Led by the secretary, Sokov and Victoria came to the reference room on the first floor.
After opening the door, the secretary walked directly to a desk and said to the middle-aged man wearing glasses sitting at the table: "Weijia, the two of them want to inquire about the history of our newspaper in the 1950s and 1960s.
According to the employee information of the Times, this matter was personally approved by the editor-in-chief.”
Just after hearing what the secretary said, I realized that the two strangers in front of me were here to check the information of old employees. The middle-aged man named Weijia didn't want to talk to him at first, but when he heard that the editor-in-chief personally explained it, he could only smile bitterly.
He nodded and said helplessly: "Okay, I will help them find information."
After the secretary left, Vijia looked at Sokov and Victoria and asked Victoria calmly: "Police officer, our newspaper has been established for nearly a hundred years and has employed more than 100,000 or 200,000 employees. What can you do?"
Tell me as accurately as possible, who is the person you are looking for?"
Victoria did not answer the other party's question, but said to Sokov: "Misha, it's up to you to speak."
"The name of the person I'm looking for is Kopalova," Sokov quickly said to Vega: "She worked in a newspaper office in the 1940s as a photojournalist and once went to Stalingrad during the Great Patriotic War.
Later, as a member of the special correspondent team, she went to Vienna, Austria, to serve as a correspondent..."
After listening to Sokov's story, Vega was silent for a moment and said thoughtfully: "Sir, I have some impression of the person you mentioned. She returned to China in the early 1950s due to health reasons.
Moscow, where he continued to work as a photojournalist; he retired in the late 1970s and has been living in Moscow."
When he learned that Kopalova had been living in Moscow after returning from Vienna, Sokov couldn't help feeling ecstatic, and then he tried his best to say in a calm tone: "Then do you know her home address?"
Victoria obviously guessed what Sokov was thinking, and after reaching out to give him a hand, she said to Vedya: "Vedya, I want to know if this Kopalova is still alive?"
"It's hard to say." Weijia said with some embarrassment: "I remember she was born in the 1920s. Even if she were alive, she would probably be almost a hundred years old."
"Can you tell us her address?" Victoria continued: "I want to visit her and learn something from her."
"Please wait a moment while I search for information in the database."
When Sokov saw the computer on the table, he knew very well that the information of some old employees had not been entered into the computer. If he wanted to query, he could only rely on the old files left back then.
Weijia went to the reference room and came back about seven or eight minutes later, holding an earth-yellow kraft paper portfolio in her hand.
After placing the file bag on the table, Weijia picked up a knife and cut the rope tied to it, and took out the information from inside.
After browsing for a while, he raised his head and said to Victoria: "Officer, according to the information we have here, Kopalova's address is No. 115 Korolev Street. But after so many years, I don't know if she still lives there.
There."
"As long as we know where she originally lived," Victoria said, "Even if she moves, I can still find out her new residence."
After the two came out of the newspaper office, although it was already past seven o'clock in the evening, it was still bright.
"Misha," Victoria looked up at the sky and asked Sokov tentatively: "Do you want to go there now or another day?"
"If you have nothing to do, can you accompany me now?" Sokov said sincerely: "Now I finally know the whereabouts of this old man. If I can't see her as soon as possible, I'm afraid I won't be able to see her as soon as possible."
Be practical."
"Then let's go there now." Victoria made a gesture of driving: "Do you know how to get to Korolev Street?"
"I have a navigation here that can guide me there."
After driving on the street for more than half an hour, Sokov finally arrived at Korolev Street. No. 115 here is an old three-story building. Judging from the appearance and structure, there are quite a few residents inside.
In three hundred households.
"Misha, where should we start searching?"
Sokov pointed to the nearest unit door and said, "Let's start with this unit first."
Although there is a closed door at the door of each unit, you need an opening code or a special access card to enter. But Victoria has a universal universal access card. When she walks to the door and swipes it lightly, the door opens.
open.
The two of them entered the door, and there was a small duty room on the first floor near the door, with a fat aunt sitting in it.
When she saw Victoria walking in, she quickly ran out of the duty room and asked respectfully: "Officer, are you here to handle a case?"
Victoria shook her head: "No, there is no case."
"What's that for?"
"Looking for someone."
Hearing Victoria say that she was looking for someone, the fat aunt suddenly became interested: "Officer, who are you looking for? Just tell me, I basically know all the residents living in this building."
"Let's find an old lady named Kopalova." Victoria looked at the fat aunt and asked: "She may be in her nineties this year. According to the information, she lives here. Do you know her?"
Unexpectedly, after hearing this, the fat lady shook her head and said, "I have never heard of anyone named Kopalova. Are you mistaken?"
"There should be no mistake." Victoria thought that the information she knew were all from more than seventy years ago, and it was entirely possible that she had found the wrong place, so she said in an uncertain tone: "According to the information we have
, she lives in this building. If you didn’t know her, maybe she would have moved away long ago.”
"Officer, don't worry, I'll call and ask." The fat aunt took out her mobile phone, dialed a number, and said to the mobile phone: "I want to ask you something, did a man named "Long" live in this building before?
Kopalova’s old lady, if she were still alive, would be over ninety years old now?”
The person who answered the phone was silent for a long time and said slowly: "Yes, an old lady named Kopalova did live here before, but she moved away in 1999."
"Do you know where she is now?" The fat aunt glanced at Victoria in front of her and continued: "The police are looking for her."
The other party gave an address, and after the fat aunt wrote it down in her notes, she said repeatedly: "Okay, I'll remember it. Thank you, thank you!"
After making the call, the fat aunt handed the address written on the paper to Kopalova: "Officer, this is Kopalova's later address. You can go there and try your luck to see if you can find her.
"
Victoria took the note and after reading the address clearly, her eyes widened in surprise.
Seeing this, Sokov quickly asked with concern: "Vika, what's wrong?"
"Look at this address." Victoria handed the note to Sokov: "It's near our home, just a few houses away."
Knowing that Kopalova's current address was only a few houses away from his own residence, his heart beat faster. He said nervously: "Vika, let's try our luck now and see if we can
Find her in person."
In this way, Sokov drove as fast as possible to the address on the note.
After the two walked into the unit this time, they saw that there was no duty room on the first floor. Sokov couldn't help but asked anxiously: "Vika, there is no duty room in the building here. Who should we contact to learn about the situation?"
"Don't worry." Victoria comforted Sokov: "I can knock on two houses at random and ask them about the situation. Don't worry, they will fully cooperate with me when they see the uniform I am wearing."
Sokov did not object to Victoria's statement, but urged her to act quickly: "Vika, let's act quickly."
Knocking on the door on the first floor, the person who opened the door was an elderly man with a slight hunchback.
After sizing up the two people in front of him, he looked at Victoria and asked, "Officer, what can I do for you?"
"Hello, old man." Victoria asked politely: "I would like to ask if there is an old lady named Kopalova in this building?"
"Kopalova?!" The old man raised his eyebrows when he heard the name, and asked tentatively: "What are you looking for her for?"
"We want to make a documentary related to the Patriotic War." Victoria did not tell the old man the truth, but made up a reason that seemed very reasonable: "And Kopalova, as a photojournalist for "Izvestia",
She has participated in many important battles and we hope to obtain more information from her."
"Oh, that's it." After hearing Victoria's explanation, the old man lowered his guard and even took the initiative to say: "I know the Kopalova you are talking about. His son Semyon and I are good friends."
Sokov looked at the old man carefully and felt that he must be sixty or seventy years old, and he was friends with Kopalova's son, which made sense.
"Oh, you are good friends with her son Semyon?" Victoria asked somewhat unexpectedly: "Can you tell us where her son is now?"
"Of course." The old man sighed and said, "He is lying in a cemetery about ten kilometers away from here. If you want to mourn him, you can go and see him."
"How did he die?" Sokov thought about Kopalova's son Semyon, who might be his own child, and asked with some urgency: "Is it illness or other reasons?"
"Two years ago, he took his son's car to attend a friend's wedding in the countryside. On the way back, he collided with a large truck and lost his life on the spot." The old man said solemnly: "His son
Died in a car accident with him."
The muscles on Sokov's face twitched violently. If Semyon was his son, then Semyon's son was his grandson. Unexpectedly, they both died in the car accident, which made him feel heartbroken.
"That's such a pity." Victoria shook her head and continued to ask: "Who else is in Kopalova's family?"
"There are also Semyon's grandson and granddaughter." The old man said, "But the grandson does not live here. Only his granddaughter stays here to take care of her great-grandmother."
Sokov couldn't help but glance at Victoria and thought what a coincidence. The Lida whom Victoria took care of was her great-grandmother, and the person taking care of Kopalova now was also her great-granddaughter.
"Can you tell us her house number?" Victoria asked.
"On the second floor, after going upstairs, the first house on the right side of the stairs is Kopalova's home."
The two came to the second floor and followed the old man's instructions to the first house on the right side of the stairs. Sokov stepped forward with some urgency and rang the doorbell.
After the doorbell rang several times, Sokov heard footsteps coming towards the door. The next moment, a young woman's voice came from inside: "Who are you? What's the matter here?"
Now it was time for Victoria to take action again. She took two steps forward, raised the ID in her hand, faced the smoke and said, "I am Police Officer Victoria, and I want to ask Kopalova about something."
The person at the door may have seen Victoria's police officer ID and opened the door readily.
Sokov saw clearly that it was a young girl with blond shawl hair, and his heart beat faster than expected. He secretly asked himself: "Could this be his great-granddaughter?"
After seeing Victoria entering the door, Sokov also wanted to follow. The young girl stopped Sokov with her hand and turned to Victoria: "Officer, is this person with you?"
"Yes," Victoria nodded, and then said, "It's just that he has something important to ask Kopalova."
After entering the room, Sokov clearly saw a gray-haired old lady sitting on the sofa, with a small blanket covering her legs, watching TV.
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading the exciting content! When he saw a few people entering the living room, he said calmly: "Regina, who are they, are they your friends?"
"No, great-grandmother." The girl called Regina quickly walked a few steps to Kopalova and said to her: "They are here to find you."
"Looking for me?" The old lady looked up at Victoria and Sokov and said with confusion: "I don't know you, what do you want from me?"
"Hello, Kopalova!" Victoria nodded to the old lady and continued: "My name is Victoria, and my great-grandmother is Lida. She had dealt with you during the Great Patriotic War. Do you still remember?
"
Hearing what Victoria said, the old lady fell into deep thought and seemed to be searching for the memory of Lida from the depths of her memory. After an unknown amount of time, she said slowly: "There are many people named Lida among the people I know.
Who was your great-grandmother Lida, and what did she do before?"
"She is an anti-aircraft artillery commander." When Victoria said this, she glanced at Sokov again and continued: "She said that the first time she met you was in the city during the Battle of Stalingrad.
They are subordinates of Sokov, commander of the 41st Guards Division."
Hearing Victoria mention Sokov's name, the old lady's cloudy eyes suddenly became clear: "It turns out to be that Lida, I have an impression. When I returned to Moscow from Europe in the 1950s, I once
I met her once. How was she? How is she now?"
"She is now almost a hundred years old and has Alzheimer's disease. She is sometimes sober and sometimes confused." Victoria sighed and said, "I'm afraid her time is running out."
"Is it related to her that you came here to see me today?" the old lady asked.