Red Moscow

Sokov once heard Asiya say that her house is a suite, and she usually lives in the inner room, while her parents live in the outer room. But after he followed Nina to the residence, he couldn't help but doubt Assia's words.

In addition to the living room, kitchen, toilet, and bathroom, this house has four bedrooms. Just when Sokov wanted to ask Asiya what was going on, Asiya had already asked her mother: "Mom, what's going on? How did my family become like this?"

"Yes, Nina." Sokov also echoed, "I heard from Assia that your house is just a suite, and the current house is clearly a four-bedroom house. What's going on?"

"Misha, you misunderstood Asiya, she didn't lie to you." Nina noticed from Sokov's tone that he had misunderstood Asiya, and quickly explained: "My house used to live in a suite. "

"Then what happened to this house?"

"Misha, you should know that after the war broke out, many people were evacuated to the rear, and their houses were naturally vacated." Nina said: "In addition to these evacuated people, there are also many people who did not leave after going to the battlefield. Shen sacrificed, but they did not leave their relatives behind, so there appeared a group of unoccupied houses."

When Sokov heard this, he understood what was going on. In later generations of Moscow, there were special "household clans" who specialized in occupying unoccupied houses. What he didn't expect was that this "household family" appeared as early as the 1940s.

"Nina," Sokov asked tentatively, "So, you are occupying this unoccupied property privately?"

"No, no, it's not what you imagined." But Nina put on a show and said, "Although some people will occupy those houses that are empty, I never do such a thing. It is said that the original owners of the houses are all dead." It’s an unowned house, so the unit assigned this house to me.”

"So that's what happened." After figuring out what was going on, Assia breathed a sigh of relief, and asked her mother in a reproachful tone, "Then why didn't you tell me?"

"What's the use of telling you." Nina said a little unhappy: "You and your father are away all year round, and you can't go home several times a year. Even if I tell you, I am the only one living in this house." people."

"Okay, okay, don't talk." Asiya interrupted Nina's words, and pushed her towards the kitchen: "Let's go cook, my stomach is almost starving."

"Lieutenant Koshkin," Sokov greeted Koshkin when he saw Asiya and her daughter enter the kitchen, "Let's stay and have dinner together later."

If someone else made such an invitation to him, Koshkin might still refuse. But now the person who asked him to stay for dinner was Sokov who had been with him for more than three months, so he agreed without thinking: "Okay, Comrade General, I will stay for dinner later."

After the two sat down on the sofa in the living room, Sokov remembered what happened to Lena, and asked Koshkin tentatively: "Lieutenant Koshkin, do you think it can be done when I got rid of you just now?" ?”

Hearing what Sokov said, Koshkin was taken aback for a moment, and then he understood what the other party was talking about, so he nodded and said: "Comrade General, please rest assured that as long as there is the code of the certification notice, it will be easy to check. Tell me everything you want to know."

"That's a big thank you."

"No, this is what I should do." After Koshkin said this, he quickly glanced in the direction of the kitchen, and asked in a low voice: "Comrade General, I want to ask, the salesperson named Lena What's the relationship with you?"

"Relationship? What's the relationship?!" Sokov said a little dumbfounded: "I just saw her for the first time today, and I just heard her mention her husband's affairs. I felt sorry for her, so I was going to help her. That's all."

Sokov's explanation sounded like a cover-up to Koshkin, he hummed lightly, and replied with a half-smile: "I see, Comrade General, I will keep it a secret for you. "

Seeing that Koshkin had misunderstood, Sokov was about to explain, but he heard someone knocking on the door.

Without waiting for Sokov's order, Koshkin got up and opened the door.

The two people standing outside the door are Damana who sells flowers and Mitchuk who guards the factory gate.

Koshkin had dealt with both of them, so he naturally knew their identities, so he asked bluntly, "What's the matter with you?"

"Hello, Comrade Lieutenant." Mitschek said to Koshkin with a smile; "We are here as guests."

"Koshkin," Sokov, who was sitting on the sofa, only heard someone talking at the door, but due to the problem of viewing angle, he couldn't see the people outside clearly, so he asked Koshkin, "Who is here? "

"Comrade General," Koshkin reported back to Sokov, "it is Damana who led us to the bakery today, and her husband, the old militiaman Mitschek who guards the factory gate."

"Koshkin, stop standing at the door and let them in quickly."

Koshkin agreed, took a step back, and made way for the two visitors: "Come in, please."

"Hello, Comrade General." After entering the door, Mitschke quickly came to Sokov. He took off the peaked cap on his head, nodded and bowed and said, "It's a pleasure to see you again."

"Hello, Mitchak." Sokov knew that this person was a neighbor of Assia's family, and showed him due courtesy: "I am very glad that you can come to my house as a guest."

"Hello, Comrade General." Although Damana had never met Sokov, when she heard her husband address him as General, she immediately realized that Assia's husband was a big man, and said respectfully: "I didn't get to see you just now, and I'm quite sorry. I didn't expect to see you so soon."

After she finished speaking in one breath, she grasped the left and right and said, "By the way, where is Nina?"

"Nina and Assia are cooking in the kitchen." Sokov politely said to the two, "Please sit down."

"Mitchik, you stay here to chat with the general." Damana said to Mitschke in an orderly tone, "I'll go to the kitchen and help Nina cook." If there was any reaction, she carried a cloth bag and walked towards the kitchen.

"Please sit down, Michik." Seeing Damana go to the kitchen, Sokov greeted Michik to sit down, handed him a cigarette, and began to chat with him: "You are at the factory gate every day. How long have you been on guard?"

Mitschke took the cigarette and put it in his mouth, and lit a match, but he didn't light it for himself. Instead, he helped Sokov light it first, and then lit his own cigarette.

After he took a deep breath, he said with emotion: "Good smoke, really good smoke. Comrade General, to tell you the truth, my colleagues in the factory brought back the captured German cigarettes from the front, but that kind of smoke It smells like horse manure, and it is impossible to smoke. It is still an authentic cigarette produced in our country.”

Sokov agrees with Mitschke's statement. After all, he has also smoked captured German cigarettes, and the taste is far worse than that of domestic cigarettes. He nodded and said: "That's right, when I was fighting two years ago, I also seized German cigarettes. I couldn't stand it after I smoked one. With this lesson, I later Never smoked German cigarettes again."

"Comrade General," Mitchik said, sitting with such a high-level commander for the first time, he was inevitably a little nervous, and he tried hard to find a topic: "I want to ask, you became a general at such a young age. Do you know where you participated in the battle?"

"I have participated in many battles." Mitschke's question made Sokov not know where to start, and he could only say casually: "The first battle I participated in was the big counterattack under the city of Moscow. Then, He fought the German army for several months outside Moscow.

Soon after our army launched an offensive in the Kharkov area, my troops were transferred to Stalingrad to build a defense line on Mamayev Hill. Fortunately, we deployed our defenses several months in advance, so that we could establish a complete defense system before the Germans launched an attack on the city. "

"Mamayev Hill?!" During the Battle of Stalingrad, Michek, who stayed in Moscow, often listened to the intelligence bureau battle reports on the radio, so he naturally had a certain degree of understanding of the battle that took place at Mamayev Hill. He tentatively asked: "Comrade General, as far as I know, the troops guarding Mamayev Post were first the 73rd Infantry Brigade, and later became the 41st Guards Infantry Division. I wonder which unit you command? "

"These two units are under the command of Comrade General." Koshkin hurriedly replied: "When he was the commander of the 73rd Infantry Brigade, the troops were stationed on Mamayev Hill. Later, after a long period of fighting, the troops were reduced. It was very powerful, so the superior transferred the 41st Guards Division, merged the two units, and appointed him as the division commander."

Mitchak heard this. Standing up suddenly, he said in surprise: "Comrade General, so you are the famous and outstanding General Sokov." He put the pipe in his hand into the ashtray on the coffee table, bent over respectfully To Sokov: "Please forgive me for not knowing your identity just now. If there is anything wrong, please forgive me."

"Uncle Mitchik." Seeing an elderly man nodding and bowing in front of him, Sokov felt very uncomfortable, so he hurriedly greeted him and said, "Everyone is our own, so there is no need to be so polite. Sit down."

Seeing Sokov being so polite to him, Mitschke couldn't help feeling warm, and then sat down again. This time he asked cautiously: "Comrade General, according to the intelligence bureau's battle report, you are invincible on the battlefield, but why were you injured and hospitalized?"

Hearing Mitschke ask the reason for his injury, Sokov briefly told the other party what happened that day, and finally said: "Fortunately, the subordinates accompanying me at that time were clever and sent me back to Klemen Hill immediately. Grid, and emergency treatment was carried out, otherwise I would have been lying in the cold mud."

"Look at what you said, Comrade General." After listening to Sokov, Michik flattered with a smile: "I can see your face, you can live a long life, so no matter how dangerous it is on the battlefield, you can still survive." survive."

"Thank you for your good words." Sokov smiled and said to Mitchak: "I hope it will be as you said."

While chatting, Asya came out of the kitchen with a tray, and she said to Koshkin, "Comrade Lieutenant, please come and help me."

"Happy to help!" Koshkin immediately got up to greet him, took the tray in Assia's hand, came to the dining table, and placed all the dishes in the tray on the table one by one.

Soon, Nina and Damana came out of the kitchen with freshly prepared meals in their hands.

When all the meals were prepared and everyone was seated, Assia picked up the vodka brought by Mitchik, opened the lid, and poured some into the glasses in front of everyone.

Mitchuk stood up holding the wine glass, glanced at everyone, then raised the glass and said, "For the health of General Sokov, let's have a drink!"

"Wait a minute," Sokov felt a little embarrassed when he heard that Mischek wanted to toast in his own name. He hurriedly leaned on the edge of the table to stand up. Assia quickly reached out to hold his arm and helped him stood up. Sokov raised the wine glass in his hand and said to everyone: "For the health of everyone, let's have a toast together."

After drinking twice in a row, Sokov sat down again.

Assia put a bowl of red cabbage soup in front of Sokov: "Misha, this is the red cabbage soup made by my mother. Try it."

"Misha! Can I call you Misha?!" Damana interjected, "Nina's cabbage soup is the most famous here. If it wasn't for the staff in the canteen It's full, and she won't be assigned to work in the bakery."

With a neighbor as chatty as Damana, Sokov quickly learned many secrets about Asiya's family. He thought to himself, this aunt's mouth lacks a gate, and he can't tell her about his affairs casually, otherwise it will spread all over the city soon.

While everyone was eating, they suddenly heard someone outside shouting loudly: "Koshkin, Lieutenant Koshkin, where are you?"

No one heard the first few shouts from the people downstairs. But because of his persistent yelling, the sharp-eared Assia heard it first. She grabbed Sokov's arm and said, "Misha, it seems that someone is calling Lieutenant Koshkin outside."

"No way." Hearing what Assia said, Sokov's first reaction was that it was impossible. He came to Khimki town today on a whim. How could others know that he would come here? Someone even shouted Koshkin's name. "Maybe you misheard."

"No, I heard it right." Assia said, "If you don't believe me, you can listen carefully, and you can hear someone downstairs calling Lieutenant Koshkin's name."

When everyone heard what Assia said, they all pricked up their ears and listened carefully to the movement outside, and sure enough they heard someone calling Koshkin's name. Koshkin walked quickly to the window, opened the window and looked out, and saw Lunev's driver, calling his name loudly downstairs.

"What's the matter?" Koshkin asked the yelling driver below: "What happened?"

"It's an urgent matter, something urgent happened." The driver said to Koshkin downstairs: "The deputy minister asked General Sokov to go to his place immediately, and have important matters to discuss with him."