Red Moscow

Sokov took back his ID and said gently: "Comrade Director, I am here with a friend today, you don't have to be so polite."

"Did you come here with your friends?" The director glanced at Karina and Liena, then stopped at Karina and asked tentatively: "You came here with Karina?"

"Yes." Sokov did not deny the director's speculation: "Karina is my friend. She said she needed me to accompany her to do something, so I followed her here."

"So, have you ever thought about asking Lena about her two sons?"

Since the director has spoken to this extent, Sokov will naturally not deny it: "Yes, my coming here today is indeed related to Lena's two sons. I heard that they died in Stalingrad, why not Pay their pensions?”

"General Sokov," after hearing what Sokov said, the director began to complain: "It's not that I won't handle it for her, but the superiors have special regulations. Although I sympathize with her, I can't do anything about it."

"What rules?"

"General Sokov," the director said, "As a commander who has been on the front line, you naturally know that after every battle or battle, the troops will definitely count the actual number of people in each unit, and send them to the field hospital behind. The wounded, and other personnel who have not returned to the army within the specified time and whose sacrifice has not been confirmed, will be temporarily classified as "missing".

Disappearances usually occur in the following situations: those who were sacrificed but no body was found, those who were captured by the enemy, those who fell behind in battle, those who intentionally left the team, those who were unable to return to the team due to injuries or accidents, etc.,..."

Unexpectedly, as soon as the director said this, Lena suddenly said loudly: "My sons did not become prisoners of the Germans, nor did they deliberately leave the team and become deserters. They died on the battlefield."

Seeing that Lena's mood suddenly lost control, Sokov was worried that it would affect the conversation between himself and the director, so he quickly winked at Karina and motioned for her to comfort Lena. Seeing Sokov winking at her, Karina immediately understood. She hurriedly persuaded Lena and pushed the wheelchair out of the office, leaving only Sokov and the director.

"General Sokov." After the director stood up and closed the door, he continued to Sokov: "There are many types of disappearances. The first type is that after our soldiers sacrificed their lives on the battlefield, there are always situations where no body is found. , for example, his comrades never saw it with their own eyes, the body was buried and crushed, or even the worst case was that the body was blown up by artillery shells. Especially in the battlefield environment where our army had to retreat, because there was no time to clear the battlefield and bury the martyrs. Those whose bodies cannot be found can only be temporarily listed as missing persons.

The second type is, of course, being captured by the enemy. You should know this better than me, especially after every major battle is defeated, tens of thousands of our troops are captured. It is difficult for us to determine which commanders and fighters were captured, and it is impossible to check with the enemy. We can only temporarily include those who cannot be found on the missing list.

The third type can actually be called "temporary disappearance", that is, after the battle of a certain battle, individual commanders and soldiers did not return to the team on time due to various reasons, such as being trapped behind enemy lines and dormant, such as being injured and hiding in the mountains and forests, or falling behind during the march. Being separated from the main force and so on. Since they are not present during the roll call after the war, they can only be included in the missing list first. When some of them return to the team after a period of time, they will be removed from the missing list.

The fourth type, commonly known as "desertion" in war years, is a shameful act of deserting from the army during the battle because of cowardice and fear of death. "

At this point, the director suddenly lowered his voice and said: "General Sokov, you should still remember that Order No. 227 issued by the Supreme Commander himself, during the Battle of Stalingrad, ordered all commanders and combatants to retreat before receiving the order to retreat. Don’t take a step back.”

"Yes, I remember." Sokov thought to himself, this order is not only famous in this era, but also in later generations, people who have a little knowledge of the history of World War II all know this famous order: "Give this order When the order was issued, a supervisory team carrying machine guns was even organized to prevent the retreat of the troops, which played a certain role in stabilizing the situation in Stalingrad."

"General Sokov, do you know why I have delayed applying for Lena's pension?"

"Why?" Sokov was very curious about what kind of answer the other party would give.

"Lena's two sons were transferred to Stalingrad not long after they joined the army." The director said cautiously: "You also know that the recruits have not been on the battlefield and have not undergone systematic military training. The sound of gunfire As soon as the sound is heard, many people will be frightened into panic. In this case, there are also cases of deserting from the army, or even voluntarily surrendering to the Germans. So I cannot identify her without obtaining favorable testimony. Did his two sons die, were captured by the Germans or became deserters?"

Sokov waited for the other party to finish speaking, then continued: "Disappearances on the battlefield are actually divided into various situations and cannot be generalized. Some are temporary disappearances, such as stragglers and separated soldiers who may successfully return to the team in a short period of time. Some are missing in stages, such as those who were finally confirmed after being captured, or whose remains were finally discovered after the war, etc. As long as their whereabouts are known, these missing persons will be re-counted into the list of sacrifices and prisoners, and they will not be considered real Some are missing. Some are indeed permanently missing. In fact, most of them are commanders and fighters whose bodies cannot be found."

When the director heard this, he realized that Sokov still wanted to put in a good word for Lena. After hesitating for a moment, he said: "If it can be proved that Lena's sons died on the battlefield, then it would be fine to issue them a martyr certificate." Okay. The thing I’m most worried about right now is that I handed Lina her son’s martyrdom certificate, and the next moment, her son appeared out of nowhere.”

Sokov felt that the director's statement was very reasonable. After all, from the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War to the end of the war, more than 20 million Soviet soldiers and civilians died. In addition, millions of soldiers became prisoners of the German army. If you want to investigate the whereabouts of two ordinary soldiers, it is tantamount to finding a needle in a haystack. The director in front of him was worried that something would go wrong, so he adopted delaying tactics. He hoped that after waiting for a year and a half, it would not be too late to issue martyr certificates to Lina's two sons when he found that Lina's son still had not returned.

"Comrade Director, I think you have thought a lot." Sokov first agreed with the Director's statement, and then expressed his own opinion: "But specific issues must be analyzed in detail. Yes, Lena's son is still a It’s understandable to say that they are missing because they are neither alive nor dead. But I wonder if you have considered their mother. Lena is now almost completely blind and has basically lost the ability to take care of herself. She only relies on her husband. Can the pension maintain her normal life?”

"What do you mean, we should still give her a pension?"

Sokov did not answer his question immediately, but asked instead: "Comrade Director, can you tell me what the population of Vladimir is now?"

After hearing Sokov's question, the director answered without hesitation: "This city was built in the early twelfth century and was once the capital of Vladimir-Suzdal Principality. It is now an important railway and highway hub. , the city’s maximum population was 250,000 people.”

"Now." As soon as he finished speaking, Sokov followed up and asked: "How many people are there now?"

The director's expression dimmed: "We conducted a census in the city last month. Today, the total population of Vladimir is more than 167,000, which is more than 80,000 less than in its peak period. "

"Where are all these people going?"

"Most of them have joined the army and gone to the battlefield." The director replied: "If you hadn't just arrived in Vladimir today, you would have noticed that there are basically no young men in the city because they have all gone to the battlefield."

"A total reduction of more than 80,000 people." Sokov sighed and said: "In other words, most of them died on the battlefield. I wonder how many people are included in the missing list?"

The director thought for a moment and then replied: "About three hundred people."

"There are so many people." When Sokov heard this, he couldn't help but said with emotion: "There must be a lot of people like Lena who have come to see you, right?"

"Yes, General Sokov." The director did not deny this. At the same time, he specifically explained to Sokov: "But Lena is the only one who can come to the office directly to see me. After all, she is Karina. I had to meet her personally."

After hearing this, Sokov asked with some confusion: "Why do you have to see Karina when she brought her?"

"Because Karina is not only a city worker, but her father is also one of the leaders of the Moscow East District Soviet." The director explained to Sokov: "If I offend her, I'm afraid it will be difficult for me to carry out my future work. .”

Hearing what the director said, Sokov couldn't help but change his impression. He knew Karina's special status, but he always insisted on his own principles regarding Lena. This is also a very rare quality: "Oh , so that’s how it is.”

"General Sokov." The director thought that Karina and Sokov had been invited today. If he didn't come up with a plan that satisfied both parties, the matter might not end well, so he asked tentatively: "You Any good suggestions?"

Sokov thought to himself that what he encountered today was very important. If he had the opportunity to meet Stalin, he would definitely tell him about it. He happened to hear the director asking himself, so he replied: "Comrade Director, I think that all soldiers who disappeared in the Great Patriotic War and whose exact information has not been obtained so far should be treated as sacrificed soldiers and issued according to current standards. Give a one-time pension to their family members, and if it is found that some people have not sacrificed, they will be corrected, and the pensions already paid will not be recovered."

When the director heard what Sokov said, his eyes widened in surprise: "General Sokov, is this possible?"

"What's wrong?" Sokov asked.

"What if, I'm talking about what if." The director said anxiously: "What if I follow this plan and am criticized by my superiors?"

"Comrade Director, this is the first time I have encountered this kind of thing today." Sokov said cautiously: "After I return to Moscow, if I have the opportunity to see the Supreme Commander in person, I will definitely report this matter to him Yes. If you set an example first, you might even be commended."

The director asked with shock on his face: "General Sokov, can you still see the Supreme Commander himself?"

"Yes, I can see it." After Sokov said this, he looked at the director and asked, "Don't you believe it?"

"Believe it, believe it, of course I believe it." The director was thinking to himself: If Sokov didn't have a backstage, how could he have become a general at such a young age and even wear the rank of general. You know, many commanders have worked in the army for decades. After much hard work, they finally became generals. They are also the lowest-ranking major generals. They are still very far away from generals.

At this moment, he had determined that Sokov was a man of unusual origins, and his thoughts couldn't help but change. "Comrade General," he made a decision in a very short period of time, preparing to follow Sokov's proposal to grant Lena a pension. After all, whether it was Karina or the general in front of her, it was him who This character cannot afford to offend: "I think what you said makes sense. Lena should be given a pension first so that the martyr's wife and mother can live a better life."

Sokov waited for the other party to finish speaking, smiled at him and said: "Comrade Director, you have made a right decision. I believe there will be many families of martyrs in Vladimir City who will be grateful to you."

"Look what you said, I'm just performing my duties. It's good if I don't get scolded. How dare I expect them to be grateful to me." Although the director pretended to have an indifferent expression on his face, the slightly upturned corners of his mouth were already Exposing his thoughts.

"Now that you've made your decision, I think it's okay to let Karina and Lena in."

"Yes, yes, you are right." The director quickly walked to the door, opened the door, and said to Karina who was standing in the corridor: "Karina, push Lena in, I think we can Let’s have a good chat.”

Karina pushed her wheelchair and walked into the office anxiously. But when she saw Sokov smiling at her, she suddenly realized that maybe the reinforcements she had invited today had played an unexpected role. She quickly asked the director: "Comrade director, what did you say today?"

"Karina, I just discussed with General Sokov. I think Lena's two sons should have died on the battlefield, but for some reason, the bodies were not found, which led to them being included in the list of missing persons. ." The director sat up straight and said seriously: "So I will arrange for people to help Lena apply for the martyr certificate, and distribute the pensions to her two sons as soon as possible."