Sokov asked this question was because security work in the forest is much more complicated than in the city. If someone really wants to attack the sanatorium, they can attack from any direction. If there are fewer people responsible for security
, I'm afraid it will be dangerous.
"General Sokov, we have deployed a security platoon in the sanatorium." Bezikov said: "The sanatorium is surrounded by a three-meter-high wall with barbed wire. There is no problem in terms of safety. You and I
General Yakov can safely recuperate inside. By the way, the same goes for your wife."
The car soon arrived at the entrance of a building surrounded by a red brick wall. There were two soldiers standing guard here. When they saw the approaching car, they immediately opened the originally closed iron door and let the car in.
courtyard.
After the car entered the yard, it did not stop immediately, but continued to drive forward, and finally stopped next to a two-story red brick and concrete building.
"Comrade generals," Bezikov turned to Sokov and Yakov and said, "We are here, please get out of the car!"
After Sokov and others got out of the car, they followed the major into the building and went straight to the lobby.
Behind the bar in the lobby, there were two young waitresses chatting. When they saw Bezikov walking in, they quickly stopped talking. A tall waitress took the initiative to greet Bezikov: "Comrade Major, you are welcome."
coming!"
"Yes, Anna, I'm here!" Bezikov nodded and pointed at Sokov and Yakov behind him: "These two are General Sokov and Yakov who are going to recuperate here.
General, where is your person in charge?"
The waitress named Anna asked respectfully: "Gulchenko is answering the phone inside, do you need me to call her?"
"Go, Anna." Bezikov nodded and said, "Go and call her out. I still have something to explain to her face to face."
Anna nodded and walked towards a room not far away. Not long after she entered the door, a middle-aged woman wearing a headscarf followed her out. This should be the Gurchin Bezikov mentioned.
Ke. She quickly came to Bezikov and said enthusiastically: "Comrade Major, didn't you say you would be there at five o'clock? Why are you here now? From the looks of you, you probably haven't finished eating yet."
Come on, I'll arrange for someone to prepare dinner for you."
"Mordyukova," Gurchenko called to another waitress: "Go to the kitchen immediately and tell them to prepare dinner for Major Bezikov and the two generals."
After Mordjokova left, Gurchenko smiled and said to Sokov and Yakov: "Two comrades, generals, please come with me, and I will take you to the room prepared for you."
The rooms prepared for Sokov and others are on the second floor. They are all spacious suites. Outside are the living room and dining room with sofas and dining tables. Inside are the bedrooms, but there are no separate bathrooms and toilets.
Seeing this, Yakov couldn't help but frowned and said dissatisfied: "Comrade Gurchenke, what is going on? Why does our room not even have a separate bathroom and toilet? What is going on?
"
"General Yakov, our sanatorium was built relatively early, so the layout seems unreasonable." Seeing Yakov getting angry, Gurchenke hurriedly explained to him: "Although there is no separate bathroom in the room
And the bathroom, but the shared bathroom and toilet are not far from the room you live in, you can get there in just a few steps."
Bezikov also laughed and said: "General Yakov, if you are not satisfied with this place, I will report it to my superiors when I go back and ask them to replace you with a better sanatorium."