Sokov took the Istrian battalion to Tula in a truck provided by the 16th Army. After getting off the bus there, they marched on foot for three days, traveling more than 200 kilometers southeast, and arrived at Yele.
The front headquarters east of Ci.
However, when they were about to reach their destination, they were stopped in front of a checkpoint. The leader was a corporal. He was not affected by the fact that Sokov's military rank was higher than his own, but asked dryly:
"Comrade Commander, which section are you in? Where are you going?"
"We are the Istria Battalion." Belkin replied from the side: "We are preparing to go to the front headquarters."
"I've never heard of the Istria camp." Unexpectedly, the corporal didn't respond to Belkin's words at all. Instead, he asked in an official tone: "Password!"
"No, nothing." After hearing the series of questions raised by the corporal, Sokov said with some laughter and tears: "We just came from Zizdra, how could we know your password?"
"No," the corporal said matter-of-factly, "You can't pass through us without a password."
Captain Vasily, the commander of the second company who had endured it for a long time, became angry. He pointed at the opponent's nose and said sternly: "Which part are you from? Find your commander immediately. I want to ask him how he educates his subordinates."
He actually adopts this attitude towards his own friendly forces."
"I'm sorry, Comrade Captain." The corporal was also a bully. When he saw Vasily getting angry at him, he replied in a panic: "Our company's command post is four or five kilometers away from here..."
"Call your company commander immediately," Vasily pointed to the wooden sentry box not far away and said, "Call him immediately and tell him the number of our unit."
"But, but..." Seeing Vasily's fierce look, the corporal became more and more panicked: "I'm worried that if I call the company commander rashly, I will be criticized by him."
"Comrade Corporal, I order you." Vasily raised his voice and said to the Corporal: "Why do you think I am looking for him? I want to confirm my identity as soon as possible, do you understand?"
"Yes, Comrade Captain." The corporal, who was scolded, ran to the post and called his company commander, preparing to report to him that a troop had appeared here.
When the corporal went to make a call, Asya squeezed in from behind and asked Sokov curiously: "Misha, what happened? Why didn't they let us pass?"
Before Sokov could finish speaking, Seryosha, the leader of the police clearance platoon, said angrily: "We encountered a lunatic who actually asked us for a password. We won't be allowed to pass through here without a password."
After making the call, the corporal quickly ran over from the guard box and said to Sokov with a smile: "Comrade Major, I have already called the company commander. He said he will be here right away. Please wait here."
A moment."
"I'm talking about comrade corporal." As soon as the corporal finished speaking, Vasily attacked him again: "We have traveled more than two hundred kilometers in the past few days, and the soldiers are very tired. We want to rush to rest as soon as possible, but you are here again.
If we are blocked here, how long will we have to wait before we are allowed to pass?"
After waiting for more than ten minutes, an open-top jeep drove over. As soon as the car stopped, the officer sitting in the passenger seat jumped out of the car without even opening the door and came to Sokov.
After raising his hand in salute, he said: "Hello, Comrade Major, I am Captain Sergey, commander of the first company of the Front Guard Regiment."
"Hello, Comrade Captain." Sokov raised his hand in return and said politely to Sergey: "I am Major Sokov. Under the orders of the new commander, General Rokossovsky, I am leading the Ist
Pull up camp and rush to the front army headquarters."
"I'm sorry, Comrade Major, I didn't receive any notice about your coming." Sergey waited for Sokov to finish and then said in a humble tone: "It's one o'clock in the afternoon. Please stay here for another half hour.
My subordinates will let you pass." After saying that, the captain raised his hand to salute Sokov again, then got into the car and left.
Seeing that the captain didn't play according to the routine, Sokov was also a little dumbfounded. He thought to himself what was going on and why the commander of the guard company came over to meet him. He didn't say anything in detail, but just asked himself to wait for another half.
Left after hours?
The corporal standing nearby saw Sokov cast a questioning look at him, smiled awkwardly, and then replied: "Comrade Major, it is said that a special force will pass through here later. Before they pass, all
Anyone without a password will not be allowed to pass."
The mysterious force mentioned by the corporal aroused Sokov's great curiosity. He quickly asked: "Comrade corporal, can you tell me what special force it is?"
"I'm sorry, Comrade Major, I can't tell you." The muscles on the corporal's face twitched violently as he said, "Don't say I don't know. Even if I know, I can't tell you. It's confidential."
"Okay, okay. Comrade Corporal." Sokov didn't want to embarrass the other party, so he waved to him and said, "I won't ask, so as not to embarrass you." Then Sokov turned to Belkin and said, "
Comrade Belkin, the soldiers must be tired and hungry after walking such a long way. Let them rest where they are after disbanding and seize the time to eat and drink water."
Belkin nodded, turned around and shouted loudly at the marching column behind him: "Everyone listen to my command: stand at attention! Rest where you are and disband!" Following Belkin's order, the commanders and soldiers of the entire battalion began to rush.
Spread out, find a place to sit in the woods on both sides of the road, and seize the time to drink water and eat solid food.
Half an hour later, a convoy drove up from a distance. In front was an armored vehicle driving the road, and in the middle were three dark green buses. But the curtains were drawn on the windows, so no one could be seen inside.
Behind the bus were two more trucks full of soldiers.
When the corporal saw the convoy approaching, he quickly ordered the soldiers at the checkpoint: "Hurry up and move the roadblock." Upon hearing the corporal's order, the soldiers at the checkpoint quickly ran out from their resting place and tied up the man in the middle of the road.
The wooden frame covered with barbed wire was removed to make way for the motorcade.
As the convoy passed by, Belkin whispered to Sokov: "Comrade Major, who do you think is in the car? Why are there armored vehicles clearing the way for them, and two cars of soldiers behind to protect them?"
Since he couldn't see what was going on in the car, Sokov had no idea who was in the car. He casually said: "Maybe it's some kind of condolence group?"
"No, it's definitely not a condolence group." Belkin, who once worked in the Political Department of the Army Group for a period of time, said: "I have seen many condolence groups, but I have never seen one with so many officers and soldiers protecting them."
Seryozha, who was next to him, interrupted again: "The corporal at the checkpoint just now said that there is a special force. I think the people in the bus are that mysterious special force."
After the convoy passed the checkpoint, the corporal ran over and said to Sokov: "Comrade Major, the convoy has passed the checkpoint, and your troops can continue to move forward."
Although Sokov wanted to know the information about the special forces, he knew very well that he could not get any valuable information from the corporal, so he did not waste any time and ordered Belkin: "Gather the troops,